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Project SafeCom News and Updates 29 November 2005
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Project SafeCom
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Nov 28, 2005 16:37 PST
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Project SafeCom News and Updates 29 November 2005
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1. Scrap sedition laws, senators urge
2. Senators ask for dozens of changes to terrorism bill
3. Senators tinker at the edges of draconian laws
4. Lib senators blast PM's sedition law
5. The Recommendations of the Senate Inquiry
6. Why LabLib senators said to say no to Howard's sedition plans
7. Greens refer new anti-terrorism laws to UN
8. Govt not attacking press freedom with sedition laws: Ruddock
9. Concerns grow for detainee on hunger strike
10. Villawood Hunger Striker on 40th day: protest to Vanstone
11. Falun Gong: Open letter to all MPs
12. Government must come clean on plans for Christmas Island
13. A new way to fill some of those job vacancies
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1. Scrap sedition laws, senators urge
===========================
ABC ONLINE NEWS
Monday, November 28, 2005. 5:39pm (AEDT)
A Senate report into the Federal Government's anti-terrorism bill has
recommended sweeping changes to the legislation, including the scrapping of
sedition offences and extra protection for minors.
Coalition and Labor senators on the committee joined forces to recommend 52
changes.
The senators want the sedition provisions in the legislation scrapped until
a public inquiry is held.
Labor Senator Joe Ludwig says the sedition section of the bill needs removing.
"Sedition provisions should be scrapped, they shouldn't be proceeded with
in this bill," he said.
"What should happen is that they should be, as the Attorney-General has
indicated, reviewed.
"What we say is that they should be reviewed by the Australian Law Reform
Commission to ensure that they are adequate and temporary."
Greens Senator Bob Brown has issued a dissenting report, attacking the
Government's legislation.
"This is an unwarranted and savage attack on basic democratic legal
principles," he said.
Most of the proposals are aimed at giving extra protection to individuals
as the police and ASIO are granted new powers to combat terrorism.
The committee also wants changes so that minors suspected of being
terrorists are detained separately from adults.
The recommendations come after a five-day public inquiry into the proposals.
Chair of the inquiry and Liberal MP, Marise Payne, has told the Senate the
committee members also want the sunset clause halved.
"All senators would know that the original bill proposed a 10-year sunset
period," Senator Payne said.
"The committee, at the best of its diligent searching, has been unable to
find an equivalent sunset period in other legislation. These powers are
extraordinary in nature."
Senator Payne says the changes will improve the legislation.
"The committee has made 52 recommendations which we believe will go a long
way towards enhancing the operation of the bill," she said.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200511/s1518508.htm
========================================
2. Senators ask for dozens of changes to terrorism bill
========================================
Sydney Morning Herald
By Tom Allard, Marian Wilkinson and Mike Seccombe
November 29, 2005
THE Federal Government's anti-terrorism laws have been undermined from
within, with Government senators yesterday urging that the sedition
provisions in the bill be dumped until a thorough review is completed.
However, the key recommendation in the bipartisan Senate report was given
short shrift by the Attorney-General, Philip Ruddock, who said the laws
must be passed in the next two weeks, even as he acknowledged they would
have to be revamped.
The committee recommended 52 changes to the anti-terrorism bill and
endorsed concerns that the new sedition laws governing comments that incite
terrorism and violence were poorly drafted and undermined free speech.
The chairwoman, Senator Marise Payne, said: "There is no doubt that [the
new laws] are a very serious incursion into the way in which we currently
expect to be able to live our lives in Australia, and we are told that they
are in response to very serious incursions and threats against the way in
which we expect to be able to live our lives in Australia."
Mr Ruddock said last night he was prepared to make changes but he would not
hold back the sedition laws until the review was completed and amendments
had been made.
The report also recommends minor changes to the key provisions of
preventive detention of suspects without trial and control orders, which
can include house arrest and forcing suspects to wear monitoring devices.
