Foreign Minister Marise Payne - Joint statement on Human Rights Abuses in Xinjiang

Joint media release with:

• The Hon Nanaia Mahuta, Minister of Foreign Affairs Minister of Local Government Associate Minister of Maori Development, New Zealand

23 March 2021

The Australian and New Zealand Governments today reiterate their grave concerns about the growing number of credible reports of severe human rights abuses against ethnic Uighurs and other Muslim minorities in Xinjiang.

In particular, there is clear evidence of severe human rights abuses that include restrictions on freedom of religion, mass surveillance, large-scale extra-judicial detentions, as well as forced labour and forced birth control, including sterilisation.

Australia and New Zealand welcome the measures announced overnight by Canada, the European Union, the United Kingdom and the United States. We share these countries' deep concerns, which are held across the Australian and New Zealand communities.

Since 2018, when reports began to emerge about the detention camps in Xinjiang, Australia and New Zealand have consistently called on China in the United Nations to respect the human rights of the Uighur people, and other religious and ethnic minorities.

Today, we underscore the importance of transparency and accountability, and reiterate our call on China to grant meaningful and unfettered access to Xinjiang for United Nations experts, and other independent observers.

https://www.foreignminister.gov.au/minister/marise-payne/media-release/joint-statement-human-rights-abuses-xinjiang

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Stop looking at others through a magnifying glass: Chinese FM spokesperson urging Australia to reflect on its own problems

Global Times - Mar 25, 2021

Some politicians in countries such as Australia never really care about the truth, but are just keen on political manipulation, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson on Wednesday, urging them to self-reflect instead of "using a magnifying glass to look others" in response to those countries' defamation and attacks against China on issues related to Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

"We welcome any unbiased foreigners to visit Xinjiang, but firmly oppose any so-called 'investigation' and 'accountability' with presumption of guilt, and stand against anyone using this for political maneuver to pressure China," Hua Chunying, the spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, told the Global Times at a press conference on Wednesday.

Hua made the remarks in response to a statement on Xinjiang human rights jointly published on Tuesday by Australian and New Zealand foreign ministers.

"I wonder how is Australia doing with those investigations into their soldiers' grave crimes in Afghanistan that were exposed not long ago?" Hua asked. "Besides, in Australia, there was the infamous White Australia Policy, under which genocide was committed against aboriginal people and 100,000 aboriginal children were forcibly taken away from their families. Did the Australian side hold accountable those who caused pain to the Stolen Generation?"

The Chinese Embassy in Australia published on Tuesday a declaration to oppose the so-called statement on Xinjiang made by the Australian Foreign Minister. "We urge the Australian government to stop vilifying China, refrain from meddling in China's internal affairs and cease to apply double standards on human rights," it read.

"The Australian side should know very well what problems they have in history and now. They should also be clear about what concrete actions they need to take to put things right," Hua said.

Hua noted that the accusations on Xinjiang from Australia and several other allies of the US are totally based on lies. "If government leaders of a country don't believe the voice of the 25 million people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang and actual situation on the ground, but rather choose to believe lies of the century fabricated by a handful of anti-China elements with the purpose of containing and suppressing China's development, do you think such things should be allowed?" Hua asked an Australian reporter.

"What should be done is to stop being obsessed with this issue and really reflect on themselves. If one always uses a magnifying glass to look at others, while keeping it away from themselves, they will never make any progress," she said.

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202103/1219385.shtml

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Transcript - Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying's Regular Press Conference on March 24, 2021

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Global Times: In a joint statement on March 23, Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne and New Zealand Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta underscore the importance of transparency and accountability, and reiterate their call on China to grant meaningful and unfettered access to Xinjiang for United Nations experts, and other independent observers. Do you have any comment on this?

Hua Chunying: The door to Xinjiang is always open. In 2019, over 200 million visits were made to Xinjiang. We welcome any unbiased foreigners to visit Xinjiang, but firmly oppose any so-called "investigation" and "accountability" with presumption of guilt, and stand against anyone using this for political maneuver to pressure China.

Speaking of "accountability", I wonder how is Australia doing with those investigations into their soldiers' grave crimes in Afghanistan that were exposed not long ago? Have they held the perpetrators accountable and punished them to do justice to the innocent victims? Will Five Eyes countries including the US and the UK, and the EU consider sanctions on Australia?

Besides, in Australia, there was the infamous White Australia Policy, under which genocide was committed against aboriginal people and 100,000 aboriginal children were forcibly taken away from their families. Did the Australian side hold accountable those who caused pain to the Stolen Generation?

—

Bloomberg: Yesterday the Chinese embassy in Canberra put out a statement which I'll read to you. "We call on Australia to reflect upon and address its own problems, in particular the killings of innocent civilians by Australian overseas military personnel, the worsening situation of racial discrimination, the long-standing insufficiency in the protection of the rights of aboriginal peoples as well as the inhumane treatment of detainees in the off-shore detention centers." You spoke about that just now as well. Can you please expand on these points that the embassy has raised and tell us more about what China thinks should be done?

Hua Chunying: Our position is very clear in Canberra and in Beijing. The Australian side should know very well what problems they have in history and now. They should also be clear about what concrete actions they need to take to put things right.

—

Bloomberg: I have one more question. There's an apparent contradiction between your comments on the human rights situation in specific countries, such as Canada, Australia, other countries and the Chinese government's repeated statements that no other countries have the right to comment or interfere in Chinese domestic affairs. How do you explain that contradiction?

Hua Chunying: May I know your nationality?

Journalist: I am Australian.

Hua Chunying: That explains why you are asking this question. China's position is not contradictory at all.

The accusation against China on Xinjiang by Australia and several US allies are based on nothing but lies. We all know what role the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) has played. If government leaders of a country don't believe the voice of the 25 million people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang and actual situation on the ground, but rather choose to believe lies of the century fabricated by a handful of anti-China elements with the purpose of containing and suppressing China's development, do you think such things should be allowed?

As an Australian, you know very well whether there were policies to slaughter and assimilate the aboriginal people in the history of your country. You also know whether the more recent crimes conducted by some Australian soldiers in Afghanistan are a fact. China sticks to non-interference into other country's domestic affairs. But why can't us point out Australia's mistake when the country shys sway from its own problems, and groundlessly accuses China on the basis of lies, rumors and disinformation even though the Australian defence force already released an investigation report. If you are confident enough, and if you don't have those problems, what are you afraid of?

(continued)

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The Globe and Mail: Just to follow up on an earlier answer you gave to my colleague here. You spoke out about assimilation policies in Australia. Does the Chinese government believe that assimilation is a legitimate government policy or does it constitute a violation of human rights?

Hua Chunying: They are totally different things. There really is no comparison to make. The groundless accusation on Xinjiang made by some countries, including Australia and Canada, are based on lies and rumors.

Some politicians in your country might say that their allegation is based on "credible" information. Even though China has given sufficient facts and vivid examples of Xinjiang residents of various ethnic groups living a peaceful and happy life, some politicians in these countries would rather believe in lies cooked up by a few individuals, than heed the voice of 25 million people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang. They would rather join the clumsy show directed by a fraction of anti-China forces, than to acknowledge the basic facts of development and progress of Xinjiang. This only shows that they never really care about the truth, but are just keen on political manipulation in an attempt to create a so-called "Xinjiang issue" to undermine security and stability in Xinjiang, and hold back China's development. They will be met with firm rejection by the Chinese people and find no support from people speaking for rationality and justice in the world.

Now, what should be done is to stop being obsessed with this issue and really reflect on themselves. If one always uses a magnifying glass to look at others, while keeping it away from themselves, they will never make any progress.

https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/mfa_eng/xwfw_665399/s2510_665401/2511_665403/t1863896.shtml

China a vindictive and unreliable trading partner: ambassador Graham Fletcher

WILL GLASGOW and GEOFF CHAMBERS - MARCH 26, 2021

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Australia’s ambassador to Beijing says China is a “vindictive’’ and “unreliable’’ trading partner and Foreign Minister Marise Payne has described human rights violations in Xinjiang as “amongst the world’s most egregious’’, as the diplomatic rift between the countries deepened.

Graham Fletcher, Australia’s ambassador in Beijing, said the federal government did not know if China was able to “objectively reassess” its position after 10 months of trade tensions.

“So we’ve got a stand-off. Both sides are very determined … because it’s so public, it’s actually harder for either side to make any such adjustments,” Mr Fletcher told an online briefing of the Australia China Business Council from Beijing on Thursday.

“I’m not sure China realises the damage that is occurring both in Australia and internationally. It’s been exposed as quite unreliable as a trading partner and even vindictive.”

Mr Fletcher’s warning to business came amid a new stoush between Beijing and Canberra over human rights abuses against the Uighur minority group in Xinjiang, a region in China’s northwest that Foreign Minister Marise Payne said had been closed to Australian officials for five years.

