Phil Dickie
The Courier Mail and freelance
“What I personally feel outraged about is journalists who knowingly lie in their comments or articles or who knowingly act on behalf of outside interests … I’m not that enthused about journalism with agendas particularly agendas that align with the social elites.”
Undeterred by legal threats, intimidation and denials by politicians and police, Phil Dickie kept digging into the crime syndicates running illegal prostitution and gambling in Queensland. His reporting set the scene for an inquiry by Tony Fitzgerald, QC, that resulted in the axing of senior political and police figures and widespread reforms.
Career Timeline
1977: Elected editor of Australian National University student newspaper Woroni.
1979: Joins Two Wheels magazine as motorcycle writer, introduces coverage on transport policy and issues. Arrested and briefly detained by NSW police while working on a feature on the violence of some police and elements of biker community during annual Bathurst race meeting.
1981: Moves to Queensland, works in local and regional media.
1982: Employed by Courier Mail/Sunday Mail after highlighting irregularities suggesting corruption in local government.
1986: Commences shoe leather and paper trail investigation into ownership and control of Brisbane brothels.
1987: Initial article identifies principals of two organised crime groups controlling prostitution, and earns official denials and six writs for defamation. Subsequent articles explore illegal casinos, detail the growth of the two organised crime groups and their links to police up to Assistant Commissioner level. Appears as the first witness attesting to police misconduct before the (Fitzgerald) Commission of Inquiry into Possible Illegal Activities and Associated Police Misconduct. Awarded Gold Walkley for Australian journalism and a Walkley for newspaper reporting.
1988: Numerous articles on topics related to Fitzgerald Inquiry. Accuses Commissioner and former ‘Rat Pack’ member (corrupt senior police) Sir Terence Lewis of perjury before Williams Royal Commission, this later instrumental in his conviction for perjury and corruption. The Road to Fitzgerald is published by University of Queensland Press.
1989: Conclusion of Fitzgerald Inquiry after two years. The Road to Fitzgerald and Beyond is published. Writ for defamation from Premier Sir Joh Bjelke Petersen for detailing planning irregularities following delivery of a brown paper bag of cash to his office. Total of 1987-89 writs exceeds 20, with only one ever resolved when Assistant Police Commissioner Graeme Parker withdraws with costs after confessing his corruption to Fitzgerald Inquiry.
1990-94: Dickie becomes Special Advisor to the Criminal Justice Commission, which was established after being recommended by the Fitzgerald inquiry. Assists with reports on organised crime control, regulatory and criminality concerns with gaming machines, and consults on cannabis law reform options and regulation of prostitution and SP bookmaking.
1994 – 2005: Chooses freelance journalism over invitation to pursue PhD on organised crime. Sunday Mail column Watching introduces more scrutiny of government policy making. Reports to State Parliament on two-tier property market real estate abuses.
1995: Marries North Queensland conservation activist (later parliamentary advisor and freelance journalist) Susan Brown.
2005: Moves to Switzerland and reports on indigenous human rights reports for United Nations agencies and global water issues for World Wildlife Fund (WWF International).
2007– 2016: Appointed head of news/head issues management for WWF International.
2017 – current: Freelance/consultant. Includes investigations, court reports for a major possible grand kleptocracy and asset recovery case.
Books
The Road to Fitzgerald: Revelations of corruption spanning four decades, University of Queensland Press, 1988.
The Road to Fitzgerald and Beyond, (2nd Edition) University of Queensland Press, 1989.
Reports
Gaming Machine Concerns and Regulation, Criminal Justice Commission, 1990.
Regulating Morality: An Investigation into Prostitution in Queensland, Criminal Justice Commission, September, 1991.
SP Bookmaking – A Queensland History in Report on SP Bookmaking and Related Criminal Activities in Queensland, Criminal Justice Commission, 1991.
Cannabis and the Law in Queensland: A Discussion Paper, Advisory Committee on Illicit Drugs, Goprint Queensland, 1993.
Two Tier Real Estate Markets in Queensland, Report of Queensland Office of Fair Trading, 1999.
Getting past Spin Cycle, The Brisbane Institute, 2001 (Essay on journalism).
Facing the Future: Report of the Mining, Minerals and Sustainable Development (MMSD) Australia Project, International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) and World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), 2002. (with Bren Sheehy).
Rich Countries, Poor Water, Global Freshwater Programme, WWF International, 2006.
Making Water: Desalination, option or distraction for a thirsty world, Global Freshwater Programme, WWF International, June 2007.
Forty years of failure, WWF International, 2008. Variants 2009, 2010, 2011. Report on the record of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna (ICCAT), prototype of the global system of Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs).
Awards
1987: Gold Walkley; Walkley Award, print news reporting.
2017: Queensland Greats Award (State recognition of contribution of extraordinary Queenslanders).
2020: Order of Australia Medal (OAM), services to journalism and the print media.