To deal with the concerns of the legal profession and among Muslims, the
committee called for stronger safeguards for suspects and greater oversight
powers for the Ombudsman. It also asked the Attorney-General to report to
Parliament every six months and supports a sunset clause on the laws after
five years, rather than 10.
The report calls for limits on shoot-to-kill powers when detaining suspects
and says police should not use hearsay evidence to detain people.
In a blow to the legal profession, the majority of the committee did not
support legal privilege between terrorist suspects and their lawyers,
saying conversations could be monitored in some circumstances. The Greens
senator Kerry Nettle and the Democrats senator Natasha Stott Despoja
dissented from the report.
The committee's most important recommendation is to delay the introduction
of sedition laws, which carry a maximum sentence of seven years' jail.
"The committee agrees with many of the concerns raised in relation to the
sedition provisions … [and] is not convinced of an urgent need for the
provisions in light of existing laws, such as the offence of treason."
The committee noted that it was absurd to say that a review of the sedition
provisions was required but to still enact the laws anyway.
Coalition sources said yesterday that it was unlikely that anyone would
cross the floor to vote against the anti-terrorism bill. One Coalition
member of the committee said it was recognised that while some might have
had serious concerns about the measure, it had not generated widespread
concerns.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/senators-ask-for-dozens-of-changes-to-terrorism-bill/2005/11/28/1133026404750.html
===================================
3. Senators tinker at the edges of draconian laws
===================================
Sydney Morning Herald
By Marian Wilkinson and David Marr
November 29, 2005
The lengthy report by the Senate committee on the anti-terrorism bill has
proposed 52 amendments in an attempt to temper almost universal opposition
within a legal profession that is deeply concerned the new laws will
undermine the fundamental human rights Australians take for granted.
However, the recommendations on all but the sedition laws are on the margin.
Fundamentally, there is a consensus among Liberal and Labor senators to
introduce what they acknowledge are "draconian" laws that will allow
preventive detention without charge and control orders, including house
arrest. These laws are being introduced despite objections by the
Government-appointed Human Rights and Equal Opportunities Commission,
Amnesty International, the Civil Liberties Council, the Law Council, the
state bar associations - in other words, by almost every legal body outside
the Government.
The committee drew attention to widespread legal concern about the bill
"with respect to the presumption of innocence, freedom from unlawful and
arbitrary detention and the right to fair trial".
"Numerous submissions and witnesses argued that the procedures for
Commonwealth orders envisaged by the bill are not a sufficient protection
against unjustified infringement on these fundamental principles."
The question now is if the bipartisan committee's limited recommendations
will be acceptable to the Government.
Many simply ask for amendments that would place a greater obligation on
police officers to tell detainees of the rights they have under the bill as
it now stands: the right to make representations to the police, to contact
family members, to have interpreters and lawyers.
Some recommendations would limit police discretion, including monitoring
conversations between a lawyer and their client. The committee does not
insist on legal privilege, saying police can overturn this if an officer
has "reasonable grounds to believe that the consultation will interfere
with the purpose of the order".
There are several important recommendations that will allow something like
a trial when an initial detention order is extended for up to two weeks. It
also asks that hearsay evidence is not used as a basis for detention.
The most important recommendation is a five-year sunset clause: "This
mechanism ensures that extraordinary executive powers legislated during
times of emergency are not integrated as the norm and that the case for
continued use of the … powers is publicly made out by the government of the
day".
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/senators-tinker-at-the-edges-of-draconian-laws/2005/11/28/1133026404759.html
============================
4. Lib senators blast PM's sedition law
============================
The Age
By Brendan Nicholson
November 29, 2005
IN A major rebuff to the Howard Government, a Coalition-led parliamentary
committee has attacked key elements of its new anti-terrorism legislation.
The Senate committee has urged a new sunset clause, making the laws expire
after five years instead of 10, and wants the contentious sedition
provisions removed completely until they have been publicly examined by the
Australian Law Reform Commission.
The committee said the laws would give the Government and its agencies
extraordinary powers that were necessary, but which must have better
safeguards built into them.
