Media Case Study
SECURING THE STORY
- Sector
- Media
- Where
- Somalia to Serbia
- For
- A Belgian production company
- When
- January 2016
- Services provided
- Risk Management, Physical Security, Project Support
Background
‘Go Back To Where You Came From’ is a multi-award-winning series that provokes national debate about how Australia responds to refugees and asylum seekers. The premise is that six Australians challenge their strongly held beliefs about refugees and asylum seekers on an immersive, reverse journey in which they retrace the steps of those seeking asylum to some of the most dangerous places in the world. Hart provided security for the Australian production company SBS in 2015 and were by their side throughout the journey. When the production rights were sold to a Belgian production company, they wanted Hart to continue being their security provider.
Services
Provided intelligence, risk and threat assessments, developed journey management plans (JMPs), conducted security reviews, designed evacuation and crisis response plans, audited local hospital facilities, insurance plans, and provided secure operational support.
‘What could have been a protracted, expensive and dangerous situation was brought to a conclusion quickly without the use of force’
Outcome
The team travelled to Somalia, where Hart were able to facilitate meetings for the production team with local disadvantaged communities. Then followed Dadaab Refugee Camp in Kenya before heading to Instabul. The Hart security team were walking with the crew towards the Blue Mosque when a suicide bomber detonated (the bombing was attributed to ISIS). The crew were swiftly guided out of harm’s way. The crew travelled to the island of Lesbos and then Northern Greece and witnessed five boats coming ashore laden with refugees, and then followed them to on to Serbia.
The security for this project took a year of planning. The Belgian company insisted on using Hart because of our previous media experience and the calibre of our services. The Hart team work with the producers and every person in the media crew, to help them enhance their storyline and their news-gathering opportunities and keep them safe while doing it.
Location Establishment For Media Clients
Hart security advisers worked in Syria in 2010 successfully creating a base of operations for a client.
This included: locating and leasing and target hardening suitable accommodation; recruiting, vetting and training locally engaged guards, interpreters and admin staff; creating emergency response plans; auditing local medical facilities and creating a plan based on those audits; arranging viable vehicles; creating client specific mapping; establishing secure communications systems.