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Down Under

Sydney sheik making headlines again

2006-10-29

Australia's most senior Islamic cleric, Sheikh Taj Aldin Alhilali, has made headlines again with more controversial comments. In an interview on Arabic radio reported in The Australian, the sheikh praised militant jihadists in Iraq and Afghanistan. He called them men of the highest order for fighting against coalition forces - which include Australian forces - to liberate their homelands. "Jihad of the liberator of Palestine, that's the greatest and cleanest and highest ... jihad which lifts our heads in pride in south Lebanon," the sheikh said in the October 17 interview. He told broadcaster Abrahim Zoabi he endorses jihad for liberation. "We are talking about ... jihad of liberating our land, jihad of Muslim Afghanis in their land - that's jihad. "Jihad of Iraqi Muslims is jihad, but not when Sunnis and Shias are killing each other - that's not jihad." A defiant Sheikh Alhilali said on Friday he would resign only when the world was "clean of the White House". He is under pressure to step down after suggesting in a sermon immodestly dressed women invite sexual assault. Meanwhile, it was revealed intelligence reports warning that Sheikh Alhilali had been linked to extremist groups in Egypt and could pose a threat to Australia were sent to the federal government in 1984 - six years before he was granted permanent residency. But the documents, which also said military-style weapons were being kept at the Lakemba mosque, were shelved, according to the secret agent who passed them on to Canberra. The reports came from an Egyptian source considered highly reliable by Western intelligence agencies, including the CIA. "He was our best agent at the time," the former secret agent told The Australian. The reports were passed on through the Australian embassy in Cairo then headed by Ken Rogers. Current ASIO director General Paul O'Sullivan was a senior diplomat at the embassy at the time. Prime Minister John Howard has urged Muslim leaders to listen to the Australian community when deciding the fate of the sheik. The board of the Lebanese Muslim Association (LMA), which runs the Sydney mosque where Australia's most senior Islamic cleric preaches, met on Sunday night and decided on a plan to deal with the controversy. "The board has met. We have put together a plan and hopefully we can get ourselves out of this crisis," LMA president Tom Zreika told AAP. But he declined to reveal the plan, saying it was confidential. Despite earlier reports to the contrary, no meeting was held regarding the sheik's future. The sheik has repeatedly said his comments, which sparked a storm of outrage after being translated from Arabic, were taken out of context and he would only quit if it could be proved his sermon was deliberately offensive. "I am particularly concerned about the views he (Alihali) expressed concerning women," Mr Howard told Macquarie Radio. "They are quite unacceptable to the mainstream of Australian opinion and if those views had been expressed by a Catholic bishop there would be an absolute uproar." Mr Howard said he did not have the power to sack the Muslim leader, and could only call on those with power to resolve the issue. "The responsibility to resolve this matter sensibly rests with the Islamic community," he told reporters in Canberra. "I don't appoint him, I can't dismiss him. "And there is no point in people in my position calling for this and that other than to call upon those who have the power to resolve this matter, to resolve this matter in a way that promotes the interests of harmony in our community and promotes the view Islamic Australians are fully integrated into Australian society." He said the Islamic community must hear what the rest of the Australian community was saying on the issue and asked them to "discharge their obligations as members of the Australian community". "If this matter is not properly handled by the Islamic community I am concerned that their failure to do so will do lasting damage to the perceptions of that community within the Australian community. "His remarks were totally unacceptable - full stop." Mr Howard says the sheik's controversial comments have also tarnished the image of Australian Muslims overseas. "One of the things that does bother me is that when he goes overseas he carries the title of Mufti of Australia and that represents to the world a view of Australian Islam which I feel very uncomfortable with," Mr Howard told Macquarie radio. "I feel very uncomfortable, and I don't mind saying it, that somebody holding a responsible religious position in Australia should have expressed the view he did." Opposition leader Kim Beazley said it was very important the Islamic community took action on the sheik. "He should go," he said. "This fellow should go from his status in the Islamic community." The sheik and the LMA, which runs the Lakemba Mosque, have agreed he take a break from preaching for several months. Mr Howard said the Labor federal government in the late 1980s took a "blatantly political decision" to keep the sheik in Australia at the time. News Limited papers have reported that then treasurer Paul Keating and leading Labor figure Leo McLeay demanded in the mid 1980s that immigration minister Chris Hurford grant the sheik residency and were furious when he refused. But Mr Hurford's decision was reportedly overruled by Mr Keating while he was acting prime minister in the absence of then prime minister Bob Hawke. It was the second time the party leaders had attempted to intervene on behalf of the sheik, according to Labor sources cited in the papers. The sheik arrived in Australia in 1982 but did not gain residency until 1990. "It is so typical of John Howard to be out there saying the Labor party is somehow to blame for Sheik Alhilali's views," Mr Beazley told the Nine Network. "It would be as sensible as me saying the Liberal Party is responsible for it because I see in one newspaper he came in 1982 (when Liberal Malcolm Fraser was in power). "The point is what do you about it now - what stand do you take now. That was years ago." Mr Beazley said immigrants to Australia should have to give an indication they support Australian values, "in this particular case that we regard men and women as equal stakeholders in this society". A prominent Liberal backbencher says the sheik should be stripped of his permanent residency and kicked out of the country. Queensland Liberal MP Warren Entsch said he understood the cleric was only a permanent resident, not a citizen, and his invitation to remain in Australia should be rescinded. "My first reaction is to hell with him," Mr Entsch told reporters in Canberra. "Having citizenship is an absolute privilege, so is residency, and if he wants to abuse that privilege than he should suffer the consequences. "I'm not too sure what the legal ramifications are, whether the government has the capacity to do that once it's granted, but I think it's something that should be considered. "He shouldn't be here." But Mr Entsch said he had taken heart that the mainstream Muslim community had quickly stood up against the sheik. He said high-profile leaders were speaking against the cleric and making strong moves to have him step down. "From what I've heard within the Muslim community they are certainly lining him up to do a lot more than an apology," he said. "And it's good to see the moderates and more mainstream Muslims in the community actually taking this character on and telling him it's totally unacceptable in this country to be making the statements he is." Liberal MP Cameron Thompson said the cleric should listen to the groundswell of people in the Islamic community asking him to step down. "From where I sit he's long outlived his usefulness as an effective leader of that religion," Mr Thompson told reporters in Canberra. "I think there are many more people who would be more effective in that position ... so I'd like to see something else happening there." Labor's deputy leader Jenny Macklin said the Muslim community should show leadership and make it clear the sheik's views were not acceptable. She said the person responsible for rape was the perpetrator, not the victim. "I think this man needs to be condemned for his lack of moral leadership," she said. "He certainly should go, from my point of view." Ms Macklin said Attorney-General Philip Ruddock should actively investigate whether Sheik Alhilali had broken any laws with his comments.