But Attorney-General Philip Ruddock said last night that the Government
would not make significant changes in light of the committee's report.
Mr Ruddock said the sedition measures were designed to deal with people who
urged the use of force or violence against other Australians for political
purposes. "We need to deal with the issue of those people who urge others
to use force or violence to achieve political ends," he said.
These matters had to be dealt with now. "They are not matters we would like
to see postponed," Mr Ruddock said.
On the sunset clause, Mr Ruddock said the existing 10-year plan was agreed
with the states and territories at this year's special COAG meeting on
terrorism.
That agreement was reached in good faith "and the Government does not
intend to walk away", Mr Ruddock told ABC television.
In the 250-page report tabled yesterday, the Senate Legal and
Constitutional Legislation Committee recommended 52 changes to the legislation.
The committee chairwoman, Liberal Senator Marise Payne, said the committee
had been unable to identify any other legislation with a sunset clause
running to 10 years.
"These powers are extraordinary in nature and we believe that they should
be reviewed publicly before there is a decision on whether to extend them,"
Senator Payne said.
Labor committee member Joe Ludwig said the Government must take the report
seriously. "The Prime Minister would be unwise not to listen to his
colleagues," Senator Ludwig said.
In other recommendations, the committee wants the Government to remove the
restrictions on detainees communicating with their lawyer of choice and to
consult a lawyer at any time and in privacy unless police have reasonable
grounds to believe that would interfere with the purpose of the order.
The senators also recommended:
• Preventive detention orders should not be issued on the basis of hearsay
evidence.
• Minors should be segregated from adults in detention.
• Detainees should have the right to make representations before a
continued preventive detention order was issued.
• Detainees should be told why they were being held.
• The Ombudsman should oversee the detention process.
Senator Payne said nearly 300 submissions dealt with the sections on
sedition and advocacy, with an overwhelming majority raising serious concerns.
"They came from a range of organisations and, I think it is fair to say,
not just the usual suspects."
Senator Payne said Mr Ruddock had already indicated that those provisions
would be reviewed next year.
"In light of that, in light of the very serious concerns raised with the
committee, in light of the state of existing laws, which include the
offence of treason, the crime of incitement and the laws contained also in
this bill in relation to advocacy, the committee considers that the
comprehensive review indicated should take place before the sedition
provisions are enacted."
Senator Payne said the committee considered it would be inappropriate to
enact legislation that was in advance considered to be in need of review.
She said the committee's inquiry took place over a short period of time and
the hearings were intensive, with nearly 300 submissions received from
lawyers, human rights groups, members of the Muslim community, academics
and media and arts associations.
The Greens and Democrats dissented from the committee's report, although
they supported some of the recommendations.
http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/lib-senators-blast-pms-sedition-law/2005/11/28/1133026406275.html
==================================
5. The Recommendations of the Senate Inquiry
==================================
From Margo Kingston's webdiary
28 November 2005
G'day. The Senate Inquiry report into the Anti-Terrorism bill was released
today at 4pm. Labor and Liberal have come together with a bipartisan report
that gives maximum power to small 'l' Liberals in their dealings with
Howard. The Dems and Greens want further changes - see the report for their
dissent.
Here are the recommendations and chapter two, an overview of the bill and
the key concerns. Petro Georgiou's speech on on melding principle and
pragmatism in terror laws is a good backgrounder. We'll publish the
Committee's slap on the face to Howard on sedition as a separate entry soon.
Full text:
http://margokingston.typepad.com/harry_version_2/2005/11/senate_inquiry_.html
===============================================
6. Why LabLib senators said to say no to Howard's sedition plans
===============================================
From Margo Kingston's webdiary
28 November 2005
Here is the Senate Committee's findings on sedition. For the principles
underlying liberalism's rejection of such attacks on free speech, see
Menzies' 1942 speech Why free speech is worth dying for. Ruddock has held
his ground, telling the 7.30 Report tonight that "the measures we have
sought need to made now". Your move, true liberals.
