Celebrity chef Pete Evans announces he will run for the Senate as a Great Australia Party candidate

Pete Evans has confirmed his move to politics, announcing he will stand as a candidate for a fringe party run by a former One Nation senator.

Evin Priest, Jade Gailberger, Finn McHugh - FEBRUARY 12, 2021

Pete Evans has announced he will join politics and run for the Senate with former One Nation senator Rod Culleton’s The Great Australian Party.

Controversial celebrity chef and known anti-vaxxer Evans was announced as a candidate for the upcoming federal election in a statement from the party about 1am on Friday.

“Pete Evans has maintained his principles and inspired others in the face of uncommon adversity,” a statement from Mr Culleton said.

“Pete is fully supportive of the GAP ethos, supporting restoration of the commonwealth and the preservation of democracy in Australia.

“Throughout his engagement with GAP’s national selection committee, Pete presented an unwavering commitment to advancing the freedoms of all Australians. As a result, he has been resoundingly approved.

“Pete Evans has consistently demonstrated courage in exposing matters of public information and interest, provoking much needed debate despite personal cost to himself.

“I believe Pete Evans will effectively and diligently represent GAP’s growing membership base and all NSW constituents. Pete possesses the essential attributes required to challenge the status quo and restore the rule of law as defined in our constitution.

“It gives me great pleasure to congratulate Pete and welcome him on board as GAP’s first federal candidate for the NSW senate.”

Evans has previously been blasted for holding anti-vaxxer views which he aired on the Kyle and Jackie O radio show in May last year.

With Australia approaching its rollout of the Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines for COVID-19, Prime Minister Scott Morrison was asked about Mr Evans’ political ambitions on Friday.

He denied Mr Evans’ run would undermine confidence in Australia’s vaccine rollout, but urged media outlets not to give undue attention to the conspiracy theorist.

“It all depends on how much publicity you choose to give him. I’m not going to give him any, so I don’t propose you do,” Mr Morrison said.

Senate leader Simon Birmingham was also asked how he would feel about being in the chamber with Mr Evans.

But Senator Birmingham told Sky News that he trusted the Australian people to elect “more sensible” people to the parliament.

“I think Australians have little tolerance for some of the types of views that Pete Evans has pushed in the past and will elect more sensible people to the Australian Senate at the next election,” he said.

Friday’s confirmation comes about a month after Evans first teased the news on Instagram and two months after he was abandoned by a large number of his sponsors, including his publisher, for posting a neo-Nazi symbol on Instagram.

Evans was dropped by Pan Macmillan, which published 17 of his books, before Channel 10 booted him off I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out Of Here!

Woolworths, Big W, Dymocks, Coles, Kmart, Target and the homeware brands Baccarat and House also distanced themselves from him.

Mr Culleton, a Western Australia-based politician, initially sat as a One Nation senator and then independent following the 2016 election.

But he was booted from this position later that same year after the Federal Court found he was bankrupt.

In 2017, the High Court also ruled that Mr Culleton was ineligible to run as a senator due to a larceny charge in NSW.

The small party lists policies related to tax reform, the elimination of local councils and the abolition of the Reserve Bank.

In August, Mr Evans revealed an allegiance to former US president Donald Trump.

Mr Evans donned a red “Make America Great Again” cap synonymous with Trump fans as he declared his support for the hotel billionaire online.

“Yeah I’m going to say it, go Trump,” Evans said in the lead-up to the US election in which Mr Trump was beaten by Democrat Joe Biden.

https://www.news.com.au/national/nsw-act/politics/celebrity-chef-pete-evans-announces-he-will-run-for-the-senate-as-a-great-australia-party-candidate/news-story/9f1ec763129a4de26a57e75c233a2002

https://www.instagram.com/p/CKCX46rBxnA/

>>12885144

Melbourne slavery claims 'extraordinary' and 'colourful', defence lawyers tell Supreme Court

Kristian Silva - 11 February 2021

An Indian woman allegedly kept as a slave in a suburban home for eight years has made "extraordinary" and "colourful" allegations against a Melbourne couple, their lawyers have told a Supreme Court trial.

The accused, known as Mr KK and Mrs KK for legal reasons, have pleaded not guilty to charges of possessing and using the woman as a slave between 2007 and 2015.

The woman was discovered by paramedics lying in a pool of her own urine at the KK home in Mount Waverley in 2015 — years after her short-term tourist visa expired.

Prosecutors said the illiterate woman was found in an "emaciated" condition, was not paid for looking after the couple's three children, and was kept against her will despite pleas from her family for her to be allowed to return to India.

Dr Gideon Boas, acting for Mrs KK, said the woman's "dire" medical state in 2015 was not in dispute — however he rejected it was because of the defendants' conduct.

In his opening address, Dr Boas told the jury the "magic word" in the trial would be "slavery".

"Not underpayment, not mistreatment, not meanness, not lying," he said.

"Allegations that [Mrs KK] locked her away, confiscated her travel documents, mistreated her … some of the detail of the evidence [the alleged victim] will give is colourful indeed.

"Her version of events change. One might say, change dramatically."

Dr Boas said his client disputed claims the woman was brought to Australia for "domestic servitude" but conceded she did live in the KK house with the family and performed chores.

He said she was an "integrated member of the family" and was affectionately known as "Ammachi", a Tamil term for grandmother.

John Kelly SC, acting for Mr KK, told the jury they could "never be satisfied" his client was guilty, based on the evidence that would come out in the trial, which is expected to last six weeks.

Fake 'extortion' plan recorded in phone taps

On Thursday, prosecutor Richard Maidment QC told the court a phone in the KK home was tapped by the Australian Federal Police, who captured conversations the couple had with a man in India.

Mr Maidment presented the jury with transcripts of the conversations, saying it appeared a meeting had been set up between a third party and the alleged victim's son to encourage him "not to pursue the allegations".

Mr Maidment said Mrs KK was captured saying: "We need proof to say they are doing all this to get money".

"The suggestion is a letter would be produced that would suggest an extortion attempt would be made to extort 10 lakhs … in order to drop the allegations," Mr Maidment said.

Ten lakhs is another way of saying 1 million Indian rupees, which equated to between AUD $17,000 and $18,000, Mr Maidment said.

The recorded calls took place shortly after Mr and Mrs KK's home was searched by police, Mr Maidment said.

'She's sort of, like a guest'

Prosecutors also revealed the transcript of the triple-0 call made by Mrs KK as the woman lay in a pool of urine in the bathroom of the suburban family home.

"We have an old lady that's been staying with us for a while … she's sort of, like a guest," Mrs KK is said to have told the call-taker.

"She's an Indian lady. That's all I know. She had relatives in Sydney.

"I don't know what the story is. She didn't want to stay there."

Mr Maidment said when the triple-0 call-taker asked Mrs KK how long the woman had been staying at the house, she replied: "We don't have nothing except her first name".

This was at odds with a letter Mr KK wrote in 2007 in support of the woman's short-term visa application to come to Australia, the prosecutor said.

Mr Maidment said that letter a contained statement from Mr KK, where he said he needed the woman's help to care for his family while Mrs KK recovered from surgery.

Mr Boas said there was a "plausible" reason for why Mrs KK lied about not knowing the woman's true identity.

"The discovery of [the alleged victim] by the authorities spelled serious trouble both for Mrs KK but also for [the alleged victim]," he said.

Mr Boas said the defendants denied withholding medical treatment from the woman or keeping her against her will.

The trial continues before Justice John Champion.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-02-11/mount-waverley-slavery-claims-colourful-defence-lawyers-say/13144550

Microsoft urges US to copy Australia’s media code

JAMES MADDEN - FEBRUARY 12, 2021

Microsoft president Brad Smith has called on the US to follow Australia’s lead and develop a mandatory news media bargaining code of its own, just days before the Senate is expected to vote in favour of the Morrison government’s proposed legislation to rein in the market power of the big tech companies.

“Australia’s proposal will reduce the bargaining imbalance that currently favours tech gatekeepers and will help increase opportunities for independent journalism,” Mr Smith wrote in a lengthy blog entry, posted on Friday morning (AEDT).

“This a defining issue of our time, going to the heart of our democratic freedoms.

“The United States should not object to a creative Australian proposal that strengthens democracy by requiring tech companies to support a free press. It should copy it instead.”

Mr Smith’s remarks follow his dramatic intervention last week in the Australian debate over the unregulated power of digital platforms, when he told local media that if Google was to make good on its threat to remove its search engine facility from Australia if the media code becomes law, then Microsoft’s Bing search engine would fill the void and willingly adhere to a news media code.

In his blog entry, titled “Why an Australian Proposal Offers Part of What’s Needed for Technology, Journalism, and American Democracy Itself”, Mr Smith said the US was beset by a “disinformation barrage” — largely due to the rise of the internet and social media — and noted that “independent journalism is vital to the social cohesion that is essential for democracy”.

“The cure will likely require multiple medicines. But part of an innovative prescription has emerged from halfway around the world. In Australia, Prime Minister Scott Morrison is pushing forward with legislation two years in the making to redress the competitive imbalance between the tech sector and an independent press,” Mr Smith said.

“The ideas are straightforward. Dominant tech properties like Facebook and Google will need to invest in transparency, explaining how they display news content and providing advance notice of algorithmic or advertising changes that are likely to have a significant effect on their sites’ referral traffic to news content.

“Even more important, the legislation will redress the economic imbalance between technology and journalism by mandating negotiations between these tech gatekeepers and independent news organisations. The goal is to provide the news organisations with compensation for the benefit the tech gatekeepers are deriving from the inclusion of news content on their platforms.

“It’s an idea that some governments have pursued in parts of Europe, but with only limited success. The reason is that it’s hard to negotiate with a monopolist. With only one or two whales on one side of a nation’s table and dozens or hundreds of minnows on the other, the result is often a lengthy and expensive negotiation that leaves the minnows short on food.

“But the Australians thought about this, and they developed a creative answer.”

Mr Smith’s remarks were posted just hours before a Senate report into Australia’s news media bargaining code is due to be tabled in parliament.

That report follows two days of hearings earlier this month before a Senate committee, which assessed the merits of the legislation and took presentations from representatives of the big tech companies, as well as media organisations (including News Corp Australia, publisher of The Australian.

The Senate could vote on the legislation as early as Tuesday.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/media/microsoft-urges-us-to-copy-australias-media-code/news-story/f0e284753a74e376d0238fe01981a40c

—

Microsoft’s Endorsement of Australia’s Proposal on Technology and the News

Why an Australian proposal offers part of what’s needed for technology, journalism and American democracy itself

https://blogs.microsoft.com/on-the-issues/2021/02/11/endorsement-australias-proposal-technology-news/

>>12876900

US government appeals UK ruling against Julian Assange's extradition

Justice department confirms Joe Biden intends to have WikiLeak’s co-founder stand trial in US

Agence France-Presse in Washington - 13 Feb 2021

The US government has appealed a UK judge’s ruling against the extradition of the WikiLeaks co-founder Julian Assange, according to a justice department official.

The appeal made clear that Joe Biden intends to have Assange stand trial on espionage- and hacking-related charges over WikiLeaks’ publication of hundreds of thousands of US military and diplomatic documents.

The justice department had until Friday to file an appeal against the ruling on 4 January that Assange suffered mental health problems that would raise the risk of suicide were he extradited to the US for trial.

“Yes, we filed an appeal and we are continuing to pursue extradition,” a justice department spokesperson, Marc Raimondi, told AFP.

Human rights groups had called on Biden to drop the case, which raises sensitive transparency and media freedom issues.

After WikiLeaks began publishing US secrets in 2009, the Obama administration – in which Biden was vice-president – declined to pursue the case. Assange said WikiLeaks was no different than other media outlets constitutionally protected to publish such materials.

Prosecuting him could mean also prosecuting powerful US news organisations for publishing similar material – legal fights the government would probably lose.

But under Donald Trump, whose 2016 election was helped by WikiLeaks publishing Russian-stolen materials damaging to his opponent, Hillary Clinton, the justice department built a national security case against Assange.

In 2019, Assange, an Australian national, was charged under the US Espionage Act and computer crimes laws on multiple counts of conspiring with and directing others, from 2009 to 2019, to illegally obtain and release US secrets.

In doing so he aided and abetted hacking, illegally exposed confidential US sources to danger and used the information to damage the US, according to the charges. If convicted on all counts, the 49-year-old faces a prison sentence of up to 175 years.

John Demers, an assistant attorney general, said at the time: “Julian Assange is no journalist.”

Assange has remained under detention by UK authorities pending the appeal.

This week 24 organisations, including Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International USA and Reporters Without Borders, urged Biden to drop the case.

“Journalists at major news publications regularly speak with sources, ask for clarification or more documentation, and receive and publish documents the government considers secret,” they said in an open letter. “In our view, such a precedent in this case could effectively criminalise these common journalistic practices.”

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2021/feb/12/us-government-appeals-uk-ruling-against-julian-assanges-extradition-joe-biden-wikileaks

QAnon cult happy at home in Republican Party

PHILLIP ADAMS - FEBRUARY 13, 2021

Like Australia, the United States manufactures fewer and fewer of the goods it consumes. But the US leads the world in the manufacture of madness – in everything from conspiracy theories to armed militias. Likewise it stands alone in the creation of cults.

The deceased Soviet Union embodied its Cult of the Personality in one monster, Joseph Stalin, an awful example currently echoed by the Republicans with Donald Trump. But what makes the US so fascinating is the mass production of that idea – scaled down to the death cults of Jim Jones, Charles Manson, David “Moses” Berg and the Branch Davidians. And let us remember the rapacious Rajneesh and other Indian imports – gullibility knows no bounds. Racism, too, has been giving birth to cults since the Ku Klux Klan started burning crosses and lynching African-Americans after the Civil War. And it remains the driving force for a large percentage of followers in Trump’s MAGA cult.

A religion is simply a cult with more members – and the US is arguably the world’s most religiously diverse nation. Here are a few born in the last century alone: Pentecostalism. Scientology. The Nation of Islam. Eckankar. The modern American order of Rosicrucians. Hare Krishnas. People of Praise. Go back to the 19th century for the Episcopalians, the Church of Christ, the Church of the Latter Day Saints, Christian Science, Jehovah’s Witnesses. Cults by the score, some accumulating enough followers to become big time – the seven million Mormons having their own capital in Salt Lake City. And, like the fundamentalist televangelists, enjoying tax exemption. Ask Australia’s Hillsong. There’s big bucks in the born-again business.

The New Age spawned hundreds of cults – among them Heaven’s Gate, based on UFOs, and Berg’s free-love Children of God. Soon there were more fad faiths than products in Walmart. The US was spoilt for choice. (Which reminds us of the infinite variety of breakfast cereals created since Seventh-Day Adventist doctor John Kellogg invented the corn flake in Battle Creek, Michigan in the late 1800s; these days you can still support the religious group with your purchase of Sanitarium-brand Weet-Bix.)

After the Cult of Celebrity, perhaps the biggest cult in the US is the deadly religion energised by the National Rifle Association, which claims to have 5.5 million members. The independent global Small Arms Study estimates that in the US there are about 400 million guns for the population of 330 million. With all the assassinations, murders and massacres that follow.

Cultists circle 9/11 like vultures, most famously the “truthers”, and new cults abound around the Covid pandemic. Mad theories about the origin of the virus, of how it doesn’t exist or is an evil scheme by George Soros and Bill Gates. Note the holy war on masks and the resurgent ranks of the anti-vaxxers. Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn and cauldron bubble.

And now we’ve the QAnon cult, at the pinnacle of the maddies list and happy in its new home, the Republican Party – while gaining a toehold in Australia’s increasingly rabid, rancid and racist politics. Let us remind ourselves what the ultra-right ratbags at QAnon attest: that a cabal of Satan-worshipping, cannibalistic paedophiles head a global effort to destroy Donald Trump. Obama, the Clintons, Soros and any number of Hollywood stars are, of course, involved. As indeed am I. Interested in joining? Then let’s also offer you free membership of DENSA, my low-IQ MENSA.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/weekend-australian-magazine/a-brief-history-of-cults/news-story/5cffe091061d5d6692336846d88656ed

Phillip Adams is a prolific and sometimes controversial broadcaster, writer and film-maker. As presenter of Late Night Live, he has interviewed thousands of the world's most influential figures.

https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/latenightlive/

>>12773831

Former QAnon believer says following the conspiracy "was absolutely a drug"

JAKE ROSEN - FEBRUARY 12, 2021

In 2017, after becoming enthralled with American politics while studying in the U.S., Australian Jitarth Jadeja fell under the influence of QAnon, a debunked and harmful online conspiracy theory. Jadeja said he was drawn into the web of its conspiracies when he started following fringe media figures like Alex Jones; online message boards like 4chan and 8chan further radicalized him.

"[QAnon is] just such a good story, you know, like this insider leaking secret government information," Jadeja told CBS News chief Washington correspondent Major Garrett in this week's episode of "The Takeout" podcast.

QAnon supporters vary in their beliefs, but the general conspiracy alleges former president Donald Trump is key to stopping a ring of Satan-worshipping pedophiles who run a child sex-trafficking operation. It centers around anonymous message board posts by "Q" — allegedly a government employee with a top-secret security clearance — and it ties in conspiracies involving President John F. Kennedy's assassination, school shootings, "Pizzagate" and the Mueller Report. And QAnon helped propagate former President Trump's so-called "Big Lie" — that the 2020 election was stolen from Mr. Trump.

Jadeja was a believer for two years, but has since disavowed the cult. He now moderates online forums for former QAnon supporters in search of help for themselves or loved ones who have become followers.

"It was absolutely a drug," Jadeja said of QAnon. "It just spirals out of control from there because like any drug, you need a bigger and bigger hit to get that high — which is why you need a bigger, more grandiose conspiracy theory."

Jadeja said he was addicted, "all day, every day for months, just looking and searching for that hit." By the time he was fully indoctrinated into the QAnon community, Jadeja said that he believed in some of its more outlandish theories, including one that claimed German Chancellor Angela Merkel being Adolf Hitler's biological daughter.

But after he began investigating some of the outlandish claims made by "Q," Jadeja realized that it was all a fraud.

"It felt like in the space of one second, the entire universe collapsed in on me," Jadeja said about the moment he realized QAnon was composed of lies. "I felt like just a brain in a jar with no control… I didn't know what to think. I was almost like I was rebooting from the ground up."

Jadeja biggest regret was indoctrinating his dad, who today remains a QAnon believer.

"That is the worst thing that I've ever done," Jadeja said. "So when we were in the cult together, it brought us very close in a way that had never happened before. And I was for the first time in my life, I felt like my dad was giving me a lot of respect."

His father's continued belief in QAnon has strained their relationship, he said.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/qanon-conspiracy-believer-drug/

—

Former QAnon follower Jitarth Jadeja on “The Takeout”

2/12/2021

Jitarth Jadeja, a former QAnon supporter who spent two years in the grip of online conspiracy theories, opens up about his experience of joining – and then exiting – that world, on "The Takeout with Major Garrett."

https://www.cbsnews.com/video/former-qanon-follower-jitarth-jadeja-on-the-takeout-2122021/

https://twitter.com/TakeoutPodcast/status/1360337085908017158

https://twitter.com/TakeoutPodcast/status/1360296292128292867

>>12899025

‘DANGEROUS PUBLICITY STUNT': EXPERT SLAMS PETE EVANS’ RUN FOR SENATE

An expert has described Pete Evans’ bid for a Senate seat as a “celebrity move” that “cheapens politics”.

EDEN GILLESPIE - 12 FEBRUARY 2021

1/2

Conspiracy theory expert, Dr Kaz Ross, has labelled Pete Evans’ run for NSW Senate a “publicity stunt with dangerous implications”.

The Great Australian Party, led by ex-One Nation senator Rod Culleton, announced on Friday that the former celebrity chef would be its first federal candidate.

Evans has repeatedly promoted anti-vaccination views on social media. Last November, Evans’ book publisher and various other commercial partners cut ties with the chef after he shared a cartoon featuring a Neo-Nazi symbol.

At the time, Evans apologised for ‘mistakenly’ sharing the symbol and claimed he “had to actually Google what neo-Nazi meant.”

Dr Ross told The Feed Evans has a “nose for clicks” and a special talent for making headlines.

She believes Evans’ run for Senate is not motivated by his interest in politics but an attempt to bolster his celebrity status.

“It’s just a celebrity move and that really cheapens what the political system is about,” Dr Ross said.

“The danger is turning politics into a popularity circus. Do we want celebrity culture spilling over into politics?” she added.

Evans recently attracted attention for interviewing Liberal MP Craig Kelly, who’s been criticised for sharing misinformation about so-called treatments for COVID-19 on Facebook.

Dr Ross said the interview with Kelly exposed Evans’ gaping knowledge about the Australian political system.

Despite his political ambitions, Evans asked the MP, “What is it that you do for your electorate if that’s the correct terminology?”

He then followed up by asking, “So currently where are you sitting? You said you’re in Canberra, so explain your title,” before asking Mr Kelly to explain the role of the Senate.

“You can tell from his interview that he did with [MP] Craig Kelly that he has zero concept of how the Senate works or what a senator does,” Dr Ross said.

Evans bid for a Senate seat comes as the US sees an increasing number of individuals promoting conspiracy theories enter the political arena.

Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene apologised last week for her previous embrace of QAnon and for falsely suggesting that several mass shootings were secretly perpetrated by government actors.

Dr Ross said the QAnon movement, in which its followers believe an elite cabal is running a global sex trafficking ring, has weakened the public’s trust in democracy.

“Here in Australia, we’ve got a lot of challenges for our country. So let’s get the best representatives we can get,” she added.

So what are Evans chances of nabbing a Senate seat? According to Dr Ross: “absolutely zero”.

(continued)

>>12907869

2/2

In the 2019 federal election, GAP won 0.04 percent of the vote, whereas smaller parties like One Nation received 3.08 percent and The Greens, 10.4 percent.

Dr Ross said The Great Australian Party has been “sniffing around” the anti-lockdown movement and “sits on the fringe of the sovereign citizens movement.”

The Great Australian Party claims on its website that its primary objective is to uphold Commonwealth Law.

Another policy listed on the website is to stop “forced medications”, including vaccinations and fluoride.

Mr Culleton resigned from One Nation in 2016. At the time, Senator Pauline Hanson said she was "glad to see the back of him" and he'd been "a pain in my backside".

That same year, he was declared bankrupt by the Federal Court over a $280,000 debt to a Perth businessman.

He was later disqualified from the Senate in early 2017 during a High Court decision, according to Sydney Morning Herald.

On Friday, Prime Minister Scott Morrison was asked about whether Pete Evans running for Senate would undermine confidence in the vaccine roll-out.

Mr Morrison answered “no”, before adding, “I do not propose you give him any air. I will not give him any.”

While Liberal Senator, Simon Birmingham told Sky News he trusted the Australian people to elect “more sensible” people to the parliament.

“I think Australians have little tolerance for some of the types of views that Pete Evans has pushed in the past and will elect more sensible people to the Australian Senate at the next election.”

When asked about Evans’ Senate run, Labor MP Tanya Plibersek told The Feed, “Australia’s a democracy.”

“He’s perfectly entitled to run for election, just as Australians are perfectly entitled not to vote for him.”

In a statement to The Feed, Greens Senator for NSW Dr Mehreen Faruqi said the idea of Pete Evans joining her in the chamber “makes my skin crawl.”

“Let’s be clear about who this guy is. He’s not a ‘celebrity chef’ anymore. He’s a dangerous conspiracy theorist who has shared neo-Nazi content,” Dr Faruqi wrote.

“We can’t let the far-right and conspiracy theorists become more accepted as part of mainstream politics.”

“Everyone has the right to run for election, but no one owes these conspiracy theorists a platform.”

The Feed has contacted Pete Evans and Rod Culleton from The Great Australian Party for comment.

https://www.sbs.com.au/news/the-feed/dangerous-publicity-stunt-expert-slams-pete-evans-run-for-senate

Biden confronted China in call to Xi - and that’s good for Australia

Anthony Galloway - February 12, 2021

If anyone was unsure whether Joe Biden would adopt a hard line on China, his first phone call with Xi Jinping should leave no one in doubt.

Biden’s posture on China, so far, has been good for Australia.

There seemed to be a view floating around in sections of the Australian commentariat in recent weeks that Biden’s re-engagement with Beijing could leave Canberra in the dark.

Former public service chief Martin Parkinson on Wednesday said the election of the new US President would make it even more difficult for Australia to manage its deteriorating relationship with Beijing because the US had maintained open channels of dialogue.

But in his phone call with the Chinese President this week, Biden criticised Beijing for its “coercive and unfair economic practices”. This has been widely interpreted within the Morrison government as Biden standing up for countries such as Australia that have been hit by trade strikes from Beijing for standing up to its coercive behaviour.

Biden also underscored his fundamental concerns about China’s “crackdown in Hong Kong, human rights abuses in Xinjiang, and increasingly assertive actions in the region, including toward Taiwan”.

It is worth comparing the readout of Biden’s call with that of his predecessor, Donald Trump, four years ago.

In his first chat with Xi, Trump made no mention of Xinjiang or Taiwan. In fact, it contained no criticism of China at all.

The White House readout said: “Trump agreed, at the request of President Xi, to honour our ‘one China’ policy”. The discussion was described as “extremely cordial” and both leaders looked forward to “further talks with very successful outcomes”. Trump’s subservience was enough to make you sick.

The stark difference between the two calls is partly due to the centre of gravity in Washington shifting immensely over the past four years on the question of how to deal with China’s rise.

But it also shows that for all of the bloated rhetoric on China from his administration, Trump was at heart a low-rent deal-maker who was happy to suck up to the Chinese President as long as he got something out of it.

In contrast, Biden has shown from the outset that while he is prepared to have constructive engagement with Beijing, certain topics are non-negotiable. These include China’s democratic crackdown in Hong Kong, human rights abuses in Xinjiang, militarisation of the South China Sea and growing assertiveness against Taiwan.

This is what Biden’s national security advisor Jake Sullivan and Indo-Pacific coordinator Kurt Campbell have called “competition and cooperation”.

We knew Biden would be less intemperate, less America-first and more engaged with allies than Trump. What many didn’t grasp, if they weren’t paying attention during the US Presidential campaign, was the display of strength Biden planned to show towards China.

None of this is to say Biden’s approach will provide a silver bullet for the Morrison government to improve relations with its biggest trading partner. Australia is in the diplomatic freezer and needs to find a way out on its own.

But it is in Australia’s interests to have an America that accepts the optimistic assumptions underpinning the four-decade-long strategy of diplomatic and economic engagement with China have failed, and that the US is now in competition with Beijing.

