More killed by government incompetence

A boat sinks, hundreds die and the ALP say it’s too tragic for politics which sounds like a political statement to me. Everyone is ignoring the elephant in the room and declining to politicise the most recent ‘life style seeker’ tragedy off Indonesia. The Libs don’t have to say anything as they know reasonably smart voters can see it for what it is – they don’t have to tell them. No such reticence here! All tragedies that have happened since Australia lost direction and voted in a lot of undelivered promises have Gillard’s name all over them. A litany of stuff-ups followed the election of these incompetents. Gillard and Rudd canceled Howard’s answer even though it was working…..she spoke to the president of East Timor (oops! should have spoken to the PM) but insisted on stating the ALP were holding talks with East Timor even while East Timor said NO from day one…..said she couldn’t use Narau as it wasn’t a signatory to the UN convention so chose Malaysia who likewise wasn’t a signatory to the convention. Meanwhile Narau said they would sign the convention if that is was it takes to get involved quickly followed by the High Court telling her she couldn’t use Malaysia. I’d like to talk to the 30% who still says she’s OK. Don’t they read newspapers or watch the news? Tony Kevin of A Certain maritime Incident fame went into overdrive when something similar happened whilst John Howard held the reigns. Driven by hatred of Howard and conservatives generally, he wrote a book and regularly appeared on the ABC castigating Howard and trying to get the government cited for murder. He also accuse the RAN of ignoring distress signal (of a boat that was sinking in Indon waters) If any reader has his email address please give it to me and I’ll ask him the name of his new book detailing similar incidences under the Gillard government. I’m sure he’s working on it A review on his last book says;
In a careful and well-researched argument, Kevin implies that those who drowned when the SIEV X capsized were not only victims of an unscrupulous people smuggler, Abu Quassey, whom Australian authorities have shown surprisingly little interest in apprehending. They were also casualties of the Howard Government’s efforts to deter asylum-seekers from seeking refuge in northern Australia.
The Greens abrogate all responsibilities as well. Sarah Hanson-Young tosses a throw-away line into the mix when asked if the Greens feel responsible at all.
Of course not. Tragedies happen, accidents happen
Dead right Sarah, and they will keep on happening while you and your idiot mates ignore the realities of life. Gillard and the Greens have created a nightmare by continuing to pander to the Asylum seeker industry. They are effectively telling all and sundry; come to Australia, we are so confused you will just be able to arrive and get accepted as legitimate asylum seekers, no questions asked. We have no concept of borders, everyone is welcome legitimate or not – we don’t care so go for it! We are being led by fools.

van Onselen confused

Peter Van Olsenen in todays Perth Now misses the point
At 8000 arrivals in the past year, the numbers are well up on previous years, so it’s easy to see why the Opposition is able to stir up community angst
The Opposition don’t need to stir up angst – the community can see for themselves that our borders are meaningless and we are being used. If one person arrives on our shores using the services of People Smugglers P/L then we have no border security.
We need larger population growth to sustain productivity. Up the quota and the problem is solved, without needing a tougher border-protection policy.
We do need a larger population but I’d rather we chose who we accept – not have it forced on us as fait accompli Van Olsenen is so far out of touch when he says these people can be an answer to our labour shortage that his ability for rational thought seems to have been suppressed by his endless support for the thugs on the rooftops of our detention centres. It goes like this – at an Australian embassy somewhere….show me your ID papers and passport…do you speak English…what skill do you offer…can you support your family if they are with you until you have income NOT come down off the roof….we don’t mind that you have destroyed your ID and passport…we don’t care that you have no skills…we don’t care that you have destroyed government property….here is a job and citizenship and some money to help you bring in your extended family. Get real Peter. I understand that you are ideologically obliged to defend the scruffs on the roofs and to attack and/or attempt to find friction in the Coalition where none exists but for heaven’s sake, do try and use logic.

