The revelation that Konrad Kalejs lied in his application for citizenship puts the Australian Government on the spot — especially as the key evidence is held by the Government itself in its own archives.
Up to now, Australia has said it does not have enough evidence to prosecute Kalejs for war crimes. Maybe. But it now appears it does have the evidence to question Kalejs’ right to continued citizenship.
And that changes the equation. As a citizen, Kalejs cannot be forced out of the country except by extradition, presumably to Latvia. Extradition can only take place if there is a warrant for his arrest issued in Latvia, which there is not.
If he is not a citizen, however, he can be deported, presumably back to his country of origin, Latvia, irrespective of whether Latvia has charged him or issued a warrant for his arrest.
Latvia has launched another investigation, however, and because it is in the county of the alleged crimes it would have more chance of leading to prosecution than Australia’s merely-keep-the-file-open approach. And in any event, life in Latvia would be more uncomfortable for Kalejs.
Taking away Australian citizenship would have to take two steps.
First Kalejs would have to be charged and convicted under the Australian Citizenship Act of making a false misrepresentation, such as saying you are a student when you were serving with pro-German forces. (That is a fairly simple inquiry that would not require any difficult inquiry into allegations of war crimes.)
If he were convicted, the Minister has a discretion to take away the citizenship if he is satisfied it is contrary to the public interest for the person to continue to be a citizen.
It will put the Government on the spot because there is another, easier, way to deal with Kalejs other than a war-crimes investigation. And the world will be watching.