My experience inside the United Australia party: why UAP’s humiliating defeat & When will Ralph defect from UAP?

 

After running as a federal candidate for the United Australia party in the seat of Reid, these are my observation about the reasons why UAP suffered a humiliating defeat, despite the big spending budget.

Even before I joined the party and put my nomination as candidate, I struggled to find any physical trace of the party. The party has no offices, no declared officials and no branches. The only way to contact the party was through an email on the website, and no response was received, ever.

From day one after I joined the party and put in my nomination to run as a candidate, I was shocked by the UAP structural and image problems that prevented the party from progressing and increasing its votes and its chances to win any seat for the last decade. It seems that these problems will continue in the future, as Clive insists on treating the party as a business.

Some of these problems are: 

1- The party has no structure to allow internal democracy: the party has no state managing committee, no spokesperson, no policies committee and no branches.

The party is in fact not a political party, it is just a business branch of Clive Palmer’s companies.

2- Members had no say in choosing the candidates, design of the leaflets or corflutes or have a say about preferences.

3- Party centralised campaign with no enough funding for local campaigning and most of the campaign materials were not fit for local campaigning. Simply: No professional campaigning.

4- Party is not consistent in its political campaigning: it is campaigning only once every three years during the Federal election: it is a seasonal shop for seasonal products.

5- The lack of internal democracy resulted in the big mistakes that happened in the last election.

Some of these mistakes were:

a- The party is the only political party that gave its candidates an order early in the campaign not to talk to the media (in an email from state directors on 22 Feb 2022 after ABC journalist Elise Worthington contacted some candidates to ask few questions, which sent Clive into panic)

b- The party has no written policies: Clive makes policies on the run with no consultation of members or candidates

c- When the Ukraine conflict started, Clive disendorsed candidates that did not agree with it.

d- the biggest mistake was the disgraceful How To Vote Cards recommending UAP voters to preference Liberals ahead of freedom parties like One Nation, Great Australia party, IMOP… which caused the biggest backlash against the party among freedom voters.

e- The funding scandal resulted from Clive’s bid to prevent any member from gaining any influence by enforcing ALL candidates to use blank materials: same corflutes, same leaflets, same t-shirts, same hats… Even Facebook was the same and candidates were “customers” and not admins of their own pages. Many candidates spent huge amounts of money believing they will win significant votes or they will win their seats based on fake “internal poll”. Now the party told all of candidates: good luck, we will not pay for these campaign costs.

6- Party never had an appropriate AGM (required by the constitution) to elect its managing committee members in the states. The state party never elected any spokesperson or media committee to deal with the media on behalf of the party. Palmer is the Chairman, spokesperson on all issues, secretary, treasurer, policy maker….

7- The campaign was conducted based on lies from Clive: whenever Clive faced any situation of distrust and threat of rebellion, he resorted to lying. When his policy on Ukraine faced many resentments, he came up with the lie of internal poll predicting that UAP will get 15 – 18% of the votes, will win 4-10 seats and at least 6 senate spots, threatening that any disunity for any reason will jeopardise party’s campaign and the chance to win the seats. He even told me that I will win Reid, as I was the most vocal candidate against his dictatorship. Just to silence me by selling me and others a mirage. Clive also made promises that were never delivered: that every household will receive leaflets for local candidates sent through centralised delivery twice before election day. No single leaflet was sent to any household, except in Hughes.

To keep this dictatorship:

1- The party never registered at the state level in any state. Previously, the party registered in QLD, won seats and then every MP defected from the party after experiencing total dictatorship and bullying from Clive.

2- Clive photo is everywhere: on every How to Vote Cards, candidates’ leaflets, the Facebook, Website…. The voters know only their local candidate (which is different in each election) and Clive.

3- Centralisation of the campaign and the funding to keep all resources in the hands of Clive. Even after AEC starts refunding seats that got more than 4%, the money will go to Clive, to kill any prospect of self-sufficient branch.

The party had the biggest budget among parties that contested the last 3 federal elections. Most of the budget was wasted on centralised campaigning, which did not win UAP many votes. We are aware that many of the campaign materials were big waste that will be destroyed by the tip. The millions wasted should have been allocated to local branches to manage local campaigns in each seat. 

We noted on the campaign that the voters’ refused to vote for UAP as they refused to vote for “Clive party”, because “Clive needs to pay his collapsed Nickel company workers” or because they do not want to re-elect Morrison’s government through a dodgy preference deal. We discovered after the election was over that these arguments were the biggest hurdles that poisoned the UAP campaign. For the last decade, the party was considered by voters as a back door to re-elect LNP or/and a company of a corrupt businessman.

Many members now believe that UAP was created to save LNP from collapse. Otherwise, why is UAP refusing to win any seat in state elections, if we know that 4.5% of the votes are enough to win a seat on the NSW Legislative Council on full quota?