High Court “disaster”

The lawyers will be cracking open the Moet champagne but the country has suffered a disaster with this High Court ruling. THE High Court has unanimously rejected the federal government’s attempt to keep asylum-seekers on Christmas Island outside the protection of Australian law. In a landmark ruling handed down by the full bench of the High Court this morning, the court determined that two Sri Lankan Tamil asylum-seekers, M61 and M69, had been denied procedural fairness.
David Manne, executive director of the Refugee and Immigration Legal Centre, who co-ordinated the High Court challenge, said: “This is a great decision for the rule of law in this country. “The court has unanimously ruled that these decisions on our clients’ cases were unfair and unlawful because the government was not applying ordinary Australian laws on decisions on these life or death matters.”
Well, that’s David Manne’s opinion but to classify this as ‘life and death matters’ lends false gravitas and, I for one, don’t think refugees should have the rights of citizens until they are citizens. In my mind, the only winners are the lawyers in the Human Rights industry, the two Tamil Tigers plus, of course, every other future ‘life style shopping’ boaty. What now for East Timor? Forget it – the government will be too busy processing claims once the news hits the People Smuggler Network News to try and come up with any solution to their self-inflicted wound.
The Australian government and the immigration minister have been ordered to pay the pair’s legal costs.
Which translates as a mob of legal practitioners are going to be handed a lot of money as payment for their efforts in making it harder to run the country’s borders in any sort of organized manner. So, not only have we exhorted the people smugglers and ‘life style shoppers’ to greater efforts, but if we don’t want them to live here for any legitimate reason we will totally fund their appeal to the High Court to force us to give them what they want – permanent residency. Something wrong there!

Slogans only OK for ALP

The Prime Minister attacked Tony Abbott’s resort to “three-word slogans” on border security, insisting her government was having success tackling people-smuggling across a range of policy levels. Without delving too much into her “moving forward, fuel watch, grocery watch” sloganeering I think her last line is disingenuous to the extreme. Who does she think she is kidding! “…having success tackling people-smuggling across a range of policy levels” would suggest the ALP are on top of the problem and nothing could be further from the truth. Amanda Hodge has posted an article on the refugees “life style” seekers taking advantage of Gillard’s successful tackling of people smugglers.
…a high-ranking Pakistani official, also involved in anti-people-smuggling operations, denied the numbers were in decline and said the Gillard government’s recent family-friendly announcement would only encourage more movement. “It’s increasing and the reason is very simple: you’re not doing anything positive to stop it,” the official said. “You’re sending all the wrong signals. You’ve set up new centres in Adelaide and one near Perth to accommodate the child issues. If you’re going to be so friendly then of course you’re going to get more people.
Sending all the wrong signals is dead right.

Immigration being swamped

Now the ALP are back in power they need to do something about the asylum seeker boaties….still! Of course it’s going to get worse as the world knows Australia still has open borders. Come one, come all…don’t worry you’re little heads about formalities…visas and UN refugee status is for the real asylum seekers. THE head of the Department of Immigration has made an “urgent” plea for additional staff, claiming his department is struggling to process the rising number of asylum seekers. Well now, he isn’t singing from the ALP songbook is he? Read his letter here

Recycled Asylum Policy

PRIME Minister Julia Gillard outlined a recalibrated recycled asylum seeker policy today as she looked to appease nervous backbenchers and reclaim voters in marginal seats. Among the changes to Labor’s asylum seeker policy was a long-term approach to “take on unauthorised arrivals” by “wrecking the people smuggling trade” and “removing the incentive to leave their port of origin in the first place,” Ms Gillard said. That was last years plan as reported in October 2009
AUSTRALIA will send police and hi-tech gear into several Asian hot-spots in a frantic bid to stem the flow of asylum seekers. Taxpayers are also likely to stump up millions of dollars in extra assistance for border protection as the Rudd Government tries to deal with the growing political storm. With secret intelligence warning of a continuing surge in illegal arrivals, Australian Federal Police commissioner Tony Negus held emergency talks with his Sri Lankan and Indonesian counterparts this week.
Having canned the Abbott’s “Pacific Solution” she has come up with a “Timor Solution” Geographical semantics at its best.
Ms Gillard rejected the Coalition’s promise to return to the Pacific solution of the Howard years, in which asylum seeker boats were taken to small Pacific nations such as Nauru to be processed. Instead, she announced something which sounds pretty similar, saying talks were underway to establish a processing centre in East Timor to assess claims there. She had spoken to New Zealand and UN refugee agency on the idea.
Ms Gillard also ended the three-month freeze on processing of Sri Lankan asylum seekers (who aren’t at risk). and send back Afghans (who are) She took an hour to say the ALP are taking the Coalition’s Pacific Solution and morphing it into the Timor Solution and that they are going to get tough on the source of origin of boat people which they supposedly did last year. Just like she changed Tony Burke’s title from Minister for Population to the Minister for Sustainable Population to stop people panicking about overpopulation she now changes the Asylum Policy name from Pacific Solution to Timor Solution. There, that should fix it. I doubt it.