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Australian Govt. flags changes to refugee program

2006-10-17

Refugees in Australia could find it harder to bring family members from their troubled homelands if the government goes ahead with proposed changes to the humanitarian migration program. A discussion paper on the program was released on Tuesday, suggesting refugees fleeing war, violence and discrimination be made to take English lessons before they travel to Australia. But it also proposed tightening rules for people living in Australia who nominate others for resettlement visas. They could have to meet certain requirements, including a minimum one year period of employment, two years of residence, and prove they are financially literate. In its discussion paper, the government suggests prioritising those with a proven track record of helping migrants settle under the humanitarian program, and those who are based in areas with worker shortages. It also says a limit may be placed on the number of people an individual or group can nominate. But refugee advocate Pamela Curr said the plans would make it more difficult for refugees to be reunited with their families. "If they implement this discussion paper, they will effectively be blocking human beings from reuniting with their husbands, their wives. "Every human being has a right to their family," she said. "And a pony." "They've raised the bar for refugees to prove themselves before they can achieve family reunion." But she applauded a government proposal to teach incoming refugees English. "That's a great idea," Ms Curr said. "Anything that assists people to settle in the community is something that we want." In the paper, the government proposes expanding its Australian Cultural Orientation (AUSCO) program, which was first piloted in Kenya in 2003. The program, run by the International Organisation for Migration, currently provides people preparing to settle in Australia with a 15 hour information session covering the ins and outs of Australian life, laws, and settlement services. But the government wants to include a basic introduction to English in the course and increase its length. "The scope exists to enhance and expand the AUSCO program to further improve the settlement prospects of humanitarian entrants through targeted curriculum development, increasing the length of the courses and incorporating an introduction English language training as a course module," the discussion paper says. Parliamentary secretary for immigration Andrew Robb said English language skills were essential. "The ability to speak and understand English is fundamental to effective integration into the community and is crucial if people are to benefit from the education and employment opportunities offered by Australia," he said. The Australian Democrats have slammed the plan. "I have a real concern that the government is creating a situation where refugees and migrants are again being targeted and division in the community is being fuelled," Democrats senator Andrew Bartlett said. "It is simply outrageous to impose English requirements on refugees fleeing war torn countries who may have lived for decades in refugee camps." Last month, Opposition Leader Kim Beazley sparked a nationwide debate when he proposed forcing all new migrants to sign up to Australian values. The government then released a discussion paper proposing tougher citizenship laws designed to make immigrants wait longer for an Australian passport. Under the plan, immigrants would have to sit a test to prove they understand Australian history, national symbols, culture and the democratic system, as well as English, before being granted citizenship. The government is inviting community feedback on the discussion paper. Australia accepts around 13,000 people through its refugee and humanitarian program each year.

