Category: News and Features

News, Features, Media Releases and Comments

Australia hails “Bali Process” countries criminalisation of people smuggling


Foreign Minister Bob Carr has hailed an agreement by 37 Bali Process countries to criminalise people-smuggling and human-trafficking as a "huge advance". The Bali Process ministerial meeting yesterday also agreed to link with the Australian-sponsored Jakarta Centre for Law Enforcement Co-operation to train regional police forces to deal with people-smugglers and traffickers as trans-national criminals. … Continue reading Australia hails “Bali Process” countries criminalisation of people smuggling

Australia has a secret China Unit


After years of policy confusion, a high-powered task force has been quietly pulling the China threads together in the federal bureaucracy. Canberra's leading mandarins have formed a secret task force to cope with the unprecedented challenges of rising China. The Committee of Secretaries on China was formed by a cabinet decision of December 2010 following … Continue reading Australia has a secret China Unit

Australia’s “Asia Literate” plan fails: more students learning Latin than Chinese


Asian language teaching in Australian schools has declined to the point where more year 12 students are studying Latin than Chinese. Despite China's growing importance and the Gillard government's goal of creating an ''Asia Literate'' society by 2025, fewer high school students who don't speak Chinese at home are learning the language than four years … Continue reading Australia’s “Asia Literate” plan fails: more students learning Latin than Chinese

Australian navy chief says Opposition’s plan to resume turning back asylum seeker boats is dangerous


The navy chief responsible for turning back asylum boats under the Howard government has warned that any decision to reintroduce the policy would be "dangerous stuff" for all concerned. David Shackleton said the Coalition should be under no illusion that such a policy would lead asylum-seekers to sabotage their boats, jump overboard and do whatever … Continue reading Australian navy chief says Opposition’s plan to resume turning back asylum seeker boats is dangerous

Former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd calls on China to calm North Korea


North Korea's nuclear program poses a serious threat to China's own relations with its neighbours, Kevin Rudd has warned officers at Beijing's main defence academy. In a speech at China's National Defence University, Mr Rudd said Pyongyang's antics threatened China's foreign policy objectives because Asian nations were beginning to co-operate on regional anti-ballistic missile defences, … Continue reading Former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd calls on China to calm North Korea

Australia warned of double whammy in China’s pending debt crisis


A major Asian investment bank says the seeds of a future financial crisis in China have been sown. Nomura is warning that debt levels in China are teetering at unsustainable levels. Debt in China is believed to be between 150 and 200 per cent of GDP, pushed up by easy monetary policy the government has … Continue reading Australia warned of double whammy in China’s pending debt crisis

Australia’s population could soar to 40 million by 2050 because of temporary entry migrants


Julia Gillard is steering the nation's population on a course to more than 40 million by 2050, despite warning just three years ago against "hurtling towards a big Australia". New figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics today show net overseas migration jumped by almost a third, to 228,000, in the 12 months to … Continue reading Australia’s population could soar to 40 million by 2050 because of temporary entry migrants

Australian expert warns of more asylum seeker deaths at sea unless changes made


The Australian governments own immigration expert Paris Aristotle says it is ''absolutely certain'' there will be more asylum-seeker deaths at sea unless the government implements the full suite of measures recommended to it last year. In the wake of the deaths of two asylum-seekers this week Mr Aristotle, who is currently visiting the Nauru detention … Continue reading Australian expert warns of more asylum seeker deaths at sea unless changes made

A fifth of Australian teaching degrees will fail new government quality test


About a fifth of the 400 teaching degrees offered by universities around Australia will struggle to meet standards required for accreditation by the national teaching institute, and half of those courses are expected to close. The chairman of the Australian Institute for Teaching School Leadership, Tony Mackay, yesterday said the new national standards for accrediting … Continue reading A fifth of Australian teaching degrees will fail new government quality test

Afghan women tricked into spying on Taliban for US, Australian forces


Afghan women were tricked into spying for NATO-led forces after being lured in under the auspices of a fake aid program, a former espionage chief has revealed. Provided with phone credit and sewing and embroidery supplies, the women believed that they were being helped to start a small business. But their contact point, a female … Continue reading Afghan women tricked into spying on Taliban for US, Australian forces

Five ministers, three whips, parliamentary secretaries resign; Australian government in turmoil


Anthony Albanese says there's "no reason" for him to resign in the wake of Labor's abortive leadership coup, as he admitted the departures of fellow Rudd backers from the ministry were "big losses". The cabinet minister denied he played any role in corralling support for Kevin Rudd against Julia Gillard ahead of a Labor caucus … Continue reading Five ministers, three whips, parliamentary secretaries resign; Australian government in turmoil

Australian hostage freed by Al-Qaida group in the Philippines after 15 months


The family of Australian Warren Rodwell are "enormously relieved" after he was freed by his captors in the southern Philippines after almost 15 months. Mr Rodwell, from Sydney, was taken hostage by notorious al-Qaida-linked group Abu Sayyaf on December 5, 2011. Foreign Affairs Minister Bob Carr confirmed he was released from captivity on the island … Continue reading Australian hostage freed by Al-Qaida group in the Philippines after 15 months