This competitive posture needs to be pursued in a way that is strategic, coordinated with allies and avoids confrontation and potentially conflict.

While Trump was in it for himself, Biden has started a lot better.

Anthony is foreign affairs and national security correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/biden-confronted-china-in-call-to-xi-and-that-s-good-for-australia-20210212-p571yx.html

>>12866593

Massage testimony Ghislaine Maxwell fought to keep hidden is unsealed

Testimony showing Ghislaine Maxwell claiming to have never given a massage to her perverted ex Jeffrey Epstein — or to anyone else — was unsealed in a civil case Thursday, after she lost a legal fight to keep it under wraps.

The excerpt — which is at the heart of a perjury case against the British socialite and alleged madam — was part of a July 2016 deposition Maxwell gave in a civil defamation suit brought against her by Virginia Giuffre, who claims she was recruited by Maxwell to be abused by Epstein and his associates.

“Did you ever give a massage to anyone other than Mr. Epstein at any of Mr. Epstein’s properties?” an attorney for Giuffre asked Maxwell.

“First of all, I never said I gave Mr. Epstein a massage,” Maxwell responded.

“I don’t give massages,” she added.

“Let’s just tie that down. It is your testimony that you’ve never given anybody a massage?” the attorney responded.

“I have not given anyone a massage,” Maxwell said.

Part of the excerpt is included in the Southern District of New York criminal indictment against Maxwell, who faces two perjury charges and four charges related to her allegedly procuring young women for Epstein to abuse.

The feds allege she knowingly lied about the massages.

Maxwell’s attorneys had nevertheless sought to keep the excerpt redacted in the civil case, but Judge Loretta Preska ruled earlier this week that it should be made public because it does not deal with consensual sexual activity between adults.

“It does not relate to private sexual activity of consenting adults, but only to massages,” Preska wrote in her decision. “Any private interest she has in sealing this portion of testimony does not outweigh the presumption of public access that attaches to it.”

Maxwell has pleaded not guilty to all the counts she is facing. She’s awaiting trial in federal jail in Brooklyn.

Epstein’s victims have accused Maxwell of acting as his recruiter in the 1990s, convincing girls and young women to visit his properties in Florida, the Virgin Islands and New York, where he would abuse them.

The multimillionaire pedophile, who killed himself in a Lower Manhattan jail cell in 2019, often groomed his victims by asking them to massage him.

https://nypost.com/2021/02/11/massage-testimony-ghislaine-maxwell-fought-to-conceal-is-unsealed/

https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/4355835/giuffre-v-maxwell/?filed_after=&filed_before=&entry_gte=&entry_lte=&order_by=desc

https://www.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.447706/gov.uscourts.nysd.447706.1212.1_2.pdf

Christiane Amanpour Tweets

The world is watching the impeachment trial, and fmr. Australian Prime Minister @JuliaGillard says it's crucial to "consider what they would be saying if this had happened in another nation… What would they be saying about accountability?"

https://twitter.com/camanpour/status/1360263279743029254

—

Former Australian PM @JuliaGillard points out that "an ultra-macho style of leadership, a blustering style of leadership, not looking at the facts, pretending that somehow you can out-swagger a virus – that has been the style that has least worked this time."

https://twitter.com/camanpour/status/1360262684109905920

>All assets [F + D] being deployed.

>>12828457

Warnings over PNG’s Chinese hydro project

BEN PACKHAM - FEBRUARY 12, 2021

Papua New Guinea has given the green light to a new $2.6bn Chinese hydro-electric plant despite warnings it could cripple the nation’s state-owned power company, as PNG’s cash-strapped Marape government seeks another $400m loan from Australia.

The Ramu 2 power plant would be financed, built and operated by China’s Shenzhen Energy before being handed back to PNG after 25 years.

The Weekend Australian has learned the PNG Power Ltd board approved a provisional Ramu 2 power purchase agreement this week – under pressure from the government – after years of lobbying by China and the project’s domestic political backers.

Its approval comes amid growing Australian government concerns over PNG’s susceptibility to bad Chinese deals that could leave the country financially and politically beholden to Beijing.

PNG is pursuing the project against the wishes of the Australian government, and despite efforts by the country to secure a fresh budget support loan in the upcoming Australian budget.

The Weekend Australian can reveal PNG is seeking $400m, on top of $558m it already owes Australian taxpayers, to shore up the country’s battered finances.

Part of the last Australian government loan was used to pay PNG’s 111 members of parliament $2.9m each in local “service improvement” funds.

Prime Minister James Marape travelled to Kainantu, in Eastern Highlands Province, on Friday to announce the project would go ahead.

The 180MW Ramu 2 plant would be one of the world’s most expensive hydro projects, with a construction cost of at least $12.3m per megawatt. A transmission upgrade to link it to the national power grid was awarded to another Chinese company under a $223m Exim Bank loan.

One senior PNG business source, not authorised to speak about the project, said the Ramu 2 deal would require utility to purchase all the power produced by the plant even if it was not required. “If you went to the market to get it done this would not be anywhere in the vicinity of a good deal,” the source said.

The PNG Power Ltd board made the deal provisional on the securing of a power offtake agreement with one of the big mining projects.

The prime candidate, Newcrest’s proposed Wafi-Golpu goldmine, has plans to generate its own power. But there is speculation the PNG government could force it to take Ramu 2 electricity as a condition of approval.

Australia, the US, Japan and New Zealand had promised at the 2018 APEC summit in Port Moresby to electrify and provide internet to 70 per cent of PNG’s population. So far, only a $250m solar project has been announced but not yet commenced.

The Australian government is also concerned about the strategic implications of a $200m Chinese fisheries project in Daru, just kilometres from Australia, and is seeking answers about a proposal by a Chinese company to build a $39bn megacity in Daru.

Lowy Institute Pacific program manager Jonathan Pryke said Australia should have used its financial leverage to impose conditions on Ramu 2.

“For the past two years Australia has been partially underwriting PNG’s budget with cheap loans, and we look set to for years to come. Given how cheap we can borrow it’s a sensible move, which also gives us more leverage.

“There are major concerns about this project – its size, its cost, its quality – not to mention a Chinese-owned and operated hydro station controlling power for half the country and establishing its own network of patronage. If we’re really worried … we should look to peg that support to a public cost-benefit assessment of the project.”

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/world/warnings-over-pngs-chinese-hydro-project/news-story/7dbbfbdb37e0edc6e2dd5d7c0fdfe117

>>12827951

>>12877731

The executors of Jeffrey Epstein's Virgin Islands estate forced 3 of his accusers to marry to keep them under his control, prosecutors say

1/2

Prosecutors in the US Virgin Islands have accused Darren K. Indyke and Richard D. Kahn, the executors of Jeffrey Epstein's estate, of being "captains" of the dead millionaire sex offender's alleged criminal schemes.

The prosecutors said the two executors facilitated three sham marriages as part of a plot designed to keep Epstein's accusers from being deported — and keep them under his thumb.

Indyke and Kahn had "direct participation in virtually all of the business operations and financial activities" of what they describe as a sex-trafficking scheme run by the now-dead financier, prosecutors said in a new court filing.

"Indyke and Kahn were, in short, the indispensable captains of Epstein's criminal enterprise, roles for which they were richly rewarded," prosecutors wrote.

According to the filing, Indyke and Kahn helped lure young girls — some as young as 13 years old — into the sex trafficking scheme "with promises to help them and their families pay for school, health care, or other financial needs."

The Justice Department made the claims about Epstein's executors in an amended complaint filed against Epstein's estate in the US Virgin Islands, describing a sex trafficking operation that ran as late as 2017. The marriage scheme was first reported by Insider in 2019.

The initial Virgin Islands lawsuit, filed in January 2020, sought the dissolution of the estate, which includes two private islands (called Little Saint James, where Epstein's home was located, and Great Saint James) and what prosecutors described as a slew of shell companies used to disguise an international sex-trafficking operation.

"The Government continues to allege Epstein anchored a criminal [enterprise], through which numerous young women and female children were trafficked, raped, sexually assaulted and held captive in the Virgin Islands at Epstein's secluded private island, Little St. James," the Justice Department said in a press release.

Attorneys for Indyke and Kahn didn't immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment.

Forced marriages and medical consent forms

Epstein killed himself in a Manhattan jail while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges in 2019. His longtime partner Ghislaine Maxwell is currently jailed on charges that she participated in the sex-trafficking operation, sexually abused young girls herself, and lied about her activity in a deposition. She has pleaded not guilty.

In the new filing against Indyke and Kahn, the prosecutors said the two forced three accusers into marriages that would secure their immigration status. That way, prosecutors alleged, the women would remain in the Virgin Islands under Epstein's watchful eye.

"The victims were coerced into to participating in these arranged marriages, and understood that there would be consequences, including serious reputational and bodily harm, if they refused to enter a marriage or attempted to end it," prosecutors wrote in the filing. "In each instance, Indyke and Kahn knowingly facilitated the fraudulent and coerced marriages, performing and securing the legal and accounting work involved and enabling a fraud that would further bind Epstein's victims to him and enable Epstein to continue to control and abuse these victims sexually."

(continued)

>>12910327

2/2

The prosecutors wrote that Epstein controlled intimate aspects of the accusers' lives. He approved of the doctors they used, forced them to sign consent forms so that he could access their medical records, and required them to give him their email passwords, prosecutors said.

The new filing says Epstein paid his victims to go to nightclubs and on shopping trips to "recruit" other young girls into his sex-trafficking scheme. It also includes fresh details of sexual abuse.

"Another victim, who was brought to Little St. James more than 50 times during the years 2000 to 2002, when she was 17 to 19 years old, was required to have sexual relations with 'guests' of Epstein, and was subjected to sexual abuse virtually every day, and on some days, multiple times a day by Epstein or his guests," prosecutors wrote.

Epstein's estate is at the center of ongoing litigation

The judge overseeing the case must now decide whether to accept the amendments to the lawsuit. It was previously filed against Indyke and Kahn in their "capacity as executors" for Epstein's estate, but now includes them in their individual capacities, as well.

After Epstein's death, his estate became the focus of a thicket of legal machinations. It has paid out around $50 million to an unspecified number of victims so far, according to court filings reviewed by the Miami Herald, and $190 million in taxes.

The estate overall was valued at $240.8 million at the end of 2020. The filings also say the estate is paying millions of dollars to attorneys, according to the Herald.

Epstein's islands are now for sale, according to the Miami Herald, as the compensation fund for his victims was halted because of a lack of liquidity.

Maxwell's criminal case continues to move forward, and is scheduled for July 2021. Her attorneys recently asked the judge overseeing her case to throw it out, claiming she didn't know what "sexual activities" or "the 2000s" meant during a deposition, and that the pool for the grand jurors who indicted her didn't have enough Black and Hispanic people.

https://www.insider.com/jeffrey-epstein-estate-executors-sex-trafficking-victim-marriages-prosecutors-2021-2

https://www.vicourts.org/workspaces/One.aspx?objectId=15978985

https://www.vicourts.org/workspaces/One.aspx?objectId=16363985&contextId=9784229&parentId=15978985

https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/20476797/second-amended-complaint-marked-up-redacted-virgin-islands-vs-epstein-estate.pdf

https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/20477556/epstein-executors-second-amended-complaint-redacted.pdf

Resignations in the news

Bill Michael quits as chair of KPMG UK after telling staff to ‘stop moaning’

Bill Michael has been forced to quit as chairman of KPMG UK just days after telling staff to “stop moaning” about their work conditions during the pandemic.

Michael said on Friday that his position had become “untenable” after shocking KPMG staff this week at a virtual meeting with comments that included describing discrimination caused by unconscious bias as “complete and utter crap”.

According to staff, Michael also said he had met clients for coffee during the current UK lockdown, which some felt was encouragement to break the rules.

“I am truly sorry that my words have caused hurt among my colleagues and for the impact the events of this week have had on them,” Michael said in a statement on Friday.

“In light of that, I regard my position as untenable and so I have decided to leave the firm. It has been a privilege to have acted as chair of KPMG.”

Michael, a 52-year-old Australian who has been with KPMG for 30 years, stepped aside this week while the Big Four accountancy firm investigated “alleged comments” he made during an online meeting with staff. The firm has hired City law firm Linklaters to carry out an independent investigation.

The resignation came after the Financial Times reported comments made by Michael at a meeting with the firm’s financial services consultancy team on Monday where he told staff to “stop moaning” and “playing the victim card”.

These comments — alongside the perceived dismissal of unconscious bias — angered staff, who complained that some of them had not seen family in months, or lost people they are close to, while others were working in difficult home circumstances or juggling work with home schooling.

But the speed of the exit has still shocked KPMG staff. Michael handed in his resignation on Thursday night to the KPMG board. KPMG’s 582 partners and then staff were told on Friday morning. No details were given over the financial terms of Michael’s departure.

“It’s a mixture of shock and sadness,” said one insider on Friday morning.

Michael split opinion within the firm, winning loyalty among many for his no-nonsense approach and strong-handed leadership after a series of accounting scandals and ahead of sweeping audit reform in the UK.

But these qualities also led to criticism from staff who saw this approach as old-fashioned and abrasive — out of step with the efforts being made within the City to create a more inclusive environment.

https://www.ft.com/content/4f569449-d113-48fe-b01a-9153f4c3d593

—

Baseball Australia boss Cam Vale tenders immediate resignation citing ‘rest and reflection’

Baseball Australia boss Cam Vale has tendered his resignation, effective March 31.

Vale informed key stakeholders and friends of the “difficult decision”, one the leading administrator has contemplated for “the last few months”, on Tuesday morning.

BA president David Hynes and the Australian Baseball League will formalise the impending departure today.

Vale has championed the league’s expansion, physically with teams on the ground, Geelong-Korea and Auckland Tuatara, as well as commercial and broadcast relations in Asia and the USA.

Vale and ABL franchise owners have worked tirelessly this year to get the league off the ground and navigate ongoing COVID-related hurdles like border bans.

“I leave on very good terms with the Baseball Australia, it actually has been a difficult decision based on the great Board of Directors I have, the outstanding support I have had from my President David Hynes and an incredibly loyal, talented and hardworking staffing group – past and present,” Vale said in an emotional resignation announcement.

“The vast majority of stakeholders and contributors to the sport make for a great future for Baseball in Australia, again making this a difficult decision for me …. just typing this makes me realise how fortunate I have been.

“I will just state very clearly – it is all good, my health is fine, there is no hidden reasons, I am happy professionally and personally, and I simply need a period of ‘rest and reflection’ and some family time that I don’t think I can do while being employed.”

Vale has spent close to four years at the helm.

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/more-sports/baseball-australia-boss-cam-vale-tenders-immediate-resignation-citing-rest-and-reflection/news-story/70355418d4901ac75bfc43099b7869bd

>>12836590

>>12836663

Defence Minister Linda Reynolds Tweet

Touch down! @USMC personnel from the tenth Marine Rotational Force - Darwin (MRF-D) have landed in the NT. Personnel will quarantine at a defence facility & undergo #COVID19 testing before commencing training with #YourADF. Around 2,200 MRF-D will arrive in Darwin by June.

https://twitter.com/lindareynoldswa/status/1360187881621311495

QAnon pushes new conspiracies claiming Trump is still president

Sky News Australia

14/02/2021

Notorious conspiracy theory group QAnon is forwarding claims Donald Trump is technically still the United States President.

The organisation gained significant popularity over the past four years by pushing debunked and bizarre claims and are now alleging Mr Trump will be sworn back into office in a matter of weeks.

https://www.skynews.com.au/details/_6232035129001

What’s next for Donald Trump, the least predictable ex president

He’s already set up court in his Mar-a-Lago golf club and continues to deny his electoral defeat but what will Trump do next?

Jamie Seidel - FEBRUARY 13, 2021

1/3

Insurrection? Resurrection? Obscurity? Donald Trump may be out of the White House but he remains very much in the public eye. So what does his future hold?

Ex-presidents are usually eminently predictable.

They write their memoirs. They appear on chat shows. They join the lecture circuit. They preside over commemorative libraries.

But perhaps not Trump.

He’s already set up court in his Mar-a-Lago golf club. He continues to deny his electoral defeat. His close circle of confidantes are still concocting tales of conspiracy and fraud.

Such claims led thousands of Trump’s most ardent supporters to storm Capitol Hill on January 6. They wanted the vote overthrown. They wanted Vice President Mike Pence hung for refusing to rule the election result invalid. They wanted to ‘put a bullet in the head’ of key Democrat Nancy Pelosi.

That violent insurrection was put down. But was it just the opening chapter of a more epic tale? Or are the Trump years already being consigned to the dustbin of history?

Here’s how the story could pan out.

THE IDES OF MARCH

Trump has a lot of troubles. But the loyalty and enthusiasm of his followers aren’t among them.

“Now that he has been stripped of the title ‘commander-in-chief,’ he could find a different army, within the United States, to command and control,” surmise a group of analysts at the Brookings Institute policy think-tank.

It’s a notion the US armed forces takes seriously.

This week, senior Pentagon officers addressed their troops on the dangers of extremism and their vow to uphold the constitution and defend “the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic”.

But the seditious movement remains strong among US militia, white extremists, fringe Christian and conspiracy communities.

The QAnon movement is whipping itself up towards another crescendo.

It insists Trump is still president. That he’s just biding his time. That all his enemies are about to be arrested. That he will return to the White House in triumph on March 4.

Despite all “Q” prophecies so far having failed to eventuate, its followers are still standing by for a sign. Any sign.

“Does anyone think that a sh*t show will begin tomorrow during this fake impeachment?” one QAnon adherent asked on Telegram. “I really want to see all the morons to be arrested & charged! For the [call to arms] to happen soon. My family are thinking that I’m nuts!”

But the near-religious fervour of such supporters presents an opportunity: “Trump could well become so desperate that he opts to continue to stoke violent flames of tension,” the Brookings analysts write.

TRUMPISM

Trump thought is deeply entrenched.

He ran for office on the basis of being an “outsider”. A businessman uncorrupted by decades of political power plays and compromise. Of not being part of the “establishment”.

Now, Trump and his followers are the establishment.

He appointed top party officials including National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel. Likewise, Republican officials at the state and local levels got their job through being true believers.

“The state party leaders are the activists, not the elite,” notes former Republican senate strategist Liam Donovan. “The rank and file are hardcore Republicans, and hardcore Republicans are hardcore Trump people. He has absolutely converted them.”

“The 2020 election put to rest the comforting fable that Trump’s election was a fluke. Trump is the United States — or at least a very large part of it,” writes Professor of political science Jonathan Kirshner.

“One cannot paint a picture of the American polity and the country’s future foreign policy without including the significant possibility of a large role for Trumpism, with or without Trump himself in the Oval Office”.

Trump’s followers are loyal to Trump. Not the Republican party.

Just how large – and powerful – that cohort is yet to be seen.

The first tests will come as the Republicans select candidates for the next round of elections. Who Republicans vote for during the 2022 midterm elections will clinch it.

Trump’s ultimate goal: swaying the 2024 presidential primaries.

Will he make a political comeback? Or will he seek to have one of his favourites installed?

(continued)

>>12920242

2/2

MAGA PARTY

Not all senior Republicans are enthralled by Trump. A few key figures have openly rejected the bombastic former president’s behaviour as dangerous and subversive.

Congresswoman and House Republican leader Liz Cheney voted to impeach him. He’s now preparing candidates to oust her from the preselection for her seat.

Former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell baulked at Trump’s demands at the last moment, saying he’d been “fed lies”. He’s now the target of intense internal pressure.

“Trump’s most ardent supporters not only offer allegiance to him but are deeply sceptical of any Republican who does not do the same,” the Brookings analysts say.

This may allow Trump to “go rogue” and splinter from the Republican Party.

He’s already voiced the idea.

But any such move would be handing the Democrats an enormous advantage. He’s not likely to steal many of their votes.

And any division of existing Republican ballots would be less likely to propel a candidate over the finishing line.

Then there’s the gulf between words and actions. In an anonymous vote, Cheney retained her position as House Republican leader 145 in favour to 61 against.

“There are plenty of foot-soldiers (quite literally), affiliated political staffers, and streams of grassroots funding to get such an effort off the ground,” the analysts write. “But Republican politicos know that while the Trump wing of the party is not large enough to be successful, it’s large enough to be devastating to their election chances.”

MEDIA MOGUL

Trump’s relationship with the media is a love-hate affair.

The former reality television host knows how to work a camera and apply words to best effect.

But being banned from his beloved Twitter social media platform has hit hard.

“It dramatically cut down on his ability to spread misinformation and instruct his supporters,” Brookings says.

He’s said he would do it. Now, he can.

“Trump could look at the media landscape, see a significant prospective audience and launch new ways to communicate with the world. This could include establishing his own news channel.”

Social media may also be in his sights.

And he has a ready and willing audience waiting in the wings.

“The former president could establish a social media platform to allow his supporters to post what has gotten them banned from Facebook and Twitter: espouse hate, misinformation, death threats, Qanon conspiracies, and other lies”.

Trump’s show business skillset was in full play as president.

A personal social media and television stage would give him a new voice. He’ll have the adoration of fans. He’ll have a platform for his opinions. He can perform to the crowd.

(continued)

>>12920263

3/3

OBSCURITY

Does Trump magic have what it takes to persist?

Tea Party frontwoman Sarah Palin’s fate may suggest not.

After storming the political scene with her MAGA-esque message in the early 2000s, Palin now finds herself marginalised.

A similar fate may be in store for Trump.

“People will stop seeing him as the former president and instead view him as that obnoxious relative who retired to Florida and yells about the conspiracy theories he read online,” the Brookings article reads.

Without a powerful platform to weave his spells, reality will intrude.

More and more of his claims may turn out to be empty.

More and more criminal charges and civil suits may lead to convictions.

More and more of his wealth may be stripped away through fines and settlements.

More and more Republicans may see opportunity in rebuilding the party in their own image.

Whatever the outcome, Brookings argues Trump has already paved the way for a successor seeking to ride on his coat-tails. “His supporters will still remember him fondly, but will have moved on to a new, shiny, race-baiting candidate like Josh Hawley or Marjorie Taylor Greene.”

PRISON

Tax evasion. Fraud. Money laundering. Foreign influence. Sexual assault. All are among a mountain of allegations confronting Trump in court.

And insurrection isn’t just the subject of his Senate impeachment.

The state of Georgia has opened a criminal investigation into Trump’s efforts to influence its election results.

“Trump’s legal problems could place him before state and federal judges who are unwilling to let his celebrity and claims of wealth supersede sentencing guidelines,” the Brookings analysts surmise. “It’s unlikely but possible that the former president could find himself in a place none of his predecessors found themselves: an orange jumpsuit.”

Behind bars, Trump would not be able to campaign or raise funds. He would not be able to add fuel to conspiracy fires. He would have no audience.

But it’s a scenario full of risk.

He could well become a martyr to the Trumpism cause.

With supporters ranging from extreme evangelicals to QAnon, the Proud Boys to neo-Nazis, from the Oath Keepers militia to white supremacists – the odds of such an outcome are high.

“Trump presided over dozens of ethical scandals, egregious procedural lapses, and startling indiscretions, most of which would have ended the political career of any other national political figure of the past half-century. But the trampling of norms barely registered with most of the American public,” says Professor Kirshner.

But a prison sentence could have a silver lining, he adds.

“Trump will claim that he is a political prisoner, but the reality would be that Republican politics would no longer be a prisoner to him.”

Jamie Seidel is a freelance writer | @JamieSeidel

https://www.news.com.au/finance/work/leaders/whats-next-for-donald-trump-the-least-predictable-ex-president/news-story/9f4ce0768f531f2a211115cc4f5627fd

China taps LinkedIn to steal state secrets

FIONA HAMILTON - FEBRUARY 14, 2021

Chinese intelligence agents are using LinkedIn to try to steal state secrets by recruiting British military and security officials, defence contractors and civil servants.

This has emerged as the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation joins Five Eyes in warning citizens of danger through a Think Before You Link campaign.

Spies are creating fake business profiles on the professional networking site so that they can identify targets and obtain classified information.

Whitehall sources warned that they had offered lucrative business opportunities and enticing sums of money to lure present and former government and private sector workers with access to classified information or commercially sensitive technology.

The operation is feared to be on a mass scale. Former employees who had high security clearance are considered particularly vulnerable because many publicly advertise their professional history to gain private-sector contracts.

MI5 will launch an awareness campaign next month urging potential targets to take greater care online. They will urge users to look out for fake companies approaching them and recruiters who are overly flattering and try to secure meetings abroad.

China is not mentioned specifically but Whitehall sources said most infiltration attempts generated there. Although it refers generally to professional networking sites, Chinese spies are said to favour LinkedIn, the world’s largest professional networking site with 30 million users in Britain.

There is growing concern about hostile activity by China including attempts to steal UK intellectual property and target technology and infrastructure. This year the government is expected to announce an overhaul of espionage laws to toughen the response to activity by China and Russia, including an official registry of foreign agents.

Senior intelligence officials including Ken McCallum, the head of MI5, which has a similar role to ASIO’s, say China represents a greater long-term threat to British interests than Russia.

Whitehall sources said that targeting Britons through LinkedIn allowed Chinese spies to conduct their activities at home without fear of any sanction.

The Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure (CPNI), the arm of MI5 that offers protective security advice to business and government, will launch a campaign next month. Some details are already on its website.

https://www.cpni.gov.uk/security-campaigns/think-you-link

Think Before You Link will warn present and former employees in sensitive sectors that hostile actors and criminals may act “anonymously or dishonestly online” in an attempt to connect with people who have access to valuable and sensitive information.

The CPNI says: “The consequences of engaging with these profiles can damage individual careers, the interests of your organisation and of UK national security and prosperity.”

The campaign has been adopted across the Five Eyes intelligence network, with similar warnings to allies in America, Canada, Germany, Australia and New Zealand, underlining the “nature and volume of the threat”. See ASIO’s warning to Australians here.

https://www.asio.gov.au/TBYL.html

Potential targets will be warned not to advertise their security clearance, details of sensitive roles, or make all profile information publicly available.

Sources said that hostile actors will pose as reputable interested employers or headhunters when their real intent is to gather as much information as possible from the target.

They will offer conference fees, money for apparently legitimate business reports and travel to China with hotels and expenses paid. Once the individual travels they will use soft means to try to elicit sensitive information but if this is not successful they can attempt to gather compromising material to blackmail them.

Paul Rockwell, the head of trust and safety at LinkedIn, said: “We actively seek out signs of state sponsored activity and quickly take action to protect members. Our threat intelligence team removes fake accounts using information we uncover and intelligence from a variety of sources including government agencies. We enforce our policies: fraudulent activity with an intent to mislead or lie to our members is a violation of our terms of service.”