Asylum seekers in 4 Star motel

The Courier Mail reports the Rudd Government have placed 79 illegal boat people in a four star motel in Brisbane. The motel is just down the road from me and it’s not my first choice in accommodation as it’s too expensive.
The Palms Motel in suburban Brisbane reportedly has been awarded a $1.2 million government contract for at least six months to accommodate the group.
$50,000 a week is good money if you can get it but I can’t help feeling that this news will go very well overseas. Just catch a boat, throw away all your papers and the idiotic Aussie will put you up in a four star motel. Of course, they have all been security cleared – haven’t they?

Pot, meet Kettle

KEVIN Rudd has accused Tony Abbott of presiding over a policy dead zone when it comes to border security, saying the Opposition Leader is “100 per cent headline and zero per cent policy”. That’s as opposed to what Kevin? What policy do you have that has led to 101 illegal boats arriving on your watch? As I’ve said before;
The back door to Australia remains open or, seemingly off its hinges, as illegal boats, line astern, queue up for berthing at Christmas Island
The Libs had the same problem and did something about it. What are you going to do?

Sailor does well

Reporters covering the Inquiry into the incident where the asylum queue jumpers set fire to their boat are having a field day with anti navy statements as the story starts to unfold. AUSTRALIAN defence personnel kicked asylum-seekers in the head to stop them from clambering aboard a rescue boat in the aftermath of a fatal explosion.
Corporal Sharon Jager, an air force officer Non Commissioned Officer with post-traumatic stress disorder, broke down as she recounted the chaos following the explosion on the boat, known as SIEV36, in April last year. Cprl Cpl Jager, who had no experience in boarding illegal vessels, testified she was “shoulder-to-shoulder” in the water with asylum-seekers and watched in horror as a naval colleague in an inflatable rescue boat kicked two men in the head in order to save her first.
Why “watched in horror?” She’s in the water clinging to a piece of wood, close to drowning and more than likely in severe shock; I would’ve thought “watched in relief” would be closer to the truth. Is she suggesting that she would’ve given up her chance to be saved for a queue jumper?
“I saw (Able Seaman Adrian) Medbury leave his position and he’s moved along physically and he’s moved the two asylum-seekers, saying, `f..k off, get the f..k off her’ as he dragged me into the boat,” Crpl Cpl Jager told Coroner Greg Cavanag.
I would think that if Medbury hadn’t acted as he did the queue jumpers would’ve climbed over Cpl Jager’s drowned body to save themselves. He was obviously under stress and functioning as a trained sailor should and unless you were there in the same situation then you can’t criticize him. For me, I say ‘Well done, that man! He was trying to save you Cpl and you should be thanking him for saving your life not pointing out how horrified you were at his actions. So he was swearing! He’s a sailor under extreme pressure. Had my life gone differently I may have joined the Navy and if so I could’ve been a Lt Comdr involved in this branch. Had that been the case I would have had a point in unit/Ship SOPs that included, inter alia “save the crew first so they can more effectively save the others should any such incident occur. The Captain has responsibility to his crew and he needs all of them to effectively carry out his mission and what if his after Action Report read; “We saved all of the queue jumpers who blew up their boat but in doing so five Australian sailors were drowned” An attachment to the report would have had to be his signed resignation. (The strike outs are just me correcting the reporters abysmal Staff Duties!)
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