Adultery is now a reason for asylum in Australia


An adulterous Iraqi taxi driver has been awarded an Australian refugee visa after he convinced the Refugee Review Tribunal he would be hunted down by an infuriated husband who caught him in an tryst with his wife. The Shia refugee, who arrived by boat from Indonesia in December 2011, claimed the husband, an Iraqi soldier, … Continue reading Adultery is now a reason for asylum in Australia

Australian government is the world’s laughing stock; a leadership challenge with no challenger


This morning, the Australian Prime Minister called a leadership ballot for her own position at 4:30 pm the same day. No warning. No time for challengers to prepare. No time for the party to ready itself. It is difficult to find an international policy angle to all of this, except to say what an international … Continue reading Australian government is the world’s laughing stock; a leadership challenge with no challenger

Australia to train Vietnamese troops for U.N. peacekeeping roles


Australia will help train Vietnamese troops to take part in United Nations peacekeeping missions. The decision for Diggers to share their abundant experience on such operations was announced yesterday by defence minister Stephen Smith after talks in Canberra with his Vietnamese counterpart, General Phung Quang Thanh. "Australia will provide training to Vietnam People's Army troops … Continue reading Australia to train Vietnamese troops for U.N. peacekeeping roles

Former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd goes world wide on China’s assertiveness


He may no longer be prime minister but Kevin Rudd is about to again strut the world stage in support of an article for Foreign Affairs magazine on relations between China and the US. Mr Rudd has scheduled trips to South Korea, China and the US as parliament prepares to break ahead of the May … Continue reading Former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd goes world wide on China’s assertiveness

Australia to ease restrictions on Myanmar, arms embargo to stay


Australia will ease restrictions on military engagement with Myanmar following democratic reforms since the country's ruling generals relinquished their half-century grip on power in 2011, Prime Minister Julia Gillard said on Monday. During a visit to Canberra by Myanmar's President Thein Sein - the first leader from the former Burma to visit the Australian capital … Continue reading Australia to ease restrictions on Myanmar, arms embargo to stay

Australia places Syria group on terrorist list


The Al-Nusrah Front was little known before the Syria uprising but has since become a major part of the insurgency. The Australian government has placed a prominent Sunni Islamist group fighting the regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria on its terrorist blacklist. Foreign Minister Bob Carr has announced Australia will list the Al-Nusrah Front as … Continue reading Australia places Syria group on terrorist list

Many Afghans held by Australian troops are falsely accused


More than half the almost 1900 Afghans detained by Australian forces in Oruzgan may have been innocents falsely accused by local enemies , according to the province's chief of police, Matiullah Khan. They were named so their enemies could gain advantages in tribal, business or personal disputes. Asked about the numbers first put forward by … Continue reading Many Afghans held by Australian troops are falsely accused

Asylum-seeker boat arrival numbers increase in Australia


The number of asylum-seekers coming to Australia by boat surged in the first 2 1/2 months of this year, with a 55 per cent spike in arrivals compared to the same period last year. Almost 1900 people have arrived in the first 73 days of this year, compared with 1209 for the same period last year, … Continue reading Asylum-seeker boat arrival numbers increase in Australia

China’s Citic fail to pay $400 million in Australian contract; can’t comprehend “rule of law” concept


Up to $400 million in royalty and purchase payments due to Queensland mining magnate Clive Palmer are in dispute and have not been paid, as a rift widens between him and China's Citic Pacific, the builder of the troubled $US8 billion ($7.8bn) Sino Iron project in Western Australia. Hong Kong-listed Citic has said it is … Continue reading China’s Citic fail to pay $400 million in Australian contract; can’t comprehend “rule of law” concept

Adam Giles to be Australia’s first indigenous head of government


Terry Mills has been replaced as Northern Territory chief minister while on an overseas trip to Japan. Taking his place will be Transport Minister Adam Giles, who will become Australia's first indigenous head of government. Mr Mills' removal comes only seven months after the Country Liberal Party's victory in the NT election, and just a … Continue reading Adam Giles to be Australia’s first indigenous head of government

Australian government defends indigenous policy


The Gillard government has defended its indigenous policies after Howard minister Alexander Downer called for children to be moved out of remote communities and into boarding schools and for increased access to property ownership. Mr Downer said sending children from remote communities into boarding schools in regional towns and cities would help them "acclimatise to … Continue reading Australian government defends indigenous policy

Japanese technology could improve Australia’s Collins-class submarines


The navy has set its sights on sophisticated new Japanese technology to extensively rebuild its troubled Collins-class submarines and extend their operational lives by 10 years or more. That could postpone the spending of an estimated $40 billion to build the 12 new submarines the Gillard government has promised to replace the Collins-class boats. Japan … Continue reading Japanese technology could improve Australia’s Collins-class submarines

Australian Prime Minister harmed state election results for her own party


Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard harmed the Labor brand further by not being involved in the West Australian election campaign, according to re-elected premier Colin Barnett. Mr Barnett was celebrating the Liberal's extraordinary triumph in yesterday 's poll, which saw his party win enough seats to govern on its own, as Labor's federal woes infected … Continue reading Australian Prime Minister harmed state election results for her own party