In 2017 BfV, the German intelligence agency, alleged Chinese intelligence used LinkedIn to target at least 10,000 German officials and politicians.

Last year Kevin Mallory, an ex-CIA officer, was jailed for 20 years for spying. Mallory, who was in debt, sold secrets after being approached by a fake Chinese headhunter on LinkedIn.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/world/the-times/china-taps-linkedin-to-steal-state-secrets/news-story/442dc09e6ebc658b66c777d8a35d9208

Churches on collision course with the government over AstraZeneca vaccine

Michael Koziol - February 14, 2021

Major churches are at odds with authorities over the AstraZeneca vaccine, with religious leaders telling parishioners they are entitled to request a different jab but the federal government saying most people won’t have a choice.

Religious concerns about the AstraZeneca vaccine arise from its use of aborted fetal cells in the development process, which is common scientific practice that some Christians find objectionable.

The stoush could frustrate or delay attempts to inoculate the country against further COVID-19 outbreaks and lockdowns as authorities prepare to start the vaccine rollout later this month.

While Australia will import 20 million Pfizer doses for high-risk populations, most Australians will be offered the AstraZeneca jab, with 50 million doses to be made locally and expected to begin in late March. A third vaccine, Novavax, should be available later in the year pending clinical trials and regulatory approval.

Catholic and Anglican archbishops told The Sun-Herald and The Sunday Age that while it was ethical for people with concerns to take the AstraZeneca vaccine if necessary, they should be entitled to request a different jab.

On Friday a spokesman for Catholic Archbishop of Sydney Anthony Fisher said he was a strong advocate of vaccinations but “like any medicine they must be safe and ethically obtained”.

“Fortunately, the Novavax and Pfizer vaccines will be made available in Australia, they seem if anything to have higher success rates, and they are morally uncompromised,” he said.

“Anyone who is concerned about the ethics of the AstraZeneca vaccine should be confident in requesting an alternative, but also be confident that it is not unethical to use the AstraZeneca vaccine if there is no alternative reasonably available.”

A spokeswoman for the Catholic Archbishop of Melbourne Peter Comensoli said the church would clarify its ethical position on the vaccines next week, but in the meantime referred to his remarks in a letter to the faithful last year.

“Where there is a choice, we encourage people to use a vaccine that has not been developed using human fetal cells deriving from abortion,” he wrote at the time. “The bishops accept that the use of an ethically compromised vaccine is acceptable if no other option is available.”

Sydney Anglican Archbishop Glenn Davies was among the religious leaders who signed a letter to Prime Minister Scott Morrison last year complaining the AstraZeneca vaccine “makes use of a cell line cultured from an electively aborted human fetus”.

“I was one of the church leaders who urged the Prime Minister to give Australians a choice, in order to assure the highest vaccination rate possible,” Archbishop Davies said on Friday.

“I welcome the fact that the Pfizer vaccine has been approved for distribution in Australia since this vaccine is free from ethical concerns in its production. This is a matter of individual choice for each Australian but I want to encourage widespread vaccination in our population throughout 2021.”

Asked about the archbishops’ comments, the federal health department referred The Sun-Herald and The Sunday Age to remarks by secretary and former chief medical officer Brendan Murphy on February 4 in which he said most people would not have a choice of vaccines.

“In the main, there won’t be a choice, and I think both vaccines are extremely good, and I would be very happy to have either of them,” Professor Murphy said.

About 70 per cent of Australians report some kind of religious affiliation in the census, including about 50 per cent who identify as Christian, though not all would hold concerns about abortion or the use of an aborted fetus in vaccine production.

A spokesperson for Australian Christian Churches, which has more than 375,000 Pentecostal followers, said the ACC “does not hold an official ethical position on the use of vaccines and encourages individuals to make a decision based on personal conscience”.

Church newsletters have also contained commentary raising concerns about the AstraZeneca vaccine. For example, in the December issue of the Sydney Anglican magazine Southern Cross, Bishop Chris Edwards warned of “problems” with the vaccine due to its use of the aborted cells.

“The ethical issues around this are very complex,” he wrote.

https://www.smh.com.au/national/churches-on-collision-course-with-the-government-over-astrazeneca-vaccine-20210212-p571ys.html

>>12815543

Seven West Media strikes partnership with Google that will see tech giant pay for news content

Seven West Media has struck a landmark agreement with Google that will see the tech giant pay for news content in its first significant deal globally with a major media company.

The Australian-listed company announced today it had entered into a Letter of Understanding to form a long-term partnership with Google, which includes providing news content to its Showcase product.

Kerry Stokes, chairman of Seven West Media, which publishes The West Australian as well as 19 regional papers and PerthNow, said the agreement was a great outcome for Seven West Media and Google.

“Our new partnership recognises the value, credibility and trust of our leading news brands and entertainment content across Seven and West Australian Newspapers,” he said.

The deal comes after a Senate Committee last week endorsed the Federal Government’s proposed media bargaining laws, which could force Google and Facebook to pay Australian media organisations for the news they use on their platforms.

The new laws, which have been pitched as a way to “safeguard public interest journalism”, will be among the first in the world to demand that multi-billion-dollar tech firms share revenue with news outlets.

The laws, first drafted by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, will establish rules for negotiations between digital platforms and registered Australian news businesses over sharing revenue from the use of their content.

Mr Stokes thanked Prime Minister Scott Morrison, the Chair of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, Rod Sims, and Treasurer Josh Frydenberg, who he said had been instrumental in the outcome of the “ground-breaking” agreement.

He said the leadership shown by them in their push for the proposed News Media Bargaining Code meant Seven West Media could conclude negotiations that resulted in fair payment and ensure the company’s digital future.

“The negotiations with Google recognise the value of quality and original journalism throughout the country and, in particular, in regional areas,” Mr Stokes said.

He said he believed that Google was committed to the spirit of the proposed code.

Mel Silva, managing director for Google Australia and New Zealand, said the partnership with Seven West Media meant the teach giant would make a substantial investment in the future of journalism not just across the metropolitan areas, but importantly in regional areas too where titles like the Kalgoorlie Miner and the Harvey-Waroona Reporter were at the heart of the local community.

“Seven West Media is one of Australia’s leading integrated media companies across broadcast, print and digital news and joins with 21 publications across a variety of titles as diverse as The West Australian, 7NEWS, PerthNow, the Albany Advertiser, the Geraldton Guardian and the Broome Advertiser,” she said.

Ms Silva said Showcase had been well received since it launched in Australia just over a week ago. She said Google’s publisher partners had received one million views of their content in just eight days.

James Warburton, chief executive of Seven West Media, said Google recognised the strength of the media company’s audiences through its engaging content and leading platforms.

“We are excited to be partnering with them as we pursue the next stage of our Strategy,” he said.

The LOU is subject to executing a long form agreement in the next 30 days.

Seven West Media said it would advise more details once the long form agreement was finalised.

https://thewest.com.au/business/media/seven-west-media-strikes-partnership-with-google-that-will-see-tech-giant-pay-for-news-content-ng-b881796344z

National security an issue in foreign interference case

Australia’s Attorney-General Christian Porter may be drawn in to the country’s first case against a man accused of foreign interference.

National security information could be included in the evidence brief against a Melbourne man charged with foreign interference, a court has been told.

Di Sanh Duong was charged with preparing an act of foreign ­interference in November last year and his lawyer appeared in the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Monday.

Mr Duong was charged following a year-long investigation involving the Counter Foreign Interference Taskforce headed by spy agency the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation and the Australian Federal Police.

The brief of evidence against the 65-year-old “may show national security information,” prosecutor Christopher Tran told the court.

He said because of this it would be “useful” for the brief be handed over to Attorney-General Christian Porter so he could consider his position.

“If we bring it back in a month’s time that will permit the Attorney-General to get representation and then address the court and confer with the parties,” Mr Tran told the court.

He said the prosecutors wanted to push back Mr Duong’s next court date to allow the country’s top legal officer to consider his position.

The accused’s lawyer Charles Morgan had no objection and also confirmed his client was on bail.

It’s understood Mr Duong is the first person in Australia to be charged with a foreign interference offence since sweeping counterespionage laws were introduced in 2018.

The laws target foreign interference in Australia’s political processes and include offences for theft of trade secrets on behalf of a ­foreign government.

Mr Duong is now expected to face court in May this year.

https://www.news.com.au/finance/national-security-an-issue-in-foreign-interference-case/news-story/cc139077b368829641cb11d3978f5640

>>12889360

Resignations in the news

Crown CEO Ken Barton resigns following scathing report into casino giant

Ken Barton has stepped down as CEO and managing director of Crown Resorts following last week's scathing report into the gambling giant.

In a statement, Crown said it was determined to take "significant steps" to improve governance, compliance and culture.

Helen Coonan will lead the company as executive chairman while the board searches for a new CEO.

An investigation commissioned by NSW's Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority (ILGA) last week concluded Crown was unsuitable to operate a licence for its new Sydney casino in its current form.

A report by Commissioner Patricia Bergin found there was likely no future in the company for Mr Barton.

Mr Barton said in a statement he was committed to assisting with a leadership transition.

"I am absolutely certain the business is now on the right path as it works to restore confidence in its operations," he said.

Mr Barton has spent more than a decade with Crown, initially as its chief financial officer before being appointed as CEO in January 2020 as the Bergin inquiry began.

During his time at Crown he was also the director of two VIP bank accounts at the centre of money laundering allegations.

Commissioner Bergin found Mr Barton was "no match for what is needed at the helm of a casino licensee".

"His problems will not be cured by the appointment of people expert in the field who report to him", she stated in her final report.

She found Mr Barton should have launched a full investigation into money laundering allegations by the time the inquiry began.

Mr Barton was also accused of misleading shareholders at an annual general meeting in 2019 when he said "general" information was being shared between Crown and James Packer's company Consolidated Press Holdings (CPH) when in reality that information was confidential.

"Mr Barton's conduct at the Annual General Meeting in October 2019 as the CFO of Crown was quite improper," the report stated.

"However his attempts in the witness box on 23 September 2020 to justify his conduct at the Annual General Meeting, were even more inappropriate for the CEO and director of Crown and director of the licensee.

"It demonstrated a serious lack of judgment and insight into the expectation of the highest standards of property, candour and co-operation of a director of a company that holds a casino licence."

Last week three Crown directors, Andrew Demetriou, Michael Johnston and Guy Jalland, also resigned, allowing the company to mount an "ambitious reform program", according to Ms Coonan.

Mr Packer's CPH cut its ties with Crown's board after terminating its consultancy contract with non-executive board member John Poynton.

Ms Coonan last week apologised for the company's "shortcomings" and said the criticism by the regulator was warranted.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-02-15/crown-ceo-ken-barton-resigns-after-sydney-casino-report/13154690

Meteor flashes in the sky above Melbourne

Melbourne residents were treated to the sight of a meteor burning up in the sky last night.

Fernando Braga captured the display from his apartment near Southern Cross Station in the Docklands area.

There were also reported sightings of the meteorite across the city, Bentleigh East and Korumburra around 10.40pm.

"It was really bright," Mr Braga told 3AW's Neil Mitchell.

RMIT physicist and senior lecturer Dr Gail Iles said the meteor would have been travelling at "a few kilometres a second", though it wasn't technically exploding.

"This is likely a piece of rock… When it's in space it's a meteoroid, so there's lots and lots of pieces of rock out there, and they impact with all of the larger planetary bodies all the time," she explained.

"What has happened is this particular piece of rock has come into the Earth's atmosphere.

"You can see that it's traveling at a fair old speed. It's going to be traveling at a few kilometres a second.

"Because it's travelling so fast it's interacting with the particles in the atmosphere surrounding the Earth and it's created this large flash."

The Astronomical Society also said it was most likely a rock that has been orbiting the sun for millions of years and happened to get swept into the earths atmosphere last night and disintegrated in just two to three seconds.

https://www.9news.com.au/national/melbourne-victoria-meteor-in-the-sky/2eb62bcb-21fb-4eaf-803e-3511bdcdb4c1

Parliament Rape Claim Roils Australian Government

A former government staff member said she had been made to choose between going to the police and keeping her job. Prime Minister Scott Morrison apologized.

Livia Albeck-Ripka - Feb. 15, 2021

1/2

MELBOURNE, Australia — A former government staff member’s account of being raped in Australia’s Parliament building sent shock waves through the country’s halls of power on Monday, with the governing conservative party coming under intense criticism for the way it had handled the case.

Women’s rights advocates called it an extreme example of what has long been described as a culture of misogyny that has pushed several women out of Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s coalition government.

They said the case reflected an environment that was stubbornly resistant to change driven by the global #MeToo movement, one where men make sexist remarks about women’s appearance and bully female co-workers, or worse.

The former staff member, Brittany Higgins, now 26, said she was attacked nearly two years ago after a night out drinking with colleagues. Ms. Higgins, who came forward in an interview published on the news site news.com.au on Monday, had been weeks into a new job as a media adviser for the defense minister, Linda Reynolds.

She said she had been offered a ride home by a male colleague widely regarded as a rising star within the Liberal Party. Instead, he redirected the taxi driver to Parliament House, where, she said, he assaulted her after she had fallen asleep on a couch in the defense minister’s office.

Ms. Higgins, who told news.com.au that she had been drinking heavily that night, woke up “mid-rape,” she said. She told her assailant to stop, but he did not look at her, she said. She has not publicly identified the man.

She said she had quickly informed Ms. Reynolds, along with more than a dozen others, including Parliament House staff members.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Scott Morrison apologized for the way her case was handled, telling reporters: “This should not be an environment where a young woman can find herself in such a vulnerable situation. That is not OK.”

In response to a phone call from The New York Times, Ms. Higgins’s partner relayed comments from her by email. Ms. Higgins said that although she had initially pursued charges with the police, she later dropped them because of internal pressure from the party. She said she had been made to choose between going to the police and keeping her job.

“They intentionally made me feel as if I was going to lose my job so I wouldn’t go to the police,” Ms. Higgins wrote. “They were trying to silence me, and I think that’s so wrong,” she added, describing a workplace where victims were often blamed when they spoke out. “It was so gross, and it was so disparaging,” she added.

Documents reviewed by The Times confirmed that Ms. Higgins had ceased pursuing the case with the police in April 2019, citing “current workplace demands.”

The case remains open, but it is not under active investigation given that there has been no formal complaint from Ms. Higgins, according to the police in the Australian Capital Territory.

(continued)

>>12941464

2/2

The government called the allegations “deeply distressing,” saying in a statement to the news media on Monday that it “regrets in any way if Ms. Higgins felt unsupported through this process.” But it maintained that she had been encouraged by Ms. Reynolds to speak with the police “in order to assess the options available to her.” Ms. Reynolds did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

One in six women in Australia over the age of 15 have experienced sexual violence, according to the most recent figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. That figure has grown in the past decade, though it is unclear whether that is because assaults are rising or because a greater percentage of assaults are being reported.

Still, a strikingly low number of women who are attacked come forward to the police, advocates say. For those who do, it is a long and taxing process, one in which privacy laws and courts stifle the voices of those who need to be heard the most, critics say.

The attack took an emotional toll on her, Ms. Higgins said in her email. “I was so quiet for so long,” she wrote. “I just became silent in every aspect of my life.”

Ms. Higgins said she had decided to speak out after an investigation by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation shed light on sexual misconduct within the Liberal Party. She later quit her job.

The accusations were seen as further damning evidence of the Liberal Party’s long-held reputation for being hostile toward the women in its ranks, politicians and women’s rights advocates say.

“Once again Parliament House proves itself to be the most unsafe, toxic workplace culture for women in the country,” tweeted Julia Banks, a former member of the coalition government who quit the party in 2018, citing a sexist workplace.

The behavior can range from what many call simply sexist — like when Mr. Morrison came under fire for interrupting a female colleague — to insulting, as when Senator Sarah Hanson-Young filed a defamation suit against a male lawmaker who she said had told her to “stop shagging men.”

When it comes to rape, said Nina Funnell, a leading advocate for survivors of sexual assault in Australia, “it’s a crime that is steeped in power and control, so it’s not at all surprising to hear that young women are reporting experiences of sexual violence taking place in locations where male privilege and power is encoded in the very walls.”

“Would-be offenders often take potential victims to locations where they feel their power is protected,” she added.

In his statement, Mr. Morrison laid out initiatives to better support women in politics, including establishing an external complaints process separate from the party’s, according to ABC News.

Ms. Higgins said that by going public, she had hoped to bring change to Parliament’s work culture. She recalled being invited to a meeting about her case — in the very same room where she said the assault had occurred.

The government acknowledged on Monday that “given the seriousness of the incident, the meeting should have been conducted elsewhere.” Mr. Morrison also said, “That should not have happened, and I do apologize.”

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/15/world/australia/raped-parliament-house.html

https://twitter.com/sallyrugg/status/1361222218890416130

https://twitter.com/Lisa_Wilkinson/status/1361155957095473153

>>12941464

Scott Morrison ‘distressed’ by Brittany Higgins’ alleged rape

Scott Morrison has made his first public comments on Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins’ “distressing” claim she was sexually assaulted at Parliament House.

Samantha Maiden - FEBRUARY 15, 2021

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has made his first public comments on Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins’ “distressing” claim she was sexually assaulted at Parliament House.

Question Time opened with a question from Labor leader Anthony Albanese on the scandal.

“Can the prime minister advise the House on how the government responded to the allegation that a woman was sexually assaulted in [a] minister’s office in March 2019. Has an appropriate duty of care for the woman been exercised?,” Mr Albanese said.

In response, the Prime Minister said at all times the government had tried to respect Ms Higgins’ wishes.

“My government takes all such matters – all matters of workplace safety – very, very seriously,” he said.

“Everyone should feel safe in their workplace, wherever that is.

“Reports today are deeply distressing. This matter is under consideration by police.

“At all times, guidance was sought from Ms Higgins as to how she wished to proceed. And to support and respect her decisions.

“This important best practice principle of empowering Miss Higgins is something the government always sought to follow in relation to this matter.

“The government has aimed to provide Miss Higgins with her agency, to provide support to make decisions in her interests and to respect her privacy.

“This offer of support and assistance continues.

“It is important that Ms Higgins’s views are listened to and respected and I table for the purposes of the House a statement issued by a government spokesperson today on these matters.”

https://www.news.com.au/national/politics/scott-morrison-distressed-by-brittany-higgins-alleged-rape/news-story/362be0cc18d907a54d3c8db8a18a273a

>>12941464

Brittany Higgins alleged rape: Parliament office steam cleaned after alleged attack

The Department of Finance sent in the cleaners to the office where a staffer was found half-naked on the couch, sparking a police inquiry.

Samantha Maiden - FEBRUARY 16, 2021

1/2

The Department of Finance sent in the cleaners to Defence Minister Linda Reynolds’ office after a Liberal staffer was found half-naked on the couch sparking a police inquiry into whether there had been an attempt to “interfere with a suspected crime scene.”

News.com.au has confirmed that police investigated the matter after concerns were raised about the decision to send in the cleaners on the same day the woman, 24-year-old Brittany Higgins, was found in a disorientated state.

But the Department of Parliamentary Services (DPS) says the Australian Federal Police (AFP) investigation found that because it did not know at the time it was a potential sexual assault that no “criminality” was involved in the clean.

Ms Higgins alleges she was raped in the then Defence Industry Minister’s office by another Liberal staffer after a night out drinking.

News.com.au raised questions with Parliament’s presiding officers about the clean after being contacted by a whistleblower who claimed the office was “steam cleaned” on the day of the incident.

“The AFP has advised DPS that it had conducted enquiries into the action of DPS staff in the initial handling of the incident, including whether there was any criminality identified, such as attempts to conceal or interfere with a suspected crime scene,’’ the DPS spokesman told news.com.au

“The AFP advised that there were no disclosures of sexual assault made by the complainant on the day of the incident and therefore actions taken by them (DPS) were not in response with a suspected crime”.

The DPS also reveals in the statement that they entered the office of the then Defence Industry Minister on the weekend to clean it “at the request of the Department of Finance” which is responsible for managing the ministerial wing.

This was immediately after the DPS informed the Department of Finance that two staffers had been found after hours in breach of the rules.

“DPS advised the Department of Finance, administrator of the Ministerial Wing of APH, on the morning of the incident,’’ a DPS spokesman told news.com.au.

“At the request of the Department of Finance, DPS cleaners were granted access to the suite to conduct a routine office clean on the late afternoon of 23 March 2019.

Despite claims that the finance department told Senator Reynolds’ office that an ambulance was offered to Ms Higgins, the DPS said this was not the case.

“DPS is not aware of any ambulance being offered. DPS has had extensive consultation with the AFP on this matter,’’ a spokesman said.

This new account accords with Ms Brittany’s own recollection that she was never offered medical assistance or an ambulance.

(continued)

>>12941532

2/2

Closed circuit camera vision of Ms Higgins being led through Parliament House after midnight by a man she says sexually assaulted her has been carefully stored by the presiding officers of Parliament for nearly two years.

Ms Higgins has told news.com.au that repeated requests to view the security vision were denied at the time.

Ms Higgins was told by her then chief of staff that the vision showed her heavily inebriated and having difficulty walking and even signing her name when she was brought through the ministerial wing after midnight.

“At one point she said she saw the footage of me coming in. I got really latched on to the fact I needed to see the footage. I was really obsessed. They never allowed me to see it,’’ Ms Higgins said.

“She said, you could see in the video you were very visually impaired. I couldn’t sign my name properly on the sign in sheet. I wasn’t walking right. I was very, very drunk and she relayed that. I wanted to see the video to piece it together.”

Ms Higgins feared the CCTV footage had been destroyed, but a spokesman for the Department of Parliamentary Services has revealed it still exists and can be accessed by police.

“The relevant security camera footage relating to this incident was viewed by the Australian Federal Police in April 2019 and has been stored on an ongoing basis at the direction of the Presiding Officers and with the agreement of the AFP for their access as required for any investigation,” a DPS spokesman said.

“DPS is not aware of any request from Ms Higgins to view or access CCTV footage.”

Ms Higgins said she was told by police at an early stage of the investigation that they had encountered difficulty obtaining the CCTV.

“At that point, she had already started collecting footage,” she said.

“She had already approached Parliament House, trying to get stuff from Parliament House. But she never got anything from Parliament.”

But the DPS has confirmed it was stored and would be released to police — but only if Ms Higgins makes a formal complaint.

“The relevant security camera footage relating to this incident was viewed by the Australian Federal Police in 2019 and has been stored on an ongoing basis at the direction of the Presiding Officers and with the agreement of ACT Policing for their access as required for any investigation,” a spokesman said.

“In line with the Australian Parliament House CCTV Code of Practice, the Presiding Officers will release the retained footage once a request is submitted by the police.”

The AFP also confirmed it had been assured the CCTV still exists.

“ACT Policing liaised the Department of Parliamentary Services early in the investigation. CCTV, following the allegation being reported to ACT Policing, has been secured by the Department of Parliamentary Services,” it said.

“Should the CCTV footage be required for the ACT Policing investigation, it will be provided at our request.”

Ms Higgins is considering her options over whether to ask police to reopen the investigation or raise a complaint with the Department of Finance over how the matter was handled.

https://www.news.com.au/national/politics/brittany-higgins-alleged-rape-parliament-office-steam-cleaned-after-alleged-attack/news-story/fa1797427cf198241d555eb67ec3a306

Cardinal Pell: “I pray for those who wanted to bring me down.”

FSSPX.NEWS - FEBRUARY 15, 2021

The first volume of Prison Journal by George Cardinal Pell, former Prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy, aged 79, was published by the American publishing house Ignatius Press on December 15.

In this book, written during the first part of his imprisonment, from February 27 to July 13, 2019, the Australian cardinal delivers his reflections, making the link between the injustice he suffered and the functioning of a Vatican he judged with severity.

On February 27, 2019, Cardinal Pell was transferred to a prison in Melbourne, Australia, convicted by the courts of his country for the crimes of pedophile assault in 1996, which he rejected outright. In his “tiny cell,” the prelate viewed his sentence as a “prolonged retreat,” writing a diary that proved to be “good therapy” for him, but also an “historical testimony of a strange time.”

Each evening Cardinal Pell wrote in his journal about his day, two or three short pages which almost always began with his reflections on the two morning readings of the breviary, one from the Bible and the other from the Fathers of the Church, and which ended with a prayer.

The Bible and the Breviary - along with Lauds, Vespers, and the Office of Readings - were two of the six books of his choice. He was allowed to keep no more than that with him in prison. He was not allowed to celebrate the Mass, so he watched Sunday Mass on television. He received a lot of mail, even from some of his cell neighbors.

The former Archbishop of Sydney and Prefect of the Secretary of the Economy would remain in solitary confinement for 409 days for his alleged crime. Released on April 7, 2020 by the Australian High Court, which unanimously recognized the inconsistencies in the charges against him, the cardinal then returned to Rome.

“Those who may have been involved in conspiracies and who wanted to bring me down? I pray for them,” George Cardinal Pell told an online press conference on December 16, 2020. In his Journal, the cardinal admits that he cannot prove the existence of a conspiracy against him.

At the press conference, he said, however, that he could perceive the “smoke” that was emanating from the case “as in a bush fire.” Combative in the face of the hostility of his opponents, the former member of the Curia however refrains from any resentment, claiming not to want to prosecute those who wrongly sent him to prison or defamed him.

In his cell, the cardinal says he followed the progress of his trial daily. Already, he was convinced of the existence of a conspiracy, even if, for him, it was primarily spiritual: “I am caught in a fight between good and the spirit of evil,” wrote the high Australian prelate. He also admits having “slowly, even reluctantly” began to feel “a odor of evil and, in fact, the presence of the Evil One in the accusations” leveled against him.

If his questions led him first to the properly judicial context which had put him behind bars, he makes several connections in the book with the struggle he waged in Rome as Prefect of the Secretariat for Economy: “All the major players in financial reform in the Vatican have been attacked, especially in the press, and a number of these senior officials in Rome believe my Australian problems are related to it.”

During the press conference, he insisted on the difficulties of the task that Pope Francis had asked him to lead in 2014: “Fighting for the reform of the Vatican’s finances is very difficult and exhausting: paradoxically, after six months (in Australia) and despite the charges against me, I felt much better than when I was fighting in Rome.”

At the Curia, he deplores a certain lethargy: “So many of our questions have never received satisfactory answers. In Rome, George Cardinal Pell denounces a form of intellectual decline.