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Downer slams Labor over Iraq pullout plan

2006-10-17

The Foreign Minister has strongly condemned the federal Opposition over its promise to remove Australian troops from Iraq. The Labor leader, Kim Beazley, says if he wins the election, he would immediately talk to the United States about how quickly Australian forces could be replaced in Iraq. The Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer, told Parliament it is a weak and gutless policy. "The leader of the Opposition's proposition is that this great country would pullout its forces and ask others to do the job for us," he said. "[He] would go to our allies, the Americans, and the morally bankrupt way the leader of the Opposition proposes, and say to the Americans 'find someone else to do this job we are too weak to continue with it'." The Opposition has hit back at Mr Downer. Labor's foreign affairs spokesman Kevin Rudd calls the Iraq war the single greatest foreign policy disaster since the Vietnam War. He has questioned how Mr Downer can claim to be proud of the Government's role in Iraq. "Mr Downer therefore, I presume, is proud of the fact that 655,000 per the Lancet 50,000 Iraqi civilians lie dead since the invasion of March 2003, Mr Downer is proud of the fact that 100 Iraqi civilians are killed each day in Iraq, he's proud of the fact that this has involved the expenditure of $1.9 billion of Australian taxpayers funding without any exit strategy in sight," Mr Rudd said.

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Beazley fails to censure John Howard over Iraq War

2006-10-16

Opposition Leader Kim Beazley has unsuccessfully attempted to censure Prime Minister John Howard over the war on Iraq. Mr Beazley's move comes after Britain's army chief said British troops should pull out of Iraq because their presence there was exacerbating security problems. After using eight of the opposition's 10 questions in parliamentary question time to quiz Mr Howard about Iraq, Mr Beazley moved a censure motion against the prime minister for sending Australian troops to war "on a lie". He also accused Mr Howard of contributing to the spread of radicalism, spawning a new generation of Islamic terrorists. "There is nobody in the United States administration, in the British administration, in the leadership of the United States administration through to the leadership of the British administration, and I dare say the civil servants, the public servants that advise this government, who now believe that going to war in Iraq was the right thing to do," Mr Beazley told parliament. "The whole panoply of disasters that has surrounded this war has put those of us in the West, struggling for a decent outcome to protect ourselves and to encourage a victory for mainstream Muslims, ... all on the back foot." Mr Howard said Mr Beazley had not considered the consequences of the policy he was now proposing. He said Mr Beazley was obliged to explain to the Australian people how an allied defeat in Iraq would make Australia safer. "He is talking about the security of our nation yet he is advocating a policy that would give an enormous boost to the terrorist cause, not only in the Middle East but also in our part of the world," he said. "That is the central failure of the leader of the opposition's speech. He has not explained, let alone justified, how the policies that he advocates could in any way make this country safer." Mr Howard said he could not imagine a more catastrophic defeat for the cause of the west and anti-terrorism than a precipitous withdrawal which plunged Iraq into chaos. He said Mr Beazley's claim that Australian troops were despatched to Iraq on a lie was itself a lie. Mr Howard said opposition foreign affairs spokesman Kevin Rudd himself said in 2002 that Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction. "That was the informed, received official foreign policy belief of the Labor opposition three years ago," he said. "Their argument was not whether Saddam had the weapons but what we should so about them." Australia has 900 troops in Iraq, compared with the US's 141,000. Mr Rudd told parliament there was a time when the people of Australia actually believed Mr Howard. "It did not cross their mind that he would tell them blatant lies," he said. "But what they have seen over the last three and a half years is a prime minister who ducks and weaves at each opportunity around the truth, each time he is pinned down, each time he is asked a difficult question." Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said Labor often claimed the government went to war based on the lie of the existence of weapons of mass destruction. But he said Opposition Leader Kim Beazley had also believed Saddam Hussein possessed such weapons prior to Iraq's invasion. Mr Downer said the Labor Party was weak when it came to tyranny and would not confront dictators until they were left with no choice. He said the Labor Party received $500,000 from Saddam Hussein for its 1975 election campaign. "I don't much warm to lectures from the Labor Party about Saddam Hussein," he said. The censure motion was defeated along party lines, 80 votes to 58.