Now, after many members and candidates started campaigning inside the party against the dictatorship, and in a bid for Clive to refute their claims, he announced that he will “buy” a party in NSW and Victoria and will run candidates in these states. We were told at one of the Zoom meetings with Clive that contacts were already done with the Open Sydney party to buy it, and that party refused. Clive insists that his millions will buy one of these smaller parties to run candidates in the next Vic and NSW state elections, Nov 2022 & Mar 2023.

Why buy a party if you could have registered state parties?

Just to silence the dissent from the members and candidates after the humiliating defeat on 21 May?

Currently, we are building a political branch in Reid and surrounding areas. We know that the hundreds of thousands of UAP voters have good hearts and intention to vote for the party that let them down. We are trying to find them an alternative: democratic, transparent and grass-root alternative. We will announce the details of this movement soon.

Knowing the reality of the UAP dictatorship under Clive, we expect Ralph Babet, who was elected to the senate for Victoria, to defect soon from the party. Remember that the average time needed for any politician to defect from UAP was 2 years. Remember Jakie Lambie, Glenn Lazarus, Alex Douglas, Francis Xavier Kurrupuwu, Carl Judge, Alison Anderson, Larisa Lee…?

I give Ralph less than 1 year to defect.

 

National schizophrenia: Immigration system during COVID as a clear example

Australian federal government is facing major challenges because of COVID19, its impact and related restrictions. I agree that there are different views on the reality of what is happening and how to deal with the pandemic. But in this opinion piece, I will follow the official line of explanations and assume that the measures taken by Australian authorities to be in the best interest of Australian residents. I will assume also that the measures will also help other nations and their nationals, or at least will not harm them.

The official story about COVID19 is that it is a deadly virus that is easily transmitted and if not contained will kill hundreds of millions similar to Spanish Flu. The official way of dealing with the virus is to limit movement of people around the world, around the states and around the suburbs. This is why WA is in Iron Wall closure since WHO declared COVID as pandemic. And this is why Australian federal government had sealed our international borders and stopped any movement from and to Australia, expect for very limited cases of Australians allowed to return or workers in critical sectors.

If I agree to this logic, workers at the department of immigration, members of AAT and judges at Federal and High courts should agree also. The minister himself, should agree with the logic his government wants to enforce on us.

These harsh measures caused collapse not only of our economy, but also of our delicate demographic balance: especially the generational balance of old and young. With our migration system stagnant since March 2020, the impact of this stagnation is having devastating effect on our society at all levels.

The stagnation of our migration system had caused deep devastation on our farming sector, with shortage of 50,000 workers causing many farmers to abandon their crops and hence declaring bankruptcy.

Other sectors are deeply devastated also: hospitality, entertainment and tourism.

Not only the stagnation had affected our immediate needs of workers in specific sectors and fields, it also affected our future balance between retirees and new generations that will replace these retirees. Large section of our future generations comes form migration: through marriage, skilled or refugee intakes. 

The Australian authorities will not sacrifice all this unless they are sure that the pandemic is deadly.

From my professional work, I started to doubt that authorities consider the pandemic to be deadly or even slightly dangerous. I will give examples.

Amid COVID pandemic, we (as migration agents) thought that the department of immigration will show great leniency in dealing with both Australians and non-Australians living in Australia. We also thought that other level of authorities like the tribunals and courts will show the same level of leniency.

We thought that leniency is beneficial for both of us: we and them - Australian and migrants.  

We though, and it is highly logical to think so, that leniency will help in filling vacant 35,000 farming jobs that feed Australia and contribute to our GDP.

We also thought that leniency will help restore the delicate generational balance.

We also thought that leniency will help in achieving zero cases by limiting or stopping any movement around the world.

What we discovered was the opposite.

The department of immigration is back to its harsh processing of visas. The tribunals and courts are not taking the deadly nature of the pandemic into account when handing negative verdicts on cases that should have been straightforward.

I will give few examples.

In the case of Singh (Migration) [2021] AATA 1056 (7 January 2021), the AAT member noted that the applicant is “a young male who told the Tribunal that he suffers from no conditions, let alone any respiratory conditions….. {so}.., it is reasonable to conclude based on this that he is at a very low risk of developing serious symptoms that would entail him needing extensive medical support in the event that he developed the condition”. So, it is safe to deport him to India and separate him form his wife of 5 years.

So, AAT member deeply believes that young people (comprises more than 70% of the world population) is immune form the pandemic. The member assumes that all the media talks about deadly spread of the virus in India is mere propaganda. He also assumes that deporting this guy is safe and there is no harm in moving tens of thousands of similar “failed applicants” around the world. Such movement, by this logic, will not cause any harm to the world efforts to curb the deadly pandemic.

When I stated similar thoughts on my Facebook, Facebook banned my account for weeks as it considered me of spreading “false information” that could cause harm to large numbers of people.

