Year in detention 'excessive'

The lack of judicial review has meant that women and children had been held unreasonably, the report said.

Dissenters have broken away from a parliamentary group investigating Australia's immigration detention policy, arguing for more dramatic change including legal rights for detainees and a one-month cap on detention.

Conservative Liberal senator Alan Eggleston joined party colleague Petro Georgiou and Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young in criticising the majority's 18 recommendations for not going far enough.

The unlikely splinter group wanted detainees to be granted immediate access to the courts. This would allow them to appeal for release when there were "no reasonable grounds that their detention is justified", a supplementary report prepared by the group said.

The lack of judicial review has meant that women and children had been held unreasonably, the report said.


Kids in Detention

The Government can detain people while immigration officials conduct health, security and identity checks. Beyond that, people deemed a risk to the community should only be held in detention for a maximum of a year, the committee majority said.

But the dissenting trio said a year in detention was "grossly excessive" and called for a limit of 30 days. Public servants should not have the "unfettered power to detain", they said, taking a swipe at the Department of Immigration and Citizenship's "chequered" history.

The refugee advocacy group, A Just Australia, said the main report was disappointing. It provided only a negligible step in the right direction, the national co-ordinator, Kate Gauthier, said.

"This inquiry has missed out on a vital opportunity to put the new detention values into practice. We'd like to see the committee pay more than lip service to human rights."

The official report recommended all criteria by which detainees could be deemed a risk be published. It suggested health checks could be completed in five days and more than $20 million in debts owed by current and former detainees to the Government be waived by the Minister for Finance, Lindsay Tanner.

Related:

Villawood detainees go on hunger strike
More than 100 detainees at Sydney's Villawood Detention Centre are on a hunger strike.

Detainees climb Villawood roof in deportation protest
The Department of Immigration has confirmed two Chinese nationals have climbed on to the roof of Sydney's Villawood Detention Centre.

Visas offered to 31 in long detention
The federal government is offering visas to 31 people who have been in immigration detention for more than two years.

Georgiou repeats call to scrap citizenship test
Liberal backbencher Petro Georgiou says Australia's controversial new citizenship test should not just be reviewed - it should be scrapped altogether. Immigration Minister Chris Evans says he has no plans to abolish the Howard Government-era test, but he is open to making improvements.

Immigration officials should face action
A former human rights commissioner says Immigration Department officials who breached human rights under the Howard government need to face disciplinary action.

Detention centre staff 'cracked'
More than 60 former staff at Australian immigration detention centres have reported long-term mental health problems associated with the stress of the job.

UN Torture Committee Blasts Australia
In its report on Australia, the Torture Committee was critical of Australia's prisons, counter-terrorism laws, mandatory immigration detention and of the way Australian officials have ignored torture and mistreatment overseas in places like Abu Ghraib.

Doctor urges mandatory detention inquiry
A psychiatrist who has treated immigration detainees says former government ministers should be called to account for the policy of mandatory detention.

Refugees highest level in history: UN
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) says there are more displaced people in the world than at any time in history, with the bulk of them coming from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Govt criticised over Senate schedule

Greens Leader Bob Brown: "The problem is that governments are frightened of the Senate, they always have been," he said.

The Federal Government has been criticised by senators who say they are under pressure to rush through legislation in the final week of Parliament.

The Senate will this week debate key Government bills in areas like industrial relations, infrastructure and school funding.

Senators are facing extended sittings as they try to move the legislation through before the Christmas break, which runs from next week through until February.

Greens Leader Bob Brown is critical of the Government's refusal to sit for an extra week and has his own theory.

"The problem is that governments are frightened of the Senate, they always have been," he said.

He has called for more sitting weeks next year.

Liberal Senator Eric Abetz says he will not be rushed.

"The Senate has a role to properly consider legislation, and that's what we'll do," he said.

Greens 'deserve' to take part in debate'

The ACT Greens have expressed disappointment that they will not be taking part in a leaders' debate at the Australian National University today.

With some polls pointing to a Green vote of more than 20 per cent on Saturday, the party says it deserves a place in the debate.

But Greens candidate for Molonglo Shane Rattenbury says his party will not be crashing the event as it did a Labor policy launch last week.

"The event last Friday was a specific situation where the Labor Party had been misrepresenting the Greens policy." he said.

"We felt the need to correct the record there but the Greens are keen to take part in serious debate during this election.

"So far all the debates at leadership level have taken part between the Labor and the Liberal Party and they have failed to address key issues."

Mr Rattenbury says the focus of the leaders' debate is too narrow and will not address key issues like climate change.

"The opinion polls are showing that one in five Canberrans is considering voting for the Greens next weekend," he said.