In particular, considering that the staff of the Curia were not well trained in economics, he set up instruction specific to Rome for priests, religious, and laity: “Personal honesty and goodwill are no excuse for incompetence, which makes corruption so much easier.”

In his Journal, the Australian cardinal does not directly mention the former deputy of the secretary of state, Msgr. Angelo Becciu, whose disgrace he seemed to hail on September 24. But he reaffirmed, during the presentation conference for his book, that he is still convinced that a sum of 700,000 euros passed from the Vatican to Australia.

https://fsspx.news/en/news-events/news/cardinal-pell-%E2%80%9Ci-pray-those-who-wanted-bring-me-down%E2%80%9D-64208

How Australia became fertile ground for misinformation and QAnon

Australians have proven highly capable of adapting international conspiracy theories like QAnon to the local context. And the problem is not going away

Michael McGowan - 16 Feb 2021

1/4

In his navy suit and blue tie, Malcolm George looked every bit the part as he launched his Liberal party-endorsed campaign for a seat in the Western Australian parliament back in 2016.

A now defunct candidate website lists his priorities for the Baldivis electorate on Perth’s suburban fringe as “a stronger local police presence”, “local job opportunities” and “increased recreational facilities for young families”.

Four years later, the anodyne political cliches are gone. Instead, George’s online life ranges from misinformation and conspiracy theory to posts about the Essendon football club.

On his Facebook page, videos of Sky News’ Rowan Dean railing against the so-called “great reset” sit alongside assertions that the US Democrats will institute “one world government”, while evangelical pastors claiming Donald Trump as the rightful US president are shared with invocations of the rhetoric of the QAnon conspiracy theory.

A devout evangelical Christian, George participated last year in an online “boot camp” run by the US-based Home Congregations Network, which is part of a broader movement of spiritual organisations that reinterpret QAnon through the lens of the Bible.

“Donald Trump will serve the next four years as President! Biden is guilty of treason and willl [sic] be arrested at some point along with Obama, Bill and Hilary [sic] Clinton and many other deep state operatives!” he wrote on 1 January.

Still an active member of the WA Liberal party, George is an example of the steady rise of what he called – borrowing from former Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway – “alternate facts”, and of Australia’s vulnerability to the same forces that have caused so much carnage in the US during the past few years.

In an interview with the Guardian last month, George confirmed he was now the Australian contact for the Home Congregations Network – a “minor” role that he declined to expand on. But he said although he is “interested” in QAnon, he is not a “follower”.

“I’m not someone who is waiting for the next Q drop [and] there is a lot more information out there which I think is more interesting than whatever they might say. Am I someone who has taken an interest in Q? Am I someone who has heard what they’ve got to say? Yes. But I’m not like a card-carrying member of the Q movement.”

George said he didn’t believe the Home Congregations Network was linked to QAnon – despite its website and sermons regularly sharing material linked to the conspiracy.

“I take an interest in a wide array of media sources including alternative media,” he said.

The rise of conspiracy in Australia

While the role of conspiracy theories, and particularly QAnon, in the lead up to the attack on the Capitol in Washington on 6 January helped to mark an inflection point in the US, Australia has been slower to recognise the threat those movements pose.

It’s difficult to measure the spread and influence of conspiracy movements among the broader Australian population, but polling from 2020 offers some insight into its influence during the Covid-19 pandemic. An Essential poll carried out in May last year found a significant number of people – 39% – believed Covid-19 was “engineered and released from a Chinese laboratory in Wuhan”.

A smaller – but consistent – rump of people polled also believed that Microsoft founder Bill Gates had “played a role in the creation and spread of Covid-19” (13%), the virus was “not dangerous and is being used to force people to get vaccines” (13%), and that 5G was being used to spread the virus (12%).

Underpinning much of the spread of conspiracy theories and misinformation in the US has been the dramatic rise of QAnon, a cult-like movement that claims without any evidence that during his presidency Donald Trump had secretly worked to thwart a cabal of elites made up of Democrats, Hollywood celebrities and billionaires who run the world while engaging in paedophilia, human trafficking and ritualistic child sacrifice.

A December NPR/Ipsos poll found that 17% of American adults believed “a group of Satan-worshipping elites who run a child sex ring are trying to control our politics and media”. Another 37% said they didn’t know whether it was true or not.

(continued)

>>12942846

2/4

Studies have shown that Australians are also among the theory’s largest proponents. Last year the Institute for Strategic Dialogue released a report that found QAnon’s following had grown considerably in Australia during 2020, with Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter driving increased engagement.

The report found Australia was the fourth largest country for QAnon activity, behind the US, UK and Canada. Its presence in Australia is also evident on less mainstream sites. For example as Canadian QAnon research Marc-Andre Argentino has pointed out, there were at least six Australian Q “research boards” on the site 8kun with about 4,000 posts by January last year. That had increased to 11 boards by the start of 2021.

Last year, Guardian Australia revealed QAnon had found a follower in Tim Stewart, a family friend of the prime Scott Morrison. Stewart was behind one of Australia’s largest QAnon-linked accounts, BurnedSpy34.

Stewart, whose wife worked as part of the prime minister’s staff, gained a significant following online thanks to his involvement in the conspiracy, and, as Crikey has previously reported, celebrated along with other Q followers when Morrison used the word “ritual” abuse in his formal apology to the survivors of institutional child abuse.

The response to the revelation from government was muted. Officials inside the Department of Premier and Cabinet told a Senate hearing they had not briefed the prime minister on the conspiracy theory despite the FBI’s decision to identify it as a potential domestic terror threat.

The department’s deputy secretary, Stephanie Foster, also told the hearing she was not aware Stewart’s account had been suspended by Twitter for “engaging in coordinated harmful activity”.

How misinformation travels

One of the most confounding aspects of QAnon’s global spread is its specificity to the US – the anonymous Q whose “drops” guide the cult’s bizarre theories purports to be a government insider with top security clearance, and the vast majority of its theories pertain to that country’s domestic politics.

Yet audiences in Australia have proven more than capable of adapting it to their context. During Melbourne’s 2020 Covid-19 outbreak for example, QAnon adherents pushed the baseless theory that the city’s lockdown was in fact a cover to allow children stolen from their families to be trafficked through secret tunnels under the city.

Similarly, a 2015 video of former Liberal party senator Bill Heffernan unsuccessfully attempting to submit a list of names of 28 prominent Australians he alleged were paedophiles during the royal commission into institutional responses to child sexual abuse is now a key plank of the cult’s canon here, offered as evidence of attempts to cover up widespread child abuse.

Part of that adaptability may be a function of how heavily the tenets of QAnon borrow from a long history of conspiratorial thinking. While QAnon may have begun in 2017 as a spin-off of the Pizzagate conspiracy, its themes are a continuation of conspiratorial movements that predate the internet, as well as the consolidation of several other theories originating in the live action role play game culture of internet message boards like 4chan.

The ISD report also points to a blurring of the lines between conspiracies, so that the bizarre theories at the centre of QAnon have blended with the anti-vaccine movement, 5G conspiracies and other “antisemitic and anti-migrant tropes”.

That trend was especially evident in Australia during Melbourne’s long 2020 Covid-19 lockdown, when a string of protests organised by a loose collection of conspiracy groups led to dozens of arrests last year. At various gatherings, eclectic crowds of people waved signs aligned to a broad mix of causes including QAnon and 5G, as well as calling for the arrest of Microsoft founder Bill Gates because of his involvement in the production of a coronavirus vaccine.

(continued)

>>12942852

3/4

Peter Trute, the former editor of the Australian Associated Press FactCheck who worked on addressing misinformation for the wire service until August last year, said that during Covid-19 a broad overlap between anti-5G and anti-vaccination actors saw the messages of both crowds intertwine.

“The 5G stuff was already around by last year but it latched on to Covid very early in the year and it allowed the anti-vaccine crowd an opportunity to adapt the message,” he says.

“We were seeing a lot of bad actors spreading content which basically said, you know, Covid was a plot to keep people in their homes while 5G was erected and that a Covid vaccine would contain a chip that would somehow be controlled by the 5G network, which would be part of the one-world UN agenda.”

Trute said the vast bulk of Australian conspiracy material was imported directly from the US, UK and Europe. A persistent and baseless claim that last summer’s bushfires had been orchestrated to clear land for a high speed rail line as part of Agenda 21, had been imported directly from California where it had surfaced two years earlier.

Last year a government MP installed security cameras at her home because she feared being physically attacked in her home after a conspiracy theorist accused her, baselessly, of being “a member of a secretive paedophile network”. That threat came from a misguided theory that alleged Australia was controlled by a group of Freemasons.

The theory’s central tenets aligned with QAnon without specifically referring to its lore.

Joshua Roose, a senior research fellow at Deakin University says, one of the reasons QAnon has proven to be so “magnetic” is how universal its themes are.

“Q in the Australian context is really amorphous, so when you talk about Q you’re more talking about an affiliation. You’re talking about someone identifying with something that is anti-establishment, a lack of trust in institutions and politicians, and with something that claims to be seeking the truth and fighting for good in the world,” he says.

“Conspiracy theories have been around for hundreds of years, and really you’ve got to look at the conditions that give birth to them. We’re in a period of extreme lack of trust in politicians, of economic downturn, and of polarisation. It’s in that context that people can come along and make these grandiose claims and find traction because people are looking for something to believe and for something to belong to.”

That elasticity may prove to be a telling indicator for QAnon’s future. Though much has been made of a crisis among its followers after Joe Biden’s inauguration, Roose warns that the conditions underpinning it have not been addressed.

“The big point here is this has all happened in the decade post the global financial crisis, and I think we’ve seen the impacts of that weren’t always immediate. Five or six years after the GFC, globally you’ve seen the rise of far-right populist movements in not just the US with Trump but Brexit, Australia, Poland, Hungary, Italy, India, the Philippines and Brazil,” he says.

“We’ve just undergone the biggest economic hit in close to a century. These issues are not going to go away, they’re only going to get bigger. We’re at a really critical juncture in our democracy and if governments don’t reach out and engage people and put more effort into social cohesion we will see lots more polarisation to come.”

Inside government ranks

The presence of two government MPs in the ranks of those willing to openly and persistently propagate conspiracy theories, and their attendant popularity on social media, is probably the most blatant evidence that Australia is not immune to the great unravelling that has permeated the US.

The prime minister, Scott Morrison, for months repeatedly refused to publicly rebuke the Hughes MP Craig Kelly for the constant stream of misinformation about Covid-19 treatments that he has spent the past year peddling. Nor did he or his senior cabinet colleagues offer any public criticism of fellow Coalition MP George Christensen after he parroted Donald Trump’s baseless claims about election fraud in the US.

(continued)

>>12942857

4/4

But Kelly and Christensen are not alone –indeed, there is no shortage of examples to demonstrate the enthusiastic adoption of those same forces by mainstream political figures in Australia. Four years after Malcolm George lost his election bid, the WA Liberal party preselected the pastor and lawyer Andrea Tokaji to run in the same seat of Baldivis.

In January, Tokaji was forced to quit as the party’s candidate after it was revealed she wrote an article on the conservative website Cauldron Pool that suggested the Covid-19 virus had been caused by 5G technology, and claimed that during pandemic lockdowns “5G towers are being rolled out, against our knowledge”.

And the creep of conspiratorial thinking during the pandemic has not apparently been restricted to the political right. What people on both ends of the left-right spectrum have in common is “a distrust in ‘the system’ and a desire to replace it with something that better reflects their values,” Roose says.

In December, in the northern New South Wales town of Mullumbimby – famous for its alternative lifestyle – a leftwing group called Turning Point Talks hosted a speaker who uses the name Max Igan at the town’s Politics in the Pub.

Igan – whose website states that this is a nom de plume – is a longtime conspiracist banned from YouTube who claims, variously, that Joe Biden is a paedophile, Hillary Clinton engages in child trafficking, and that Covid-19 is a “fraud” orchestrated to institute one world government and install “new operating systems” into people through the rollout of vaccines.

Beyond QAnon

People like Igan and George may be an example of the persistence of the ideas underpinning QAnon, if not the theory itself. Igan is not a QAnon adherent – in fact he has described it as a “psyop”. Yet the language and preoccupations of both men closely mirror those of QAnon, and point to the possibility that the ideas central to it could persist far beyond its shelf life as the conspiracy du jour.

Roose says Australia needs to be alert to the extent that misinformation and conspiracy theories are spreading out of sight.

“The danger is that these things become normative and people start integrating them uncritically into normal conversations. If you think back 10 years ago, some of the things that are in mainstream discourse now are just mind-blowing – and that’s the real danger, because it subverts not so much truth but fact and evidence-based policymaking.

“These issues are not going to go away, they’re only going to get bigger. We’re at a really critical juncture in our democracy and if governments don’t reach out and engage people and put more effort into social cohesion and developing trust in institutions, we will see lots more to come.”

From anti-vaxxers to 5G conspiracists, the Web of lies series explores the growth and spread of misinformation and conspiracy thinking in Australia.

Michael McGowan is a Guardian Australia reporter based in Sydney. He previously worked at the Newcastle Herald, where he covered state and local politics. Email: michael.mcgowan@theguardian.com Signal: +61 401 519 646

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/feb/16/how-australia-became-fertile-ground-for-misinformation-and-qanon

https://twitter.com/_MAArgentino/status/1219011805785284610

>ALL FOR A LARP.

Kylie Moore-Gilbert thanks Scott Morrison after release from Iran prison

Kylie Moore-Gilbert, an Australian academic who spent more than 800 days in jail in Iran, has met with Prime Minister Scott Morrison.

Adella Beaini - February 16, 2021

Australian academic Kylie Moore-Gilbert, who spent 804 days in solitary confinement in an Iranian prison, has thanked Prime Minister Scott Morrison for helping get her “out of a tight spot”.

The University of Melbourne academic was locked up in a 3m x 2m cell in freezing temperatures and frequently subject to psychological torture.

“Last week I had the genuine pleasure of meeting Scott Morrison and his lovely wife Jenny,” she posted on Twitter.

“He was warm, open, frank and well-informed about the details of my case, which he had no qualms about calling a hostage-taking.”

Dr Moore-Gilbert had been serving a 10 year jail sentence after being convicted of espionage, charges she has always denied. She was placed in solitary confinement for most of her sentence.

In a tweet on December 26, 2020, Dr Moore-Gilbert described some of the conditions when referring to another prisoner: “She is blindfolded every time she leaves her small, cold, empty cell. She is even masked and blindfolded when taken to the outdoor ‘exercise’ area.

“If she refuses, she will be handcuffed and dragged there by force. No one has heard from her since her transfer.”

Dr Moore-Gilbert’s release was co-ordinated by the Australian government in negotiation with Thailand.

She was freed in exchange for three Iranians who were held in Thailand.

https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/kylie-mooregilbert-thanks-scott-morrison-after-release-from-iran-prison/news-story/beffc497bdaeed85f57cf52130aba6d8

—

Kylie Moore-Gilbert Tweet

Last week I had the genuine pleasure of meeting @ScottMorrisonMP and his lovely wife Jenny. He was warm, open, frank and well-informed about the details of my case, which he had no qualms about calling a hostage-taking. Thanks for helping get me out of a tight spot ScoMo!

https://twitter.com/KMooreGilbert/status/1361495509697929218

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern criticises Australia for stripping dual national terror suspect's citizenship

A Melbourne woman who had her Australian citizenship cancelled last year is at the centre of a political spat between Australia and New Zealand, after NZ Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern accused Scott Morrison of an "abrogation of responsibility" over her case.

The ABC can reveal the woman at the centre of the feud is 25-year-old Melburnian Suhayra Aden, who until last year was a dual citizen of Australia and New Zealand.

Ms Aden travelled to Syria from Australia in 2014 to live under Islamic State.

While there she married and had three children to two Swedish men, who both died.

One of her children also died of pneumonia while in Syria.

On Monday evening (local time), news broke that she had been detained by Turkish authorities while crossing into Turkey from the north-western Syrian province of Idlib, where she had reportedly been living.

Her two surviving children, aged two and five, were detained with her.

"Three New Zealand nationals trying to enter our country from Syria illegally were caught by our border staff in Reyhanli district of Hatay," the Turkish defence ministry said in a statement on Twitter on Monday night.

"It was determined that a 26-year-old woman named SA, who was among those arrested, was a terrorist from Daesh," it added.

Daesh is an Arabic term for Islamic State.

The Turkish government has in the past labelled as terrorists people who merely lived under Islamic State and did not participate in fighting or actual acts of terrorism.

Australia 'exporting its problems' to New Zealand, PM says

In a Tuesday afternoon press conference, a visibly angry Ms Ardern said the Australian government should not have cancelled Ms Aden's citizenship, and that Mr Morrison had "abdicated responsibility" for Ms Aden.

Ms Ardern said the woman had left New Zealand for Australia when she was six, and had departed for Syria from Australia on an Australian passport.

"Our very strong view on behalf of New Zealanders was that this individual was clearly most appropriately dealt with in Australia," she said.

"That is where their family reside, that is where their links reside, and that is the place they departed for Syria."

Ms Ardern said she raised the issue with Mr Morrison last year but her concerns were brushed aside.

"I was then informed [this] year that Australia had unilaterally revoked the citizenship of the individual involved," she said.

"You can imagine my response."

Ms Ardern accused Australia of "exporting its problems" to New Zealand.

"If the shoe were on the other foot we would take responsibility," she said.

"I never believed that the right response was simply a race to revoke citizenship, that is not the right thing to do. Australia did not act in good faith."

Ms Ardern said New Zealand was now trying to offer consular support to Ms Aden and her children.

In response to Ms Ardern's comments, Mr Morrison said: "It's my job as the Australian Prime Minister to put Australia's national security interests first. I think all Australians would agree with that."

"The legislation that was passed through our Parliament automatically cancels the citizenship of a dual citizen where they've been engaged in terrorist activities of this nature.

"Now, I understand that the New Zealand government has some issues with that.

"Australia's interest here is that we do not want to see terrorists who fought with terrorism organisations enjoying privileges of citizenship, which I think they forfeit the second they engage as an enemy of our country."

More than 60 Australian women and children have been held in detention camps in Syria's north-east since the fall of Islamic State in Syria in 2019. Three of them have since had their Australian citizenship stripped because they hold another nationality.

One of them was dual Turkish-Australian citizen Zehra Duman.

She disappeared from the al Hawl detention camp in Syria and crossed into Turkey in the middle of last year. She was then arrested and sentenced to three years in jail over her time with Islamic State.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-02-16/jacinda-ardern-australia-stripping-dual-national-turkey-terror/13159300

>>12815543

>>12930175

Google closing in on news content deals with ABC, Nine, Guardian

Google has stepped back from a threat to shut down its search engine locally and is on the brink of striking commercial deals with some of Australia’s largest news organisations after months of hard fought negotiations over planned media bargaining laws.

The ABC, Nine Entertainment Co (owner of this masthead) and Guardian Australia are in eleventh-hour negotiations with the $1.8 trillion tech giant for use of their content on various Google services. Industry sources briefed on the talks indicated the deals could be reached within 48 hours. However, while the talks are in advanced stages, there is no guarantee the agreements will be completed.

Google threatened to turn off its search engine in Australia in January in response to the laws. The search giant's progress on agreements with publishers will shift focus to Facebook, which is yet to strike any deals for its own news product and has threatened to pull journalism from its platform if the laws aren't revised.

Kerry Stokes’ Seven West Media became the first of the major media companies to ink an agreement with Google on Monday.

The flurry of deals comes as the Federal Parliament prepares to debate the Morrison government’s media bargaining code legislation this week, which would force Google and Facebook into mandatory arbitration with news publishers for payment for value they obtain from having news content in news feeds and search results.

While the publisher deals would allow Google to avoid a risky arbitration process, media executives still believe the legislation is crucial to ensure tech companies pay for news content and contribute to funding public-interest journalism.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg confirmed the federal government had agreed to make some technical amendments to the bill following discussions with Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg and Google boss Sundar Pichai over the weekend.

“These are improvements to the bill, these are technical in nature, but they also clarify the position of the government and I think they provide comfort to the players that we’ve got a workable code,” Mr Frydenberg told Sky News. “We’ll make those technical amendments public over the course of the next few days.

Mr Frydenberg also confirmed he would wait for more deals to be made before deciding whether to enforce the code against Google’s search engine and Facebook newsfeed, or through their respective news licensing products: Google News Showcase and Facebook News.

News Showcase is a newly launched product available through Google’s news app. Google pays publishers for certain behind-the-paywall articles that then appear on the platform.

“With respect to the designation of Search or Facebook, they are decisions that I would make after receiving the advice of the ACCC. But if there are commercial deals in place, then that becomes a different equation,” Mr Frydenberg said.

Google has already struck commercial deals with a number of smaller Australian publishers for its Showcase product, including Crikey, The Saturday Paper and Australian Community Media, publisher of The Canberra Times.

Google and Facebook have been trying to quickly sign deals ahead of the introduction of the code, which could be legislated by the end of the week. The discussions were accelerated after high-level talks between Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Mr Frydenberg, Mr Zuckerberg and Mr Pichai.

Talks with other outlets such as Daily Mail Australia and News Corp Australia are ongoing. News Corp, which owns a string of papers in Australia as well as The Wall Street Journal and The Times of London, is expected to sign a global deal for its content.

Seven’s deal will include News Showcase but could also include content on other Google-owned products such as YouTube and Subscribe with Google, a platform that helps news outlets engage with their subscribers. The company’s chief executive James Warburton would not comment directly on the cost of the deal but said the money would be used to invest in journalism.

“It will improve the business, there’s no doubt about that,” Mr Warburton told The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. ”With The West Australian, we’re one of the only publishers that’s continued to invest in regional and community newspapers. What it does is it gives them a digital future and gives us some sustainability and a lot of that will drop to the bottom line and help us repay debt.“

Mr Frydenberg said Mr Pichai had made clear in the discussion that Google wanted to remain operating in Australia.

https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/seven-west-media-inks-30-million-a-year-google-deal-20210215-p572iv.html

EXCLUSIVE: Trump aide speaks of fateful meeting linked to Russia investigation

Sky News Australia

17 Feb 2021

Former Trump aide George Papadopoulos says the “bizarre” meeting he attended with Australia's High Commissioner to the UK triggered a major criminal investigation in which he suggested evidence had been falsified to target his old boss’s campaign.

Mr Papadopoulos was implicated in the investigation into Russian interference in the US election and pleaded guilty to charges but was issued a full pardon by the president before he left office.

During the 2016 election, he famously attended a meeting with Mr Downer where he allegedly bragged Mr Trump would win because Russia might release information damaging to Hillary Clinton.

However, in an exclusive interview with Sky News Mr Papadopoulos claimed he had “never met a Russian official” in his life.

“The meeting I had with Alexander Downer … was probably the most bizarre meeting I’ve had in my entire life and I remember it in very vivid detail,” he said.

“No one was drunk at this meeting, I don’t know where this fantasy from the New York Times comes from, it certainly didn’t come from my mouth.

“I felt that he was there to probe me and to essentially record my conversation for some reason outside of my understanding.”

In a book he wrote which covers the meeting in question, Mr Papadopoulos describes Mr Downer as “the devil from down under” and the situation he became entangled in a “major scandal”.

“They actually picked the wrong person to try and make a patsy about Russia conspiracy because my entire career was in neo-conservative politics

“You don’t make a career in DC in neo-conservative politics in DC supporting Russian agendas or meeting with Russian officials for that matter.

“There’s a major criminal investigation ongoing into exactly what was going on here and who might have been falsifying information in order to really try and target this campaign”.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_NUGnDRqPI0

Twitter deems Australia's account takeover warrant as antithetical to democratic law

Raises concerns with the new warrant, which would give two of Australia's law enforcement bodies access to data regardless of the location of the server.

Asha Barbaschow - February 16, 2021

Twitter has labelled one of the three proposed new computer warrants handing the Australian Federal Police (AFP) and the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) new powers for data access as antithetical to democratic law.

Twitter's remarks were made as part of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security (PJCIS) review into the Surveillance Legislation Amendment (Identify and Disrupt) Bill 2020, which, if passed, would hand three new warrants for dealing with online crime to the two law enforcement bodies.

The social media giant focused on the Account Takeover Warrant that would allow the agencies to take control of an account for the purposes of locking a person out of the account.

"As currently written, the Account Takeover Warrant would be divorced from standard due process requirements. It would be antithetical to core legal principles enshrined in democratic law and procedural fairness," it wrote in a submission to the PJCIS.

"Twitter is concerned that the proposed Bill will allow law enforcement direct access to data regardless of the location of the server, without requiring knowledge of such access being provided to the service provider, and in the case of Account Takeover Warrants, absent the agreement of an appropriate consenting official of the relevant foreign country where the warrant would be enforced."

It highlighted that, as currently drafted, the Account Takeover Warrant could also apply extraterritorially, but it does not have the requirement to obtain the agreement of a consenting official in a foreign country, nor does it provide notice to the service provider who is offering the service.

"Therefore, the Account Takeover Warrant will apply extraterritorially with Australian law enforcement being authorised to take control of an online account regardless of where the account data is located and without consent from foreign governments or officials," it said.

Twitter has labelled it a "covert warrant" that would allow the AFP or the ACIC to take exclusive control of online accounts without the safeguards afforded by other warrant processes. It added that the scope regarding what activities are ultimately authorised under an Account Takeover Warrant still remain unclear.

The company also revealed in its submission that Australia has filed 259 information requests from the period spanning January 2012 through June 2020, relating to a total of 581 accounts. Of those requests, Twitter has reported 47.5% compliance.

This represents less than 1% of global information requests, from 93 countries, received by Twitter to date.

Twitter said it may disclose account information to law enforcement officials in response to a valid emergency request; it also accepts government requests to preserve account information.

The Department of Home Affairs also provided a submission to the PJCIS, saying the proposed Bill provides for an important boost in power for the two law enforcement bodies.

"Cyber-enabled crime, often enabled by the dark web and anonymising technologies, presents a direct challenge to community safety and the rule of law. On the dark web, criminals are able to carry out the most serious of crimes, including exchanging child abuse material, planning terrorist attacks, and buying and selling illegal drugs and weapons, with a significantly lower risk of identification and apprehension," it wrote.