The member’s opinion is an official invitation for vaccine sceptics to strengthen their campaigns against the vaccine: by this logic and if the majority of the world population are at very low risk of developing serious symptoms, why they should bother considering taking a jab that has some proven deadly side effects?

Mr Singh is an Indian national married for 5 years to an Australian citizen. His application to stay in Australia on partner visa was refused because he does not satisfy a bureaucratic legislative requirement, despite the fact that the department and the tribunal have the power to approve his application on “compelling reasons”.

What more compelling than a deadly pandemic that caused worldwide financial meltdown and strict closures of borders?!!

And why does our minister tear his hair out every time farmers or hospitality business owners asking him to help filling the job vacancies that causing them bankruptcy?

And how we can justify department deporting an Indian national who is a partner of an Australian citizen to his death, while threatening to jail any Australian trying to flee the death from India?

This is a national schizophrenia: Authorities have solutions on their hands but instead they are creating more troubles that could present solutions to existing ones.

And there are hundreds (if not thousands and tens of thousands) of similar cases.

Minister for immigration can find instantly today enough workers to work in farms to secure our food security and prevent the mass collapse of farming sector. Find enough workers in other sectors facing critical shortage. All what he needs to do is to relax the harsh unnecessary red tape in our migration system.

We are the only developed nation that asked partners married to Australian citizens to leave Australia to be able to live with their Australian citizens (or residents).

We are the only democracy on earth that measures national security and sovereignty by numbers of days partners of Australian citizens had last had a substantive visa.

We are the only democracy on earth that scarifies its food security and financial stability because of bureaucratic red-tape of how the people (who will help save us from hunger) entered the country or how they met their Australian partners and when.

The Australian federal government deafened our ears about how deadly is the COVID pandemic, but it did not advice its employees at the department of immigration, AAT and Federal courts of this fact. Does not this constitute a national schizophrenia?

What kind of national schizophrenia that allows judges to move masses around the world because of simple migration red-tape, causing major disruption to world-wide efforts to contain deadly pandemic, but at the same time arresting and issuing hefty fines to citizens for not wearing masks or defying curfew?

Much of our troubles in maintaining our food security and the prosperity of this nation (and stopping the spread of the pandemic world-wide) depends on a direction from the government to ignore the unnecessary and dangerous red-tape bureaucratic legislations. Legislations that contravene the official advice about the deadly nature of COVID pandemic, as government claims.  

Of course, leniency with refugees arrived by boats and skilled migrants currently in Australia will also achieve all above-mentioned benefits and will help prevent spreading the deadly pandemic.

   

 

 

حقيقة ما حصل في الاردن بعيدا عن التحليلات التقليدية

 

بمجرد الاعلان عن "وأد الفتنة" في الاردن وما رافقها من اعتقالات واجراءات احترازية, تنطح المحللون التقليديون لتشريح ما حدث هناك بطريقة لم تجب على اهم الاسئلة التي كان يجب ان تطرح وتتعرض للكثير من التمحيص والتشريح. 

فالمحللون التقليديون لم يعطونا جوابا شافيا عن سر توقيت "الفتنة" الان ولماذا تاخرت ان كانت قد تاخرت (حيث ان مطالب الامير حمزة بالاصلاح قديمة). او لماذا تم الاستعجال بها ان كانت حصلت في وقت قياسي. فالمتامرون المعلن عنهم لا يوجد ما يجمعهم تاريخيا ويبدو ان القوى التي اقنعتهم للتعاون كانت على عجلة من امرها لتحقيق اجندة ما او لمنع اجندات معينة من التحقق. 

فالامير حمزة وحسب كل من تصدى للدفاع عنه (خصوصا معارضة الخارج) لم يقم ابدا علاقة مع باسم عوض الله. بل ذهب البعض منهم الى اتهام العوض الله بالفساد وان ربط اسمه بالامير حمزة في هذه القضية هدفه تشويه سمعة الامير والتقليل من قيمة مطالبه بالاصلاح ومحاربة الفساد. وفي الظروف الطبيعية, يعتبر هذا المنطق صائبا وحقيقيا. 

كما ان المحللين التقليديين لم يجيبوا عن تساؤل مهم عن سر دخول السعودية والمحسوبين على ولي العهد محمد بن سلمان على خط محاولة الاطاحة بالملك عبدالله الثاني, بالرغم من ان النظامين الملكيين كانا على وفاق كبير في معظم قضايا المنطقة تاريخيا 

المحللون التقليديون ما زالوا يقسمون العالم الى محورين رئيسيين تقليديين هما: محور امريكا والناتو وحلفائهما من جهة ومحور روسيا – الصين – ايران من جهة اخرى. وفي هذا المقال ساوضح بما لا يدع مجالا للشك ان هذا التقسيم مضلل وخاطئ وبالي عفى عليه الزمن. 

