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Rudd to blame for Indonesians opening fire on asylum seekers?

From the newswire: November 18, 2009 - Last week two asylum seekers were shot by the Indonesian coast guard. Their boat, carrying 61 Afghans, was heading for Australia when it was discovered off the eastern coast of Indonesia. WA human Rights group Project SafeCom say Kevin Rudd is responsible for the incident - "responsible for those who have been stuck in Indonesia for up to eight years, and he is responsible for the misery of those who he fiercely, nastily, covertly and miserably, prevents from coming to Australia -the only UN Convention country in the nearest 5,000 miles, the only home for asylum seekers in the region..." The Refugee Action Coalition says: "The Australian government did not pull the trigger, but it provided the bullets and loaded the guns that were turned on Afghan asylum seekers on the weekend," said spokesperson Ian Rintoul. Read more/comment "How ironic that in the same month there were celebrations of the fall of the Berlin Wall, Indonesian border guards have shot asylum seekers trying to get to Australia. But the stark reality is that the opportunity, the bullets, the guns, the patrol, boat and the training are provided by Australia. Asylum seekers are now fleeing persecution in Indonesia, sponsored by the Australian government." Meanwhile, leader of the Opposition Malcolm Turnbull says he will reintroduce the dreaded Temporary Protection Visa for refugees arriving by boat if elected to government. The new temporary protection visa would be virtually identical to the one introduced by the Howard government in 1999. Read more/comment Visa holders would be deprived the right to make applications for family reunion, unable to access Centrelink benefits and other social services, and their claim to asylum would be reassessed after three years. The new visa category would only apply to refugees arriving by boat. READ MORE/Comment...

WA Police flag metal detectors for Perth train stations and Northbridge

From the newswire NOV 16, 2009 - Walk-through metal detectors have been flagged for Northbridge and Perth train station under proposed laws to give police greater stop and search powers. The new laws would give WA police unprecedented powers to frisk people for drugs and weapons - without having to prove grounds of suspicion in court. According to media reports, Police Commissioner Karl O'Callaghan says they may also set up "walk-through detectors" at the Perth train station, with officers walking Northbridge wielding handheld detectors. The laws, described as "an erosion of civil rights", will allow police to stop and search people without having to prove a reasonable suspicion that the person is in possession of something relevant to an offence. Mr O'Callaghan said "We need the powers to control... This is simply asking someone in most cases to either walk through a metal detector or be screened by a metal detector. It is not different to what happens at the airport every day of the week." The proposed laws are being debated in Parliament, with several Labor MPs saying they are an incursion on civil rights. Meanwhile, other reports are emerging that the WA Police are using the Public Transport Authority's Smartrider electronic ticketing system to track people's movements across the network, prompting debate over whether the use of the technology is eroding civil rights. The PTA has confirmed that police had regularly requested CCTV footage and more recently were requesting data stored on the Smartrider system. [Story] READ MORE Comment... EARLIER FEATURE: WA to introduce unprecedented powers to stop and search

Kulcha cancels play Seven Jewish Children: A Play for Gaza

From the newswire: November 13, 2009: The WA branch of Amnesty International had planned to hold a performance of the Caryl Churchill play Seven Jewish Children: A Play for Gaza last Sunday at the Fremantle arts venue Kulcha as part of the ARTillery Youth Arts Festival. Unfortunately Kulcha decided to cancel the performance. Seven Jewish Children: A Play for Gaza is a controversial six-page, 10-minute play by British playwright Caryl Churchill, written in response to the 2008-2009 Israel military strike on Gaza, and first performed at London's Royal Court Theatre on 6 February 2009. Churchill, a patron of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, has said that anyone wishing to produce it may do so gratis, so long as they hold a collection for the people of Gaza at the end. The play takes the form of a litany, repeating the phrases "Tell her", "Don't tell her" to reflect the tension within Israel and the Jewish community over how to describe events in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Playwright Tony Kushner and academic Alisa Solomon, argued that "any play about the crisis in the Middle East that doesn't arouse anger and distress has missed the point." Churchill says the play is about "the difficulties of explaining violence to children. In the early scenes, it is violence against Jewish people; by the end, it is the violence in Gaza." READ MORE/Comment... Watch performance (10 mins) READ the script

Camp for Climate Action WA 2009 - LETS ORGANISE!

From the newswire: It's time for the people's climate justice movement to get serious! In a world surrounded by mediocrity, a new vision is emerging - one of sustainable democracy, of grassroots power, of solidarity and real action. Climate Camps across the planet are on the cusp of this emerging movement. Despite many reports proving that it is entirely possible to provide electricity and jobs for our communities from renewable sources, there are plans to double the number of Coal fired power stations in Western Australia. Climate Camp will take action against this disastrous expansion. Collie is currently home to five Coal fired power stations, four coal mines - with several proposed projects, including one additional mine, four more coal fired power stations and a coal to fertiliser plant. The Collie Coal industry currently produces 6.5 million tonnes of coal, emits 10 million tonnes of carbon dioxide and accounts for 13% of WA's total greenhouse emissions. [more] International negotiations to reach a global agreement to take real climate action are doomed to fail. New reports are coming out every month warning of the dangers of climate change. The Rudd government and the Turnbull opposition are failing Australians at every turn. Its time to Get Real! The Collie Camp for Climate Action will be a convergence of people from all over WA and Australia who are determined to see real action on climate change. The five day camp will be a participatory and sustainable event, where people are invited to share, learn, plan and take action. It will be an inspiring gathering of diverse people organising to take direct action for a living future. Climate camp happens from December 17-21 in Collie, the heart of WA's Coal industry. You and your group are warmly invited to get involved. READ MORE/Comment... MORE: Climate Camp WA 09 website

Refugee Rights Action - Perth

UPDATE: Photos of Action ACTION: Refugee Rights Action - Perth - 12:30 Monday, November 9, 2009: 12:30pm - 1:30pm - The Office of Immigration Minister Chris Evans - 51 Ord St - West Perth A basic human right - to seek asylum. It is time to stand up and say no to the renewed attacks against persecuted people who are doing nothing more than seeking asylum. The only just solution to the situation is that all asylum seekers at Merak and the 78 Tamils on the Oceanic Viking be brought to Australia. Refugee Right Groups say the Sri Lankan government is trying to hide its shocking record of human rights abuses. It is the Sri Lankan government that has to answer for the abuse of the rights of Tamils in Sri Lanka. They say the Australian government should be sending a strong message to the Sri Lankan government by bringing the Tamil asylum seekers at Merak and those on the Oceaninc Viking to Australia. Unless the Australian government raises the human rights abuses with the Sri Lankan president, the Australian government will be complicit in the on-going abuse of Tamils in Sri Lanka. There are over 250,000 Tamils in internment camps in Sri Lanka. READ MORE/Comment... || From Ruddock to Rudd: why Labor and the Coalition abuse refugees RECENT PERTH INDY STORIES: REFUGEE GROUPS REJECT SRI LANKAN GOVERNMENT ALLEGATIONS || Merak boat 'Alex' responds to media reports || Australia's violence vs Indonesia's decency soon on show? || Unions warn PM over 'boatpeople' || Spokesperson for the Tamils stranded in West Java reveals a potential bombshell || Indymedia Radical Radio interview with "Alex" - 19 OCT 09

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