"The Bill contains the necessary safeguards, including oversight mechanisms and controls on the use of information to ensure that the AFP and the ACIC use the powers in a targeted and proportionate manner to minimise the potential impact on legitimate users of online platforms."

https://www.zdnet.com/article/twitter-deems-australias-account-takeover-warrant-as-antithetical-to-democratic-law/

—

Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security

Review of the Surveillance Legislation Amendment (Identify and Disrupt) Bill 2020

The Surveillance Legislation Amendment (Identify and Disrupt) Bill 2020 will amend the Surveillance Devices Act 2004, the Crimes Act 1914 and associated legislation to introduce new law enforcement powers and warrants to enhance the Australian Federal Police (AFP) and the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC)'s ability to combat cyber-enabled serious and organised crime, including online child exploitation.

https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Joint/Intelligence_and_Security/IdentifyandDisruptBill

https://www.aph.gov.au/DocumentStore.ashx?id=29c34a91-6343-4f7c-a6da-1ea9d6004043&subId=702622

Diplomat Long Zhou wants more ‘respect’ for China

REMY VARGA - FEBRUARY 17, 2021

A Chinese diplomat and former top Beijing cyber official who infamously gatecrashed a federal minister’s press conference says Australia needs to “abandon ideological principles” in order to repair its fractured relationship with the Asian superpower.

China’s Victorian consul-general Long Zhou says Australia needs to uphold the principles of mutual respect and equal treatment and promote bilateral relations between the two nations.

His comments to Chinese state media come as trade restrictions on Australian exports — including beef, barley, lobster, wine and coal — devastate domestic businesses, and a Senate inquiry considers whether to ban the ­importation of goods produced by Uighur slave labour.

“Australia should treat China and China’s development objectively and rationally, abandon ideological prejudices, and truly uphold the principles of mutual respect and equal treatment in handling bilateral relations and actively promote China-Australia relations to return to the track of normal and healthy development as soon as possible,” Mr Zhou is paraphrased as saying in an article published on the consulate’s website on February 1.

“Because this is in line with the two common interests of the two countries and the fundamental interests of the two peoples.”

Mr Zhou made headlines when he was invited to speak alongside Health Minister Greg Hunt at a press conference by mining magnate Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest in April 2020, blindsiding the federal government.

His latest comments were made before the formal arrest of Australian journalist Cheng Lei earlier this month after the University of Queensland graduate had already been detained on suspicion of sharing state secrets.

Professor of public ethics at Charles Sturt University and China critic Clive Hamilton described the statement as “boilerplate Communist Party language”, saying the gulf between Beijing’s actions and words was vast.

“Last time I looked, bullying, subversion and economic coercion were not listed under ‘the principles of mutual respect and equal treatment’,” he said.

“As for ‘the fundamental interests of the two peoples’, let’s hope one day soon the people of China can, like the people of ­Australia, breathe the fresh air of freedom.”

The Senate’s Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Legislation Committee is examining a proposed bill introduced by independent senator Rex Patrick to ban the importation of goods produced by Uighur forced labour.

Senator Patrick said China had been using Australia as an economic punching bag.

“If he (Mr Zhou) was truly interested in principles of mutual respect and equal treatment, he could start by getting his own ministers to answer the phone when our ministers call,” he said.

“That would be a helpful first step, but I suspect he is just peddling propaganda under directions from his CCP masters.”

The Australian has previously revealed Mr Zhou was a co-ordinator of cyber affairs at China‘s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and developed the country’s cyberspace “co-operation” policy, which put a positive spin on Beijing’s global digital incursions.

Attempts to contact Mr Zhou went unanswered.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/diplomat-long-zhou-wants-more-respect-for-china/news-story/fd6875db82cbd12e38eaaadda7d28aba

>>12952517

龙舟总领事接受华文媒体联合采访

2021/02/01

1月29日,龙舟总领事接受领区华文媒体联合采访,介绍中国经济发展、中澳关系，转达祖国对海外侨胞、留学生等关心和慰问，并就中澳关系未来发展、澳媒抹黑华文媒体和华人社团、领事保护和服务等问题回答记者提问。

…..

在谈及中澳关系时，龙总领事强调，世界各国开展合作的基础是相互尊重。正如王毅国务委员兼外长不久前所说，澳方应该认真思考一个问题，中国到底是澳方的威胁还是伙伴？澳方应客观理性看待中国和中国的发展，摒弃意识形态偏见，切实秉持相互尊重、平等相待的原则处理两国关系，积极推动中澳关系尽早回到正常健康发展的轨道，因为这符合两国共同利益和两国人民的根本利益。

(Google translation)

Consul General Long Zhou accepted a joint interview with Chinese media

2021/02/01

On January 29th, Consul General Longzhou accepted a joint interview with Chinese media in the consular district, introducing China’s economic development and China-Australia relations, conveying the motherland’s concern and condolences to overseas Chinese and students, and discussing the future development of China-Australia relations, and Australian media discrediting Chinese media and Chinese media. Answering questions from reporters on issues such as Chinese associations, consular protection and services.

…..

When talking about China-Australia relations, Consul General Long emphasized that the basis of cooperation among countries in the world is mutual respect. As State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said not long ago, Australia should seriously consider a question. Is China a threat or a partner to Australia? Australia should treat China and China’s development objectively and rationally, abandon ideological prejudices, and truly uphold the principles of mutual respect and equal treatment in handling bilateral relations, and actively promote China-Australia relations to return to the track of normal and healthy development as soon as possible, because this is in line with the two The common interests of the two countries and the fundamental interests of the two peoples.

http://melbourne.china-consulate.org/chn/consulate_news/t1850109.htm

https://twitter.com/search?q=long%20zhou%20%40geoff_p_wade&src=typed_query&f=live

>>12952517

Coronavirus: Gatecrashing consul was one of China’s top cyber spies

BEN PACKHAM - MAY 1, 2020

1/2

The Chinese official Andrew Forrest helped to gatecrash Health Minister Greg Hunt’s press conference was a former top cyber official for Beijing as the Chinese Communist Party waged a hacking war against Western businesses and governments.

China’s Victorian consul-general, Long Zhou, was a co-ordinator of cyber affairs at China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where he developed the country’s cyberspace “co-operation” policy, putting a positive spin on Beijing’s global digital incursions.

While China’s state-sponsored cyber spying has sparked diplomatic protests across the world, the policy argued that countries must oppose cyber “hostility and aggression, prevent arms races and conflicts in cyberspace, and settle disputes through peaceful means”.

Mr Long’s former role has compounded Mr Forrest’s offence in the eyes of the government, with the fallout set to be long-lasting.

“Twiggy will find the door to Canberra is closed,” a senior source told The Australian, after he helped the Chinese diplomat ambush Mr Hunt.

The West Australian miner’s ties to the government were immediately put on ice, with Mr Hunt cancelling another scheduled joint press conference at a Melbourne children’s cancer centre.

It’s understood the Health Minister feared a media circus at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, with questions about China likely to overshadow a $67m investment in children’s cancer treatment.

“The announcement was issued by media release so as not to distract focus from the importance of this lifesaving ­program for children,” Mr Hunt’s spokesman said.

The Australian has also learned Mr Forrest only told Mr Hunt he’d invited Mr Long to speak at Wednesday’s press conference when a television camera was already trained on the trio at Melbourne’s Treasury Place commonwealth offices. Mr Hunt had assumed Mr Long was one of Mr Forrest’s ­business contacts, who had helped him obtain the coronavirus test kits for Australia.

Mr Forrest was responsible for a similar scenario four weeks ago, helping China’s West Australian consul-general, Dong Zhihua, get airtime at a press conference with state Health Minister Roger Cook to announce the arrival of a $160m shipment of personal protective equipment that he helped acquire.

Like Mr Hunt, Mr Cook found out he would share the podium with a Chinese government representative moments before the press conference got under way.

Days later, Mr Forrest said the pandemic gave him no reason to rethink his business relationship with China. “Yeah, and I see pandemics coming out of Europe mate, I can see them coming out of Africa. This one came out of China. You might even cop one coming out of Australia one day,” he told Perth radio station 6PR.

“The pandemic starts somewhere. It is how you react to them and I really say to any leader mucking around blaming people, taking up people’s precious airtime throwing blame, throwing criticism and not getting on with the job of fixing it, well, you are defining yourself as a pretty crap leader.”

(continued)

>>12952584

2/2

Amid growing anger, details have emerged of Mr Forrest’s support to obtain the coronavirus testing kits. While the WA miner’s Minderoo Foundation acted as a “bridge” to Chinese biotech company BGI group, it will not be left significantly out of pocket.

The government was “delighted”, Mr Hunt said on Wednesday, to have secured the test kits amid intense global competition. It was also appreciative of Mr Forrest’s role, saying his business contacts had sealed the deal for Australia.

But Mr Forrest will be compensated on a “cost-recovery basis” for all expenses he incurs.

A cross-government taskforce has been working since February on ensuring the nation has the supplies and personal protection equipment it needs to get through the crisis. It is assessing the efficacy and quality of all purchases, rejecting a raft of proposals by “charlatans” claiming to be selling quality products.

Amid massive global demand, standard commonwealth procurement rules requiring multiple quotes and runoffs between competing bidders have been thrown out the window. The government can’t avoid sole-sourcing major purchases and will take whatever help it can get to obtain medical supplies amid surging global demand­, sources said.

Earlier this week, on the front page of the Australian Financial Review, Chinese ambassador Cheng Jingye threatened a boycott of Australian exports over Scott Morrison’s call for an independent inquiry into the coronavirus pandemic.

Mr Cheng also revealed details of a private conversation with the secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Frances­ Adamson, in a serious breach of diplomatic convention.

The embassy claimed he had only released details of Ms Adamson’s call because of a “leak” from Australian officials.

“The embassy of China doesn’t play petty tricks, this is not our tradition. But if others do, we have to reciprocate,” a spokesman said.

Mr Forrest defended his intervention on Thursday in a morning television media blitz, branding accusations that he embarrassed Mr Hunt “a scream” and “the biggest non-story ever”. “I have to say, what a joke,” he told Nine’s Today show, after an earlier appearance on Seven’s Sunrise.

Mr Forrest, who declined to speak to The Australian on Thursday, denied in television appearances that he was acting against Australia’s interests by giving the podium to a Chinese government official. He said his efforts securing PPE and millions of testing kits showed “I’m the most Australian person I know.”

But there is a growing consensus in Canberra that he overstepped the mark by inserting himself into the strained relationship between Canberra and Beijing during a pandemic that began in China, and which was initially covered up by the Chinese Communist Party.

Senior ministers, more unified than ever on China policy, are in no mood for amateur diplomacy by a WA rich-lister whose fortune was built on iron ore sales to fuel Chinese growth.

Mr Hunt, who prevented a complete hijacking of his press conference by shutting down media questions to Mr Long, has since been bombarded with messages of support from colleagues.

It’s understood he was widely praised by cabinet colleagues for his handling of the incident, including by the Prime Minister, Josh Frydenberg and Foreign Minister Marise Payne.

Ministers said he had avoided a diplomatic misstep by holding the government’s line while avoiding any statements that could be used to further inflame tensions.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/gatecrashing-consul-was-one-of-chinas-top-cyber-spies/news-story/0adfb2e9dbc72bdbcc05cb50282eb509

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4a05hvrQfc

>>12877011

Media await judge’s penalties for contempt over early Pell reports

1/2

The decision by The Age to publish early articles about George Pell’s sex abuse conviction was, lawyers for the media argue, made to inform readers why the case could not be reported, although the call “was ultimately wrong”.

Fourteen news outlets have pleaded guilty to a combined 21 charges of contempt of court for breaching a suppression order with reports published or broadcast in December 2018, in the days after Cardinal Pell was found guilty.

The cardinal last year had his convictions quashed and was released from prison following a successful appeal to the High Court.

The media must now wait to learn what penalties Supreme Court judge Justice John Dixon will impose, after a plea hearing finished on Wednesday. Justice Dixon reserved his decision.

Prosecutors want Justice Dixon to impose significant fines and convictions for what they say was serious offending.

The highest penalty set for contempt in Victoria was Yahoo7’s $300,000 fine in 2017 for a report about a murder trial that included details not heard by the jury. That trial had to be aborted.

Lawyers for the media have argued the offending in the Pell case was not among the most serious contempt cases, as there was never an intention to breach the suppression order, the reports ultimately had no bearing on Cardinal Pell’s case, the cardinal wasn’t named, and the media eventually pleaded guilty and apologised.

Matt Collins, QC, acting for The Age, said the newspaper’s then-editor, Alex Lavelle, considered publishing a report on December 11, 2018 – the day Cardinal Pell was found guilty – but chose not to.

But by the next day, he had seen the cardinal’s name widely mentioned on social media and in media reports published overseas and was aware of readers questioning why The Age wasn’t reporting the jury’s verdict.

Dr Collins said Lavelle, after careful consultation with other senior editorial staff and in-house lawyers, approved the publishing of an online report at 7.11pm on December 12, 2018, under the headline: “Why media can’t report on a high-profile case.”

He said Lavelle was a conscientious, honest and anxious editor who believed at the time the report did not breach the order because it did not name Cardinal Pell or detail the charges or trial. But Dr Collins conceded the editor’s decision was “ultimately wrong”.

“He was trying to find a way to say something about what was happening without breaching the suppression order,” he said.

(continued)

>>12952871

2/2

Lavelle, who left The Age last year, was one of the journalists initially charged with contempt, but he and all others eventually had their charges either withdrawn or dismissed.

The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Daily Telegraph and The Courier-Mail all ran front-page stories about the case on December 13, 2018, that were found to have breached the suppression order by including information derived from Cardinal Pell’s trial, while other News Corp publications ran online articles that did the same.

The Australian Financial Review, websites Mamamia and Business Insider, radio station 2GB and Channel Nine’s Today program published or broadcast reports based on the newspapers’ front pages. Both Nine Radio, which owns 2GB, and Channel Nine are owned by Nine Entertainment Co, which also owns this masthead.

Dr Collins called on Justice Dixon to impose modest fines – and in some cases no convictions – on his clients given their guilty plea, apologies, the careful consideration editors gave before publishing, the restrained tone of the reports and the companies’ good corporate records.

Will Houghton, QC, made similar submissions for News Corp publications on Tuesday.

The court has heard all the media sought legal advice before reporting, except for Mamamia and 2GB. Dr Collins said on Wednesday the decisions of editors to approve the reports were errors of judgment rather than a systemic flaw within the news outlets.

Prosecutors have argued the reports had the potential to deny Cardinal Pell a fair second trial, encouraged people to search for more information about the case and aimed to put pressure on County Court Chief Judge Peter Kidd to revoke his suppression order.

The media applied to Judge Kidd to revoke his order but he refused and kept it in place. The media were unable to report Cardinal Pell’s conviction in full until February 2019, when prosecutors withdrew a planned second trial.

Dr Collins said there was no evidence the reports put pressure on Judge Kidd or that “hordes” of people went online to search for more information.

But he conceded 2GB presenter Chris Smith “deviated” from his script and urged listeners to “get on Google … you will find out what this is about”. Mr Smith’s “ill-advised” ad-lib was countered by 2GB’s “minuscule” audience in Victoria where any potential jurors resided, Dr Collins said.

https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/media-await-judge-s-penalties-for-contempt-over-early-pell-reports-20210217-p5738d.html

Alleged Epstein procurer Ghislaine Maxwell ‘withering to a shell of her former self’ because of jail conditions, lawyer says

1/2

British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell is “withering” away in jail because of harsh conditions, which includes alleged physical abuse by a guard and being forced to scrub shower walls after she reported the mistreatment, her lawyer says in a new letter to a federal judge.

“It is impossible to overstate the deleterious effect of the conditions under which Ms. Maxwell is detained,” the lawyer, Bobbi Sternheim, wrote to Manhattan District Court Judge Alison Nathan.

“She is withering to a shell of her former self — losing weight, losing hair, and losing her ability to concentrate,” Sternheim wrote of Maxwell, who is accused of crimes related to allegedly recruiting and grooming underage girls who later were sexually abused by eccentric investment advisor Jeffrey Epstein, and of perjury.

The lawyer says “over-management” and constant surveillance of Maxwell by guards in the Brooklyn federal jail, in an apparent effort to keep her from killing herself while locked up as Epstein did in 2019, “are impacting her stamina and effectiveness in preparing her defense and conferring with counsel.”

Maxwell, 59, has pleaded not guilty in the case, in which she was charged in July 2020, a year after Epstein’s arrest on child sex trafficking charges.

Epstein, 66, died from what has officially been ruled a suicide by hanging a month after his arrest in federal jail in Manhattan.

Maxwell, who has been denied bail twice by Nathan, who deemed her a flight risk, is due to go on trial later this year.

Her lawyers are engaged in an effort to try to get her increased access to a laptop computer to prepare for her trial.

Sternheim’s letter, the latest in a series of complaints about Maxwell’s jail conditions, underscore the fact that her life for the past seven months has been very different than her days with Epstein, when they socialized with the likes of former Presidents Donald Trump and Bill Clinton, and Britain’s Prince Andrew.

Sternheim complained that “the vagaries and delays” in moving Maxwell 50 or so feet from an isolation cell are among the issues harming her ability to prepare adequately for trial.

The lawyer said the frequent checks by Maxwell of guards, who have physically searched her about 1,400 times since last July 6, have not turned up any contraband.

“Maxwell continues to be at the mercy of a revolving group of security officers who are used to guarding hundreds of inmates but now focus their undivided attention exclusively on one respectful, middle-aged female pretrial detainee,” Sternheim wrote.

“Recently, out of view of the security camera, Ms. Maxwell was placed in her isolation cell and physically abused during a pat down search. When she asked that the camera be used to capture the occurrence, a guard replied ‘no.’ ”

“When Ms. Maxwell recoiled in pain and when she said she would report the mistreatment, she was threatened with disciplinary action,” Sternheim wrote.

“Within a week and while the same team was in charge, Ms. Maxwell was the subject of further retaliation for reporting the abuse: a guard ordered Ms. Maxwell into a shower to clean, sanitize, and scrub the walls with a broom. Ms. Maxwell’s request to have the camera record the guard alone with her in the confined space was again denied.”

(continued)

>>12953193

2/2

Surveillance of Maxwell is so strict, Sternheim said, that “guards forbid” Maxwell from standing in certain areas of her six-foot-by-nine-foot cell, including telling her not to stand to the left or right over her toilet.

The lawyer also said that Maxwell “continues to have serious problems with the food provided to her,” including repeatedly being denied some or all parts of her meals.

“For the duration of her detention, she has never received a properly heated meal,” Sternheim wrote.

Maxwell is routinely given food in a container that is not meant for use in a microwave, but staff microwave her food anyway, the lawyer said.

“Ms. Maxwell’s food either does not defrost the food or disintegrates it and melts the plastic container, rendering the food inedible,” Sternheim wrote.

“While guards finally acknowledged serious problems with the food, they continued to microwave Ms. Maxwell’s food, rendering the food inedible and dangerous for consumption and leaving Ms. Maxwell with no meal and no replacement.”

“Late last week, guards informed Ms. Maxwell that going forward her food will be heated in a thermal oven, like that of all other inmates. While this may be an improvement, it does little to correct seven months of deprivation impacting her nutrition and detrimental to her health,” the lawyer wrote.

Sternheim also noted that prosecutors have confirmed that guards point a flashight at the ceiling of Maxwell’s cell “every 15 minutes from approximately 9:30 pm to 6:30 am.”

“It is hard to verbally convey the power of a light that bounces off a concrete ceiling in a six-by-nine-foot concrete box into Ms. Maxwell’s eyes, disrupting her sleep and ability to have any restful night.”

“The attenuating effects of sleep deprivation are well documented,” the lawyer wrote.

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/16/jeffrey-epstein-sex-abuse-case-ghislaine-maxwell-complains-of-jail-treatment.html

https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/17318376/united-states-v-maxwell/?filed_after=&filed_before=&entry_gte=&entry_lte=&order_by=desc

https://www.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nysd.539612/gov.uscourts.nysd.539612.159.0_3.pdf

Scott Morrison expected to tear up Victoria’s Belt and Road deal with China within weeks

Daniel Andrews’ secretive and controversial deal with Beijing is expected to be forcibly torn up by the Morrison Government within weeks.

Frank Chung - February 16, 2021

1/2

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews’ controversial Belt and Road deal with the Chinese government is expected to be torn up by Prime Minister Scott Morrison within weeks.

The Andrews government blindsided Canberra in 2018 with the announcement that it had signed a memorandum of understanding to take part in the $1.5 trillion infrastructure program, which is widely viewed as a global power play by Chinese Communist Party and a national security threat.

Mr Morrison introduced new laws last year giving the Federal Government power to tear up any state or local government deal with a foreign power if it is deemed “inconsistent with federal foreign affairs policy”.

Speaking to the Herald Sun, the PM said while he would not “pre-empt” that process – which gives states until March 10 to inform the Commonwealth of their deals with foreign governments – he had not seen any advantage from the arrangement.

“I haven’t seen the benefits of it,” Mr Morrison said. “If there are benefits, what are they and what was paid for them? I don’t have the answers to those questions at this point, but the assessment of those arrangements will continue.”

He added that federal policy would determine foreign relations. “That’s a very important principle,” he said. “There has to be consistency when national governments deal with other national governments.”

Mr Morrison had already indicated to Victoria that the deal was unlikely to stand. In November, the CCP cited the foreign relations laws in a list of official grievances making China “angry” with Australia.

The Belt and Road deal, which Mr Andrews has defended as being about Victorian jobs, attracted increased scrutiny last year as Australia’s relationship with China soured amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Polling conducted by the Institute of Public Affairs think tank found the majority of Victorians wanted the state to pull out of the controversial scheme, with even Labor voters strongly opposed.

Speaking to reporters last August after the new federal legislation was unveiled, the Victorian Premier said he expected the PM to “no doubt very soon be able to list the full range of other free trade agreements and other markets that we’ll be sending Victorian products to”.

“My concern has always been to grow jobs,” he said. “And I’ve always seen these arrangements and all of our arrangements, not just with any one country but with all the different countries, different states, different provinces, different regions that we have relationships with, they’ve always been about a passport to export.”

He said the deal had “always been about getting more Victorian produce, more Victorian products, more Victorian economic activity”.

Pressed by reporters at the time, Mr Andrews refused to concede the Belt and Road Initiative was a national security threat. “No, I would never concede that point, but again foreign affairs is a matter for the Federal Government,” he said.

(continued)

>>12953337

2/2

Late last year, as relations plunged to new lows after a Chinese diplomat posted a doctored photo of an Australian soldier holding a knife to an Afghan child’s throat, Mr Andrews continued to stand firm on the agreement.

“No,” he said, when asked by reporters whether he would turn his back on the deal given the latest outrage. “This relationship is far too important to farmers, to manufacturers, to workers, to profits for Victorian companies and therefore prosperity for our state.”

Mr Andrews called on the Federal Government and China to “refocus on trying to repair” the relationship. “I’m confident that the Commonwealth Government knows and understands how important this relationship is,” he said. “I’m certain of that, and that’s why, as challenging as this is, people have to find a way to work through it.”

He also hit out at the scope of the new laws, saying it would allow the Federal Government to interfere in innocuous agreements. “Like, matters of massive international intrigue like sister city arrangements,” he said sarcastically.

“Who Dandenong is the sister city with. Who Monash, where I live, is the sister city with. The federal parliament can do as they please. They are accountable for the decisions they make. If this is the biggest and most important thing for them to be doing at the moment, well, I look forward to them explaining that to everybody.”

Mr Andrews’ position put him at odds with his federal Labor counterparts, who had expressed concern about Victoria’s decision to join Belt and Road. Opposition leader Anthony Albanese last year said he was “very supportive” of the foreign relations laws and that federal Labor had shifted to oppose signing up to the scheme due to the CCP’s growing “interventionist” behaviour in recent years.

In August, Mr Albanese vowed that federal Labor would never seek trade agreements under the Belt and Road Initiative.

“Certainly, there shouldn’t be agreements that are inconsistent with Australia’s national interest, or our foreign policy,” Mr Albanese told the ABC’s Insiders.

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/business/economy/scott-morrison-expected-to-tear-up-victorias-belt-and-road-deal-with-china-within-weeks/news-story/580f1d9baed69f064945bd38532becc3

>>12953337

Morrison's threat to rip up Victoria's BRI deal is all bark and no bite

Yu Lei - Feb 16, 2021

1/2

Australian daily newspaper the Herald Sun quoted the country's Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Monday as reporting that he hasn't seen the benefits of Victoria's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) agreement with China. Since then, a growing number of Western media outlets have been hyping that the deal could be torn up "within weeks." But that would be unlikely.

When the BRI was first introduced years ago, Western countries, including Australia, generally held a welcome stance toward it. In 2017, then prime minister Malcolm Turnbull once articulate, "We look forward to working with China on the Belt and Road Initiative projects… Global infrastructure investment is a good example of where countries should work together."

However, the situation changed when the US started to see the achievements made under the BRI framework and became vigilant against it, believing the BRI is aimed at seizing both economic and political interests from Washington. Against the backdrop, Australia, one of the US' closest allies, shifted its previous interests to embrace the initiative and turned hostile toward it.

"If there are benefits, what are they and what was paid for them?" Morrison asked, while underlying he does not have the answers to those questions. This is hardly true.

The reason why Victoria signed a memorandum of understanding with China over the BRI in 2018 despite Australian government resistance is that the deal could bring practical interests to the state. Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews defended the agreement as noting it would mean "more jobs and more trade and investment for Victorians."

Victoria does not have much resource advantages, but its economy is the second-largest among Australian states thanks to its thriving private enterprises, foreign investment and trade. It is therefore also keen to cooperate with China under the BRI framework.

Years ago, during discussions between China and Australia over possible cooperation on the BRI, the two sides mainly touched upon Australia's Northern Development Strategy, a plan to drive growth in Australia's northern areas. Successive Australian governments have been seeking to do something over the strategy since the end of the World War II, but it has been postponed indefinitely due to lack of funds. Some Chinese companies once raised their willingness for cooperation, but their plans are shelved due to deteriorating Beijing-Canberra ties. As a result, the strategy is merely a piece of waste paper until now as Australia has wasted and missed all the time and opportunities.

(continued)

>>12953345

2/2

Moreover, the BRI could have integrated Australia with the entire Asia-Pacific region more closely, including 14 Pacific island countries. It could have become a hub of transportation and telecommunication by constructing its ports, 5G cables and undersea cable projects, etc. Nevertheless, thanks to its hegemonic mindset toward the BRI, Canberra is not only opposing its own possible BRI cooperation with China, but also all other Pacific island countries' relevant collaboration with China. Australia's efforts have harmed Pacific island countries' self-interest, and increasingly more of these sovereign states are now growing further apart from Australia.

Morrison's latest rhetoric has shown his consistent stance to gang up with the US against China. But generally speaking, Australia's harsh words in this regard have been softened to some extent. It is not sure yet whether the new US administration will make major adjustments on its China policy, yet signs of change have been sent. Canberra is feeling the need to adjust accordingly.