فمفاوضات فيينا والغزل الواضح بين النظام الايراني وادارة بايدن تثبت ان مكان ايران ليس في المحور الروسي – الصيني كما كان يراد لنا ان نتخيل. 

بل ان الغزل الكبير بين النظام الصيني وادارة بايدن وتعليق الادارة لكثير من الاجراءات الاقتصادية التي فرضها ترامب على الصين من فرض رسوم جمركية على الصادرات الصينية والتعاون الكبير بين ادارة بايدن مع الصين لتمرير مشروع الكورونا, رغم المعارضة الروسية, يوحي ايضا ان المحور الروسي – الصيني ايضا هو محور على الورق وليس حقيقيا 

كما ان المحللين التقليديين اهملوا (صدفة او عن قصد) تحليل وتشريح العلاقة القوية الوطيدة بين روسيا وادارة الرئيس ترامب. هذه العلاقة التي قلبت المعادلات والتوازنات وجاءت لاسباب لم يتعمق بتحليلها الكثيرون. 

استطيع ان ادعي واثقا ان عام 2016 كان عاما حاسما على المسرح الدولي وان افرازاته شكلت النقلة النوعية في التوازنات الدولية, وصولا الى الفوضى العارمة التي يعيشها العالم الان. هذه الفوضى التي شملت نقل تزوير الانتخابات كعلامة تجارية خاصة للدول النامية, لتمارس بشكل علني ومفضوح في انتخابات زعيمة العالم الحر. هذا العام (2016) ايضا شهد محاولات الدولة العميقة لزعزعة استقرار زعيمة العالم الحر بمسميات "نشر الديمقراطية" و"الثورات الملونة" التي لم تكن تمارس الا في دول العالم الثالث 

نتائج انتخابات عام 2016 في الولايات المتحدة اوضحت بشكل جلي ان الدولة العميقة التي تحكم العالم (سرا وبشكل مفضوح) عبر التحكم بالصحافة والاعلام ووسائل التواصل الاجتماعي واللوبيات الضخمة ومؤسسات نشر الديمقراطية العابرة للقارات, كانت على وشك الانقسام بين معسكرين: الدولة العميقة المدمرة التي نهجت مبدأ تدمير النظام العالمي القائم على نظام "الدولة الوطنية القومية" عن طريق عسكرة العالم وخلق نزاعات عسكرية واسعة وفوضى في النظام العالمي لهدم نظام الدولة الوطنية المعمول به منذ انتهاء الحرب العالمية الاولى . هذا المعسكر الذي يتصدره مجمع الصناعات العسكرية وشركات النفط العملاقة وادواتهم من بيل جيتس وجورج سورس والعائلات السياسية الحاكمة كلينتون اوباما بوش. والمعسكر الثاني المتمرد على الفوضى الشاملة وتدمير نظام الدولة الوطنية المتمثل بشركات البناء والاعمار وكثير من الشركات العملاقة التي ترى ان انهيار النظام الراسمالي الحالي والذي كانت بوادره الانهيارات الكبرى المتتالية في اسواق الاسهم والاقتصاديات الكبرى اعوام 2007 , 2015 , 2020 كان سببه الرئيس هو الافراط في عسكرة العالم ونشر الفوضى "الخلاقة" في مناطق مهمة واسعة وان الحل الوحيد لاخراج النظام الاقتصادي العالمي من ازماته المتكررة الخانقة هو انهاء الفوضى والعنف واعادة الاستقرار للعالم للبدء باعادة البناء وما سينتج عنه من انتعاش اقتصادي عالمي كبير. هذا المعسكر الذي يقوده الثنائي ترامب – بوتين بالتعاون مع الحكومة البرازيلية والهندية 

معسكر بوتين – ترامب ادرك منذ الايام الاولى لتسلم ترامب السلطة وشروعه باعادة الاستقرار للمناطق الملتهبة عبر تدمير المنظمات الارهابية والبدء باعادة الاعتبار للدول الوطنية المتحولة الى دول فاشلة او شبه فاشلة كليبيا والعراق وسوريا واليمن والسودان, ادرك هذا المحور ان طريقه صعبة ولا بد من قلب كل التوازنات الدولية القائمة التي ارستها الدولة العميقة المتوحشة خلال عقود او حتى قرون 

فمن كان يعتقد يوما ان تقوم السعودية باقامة علاقات استراتيجية مع روسيا وشراء منظومات سلاح متطورة منها؟ ومن كان يتخيل يوما ان تصبح علاقة دولة من دول الناتو بروسيا اقوى من علاقة هذه الدولة باعضاء حلفها؟ بل ومن كان يعتقد ان تقوم الولايات المتحدة ايام ترامب بالانسحاب من مناطق استراتيجية كسوريا وليبيا ومصر لصالح روسيا, التي كان لها مطلق اليد لاعادة تشكيل التحالفات في هذه الدول واعادة الاعتبار لقواها الوطنية؟ 