Senator Payne told a Senate hearing on Thursday that human rights abuses in Xinjiang were “among the world’s most egregious human rights abuses” but officials had been prevented from visiting the region for five years, preventing examination of “these extremely serious allegations”.

The rift has left relations between Australia and China at their lowest ebb in five decades, with almost $20bn in annual exports — including coal, barley, wine, cotton, timber, copper and lobsters — banned from the world’s second-largest economy.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken backed Australia in a speech in Brussels early on Thursday (AEDT) and warned that China’s military ambitions were growing by the year.

“From China’s blatant economic coercion of Australia to Russia’s use of disinformation to erode confidence in elections and in safe, effective vaccines — these aggressive actions threaten not only our individual countries but also our shared values,” Mr Blinken said.

“There’s no question that Beijing’s coercive behaviour threatens our collective security and prosperity and that it is actively working to undercut the rules of the international system and the values we and our allies share.”

The Chinese government earlier attacked Australia’s human rights record, noting alleged war crimes in Afghanistan, the White Australia policy, the Stolen Generations and offshore detention centres.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said: “The Australian side should know very well what problems they have in history and now. They should also be clear about what concrete actions they need to take to put things right. China sticks to non-interference into other countries’ domestic affairs … but why can’t (we) point out Australia’s mistake when the country shies away from its own problems, and groundlessly accuse China on the basis of lies, rumours and disinformation.”

(continued)

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Mr Fletcher told the Australia China Business Council that he could not rule out further trade restrictions from China.

“You’ve just got to imagine that, unexpectedly, you may lose your China market for no good reason other than that Beijing has decided to send a message to Canberra,” he said. “Now that’s a very unwelcome situation, but I think frankly that’s where we are at.”

Mr Fletcher said the Biden administration’s support for Australia over the trade dispute was welcome but it “probably won’t give (export-exposed businesses) much joy in the short term”.

“China feels, ‘we have made it now — or we’ve almost made it. And it’s about time we start calling the shots more. And we want a country like Australia to never disagree with us in public’,” Mr Fletcher said.

“We’re not the only ones experiencing this kind of pressure from China. The so-called ‘Wolf Warrior’ thing, that’s happening all over the place. And it’s not winning many friends for China.

“We hear a lot of sympathy and support quietly from a lot of countries you might not necessarily expect around the world who can see what’s going on, and say, ‘look, we don’t want to live in a world either where China is behaving like this and is able to set the agenda’.”

Mr Fletcher said the impact of Beijing’s trade restrictions on the economy and government policy “frankly, is not delivering the result that China wanted”.

Lowy Institute senior fellow Richard McGregor, who specialises in Chinese politics, said Beijing was intent on hitting back against and isolating democratic nations as part of a growing competition for influence, particularly in Southeast Asia, Africa, the Middle East and South America.

Mr McGregor said China’s criticism of Australia, Europe and Japan was also aimed at fulfilling a domestic purpose and appealing to the Chinese people and their sense of “historical victimisation” by pointing out the failings of nations within the loose western democratic bloc.

“It’s trying to isolate democracies from the rest of the world and to highlight their less than perfect history, their history of colonialism and the like,” he said.

In an interview with the Financial Times published on Thursday, Fortescue Metals chairman Andrew Forrest said, if asked, he would try to help the Morrison government heal the diplomatic rupture.

“I’m a global philanthropist and this bullshit of drawing political lines between countries is an old, Trumpian, past era, which will not help the world from destroying its own oceans, atmosphere or environment,” said Mr Forrest, one of Australia’s richest men.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/no-accountability-chinas-fresh-attack-on-australia-over-alleged-war-crimes/news-story/7401f9078ef37c7cefa110f0a9a1c5a4

>>13279431

Dossier of lewd sex acts to spark sackings

OLIVIA CAISLEY - MARCH 26, 2021

The whistleblower who exposed Coalition staff performing lewd sex acts in female MPs’ offices says he has passed on information to Finance Minister Simon Birmingham and Labor senator Kristina Keneally that could lead to further staff sackings and expose serving MPs.

The revelation came as Scott Morrison, after weathering a month of criticism over his handling of the Brittany Higgins’ rape allegation, conducted two extensive interviews with female journalists — the ABC’s Sabra Lane and Nine’s Tracy Grimshaw — in a bid to reset the political optics for the government and demonstrate he was listening to the nation’s women.

The Prime Minister told Nine’s A Current Affair he would be happy to “sit down and have a chat” with Ms Higgins, arguing that her allegation of rape in the office of then defence industry minister Linda Reynolds in March 2019 had sparked a deeper national conversation about women.

“What has become, I think, more crystallised in this last five weeks (is) Brittany standing up has caused a very deep and confronting conversation in Australia,” Mr Morrison said.

“We have gone way deeper, we have gone beyond the sheer shock of violent acts. We are starting to deal with some real home truths.”

As a tumultuous sitting fortnight dominated by further allegations of sexual misconduct came to a close, a government bill aimed at protecting the privacy of those involved in Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins’ review into workplace culture within parliament passed the House of Representatives.

Senator Birmingham on Thursday labelled as “disgusting and inappropriate” the behaviour revealed by The Australian and Network Ten on Monday, in which staffers swapped graphic videos of their sexual exploits in parliamentary offices. The revelations led to the sacking of one of the male staffers in the group.

Senator Birmingham said further investigations were underway to find out whether other staffers were involved. He said the government was “working to resolve these issues and get to the bottom of these allegations.”

“I assure everyone that we are not going to tolerate the behaviour that has been alleged and are taking all steps possible to ensure appropriate consequences,” the Finance Minister said.

Senator Birmingham’s portfolio also includes responsibility for parliamentary standards.

Senator Keneally took to Twitter to reveal that someone in her office had spoken with the whistleblower — who calls himself Tom the Whistleblower on social media — and had been given a “verbal briefing”.

The whistleblower, whose Twitter handle is @BlowingTom, has also admitted to some of the conduct he was revealing and said MPs often had sex in a Parliament House room reserved for meditation or prayer.

Material provided by the whistleblower and seen by The Australian shows at least four Coalition staffers swapping images and videos on Facebook Messenger over a two-year period ending last year.

In a video shared among the group, one Coalition staffer performs a sex act on another man in a room he claims is the Parliament House office of an MP for whom he works.

Tom the Whistleblower on Thursday disputed claims made by Mr Morrison that the lewd sexual acts had not occurred under his leadership.

“First of all, the PM lied when he said that he was not PM when these matters occurred,” he tweeted. “These events happened from 2015-2020. They happened during his tenure. Today I have met with @birmo chief of staff and given ALL evidence in relation to the matter, including evidence that one of the staffers involved works in @DaveSharma office.”

Senator Birmingham’s office would not confirm whether that meeting had taken place. Mr Sharma’s office declined to comment on the claim one of its staffers was in the group.

Tom the Whistleblower said he had handed over “names, dates, pics, vids” and evidence in relation to alleged use of male sex workers at Parliament House.

Ms Jenkins’ review is being conducted at the request of Mr Morrison and Senator Birmingham. It is due to conclude in November.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/dossier-of-lewd-acts-to-spark-sackings/news-story/4de0a8127ef033453b87895a491600b1

Clive Palmer’s anti-vax pamphlets slammed by Scott Morrison

Scott Morrison has slammed the “complete rubbish” flyers bombarding Australians, with authorities urged to investigate.

Natalie Brown - MARCH 26, 2021

Former politician and controversial businessman Clive Palmer has come under fire for nationally distributing flyers attacking the coronavirus vaccine, with authorities urged to investigate.

The black and yellow pamphlets – which do not reference Mr Palmer’s United Australia Party (UAP) – question the speed of the development of the vaccines and claim appropriate safety checks and balances are lacking, describing them as being subject to “emergency use” authorisation.

“Urgent Communication,” the front of the flyers read. “The simple fact is that we don’t have one-year safety data, three-year safety data or five-year safety data or for the use of the COVID-19 vaccine.”

In a lengthy message on the opposite side, Mr Palmer writes that he feels “duty bound to bring the following to your attention”.

“Revelations that two Australians were ill following administration of the COVID vaccine were disturbing and it’s difficult to understand now there could be overdoses administered by registered practitioners,” the flyer reads.

“While I strongly support the use of vaccines which have approval for general use such as measles and other diseases, I am very concerned by the emergency use of this vaccine on the general population.

“My understanding is that emergency use of a medicine is only authorised if the person receiving the treatment is in immediate danger of dying. This is not the case with millions of Australians who are not ill.”

Mr Palmer goes on to say he does not understand “why it is that millions of Australians should be subject to a medical treatment that has not complied with normal practices under Australian Law”.

“I don’t understand why Australians need to rush or take risks with their health,” he adds.

A number of politicians have slammed Mr Palmer for undermining public confidence in Australia’s COVID-19jab rollout, with Scott Morrison this morning deeming them “complete rubbish”.