It took blood sweat and tears to get results in 2002 after the same
committee's report that May - are the true Liberals prepared to cross the
floor if necessary? The big difference this time is that Howard now has the
numbers in the Senate, so true Liberals might have to do the now
unthinkable and actually tell the heavies that at least one of them is
prepared to actually cross the floor to get their way. And remember, the
Reps hasn't voted yet either, so what will Petro Georgiou and other true
Libs in the Lower House do if Howard and Ruddock hang tough?
Full text:
http://margokingston.typepad.com/harry_version_2/2005/11/why_lablib_sena.html
=================================
7. Greens refer new anti-terrorism laws to UN
=================================
ABC ONLINE NEWS
Monday, November 28, 2005. 8:18am (AEDT)
The Greens want the United Nations (UN) to determine whether the new
federal anti-terrorism laws breach Australia's international human rights
obligations.
The Senate inquiry into the new laws, being considered by Federal
Parliament, is due to report today.
Greens leader Bob Brown says he has referred the legislation to the United
Nations for assessment.
"The fact that they may have the support of Labor premiers doesn't make
them right," he said.
"In fact it doesn't lessen the need to scrutinise them to see if the best
legal brains in Australia are right when they say this is breaching the
international covenant."
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200511/s1517858.htm
==============================================
8. Govt not attacking press freedom with sedition laws: Ruddock
==============================================
ABC ONLINE NEWS
Monday, November 28, 2005. 10:09am (AEDT)
Federal Attorney-General Philip Ruddock says the Government is willing to
consider particular areas where the counter-terrorism legislation may be
improved.
A Senate inquiry into the proposed laws will release its findings later today.
There have been concerns from within Coalition ranks about the sedition
provisions in the legislation, with some MPs saying they could threaten
freedom of speech and the work of journalists.
Mr Ruddock says the Government is not trying to attack press freedom.
"We don't intend that there ought to be any compromising of journalists
entitlement to comment freely on public issues," Mr Ruddock said.
"What I want to pursue is that the law operates as intended."
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200511/s1517943.htm
=================================
9. Concerns grow for detainee on hunger strike
=================================
ABC ONLINE NEWS
Monday, November 28, 2005. 9:41am (AEDT)
There are growing concerns for the welfare of a Chinese immigration
detainee at Sydney's Villawood detention centre who has been on a hunger
strike for 40 days.
He is protesting against the Government's policy of mandatory detention of
asylum seekers.
Jun Wen Zhang has been admitted to hospital on several occasions.
The Immigration Department says he is being closely monitored by staff and
medical professionals.
Peter Job from the Victorian Greens says he has tried to convince Mr Zhang
to stop the hunger strike.
But Mr Job says he is in a desperate state.
"He is very upset, he feels that he will be in great danger if he returns
to China," Mr Job said.
"He said he'd rather die here in Australia than go back to China, where
he's convinced he'll be persecuted.
"At the same time he's very emotional but very determined to continue his
hunger strike."
Mr Zhang's fellow detainees issued a statement two days ago, expressing
their increasing concern at his condition.
The Immigration Department says it is also worried about the situation.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200511/s1517924.htm
=============================================
10. Villawood Hunger Striker on 40th day: protest to Vanstone
=============================================
As some may have heard on my radio interview on ABC News this morning...
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200510/s1480449.htm
...the asylum seeker Jun Wen Zhang in Villawood detention centre is now
into his 40th day of hunger strike.
Myself, Richard Di Natalie, and a member of the Chinese community had a
telephone link up with him on Friday. Richard explained to him the
implication to his long term health if he continued, even if he later gave
it up. He will suffer long term damage to his health and prospects for long
life. I also urged him to take another path of protest, suggesting taking
his story to the media, along with getting him the proper legal and
migration agent help he has never had.
Unfortunately we were not successful. He continued to say he would rather
die in Australia than return to China, which is what he believes will
happen if he gives up the hunger strike, and will continue. He was very
emotional, but also very determined to continue.