عود على بدء للحديث عما حدث في الاردن وللاجابة عن التساؤل عن توقيت الاحداث هناك, يجب ان نذكر ان الزلزال الذي ضرب الدولة العميقة بفوز ترامب بالرئاسة عام 2016 وتقاربه مع روسيا وقلب التحالفات الاستراتيجية حول العالم, اجبر الدولة العميقة لتسريع اعلان الحرب العالمية الثالثة والتي لم يكن من الممكن اعلانها عسكريا لوجود سلاح نووي رادع بايدي كل المتخاصمين. الحرب العالمية الثالثة جاءت هذه المرة على شكل زلزال كذبة الكورونا الذي هدم الاقتصاد العالمي وكان المفترض به انهاء التمرد الذي قاده معسكر ترامب – بوتين على الدولة العميقة المسيطرة عن طريق اخراج ترامب من السلطة وانهاء تاثيره في السياسة بالكامل. 

وفي الاردن, كان الملك عبدالله الثاني قد اختار الانضمام لمعسكر ادارة بايدن – الصين حتى قبل تزوير الانتخابات الامريكية واخراج ترامب من البيت الابيض. فالنظام الاردني كان اول نظام سياسي في العالم يفرض اجراءات احترازية صارمة جدا بشان الكورونا منها حظر تجول شامل واغلاق المطارات والحدود واجبار الناس على ارتداء الكمامات وغيرها من الاجراءات التي مهدت لتعميمها على دول العالم حين اعتبرت منظمة الصحة العالمية (وهي احدى ادوات السيطرة للدولة العميقة) ان الاجراءات الاردنية مثالية ويجب ان يحتذى تطبيقها في كل دول العالم. كما انحاز النظام الاردني الى اجندات ادارة بايدن بخلق توترات مع المملكة السعودية وحلفائها (وهم جميعا حلفاء لترامب) فيما يخص معاهدات السلام الابراهيمي وصولا الى خلق توترات مباشرة مع الكيان ومنع الطائرات من عبور اجواء المملكة متجهة بين "اسرائيل" ودول الخليج المطبعة. 

انحياز النظام الاردني بالكامل للدولة العميقة التي يمثلها حلف ادارة بايدن – الصين – ايران هو من اسرع في محاولات زعزعة النظام الاردني ابتداءا من الحراك الشعبي المطالب بفك الحظر وانهاء الاغلاق ومحاسبة الفاسدين وانتهاءا بتجميع القوى المحسوبة على محور ترامب – بوتين للانقضاض على النظام وازاحة راسه واستبداله بالامير حمزة. 

ما حدث في الاردن لا يعدو كونه حربا خفية بين المحاور الدولية لاخراج الاردن من محور وادخاله في محور اخر. فالسعودية والتي تعمل الان على زعزعة السيطرة الايرانية في لبنان والعراق, يهمها اخراج الاردن من محور بايدن – الصين – ايران وادخالها في محور ترامب – بوتين. 

وفي الايام الاخيرة وجهت السعودية ضربات قوية لمحور بايدن – ايران عن طريق وقف المساعدات للبنان والاردن بشكل تام, منع دخول الخضراوات اللبنانية (وهي المصدر الوحيد الان للدخل الخارجي وبالعملة الصعبة للبنان) الى السعودية ودول محورها, واخرها منع دخول الشاحنات الاردنية الى السعودية او عبرها متحججة بتخفيض التلوث البيئي. 

ولا يفوتني التنويه بان الزج بالقضية الفلسطينية في الازمة في الاردن يهدف للتعمية عن حقيقة ما حدث هناك. فادعاء معارضة الخارج ان احد اسباب قيام جماعة الامير حمزة بحركتهم الاخيرة هو وقف نفوذ الملكة رانيا واهلها في الاردن وسياسته, غامزين الى مسالة حساسة تخص كون الملكة من اصول فلسطينية. ولم يقصر النظام بمحاولة تجيير القضية الفلسطينية لصالحه عن طريق الادعاء ان اهم اسباب الحركة الانقلابية هو دفاع النظام عن الحقوق الفلسطينية والادعاء ان الامير محمد بن سلمان يحاول مزاحمة الملك عبدالله الثاني على الاشراف على المقدسات في الاراضي الفلسطينية. 