The Prime Minister urged Australians to ignore the flyers, which have so far been picked up in South Australia, Queensland and New South Wales.

Shadow Health Minister Mark Butler told the ABC’s AM radio program that he has written to the Australian Electoral Commissioner, Tom Rogers, demanding action.

“The COVID vaccine rollout and the government’s response to the pandemic generally are very clearly going to be big election issues in the lead up to the 2021 or 2022 federal election,” Mr Butler said.

“Clive Palmer, who is so closely associated with the party he began, is spewing misinformation in exactly the same way he runs an election campaign.

“It’s important the Electoral Commission get ahead of this, and if Mr Palmer does want to do this thing he’s required to properly authorise it in accordance with our electoral laws.”

Australian Medical Association (AMA) vice-president Chris Moy told the ABC there was “a lot” of data indicating the safety of the vaccines, and “no real evidence” of major problems like Mr Palmer suggests.

“Clive, we’ll leave the mining to you and you leave the medicine and science to us,” Dr Moy said.

“The problem is, say somebody doesn’t get the vaccination because of his message, which is clearly not based on any particular expertise on his part, what happens if they later get COVID or even die later?

“He’ll be completely removed from direct responsibility for it, but as far as I’m concerned he’s as responsible as any doctor who does something wrong.”

A spokesperson for the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) confirmed to the broadcaster that the national health regulator “does not have an ‘Emergency Use Authorisation’ pathway for COVID-19 vaccines”.

“Most countries that are using Emergency Use Authorisations (such as the UK, US and Canada) are not the same as regulatory approval, and have been made in response to the very high COVID-19 disease burden and risk in those countries,” they said.

The TGA urged Australians to “rely on trusted information sources”.

https://www.news.com.au/national/politics/clive-palmers-antivax-pamphlets-slammed-by-scott-morrison/news-story/faeaae728539b1fd93c4ca21dcf72afd

Former Queensland MP Trevor Perrett has been charged with indecent treatment of young girls

A former Queensland MP is facing numerous sex related charges relating to girls under 16 and under 17.

Darren Cartwright - MARCH 26, 2021

A former Queensland MP and father of a sitting member is facing more than 20 charges of indecent treatment of at least one teenage girl.

Trevor Perrett, who served for a decade and was the Minister for Primary Industries, Fisheries and Forestry during the 1990s, is due to face Pine Rivers Magistrates Court on Monday.

The 79-year-old has been charged with eight counts of indecent treatment of girls under 16 and 16 counts of indecent treatment of girls under 17.

It is unclear whether the charges relate to one or more alleged victims.

Mr Perrett was elected as an independent in the seat of Barambah at a by-election in 1988.

At the following election he stood as National party member and held the seat until 1998 when he was toppled by One National representative Dorothy Pratt.

He was a minister from 1996 to 1998 during Rob Borbidge’s reign as premier.

Mr Perrett’s son Tony is the Liberal National Party member for Gympie.

https://www.news.com.au/national/queensland/crime/former-queensland-mp-trevor-perrett-has-been-charged-with-indecent-treatment-of-young-girls/news-story/a150a1709a227d01f3f7e01c92a288f4

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Iron ore tycoon pleads with west to mend its relationship with China

Andrew Forrest warns populist politicians they are ‘sacrificing humanity and the environment’

Jamie Smyth - 25 March 2021

Australia’s richest man has implored politicians to reject Trumpian populism and rebuild the west’s fractured relationship with China to avoid damaging the global economy and environment.

Andrew Forrest, founder of Fortescue, the world’s fourth biggest iron ore miner, accused populist politicians of dividing people, ripping nations apart and destroying humanity’s ability to leave the world in a better place than they found it.

If asked by the Australian government, he would play a role in helping to heal the worst breakdown in diplomatic relations between Beijing and Canberra in generations, he told the Financial Times in an interview.

“I’m a global philanthropist and this bullshit of drawing political lines between countries is an old, Trumpian, past era, which will not help the world from destroying its own oceans, atmosphere or environment,” he said.

“So for all those chest beaters who want to keep their nations apart, remember you are sacrificing humanity and the environment.”

Forrest’s offer to help Canberra rebuild its relationship with Beijing comes amid growing disquiet among Australian businesses over China’s imposition of trade sanctions affecting A$19bn ($14.5bn) a year in local exports.

Last year Chinese investment in Australia plummeted 61 per cent to A$1bn, well below a peak of A$16.5bn in 2016, and Canberra has torpedoed several takeovers of local companies proposed by Chinese bidders.

Iron ore has been unaffected, although the mining magnate, who has amassed a fortune worth A$23bn according to the AFR Rich List, refused to rule out the commodity becoming ensnared in the trade tensions.

“We are planning for an uncertain future so that our shareholders can have a certain future,” said Forrest, who has extensive contacts in China.

The breakdown in relations between Canberra and Beijing has coincided with a much tougher approach from Washington, Australia’s strategic ally, towards China.

Forrest said the new Biden administration, however, held out the possibility of compromise.

However, analysts are dubious about a detente given the acrimony at discussions between US and China officials in Alaska last week.

“There is a populist tinge in western countries’ foreign policy but the bigger issue is a clash of interests and power,” said Richard McGregor, an analyst at the Lowy Institute.

There is also little sign of a thaw in Sino-Australian relations.

“The prime minister is politically boxed in having declared that Australia has done ‘nothing at all’ to injure the China relationship,” said James Laurenceson, director of the Australia-China Relations Institute. “Meanwhile, China’s trade strikes galvanise the Australian public to support the government taking a strong stand.

“It doesn’t hurt that this stance earns kudos in Washington, too. All of this means that policy hawks find an attentive ear in Canberra.”

However, Forrest is more optimistic and notes how Minderoo, his philanthropic foundation, was able to use his contacts to source more than A$200m of Covid-19 test kits and personal protective equipment from the Chinese government when global supplies ran short.

“The world had run out. Whatever was available was directed by the Trump administration to go to America…China stepped up in one of the greatest acts of honour in business that I’ve seen and helped Australia out,” he said.

Forrest was criticised in the media for allegedly blindsiding a government minister by inviting the Chinese consul-general for Victoria to speak at a joint press conference over the initiative. At the time he laughed off the criticism, telling reporters he put “Australia first”. He told the FT he would “stand up and help my country” whenever asked.

“Remember what I’m on this little planet for. I have been awarded this unbelievable opportunity not to go and play tennis or golf on the back deck of a yacht in the Mediterranean but to use my limited time on this planet to leave it in a slight better way than I found it.”

https://www.ft.com/content/0c383558-7b49-43b8-8805-262e53d321c4

>>13286902

EXCLUSIVE: ASIO watching Australian right-wing extremist groups

Sky News Australia

26 Mar 2021

Australia’s top intelligence official has spoken exclusively to Sky News about shocking scenes of right wings extremist groups meeting in the Grampians.

ASIO Director-General Mike Burgess said ASIO is monitoring the groups but there are difficulties in classifying them as terrorist organisations.

Over the Australia Day long weekend nearly 30 far right-wing extremists gathered in the Grampians in Victoria’s west for what they called a training exercise.

On their hikes they shouted slogans of white supremacy and carried slogans of hate - leading concerned locals to call police on multiple occasions.

However, police were powerless to do anything because technically the group wasn’t breaking any laws since it knows how to evade classification.

“When they’re together in their club houses or when they’re talking in the Grampians, they know what to say and do, they know not to step over the law,” Mr Burgess said.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZ1FhyVF6-g

US neo-Nazi group recruits young Australians, secret recordings reveal

Nick McKenzie, Jason Wilson, Joel Tozer and Heather McNeill - March 26, 2021

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American white supremacist group, The Base, which encourages the collapse of liberal democratic governments, is recruiting neo-Nazis in Australia and has appointed a local leader who planned to launch a propaganda campaign in front of Federal Parliament House.

A cache of leaked audio recordings and internal files gives an unprecedented insight into the white supremacist group’s nascent Australian operation. The recordings are of interviews in which local applicants are vetted for membership, and they include at least three men expressing support for the New Zealand mosque massacres.

The Australians who have attempted to join The Base include former federal One Nation candidate Dean Smith and Grant Fuller, a self-professed leader of The Lads Society, one of the country’s biggest neo-Nazi groups.

In the United States, several members of The Base have been arrested by the FBI for plotting acts of violence or vandalising synagogues, while the group has been proscribed in Canada as a terrorist organisation.

It is one of the groups that domestic counter-terrorism agency ASIO has considered advising the government to proscribe , and has been of interest to Australian Federal Police counter-terrorism teams, according to law enforcement sources. There is no evidence that the group’s embryonic Australian chapter was planning any terrorist activity.

The leaked material undermines claims from Australian extremist groups that their members are not supportive of violence. The Base actively sought to recruit members of The Lads Society along Australia’s east coast as well as members of the Perth-based Society of West Australian Nationalists.