"That's a very significant proportion of Canberra residents and on that basis it does indicate that a number of people would want to hear what the Greens have got to say when it comes down to having a debate about the key issues affecting the future of the ACT."

Greens propose 2010 republic referendum

A referendum on the republic should be held with the next federal election, due in 2010, the Australian Greens say.

Greens leader Bob Brown said on Wednesday the time was right as both Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull support a republic.

"We Greens are going to move before Christmas for a referendum at the next election on the republic, just a yes-no question," he told reporters.

"We think the time is right, the stars are aligned.

"We have a prime minister and a leader of the opposition who support the republic."

The Australian people should be given a simple opportunity before work was done on what form a republic should take, Senator Brown said.

The failed 1999 referendum should have been asked simply whether or not the electorate favoured a republic.

"Ask people in Australia do they want a republic? The answer is yes.

"Once we have established that, we can go on to outline the powers of a future president and how that president ought to be appointed."

Related:

$2.5m in perks as the GGs ride high
LAVISH taxpayer-funded perks and pension benefits for former governors-general will blow out to more than $2.5 million a year with the retirement of Major-General Michael Jeffery.

The Secret Rulers of the World – New Link 

The Secret Rulers of the World The Secret Rulers of the World - Present/Past [part 1 of 29] You Tube Video The source of most if not all our woes, revealed (from the present to the past): Connecting the dots through ~3000 years of revisionist human history, spanning from the time of the pharaohs, all the way up to the present dynasties creating the New World Order, in a quest to perfect the enslavement of mankind. From pirates to banksters, to the ruling elite, who run the world's finances, the media and cover both side of nearly every conflict or war: the world may make more sense after watching this. See additional episodes on the sidebar. In particular 9. The Secret Rulers of the World - The Queen and 12. The Secret Rulers of the World - The Cult of Amen and 13. The Secret Rulers of the World - Committee of 300 and 14. The Secret Rulers of the World - Rothschild. That truth will set you free.

Turnbull victorious in leadership spill

Win: Malcolm Turnbull

Malcolm Turnbull has seized the Liberal leadership from Brendan Nelson after winning this morning's party room ballot.

After the meeting at 9am (AEST) today, 45 MPs voted for Mr Turnbull while 41 MPs voted for Dr Nelson.

Dr Nelson called for the spill late yesterday in a move designed to surprise Mr Turnbull, who had been in Italy.

Dr Nelson has held the leadership since last November, when he won the job in a vote against Mr Turnbull by 45 votes to 42.

Mr Turnbull now becomes the third Liberal leader in less than a year.

He came into parliament four years ago when he won the inner Sydney seat of Wentworth.

He has been a journalist, barrister and a merchant banker in previous careers and was well known as the face of the republican movement.

Mr Turnbull's win ended Dr Nelson's troubled 10-month reign as party leader.

Barnett to be sworn in as 29th Premier

Colin Barnett will be sworn in as the 29th Premier of Western Australia.

The Premier-elect Colin Barnett will meet the Nationals Leader Brendon Grylls this morning to work out how the parties will share power in Western Australia's parliament.

Mr Barnett had been offering the National Party up to five Cabinet positions if it formed a coalition government, but with the party vowing to remain independent it could be given between one and three ministerial positions.

Mr Grylls says he wants to be the Minister for Regional Development with control over the royalties for regions policy.

Mr Barnett will be sworn in as the state's 29th Premier this week and says he would like to see Parliament resume in a few weeks.

"We're here and how we got here is, I guess, a good story of politics, but what did we campaign on? We had policies, we had good candidates and from day one," he said.

"I said I only wanted to lead the Liberal and National Parties to victory and that is what we have done.

Mr Barnett says he's not concerned the Nationals have vowed to remain an independent party.

"The ability of Nationals ministers to disagree with the Government will be according to an agreed protocol," he said.

"This is a significant result for politics across the country.

"We had a situation of wall-to-wall Labor governments. I don't believe that was good for Australian democracy."

New Labor leader

The Labor Party will elect a new Opposition Leader at a caucus meeting tomorrow morning, following the resignation of Alan Carpenter.

The Member for Bassendean Martin Whitely wants the Minister for Planning and Infrastructure Alannah MacTiernan to lead the Labor Party.

"The public respond very well to her," he said.

"She is prepared, she has the character, she has the work ethic and she's ready to take it up to the Libs from day one."

It's understood the other contenders for the job are understood to be Eric Ripper and Mark McGowan.

One senior Labor Minister has told the ABC that the Member for Victoria Park, Ben Wyatt, who has been touted as a future leader, is not ready for the role.

