Falsely charged by the Howard government and later cleared terrorism suspect Mohamed Haneef will return to Australia and may stay for good.Dr Haneef is due to arrive in December for a two-day mediation session as one of the final steps in his bid to secure a compensation payout over the bungling of his case.But he has expressed a desire to return to Australia permanently, reports AAP.
“I’m very grateful for the support the Australian people gave me,” Dr Haneef told The Australian on phone from Dubai.
“I was really amazed when I saw people coming up and speaking on behalf of me.”
He said next month’s visit will also gauge if his notoriety will affect his ability to live and work in Australia.
“This would be time to see how the community accepts us (his family) there,” Dr Haneef said.
“After all the things that happened, anybody would have this kind of nervousness and anxiety when they come back, where you have been incarcerated for so long.”
Dr Haneef was held in custody for 12 days in July 2007 before being charged with recklessly giving support to a terrorist organisation when his mobile phone SIM card was linked to a terrorist attack in Britain the same year.