The recordings, made in 2019 and early 2020, reveal that a fringe member of SWAN was appointed as The Base’s Australian leader and vowed to US leader Rinaldo Nazzaro that he would use SWAN as a recruiting ground. SWAN is run by former Liberal Party volunteer and failed council candidate David Donis, but there is no suggestion that Mr Donis supports The Base. The SWAN members who sought to join the American group describe going behind Mr Donis’ back to do so.

The recordings were first obtained by US investigative journalist Jason Wilson and the Southern Poverty Law Centre, and have been provided to The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald and the ABC’s Background Briefing. Australian anti-fascist researcher group White Rose has separately analysed the recordings to identify members of The Base.

The recordings show the organisation was open to recruiting teenagers and that Brenton Tarrant’s murderous mosque rampage in New Zealand in March 2019 was admired by some.

In his recorded vetting interview in late 2019, a 21-year-old Brisbane applicant told The Base leadership: I “fully wholeheartedly agree with what he [Tarrant] did.” He was joining The Base because “there is no political or democratic solution at all”.

A 33-year-old applicant from Perth, known online by the name “James Jameson”, described how he got “enjoyment watching … Tarrant do his thing”.

Another applicant, a 16-year-old boy from Canberra, told The Base’s leaders that his father was a government security official who didn’t support his views and that the teen had been kicked out of a local nationalist group for “promoting violent tactics” and supporting Tarrant.

“My dad came to me one time and he basically screamed at me about what I’ve been doing online and things like that and how it threatens his job,” the young applicant said.

Mr Nazzaro, who is based in Russia, responded that The Base was “trying to increase our presence” in Australia and “if you join, we’re going to look to you to kind of help in that regard”. The teen responded: “Well, I’ll finish school after next year, so I should be all good for that.”

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The leaked material suggests that, by early 2020, The Base had recruited four Australians, though two had by then also left the group. One of those who stayed, and who The Age and Herald have identified as a young Perth tradesman, agreed to be The Base’s Australian leader and recruit more members, targeting young, impressionable men rather than older men with children.

“The guys with wives and kids, that’s a big problem,” the lead Australian recruiter said on one recording, while also describing how he would instruct the Canberra teen applicant to take photographs of neo-Nazi material “in front of the Parliament House” as “a really good propaganda piece”.

Another applicant to The Base is Gold Coast-based Grant Fuller, whose vetting application states that he is a former military employee turned “leader” of the Queensland chapter of Australia’s highest-profile extremist group, The Lads Society. This meant he could “open doors to more recruits”, he said. Mr Fuller denied attempting to join The Base when quizzed by The Age and Herald.

Former West Australian One Nation candidate Dean Smith, who unsuccessfully contested the 2019 federal election, told Mr Nazzaro during his vetting interview that “I have come to realise that there really is no political solution” and that, “if I want to leave a legacy for my children, then I’m going to have to do something about it”.

Mr Smith refused to answer questions last week, but sources with knowledge of The Base said he did not end up joining the US group and remains close to SWAN. Both Mr Smith and Mr Fuller sought to obscure their identities but were revealed by personal details they disclosed in their applications.

Formed in 2018 and active in the US, Canada, Australia, South Africa, and the United Kingdom, The Base supports “accelerationist” theory, which involves efforts to hasten the collapse of American liberal democracy into civil war, and bring about a white ethnostate. In encrypted chats, members have discussed the methods and efficacy of tactics such as sabotaging infrastructure and the finer points of guerrilla warfare.

While Mr Nazzaro has publicly sought to distance his group from domestic terrorism and violence, he and his fellow Base leaders are heard tacitly encouraging violence. A Perth applicant said he wanted to access firearms and avoid police attention. He said he had taught his 11-year-old stepdaughter a martial art and she had already “bashed two f—ing Africans”. One of The Base’s leaders responded: “That’s good. So then you are a good trainer.” There is no evidence that Mr Smith or Mr Fuller have engaged in or planned any violent activity or terrorism.

In response to questions sent by The Age and Herald, Mr Nazzaro said The Base was an “entirely legal” self-defence and survivalist network.

The recordings suggest that proscription of The Base by ASIO as a domestic terrorism group – a move which outlaws people becoming members and supporting it – would undermine its operations. One of The Base’s leaders described a “terrorism designation” , if it were to happen, as a “game changer”.

ASIO has recommended a number of extreme right-wing groups be declared terrorist organisations but they have not succeeded because Australia’s legal definition is narrower than in some other countries.

UK-based neo-Nazi group Sonnenkrieg Division recently became the first right-wing extremist organisation listed as a terrorist group in Australia.

In mid March, ASIO director general Mike Burgess described how “ideological extremism investigations have grown from around one-third of our priority counter-terrorism caseload, to around 40 per cent” and that he was “particularly concerned by the number of 15- and 16-year-olds who are being radicalised”.

But Mr Burgess cautioned not to automatically place neo-Nazi extremists and other hate-inspired groups “in the same threat category as ISIL [also known as Islamic State] or al-Qaeda”. However, he stressed the danger they posed was real and might be growing.

https://www.smh.com.au/national/us-neo-nazi-group-recruits-young-australians-secret-recordings-reveal-20210324-p57dqh.html

>>13301505

Australians recorded spruiking far-right credentials to global Neo-Nazi group

ABC News In-depth

26 Mar 2021

A number of Australians have been recorded during their recruitment interviews with a global white-supremacist group. Founded in the US, ‘The Base’ has been singed out by national intelligence agency ASIO as a threat, and now the ABC has obtained access to recordings of Australians spruiking their far-right credentials. A warning that this report from Alex Mann contains examples of racist hate speech and strong language.

Read more here:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-03-26/the-base-tapes-secret-recordings-australian-recruitment/13255994

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2aMiy683rI

Pope sends Julian Assange personal message to his jail cell, partner says

rt.com - 29 Mar, 2021

Pope Francis has conveyed a personal message to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who remains incarcerated in a British maximum security prison battling possible extradition to the US, the publisher’s partner has said.

The “kind, personal message” from the head of the Catholic Church was delivered to Assange’s cell by a prison priest, Stella Moris told her Twitter followers on Sunday. Moris did not disclose the content of the missive, but expressed gratitude to Catholics and other Christians campaigning for Assange’s freedom.

Assange remains in British custody at the HMS Belmarsh prison as he continues his battle against a US request to extradite him on espionage charges related to his activities with WikiLeaks. The website’s founder is seen by many as a prisoner of conscience, punished with the help of the British justice system for exposing the dirty secrets of Washington and its allies.

It’s not unusual for Pope Francis to send his personal reassurances to inmates, including those whose freedom was taken from them for apparent political reasons. In 2019 he sent a letter to former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who was at the time serving a lengthy prison term on corruption charges.

Lula’s convictions were overturned by the Supreme Court earlier this month. Soon after, the now-free politician thanked the pontiff for writing to him during his incarceration and inviting to the Vatican after he was out of jail.

In January, Judge Vanessa Baraitser denied a US request to extradite Assange based on concerns over his mental health, saying he would face oppressive conditions in the US prison system and that he could end up committing suicide.

The Joe Biden administration signaled its intention to continue to push for extradition in February and has submitted its “grounds for appeal” in the case.

https://www.rt.com/news/519529-pope-assange-personal-message/

https://twitter.com/StellaMoris1/status/1376201219073581064

Australia incorrectly believes US will protect its interests: former Australian diplomat

Yu Jincui / Global Times - Mar 29, 2021

1/3

Editor's Note:

Closely following US footsteps in an anti-China campaign, Australia has screwed up relations with China. This has plunged bilateral relations to its lowest ebb in decades. Senior US officials from the Biden administration expressed support to Australia in its confrontation with China on several occasions, how will the US factor influence Australia's China policy?

Worsening relations with China have cost Australia dearly, does the Australian government have the wisdom and courage to change the confrontation course? Global Times reporter Yu Jincui talked to Bruce Haigh, an Australian political commentator and former diplomat, in a written interview.

GT: In your recent article, you said "Australia risks ostracism from the rest of Asia if it continues to stringently oppose China." Why did you issue such a warning? In your opinion, has the Morrison government realized the need to change its China policy to avoid confrontation with China?

Haigh: China is the most powerful country in Southeast Asia. Short of nuclear weapons, the US will find it increasingly difficult to project power and influence into the region. China is able to project that influence and power. SE Asian states are aware of the real politic. They will act and conduct their diplomacy and relations accordingly.

Australia believes, incorrectly in my opinion, that the US will protect its interests. That is naïve. The US cannot build bridges for Australia into SE Asia and with China. Australian thinking and evolving policy amounts to isolationism.

The Morrison government does not realize the need to change its China policy. Weirdly and childishly, it says it will not allow Australian "values" to be undermined by China, whatever that means. However other people in Australia deplore the Morrison government's China policy. They include a cohort of former diplomats and academics, as well as people with firsthand knowledge of China.

