As you approach the breathtaking Cape Bridgewater from Melbourne, you are drawn to a striking billboard that boldly proclaims: 'We've expanded Australia's best network to Cape Bridgewater'. This assertion is not merely a catchy marketing slogan; it underscores the ethical dilemmas confronting Telstra. During the arbitration proceedings concerning my claims, Telstra submitted nine individual witness statements. These declarations, made under oath before the arbitrator on December 12, 1994, asserted, with unwarranted confidence, that my concerns about Telstra's unreliable network in Cape Bridgewater were utterly unfounded. Telstra insisted that its telephone exchange and the extensive infrastructure supporting the region were of the highest international standards. They even went so far as to claim before the arbitrator that my business was not experiencing any persistent problems with telephone and fax services. Such bold statements raise profound questions regarding the integrity and veracity of Telstra's claims,
My partner, Cathy, captured the image above after we decided to leave Portland and Cape Bridgewater behind. This marked the end of our thirty-year journey at the Cape Bridgewater Holiday Camp, filled with cherished memories. Although we made countless friends, we ultimately chose not to reunite with them after selling the camp in December 2001.
Our decision was heavily influenced by Telstra's continued failure to resolve our long-standing telephone issues, which began in February 1988 and led to a costly arbitration process that drained over $300,000. Despite assurances from the government and AUSTEL (now ACMA), our phone problems remained unresolved throughout.
After finalizing the sale, we were shocked to see Telstra acknowledging our claims by erecting a sign that validated our struggles after thirty years.
I often reflect on the toll of the arbitration process, which lasted from November 1993 to May 1995. It disrupted our lives and impacted Jenny and Darren Lewis, the couple who bought the camp. Tragically, as the Melbourne Magistrates Court noted, they faced bankruptcy by December 2008 (Refer to Chapter 4 The New Owners Tell Their Story and Chapter 5 Immoral - Hypocritical Conduct
I encourage you to read this story and consider our experience. Please visit Price Waterhouse Coopers Deloitte and watch the third YouTube video featuring others who, like me, trusted the government's arbitration process to resolve their telephone issues.
The type of corroded copper wire that I, along with approximately 120,000 other COT-type Australian citizens, experienced reflects the serious shortcomings in the government's investigation of our claims. My concerns, including those related to the lack of action from the government regulator AUSTEL (now ACMA), were warranted, especially given that the arbitrator and Telstra did not correctly address my billing claims during the arbitration process. This situation highlights the significant issues within Australia's copper network, as documented on absentjustice.com and in sources like Delimiter’s "Worst of the worst: Photos of Australia’s copper network | Delimiter. The ongoing telephone problems we face in 2025 are inexcusable.
Ongoing telephone problems
23 June 2015: Had the arbitrator appointed to assess my arbitration claims correctly investigated ALL of my submitted evidence he would have had to value my claim as an ongoing problem NOT a past problem as his final award shows. It is clear from the following link dated > Unions raise doubts over Telstra's copper network; workers using ... that when reading in conjunction with Can We Fix The Can which was released in March 1994, these faults copper-wire network faults have been in existence for more than 24-years.
9 November 2017: Sadly, many Australians in rural Australia can only access a second-rate NBN. This didn’t have to be the case: had the Australian government ensured the arbitration process it endorsed to investigate the COT cases’ claims of ongoing telephone problems was conducted transparently, it could have used our evidence to start fixing the problems we uncovered in 1993/94. This news article https://theconversation.com/the-accc-investigation-into-the-nbn-will-be-useful-but-its-too-little-too-late-87095 and absentjustice.com/Introduction again shows that the COT Cases claims of ailing copperwire network was more than valid.
Almost two decades after this cover-up had been executed, with the government spin doctors successfully branding my claims as frivolous and me as a vexatious litigant, I have been left the government stopped financing the roll-out of the National Broadband Network (NBN), which still utilises part of the existing, seriously degraded copper network. In fact, the “… state of the copper network is considerably worse than expected, leading to extensive work beyond the node,” say leaked documents.
28 April 2018: This ABC news article regarding the NBN see >NBN boss blames Government's reliance on copper for slow ... needs to be read in conjunction with my own story because had these lies told under oath by so many Telstra employees had not occurred then the government would have been in a better position to evaluate just how bad the copper-wire Customer Access Network (CAN) really was just 4-years ago.
In January 2025, the latest pre-election 2025 announcement, Anthony Albanese, Prime Minister of Australia said only a Labor would "finish the NBN" and "keep the NBN in public hands". Credit: The Nightly
Labor will inject $3bn in equity into the national broadband network, as Anthony Albanese warns against letting the critical Coalition control the necessary infrastructure.
In his latest pre-election announcement, the Prime Minister on Monday said only a Labor government would "finish the NBN" and "keep the NBN in public hands".
The equity injection will fund the upgrade of Australia's remaining national fibre to the node network, which the Government claims will deliver higher internet speeds for more than 600,000 premises by 2030.
Mr Albanese claimed the alternative was for the coalition to sell the NBN off "to the highest bidder".
Take yourself back to the last time the coalition sought government; they said that they would stop the rollout of fibre because it was all about (according to Tony Abbott, Australia's previous prime minister) downloading videos and movies. They didn't understand that the NBN is about productivity, driving the economy, creating jobs," the PM said.
It's about how we live our lives. It is about telehealth and education services. It is absolutely critical to the way that a modern economy and a modern society function. refer to https://shorturl.at/68hD6.
Sadly, many rural Australians can only access a second-rate NBN. This wouldn’t have been the case if the Australian Government had ensured that the arbitration process they endorsed to investigate the COT cases’ claims of ongoing communication problems had been conducted lawfully.
Example 1: File 942 scroll down to no 942 attached to AS-CAV 923 to 946
Example 2 : File 34-C - scroll down to 34-C attached to AS-CAV Exhibit 1 to 47
AS-CAV Exhibit 1 to 47 – AS-CAV Exhibit 48-A to 91 – AS-CAV Exhibit 92 to 127 – AS-CAV Exhibit 128 to 180 – AS-CAV Exhibit 181 to 233 – AS CAV Exhibit 234 to 281 – AS-CAV Exhibit 282 to 323 – AS-CAV Exhibit 324-a to 420 – AS-CAV Exhibit 421 to 469 – AS-CAV Exhibit 470 to 486 – AS-CAV Exhibit 488-a to 494-e – AS-CAV Exhibits 495 to 541 – AS-CAV Exhibits 542-a to 588 – AS-CAV Exhibits 589 to 647 – AS-CAV Exhibits 648-a to 700 – AS-CAV Exhibit 765-A to 789 – AS-CAV Exhibit 790 to 818 – AS-CAV Exhibit 819 to 843 – AS-CAV 923 to 946 – AS-CAV Exhibit 1150 to 1169 –AS-CAV 1103 to 1132 – AS-CAV Exhibit 1002 to 1019 – AS-CAV Exhibit 996 to 1001 – GS-CAV Exhibit 1 to 88 – GS-CAV Exhibit 89 to 154-b – GS-CAV Exhibit 155 to 215 – GS-CAV Exhibit 216 to 257 – GS-CAV Exhibit 258 to 323 – GS-CAV Exhibit 410-a to 447 – GS-CAV Exhibit 448 to 458 – GS-CAV Exhibit 459 to 489– GS-CAV Exhibit 490 to 521 – GS-CAV 522 to 580 – GS-CAV Exhibit 581 to 609
© 2017 Absent Justice
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Telstra internal memo, 3 November 1993 (AS6 file AS-CAV Exhibit 1 to 47