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PM signals support for nuclear power industry Down Under

2006-10-16

PRIME Minister John Howard has given his strongest support yet to the use of nuclear power in Australia, backing the local development of the "clean" energy industry. An expert taskforce is due to release a draft report next month on the merits of nuclear power and whether Australia should be thinking of value-adding options, such as enrichment, for its vast uranium stores. But before the experts have even had their say, Mr Howard has indicated he believes nuclear power is an industry Australia should be developing. Mr Howard has previously suggested nuclear power was something Australia should consider if economically viable. "I'm in favour of Australia developing nuclear power for peaceful purposes," he told the Nine Network. "It's clean and green and, in an age where we're worried about global warming, we should be looking seriously at nuclear power as an option because it's clean and it doesn't emit greenhouse gases. "I can't understand why the extreme greenies oppose it." Mr Howard's one-time adversary, former prime minister Paul Keating, sees the issue completely differently. "Nuclear energy is a bad fuel, a dirty fuel, a dangerous fuel," he told Sky News. "Nuclear is a no-no generally in my opinion - it is a bad business." Instead Mr Keating would prefer to focus on alternative strategies to reduce Australia's reliance on fossil fuels, options such as hybrid cars and hydrogen fuel cells. Labor has pledged there will be no nuclear power if it wins Government, but it does plan to re-examine its policy of no new uranium mines at its national conference next year. Opposition Leader Kim Beazley wants the policy changed but faces a difficult job convincing some sections of Labor that it is the way to go. Mr Keating thinks a change in the Labor policy would be a mistake. "I think I would stay with the existing policy," he said. "This is not a good industry to encourage, and anyone that has an electricity program, ipso-facto ends up with a nuclear weapons capability."

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Muslims read riot act

2006-09-17

AUSTRALIA'S Muslim leaders have been "read the riot act" over the need to denounce any links between Islam and terrorism. The Howard Government's multicultural spokesman, Andrew Robb, yesterday told an audience of 100 imams who address Australia's mosques that these were tough times requiring great personal resolve. Mr Robb also called on them to shun a victim mentality that branded any criticism as discrimination. "We live in a world of terrorism where evil acts are being regularly perpetrated in the name of your faith," Mr Robb said at the Sydney conference. "And because it is your faith that is being invoked as justification for these evil acts, it is your problem. "You can't wish it away, or ignore it, just because it has been caused by others. "Instead, speak up and condemn terrorism, defend your role in the way of life that we all share here in Australia." Mr Robb said unless Muslims took responsibility for their destiny and tackled the causes of terrorism, Australia would become divided. Mr Robb, the parliamentary secretary for immigration and multicultural affairs, said it was important for migrants to learn English. "I see as critical the need for imams to have effective English language skills -- it is a self-evident truth that a shared language is one of the foundations of national cohesion," he said. On the eve of Mr Robb's release today of a discussion paper on a new citizenship test, the chairman of the Government's Muslim Reference Group, Dr Ameer Ali, said Opposition Leader Kim Beazley's idea of a values test was silly, as was the need for a universal English test. He called for an orientation program for new migrants akin to a university student's orientation week.