GT: What role has the US played in Australia's China policy? US Indo-Pacific Coordinator Kurt Campbell recently said that the US would not agree to improve its relations with China until Beijing stops its "economic coercion" of Australia. What does the US "support and backing" mean to Australia? Will Australia go further with its confrontational ways against China?

Haigh: The US has dictated Australia's China policy over the past seven years, first by Turnbull and then Morrison. Both sought to please the US. Pleasing the US is Australia's default position with respect to foreign affairs and defence.

Biden was stung by the strong stance taken by Chinese top diplomats Yang Jiechi and Wang Yi at Anchorage. Biden has declared that what is now at stake is "autocracy or democracy." What this fails to address is good governance. It has been reported that US leaders have vowed to "intensify competition with Beijing in the wake of the acrimonious anchorage meeting." It seems that rather than learn from Anchorage the Biden administration is going to maintain if not ramp up Trump's anti- China policies.

(continued)

>>13328300

2/3

Blinken has repeated criticism that China has undertaken "blatant economic coercion of Australia" which he said was an example of the "urgent threat posed by a resurgent authoritarian regime." At the same time the Australian Ambassador to China, Graham Fletcher, addressing the Australia/China Business Council said China was being 'vindictive' toward Australia. He claimed, "the escalating pattern of trade punishment had generated sympathy for Australia and hardened attitudes toward China around the Globe."

This is in accord with instructions from Canberra and no doubt passed from Washington. The trade and diplomatic problems faced by Australia are as a result of complying with the US. The "support and backing" promised by the US is welcomed by the LNP Morrison government. It will continue to follow the US in relation to China even though that by doing so it is harmful to Australia's fundamental interests. The Murdoch media which control 70% of the flow of information in Australia backs this position.

GT: Biden is attempting to organize a grand alliance to counter China. What role will Australia play in the US' plan? Australia followed the US lead in the anti-China campaign during the Trump era. Will there be any difference under Biden?

Haigh: Biden seems to have some sort of grand alliance in mind based on the premise that China is dangerous and seeks to dominate world affairs. For as long as that narrative is accepted there will be some countries who will continue to follow the US. Australia will follow the US position on China for as long as it has an LNP government. An Australian Labor government will have a different and more positive perspective on China, but will still adhere to what is termed the American Alliance.

The current LNP government will maintain a defensive and negative position toward China even though Australia suffers as a result of trade disputes. It does not have the imagination or courage to do anything else. It lacks the maturity to negotiate.

GT: Australia is tilting more toward the US. Why is Australia making such a policy option? Is such a trend by the Morrison government in line with Australian interests?

Haigh: Australia lacks leadership and has done so since Howard became Prime Minister in 1996. Australia was a colonial settlement that displaced the local Indigenous inhabitants. It allowed the United Kingdom to dictate foreign and defence policy until 1942, and then in the face of a threat from the Japanese switched its alliance to the United States who has dictated Australian foreign and defence policy since then. It has a foreign head of state who is based overseas. It is a rich country, or it was, with a small population which lives off agriculture and mineral extraction. It is inwardly focused and narrow in outlook. It seeks to use the United States as a buffer against the rest of the world, particularly Asia and China which it fears because of enterprise and numbers of people.

Morrison's policy toward China is not in Australia's interest from an economic, scientific, educational and cultural perspective.

(continued)

>>13328304

3/3

GT: Australia is a Five Eyes member and a Quad member. The Australia and the US are allies, how much room does Australia have for its foreign policy independence? You once said the Australia has ceded its sovereignty to the US. Do you have specific suggestions on how Australia might not align itself so closely with the US?

Haigh: Since the ending of the Cold War the US alliance has been of decreasing value for Australia. In fact, it has cost us in terms of our involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan, two totally unnecessary undertakings in terms of Australia's national interest.

If Australia had the courage, it has the capacity for an independent foreign policy. New Zealand has demonstrated that.

Australia has ceded sovereignty to the US for the reasons mentioned above plus the cultural dominance effected by the common language of English, whether through movies, music, magazines or Murdoch.

The Quad is a hasty and hopeless attempt to contain China. Only the current Australian government believes in it. Five Eyes is a Western intelligence turn on but it delivers little because the US is not an honest broker. It withholds information. And it seeks to spin the information it gleans. Reading Five Eyes information, one must learn to read between the lines. And remember Pine Gap. A US spying facility in Australia where the host country only receives 60-70 percent of the information obtained.

GT: You said Australia has to acknowledge China as it recognizes the US and China seeks the same respect Australia gives to the US. To what extent, do you think, will mainstream Australian society accept this view?

Haigh: Australia must treat China with the same respect it accords the US. That is just a normal diplomatic courtesy. But there is more. There should be respect for China's history, culture and military achievements, particularly in WWII and for the transformation of Chinese society over the past 75 years. There ought to be respect from Australia for what China has achieved for the people of China and for the Chinese contribution to mankind over those short number of years.

There was a time when there was tremendous respect within Australia for China dating from Prime Minister Whitlam in 1972 which existed until Howard took power in 1996. There are many in Australia who still hold China with the greatest of respect, which contrasts with their attitude to Morrison and the LNP. We are in a bad place and seek the indulgence and understanding of old friends. There are people speaking for us who belittle us and break our hearts.

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202103/1219779.shtml

—

Bruce Haigh

Bruce Douglas Haigh (born 6 August 1945) is an Australian political commentator and former diplomat. Haigh joined the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs in 1972. He served in South Africa from 1976 to 1979 with the Australian Embassy (now High Commission), as well as Afghanistan, Indonesia, Iran, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Sri Lanka.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce_Haigh

http://www.brucehaigh.com.au

https://twitter.com/bruce_haigh

>>13328300

China - Reality Check

Bruce Haigh - March 23, 2021

The Australian Government first discussed the need for a second airport in Sydney in 1969. A decision to locate it at Badgerys Creek was made by the Hawke Labor Government in 1986. Twenty-five years later the first earth works were being undertaken, amidst the usual allegations of corruption and dirty dealing.

In China eight new airports are being opened every year, with time from decision to final construction averaging two years. The Chinese look at us askance. Australia simply doesn’t cut it and it knows it. Why can’t Australia get it’s act together? Easy money from minerals, wheat, meat, tourism and students. Sound Chinese investment knocked back to please the US, who laugh at us behind closed doors.

Hedonism and corruption dominate the LNP, which Morrison encapsulates. Australia has never had a lazier Prime Minister and for him money grows on trees. He along with many of his contemporaries have no idea about real work or the real economy. Posed photos of Morrison building chook and cubby houses says it all.

The LNP fears the dynamism of China. They fear the Chinese work ethic, particularly when observed amongst the Chinese who live in Australia. The answer of the LNP and those they mix with has been to embrace industrial scale corruption. To use their political power to make hay while the sun shines, place themselves across the money trail. The dominant Murdoch media lets them off the hook, as long as the LNP gives the equally corrupt Murdoch what he wants, which they have, including tax payers unreceipted dollars.

The Chinese observe this. The staff at their Embassy in Canberra are highly trained. More literate and intelligent than most members of Morrison’s cabinet, they read what is published as news, listen to radio and watch TV. They have come to the same conclusions that I have along with other Embassies in Canberra. Like minded embassies talk amongst themselves. In addition, China monitors all news services reporting on Australia and in order that we should not feel too important they do it for every country in the world. The point being they know us better than we know ourselves.

They also spy on us, as we do them, but they do it more effectively. And we also get information from the US which is tainted. They put spin on their intelligence to try and lock us into their view of China. And they have been successful, just as they were with Viet Nam, Iraq and Afghanistan. Why? An overwhelming desire amongst Australian policy makers not to take responsibility for foreign and defence policy, founded in an inferiority complex grounded in not believing in the unique and innate worth of the country they represent.

China is aware of this in spades. They know us a lot better than we know them and ourselves. They knew exactly what was behind Morrison’s ill-considered Wuhan, Covid accusation. They have watched and listened and lost respect. As have many thoughtful and considered Australians. Inept, thoughtless, crude and indeed arrogant attempts to bridge Morrison stupidity by Australian politicians and officials have only made matters worse.

From everything I have been able to glean Xi Jinping thinks Morrison a fool and has written him off. He sees no hope of reviving the relationship while Morrison is in power, so the Chinese will not bother. But they will take further punitive trade measures were Australia to make sillier and more thoughtless ASPI inspired anti-China statements and undertakings such as giving asylum to CIA backed dissidents from Hong Kong.

The Australian government has no idea of what is happening. China is cutting us loose. We will hang below Asia as neither fish nor fowl. Asia will cut us loose. We have no understanding that China is the major power in the region, if not the world, and to put it crudely, in the absence of getting our own act together we have to acknowledge them as we acknowledge the US. China seeks the same respect we give to the US. Is that hard? Yes, given the racism of the LNP.