I have since managed, with the help of Spare Lawyers for Refugees, to find
him a lawyer from the Chinese community, and we are having another
telephone link up tomorrow. I am hoping the promise of proper legal help
will help change his mind.
I have also been trying to negotiate with some of the top honchos in DIMIA
about some sort of compromise. They reject the idea of immediate release of
course, but today I put them the idea of them promising not to deport him
until the lawyer and migration agents had a chance to properly look at his
case, take appropriate actions, and have them heard. Unfortunately there
were not even prepared to go that far.
It would be appreciated that as many people as possible contacted
Vanstone's office to voice their concerns about Jun Wen Zhang, and urge her
to take appropriate actions to save his life. Vanstone does not like
compromising, but were are facing literally a life and death situation here.
Parliament is presently sitting, so it is best to fax or phone her Canberra
office.
Parliament Contact:
Tel: (02) 6277 7860
Fax: (02) 6273 4144
Peter Job
Victorian Greens Spokesperson on Refugees
============================
11. Falun Gong: Open letter to all MPs
============================
Open letter to all Members of Parliament
From Australian Falun Gong practitioners
28 November 2005
On the occasion of the last parliamentary sitting of 2005, Australians who
practise Falun Gong (Falun Dafa) have come to Parliament House to hold a
daily peaceful appeal. We call for your support to end the brutal
persecution of Falun Gong in China - and to end the extension of that
persecution onto Australian soil.
Some practitioners sitting in front of Parliament today have personally
suffered detention and torture in Chinese prisons and laogai, the forced
labour camps or Gulags, that are used to force a renouncement of belief in
Truth, Compassion and Forbearance, the principles of Falun Dafa. Ms Amy Xu,
can testify to a shocking incident that occurred in Jiangsu Province
recently. Police broke into the home of a 28-year-old mother and Falun Gong
practitioner, illegally arresting her, leaving behind an 8-month-old baby.
The death of the baby was discovered only after neighbours discovered
maggots crawling from their home and alerted police. It is unknown whether
the mother is still alive.
Sadly, such tragedies are not isolated incidents, but the shocking reality
practitioners face every day in China under the Chinese Communist Party
(CCP) campaign to eradicate peaceful Falun Gong practitioners. Since the
persecution began over six years ago, many kind-hearted Australians and
people from around the world have condemned these atrocities. This includes
several MP's and Senators but so far, not the concerted voice of the
Australian Parliament.
We hope that our presence here this week will assist our Parliamentarians
to truly understand what they face in dealing with the malevolent CCP,
which remains the largest totalitarian regime in the world. The CCP has
been responsible for the deaths of 80 million Chinese people in its 56-year
rule. The history and atrocities of the CCP are clearly exposed in a
special publication known as the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party .
Since its publication in November 2004, Chinese people within and outside
China have awakened to the real nature of the CCP and are publishing
statements resigning from the Party and its affiliate organisations. To
date, over 20,000 such statements appear online everyday, with combined
withdrawals totalling 6 million. In Australia alone, the high profile
defections of Mr Chen Yonglin and Mr Hao Fengjun indicate that those among
the Party elite have recognised its imminent collapse. Based on current
trends, the collapse of this most despotic totalitarian regime in history
is only a matter of time.
As a democratic country, we feel Australia should be the model exemplar of
our Asia-Pacific neighbours in voicing support for human rights and
proactively condemning the CCP's barbarity. Yet sadly, due to the deception
and pressure of the Communist regime, our Foreign Affairs Minister Mr
Downer has signed certificates every month for the last 45 months to
restrict our peaceful appeal in front of the Chinese Embassy. Rather than
upholding Australia's interests, this conduct goes against the very values
we cherish as a democratic nation. At the same time, as a country where
spirituality is valued, we should not condone the Communist regime's
persecution against believers of Truth, Compassion, and Forbearance.
Australia has been blessed with the title of the "lucky country". We know
that those who share a similar vision for Australia's future are standing
up to oppose this kind of conduct that is truly having a damaging effect on
Australia's interests.
