The Appeals Court orders the immediate release of Australian David Lambourne, who was placed in immigration detention following a failed deportation attempt by the Kiribati government.
It added that attempts by police and immigration officers to force Justice Lambourne onto the plane were in breach of the court order.
However, the court extended its order to "apply to any steps to deport the respondent under either of the deportation orders made yesterday or otherwise"."The Government of Kiribati is concerned by the overreach of the Court of Appeal in issuing an injunction against the deportation," the government said in a statement.
The allegations included "his inability to perform functions of his office and his misbehaviour", a government statement said.Justice Lambourne returned to Kiribati on August 1 after being stranded in Australia since February 2020, when he returned to attend a conference. Last year, Justice Lambourne won a legal case against the government when it tried to refuse him entry back into Kiribati.
The judge's ruling on Friday said deportation on those grounds was "unlawful", ordering that Justice Lambourne be immediately released from hotel detention.Kiribati's President Taneti Maamau has set up a tribunal which is investigating allegations made against Justice Lambourne.Justice Lambourne said he believed he was being targeted because the government was trying to force his wife out of politics, calling it an "assault on the constitution".
The country's constitutional system is on the brink of collapse with the suspensions of the senior judges, which Justice Lambourne says has led to a backlog of more than 2,000 cases.He said he feared there might not be an end to the situation anytime soon.
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