The UK has been planning to host an expanded G7 summit this year by inviting Australia as a guest and even turning the G7 into a D10 club of democratic partners. But some G7 members have been pushed back against the plan out of resistance toward forging an alliance to counter China.

It cannot be more obvious that G7 members do not want to jeopardize their ties with China under the background of sluggish global economy under the shadow of COVID-19 pandemic, making their own economic situations worse. They know that China will be the main driving force of the world economy.

Whichever countries that China will continue importing from, their economies will be stimulated, and their economic predicament potentially be cast off. That is why Biden is halting US all-round confrontation with China, heading toward limited competition. If the US could make such a change in mentality, how could other Western countries, such as Australia, possibly not be aware of the fact?

Given Australia's own economic difficulties, Morrison won't dare to disappoint the economic and business circles in the country by further damaging trade ties with China. He won't literally scrap Victoria's BRI deal with China. Yet he might find other ways to disturb the joint programs by continuing his assessment of related arrangements out of geopolitical calculations.

But Australia will eventually face the fact that setting stumbling blocks to the country's BRI cooperation with China is hurting its own development, regional status as well as its image and role in the global arena.

The author is chief research fellow at the research center for Pacific island countries of Liaocheng University in East China's Shandong Province. opinion@globaltimes.com.cn

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202102/1215669.shtml

>>12899025

>>12907869

Facebook deletes Pete Evans's Instagram account over repeated coronavirus and vaccine misinformation

AAP - 17 February 2021

Celebrity chef Pete Evans has been permanently booted off Instagram for sharing misinformation about coronavirus and vaccines.

Facebook confirmed it deleted Mr Evans's account on the popular picture-sharing platform on Wednesday.

The account had hundreds of thousands of followers.

"We removed Pete Evans's account for repeatedly sharing debunked claims about the coronavirus or vaccines," the company said in a statement.

"We don't allow anyone to share misinformation about COVID-19 that could lead to imminent physical harm or about COVID-19 vaccines that have been debunked by public health experts."

Mr Evans's Facebook page was removed in December, but he continued to share misinformation through Instagram, which is also owned by Facebook.

Facebook had earlier removed several of the chef's Instagram posts for violating its policies on misinformation.

Facebook's COVID-19 and vaccine misinformation policies were updated last week, with the company vowing to crack down on false claims.

On Wednesday, Facebook expanded the list of false claims it promises to remove, adding several more about coronavirus and the vaccines.

False claims that the company says will not be tolerated include that COVID-19 is man-made, that it is safer to get the disease than the vaccine, and that vaccines are toxic, dangerous or cause autism.

Facebook consulted with health groups such as the World Health Organization before expanding the list.

Mr Evans was a judge on My Kitchen Rules between 2010 and 2020.

He has repeatedly made posts opposing COVID-19 vaccines and masks, shared discredited coronavirus cures, and claimed in a podcast that the coronavirus is a hoax.

Mr Evans regularly used his Instagram account to cast doubt on official information about COVID-19, vaccines, and other parts of mainstream science.

His company was fined more than $25,000 by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) in April after he promoted a device called a "BioCharger" on a Facebook live stream, claiming it could be used in relation to coronavirus.

The TGA said the claim had "no apparent foundation".

Mr Evans announced last week he would run for federal parliament, standing as a Senate candidate for a fringe party set up by former One Nation senator Rod Culleton.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-02-17/pete-evans-facebook-deletes-chefs-instagram-account-coronavirus/13164812

Facebook has ‘pulled the big guns out on Australia’ with news ban, former CEO Stephen Scheeler says

DAVID SWAN and JOSEPH LAM - FEBRUARY 18, 2021

1/2

Facebook’s move to block news in Australia represents an act of war from the tech giant, according to its former Australian boss Stephen Scheeler, who thinks Australians should vote with their feet and delete the app to send a message to the company.

The US tech giant on Thursday blocked all news in Australia, including several non-news organisations including Queensland Health, 1800 Respect, the Bureau of Meteorology, Harvey Norman and more, in the midst of a global health pandemic and raging bushfires.

“Facebook has turned off everything, including bushfire information, and charities like Oxfam. It looks and feels really ugly. And Australians should be outraged,” Mr Scheeler said.

“Some companies get to a certain scale, where they really have a social obligation to how they operate in every country in the world. And we haven‘t been harsh enough in legislating that and forcing it upon these companies, so this is where we’ve wound up.”

Mr Scheeler, who steered Facebook from a small social network in Australia and New Zealand to a tech giant, said that there are two interpretations of how Facebook blocked non-news organisations and charities.

“One is it was an accident, and the other was it was intentional. But either answer is bad,” Mr Scheeler said. “And even if it is accidental, I think it‘s them saying they don’t really care. I think Australians have to look really hard at what they are doing.

“It shouldn't have happened. But unfortunately it did. But there’s no good answers. If you’re Rio Tinto and you blow up an Aboriginal sacred site, there are consequences, people lose their jobs. But at Facebook nobody ever loses their jobs.

“I‘m a proud ex-Facebooker, but over the years I get more and more exasperated. For Facebook and Mark it’s too much about the money, and the power, and not about the good.”

Mr Scheeler resigned from Facebook in 2017 to start his own consultancy business.

He said that for anyone who disagrees with the government‘s regulatory approach to Facebook, voters can go and vote against Scott Morrison, for example, but Facebook has become more powerful than governments.

“There‘s no ballot box where you can vote against Mark Zuckerberg. And in fact, even if you’re a Facebook shareholder, your vote carries no weight,” he said. “Even if I even if I put $100 billion into Facebook, my votes carry no weight.

“I‘m sad for Facebook in a way, but if you wanted a glaring example of why Facebook needs more regulation, this is it.”

The executive added that the move was tantamount to an ‘act of war’, and should be treated accordingly.

“What if a Chinese company in the same position had done the same thing? Even if they warned us about it or not, we would be outraged. It‘s like an act of war. That’s how we should view this. It’s not good. I think Facebook may eventually regret this day.’’

No choice other than introducing ban, Facebook says

Managing Director, Facebook Australia and New Zealand William Easton on Thursday (AEDT) announced its decision to ban both users and publishers from sharing or viewing news content, citing Australia’s proposed media bargaining code which it said “fundamentally misunderstands the relationship between our platform and publishers”.

Facebook claims it was left with two options. “It has left us facing a stark choice: Attempt to comply with a law that ignores the realities of this relationship, or stop allowing news content on our services in Australia,” Mr Easton said in a statement. “With a heavy heart, we are choosing the latter.”

The decision comes after News Corp reached a historic three-year global licensing deal with Google which will see content from its publications worldwide including The Wall Street Journal and The New York Post in the US, The Times of London, The Sun and News Corp Australia publications including The Australian, Sky News and metro dailies, shared in Google News Showcase.

(continued)

>>12979230

2/2

Government sites, information services caught up in ban

Facebook’s content ban isn’t limited to news outlets it would seem with collateral damage having an effect on several Government pages.

The Bureau of Meteorology, the Australian Capital Territory and the Department of Fire and Emergency Services WA also fell victim to the ban.

Spectators have commented on the potential harm it could cause during the middle of the pandemic as well as bushfire and flood season.

Move ‘damages Facebook’s credibility’

Communications Minister Paul Fletcher told Ben Fordham on 2GB that Facebook’s decision had sent a very strong message about its credibility. “The decision they’re taking seems … that what they want to do is remove credible news sources from the platform,” he said.

“It basically says to Australians if you’re looking for credible news, Facebook isn’t the place to look for it.”

Mr Fletcher said the Australian government would continue to engage with Facebook.

The proposed legislation, which passed in the House of Representatives last night, aims to force tech giants to negotiate with media companies and compensate them for publishing their content.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg spoke to Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg on Thursday and says a pathway with Facebook remains open. “We agreed to continue our conversation to try to find a pathway forward,” he said.

Mr Fletcher and Mr Frydenberg are expected to hold a press conference later in the day.

Matt Canavan says Facebook is clearly trying to bully Australians. “Clearly Facebook is trying to bully the Australian parliament into approving laws only it approves of,” he told Sky.

“There’s no way the Australian parliament should be bullied or pushed around by a multinational company. If Facebook is going to treat Australians like this, to bully or threaten us, go to other sources,” he said.

The social media giant claims it had tried to work with the Australian government to come to a fair solution, but the new “legislation does not do that”.

“Over the last three years we’ve worked with the Australian Government to find a solution that recognises the realities of how our services work,” it said.

“We’ve long worked toward rules that would encourage innovation and collaboration between digital platforms and news organisations.

“Instead (the new code) seeks to penalise Facebook for content it didn’t take or ask for.”

Facebook said it had generated 5.1 billion referrals to Australian news publishers which it claims are worth an estimated $407 million.

“Journalism is important to a democratic society, which is why we build dedicated, free tools to support news organisations around the world in innovating their content for online audiences,” it said.

Facebook claimed it had little business gain from news content which, it said, made up less than four per cent of content in users’ news feeds.

Journalists in the US reported seeing blank Facebook pages from Australian media publishers at about 7am on Thursday.

It seems satire news sites weren’t spared from Facebook’s decision with The Betoota Advocate, The Chaser and The Shovel all falling victim to the ban.

However at the same time in Australia, some news content was still available on Facebook pages.

Facebook’s move contrasted with Google, which in recent days has brokered deals with media groups including News Corp, Nine and Seven West Media, in response to the regulatory push.

Facebook’s manager for Australia and New Zealand, William Easton said Facebook has argued to Australian officials that “the value exchange between Facebook and publishers runs in favour of the publishers,” and generates hundreds of millions of dollars of revenue for the media organisations.

“We’ve long worked toward rules that would encourage innovation and collaboration between digital platforms and news organisations,” Mr Easton said.

“Unfortunately this legislation does not do that. Instead it seeks to penalise Facebook for content it didn’t take or ask for.”

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/facebook-bans-news-for-aussies-users/news-story/60e3957a224fc369a43e18e2b2687e50

https://twitter.com/workmanalice/status/1362158487346704388

https://twitter.com/biancabritton/status/1362130477096853507

https://twitter.com/CaseyBriggs/status/1362140096229634050

>>12979230

EXCLUSIVE: Government slams Facebook for sick double-standards by creating the 'perfect' platform for paedophiles to share child abuse - while stopping YOU from reading the news

1/2

Facebook has been blasted by the Australian Government for making it easier for paedophiles to get away with sharing child abuse material on the platform - on the same day as the company's 'disgraceful' decision to block Australian news.

The US tech giant has infuriated Australians after blocking them from reading and sharing local news in response to a world-first law to make tech giants pay media companies for the content they use.

The extraordinary move has also stopped Australians from accessing vital information in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic with public health, charity and emergency services pages also being blocked by the company's algorithm change.

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton told Daily Mail Australia the brazen act showed the company's 'arrogance' in dealing with Australian government policy and law.

A furious Mr Dutton said the company will introduce encrypted messaging later this year that will make it even harder for Australian authorities to intercept sick pedophile conversations and child abuse image and video sharing.

'Facebook's arrogance isn't restricted to their decision to ban Australian news,' Mr Dutton said on Thursday.

'Their push for end-to-end encryption will make it easier for paedophiles to share child sexual exploitation material.'

End-to-end encryption, which is already used by Facebook-owned WhatsApp and Apple's iMessage, means that only the people communicating can see their messages, protecting users' privacy but also preventing police from accessing vital evidence.

Accessing suspects' online footprint has proved crucial to police investigations and recently helped snare 'bin bag paedo' Richard George Aldinger, 63, who live-streamed the abuse of a 12-year-old girl in the Philippines.

Former A Current Affair journalist Ben McCormack was also famously busted for promoting child abuse after police trawled through his sick Skype messages with a Catholic primary school teacher who fantasised about raping little boys as young as three.

Mr Dutton fears that thousands of paedophiles will never be caught under the new secret messaging system.

'I think it's a complete outrage. I think there is a moral obligation on people like Mark Zuckerberg to step up and do the right thing,' he told Daily Mail Australia.

'At the moment they're facilitating these criminals, these networks, these organised criminal syndicates who are exploiting and destroying the lives of young children and we need to call it out.'

The National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children in the US estimates Facebook pushing ahead with end to end encryption will see reporting of child sexual abuse decrease by up to 50 per cent.

More than 90 per cent of referrals to the centre are made by Facebook and they have resulted in over 30,000 reports being made to Australian officials for investigation.

Facebook announced its move to end-end-encryption in March 2019 and it is due to come into play in Australia later this year.

The company believes end-to-end encryption is the best security tool available to protect Australians from cybercriminals and hackers and will still use other investigative techniques and analytical tools to root out paedophiles.

A Facebook spokesman said: 'We have zero tolerance for any behaviour that exploits children and we work closely with law enforcement agencies in Australia and around the world to report and remove harmful content.

'We take strong action against any user who shares content that exploits or endangers children, including banning the user and reporting the matter to the relevant authorities.

'Facebook leads the industry in combating child abuse online and we'll continue to do so on our private messaging services.'

The spokesman said that WhatsApp moderators ban 300,000 accounts every month globally by using photo-matching technology to identify child abuse images in profile photos.

(continued)

>>12995647

2/2

Mr Dutton was among several ministers to slam Facebook on Thursday after its extraordinary move to ban news content in Australia.

When users go on reliable Facebook news accounts, including the ABC, 7News and Daily Mail Australia, they are met with a message saying there are 'no posts' available - hiding news content which is visible to those overseas.

Even the Australian Greens Facebook page, the Bureau of Meteorology and domestic violence charities were banned from posting updates.

Facebook's extraordinary move to ban news contrasted with Google, which in recent days has brokered deals with media groups, including Rupert Murdoch's News Corp.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said the action was 'heavy-handed and will damage its reputation here in Australia'.

Health Minister Greg Hunt said blasted the social media giant for denying Australians access to fundamental health, mental health and vaccination information.

'Facebook has taken steps, which are unprecedented and reprehensible,' he said.

'Unacceptable in a democracy such as this and an abuse of their power.'

'The Australian people and its government will not be bullied by some big tech company that is putting people as lives at risk and putting profits ahead of people,' he said.

Nationals Senator Matt Canavan said he did not agree with this stifling of free speech.

'We already have laws that stop foreigners interfering in political debates. Facebook at least appears to be acting against the spirit of those laws,' he told Daily Mail Australia.

'Any overseas companies that try to unduly control the free speech of Australians should be sent packing.'

Former Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce said Mark Zuckerberg is behaving like North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un.

Mr Joyce said the decision meant Facebook resembled North Korea which tightly controls which news and information its citizens can access and relentlessly publishes propaganda supporting the leadership.

'Journalism is essential for the functioning of democracy. If you don't want journalism then go to North Korea,' he told Daily Mail Australia.

'This is a North Korean policy agency being pursued by Facebook,' he added.

Mr Joyce said the government should consider issuing licences that grant permission for social media companies to operate in Australia to make sure they act in the national interest.

'If they leave then so what? Another platform will be set up,' he said.

Mr Joyce added: 'When I look up at the press gallery in Parliament or when I walk around Tamworth, I don't see a Facebook bureau or a Google bureau - so if they want to benefit from journalism done by others then they need to pay for it.

'It took 10,000 years of human experience to gain the liberties we enjoy today and the investigatory endeavours of paid journalists is a crucial pillar of that. To have journalism you need real presence and advertising.

'If Facebook wants to embezzle the process they can return to their garage and table tennis.'

Communications Minister Paul Fletcher has insisted the government will not back down and said the publisher could either abide by Australia's laws or leave the country.

Mr Fletcher said the government 'will be proceeding' with the new law, which passed the House of Representatives on Wednesday night and looks set to pass the Senate within days.

'We want Google and Facebook to stay in Australia but we have been very clear that if you do business in Australia, you need to comply with the laws passed by the elected Parliament of this nation,' he told the ABC on Thursday morning.

But Mr Fletcher didn't rule out tweaking the code after continuing discussions with Facebook.

Treasurer Josh Treasurer spoke to CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Thursday morning and revealed the pair were trying to find 'a path forward'.

'Let's allow those discussions to continue and, at the same time, let's continue with the process of legislating the code,' Mr Fletcher said.

Facebook's decision means its nine million daily users in Australia can no longer view any news - even from foreign websites.

Australian Facebook users can't even share content they find interesting with friends and family, and those overseas can't read or access any content from Down Under either.

Minister Fletcher said Facebook's move is likely to increase the amount disinformation on Facebook.

'There are already questions about the credibility of information and sources on the Facebook platform,' he told Ben Fordham on 2GB radio.

'They're basically saying to Australians: If you're looking for reliable news, Facebook is not the place to look for it.'

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9272893/Facebook-slammed-Peter-Dutton-changes-making-easier-paedophiles-share-abuse.html

https://twitter.com/PeterDutton_MP/status/1362222617868922887

China fears spark grant knockbacks

BEN PACKHAM - FEBRUARY 17, 2021

1/2

Top scientists at Australian ­universities have been denied ­lucrative taxpayer-funded research grants on national security grounds, as the federal government cracks down on projects that could hand military or ­economic advantage to foreign adversaries.

The Australian can reveal that, in the first decision of its kind, five applicants for Australian Research Council grants were blocked from receiving funding of up to $500,000 a year on the orders of former education minister Dan Tehan.

Mr Tehan refused approval last December after national security agencies subjected 18 ARC grant applications to additional checks. The move followed a storm of criticism over the close links of dozens of Australian ­scientists to Chinese Communist Party talent programs, which aim to transfer foreign technologies to China, particularly those with military applications.

One of the rejected grant ­applications would have funded advanced wireless communications research with applications in “internet of things” devices, radar and satellite systems, and wireless power transmission. Another would have focused on nanotechnology advances with applications in miniaturised optical systems, including wearables, autonomous vehicles, and robots.

Proposed research projects on hi-tech lasers, next-generation electricity networks, and cutting-edge fuel cell technology were also rejected.

Mr Tehan approved 664 ARC grants in the same funding round, including 13 of those subjected to additional scrutiny by security agencies.

His successor in the education portfolio, Alan Tudge, said international scientific collaboration was vital for Australia, “but we won’t compromise on our national security under any circumstances”. Mr Tudge and the ARC declined to identify the scientists whose applications had been ­rejected, but they are believed to include members of the CCP’s Thousand Talents Program, and at least one with links to a top Chinese military university.

The decision follows reports in The Australian last August that revealed dozens of leading scientists at major universities across the country had been recruited to the Thousand Talents Plan, prompting an inquiry by the parliament’s powerful intelligence and security committee.

The committee’s chairman, Liberal senator James Paterson, said growing security risks in the research sector needed to be closely scrutinised.

“These actions demonstrate why a parliamentary inquiry into foreign interference in higher education is timely,” Senator Paterson said. “We are operating in a very different environment than we were a few years ago. It is vital that we take the necessary steps to ensure taxpayer funded research serves our national interests.

“This is a shared responsibility between government and the higher education sector and the inquiry will examine how this co-operation can be strengthened.”

(continued)

>>12996122

2/2

Alex Joske, a former analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, told the inquiry that his research suggested CCP talent recruitment activity could be associated with as much as $280m in grant fraud over the past two decades.

Mr Joske said he had identified 325 members of CCP talent programs in Australian research institutions, including in all leading universities and the CSIRO. He said at least 59 researchers who received highly competitive ARC fellowships “appear to have concurrently worked in China”, including some who managed companies or laboratories working on related technologies. “Talent-recruitment work broadly seeks to bring valuable expertise, resources and technology to China,” his submission said. “This includes technology with both commercial, civilian and military value.”

Mr Joske said the government, research institutions and funding agencies needed to understand the extent of foreign talent recruitment activity, and commission independent audits into program participants.

Universities have resisted new constraints on their ability to work with foreign counterparts. Universities Australia told the inquiry that new regulatory measures should be proportionate to the risk, and not constrain the ability of institutions “to engage, and to collaborate with our international partners”.

ASPI senior analyst, Malcolm Davis, said that under President Xi Jinping, China was actively seeking to “harness civil technologies to directly support the modernisation of the People’s Liberation Army”.

ASIO warned universities and research institutions last year about the risk of Chinese foreign interference and the potential for scientific collaboration to turn into espionage. The agency briefed institutions on warning signs that academics had been recruited by the Chinese government. The ARC said grant applicants were required to disclose personal and professional interests “to ensure the transparency of research collaborations and relationships”.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/higher-education/china-fears-spark-grant-knockbacks/news-story/0d2ae735052da4d3ce18dfd6c24eec01

Clearnet test

>>12941464

Ex-Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins takes rape complaint to AFP

ROSIE LEWIS - FEBRUARY 19, 2021

Brittany Higgins, the former Liberal staffer who was allegedly raped in a ministerial office at Parliament House, has “re-engaged” with the Australian Federal Police to proceed with a formal complaint against her alleged perpetrator.

Five days after she went public with her story, which has embroiled the Morrison government, Ms Higgins said she expected the AFP would handle her complaint “in a timely manner” and demanded she be able to participate in drafting the terms of reference for an independent review in parliament’s workplace culture.

Ms Higgins alleges she was sexually assaulted in then defence industry minister Linda Reynolds’ parliamentary suite on March 23, 2019, after a night out drinking.

She made a complaint to police soon after but did not pursue it, saying she felt her job with the Liberal Party would be put at risk.

“Today I have re-engaged with Australian Federal Police and will proceed with a formal complaint regarding the crime committed against me in what should be the safest building in Australia,” she said.

“By publicly coming forward with my experience in Parliament House, I’ve sought to achieve two things. Firstly, I want a comprehensive police investigation into what happened to me on 22/23 March 2019 and for my perpetrator to face the full force of the law.

“The Australian Federal Police have made assurances to me that they will handle this matter thoroughly and transparently. I would also ask that they handle it in a timely manner as to date, I have waited a long time for justice.

“Secondly, given my experience, I am determined to drive significant reform in the way the Australian Parliament handles issues of this nature and treats ministerial and parliamentary staff more generally.”

As Special Minister of State Simon Birmingham prepares to meet with Labor and the crossbench next week to begin work on establishing the independent review into parliament, Ms Higgins said she expected a “truly independent” investigation to what happened to her, including how her alleged rape was handled by her employers and by other offices and parties that had knowledge of her circumstances.

“I believe that getting to the bottom of what happened to me and how the system failed me is critical to creating a new framework for political staff that ensures genuine cultural change and restores the trust of staff,” she said.

“In addition to an independent investigation into what happened to me, I demand a significant review into the conditions under which ministerial and parliamentary staff are employed and how we can do better.

“Political advisers have very few protections, resources and confidential reporting mechanisms to address any workplace issues. They are not public servants and work in an extremely high-pressure environment.

“Too often, a toxic workplace culture can emerge that enables inappropriate conduct and this is exacerbated by the disparity in the power dynamics.

“How ministerial and parliamentary staff are treated is a bipartisan issue that impacts staff from across the political spectrum and must be treated as such.”

Ms Higgins said she would use the “agency” given to her this week – and which Scott Morrison said she should have – to work on the independent review of parliament’s workplace culture.

“(I) have advised the Prime Minister’s office that I expect a voice in framing the scope and terms of reference for a new and significant review into the conditions for all ministerial and parliamentary staff. It is important that the reform is real and drives change beyond dealing with just what happened to me, and how the system let me down,” she said.

“From the outset, I have driven by my desire to ensure that no other person would have to go through the trauma that I experienced during my time in Parliament House.

“I was failed repeatedly, but I now have my voice, and I am determined to use to ensure that this is never allowed to happen to another member of staff again.”

Employment Minister Michaelia Cash, who employed Ms Higgins after the 2019 election, said she offered in early February this year to go with her to the police and to the Prime Minister’s office after learning about the alleged rape but she did not want to.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/exliberal-staffer-brittany-higgins-takes-rape-complaint-to-afp/news-story/06f7ef4816f20f4a10b5bff8f0984240

https://origin.go.theaustralian.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/STATEMENT-FROM-BRITTANY-HIGGINS.pdf

Kevin Rudd warns imitation of Fox News in Australia threatens to further fuel right-wing extremism

Mr Rudd has warned about the potential impact of an "alternative political ecosystem" fuelled by a denialism of fact that conflates news reporting with editorial opinion.

TOM STAYNER - 19 FEBRUARY 2021

Former prime minister Kevin Rudd says the “Fox News-isation” of Australian media threatens to further encourage far-right extremism.

He delivered the warning on Friday during a Senate inquiry examining media diversity in Australia.

Mr Rudd has directly targeted the role of Rupert Murdoch's media empire in the Australian media landscape, claiming its conflation of news reporting and editorial opinion has undermined democracy.

Mr Rudd said he was worried this trend threatens to build an "alternative political ecosystem" that could act to further encourage far-right extremism.

"Where I really worry about the cancer setting in is this - this conflation of news reporting and opinion … ultimately corrodes the notion of factual analysis in itself," he said.

"We're on a slippery slope to where the Trumpian universe landed us all - a land of facts and alternative facts and that there is no such thing as the objective truth anymore."

The newspapers owned by Murdoch's News Corp include The Australian, the Daily Telegraph, the Herald Sun, and the Courier Mail. It also owns TV channel Sky News.

Overseas, it owns publications such as The Wall Street Journal and the New York Post in the United States, and The Sun and The Times in Britain.

Mr Murdoch also controls Fox Corp.

News Corp Australia executive chairman Michael Miller told the committee Mr Rudd's claims against News Corp were "not only misleading" but "without fact".

"A lot of his assertions are totally wrong - they are without fact," he said.

Mr Miller also defended his organisation's editorial approach, saying the media group published "a range of opinions".

"I’ll defend the rights for those views to be expressed and those opinions to be there," he said.

"The cornerstone of our democracy is a collection of opinion and ideas where different positions can be expressed."

Mr Miller added that there was zero tolerance for inciting violence on its platforms.

“There is no place for hate speech," he said.

"There is no place on any of our platforms for inciting any violence."

Mr Rudd has described the Murdoch media empire as a "monopoly" that has operated through a "culture of fear".

Mr Miller disputed Mr Rudd's assessment of News Corp's control of the media landscape, saying this doesn't take into account the growth of digital outlets or television networks.

"To look at media through the prism of just print - which is sharply declining - I think is not the way to consider how people consume media today," he said.

Concerns over Facebook's emerging monopoly power

The Senate inquiry is also seeking to examine concerns over the emerging power of social media giants on the media landscape in Australia.

Mr Rudd cited Facebook's decision on Thursday to censor Australian news media on its platform as another example of the power of a monopoly to undermine factual journalism.