Respected Parliamentarians, we hope you can show your compassion and
support by raising a resolution this week to condemn not just the
persecution of Falun Gong in China, but to request the immediate repeal of
the certificates restricting our right of appeal. Your voice of support
will help the many innocent Falun Gong practitioners who continue to suffer
in China, and will help to bring a better future for Australia. When this
page of history is turned, our children will take pride in the stance
Australians took when good was threatened by evil. You are creating and
paving the way for future generations to come.
Yours Respectfully,
Australian Falun Gong practitioners
==============================================
12. Government must come clean on plans for Christmas Island
==============================================
Greens Media
Senator Kerry Nettle
28 November 2005
The Government should suspend the construction of the 800 bed immigration
detention facility on Christmas Island and review the necessity of the
facility Australian Greens Senator Kerry Nettle said today.
“At a time when the Government claims to be reforming its immigration
detention system, it is increasing its capacity to lock people up,” Senator
Nettle said.
“After the recent scandals and abuses, the public want alternatives to
detention, but the Government insists on building more empty prisons.”
“According to Immigration Department figures provided at the November 2005
Senate Estimates:
· The current immigration detention centres – Baxter, Villawood,
Maribyrnong, Perth, Port Augusta and the existing Christmas Island
facility, already have a capacity to hold 1,688 people and they have
contingency places for 667 more people, bringing the total capacity to 2,355.
· Port Hedland has a capacity to hold 820 people and is costing $3 million
a year to be ready to reopen.
· The infamous Woomera Detention Centre holds 800 and costs $2.6 million to
keep mothballed.'
“Australia’s total immigration detention capacity is already 3,975
people. The locals on Christmas Island are opposed to this facility, yet
the Government is wasting $210 million on another empty prison,” said
Senator Nettle
“Is the government planning to increase the number of people in detention
and deport people from the mainland to Christmas Island?
“The Government must come clean on its real agenda for the immigration
detention centres.”
“The Prime Minister’s commitment to only imprison children as a last resort
is yet another hollow undertaking,” Senator Nettle said.
Contact: Kristian Bolwell - 0411 638 320
====================================
13. A new way to fill some of those job vacancies
====================================
Sydney Morning Herald
November 29, 2005
If asylum seekers are allowed to live in Australia, they deserve the right
to work here, writes Gerard Henderson.
HERE'S a solution to the shortage of labour in Australia, especially in
rural and regional areas. Let all asylum seekers living in Australia work.
This will not solve the problem for all employers but it would provide a
solution for some.
Last week Peter McGauran, the federal Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries
and Forestry, spoke of the frustration experienced by fruit growers in
southern NSW and northern Victoria who cannot find employees to pick and
package their harvests. There are similar labour shortages in many parts of
Australia, both on farms and in townships. As the former junior immigration
minister, McGauran knows that many asylum seekers would willingly take
unskilled jobs, if only they were to be given permission to work by the
Department of Immigration.
Convenience aside, there is a compelling principle involved here. Everyone
who is legally entitled to live in Australia should be able to work in
Australia. At the moment many asylum seekers who have been released from
detention centres, have been placed on a category of bridging visa E. This
means, in effect, that they can live in the community but have no work
rights and are not entitled to Medicare. As a result, they become totally
dependent on charity for such basics as food, shelter and health care. Some
charity providers support Labor, the Democrats or the Greens. But quite a
few vote Liberal or for the National Party. In other words, there is broad
bipartisan support for asylum seekers in both deeds and money.
Whether or not Australians agree with John Howard, the fact is that the
boats have stopped arriving. In part this has been due to the Coalition's
harsh policy of mandatory detention. However, the key reasons turn on
improved intelligence in Indonesia, the embarkation point for most of the
arrivals by sea, and the fact that fewer asylum seekers are fleeing
Afghanistan and Iraq - following the defeat of the Taliban and Saddam
Hussein regimes, respectively.