وردا على معارضة الخارج اقول ان الفساد الذي اتخذ ذريعة لقلب نظام الحكم والاتيان بالامير حمزة للسلطة, هذا الفساد مستشري في كل مفاصل الدولة ومنذ قيام المملكة قبل مئة عام. والانهيار الاقتصادي في المملكة واعتمادها بالكامل على المساعدات الخارجية وخصوصا الخليجية حدث في الاردن منذ منتصف ثمانينيات القرن الماضي خلال حكومة زيد الرفاعي وسببه الاول هو الفساد. ولذلك فان محاولة القاء المسؤولية كاملة على الملكة رانيا (الفلسطينية الاصل) هو تضليل ومحاولة لاستثارة النعرات العنصرية في محاولة الاطاحة بالملك عبدالله الثاني 

كما ان ادعاءات الملك عبدالله الثاني بان "الفتنة" تستهدفه لانه ضد التطبيع, ايضا غير صحيح حيث ان الاردن من اوائل الدول العربية التي وقعت معاهدات سلام مع الكيان وتطبع مع هذا الكيان على مختلف المستويات ومنذ توقيع معاهدة وادي عربة 1994. 

اعلان الملك ان الفتنة تم وأدها هو اعلان مضلل ايضا وغير واقعي. ففي الحروب العالمية تستمر محاولات الاحتلال واخراج الدول من سيطرة محور الى سيطرة محور اخر الى ان تضع الحرب اوزارها ويعلن محور انه المنتصر في الحرب ويستسلم المحور الاخر لشروط المنتصر. وهذا لم يحصل حتى الان 

فالحرب العالمية الثالثة ما تزال تدور رحاها وكل المشاركين فيها ما زالوا صامدين يقاتلون حتى الرمق الاخير. ومحاولة الدولة العميقة التي بدأت الحرب لتدمير ترامب وانهاء ادارته, لم تحقق هذا الهدف اطلاقا. فترامب ما زال لاعبا اساسيا في السياسة الامريكية والدولية, حيث انه ورغم خروجه من البيت الابيض الا انه قد عزز سيطرته على حزب الجمهوريين بالمطلق. وكل سياسي جمهوري يريد ان يستمر في منصبه, يسعى لاعلان الولاء لترامب ومؤسسته. هذه المؤسسة التي تسعى لاعادة السيطرة على مجلسي النواب والشيوخ في الانتخابات النصفية اواخر العام القادم والتي ستترك ادارة بايدن مشلولة بالكامل انتظارا لرحيلها عام 2024 

كما ان الرئيس بوتين ما زال يحقق سيطرة مطلقة داخل روسيا وفي جوارها واحبط في الاسابيع الاولى لادارة بايدن, محاولات انقلاب فاشلة في روسيا وبيلاروسيا والمناطق التي يسيطر عليها في اوكرانيا. كما انه ما زال يحقق مزيد من السيطرة عن طريق ضم دول جديدة لحلفه مستخدما لقاح سبوتنيك مدخلا لهذا التوسع في الحلف 

الاردن مقبل على تطورات خطيرة واستقرار النظام هناك ابعد ما يكون عن الحقيقة. فما دام هناك فقر مدقع وبطالة وتخبط في الاداء الحكومي وغياب اليات كبح الفساد, فان التدخل المستقبلي في الاردن ممكن وبسهولة. 

والايام القادمة حبلى بالتطورات

 

 

 

Our letter to opposition leader seeking help to end suffering of Australian families

Dear Hon Anthony Albanese, leader of Labor Federal opposition

In this letter we wish to seek your support in contacting the Labor PM of NZ, Hon Jacinda Ardern and convince her to help Australian families settle in NZ to keep their family unit intact.

On 10 September 2019, we sent the attached letter to Hon Ardern asking her to help end the suffering of few Australian families. The husbands are refugees and asylum seekers arrived to Australia by boats. After their arrival, they married Australian citizens and some of them had children. The current legislation does not allow them to apply for partner visa. They continue living in limbo either on TPV or Bridging Visa E.

The current legislation in NZ allows Australian partners to move to NZ and apply for their husbands to join them in NZ.  

In the 10 of September letter, we asked the NZ PM to allow the family to migrate to NZ together to keep the family unit intact and avoid exposing these vulnerable people any further trauma.

We were asked by few families to approach your office seeking help to convince the NZ PM to help these families.

We would appreciate meeting with you to discuss the issue and provide you with more information about the suffering of these families. I can be contacted on 0000000000

Jamal Daoud

Social Justice Network, President

When I defeated Liberals on 'citizenship for boat refugees': lessons for future!

The Liberal government and immediately after defeating Kevin Rudd's government 2013, started implementing its electoral promises. The first promise was to punish the refugees and asylum seekers arrived by boats. The job was assigned to the then minister for immigration Scott Morrison, currently PM.

Not only he introduced harsh temporary protection visa system (TPV). He also introduced further punishment for all refugees who was granted permanent protection visas.

As he could not cancel their visas, he issued directive 62 specifying that permanent residents who arrived by boats should not be allowed to bring their immediate families (partners and kids) to Australia ever. Directive 62 specified that these permanent residents should not be allowed to bring their families until they become citizens. This specific issue was found to be violating Australian constitution by ruling of High Court 2016 as it discriminates between permanent residents according to the way they arrived to Australia.