Kurt Campbell, yet another US special representative, this time for the Indo-Pacific has said the Biden Administration will not resume normal relations with the Chinese until they treat Australia better. How humiliating and what rubbish. We do not need the US to conduct our foreign policy and the fact they think they can, demonstrates how weak and ineffectual Morrison appears to them.

The Morrison government has dragged us out of Asia and the Pacific, just as Vorster, the Apartheid Prime Minister dragged South Africa out of Africa. The reality is soon to hit.

Bruce Haigh is a political commentator and former diplomat.

https://brucehaigh.com.au/china-reality-check/

>All assets deployed.

THE OFFICE OF DONALD J. TRUMP

45th President of the United States

The Office of Donald J. Trump is committed to preserving the magnificent legacy of the Trump Administration, while at the same time advancing the America First agenda. Through civic engagement and public activism, the Office of Donald J. Trump will strive to inform, educate, and inspire Americans from all walks of life as we seek to build a truly great American Future. Through this office, President Trump will remain a tireless champion for the hardworking men and women of our great country – and for their right to live in safety, dignity, prosperity, and peace.

https://www.45office.com/

Notables

are not endorsements

#14 - Part 1

Australian Politics and Society - Part 1

>>13165211, >>13165218 Philippines Foreign Minister Teddy Locsin calls on Myanmar junta to release Aussie Sean Turnell

>>13165331 ‘It’s our turn’: Inside the Christian Right conference plotting a political takeover - “Church and State”

>>13165352 Video: The Australian #ChurchAndState Summit 2021 is just for you - Church And State

>>13165358 Video: Cardinal George Pell is a keynote speaker at the Australian #ChurchAndState Summit in 2021 - Church And State

>>13168992 Hopping mad: US campaign to ban kangaroo product imports gains bipartisan support

>>13169146 Video: How extreme right-wing groups have ‘weaponised the internet’ in Australia

>>13169267 Foreign Minister Marise Payne suspends military aid to Myanmar

>>13173275 Video: Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews suffers broken ribs, spine damage after "nasty fall" on "wet and slippery stairs"

>>13173322 Video: Three women go public with allegations against MP Craig Kelly's senior aide, Frank Zumbo - ABC News In-depth

>>13173867 Video: Australian Sean Turnell ‘tried to flee Myanmar with secret state financial information’, junta leader Min Aung Hlaing says

>>13174865 Video: Anzac Day marches will be held in every capital city after Prime Minister Scott Morrison's intervention - "If people can party and if people can protest, then we can remember as a nation, and honour our veterans on Anzac Day"

>>13177387 Video: Daniel Andrews’ recovery could take ‘months’, decision looms on surgery

>>13177438 Rocco Galati Tweet: Australian Health Minister hospitalized, "in serious condition", day after receiving Covid, Astra-Zeneca, Vaccine

>>13183865 Greg Hunt has been hospitalised with cellulitis. So what is it? And how serious is it?

>>13183855 Scott Morrison says he will act as health minister but Greg Hunt will return to work next week

>>13183787 Video: Scott Morrison to join 'historic' Quad talks with Joe Biden, Yoshihide Suga and Narendra Modi

>>13184102 Former Hong Kong lawmaker and pro-democracy activist Ted Hui moves to Australia

>>13184141 Australian Federal Police push for sweeping online surveillance powers lashed as ‘dangerous overreach’ by human rights groups

>>13184169 Video: Australia’s top spy, ASIO director-general Mike Burgess ‘knows’ culprit behind ANU cyber attack, but won’t say

>>13195850 Australia pulls off stunning diplomatic coup - Mathias Cormann set to be announced as secretary-general of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

>>13195985 Video: Scott Morrison Facebook Post: A huge honour and recognition for Australia. Well done to Mathias Cormann on being elected as the next Secretary-General of the OECD

>>13196051 Scott Morrison Facebook Post: An historic meeting for India, the United States, Japan and Australia - the first ever leaders’ meeting of the Quad

>>13196059 Video: First ever Quad Leaders' Meeting - Scott Morrison: My opening remarks to the historic first Quad Meeting involving the leaders of India, the United States, Japan and Australia

>>13196223 President Joe Biden Tweet: This morning, I met virtually with the Quad in the first multilateral summit I’ve hosted as president

>>13196242 Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga Tweet: I think this meeting was a meeting that was able to take the four countries of Japan, the United States, Australia and India to a new stage. We also agreed to hold a face-to-face summit meeting within the year

>>13196255 Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi Tweet: Our discussions today on vaccines, climate change, and emerging technologies make the Quad a positive force for global good and for peace, stability and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific

>>13196427 U.S. Department of State Tweet: Video - The United States, Japan, India, and Australia are united in our vision for a free and open, inclusive and healthy Indo-Pacific region

>>13200420 Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews moved from ICU - expecting a “very long journey” to recover from a fractured vertebra and several broken ribs

>>13200498 Video: Australia joins US, India and Japan in 'unprecedented' deal for coronavirus vaccines after historic Quad meeting

>>13228570 Our four nations are committed to a free, open, secure and prosperous Indo-Pacific region - Opinion by Joe Biden, Narendra Modi, Scott Morrison and Yoshihide Suga - washingtonpost.com

>>13241716 Scott Morrison’s soft-power diplomacy triumphs - Mathias Cormann becomes OECD Secretary-General and the Quad holds its first leadership meeting

>>13247553 ASIO boss Mike Burgess says agency is ditching 'Islamic' and 'right-wing' tags, will now refer to 'religious' or 'ideological' violence

>>13247553 Transcript - ASIO Director-General’s Annual Threat Assessment - Wednesday, 17 March 2021

>>13247553 ASIO cracks 'Nest of Spies' seeking access to Australia's Defence secrets - "the country behind the foreign spy ring was not China"

#14 - Part 2

Australian Politics and Society - Part 2

>>13247561 Video: ASIO to censor term 'Islamic extremism' from espionage vocabulary - Sky News Australia

>>13247969 U.S. Space Force - Australian exchange officer exemplifies excellence in space career - Royal Australian Air Force Squadron Leader Jaimee Maika

>>13248019 ASIO Twitter Thread - "Spies and terrorists should know this: we are looking for you. And for the rest of the Australian community: we are looking out for you. ASIO is your security service."

>>13248019 Video: ASIO Director-General of Security Mike Burgess - "To those conducting espionage and foreign interference in our country. If you're doing this, ASIO and our partners will hunt you down."

>>13256977, >>13256981 ASIO warning: Threat of nation-state espionage and foreign interference set to supplant terrorism as the greatest threat to Australian security by 2025

>>13257003 Order of Nine Angles: What is this obscure Nazi Satanist group?

>>13257754 Foreign Minister Marise Payne Tweet: I had a warm & productive discussion with @SecDef Austin today focused on progressing outcomes from #AUSMIN 2020 & strengthening cooperation with regional partners.

>>13257754 U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III Tweet: Productive call with Australia’s Acting Minister for Defence @MarisePayne to discuss my ongoing trip to the Indo-Pacific region. The Unbreakable Alliance remains strong. We stand with our Australian allies as we look forward to the next 100 years of mateship.

>>13257865 Video: Annual Threat Assessment 2021 - Director-General of Security - Australian Security Intelligence Organisation

>>13260735 Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton threatens defamation action against Greens Senator Larissa Waters over “rape apologist” slur

>>13260752 Greens Senator Larissa Waters Tweet: WOMEN DO NOT LIE ABOUT BEING RAPED @PeterDutton_MP YOU INHUMANE, SEXIST RAPE APOLOGIST

>>13260752 Greens Senator Larissa Waters Press Release: Rape apologists and PM's arse-covering contribute to sexist and misogynistic culture in politics

>>13266943 Why the Quad’s a big strategic step forward for Australia - Alexander Downer - afr.com

>>13267035 Show and tell: the ‘not-so-secret’ mission of ASIO boss Mike Burgess

>>13273713 Sonnenkrieg Division: Australia lists right-wing organisation as terrorist group for the first time

>>13286902 ASIO calls for more extremists on terror list after Sonnenkrieg Division becomes first on list in Australia

>>13287867 The “strange” ideology of QAnon conspiracists - definition and etymology of "strange"

>>13286983 Video: Parliament of Australia Senate Estimates - ASIO Director-General Mike Burgess and Senator Kristina Keneally - 'QAnon, we can have a conversation about them.'

>>13301300 Video: ASIO watching Australian right-wing extremist groups - Sky News Australia

>>13301505 US neo-Nazi group recruits young Australians, secret recordings reveal

>>13301512 Australians recorded spruiking far-right credentials to global Neo-Nazi group - ABC News In-depth

>>13311373 NIKE Satan shoe with human blood - Lil Nas X - https://satan.shoes

>>13311389 A matching Video. They don't hide it anymore. - Lil Nas X - MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name) (Official Video)

>>13311419Q Post #3594 - Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Prepare. For God & Country. For Humanity. We FIGHT!