Jim McGinty says he will not contest the leadership.

Nationals give Liberals WA election win

Grylls has pledged support to the Liberals.

The Western Australian Nationals have handed the Liberals victory in the State Election.

The Nationals leader, Brendon Grylls, has emerged from a State Council meeting at a hotel in Perth to announce the party would use its balance of power in the Lower House to support their traditional allies, the Liberals.

Both the Liberal Leader, Colin Barnett, and Labor's Alan Carpenter have been courting the Nationals since last weekend's state poll delivered a hung Parliament.

Mr Grylls demanded that 25 per cent of mining royalties be set aside for regional projects.

Both parties agreed to the deal and to other requests, raising concern about the impact on WA's credit rating, and a range of projects planned for the state.

However, the party has voted to side with the Liberals, delivering the party government and Mr Barnett the Premiership.

Meanwhile the distribution of preferences is continuing in a number of seats.

Mayo vote environmental message - Greens

The Greens candidate for Mayo, Lynton Vonow, says the weekend poll in the Adelaide Hills-based electorate has sent a strong message to the major political parties.

Mr Vonow trails Liberal candidate Jamie Briggs by 3,265 votes on a two-party preferred basis.

There has been a 10.5 per cent swing away from the Liberals and Labor did not contest the poll, needed because of the retirement from politics of former foreign minister Alexander Downer.

Mr Vonow says the Liberals and Labor should treat the vote as a wake-up call.

"Not to take seats for granted and not to see this as business as usual," he said.

"The people of Mayo are recognising that the Greens are here.

"They're liking what they're seeing. They're liking that we're sticking up for the environment and they're recognising that the environment is of major concern and a priority."

The Liberals have claimed victory in the by-election but the Greens are not conceding until all votes have been counted.

Mr Briggs says water concerns will be a priority for him.

"There are big issues, nothing bigger than the river [Murray] and the lower lakes so I know the depth of feeling in the electorate about the river and I'm very keen to get into Federal Parliament and do the best I can to represent that issue," he said.

One OPI officer sacked, another suspended

Andrew McIntosh...It appears that it is unable to properly investigate its own.

The Victorian Office of Police Integrity (OPI) is under fire after one of its officers was sacked and another was suspended because of alleged misconduct.

The misconduct relates to a misuse of expense claims.

The OPI says the matter was detected internally and an independent company is conducting an investigation.

The Opposition police spokesman, Andrew McIntosh, says the matter raises concerns over who is overseeing the police corruption watchdog.

"Who's guarding the guard while the guard's guarding us?".

"It appears that it is unable to properly investigate its own, when it's involving an outside agency to investigate its internal operatives," he said.

Quote: Some people may form the view that it is tit for tat between the OPI and some opposition (political or other like Police Association or affiliates?) down in Victoria (See Links). Perhaps the expense claims are a way to weaken previous statements made by the OPI in relation to allegation against police?

Related:

Police-crime links linger
A SMALL number of Victorian police are maintaining improper links with organised crime figures, the state's police corruption watchdog says.

Police watchdog 'leaks like a sieve'
The Victoria Police watchdog leaks like a sieve, according to former assistant commissioner Noel Ashby, who could face criminal charges following an Office of Police Integrity (OPI) inquiry.

Police criticised as OPI hearing wraps up
The head of an Office of Police Integrity (OPI) inquiry is expected to call for stronger ethical guidelines within Victoria Police when he tables his report in Parliament.

Carbon sink tax bill 'seriously flawed'

There were extraordinary scenes in the Senate last night as the Greens combined with the Nationals and the Liberal Senator Bill Heffernan to attack part of a tax bill.

It was originally drafted by the previous Coalition government and has been reintroduced by Labor.

It gives a full tax deduction for the cost of planting forests as carbon sinks.

But Senator Heffernan, the Nationals and the Greens argued passionately in the Senate last night that it is flawed.

Senator Heffernan says the bill does not stop the trees being cut down or allowed to die within a year.

"There is absolutely no way in this legislation that you can prevent me from planting these trees and the year after I collect the tax deduction - me ploughing them in," he said.

"It is a national disgrace if we allow this Parliament to pass this legislation in the full knowledge that it is completely and fundamentally flawed."

Greens Senator Bob Brown agrees the bill is seriously flawed.

Nationals Senator Barnaby Jocye has called it a load of rubbish.

"Its very rare - to be honest - I would agree with the Greens but tonight's going to be one of those nights," Senator Joyce said.

But Government Senator Stephen Conroy says the bill was initially brought in by the previous Government.

"To be muttering up the back about what an evil plot this is - its your bill," he said.

