Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman

I never imagined that my quest for truth would plunge me into a murky abyss where words like corruption, bribery, exploitation, fraud, and malfeasance weren’t mere accusations — they were the very essence of the landscape. Within the COT arbitrations, these words echoed ominously, whispered by the souls devoured by the process, left to flounder in despair. I had shied away from employing such weighty terms back then; they felt too dire, too dramatic, too damning. But the other COT Cases spoke freely of graft and crookedness, of thuggery and shadows, of deceit and sinfulness — language that once seemed exaggerated, now chills me to the core.

 

That was before the veil was torn away, and the foul truth came crawling out.

 

My research dragged me into dark corridors I never wished to traverse. I wasn’t hunting for scandal; I was chasing truth. Yet, every document I unearthed, every internal memo I stumbled upon, and every betrayal of public words whispered in private led me deeper into a treacherous realm, so intricately designed for malice. It was as if the entire arbitration process were a grotesque charade built on layers of deceit, and the more I unearthed, the more the festering rot revealed itself.

 

One revelation still haunts me.

 

AUSTEL — the government’s own communications regulator — delivered a sanitised report to the Minister for Communications, The Hon Michael Lee MP. “Sanitised,” a disingenuous euphemism, cloaked a sinister reality. In that report, AUSTEL brazenly declared that the Cape Bridgewater exchange, which served my business during its first three and a half torturous years, was a modern ARK exchange. A system supposedly conceived long after the archaic RAX exchanges had been cast aside. By their twisted narrative, it was meant to be a bastion of reliability and stability, capable of sustaining a business like mine.

 

But beneath that polished façade lay a monstrous lie.

 

The reality — the truth they viciously buried — was that the exchange was an obsolete RAX system, crumbling and rife with faults. It was the kind of relic that should have been banished long before I ever opened my doors. Instead, it languished in place, malfunctioning day after day, while my business was mercilessly crushed, all the while AUSTEL assured the Minister that everything was state-of-the-art and functioning flawlessly.

 

This was no mere mistake. It wasn’t an innocent oversight. It was a calculated deception.

 

And once I grasped the depths of that betrayal, the words I had once endeavoured to avoid — thuggery, shadiness, deceit — transformed from perceived exaggerations into chilling realities. They were now starkly accurate, painfully restrained. What kind of regulator intentionally misleads a Minister? What kind of supposed watchdog turns its back on the citizens it should defend? What kind of governmental body rewrites the very fabric of reality to safeguard Telstra during what was disguised as an independent arbitration?

 

Only an entity that has surrendered its integrity. Only one that has been grotesquely corrupted. Only one that has slinked so far into the darkness that corruption becomes not an aberration but a fundamental way of life.

 

And this is the world I unknowingly stepped into. Not driven by choice or ambition, but because once you start tugging on the threads, the entire fabric begins to unwind. And when it does, you’re confronted with a harrowing truth: a system that was never designed to uphold justice for the COT Cases. A system built on the ironclad protection of Telstra at every turn. A system operating with a treachery so insidious, so methodical, that it can only be described as sinister.

By Alan Smith, Founder of AbsentJustice.com

🧭 Introduction: A Call to Conscience

This letter is not written in anger, but in resolve. I speak for myself and for the 21 fellow Casualties of Telstra (COT) claimants whose lives were upended by a corrupted arbitration process. We were promised justice. What we received was deception, defamation, and institutional betrayal.

🔍 The Anatomy of a Cover-Up

1. Defamation as a Weapon

• A fabricated allegation claimed I verbally harassed the wife of Dr. Gordon Hughes AO, the appointed arbitrator.
• Originated from John Pinnock (Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman), sent to Laurie James (President, Institute of Arbitrators Australia).
• Designed to discredit me and derail scrutiny of the arbitration process.
• I categorically deny this claim. (See Chapter 4 – The Seventh Damning Letter)

2. Dr. Hughes’s Complicit Silence

• Knew the allegation was false.
• Refused to speak out, allowing the lie to damage my reputation and the arbitration’s legitimacy.

3. Laurie James’s Dismissal of My Appeals

• Ignored my requests for investigation.
• Reinforced a culture of complicity and protected unethical conduct.