>>13319973 Greens senator Larissa Waters retracts “rape apologist” tweet against Peter Dutton, issues an “unreserved” apology

>>13319973 Greens Senator Larissa Waters Tweet: I unreservedly apologise to Minister Dutton for the hurt, distress and damage to his reputation I have caused him

>>13319973 Greens Senator Larissa Waters Press Release: Apology to Peter Dutton - 24 MAR 2021

>>13320197 Myanmar’s worst day of violence sparks global military response - Australia’s Chief of Defence Angus Campbell issues rare joint statement with armed force leaders around the world

>>13320197 Foreign Minister Marise Payne Tweet: Australia strongly condemns the continued & horrific use of lethal force against civilians in Myanmar

>>13320197 Joint Statement of Chiefs of Defense Condemning Military-Sponsored Violence in Myanmar - General Angus J. Campbell, Chief of the Defence Force

>>13320397 Marise Payne the ‘prime minister for women’ as Morrison adds women’s taskforce in reshuffle

>>13320426 Australian government backflips on secrecy push in Witness K court case

>>13322614 Video: Peter Dutton becomes defence minister - Mr Morrison praises Mr Dutton’s record as home affairs minister, thanking him for his years of service

>>13335655 RAAF planning for new military space command as it celebrates 100th anniversary

>>13335660 Australia to build its own missiles with $1bn guided weapons facility

#14 - Part 3

Australian Government Sexual Assault Allegations

>>13168673 Defence Minister Linda Reynolds delays her return to work, raising questions about her future

>>13173322 Video: Three women go public with allegations against MP Craig Kelly's senior aide, Frank Zumbo - ABC News In-depth

>>13177491 Former Labor staffer Anna Jabour reveals the sexual misconduct she faced working in Parliament House under Prime Minister Julia Gillard

>>13189962 Linda Reynolds to pay damages to Brittany Higgins over ‘lying cow’ comment

>>13216720 Video: Christian Porter launches defamation action against ABC and journalist Louise Milligan

>>13279431, >>13279439 Images show senior government staff performing sex acts at Parliament House

>>13279446 Video: Finance Minister warns other Coalition staffers involved in lewd Parliament sex acts will be sacked

>>13279459 Video: Scott Morrison on verge of tears addressing culture within parliament

>>13293704 Peta Credlin says she sacked staffer at centre of lewd video, alleges orgies in Parliament

>>13293721 Video: Peta Credlin reveals Canberra staffer incidents for first time - Sky News Australia

>>13294106 Warren Entsch contradicts Peta Credlin, claiming he sacked staffer accused of solo sex act

>>13301036 Dossier of lewd sex acts to spark sackings - Whistleblower passes on information to Simon Birmingham and Kristina Keneally

>>13320062 Video: Liberal MP Andrew Laming to quit politics at next election after allegations of harassing women online

#14 - Part 4

Dassi Erlich Tweets / Malka Leifer Extradition and Prosecution

>>13190070 Fears alleged sex offender principal Malka Leifer could dodge justice - years of publicity may preclude a fair trial by an unbiased jury

#14 - Part 5

Australian Defence Force Afghanistan Inquiry

>>13168726 Brigadier Ian Langford, commander during period when Australian troops allegedly committed war crimes, prevented from handing back distinguished leadership medal

>>13241878 ‘Very serious criminal conduct’: Ben Roberts-Smith faces allegations of two more crimes on top of alleged involvement in six unlawful killings

#14 - Part 6

Cardinal George Pell and Vatican Financial Scandal Allegations

>>13165358 Video: Cardinal George Pell is a keynote speaker at the Australian #ChurchAndState Summit in 2021 - Church And State

>>13273728 Vatican money transfers no crime: Australian Federal Police

#14 - Part 7

Australian and Regional Resignations

>>13190628 ‘Personal cost’: Deloitte Australia CEO Richard Deutsch in shock early resignation

>>13248113 Hockeyroos coach Paul Gaudoin in shock resignation amid 'distressing' allegations of bullying, body-shaming and homophobic behaviour

>>13335678 Nationals MP Michael Johnsen resigns from NSW parliament following rape allegation he denies

#14 - Part 8

2020 US Presidential Election - Australian Perspectives

>>13165228 YouTube chief Susan Wojcicki: Donald Trump can return when risk of violence abates

>>13165440 Pentagon considers extending the stay of National Guard troops at Capitol for “the next couple of months”

>>13328396 THE OFFICE OF DONALD J. TRUMP - 45th President of the United States - 45office.com - White House Rose Garden with Australian Flag

#14 - Part 9

Coronavirus / COVID-19 Pandemic, Australia and Worldwide

>>13177350 Video: Coronavirus: Anthony Fauci praises Australia response, lockdowns

>>13177438 Rocco Galati Tweet: Australian Health Minister hospitalized, "in serious condition", day after receiving Covid, Astra-Zeneca, Vaccine

>>13183855 Scott Morrison says he will act as health minister but Greg Hunt will return to work next week

>>13190587 Prime Minister Scott Morrison: ‘AstraZeneca is safe’ - Australia not concerned by reports of blood clots in Europe

>>13301064 Clive Palmer’s anti-vax pamphlets slammed by Scott Morrison as “complete rubbish”

#14 - Part 10

Julian Assange Indictment and Extradition

>>13184085 Julian Assange's father, John Shipton, in Katoomba and Hazelbrook, New South Wales

>>13196546 Julian Assange’s father brings his fight to free his son to Canberra

>>13273605 Bipartisan delegation of Australian MPs meets with US embassy about Julian Assange

>>13275730 Video: The Aussie human rights lawyer who has stood by Julian Assange for 10 years - ABC / Australian Story

>>13328158 Pope sends Julian Assange personal message to his jail cell, partner Stella Moris says

#14 - Part 11

Child Exploitation, Pedophilia, Sexual Abuse and Human Trafficking Investigations

>>13168834 Video: World Cup rugby star Tony Daly speaks out about his childhood sexual abuse - ABC News Australia

>>13190149 Two women face court over alleged planned female genital mutilation of two-week-old baby in WA

>>13190664 NSW man James Robert Davis charged with keeping slave in Sydney suburb of Maroubra

>>13196575 Video: Man travels from Mt Isa to Brisbane to meet ‘girl’ who was undercover cop - Arrested by Detectives from Task Force Argos

>>13228625 Video: Escaping a sex cult: How Australian women were enslaved in plain sight (James Davis) - ABC / Four Corners

>>13235103 Former 'slave' Felicity Bourke speaks out about abusive sex cult being run from a rural property (James Davis)

>>13241444 Video: Australian Federal Police call for more people to come forward after James Davis charged with slavery offences

>>13241449 New South Wales cops ‘warned about alleged sex-slave ring’ in 2019 (James Davis)

>>13243916 Former prison guard James Davis denied bail over slavery offences - "kept in strict protection" 24 hours a day in Tamworth Correctional Centre

>>13254455 Operation Arkstone: Shaun Dregmans arrested in dawn raid, faces child abuse charges - 20th man allegedly linked to the country’s biggest child sex abuse network

>>13254494 Video: Operation Arkstone Update: Additional 152 charges laid against Sydney man, junior soccer coach Grant Harden

>>13266971 ‘He’s not a hero, he’s a paedophile’: new claims against Ken Dyers, Kenja Communications spiritual chief

>>13301085 Former Queensland MP Trevor Perrett charged with indecent treatment of young girls under 16 and 17

>>13307405 Video: First exit trafficking conviction in Australia - Sydney man used threats, coercion and deception to force a woman and her child to return to India

>>13322581 Video: Australian Prime Minister on the work of former Home Affairs minister, Peter Dutton, to help take down global pedophile networks

>>13335667 South Australian MP staffer Ben Waters charged with child abuse-related offences

#14 - Part 12

Australia / China Tensions - Part 1

>>13183795 Quad members hype ‘China threat’ theory to bolster their boldness - Mu Lu - globaltimes.cn

>>13184102 Former Hong Kong lawmaker and pro-democracy activist Ted Hui moves to Australia

>>13184169 Video: Australia’s top spy, ASIO director-general Mike Burgess ‘knows’ culprit behind ANU cyber attack, but won’t say

>>13184562 Video: End nears for Victoria’s Belt and Road deal with Chinese government under foreign veto laws

>>13190373 Chinese takeover of iron ore operations on Cockatoo Island near Australian military training area causes unease inside defence and government

>>13190431 Hong Kong activist Ted Hui welcome to campaign in Australia, says head of government intelligence committee Senator James Paterson

>>13190540 Liberal Party donor Huifeng 'Haha' Liu 'engaged in acts of foreign interference': ASIO

>>13195888 China tells UN Australia's offshore detention centres violate human rights, don't have adequate conditions

>>13196535 Elise Thomas Tweet: They're right. This is something we should be ashamed of and something we need to fix. Whataboutism is a cop-out and we should lead by example on human rights issues

