Australian authorities revoked the 27-year-old Isis fighter’s citizenship on the understanding he also held citizenship in Fiji, which denies he is a citizen

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

A diplomatic disagreement was developing between Australia and Fiji as Peter Dutton insisted on Wednesday afternoon that Islamic State fighter, Neil Prakash, was a Fijian citizen.

On Friday it was revealed Australian authorities had revoked the Australian citizenship of 27-year-old Prakash over his association with offshore terrorism groups, on the understanding he also held citizenship in Fiji.

Under Australian law a dual national can be stripped of their Australian citizenship if they have committed terrorists acts, but international law prohibits rendering a person stateless.

However on Tuesday Fijian immigration authorities said they have no record of Prakash, who was born in Australia but has Fijian-Indian and Cambodian background.

Dutton called a press conference on Wednesday afternoon to insist the legal advice given by the government solicitor “was clear”.

“The advice to the government based on all the intricate detail and fact of this particular matter is that Mr Prakash is, by operation of law, a citizen of Fiji,” Dutton said.

“As I say the Fijians were advised some time ago and we’ve been working with the Fijians and will continue that relationship.”

The director of the Fijian immigration department, Nemani Vuniwaqa, told Guardian Australia unequivocally the 27-year-old Prakash had never held or sought Fijian citizenship. He also said no Australian government representative had contacted him.

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“The law states that if you are born outside of Fiji, the father has to apply for citizenship for the child,” Vuniwaqa said. “He hasn’t applied for it, his father hasn’t applied for it.”

Prakash was born in Australia and is of Fijian-Indian and Cambodian background, and the government’s understanding was that he held Fijian citizenship, the Australian reported on Saturday.

“Dual citizens who choose to be involved in terrorism forfeit the privileges of Australian citizenship, and I remain committed to enforcing the legal provisions that remove them,” the home affairs minister, Peter Dutton, said on Saturday.

First reported by the Fiji Sun, Vuniwaqa said he had searched through Fijian immigration records and confirmed Prakash had not entered the country, or applied for citizenship. Nor had his father apply on his behalf, the official said.

“He was born in Australia and has acquired Australian citizenship since birth,” he told the paper.

Vuniwaqa told Guardian Australia he learned of the Australian government’s claim that Prakash was Fijian through the media, and no one had spoken to his department.

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“We should be consulted on that,” he said. “But [now] we wouldn’t be speaking in the same language in the first place because he’s not a Fijian citizen.”

While the government maintains Prakash is indeed a Fijian citizen, under proposed terrorism legislation it would not need to be as definitive.

The new laws, if passed, would allow a minister to strip a convicted terrorist of Australian citizenship regardless of the severity of the conviction and need only be “reasonably satisfied” that the person would have another citizenship.

Asked on Tuesday for clarification on Prakash, a spokesman for the Department of Home Affairs said only that a person may only lose their Australian citizenship under Australian law “if they are a national or citizen of a country other than Australia”.

“Australia is committed to upholding our international legal obligations, including our obligation not to render a person stateless.”

He refused to comment further.

On Wednesday Dutton released a further statement distancing himself from the citizenship cancellation.

“Mr Prakash’s case was brought to my attention after careful consideration by the Citizenship Loss Board that Mr Prakash’s Australian citizenship had ceased by virtue of his actions in fighting for Islamic State from May 2016,” Dutton said.

“Neither the Citizenship Loss Board nor I make decisions on whether an individual ceases to be an Australian citizen, as the provisions operate automatically by virtue of a person’s conduct.”

Dutton said the Citizenship Loss Board had examined the requirements for cessation of Prakash’s citizenship, including that he was the citizen of another country.

He maintained the government had been in “close contact” with the Fijian government since Prakash lost his citizenship, and “will continue our close cooperation with Fiji on this issue”.

Labor’s immigration spokesman, Shayne Neumann, accused Dutton of apparent “Christmas headline grabbing” without providing explanation.

He questioned what due diligence Dutton had done before announcing the revocation of Prakash’s citizenship.

“National security is too important an issue to be played with flippantly, and Labor supports the right of any government to strip dual nationals of their Australian citizenship to protect the Australian people.”

However he said serious questions remained about “timing, activity and process”, including whether Dutton sought advice from his department before making the announcement, and whether he’d spoken to the Fijian authorities.

“If you leave someone stateless in those circumstances there are real problems in terms of risk,” Neumann said.

Prakash’s Australian passport was cancelled in 2014 and he was added to a sanctions list the following year. He was captured in Turkey in 2016, and is now in a maximum security prison facing terrorism charges with potential sentences of up to 15 years in jail.

He is wanted by Australian authorities over his alleged role in two terrorism plots, including one to target Anzac Day services in Melbourne in 2015, and over his travel to Syria to fight with Isis. He faces a potential life sentence if extradited and convicted in Australia.