From the Australian Jewish News:
Toben gives Holocaust denial apology in court
PETER KOHNDR Fredrick Toben this week gave an apology in the Federal Court of Australia for being in contempt of court by continually featuring Holocaust denial material on his Adelaide Institute website.
He gave the apology during a contempt hearing of the Federal Court sitting in Adelaide on Tuesday.
After being called up to the bar by Justice Michael Moore to apologise if he agreed with it, Dr Toben began to give a qualified apology.
When Justice Moore said that his comments were inconsistent with an apology, Dr Toben gave a full apology, without embellishment and undertook to remove all Holocaust denial material from the website by 4pm on December 5 and not to replace it.
Solicitor Steven Lewis of legal firm Slater & Gordon said after the hearing: “It’s a significant victory for the community. The ECAJ was vindicated in their actions and has forced him to acknowledge his contempt of court and remove the offending material.�The case was adjourned to February 28, when applicant Jeremy Jones of the ECAJ, represented by senior counsel Robin Margo SC, will have an opportunity to complain about any continuing breaches of the court orders.
When The AJN checked the Adelaide Institute website hours after the hearing ended, it still featured denial material as well as comments that apparently contradicted his unqualified court apology.
A summary of the hearing on the website referred to an apology being given “under duress?� which Lewis said he would take up with Dr Toben next week.
In 2002, the ECAJ won a landmark court case when a Federal Court judge ordered Dr Toben to remove all material denying the Holocaust from his Adelaide Institute website, an order he subsequently breached.
This week’s court hearing is the culmination of a 10-month battle that began when contempt orders were served on Dr Toben by the Federal Court, after he returned from a Holocaust denial conference in Iran in January.