The senators do not deny that they are negotiating on ways to to fix the problems they have complained about.

The Coalition is understood to be discussing technical aspects of how to do that.

Chijoff fined $750 over bogus leaflets

The estranged husband of former Liberal candidate for Lindsay Karen Chijoff has been fined $750 for his role in a bogus leaflet drop in the hotly contested federal electorate.

Greg Alex Chijoff, 44, last week pleaded guilty to distributing unauthorised election material in the lead-up to last November's federal election.

Downing Centre Local Court Magistrate Ian Barnett fined the IT engineer $750 plus court costs of $70, reducing the maximum $1,000 penalty in recognition of the personal consequences of his actions.

Related:

Racist escapes conviction over 'disgusting' fake leaflets incident
A Sydney magistrate has told a man who escaped conviction over the distribution of fake leaflets during last year's federal election campaign there was national disgust over the incident.

'Charge Howard with war crimes'
FORMER Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad has called for ex-prime minister John Howard and other Western leaders to be charged with war crimes over the conflict in Iraq.

Things can only get better, Howard tells party faithful
What about asking about John Howard's top three failures? War crimes against humanity. Waging illegal and degrading war against innocent citizens of Iraq and Afghanistan. Introducing draconian laws and racism.

Racist escapes conviction over 'disgusting' fake leaflets incident

Liberal Party member ... Jackie Kelly's husband, Gary Clark, has pleaded not guilty.

A Sydney magistrate has told a man who escaped conviction over the distribution of fake leaflets during last year's federal election campaign there was national disgust over the incident.

The leaflets, attributed to a non-existent Islamic group, were distributed in the Western Sydney seat of Lindsay days before the election.

They alleged the ALP wanted the Bali bombers forgiven and urged Muslims to vote Labor.

Two of five men charged over the incident have pleaded guilty, but 37-year-old Troy Craig had no conviction recorded.

Magistrate Pat O'Shane said although there was national disgust over the incident and he should feel ashamed, it was at the lower end of the scale of offences.

The estranged husband of Liberal candidate Karen Chijoff, Greg Chijoff, did plead guilty. His case has been adjourned until next month.

Quote: What about some community service? Washing Muslims feet!

Updated: 30 April 2008

Kelly seemed involved, court told
THE former federal Liberal MP Jackie Kelly appeared "at the face of it to be involved" in the fake leaflet affair in her western Sydney seat at the last election, a court has heard.

A volunteer who was asked to distribute the leaflets - and who faced court yesterday with four others, including the husbands of Ms Kelly, the retiring MP, and the Liberal candidate contesting the seat - might have been entitled to think it had been approved, because he had been asked to meet at Ms Kelly's home, his barrister said yesterday.

The party machine also owed its volunteers a "duty of care" not to ask them to engage in unethical and criminal behaviour, the barrister and former NSW Liberal Party vice-president, Alex Howen, told the Downing Centre Local Court.

Five men were accused of allegedly breaching federal election legislation by distributing a brochure that did not bear the names, address and authorisation of their political masters. The brochure, distributed by the Liberal Party volunteers, was claimed to have been published by the fake "Islamic Australia Federation", and bore the ALP insignia.

But the magistrate, Pat O'Shane, said the stupid and offensive action was "an ugly chapter" and the community had shown its view of it already. The Liberal Party lost the seat of Lindsay, which Ms Kelly had held with a margin of almost 10 per cent.

The court heard about 15 brochures were distributed in the St Marys area on November 20 before witnesses saw the men.

Those being prosecuted include Ms Kelly's husband, Gary James Clark, who pleaded not guilty, and the now estranged husband of the election candidate Karen Chijoff, who sought to replace Ms Kelly as the local member. Greg Alex Chijoff pleaded guilty yesterday, but disputed some of the facts.

Another senior Liberal party official, Jeffrey Michael Egan, who left the party after the scandal, also pleaded not guilty. Robert Mathew Holstein, who failed to appear in court, did not enter a plea.

Mr Howen said his client, Troy Matthew Craig, had not been a party member for about seven years, but had volunteered because he was a friend of Ms Chijoff's.

Mr Howen said Craig was asked to come to Ms Kelly's and Clark's home, where he saw the brochure for the first time.

"He is entitled to think that this was all approved. The federal member appears at the face of it to be involved," he said.

Craig thought it was stupid, crude and "dumb politically and dumb because of its content", Mr Howen said. He also realised it lacked the required authorisation but "simply went along with the distribution".

Craig had been told "the brochure was OK and everything in it is true", Mr Howen told the court.