Now that border protection is relatively under control, the Howard
Government can be gracious in victory. The reforms which began earlier this
year appear to have been driven by Howard and the Department of Prime
Minister and Cabinet rather than by Senator Amanda Vanstone and the
Department of Immigration. It is estimated that there are now only about
200 asylum seekers in detention in Villawood (Sydney) and Baxter (Port
Augusta). However, some problems remain concerning those in detention and
those living in the community without citizenship or permanent residence.
They can be readily resolved.
The bridging visa E, which prevents some asylum seekers (along with some
others) from working, should be junked. Vanstone's office is unable to
provide information on how many men and women are on what amounts to a work
prevention visa. This reflects the finding made by Mick Palmer in his
report into Cornelia Rau's detention that Immigration possesses "incomplete
information" about those under its control. There is no valid reason why
individuals who want to work should be prohibited from working, especially
at a time of labour shortages. What's more, it is not only unjust, but also
bad policy, to effectively prevent men, women and children from getting
affordable health care.
Immigration has had the bridging visa E under review for at least six
months. It is not clear why the process is taking so long.
Asylum seekers who have been given citizenship or residence should not have
to repay the cost of their detention. The decision to bill certain
"graduates" of detention centres for the cost of their previous
accommodation seems arbitrary. Some are expected to pay, while others are
not. It is completely unreasonable to expect that a person who has gained
the right to live in Australia should be burdened with debts of $100,000 or
more (including, believe it or not, a 10 per cent GST). It is good public
policy to give everyone who has the right to live in Australia a chance to
make it in the economy.
Immigration should desist from deporting people who have been absorbed into
Australia from an early age even if, due to oversight of their parents,
they are not Australian citizens. This is especially the case if the
individuals concerned do not speak the language of their country of birth
and may not be recognised by it as citizens. Australia should accept
responsibility for the children of immigrants who were invited to this
country some decades ago.
In the light of the reports into the Rau and Vivian Alvarez Solon matters,
Immigration officials should no longer be able to sit in judgement on the
department's past decisions. The department has been totally reformed at
the secretary and deputy-secretary levels. Yet many of the same people who
were depicted in the Palmer report as possessing a culture of "denial and
self-justification" are still engaged in the middle levels of the
department. Immigration officials should be open in their decision-making
and give reasons for their determinations. Only such transparency can lead
to a proper review of decisions.
Nearly all asylum seekers who have been released from detention in good
mental health have settled in well. This is not surprising, since most are
entrepreneurial types. The next step is to give them all the right to work
and basic health cover. To find a solution to some of Australia's labour
shortages, the Government needs to look first within Australia.
Gerard Henderson is executive director of the Sydney Institute.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/opinion/a-new-way-to-fill-some-of-those-job-vacancies/2005/11/28/1133026404259.html
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Project SafeCom has operated a "virtually full-time" operations office
since TAMPA. At Project SafeCom, an Incorporated Association in Western
Australia, we exist from donations, the sale of some items via our website,
and from memberships. You can make a donation by transferring funds to our
account at Bendigo Community Bank Kulin, BSB Number 633-000. Account name:
Project SafeCom Inc., account 115643900, or by sending a cheque or money
order to our address below.
P.O. Box 364 - Narrogin WA 6312 - Phone 0417 090 130
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LINKS:
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ROYAL COMMISSION Petition: download it, print it, put it out - everywhere
around town: http://www.safecom.org.au/royal-commission.htm
The bLog - FIXING AUSTRALIA: http://www.safecom.org.au/fixing-australia.htm
What's New - this page lists all the new additions to the website -
hundreds of pages: http://www.safecom.org.au/whatsnew.htm
Project SafeCom events page: http://www.safecom.org.au/events.htm
The Reading Room: http://www.safecom.org.au/readings.htm
The Project SafeCom shop: http://www.safecom.org.au/products.htm
Our Baxter page: http://www.safecom.org.au/baxter.htm
Project SafeCom's No War position: http://www.safecom.org.au/no-war.htm
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