"Look at the impact of the Fox News-isation of American politics … my concern about where this drifts to overtime is it has a cumulative effect," he said.

He went on to cite the example of the 6 January insurrection attempt by rioters against the United States Capitol building as a extreme example of this impact taking hold.

He said while Australia could say that would "never happen here", the same would have been said in the United States a decade ago.

"I am not concerned about today - I am concerned about a decade's time," he said.

Mr Rudd cited the presence of far-right groups in Australia as evidence to support his concerns.

"I am worried that Qanon for example has a presence in this country - I'm really worried about that, but it is not just one conspiracy group there are others as well," he said.

A petition signed by more than 500,000 Australians was delivered to Parliament last year backing Mr Rudd's calls for a royal commission to ensure a "strong, diverse Australian news media".

Mr Miller said he believed Australians were smart enough to make their own judgement about the news they consumed and who they supported "politically".

https://www.sbs.com.au/news/kevin-rudd-warns-imitation-of-fox-news-in-australia-threatens-to-further-fuel-right-wing-extremism

>Those who scream the loudest…

>>12979230

Misinformation runs rampant as Facebook says it may take a week before it unblocks some pages

News remains blocked as satirical websites are reinstated and Qanon and anti-vaxxers continue to be unaffected

Josh Taylor and Michael McGowan - 19 Feb 2021

1/2

Facebook may wait up to a week before unblocking some of the pages of hundreds of non-media organisations hit by its news ban, while anti-vaccination content and misinformation continues to run rampant on the social media platform.

News was blocked on Facebook in Australia on Thursday morning in response to the federal government’s news media code, which would require Facebook to negotiate with news publishers for the payment for content.

Facebook has blamed the government’s broad definition of what is considered to be “news” in the code that resulted in the social media company blocking hundreds of other pages from posting content, including health department and emergency services pages, family violence support pages, WA opposition leader Zak Kirkup’s page, and even a Facebook page for North Shore mums.

Greg Inglis, the managing director of funeral business Picaluna, told Guardian Australia Facebook had “killed off” his business’s page yesterday, just after he had paid for a Facebook marketing campaign.

“We’re just at the very beginning of what for us is quite a big campaign where we’re going to spend quite a bit of money on Facebook,” he said. “And the irony is that they’re cutting off the hand that feeds them. It’s just crazy so it took me two hours down a rabbit hole of trying to find somewhere on Facebook’s website where you can actually contact them.”

Inglis eventually found a live chat on Facebook where he had to explain his company was not a news business.

“I spent the first 20 minutes of that live chat trying to explain that we’re a small to medium enterprise, we are not a media organisation. He kept coming back and saying ‘yes but you published stories’. I said ‘but we’re not a publisher they’re stories about funerals, we’re a funeral business’.”

Inglis was told it could be 72 hours or more before someone would respond to the case lodged by Facebook support.

Some other pages were restored on Thursday and Friday, but Guardian Australia understands it could be up to a week before many of the pages are even reviewed.

Tim Hanslow, head of social at Preface Social Media and who also helps run the Australian Community Managers group on Facebook, told Guardian Australia he had heard from a couple of community managers who had been contacted by their Facebook representatives and were told an appeals process would be put in place for people to plead their case.

He said in a post, shared with Guardian Australia, Facebook had applied the definition of news as per the definition in the code’s legislation.

“But they are aware some pages have been incorrectly brought down by the ban. It’s clearly been done automatically. They’re compiling a list of pages incorrectly pulled down,” he said.

“An appeals process for the ban will launch on Feb 25 and you can request your page be assessed as outside the news ban. All of the government pages/sites caught up in this should be reinstated.”

Guardian Australia has sought comment from Facebook.

Australian news sites recorded a steep decline in traffic as a result of the block. Audience tracking company Nielsen reported total sessions for news content declined 16% on Thursday compared with the last six Thursdays, while total time spent declined 14%.

The company said 22% of the audience of Australian media publishers in 2020 accessed their content via the Facebook app.

Social tracking website Chartbeat also reported overnight that Australian news sites recorded a decline of more than 20% in traffic due to Facebook cutting off news sites. Prior to the change, about 15% of visits to sites within Australia were being driven by Facebook, but after the change, that had dropped to less than 5%, the company said.

(continued)

>>12996844

2/2

Although satire sites Betoota Advocate and Chaser were also initially hit by the ban, they managed to have the blocks removed, and as a result accounted for nine out of the Top 10 posts by Australian pages on engagement on Thursday.

The Chaser said on its Facebook page on Friday the attention had brought down the website.

“Our first foray into real journalism has been so popular it completely crashed our website. We’re beginning to understand why the Herald-Sun never publishes proper journalism.”

Also immune was the YouTube satirist Jordan Shanks, who operates under the moniker Friendlyjordies. Despite promoting himself as a comedian, Shanks has worked with the independent Australian journalist Michael West on stories about New South Wales deputy premier John Barilaro, and would probably fall under Facebook’s application of the government’s proposed definition of “news”. West’s page was hit by the news ban.

Separately, dozens of pages and groups dedicated to promoting conspiracy theories, anti-vaccination misinformation and the alt-right have continued to operate unhindered by the company’s broad-brush ban on news content.

In most cases, the groups were able to continue posting misinformation via YouTube and websites which escaped Facebook’s definition of news, profoundly reshaping how Australians consumed information on the social media behemoth.

One 7,000-member group, which is dedicated to promoting the baseless conspiracy that the 1996 Port Arthur massacre was staged, posted an edited video which uses a 2015 speech by former Liberal party senator Bill Heffernan to falsely allege the existence of a widespread pedophilia network in Australian politics. The conspiracy theory, which has become a key tenet of Australia’s QAnon community, has been shared twice since the ban was introduced.

In another Australian group, which is dedicated to vaccination misinformation, links to websites pushing that group’s agenda continued to be visible after the ban, as did posts containing false information about the soon-to-be-released Covid-19 vaccine.

Facebook’s ban also missed alt-right operators such as Avi Yemini, who has previously been banned from Facebook for hate speech and has become a key part of the growing conspiracy movement in Australia by promoting a steady stream of content linked to and shared by the anti-lockdown and anti-vaccination groups. Despite calling himself a “journalist”, Yemini and his associated pages continued to post unencumbered to his more than 100,000 followers on Friday.

Other far-right pages, including one identified by the Guardian’s hate factory investigation, which uncovered a global network of far-right hate operating for profit through Facebook, also remained unhindered.

The Australian government is trying to resolve issues with Facebook, but there is no clear timeline on when or if news media will be restored.

Federal treasurer Josh Frydenberg held his second meeting in two days with Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg about the company’s ongoing issues with the code, and said on Friday the pair would talk again over the weekend.

The legislation for the code passed the House of Representatives on Wednesday night, and is expected to be debated in the Senate as soon as next week.

The prime minister, Scott Morrison, repeated that the government would not be backing down from the code.

“I would just say to Facebook: this is Australia, if you want to do business here, you work according to our rules. That is a reasonable proposition. We’re happy to listen to them on the technical issues of this, just like we listened to Google and came to a sensible arrangement,” he said.

“But the idea of shutting down the sorts of sites they did yesterday, as some sort of threat, I know how Australians react to that and I thought that was not a good move on their part.

“They should move quickly past that, come back to the table and we will sort it out.”

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2021/feb/19/misinformation-runs-rampant-as-facebook-says-it-may-take-a-week-before-it-unblocks-some-pages

https://twitter.com/FacebookTop10AU/status/1362528541070422017

https://twitter.com/JoshFrydenberg/status/1362538539984973827

>>12941464

New allegations: former Liberal adviser ‘raped’ second woman

MICHAEL MCKENNA and ROSIE LEWIS - FEBRUARY 19, 2021

1/2

A second woman has come ­forward to allege she was sexually assaulted late last year by the same former Morrison government ­adviser ­accused of raping a junior female colleague in the Parliament House office of Defence Minister Linda Reynolds.

The woman, a former Liberal staffer who spoke on condition of anonymity, said she would not have suffered her alleged assault if the government had supported the original complainant over her alleged rape. “If this had been properly dealt with by the government in 2019 this would not have happened to me,’’ she said.

“I am telling my story because I want to support Brittany (Higgins) and I want to help shine a light on this awful culture.”

A family friend of the woman told The Weekend Australian that the woman had made the same ­allegations to her in the weeks after the alleged incident.

Ms Higgins publicly disclosed the alleged March 2019 rape on Monday, and said she felt she was forced to choose between reporting it to police or keeping her job.

She has since accused Scott Morrison of “victim blaming” and on Friday said she had asked the Australian Federal Police to proceed with a complaint against the alleged perpetrator.

An internal inquiry into whether anyone in the Prime Minister’s office knew about the alleged rape before February 12 has narrowed to focus on three of his most senior aides, including his chief of staff and principal private secretary.

The Prime Minister has also asked Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet secretary Philip Gaetjens to look into an explosive text message, revealed in The Australian, that cast doubt on his claim his office first found out about the alleged sexual assault on that date.

Mr Gaetjens is expected to question at least three senior staffers who Ms Higgins claims had prior knowledge of her alleged rape, government sources said.

The staffers are Mr Morrison’s chief of staff, John Kunkel, his principal private secretary, Yaron Finkelstein, and senior adviser ­Julian Leembruggen.

The second woman, who asked not to be identified, said she had met Senator Reynolds’ former ­adviser during the 2016 federal election campaign. Following Ms Higgins’ alleged rape, the man was sacked and employed in the private sector. But the pair had kept in contact and met again last year.

“We went out to dinner and he kept buying me drinks, and I’m a lightweight when it comes to that,’’ she said. “We went back to my place and we were kissing … we were going to have sex and I said he had to wear a condom. He refused and we argued and I told him five or six times that we couldn’t have sex unless he wore a condom. I was drunk and he just got on top of me, I said no, and then he was ­inside of me and I kept saying no.”

The woman said the man left in the early hours of the morning and she later consulted her doctor.

The Weekend Australian could not reach the alleged perpetrator on Friday.

(continued)

>>13003107

2/2

The Prime Minister’s office has denied that any staff members knew about Ms Higgins’ alleged rape until last week.

“If there was anything different here, I would like to know,” Mr Morrison said on Friday.

“That is why I have asked the secretary of my department to ­actually test that advice that I received.

“I can tell you I knew about it on Monday. Frankly it shattered me, it absolutely shattered me. Of course there are many ramifications of this but, frankly, the one that shattered me the most was just the sheer humanity of what has occurred here.”

A text message from a former ministerial staffer to Ms Higgins on April 3, 2019, says he had spoken to a colleague from the Prime Minister’s office.

Ms Higgins alleges she was sexually assaulted in Senator Reynolds’ office on March 23.

“He was mortified to hear about it and how things have been handled. He’s going to discuss with (Mr Kunkel) — no one else,” the text states.

The “mortified” staff member referenced in the text has vehemently denied the content of the message or that he was told anything about an alleged sexual assault.

Government sources said he was asked to help find jobs during and after the federal election campaign for Ms Higgins and the ministerial staffer who approached him.

Five days after she went public with her story, which has embroiled the Morrison government this week, Ms Higgins said she ­expected the AFP would handle her complaint “in a timely manner”.

She demanded she be able to participate in drafting the terms of reference for an independent review in parliament’s workplace culture.

“The Prime Minister has repeatedly told the parliament that I should be given ‘agency’ going forward,” she said.

“I don’t believe that agency was provided to me over the past two years but I seize it now and have advised the Prime Minister’s office that I expect a voice in framing the scope and terms of reference for a new and significant review into the conditions for all ministerial and parliamentary staff.

“It is important that the reform is real and drives change beyond dealing with just what happened to me, and how the system let me down.

“I was failed repeatedly, but I now have my voice, and I am ­determined to use (it) to ensure that this is never allowed to happen to another member of staff again.”

Federal parliament’s human resources system — run by the departments of Finance and Parliamentary Services and which dealt with Ms Higgins’ alleged rape — is due to be overhauled.

Fiona Brown — Senator Reynolds’ chief of staff at the time of the alleged rape, who now works in Mr Morrison’s office — handled the matter and instigated support for Ms Higgins but did not pass ­information on to the Prime Minister’s office in order to protect the alleged victim.

Ms Higgins said at the time she did not want to pursue a police complaint.

Employment Minister Michaelia Cash, who employed Ms Higgins after the 2019 election, said she offered early this month to go with her to the police and to the Prime Minister’s office after learning about the alleged rape but Ms Higgins did not want to.

Anthony Albanese said the April 3, 2019, text message “completely contradicts” what Mr Morrison told parliament.

“Here you have text messages clearly indicating that it was raised with the Prime Minister’s office, and the response from the Prime Minister’s office saying that he would raise it with the chief of staff,” the Labor leader said.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/exliberal-staffer-brittany-higgins-takes-rape-complaint-to-afp/news-story/06f7ef4816f20f4a10b5bff8f0984240

Craig Kelly's senior aide faces multiple allegations of inappropriate behaviour made by young women

Exclusive: Frank Zumbo continues to work in Liberal MP’s office despite being subject of an apprehended violence order and allegations of inappropriate behaviour with interns, which he denies

Anne Davies - 19 Feb 2021

1/4

A senior staff member in Liberal MP Craig Kelly’s office continues to work in his role despite multiple young women – some as young as 16 – coming forward to NSW police to allege inappropriate behaviour in the workplace, including an instance of unwanted touching, and despite an apprehended violence order being granted in one case.

In September last year police from Sutherland, in Sydney’s southern suburbs, successfully sought an AVO against Kelly’s longtime office manager, Frank Zumbo, whose job included hiring and managing interns and work experience staff.

The proceedings were reported in the local St George Shire Standard in July and September last year and Guardian Australia understands they relate to claims that Zumbo kissed a 16- or 17-year-old intern on the neck.

But despite police successfully obtaining an AVO to protect the intern from alleged workplace misconduct and confirming to the court that a criminal investigation was under way, Zumbo remains in his role.

Since the media reports, at least six women have come forward to police with complaints about inappropriate behaviour. No charges have yet been laid.

The new revelations come as the Liberal party faces sustained questions about its culture and the workplace environment it provides for young female staff.

It follows unrelated claims by Brittany Higgins that she was raped by a colleague in the offices of the defence minister in 2019 just before the election and that she felt she was told a police report would affect her future employment as a staffer. To be clear, there are no allegations of rape against Zumbo.

When approached by the Guardian, Kelly said he was “unaware” there were multiple women who had gone to police with complaints of inappropriate behaviour in the workplace. He said he was aware of the AVO and the criminal investigation and its nature. He said Zumbo “was entitled to the presumption of innocence”. He confirmed he continues to employ Zumbo.

The Guardian has seen evidence that senior Liberals were aware of similar allegations stretching back several years. Despite being raised by Kelly’s former staff in 2014 and again during torrid preselection tussles in Hughes in 2016 and 2018, the alleged behaviour appears to have continued.

The numerous complaints raise questions about the culture the Liberal party tolerates within political offices and whether the party has turned a blind eye to serious potential issues of workplace safety and misconduct.

The Guardian has spoken to a number of young women who worked in Kelly’s Hughes electorate office.

When Ella (not her real name) was 16 she began working as an intern at the offices in Sutherland.

Ella’s mother, had sought assistance from Kelly’s office in early 2018 about a visa issue. She was referred to Zumbo.

Zumbo, a former associate professor of law at the University of NSW is in his mid-50s and is Kelly’s right-hand man, or as Kelly describes him, the office manager.

He has been with Kelly for nearly a decade, although until around 2015, he was not officially on staff and worked as a volunteer.

In the course of a conversation with Zumbo in 2018, Ella’s mother talked about her talented daughter, prompting Zumbo to suggest an internship.

After a meeting with Zumbo, Ella began work that week.

“He said he would give me a foot in the door into politics. I am interested in politics but our views on politics were very different,” Ella told the Guardian.

She found herself working with about 10 young women and girls, some of whom were still at school.

“They came and went. It was canvassing and writing birthday letters for 85-year-old constituents,” she said.

“From the very first interview he hugged me and kissed me and he continued to do this each day I came to the office to the point that it became an unquestioned part of the workplace culture,” Ella said.

“It was unquestioned that you had to hug and kiss him when you arrived and left. There was no choice in that,” she said.

“Then it got more intense when he wanted to take me out. He simply stated he was going to take me out and then moved straight to setting a date. He was very insistent.

(continued)

>>13003355

2/4

“He would have one-on-one chats with you behind closed doors, just you and him. He often sounded really paranoid, saying things like: ‘past sisters have betrayed me.’ It was really intense. I was 16 and 17 when working there.”

“He would end up talking about really personal things my mum had told him about our personal life when she was seeking help. It was really uncomfortable.”

Eventually Ella agreed to go out with him but she says it was with reluctance.

“I put him off several times but it was difficult. By July I agreed. He picked me up at 9am on a Saturday and dropped me home at 5pm. We went to what he called ‘the lefty belt’. We went to some inner west markets. He kept trying to buy me clothes. I never let him, but he did buy me books. ”

Despite saying no to clothes, Ella says Zumbo took her to a factory outlet on the way home, which only sold clothes. “He kept offering different things to try on,” she said.

At one stage during the car trip Ella alleges he put his hand on her leg. She says it was for about three seconds and he did it as if he was joking with her, shaking her thigh. “I didn’t say anything. I was in a moment of shock,” she said. “I was in a car alone with him and I thought he could take me anywhere.” She has now made a statement to police.

When approached by the Guardian about numerous allegations of inappropriate workplace behaviour Zumbo told the Guardian: “Given that the matters are before the courts, it would be inappropriate to respond to your questions.” He referred questions to his lawyers.

The Guardian also spoke to another young woman who worked in Kelly’s office and her father, who joined the Hughes branch of the Liberal party in about June 2013. The young woman who was 16, was soon reporting to her father that she found Zumbo’s actions toward her “really creepy”. She was in year 11 at the time.

The daughter, who did not wish to be named, spoke about how uncomfortable she was about Zumbo’s behaviour.

She said she was part of a group of three girls who would go out and hand out campaign leaflets for the 2013 election.

Zumbo would drive them to their assignment.

“He would talk about sexual things with us – like whether we had a boyfriend and whether we had advanced with them. The other girls were older – probably in their 20s. It was very uncomfortable.”

“At the office he would sit with us in a separate room. He would sit with his legs apart, and sometimes touch himself, as if he was adjusting his trousers,” she said.

She told her parents about her discomfort when in his proximity. Her father suggested he may have been “trying to crack on to you” but neither of them thought to go to the police.

At some point during her internship, which ended in 2014, the father and daughter took a trip to Canberra because the daughter was doing some research for Kelly.

The daughter alleges Zumbo asked her out to dinner to thank her for her work. She thought he meant her and her father, but she says Zumbo made it clear that the invitation was for her only. She refused. The father has a similar recollection.

Within a few months, the father decided to leave the Liberal party. He told the Guardian it was mainly because of Zumbo. He had become concerned that Zumbo was also doing work for Labor politicians while working for Kelly and he was concerned about the behaviour toward his daughter.

“The whole reason we never said anything is that this party [the Liberal party] is bigger than us and they could make our lives difficult,” the daughter said about why she never spoke up about the culture in Kelly’s office.

Now 24, she has given an interview to police in the current investigation.

(continued)

>>13003361

3/4

Another young woman, who is now 17, said she met Zumbo in 2019 when she was working at a local cafe. In September 2019 she joined in with a local group performing there and sang one song. Zumbo, who was friends with the singers, was effusive about her talents and the local cafe owner called the girl’s mother to ask her to come and meet Zumbo.

According to the mother, who cannot be named for legal reasons, Zumbo said he wanted to organise an under-18s open-mic night and have the then-16 year old perform.

“He also offered her a job in the office and said he would make her a star,” the mother said.

“She had no office experience,” she said.

The daughter was excited about the open-mic night and corresponded with Zumbo via Instagram. But then Zumbo began commenting on her posts using an emoji with heart eyes. The Guardian has seen the posts. He then allegedly rang the daughter twice to compliment her on her year 10 formal dress when she posted photos.

“I felt really uncomfortable about the approaches,” her mother said. “I rang the cafe owner and said how uncomfortable I was and I didn’t want [the daughter] taking part in anything with Frank Zumbo.”

“We had an open-mic night at the cafe ourselves. After that myself and the cafe owner were blocked from Zumbo’s Facebook page.”

The Guardian has been told that several other young women have made statements to Sutherland police.

In his court appearances, Zumbo has strenuously denied all allegations of misconduct in the AVO hearings.

Michael Moussa, principal at National Criminal Lawyers, said the allegation behind the AVO proceedings against his client was denied and would be vigorously defended.

The AVO proceedings will be before Sutherland local court again in June.

“I am aware that other women have come forward but we are dealing with an investigation that has been running for a considerable period,” Moussa said.

“Why has the police taken so long if it has a prima facie case,” he said, noting that it had been 10 months since the first report of the AVO had been generated.

He said subpoenas to the police had generated “nothing of substance”.

Complaints have been made to Kelly and to senior members of the Liberal party about Zumbo’s alleged inappropriate workplace conduct as early as 2015. Around this time, two women in their 50s who worked in Kelly’s office took stress leave from the office, alleging bullying by Zumbo and one brought a successful action for workers’ compensation.

They both told the Guardian they had raised their concerns about what they had witnessed of Zumbo’s interactions with young women with Kelly and one says she raised it with Malcolm Turnbull’s office.

The allegations of inappropriate behaviour by Zumbo in Kelly’s office also surfaced when he faced potential preselection challenges in 2016 and again in late 2018.

In December 2018, Kelly was facing defeat by local councillor Kent Johns, a moderate-aligned former vice-president of the NSW branch of the Liberal party who had the numbers to win the nomination for Hughes.

The moderate leadership, under pressure from the prime minister, Scott Morrison, decided to support Kelly.

In an email to moderate power brokers Sally Betts, a Waverley councillor, and Trent Zimmerman, the federal MP for North Sydney, Johns made numerous allegations about problems within Kelly’s office.

“What disgusts me more than anything is that we are all [aware] of what is said to be occurring in Craig’s office irrespective of him tearing down the party, climate change denial and attacking marriage recognition.

“The treatment of young woman in his office over the last six years was made aware to all from the prime minister down. The behaviour you walk past is the behaviour you accept,” Johns wrote at the time.

The reference to the prime minister in the email was likely a reference to a complaint made by one of the senior staff to Malcolm Turnbull’s chief of staff, Sally Cray, in 2014 or 2015.

The complaint was not progressed because Zumbo was a volunteer on Kelly’s staff at the time and not covered by the Members of Parliament Staff Act, which triggers a complaints process administered by the Department of Finance.

Johns continued: “We, as moderates, have accepted Craig Kelly as acceptable. I have not and will not while what occurs in that office continues.

(continued)

>>13003366

4/4

“This was never about political ambition this was about fixing the office in Hughes and our faction failed.

“Even if, as moderates, we don’t stand for anything philosophically any more, you might have thought we had a moral spine.”

The Guardian has now learned the email went to a large number of senior Liberal party members, including members of the state executive, the governing body of the party. Johns himself was a vice president of the Liberal party at the time.

Recipients included virtually all the power brokers in the NSW moderate faction and the former prime minister, Malcolm Turnbull, who at the time was urging Morrison to drop Kelly as the candidate for Hughes.

Other recipients included federal MP for North Sydney Trent Zimmerman; NSW environment minister Matt Kean; former NSW MP – now lobbyist – Michael Photios; former federal MP Bruce Baird; senator Andrew Bragg; NSW upper house MP Natalie Ward; and state executive members Chris Rath, Sally Betts and Harry Stutchbury, who now works on David Sharma’s staff.

Morrison, who holds the adjoining southern Sydney seat of Cook, supported Kelly in the factional power play. The Sydney Morning Herald reported he had personally telephoned Betts to lobby her over his fear that Kelly would quit the Liberal party and move to the crossbench had he lost preselection.

When contacted by the Guardian, Craig Kelly said he was aware of the AVO granted in September and that a police investigation into Zumbo had begun in April last year.

He said he was aware of the nature of the initial complaint, but he said: “Frank told me it was a kiss on the cheek not the neck,” adding that Zumbo was Italian and that was how they greet people.

Kelly agreed that the complainant, who no longer works for him was under 18 and an intern in his office.

He said he was not aware of other former staff having complained about alleged inappropriate behaviour to police.

When the Guardian put numerous other allegations to Kelly, including that Zumbo had asked young women to meet him outside office hours, Kelly said he was not aware of any allegation beyond the allegation that had sparked the AVO.

Following publication of the allegations, Kelly strongly denied that he ran an unsafe workplace and said that he had received no complaints from any of the interns over the years.

He said he had talked to Zumbo about the Guardian’s allegations and believed Zumbo had done nothing wrong. “Everything depends on circumstances,” he said.

He said he had not attempted to talk to any of his former interns.

Kelly said Zumbo had taken Ella to the inner west on a Saturday on her own because he realised she was politically unsuited to Kelly’s office and he wanted to find her a position in the office of Jamie Parker, of the Greens, which is located in Glebe. Zumbo apparently had worked with Parker opposing a Woolworths development in Annandale.

However, Ella remained employed at Kelly’s office for the duration of her internship.

Kelly said he considered that it was appropriate for a 55 year old man to take a 16 employee out “because Zumbo was friends with the girl’s godmother and knew the mother.”

Kelly said Zumbo had only offered to buy her second hand books and clothes at the markets worth a few dollars.

Kelly also said that Zumbo denied being in Canberra in 2013, though Kelly recalled the father and daughter coming to Canberra on a visit around this time.

The Guardian approached the prime minister’s office and the Liberal party over the last three days to respond to the serious allegations about the workplace culture in Zumbo’s office and specifically about what steps have been taken in response to the AVO and the police investigation.

As the member for the adjoining seat, it is extremely unlikely that Morrison’s office was not aware of the AVO proceedings, which were reported in the local press and have been widely discussed among Liberals in the Shire.

The Guardian has also asked the prime minister what he knew about Kelly’s office when he pushed for Kelly to stay as the MP for Hughes in 2018.

A spokesman for the Liberal party said there had been issues raised with head office about Zumbo yelling at staff and constituents but said there was no record of a complaint about inappropriate behaviour.

“The NSW Liberal party said it had no record of any complaint or evidence of the allegations raised by the Guardian,” the spokesperson said.

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/feb/19/craig-kelly-senior-staff-member-aide-frank-zumbo-allegations-inappropriate-behaviour-young-women

>>13003355

Craig Kelly’s electorate officer Frank Zumbo in workplace probe

Controversial government backbencher Craig Kelly’s prominent adviser has fronted court and could face charges over allegations of workplace misconduct inside the federal MP’s suburban electorate office.