Clark had pleaded guilty, facing a maximum $1000 fine, but Ms O'Shane discharged the case against him without recording a conviction, after hearing he would lose his job as a valuer if he received a conviction.

"That kind of material arose in a political climate of divisiveness and disharmony which had been generated over several years. It is now well recognised across the country that this was an ugly chapter in our history. The people of this country have moved on … and are trying to build an inclusive civil society and you need to be part of it," she told Craig.

Chijoff's lawyer told the court he disputed the allegations that he distributed the leaflet with the other co-accused in the suburb of St Mary, but instead pleaded guilty to distributing the leaflet by himself in Oxley Park. His case was adjourned until May 7. The cases against the others will return to court later next month.

Related:

'Charge Howard with war crimes'
FORMER Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad has called for ex-prime minister John Howard and other Western leaders to be charged with war crimes over the conflict in Iraq.

Things can only get better, Howard tells party faithful
What about asking about John Howard's top three failures? War crimes against humanity. Waging illegal and degrading war against innocent citizens of Iraq and Afghanistan. Introducing draconian laws and racism.

Kids used as bait over tobacco laws

Questions have been raised over the use of minors as bait to catch out vendors who are willing to illegally sell them cigarettes.

The Opposition claims the South Australian Government is breaching its own industrial relations laws by rewarding the undercover helpers with department store vouchers, rather than paying them.

Children as young as 14 are regularly sent in to try to catch out cigarette retailers who are selling to minors.

The Health Department offers $50 vouchers for the work.

But Opposition MP David Pisoni says the young people are being short-changed.

"The issue here is that we have the Minister for Health breaking his own State Government's industrial relations laws," he said.

Mr Pisoni says it is illegal to pay the children anything less than the appropriate award rate.

Dr Kevin Buckett of the Health Department disagrees, arguing the children are volunteers who perform a community service and are thanked with vouchers.

"We're consistent with the legal advice that we've had and we've run the program for six or seven years now and it's been a very successful program," he said.

"These are not volunteers, these are kids out there working for the government. Volunteers work for Meals on Wheels, volunteers don't work for government agencies."

The Health Department has ruled out any review of the program.

Things can only get better, Howard tells party faithful

History lesson … Mr Howard urged party members to keep their defeat in perspective.

JOHN HOWARD told the Liberal Party it needed to keep a sense of historical perspective about its current woes, out of office federally and in every state and territory.

The former war criminal prime minister used his first Australian speech since he lost government and his seat to tell a gathering of Queensland Liberal faithful in Brisbane last night that the dark days of opposition would pass.

"It's very, very important at this moment in Australian history that we keep a sense of history about the Liberal Party of Australia," he said. "This party has been the government of Australia for 42 out of the 64 years that it has been in existence. It's a party of enormous depth, and resilience and it has a great future."

He used the Liberals' tumultuous years of the early 1990s for inspiration. "Just as we came through the difficult years long ago, we'll come through these difficult years again."

Mr Howard was introduced by the most powerful Liberal now in office, Brisbane's Lord Mayor, Campbell Newman, who, after screening some of the Liberal ads used during the last campaign, bemoaned the rewriting of history he said was now under way in Canberra.

Mr Howard added to the historic revisionism theme by telling his audience all the big reform milestones in Australian history had happened under Liberal governments, but he acknowledged things were tough.

"Being in opposition is very difficult. Brendan [Nelson] does have a very difficult job in opposition because in the early days of any government there's a political honeymoon," he said, and the Opposition had to balance the need to adjust to the new reality against its willingness to defend the legacy of the previous government.

"I will do everything I can, in a quiet way, to help you," he said, in an apparent dig at the former prime minister Paul Keating.

"I think former prime ministers should give quiet assistance. People were very fair to me when I was there; well, most of them."

Dr Nelson paid tribute to Mr Howard by listing his government's achievements, but said arguably his greatest achievement came through the love of his wife, Janette, who was also at the dinner for more than 500 people.

Mr Howard said he continued to grieve for parliamentary colleagues who had lost their seats, and learned two things while on a recent trip to the United States.

One was that the Labor Government was praising the strength of the Australian economy overseas, but criticising the Howard Government's economic performance at home.

The other was that his diplomacy needed work. Asked at a function at the George H. W. Bush presidential library in Texas to name his top three achievements, he started with gun control. No-one in the Texas audience clapped.

Quote: What about asking about John Howard's top three failures? War crimes against humanity. Waging illegal and degrading war against innocent citizens of Iraq and Afghanistan. Introducing draconian laws and racism.

Related:

Prosecute War Criminal John Howard

The Anti-terrorism Bill 2005

Howard's racist country: a better Australia is possible