🧾 Fabrications and Falsehoods

4. John Rundell’s False Letter (Feb 1996)

• Claimed Victoria Police intended to interview me for property damage.
• Used to obstruct Laurie James from investigating my legitimate claims. (See )

5. Treacherous Admission

• Rundell admitted my accountant, Derek Ryan, was correct: his financial report was incomplete.
• This breach should have invalidated the arbitration findings.

6. Dr. Hughes Weaponised Rundell’s Letter

• Used Rundell’s falsehood in his own communication to Laurie James.
• Demonstrates coordinated suppression of truth.

🚨 Institutional Betrayal

7. Victoria Police Refuted Rundell’s Claims

• Barrister Neil Jepson confirmed Brighton CIB’s involvement was misrepresented.
• Pinnock failed to hold Rundell accountable.

8. Pinnock’s Failure to Hold Hughes Accountable

• Allowed Hughes to use misleading documents to influence arbitration outcomes.

9. Corporate Complicity via KPMG

• Rundell was a partner at KPMG during this misconduct.
• Silence from corporate peers adds another layer of betrayal.

🛑 Suppression of Justice

10. Blocked Investigations into COT Claims

• Actions of Hughes, Rundell, and Pinnock obstructed scrutiny of my case and those of fellow claimants.
• Laurie James was close to exposing the corruption—fabrications stopped him. (See Chapter 2 – Inaccurate and Incomplete)

11. Concealed Legal Rights (March 1994)

• One month before signing arbitration agreements, we were stripped of the right to sue consultants for negligence.
• This was deliberately hidden. (See Chapter 5 – Fraudulent Conduct)

12. IAMA’s Silence After Reviewing Evidence (2009)

• Submitted 23 documents across four emails.
• Institute of Arbitrators and Mediators Australia declined to make findings and refused to return the documents. (See The Eleventh Remedy Pursued)

📣 A Rallying Cry for Justice

I speak not out of vengeance, but for truth, accountability, and dignity. I represent not only myself, but 21 fellow COT claimants and countless Australians harmed by Telstra’s negligence. Justice delayed is justice denied—but silence in the face of injustice is the ultimate betrayal of public trust.

🌍 Public Interest and Ongoing Influence

• Dr. Hughes now serves as Principal Legal Representative at a central international legal facility in Melbourne.
• John Rundell operates arbitration centres in Melbourne and Hong Kong.
• Their refusal to address these allegations casts doubt on the transparency and integrity of arbitration itself.

✊ I Refuse to Be Silenced

This letter is a record. A warning. A demand. The truth will not be buried beneath bureaucracy or reputation. The Australian public deserves transparency. The victims of Telstra’s misconduct deserve justice.

Alan Smith
Founder, AbsentJustice.com
Advocate for truth, justice, and reform in Australian arbitration

Would you like help drafting a press release or email pitch to accompany this letter for media outreach? I can also help format this for your website—adding anchor links, chapter references, or even a downloadable version if needed.

Chapter 1- Prior to Arbitration

Government - Corruption. Learn about horrendous crimes and unscrupulous criminals, corrupt politicians and the lawyers who control the legal profession in Australia. Shameful, hideous, and treacherous are just a few words that describe these lawbreakers.

Chapter 2 Corruption in the making

Government - Corruption. Learn about horrendous crimes and unscrupulous criminals, corrupt politicians and the lawyers who control the legal profession in Australia. Shameful, hideous, and treacherous.<

Chapter 4 Deception in the public service

Corruption in government, including non-government self-regulators, undermines the credibility of that government. It erodes the trust of its citizens. 

 

Chapter 5 Fraudulent Conduct

Bribery and corruption in the seat of arbitration in Australia during the COT Cases arbitrations cut deep into the rule of law.

Chapter 6 Intimidation Threats

Corruption in government, including non-government self-regulators, undermines the credibility of that government. It erodes the trust of its citizens. Corruption of public officials.

Chapter 7 TIO Lies Fraud Deception

Tampering with technical evidence, falsification of two similar technical reports, criminal conspiracies to hide from the citizens of Australia the true extent of Telstra's poor telecommunications network

Julian Assange - Hacking TIO Chapter 3

Corruption in government, including non-government self-regulators, undermines the credibility of that government. It erodes the trust of its citizens.