Craig Hill Media and Consulting
Marty Natalegawa
Indonesia warns Australia against turning back asylum-seeker boats
Indonesia has raised the ante in its dispute with the Abbott government over turning back asylum-seeker boats, saying its plan puts at risk Jakarta‘s “close cooperation and trust”. The warning came as Tony Abbot sought to reassure the Jakarta “we absolutely respect Indonesia’s sovereignty and we would never do or propose anything which is contrary … Continue reading
New Australian government has only one female cabinet member
It’s a sad day for the nation when the cabinet of Afghanistan has more women in it than the cabinet of Australia, says acting Labor leader Chris Bowen. Prime Minister-elect Tony Abbott unveiled his ministerial line up on Monday, revealing the only woman in the cabinet is Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop. The outgoing Labor … Continue reading
Indonesia rejects Australian people-smuggler plan
Jakarta has signalled its reluctance to embrace a key plank of Tony Abbott‘s asylum-seeker policy, with the Indonesian Foreign Minister criticising the plan to pay villagers for information about people-smugglers, saying it risked undermining his nation’s sovereignty. In a day of tension between Australia and its nearest neighbour, a policy row also erupted over foreign … Continue reading
Australia’s new asylum policy hits Iranians hardest
Asylum seekers from ethnic and religious majorities in their own countries will have great difficulty establishing a valid claim for refugee status in Australia under new Rudd government policy. This will strike hardest at Iranians, currently the single largest and most troublesome component of the asylum-seeker flow. Most Afghans and Pakistanis would still pass the … Continue reading
Australian government fears conflict with Indonesia under opposition asylum policy
Australia’s Opposition Immigration spokesman Scott Morrison has called on Kevin Rudd to refrain from “desperate and reckless” attempts to draw Indonesia into the domestic political argument over asylum seekers when he visits later this week. Mr Rudd, who is this week due to meet Indonesia’s President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, on Friday warned of “some sort … Continue reading
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
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