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Australia to boost Federal Police force for overseas deployments

2006-08-25

Prime Minister John Howard says extra Australian Federal Police (AFP) officers are needed for increased overseas deployments to help ensure regional stability. Mr Howard says the ranks of the AFP will be boosted by extra 400 officers to serve in overseas trouble spots. "The Government is doing this because we believe that the need for international deployments by the Australian Federal Police will, in all likelihood, increase in our region over the years ahead," he said. "Regional instability in a number of countries, evidenced recently by what happened in East Timor and Solomon Islands, is likely to continue, indeed intensify. "This is part of our response to the deteriorating security situation in the region." He says an extra 422 AFP officers will be posted overseas over the next two years. Opposition Leader Kim Beazley is worried about recruitment. "He must not recruit from the state police forces to do this, he must train these people from the ground up," he said. So the opposition is in agreement.

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Australia asylum bill passes test

2006-08-10

Australia's lower house of parliament has passed a controversial bill to process all future asylum seekers arriving by boat in off-shore camps. Three members of the ruling party joined the opposition to vote against the proposal, but it still passed by 78 to 62. The bill now goes to the Senate. The vote constituted the most serious challenge to the prime minister's authority during his 10 years in power. Critics accuse John Howard was using the bill to heal rifts with Indonesia. A recent decision to accept about 40 Papuan asylum seekers angered Jakarta, which said that by giving the group refugee visas, the Australians were showing tacit support for Papuan independence. Papua was granted self-rule by its Dutch colonists in 1961, but was then annexed by Indonesia. A low-level insurgency has been going on in the province ever since. The bill has sparked considerable debate in Australian and led to the biggest parliamentary revolt of Mr Howard's decade in power. During Thursday's parliamentary session, Liberal backbenchers Petro Georgiou, Russell Broadbent and Judi Moylan crossed the floor to vote with Labor against the controversial legislation. Another ruling party lawmaker abstained. But the governing coalition has a comfortable majority in the lower house, so the bill still passed relatively easily. It faces a more difficult challenge in the Senate, where the government only has a majority of one. One Liberal Party senator, Judith Troeth, has indicated she may oppose the bill, describing speeches by party rebels as "outstanding", Australian radio reported. The parliamentary debate triggered a clash between opposition party leader Kim Beazley and Liberal lawmaker William Tuckey. Mr Tuckey asked why Labor was keen to "kill off legislation that the Australian people want" and Mr Beazley responded by calling the law a "weak, worthless piece of legislation". He then urged Mr Tuckey to take his "weak, worthless self" off, prompting Mr Tuckey to call him a "big fat so and so". Under current law, only people who arrive on outlying islands or are intercepted at sea have their claims for Australian asylum processed off-shore. Those arriving on the mainland have their cases handled inside the country, under the Australian legal process. The new legislation means that all arrivals by boat will be sent off-shore, mainly to the island state of Nauru. Even if their claims for refugee status are accepted, it is unlikely that any of the boat people would be allowed to settle in Australia, the BBC's Phil Mercer says. Basically Howard is using the rift with Indonesia as a cover to stop the "boat people", most of whom are Muslims from countries like Pakistan, and are organised by people smuggling terrorist groups like Al Qaeda. It's a multi Billion dollar industry, or at least it was until Howard put a stop to it. He has the backing of most Australians, so the opposition will try and concentrate on the "children in detention" aspect of the Islamic invasion.

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Howard prepared to send in more Troops to Solomon Islands

2006-04-23

JOHN Howard has declared he will send more than the 240 troops already deployed to Honiara if they are needed, saying Australia did not want failed states on its doorstep. But the Prime Minister stressed that long-term Australian aid to the Solomons would be conditional on the elimination of rampant corruption. "Corruption is an endemic problem in Melanesia, and we have made some progress but there is still a long way to go," he told Melbourne radio. "When you have an entrenched culture of patronage and corruption in a society, it takes a very long time to root it out." Mr Howard said the Government accepted it would have to shoulder a large part of the burden in assisting the long-term recovery of Solomon Islands. "The rest of the world will look at us and say, 'This is something for Australia to sort out', and it's also in our interests in the long term," he said. "We do not want failed states on our doorstep. Failed states create vacuums. Vacuums attract people with bad thoughts and not good intentions." As a further 110 Australian troops from the Sydney-based 3rd Battalion Royal Australian Regiment arrived in Honiara yesterday, Foreign Minister Alexander Downer signalled he would take a firm line with the new Solomons Government led by Snyder Rini. "I hope to discuss at length with him what strategies his Government will adopt to address deep-seated tensions within Solomon Islands society," Mr Downer said on the eve of a one-day visit to the Solomons. "I will be encouraging him to commit his Government to move forward on crucial measures to improve good governance, address corruption and work towards economic prosperity for Solomon Islands." Mr Downer would not be drawn on allegations that Chinese business interests had bribed Solomons MPs to vote for Mr Rini in last Monday's parliamentary ballot. "I could only say you get these allegations in the Solomon islands a great deal and they would have to be tested in a court before we could establish whether they were true or not," he said. Mr Rini denied the corruption allegations, insisting he was elected according to the country's constitution. "My Government welcomes any moves to unseat me through the same democratic and parliamentary process," he said. "On the issue of allegations of corruption against my Government and that of my predecessor, I would like to challenge those who make these allegations to take them to the police or the Leadership Code Commission." Opposition Leader Kim Beazley backed the decision to send in more Australian military. "They go with our support, our blessings and the hope they have a successful tour of duty in what is a very difficult situation," Mr Beazley said.