Directive 62 also directed the department of immigration not to approve any citizenship to any permanent resident who arrived by boat, until all other applicants for citizenship are granted the citizenship. This meant that permanent residents who arrived by boats will never be granted citizenship and will never be reunited with their loved ones. Without citizenship, they also could not travel to their homeland to live with their partners and children. They also will not be able to travel to many (if not the majority) of Western countries seeking better life with their children.

Most of permanent residents affected by this directive was already living in the community since 2011-2012.

What happened later was horrific. These people were living without their families since they departed their homeland (between 2010-2011). The ones who dared to travel to meet their families, had their visa canceled upon return.

Tens of these refugees contacted me and asked for help. We were powerless. The government just disregarded the ruling of High Court. And the refugees were very scared to speak up. There was no clear solution.

At the beginning of March 2018, I came up with the idea that will end these people's suffering pretty instantly. I contacted many refugees and explained to them the idea. Many of them welcomed the idea.

The idea was simple: NZ allows any Australian permanent resident to enter and live in NZ indefinitely without a visa. Upon their arrival, they can apply to NZ authorities to get their families to come to live with them in NZ. I was told by NZ authorities that such application would be approved within 2-3 months. The family will enjoy living in NZ together. After 2 years of living in NZ as Australian permanent residents and family of Australian PR, the family will be qualified to NZ permanent residency.

To help me spread the word about the 'project' I contacted journalists from Chanel 7 and 9. Both welcomed covering the story. In fact they were competing on the story, and asked me to give one of them the 'exclusive' right to cover the project.

I decided to give the story to Chanel 7. Bryan Seymour came to see me on the next day. I organised him to film two Iraqi refugees on permanent residency who want to try the solution.

I called the solution 'NZ Solution' to counteract the harsh inhumane 'pacific solution' re-introduced by Gillard government.

Bryan Seymour contacted both NZ and Australian immigration department. Both confirmed to him that NZ solution is viable and legal.

The story was never aired because we were waiting for a refugee to travel to NZ and bring his family to live with him in NZ.

Within this waiting time, the Australian government 'changed its heart' suddenly. Immigration was removed from Peter Dutton portfolio. The new minister, David Coleman, defied Directive 62 (which was replaced by almost identical Directive 72 and then Directive 80).

Until now, the official announced policy is Directive 80 which prevents permanent residents arrived by boats from citizenship and so prevented them from family reunion. But practically, tens (if not hundreds) of them were granted citizenship and had their families joined them quietly in Australia following August removal of Dutton as Immigration minister.

The change of government policy on citizenship for boat residents made all affected people change their mind to relocate to NZ. They now have a hope that at some stage soon they will be allowed to bring their loved ones to live with them in Australia.

If our story was aired on Channel 7 (or other channels) mid 2018, you can imagine the international embarrassment this government would have faced. We would have proven that NZ authorities treat Australian permanent residents and their families better that the treatment they received from their own government.

One achievement we achieved on this front. And this is why on Monday 29 July, I put the government on notice during the rally demanding justice for refugees on TPV and asylum seekers arrived by boats.

Despite the fact that the Australian authorities had moved quickly to infiltrate the Justice for Refugees movement to divide it, we still insist to tell them 'do not test our patience'.

I am confident that we will defeat this government because it left 30,000 people with no hope. It turned them into ticking bombs. These people are ready to do anything to see any glimpse of hope at the end of the tunnel.

I here urge Scott Morrison to back off and stop playing with fire.

الافطار السنوي لشبكة العدالة الاجتماعية تحت شعار: معا لمكافحة التطرف

اقامت شبكة العدالة الاجتماعية وبالتنسيق مع مؤسسة الرجاء الاسلامية الافطار السنوي تحت شعار “معا لمكافحة التطرف” حضره جمع من قيادات الجالية والسياسيين وصحفيين وممثلو احزاب وقوى تقدمية وجمع من ابناء الجاليات الاسلامية

وقد حضر الافطار عضو بلدية كمبرلاند جورج كامبل, والعضو الاسبق في بلدية اوبرن توني اولدفيلد والصحفية اللامعه في صحيفة السيدني مورننج هيرالد سالي روسثورن والشيخ احمد نورالدين ممثلا لجمعية المشاريع الخيرية ودار الافتاء والشيخ السيد محمد الموسوي والشيخ منذر مال الله والشيخ محمد حبوس. كما حضر الاحتفال السيد موسى مرعي, المفوض المستقل في الحزب السوري القومي الاجتماعي والسيد محمد القاضي رئيس الجمعية الاردنية الاسترالية والدبلوماسي العراقي الاسبق د. محمد الجابري والصحفي السوداني نور الدين مدني ووفد من منظمة سوداناب الثقافية السودانية ووفد من المنتدى التروتسكي ووفد من الجالية الصينية.  كما حضر الاحتفال حشد من ابناء الجاليات الاسلامية في سيدني