>>13200581 Propelling 'Asian NATO' beyond US capacity: Global Times editorial - globaltimes.cn

>>13241473 Australian media launches false spy accusations against Chinese business man; expatriates from the mainland at risk in the country: analysts - globaltimes.cn

>>13241520 ‘Just not going to happen’: US Indo-Pacific co-ordinator Kurt Campbell warns China over Australian trade stoush - 'we are not going to leave Australia alone on the field'

>>13241531 Campbell’s remarks push Australia further to the anti-China frontline - Chen Hong - globaltimes.cn

>>13241570 Britain aligns with Australia against China - Beijing “a systemic challenge” to British prosperity and values

>>13241638 Beijing blames Australia’s ‘wrong words and deeds’ for trade war after US rebuke

>>13241643 Transcript - Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian's Regular Press Conference on March 16, 2021

>>13247914 Video: Don’t expect a breakthrough in U.S.-China talks, former Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd says - CNBC International TV

>>13254571 PDF: Consider reclaiming Darwin Port from Chinese company Landbridge, committee advises federal government

>>13254571 Joint Standing Committee on Trade and Investment Growth - Inquiry Into Diversifying Australia's Trade And Investment Profile

>>13254635 (2019) Former trade minister Andrew Robb quits China-linked firm Landbridge before foreign interference law kicks in

>>13254654 South Australian Premier Steven Marshall accepts invitation to formally open controversial Adelaide Chinese Consulate

>>13264371 Australian Trade Minister Dan Tehan: The US has 'got our back' on Chinese diplomatic disputes

>>13273939 China faces pressure from Australian parliament on treatment of Uighurs, religious minorities

#14 - Part 13

Australia / China Tensions - Part 2

>>13286591 Beijing to Canberra, Washington: don’t ‘blackmail China’

>>13286599 Transcript - Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying's Regular Press Conference on March 22, 2021

>>13286669 Aussie motion apes US claims - Canberra blindfolded maneuver on Xinjiang to prove loyalty to US at cost of own national interest - Xu Keyue - globaltimes.cn

>>13293622 Video: ‘Behaving very badly’: NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has Australia’s back on China ‘bullying’

>>13293650 Video: China’s ‘blatant coercion’ of Australia is a lesson for the world, says Antony Blinken

>>13293650 Transcript - Reaffirming and Reimagining America’s Alliances - ANTONY J. BLINKEN, SECRETARY OF STATE - MARCH 24, 2021

>>13293813 China official Zhao Lijian’s fake news on Manus ‘camps’

>>13293813 Lijian Zhao Tweet: The #Australian government built detention centers on the #Manus Island, which "accommodates" tens of thousands of people from war-torn countries

>>13293813 Lijian Zhao Tweet: According to the Lowy Institute, almost one in five #Chinese #Australians have been physically threatened or attacked in the past year because of their heritage

>>13300945 Foreign Minister Marise Payne - Joint statement on Human Rights Abuses in Xinjiang

>>13300953 Stop looking at others through a magnifying glass: Chinese FM spokesperson urging Australia to reflect on its own problems - globaltimes.cn

>>13300964, >>13300969 Transcript - Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying's Regular Press Conference on March 24, 2021

>>13301011 China a vindictive and unreliable trading partner: Australian ambassador Graham Fletcher

>>13301277 Iron ore tycoon Andrew Forrest pleads with west to mend its relationship with China "to avoid damaging the global economy and environment"

>>13307443 Australia to join The Quad allies at French-led naval exercise in April - 'La Perouse' war game in Bay of Bengal

>>13307537 Boris Johnson Tweet: The MPs and other British citizens sanctioned by China today are performing a vital role shining a light on the gross human rights violations being perpetrated against Uyghur Muslims. Freedom to speak out in opposition to abuse is fundamental and I stand firmly with them.

>>13307537 Prime Minister Scott Morrison Tweet: Australia stands with you Boris

>>13307537 UK denounces China sanctions over Xinjiang as Western rift widens - China has imposed sanctions on individuals from the EU and Britain who have taken up the Uighur cause.

>>13320303 GT Voice: Complicating trade issues won’t help Canberra’s woes - globaltimes.cn

>>13327894 SA Premier Steven Marshall shouted down by protesters at China consulate opening

>>13328300 Australia incorrectly believes US will protect its interests: former Australian diplomat Bruce Haigh - Yu Jincui - globaltimes.cn

>>13328317 China - Reality Check - Bruce Haigh - brucehaigh.com.au - "Hedonism and corruption dominate the LNP, which Morrison encapsulates. Australia has never had a lazier Prime Minister"

#14 - Part 14

Virginia Roberts Giuffre, Prince Andrew, Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell

>>13184365 PDF: Ghislaine Maxwell’s family shares ‘facts’ on Twitter as feds fight third bail bid

>>13184365 GMaxFacts Tweet: We know Ghislaine better than anyone, we are her family. It is our mission to shine light on the real Ghislaine, not the figure of fiction caricatured by the media

>>13184365 GMaxFacts Tweet: As a pre-trial detainee Ghislaine is innocent and entitled to the presumption of innocence and due process which are fundamental to America’s system of justice

>>13184365 GMaxFacts Tweet: #DYK our sister is a kind & compassionate person. Dozens of letters of support affirming her kindness and generosity, honesty & integrity have been sent to the court

>>13190262 Ghislaine Maxwell to Sell London Home to Pay Legal Fees in Epstein Sex Case

>>13190266 "Virginia Roberts Giuffre, alleges that she was brought there in 2001 as a 17-year-old and forced to have sex with the U.K.’s Prince Andrew"

>>13200276 ‘My sister Ghislaine is not a monstrous pimp’ - Ian Maxwell says Jeffrey Epstein ruined his youngest sibling’s life and she is paying for the US authorities’ failure to prosecute him

>>13247597 Buyer of Jeffrey Epstein’s NYC mansion is Australian expatriate and former Goldman Sachs executive, Michael D. Daffey

>>13254394 PDF: Judge Rules Some Ghislaine Maxwell Details Are Too ‘Sensational and Impure’ to Be Revealed to the Public

>>13260936 Video: Ghislaine Maxwell's brother, Ian Maxwell insists she should be treated as 'presumed innocent': 'She is not Epstein'

>>13286748 PDF: Ghislaine Maxwell denied bail in Manhattan court, judge cites 'experience evading detection'

>>13287302 Richard Branson Opening Second Private Island Next to His Own Celeb-Favorite Retreat: Photos

>>13307241 PDF: Ghislaine Maxwell on ‘fishing expedition’ for explosive evidence from Jeffrey Epstein accusers: lawyers

>>13327823 PDF: New sex trafficking crimes brought against Ghislaine Maxwell - sex trafficking conspiracy and sex trafficking of a minor

>>13335629 PDF: A lawsuit names Jeffrey Epstein, Maxwell and alleges actions sinister even by his standards

#14 - Part 15

Qanon / Conspiracy Theory Hit Pieces, Australia and Worldwide

>>13164555 QAnon: where does the conspiracy go to from here? - Phillip Adams - theaustralian.com.au

>>13184203 Video: SNEAK PEEK: QAnon mind games - 'The doomsday cult tearing Aussie families apart. 60 Minutes expose the dangerous mind games of QAnon'

>>13184887 Video: Q: Into the Storm (2021) | Official Trailer - HBO - 'a labyrinthine journey to uncover the forces behind QAnon, a movement fueled by conspiracy theories that has grown in scope and political significance'

>>13216665 Video: The dangerous Qanon cult tearing families apart with conspiracies - 60 Minutes Australia

>>13216784 The rise of conspiracy mentality in the US - 'something that Jews need to watch with special care' - Solomon D. Stevens - ajn.timesofisrael.com

>>13241592 Is this Q? Documentary claims Ron Watkins could be QAnon leader - Lucy Quaggin - 7news.com.au

>>13241609 Leader of QAnon conspiracy group unmasked, new documentary claims - Natalie Brown - news.com.au

>>13266834 An Australian celebrity lifestyle influencer is hosting some of the world's most notorious conspiracy theorists on his podcast - Tom Porter - businessinsider.com.au

>>13273751 History repeats itself: From the New Testament to QAnon - Timothy Pettipiece - theconversation.com

>>13273818 HBO's QAnon documentary 'Q: Into the Storm' searches for its origins but misses its meaning - Sam Thielman - nbcnews.com

>>13286983 Video: Parliament of Australia Senate Estimates - ASIO Director-General Mike Burgess and Senator Kristina Keneally - 'QAnon, we can have a conversation about them.'

>>13313378 What has QAnon got to do with Australians? - Margaret Simons - smh.com.au

>>13320247 Who is Q? Maker of HBO docuseries ‘Q: Into the Storm’ believes he has the answer - Meredith Blake - latimes.com

NEW OZ BREAD

Q Research AUSTRALIA #15 - NEVER RETREAT FROM THE BATTLEFIELD Edition

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Filling #14…..