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Australia may bar British citizen Hicks

2005-12-15

THE Federal Government has cast doubts on David Hicks's ability to return to Australia if he were to be granted British citizenship and released from the US military prison at Guantanamo Bay. The Australian terrorist suspect has been given a possible pathway to freedom after Britain's High Court directed the UK government to register Hicks's British citizenship. The British Home Office is considering whether to take up its right to appeal the ruling. Hicks's legal team believes that if Hicks is registered as a citizen, the British government will remove him from US military detention, just as it did for nine other Britons once held at Guantanamo Bay. But the Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer, has raised questions about Hicks's return to Australia if he were to gain his freedom and renounce Australian citizenship. "In so far as he's a British citizen, then he would have to make application to come to Australia if he wished to do so and that's something we would consider if the circumstances ever arose," he said. Despite the court ruling, there is considerable doubt about Hicks's hopes for freedom. Even without the appeal issue, with Hicks jailed in Cuba, there could be logistical difficulties that might prevent him completing the paperwork he would need to secure British citizenship. And even if he were to gain citizenship, there is no guarantee the UK government would seek his release. Hicks's US military lawyer, Major Michael Mori, remains optimistic. "We know that the US and the United Kingdom have an agreement that any British detainee will not face the military commission and we see the other nine detainees have all been released and returned to England and not prosecuted under British law," Major Mori told Southern Cross Broadcasting. "I would expect Mr Hicks to receive the same treatment." Unlike the other British citizens released from Guantanamo Bay, Hicks is facing charges of conspiracy to commit war crimes, attempted murder and aiding and abetting the enemy. The nine other men were never charged. Mr Downer believes this could be a problem. "In the case of the nine Britons who were in Guantanamo Bay, none of those nine was ever charged," he said. "I doubt very much the Americans would drop charges of conspiracy to commit war crimes and attempted murder." While the Australian government might be trying to wash its hands of the British ruling, critics believe it is a potentially embarrassing development. "It's a matter between David Hicks and his lawyers in the British courts," Mr Downer said. "That's really not a matter for Australia." Prime Minister John Howard said it was up to the British to decide how they proceed. "The British will decide what they're going to do themselves," Mr Howard said. Opposition Leader Kim Beazley said the government would look foolish if Britain came to the aid of Hicks while Canberra let him languish in Guantanamo Bay. He said the Australian government should be insisting on a proper trial as the British government had done with the United States. Lex Lasry QC, an independent observer to the military commission process, said he failed to understand why the government had never taken a stand against Hicks's military trial. "I've never been able to understand why the Australian government insists on saying with a straight face that this process is fair," he told ABC radio. "The Australian government may yet turn out to look silly because they have condoned a process that the British government simply won't condone."