Eliza Barr - July 8, 2020

Controversial government backbencher Craig Kelly’s right-hand man has fronted court accused of harassing young female co-workers inside the federal MP’s suburban electorate office.

Frank Zumbo appeared at Sutherland Local Court on Wednesday after a three-month investigation resulted in police slapping him with a personal violence order to protect a woman who made a complaint about his alleged workplace conduct in April.

Zumbo strenuously denies all allegations of misconduct.

Senior lawyer Michael Moussa told the court there had been “some discussion” of potential criminal charges against the former University of New South Wales business law professor.

“The allegations stem from a workplace relations complaint involving a young woman,” Mr Moussa said.

“It’s in circumstances where police have had three months to investigate, and we will be vigorously defending the application and any potential charges which may or may not eventuate.”

Mr Kelly declined to comment on allegations the claims against Zumbo pertain to his employment in the federal MP’s office.

“My understanding is that it’s a private civil dispute between Mr Zumbo and a former employee, and there are no criminal charges,” Mr Kelly stated.

“I can only deal with the situation as it currently is, which is a civil dispute.”

In court police prosecutor Rick Stacey sought an adjournment for Sutherland detectives to determine whether or not charges would proceed in addition to the personal violence order.

“I’ve been instructed that they are seeking further legal advice in relation to the criminal proceedings against the defendant,” Sgt Stacey said.

Zumbo’s matter will return to court on September 16 and he will not be required to appear in person.

“Mr Zumbo is a former academic who has contributed significantly to Australian consumer law and is still an adviser to the honourable Craig Kelly,” Mr Moussa said.

“He has served the community for a number of years and we will not let his lifelong commitment to the public be diminished by these claims.”

Armed against the grey day with an umbrella, Zumbo was silent throughout his brief appearance before Magistrate Michael Connell, only standing once to indicate his presence in the court before the matter was adjourned.

https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/newslocal/stgeorge-shire-standard/craig-kellys-electorate-officer-frank-zumbo-investigated-over-workplace-conduct/news-story/513232149eb2f544ab108db88dcac966

>>12996122

Canberra’s ‘chronic sinophobia’ harms Aussie scientists

Yang Sheng and Ni Hao - Feb 17, 2021

The Australian government has got a chronic mentality - anything related to China, even normal cultural or scientific exchanges, would cause malicious suspicion, said a Chinese expert, as Australian media reported that some top scientists' funding has been denied due to "habitual sinophobic sentiment."

A number of top scientists at Australian universities have been denied lucrative taxpayer-funded research grants on "national security grounds," as the federal government cracks down on projects that "could hand military or economic advantage to foreign adversaries," The Australian newspaper reported on Wednesday.

The Australian government has ordered five applicants from the Australian Research Council (ARC) to be denied research grants worth A$500,000 ($386,882), and in December 2020, then education minister Dan Tehan denied 18 applications from the ARC, The Australian said.

It did not state who the affected applicants are, but said the projects concerned "radar, satellite, radio communication, nanotechnology and unmanned vehicles," and that Australian officials consider these projects could help China in military fields. The report said that before this, dozens of Australian scientists were found to have connections with a Chinese talent plan.

Chen Hong, director of the Australian Studies Center at East China Normal University in Shanghai, told the Global Times on Wednesday that "it seems like Australia has a habitual mentality - to maliciously suspect any exchange and cooperation with China, which is extremely terrible."

Some Australian think tanks and media have played a role in creating and forming such a mentality, Chen said, adding that now Tehan has become Australia's minister for trade, "we do have reason to worry about to what extent Tehan could play a positive role to help normalization of China-Australia trade ties."

This kind of sinophobic atmosphere among Australian politicians is a long-existing problem. According to the Xinhua News Agency in September, several Chinese academics were cutting off communications with their Australian counterparts and canceling plans to travel to Australia amid a rise in China-bashing rhetoric in the country.

Australian universities expressed opposition to the decision made by the government because this will impose new restrictions on their capability for international cooperation, The Australian reported.

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202102/1215760.shtml

Chinese influence heads agenda in Quad’s regional security talks

BEN PACKHAM - FEBRUARY 19, 2021

Foreign Minister Marise Payne and her US, Indian and Japanese counterparts have laid the groundwork for countering growing Chinese assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific.

In a virtual meeting that stretched overnight Thursday, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue foreign ministers vowed to stand by regional partners in the COVID recovery phase, amid a push by Beijing to use the crisis to reshape the ­regional order in its favour.

Senator Payne, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Japanese Foreign Minister Motegi Toshimitsu and Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar discussed how to provide “strategic reassurance” to Southeast Asia by rolling out vaccines and economic support, and reinforcing maritime and cyber security.

Maintaining regional influence by fighting disinformation and providing humanitarian support were also on the agenda, along with the challenges faced by Taiwan, and the coup in Myanmar.

A planned Quad leaders’ meeting, which would bring together Scott Morrison, Joe Biden, Japan’s Yoshihide Suga and India’s ­Narendra Modi, could occur in the first half of the year, and will help cement the new US President’s Indo-Pacific policy agenda.

It is the first meeting of Quad foreign ministers since Mr Biden’s election, and follows a joint naval exercise by the grouping’s members hosted by India in November.

The Australian government is working hard to elevate the Quad as a security grouping, and is also a strong supporter of Britain’s proposed Democratic Ten or D10 grouping of democratic nations to replace the G7.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said the Quad was “a key pillar of Australia’s international agenda”.

“This dialogue will allow our nations to advance our shared ­interest in a secure and prosperous region,” it said.

A spokesman for Mr Blinken said the meeting would discuss key regional challenges. “This discussion with the Quad foreign ministers is critical to advancing our shared goals in the free and open Indo-Pacific and rising to the defining challenges of our time, including co-ordinating our efforts and COVID-19 response, as well as climate change,” he said.

Mr Biden has said working closely with allies will be key to his China strategy, in which the US would aim to “out-compete” ­Beijing.

In another collective stand against China this week, Australia joined 57 other countries to support a Canadian-led international declaration denouncing state-sponsored arbitrary detention of foreign citizens. The move came almost 800 days after Canadians Michael Spavor and Michael ­Kovrig were detained in China.

Australia was one of the first countries to support the Canadian initiative, which was first raised in bilateral meetings held after Australian citizen Yang Hengjun was detained in China in January 2019.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/marise-payne-to-meet-other-foreign-affairs-ministers-to-discuss-chinas-growing-assertiveness/news-story/251d0cf65f328de7b1cf4a050f1a79e7

https://twitter.com/SecBlinken/status/1362421638273396737

https://twitter.com/MarisePayne/status/1362566336719724547

GOP cowards keep US in dark shadow of Donald Trump

TROY BRAMSTON - FEBRUARY 16, 2021

1/2

In failing to convict Donald Trump for inciting the storming of the US Capitol in an attempt to overturn the presidential election, Republicans will continue to pay a heavy price for their fealty to the disgraced former president. The Grand Old Party has lost its way and remains hostage to the Trump cult of personality.

Even though Republicans acknowledge Trump was responsible for the insurrection, and the resulting death and destruction, they let him off scot-free. Not holding Trump accountable for his treasonous actions is reprehensible. When called to defend the US constitution, Republicans failed their sworn duty.

It is not insignificant that Trump was impeached by the House of Representatives with 10 Republicans voting to make it bipartisan. Nor is it insignificant that seven Republicans voted to convict Trump in the Senate. The 57-43 vote is a black mark against Trump’s presidency. Those Republicans in the majority acted with integrity and responsibility to their country.

But Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell personified the deluded reality that the other Republicans find themselves in: repudiating Trump but unwilling to make him responsible for his actions. In a bizarre speech, McConnell excoriated Trump and then exonerated him.

“There’s no question, none, that president Trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of the day,” McConnell said. “No question about it. The people who stormed this building believed they were acting on the wishes and instructions of their president.

“And having that belief was a foreseeable consequence of the growing crescendo of false statements, conspiracy theories and reckless hyperbole which the defeated president kept shouting into the largest megaphone on planet Earth.”

McConnell said Trump was guilty of a “disgraceful dereliction of duty”. He said Trump’s “intensifying crescendo of conspiracy theories” was “orchestrated” by him to “either overturn the voters’ decision or else torch our institutions on the way out”.

Despite this, McConnell voted to acquit Trump. He claimed it was unconstitutional to convict a former president, even though the Senate voted that it was constitutional. Moreover, McConnell refused to reconvene the Senate after the House impeached Trump on January 13, even though he remained president until January 20.

The case for impeachment and conviction was overwhelming. Trump refused to accept the outcome of the election, tried to intimidate state officials into changing votes, pressured his vice-president, Mike Pence, not to certify the electoral college vote and then encouraged his supporters to ransack the Capitol.

The rioters were directed by Trump and acted on his behalf. His name was emblazoned on their clothing and flags. The rioters believed they were acting with his authority and support. They have said as much. Some now feel betrayed by Trump. The evidence in the Senate trial showed the insurrection was more dangerous than previously thought.

The rioters came close to being face to face with members of congress. Video and audio confirmed several rioters were hunting Pence and Speaker Nancy Pelosi; some wanted to kill them. When Trump was phoned by Republicans pleading for him to intervene, he failed to see the urgency. Even when his vice-president’s life was in danger, he did nothing.

If a president cannot be convicted for sedition, then what on earth can they be convicted for?

(continued)

>>13005466

2/2

The tragedy for Republicans is they fail to comprehend that Trump lost them the House in 2018, the presidency in 2020 and the Senate in 2021. This is Trump’s legacy: handing the White House and Congress over to the Democrats. The Republican Party remains in Trump’s grip yet he has been brutally bad for them and the country.

It is no longer the party of great presidents like Dwight D Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan or George HW Bush. There is little room for moderates like Thomas Dewey or Nelson Rockefeller, nor for genuine conservatives like Barry Goldwater or George W Bush. Trumpism is not a coherent ideology but rather a mix of populist nativism, protectionism and grievance coupled with deranged conspiratorial beliefs.

A Senate conviction would have been a clean break with Trump. But Republicans have ensured he remains a force within their party. There is the risk that if Trump runs for president in 2024 it could cause a split in the party. If Trump won the nomination, it could lead to a breakaway party being formed. Or if Trump failed to win the nomination, he could run as a third-party candidate.

It is a pity the Senate did not enforce the 14th amendment to the constitution, which can prohibit a former president from running for office again if they have “engaged in insurrection” or given “aid or comfort” to those who have.

It was not expected Trump would be convicted by the necessary two-thirds majority vote in the Senate. But nor was it expected that Republicans like McConnell would condemn Trump in the harshest terms, making it clear he was responsible for the Capitol insurrection, but then be too gutless and cowardly to vote for his conviction. The upshot is that Trump continues to cast a dark shadow over his party and the country.

Troy Bramston is a senior writer and columnist with The Australian. He has interviewed politicians, presidents and prime ministers from multiple countries along with writers, historians, actors, filmmakers and several notable pop-culture icons. He is an award-winning and best-selling author or editor of 10 books, including Robert Menzies: The Art of Politics and Paul Keating: The Big-Picture Leader. He co-authored The Truth of the Palace Letters and The Dismissal with Paul Kelly. He is currently writing a biography of Bob Hawke.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/commentary/gop-cowards-keep-us-in-dark-shadow-of-donald-trump/news-story/5b568006dae72c358ce0cb703400c569s

>>12995647

Dutton slams Zuckerberg failure to fight child sex crimes

Bruce Morcombe has accused Facebook of aiding pedophiles as it emerged 20,000 cases of depraved child abuse could go undetected under the tech giant’s plan to encrypt messages.

Michael Wray - February 20, 2021

Leading child safety campaigner Bruce Morcombe has accused Facebook of aiding sick pedophiles as it emerged more than 20,000 cases of depraved child abuse could go undetected under the tech giant’s plan to encrypt messages.

It is understood Facebook is refusing to respond to letters from the Australian Government over a controversial plan to introduce end-to-end encryption on its messenger service after five meetings in which authorities made a desperate plea not to allow pedophiles to go unchecked.

Bruce Morcombe said he did not believe billionaire Facebook boss Mr Zuckerberg had a “conscience” as Facebook moves to an encryption system that will effectively prevent it from being able to detect harmful content and report it to law enforcement for investigation.

“I think it’s inexcusable for a global phenomenon like Facebook to deny legitimate global law enforcement agencies to do their job,” he said.

“To assist in child exploitation is the most hideous of crimes and the people at the top of the chain should hang their heads in shame.”

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton yesterday branded Mr Zuckerberg “arrogant” over Facebook’s belligerent attitude in ongoing discussions designed to prevent law enforcement losing their biggest source of child sex abuse reports.

It’s understood the company has stopped responding to letters from the Australian Government over the issue.

In 2020, US authorities referred more than 21,000 cases involving shocking crimes such as live streaming of child sexual abuse and made-to-order videos to Australian police.

“We tried to engage with Facebook then, and essentially, they’ve said that their new platform, their encrypted messaging platform, will mean that the number of reports that they give to the national centre in the United States, to report these instances of child abuse each year, will go from about 20,000, down to a dozen,” Mr Dutton said.

About 90 per cent of reports to the US National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children come from Facebook despite 1400 companies being registered to report abuse.

End-to-end encryption is touted for its privacy by tech giants including Apple, which has also come under fire from Mr Dutton, as well as pressure from the FBI in terrorism investigations.

Home Affairs Department officials have met with Facebook five times in the past six months trying to understand the full implications of the move to end-to-end encryption.

“Facebook and Zuckerberg himself just would not engage with us, with the Attorney-General in the US and it shows the arrogance within the organisation,” Mr Dutton said.

The powerful Five-Eyes intelligence alliance of Australia, the USA, UK, Canada and New Zealand as well as the Indian and Japanese governments have been pushing tech companies to work with governments on end-to-end encryption.

A Facebook spokesman said Messenger would become “end-to-end encrypted by default over the next year and beyond” but a specific date had not been announced.

He said Facebook was committed to working with law enforcement and acted “decisively to tackle child sexual abuse and terrorism

“We have zero tolerance for any behaviour that exploits children,” he said.

“We already work closely with law enforcement agencies in Australia and around the world to report and remove harmful content. We take strong action against any user who shares content that exploits or endangers children, including banning the user and reporting the matter to the relevant authorities. Facebook leads the industry in combating child abuse online and we’ll continue to do so on our private messaging services.”

He said the Facebook owned WhatsApp messaging service, which is encrypted, bans more than 300,000 accounts each month for child exploitation.

https://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/dutton-slams-zuckerberg-failure-to-fight-child-sex-crimes/news-story/37ee3313f75b3540e2d864b35c833e6f

‘South Park’ Looks Set To Tackle QAnon With ‘South ParQ The Vaccination Special’

Dani Di Placido - Feb 19, 2021

South Park is returning to Comedy Central this year with an hour-long special that aims to explore the bizarre conspiracy theories surrounding the coronavirus pandemic.

"South ParQ The Vaccination Special" will premiere March 10 at 8 p.m. ET while also being simulcast on MTV2. The description of the special reads:

"The citizens of South ParQ are clamoring for the COVID-19 vaccine. A hilarious new militant group tries to stop the boys from getting their teacher vaccinated."

While the coronavirus pandemic forced South Park into hiatus, with no sign of a return to the usual 30-minute weekly episodes, the show managed to comment on the current state of the world in the hour-long “Pandemic Special,” which didn’t really touch on the recent rise of deranged conspiracy theories, some sparked by the pandemic, or encouraged by Donald Trump’s presidency.

Clearly, Trey Parker and Matt Stone are keen to explore the feverish leaps of imagination undertaken by followers of the QAnon conspiracy theory, which proposes that Donald Trump, former friend of Jeffrey Epstein, is secretly fighting an apocalyptic battle against a Satan-worshipping cabal of pedophiles; it’s a belief system so absurd, that even Alex Jones finds it far-fetched.

QAnon adherents are also deeply suspicious of coronavirus vaccines, and vaccines in general, because why listen to scientists and medical experts when anonymous bigots on 8Chan can also offer opinions?

A world in which thousands of people believe that Hillary Clinton feasts on the flesh of infants, in which only Donald Trump can offer salvation, sounds far more like South Park than reality, so it will certainly be interesting to see Stone and Parker’s take on it; it might prove difficult to caricature a movement so detached from reason.

It will also be interesting to see what happens to Mr. Garrison, South Park’s stand-in for Donald Trump. Will the character return to his old self, or take advantage of his dedicated army of followers, who view him as an infallible superhuman?

Clearly, this is South Park’s moment; news headlines have never resembled the crude cartoon to this degree. While South Park’s glory days of controversy and heightened cultural impact have died down, the show recently attracted attention and critical acclaim for its last season, which poked fun at Hollywood’s attempts to cater to Chinese government censors - in response, the show was swiftly banned in China.

South Park also proved to be, in hindsight, surprisingly sympathetic to the plight of Britney Spears, having condemned the cruelty of the media several years before Framing Britney Spears sparked a public reckoning.

It remains to be seen if South Park can successfully satirize the insanity of QAnon, but it feels as though Trey Parker and Matt Stone are more prepared for this moment than most.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/danidiplacido/2021/02/19/south-park-looks-set-to-tackle-qanon-with-south-parq-the-vaccination-special/

>>12899025

Pete Evans gives bizarre speech at Sydney vaccine protest

A shoeless Evans made a rare public appearance, giving a bizarre speech about his political aspirations at a Sydney vaccine protest today.

Phoebe Loomes - FEBRUARY 20, 2021

1/2

Former reality star turned conspiracist Pete Evans has made a bizarre speech about his political aspirations at an anti-vaxxer rally in Sydney.

The former star of My Kitchen Rules addressed hundreds of protesters at the Millions March Against Mandatory Covid Vaccination rally in Hyde Park today.

“I don’t have the answers. No one is coming to save you except you,” Evans told the screaming crowd.

“Each and every one of you has to stand up in whatever capacity you can.”

He said he had always suspected an election campaign was in his future.

“I begged people I thought could change the future of Australia. I f*cking begged,” he said.

“But in the back of my mind there was this little guy going, ‘you know you’re gonna have to do this’.”

“I will speak the truth. Well it’s my truth. Everybody has their own truth,” he said.

“Some people are activists, some people hold space through meditation. Some people enter into parliament — which is the last thing I would ever consider, but I’ve been invited to step in as the Federal senator for the NSW seat.

Evans said he would do his “best” to represent the people in the crowd to the best of his capacity.

Hundreds turned out for the anti-vaxxer rally, holding signs urging people to “just say no”.

“F*ck Bill Gates!” the group chanted as they marched from Hyde Park through the city.

“We hope that Bill Gates liar goes to jail,” another group of men sang.

“My body my choice,” protesters broke out chanting intermittently as they marched.

A bystander in Pitt St Mall told news.com.au he felt the protesters “had a point”.

“This is the whole point of democracy.”

Another woman was less impressed with the rally.

“It’s rubbish,” she said.

Another bystander, Ziggy, told news.com.au he felt the protesters were “just selfish”.

“This is a society,” he said, adding the point of vaccines were to “help everybody”.

Almost all the marchers clutched signs with slogans on them.

“The so-called vaccine is a permanent DNA modification,” one woman’s sign read.

Multiple families had brought on their children who held signs with anti science slogans.

“Let me learn to think for myself,” read a sign held by one young boy, who looked bored, and sunburned.

A speaker opening the rally mocked the COVID marshal on site.

“I don’t know if you’ve heard but there’s an oogie boogie virus going around.”

He then urged people to visit the COVID Marshall if they’d “escaped ICU” and were feeling unwell.

International rugby player Frankie Winterstein and his wife Taylor Winterstein talked to the crowd.

Taylor told mothers they’re “on the front line” in the fight against vaccines.

(continued)

>>13007353

2/2

Evans, who has been booted from Instagram, Facebook and Spotify after spreading misinformation about COVID-19, has become notorious for sharing conspiracies online. But he is not well known for speaking in public.

But more than 5700 people have joined a Facebook group vowing to march against “mandatory” coronavirus vaccines in multiple Aussie cities today. “Join us in the fight against medical coercion,” the group’s slogan reads.

“Pete Evans will be joining us tomorrow in Sydney! Come down and say hi to Pete and all of the other amazing speakers. MMAMCV 2021,” a post from one of the march organisers reads.

More than 600 reacted to the post, and dozens commented, sending well wishes to Evans, and saying they’d be at the rally.

“I’m flying to Sydney for the march, lol,” one woman wrote with a love heart emoji.

“Were right with you Pete … thankyou … I hope millions turn up,” another wrote.

Evans last year lost a series of business deals after he posted a neo-Nazi cartoon on Instagram. He was dumped from appearing on I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out Of Here, and his longtime publishing partner Pan Macmillan Australia also severed ties with him, as did Coles, Woolworths and a string of other business partners. It’s believed the scandal cost Evans up to $1 million in brand endorsements alone.

Earlier this month, Evans shared a petition demanding no restrictions be placed on individuals who refused to take a coronavirus vaccine.

The petition has been submitted to the House of Representatives, calling on the government to confirm there will be “no restrictions placed on citizens or residents who refuse a COVID-19 vaccination”.

“This includes restrictions on travel, right to re-enter the country, social events such as concerts or sports, and access to shops, restaurants, bars, clubs, etc.”

Evans also announced he intends to run for a Senate seat with the Great Australia Party. The party is associated with Rod Culleton, who was elected as a member of One Nation, but later resigned from the party and became an independent.

“Pete Evans has maintained his principles and inspired others in the face of uncommon adversity,” Mr Culleton said shortly after Evans announced his intention to run.

Evans routinely interviews anti-vaxxers on his podcast, and has shared numerous vaccine conspiracies on social media, including suggesting vaccinated children are less intelligent than those who aren’t given jabs.

Australia’s COVID-19 vaccination rollout is scheduled to begin on Monday.

https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/health/health-problems/pete-evans-to-make-rare-public-appearance-at-sydney-antivaxxer-march/news-story/a40b831af6de9e0e6d9552afc9ae9646

>>13007353

‘Experimental bio-warfare’: Melbourne anti-vax protesters condemn COVID vaccine

Sky News Australia

21 Feb 2021

Anti-vax protesters in Melbourne described the coronavirus vaccine as “experimental bio-warfare” during a rally which resulted in at least 20 arrests.

Victoria Police revealed 15 people will receive penalty notices for breaching health directions and another five have been charged with resisting arrest, hindering police and refusing to provide details.

Authorities have urged Australians to ignore conspiracy theories and misinformation spread by anti-vaxxers who gathered across the country yesterday to protest the national COVID-19 vaccine rollout set to begin on Monday.

Thousands marched in all major cities with more peaceful protests taking place in Brisbane and Sydney.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcr5-06X5h4

>>13012648

PM receives COVID-19 jab as vaccine rollout begins ahead of schedule

Sky News Australia

21 Feb 2021

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has received the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine ahead of schedule on Sunday just prior to a nationwide rollout.

He was joined by Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly and Chief Nursing Officer Alison McMillan who will be vaccinated along with a small group of aged care residents, staff and frontline workers.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJBDJ8A6Ck0

PICTURE IMPERFECT - Epstein ‘pimp’ Ghislaine Maxwell’s sultry never-before-seen pics that were taken for dad’s yacht

GHISLAINE Maxwell poses in never-before-seen pictures which were a gift to her domineering, fraudster father.

The alleged pimp of sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein grew up in a world of incredible privilege and wealth - and is now rotting in prison ahead of her trial this summer.

These new pictures offer a glimpse into Ghislaine's life as a young socialite, who was besotted with her dad - media tycoon Robert Maxwell.

According to photographer Mike Maloney, she reminded him that she was "daddy's girl" as she commissioned the secret portrait shots as a gift for her father's yacht.

Mike, Robert Maxwell's personal snapper, told the Daily Mail that Ghislaine inherited her father's "arrogance and rudeness."

Many people who knew the socialite, say her need for her wealthy father's approval pushed her into the arms of conman and sex offender Epstein.

'DADDY'S GIRL'

Photographer Mike booked a studio in Holborn, central London, to take the shots of Ghislaine.

However, he insists, the 28-year-old socialite did the rest - including hiring hairdressers, make-up artists and bringing along three different outfits.

He said: "She was a natural in front of the camera. I don't remember having to tell her to do anything.

"She was very attractive and slim, with a great figure.

"I do recall her once saying to me, 'Remember I am a daddy's girl'."

Mike said he eventually saw the finished, framed portrait hanging in Maxwell's yacht Lady Ghislaine - named after his favourite daughter.

He said he was surprised that the chosen picture featured the most informal of the outfits - showing the socialite wearing jeans.

The photo had a vulnerable quality and reminded Ghislaine of her childhood, Mike said.

FALL FROM GRACE

Less than two years later, in 1991, Robert Maxwell fell off his luxury boat near the Canary Islands and died.

It then emerged that he had stolen millions from the Daily Mirror's pension fund.

And with her name disgraced in the UK, the Oxford-educated Ghislaine fled to New York where she would allegedly make a deal with the devil himself.

Maxwell's fall from grace cannot be overstated.

Now aged 59, she is residing in a tough New York jail held on charges relating to her alleged involvement in Epstein's child sex trafficking ring - allegations she strongly denies.

Her lawyer Bobbi Sternheim this week claimed she has been allegedly abused by a guard and is "losing hair and withering to a shell" as she faces up to 35 years in prison.

Court papers, filed Tuesday and obtained by the New York Post, revealed the letter to Judge Alison Nathan.

The letter read: "Recently, out of view of the security camera, Ms. Maxwell was placed in her isolation cell and physically abused during a pat down search.

'WITHERING TO A SHELL'

"When she asked that the camera be used to capture the occurrence, a guard replied ‘no.’

"When Ms. Maxwell recoiled in pain and when she said she would report the mistreatment, she was threatened with disciplinary action."

The attorney added: "She is withering to a shell of her former self – losing weight, losing hair, and losing her ability to concentrate."

Sternheim also claimed Maxwell is suffering from sleep deprivation as jail guards check on her every 15 minutes.

He said Maxwell was ordered to scrub down a shower with a broom in response to her requesting the guard near her to be on camera, the letter reportedly states.

In December, her lawyers claimed she was losing her hair after being caged in solitary confinement.

The 58-year-old has reportedly been on suicide watch with guards watching her around the clock to make sure nothing happens to her.

This follows the death of her ex-lover Epstein, who killed himself in his cell while awaiting trial in 2019.

Ghislaine Maxwell strongly denies all allegations of misconduct made against her.

https://www.the-sun.com/news/2373384/ghislaine-maxwell-pictures-young-epstein/