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Ruddock unveils Oz terror laws

2005-11-03

ATTORNEY-GENERAL Philip Ruddock unveiled the final draft of new terrorism laws last night, allowing police to detain terror suspects for up to one year without charge. Pledging the changes would ensure Australia had "the toughest laws possible to prosecute those responsible should a terrorist attack occur", Mr Ruddock urged Parliament to finalise the passage of the new laws by Christmas. "The Bill ensures that we are in the strongest position to prevent new and emerging threats to stop terrorists carrying out their intended acts," Mr Ruddock told Parliament. The changes will introduce a new power for police to detain suspects under preventive detention orders for up to 48 hours to avert a terrorist attack. Suspects who have trained with a terrorist organisation overseas could be forced to wear tracking devices or remain under house arrest for up to a year under new control orders. However, Mr Ruddock has agreed to a series of safeguards following negotiations with Liberal MPs, including Petro Georgiou, Malcolm Turnbull and senator George Brandis, adding greater powers for judges to review the control orders on the merits of the case, not simply points of law. A sunset clause of 10 years on the sweeping new laws and a review after five years will also be enshrined. The anti-terrorism Bill will increase penalties for financing terrorism, strengthen the definition of terrorist organisations and boost police powers to stop, search and question people in relation to terrorist acts. Police powers to obtain information including flight and bank records will also be boosted to track terrorist activity. The laws will also expand sedition definitions under the Crimes Act but Mr Ruddock flagged a review of them next year after pressure from Liberal MPs. Camera surveillance of passengers and staff at airports and on board aircraft will also be expanded. The Coalition partyroom was briefed on the changes shortly before question time yesterday and they were tabled at 4.20pm. The new laws follow marathon negotiations with State Premiers, Liberal MPs and State and Commonwealth Solicitors-General. Kim Beazley announced this week he would support the terrorism laws, even if the ALP's proposed amendments failed, on "national interest" grounds. Labor MPs are expected to debate the legislation when they return to Parliament next week. The 137-page bill is the 85th draft of the legislation. Safeguards in the laws would ensure the personal circumstances of an individual would be balanced against the threat to the community. "This does not mean that personal circumstances will outweigh the assessment of a threat, but it is recognised that both issues need to be taken into account," Mr Ruddock said. He also confirmed the Government had agreed to a longer parliamentary review process for the legislation. It will be referred to the Senate Legal and Constitutional Legislation Committee.

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Australian terror laws to pass within 36 hrs after National threat revealed

2005-11-02

INTELLIGENCE agencies have received specific information about a terrorist threat to Australia which today prompted the Government to rush through its anti-terror laws to help avert a possible attack. Prime Minister John Howard said intelligence agencies had received specific information about a terrorist threat and was urging Parliament to enact the laws within 36 hours. "We have seen material," Mr Howard said. "It is a cause of concern." The Prime Minister would not give details on the nature of the threat, citing security reasons. "The Government is acting against the background of the assessment of intelligence agencies that a terrorist attack in Australia is feasible and could well occur," he said, referring to an ASIO report released yesterday. "In ASIO's recently released annual report a warning is contained that specifically cites the threat of home-grown terrorism. ASIO also warned that attacks without warning are feasible," Mr Howard said. The amendment will add further grounds for listing militant organisations and "will clarify that it is not necessary for the prosecution to identify a specific terrorist act." National security editor of The Australian, Patrick Walters, said Mr Howard's statement pointed to "an imminent threat to Australians". "We know that ASIO and the AFP have been monitoring a number of people considered high security risks for a long period of time," Walters said. "But clearly this takes things to a new level." The requirement for urgent laws, Walters said, "indicates (the Government) has far more precise intelligence relating to a group or an individual wanting to carry out a terrorist attack". Part of the new anti-terror laws will be introduced to Parliament today and the Senate is to be recalled. Mr Howard said he had briefed Opposition Leader Kim Beazley and Opposition homeland security spokesman Arch Bevis. "After question time today, the Attorney-General will introduce into the House an urgent amendment to the existing counter terrorism legislation," Mr Howard said. "We will seek passage of that amendment through all stages this evening. "The President of the Senate will recall the Senate to meet tomorrow afternoon at 2pm and it's the Government's wish that this amendment be passed into law as soon as possible." Mr Howard said he had not yet received any information that would require a change in the general terror threat level for Australia. "If we received advice to that effect, which we have not received, we would respond appropriately to that advice," he said. Mr Howard said he could not comment further about the information he received and would not say whether the intelligence advice had come from Australian or other authorities. "We have been given advice that if this amendment is enacted as soon as possible the capacity of the authorities to respond will be strengthened. "And I am satisfied on what I have been told, and the Government and the national security ministers in Cabinet are satisfied, that that is the case but I do not intend and cannot and will not go into any of the operational details." More to come...

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