ابتدأ الاحتفال بتوجيه التحية للسكان الاصليين للبلاد واعترافا بمعاناتهم الطويلة واعتراف بملكيتهم للبلاد التي نعيش فيها واحترام ثقافاتهم وسعيهم لحفظ هذا الموروث الثقافي للاجيال القادمة

بعد ذلك تحدث عضو بلدية كمبرلاند العمالي جورج كامبل الذي اثنى على المشاركة الايجابية لابناء الجاليات الاسلامية في المجتمع الاسترالي وتمنى لهم رمضانا مباركا. كما نوه السيد كامبل بضرورة تكاتف الجهود لمحاربة التطرف والعنصرية والاسلاموفوبيا

ثم تحدث الشيخ احمد نور الدين ممثلا لجمعية المشاريع الخيرية عن اهمية شهر رمضان بالنسبة للمسلمين ومعاني الشهر الفضيل كشهر للتوبه وعمل الخير والاستغفار ونشر المحبة. ودعا الشيخ نور الدين المسلمين للتمسك بالتعاليم السمحة للاسلام بالاخذ من المصادر الموثوقة المؤكدة والابتعاد عن المصادر غير الموثوقة. ودعا الشيخ 

في ختام كلمته ابناء الجاليات الاسلامية للاكثار من فعل الخير في هذا الشهر الفضيل

في الختام تحدث د. جمال داود, رئيس شبكة العدالة الاجتماعية, قائلا ان الافطار هذا العام ياتي في ظروف دقيقة تعيشها استراليا والعالم من انتشار للتطرف وارتفاع خطر حدوث اعمال ارهابية حول العالم وفي استراليا. وقال السيد داود اننا في الشبكة لا ننفي ان هناك متطرفين بين ابناء الجاليات الاسلامية, ولكنهم اقلية صغيرة جدا بخلاف ما يريد بعض السياسيين والصحفيين اشاعته من ان المسلمين باغلبيتهم متطرفون يؤمنون بالعنف والتطرف ويرفضون قوانين البلاد. وذكر السيد داود ان هؤلاء السياسيين هم الذين دعموا التطرف ووقفوا في وجه الحملات التي قامت بها الشبكة لفضح المتطرفين خلال السنوات الماضية لدرجه اتهامه شخصيا بانه يسيء الى سمعة ارهابيين معروفين بعضهم قتل وهو يقاتل ضمن صفوف داعش والنصرة في سورية. وقال السيد داود اننا في الجاليات الاسلامية طالبنا السلطات ولسنوات بان تساعدنا في محاربة المتطرفين داخل الجالية, ولكن كل مطالباتنا ذهبت ادراج الرياح وما تزال السلطات تصر على الوقوف في صف المتطرفين وتقديم كافة اشكال الدعم لهم, ومنها المادي. وقال السيد داود ان انعدام الثقة بين الجاليات الاسلامية والسلطات هو الذي دعانا لتنظيم نشاطات كهذا الافطار لتحقيق هدف مهم هو تعريف غير المسلمين بالمسلمين من خلال التواصل المباشر. ونوه السيد داود ان العنصرية والاسلاموفوبيا والخوف من الاخر هو نتاج طبيعي للجهل وعدم معرفة الاخر, وافضل حل لمحاربة كل ذلك هو بالتواصل المباشر لتعريف المجتمع بهذا الاخر واطلاعه على حقيقة الاكاذيب التي يريد بعض السياسيين وبعض وسائل الاعلام نشرها عنهم. وذكر السيد داود ان مجازر نيوزلندا اثبتت ان الارهاب والتطرف لا دين له, فهناك اجندات لقوى في العالم وستسخدم اكثر من منصة لتحقيقها.

وفي الختام شكر السيد داود المتطوعون الذين ساهموا بانجاح الاحتفال ومنهم الريان للطبخ العربي وكل من شارك في التبرع بوقته لانجاح هذه البادرة لتقديم نموذج ايجابي عن الجاليات الاسلامية والعمل على محاربة النظرة المسبقة التي تؤدي للعنصرية والتطرف ومعاداة المسلمين.     

و

How did government manage to cheat us about low unemployment figures: Ruba’s case as example?

I was always wondering how this government managed to issue deceiving statistics that our economy is growing steadily and the number of unemployed people is decreasing. All this during this volatile atmosphere of global financial meltdown and declared per-capita recession (both in Australia and China – our largest trade partner). Until I started to deal with Centrelink’s customers whose benefits were cancelled or not approved.

Centrelink unethical and at different occasions illegal tactics of denying people welfare payments helped this government in cheating public about the real unemployment figures.

Ruba Q. migrated from Syria April 2013 after she married an Australian guy, Mohamed. According to legislation, she is not eligible to receive any Centrelink payment for 104 weeks from the date of her arrival.

On April 2015, she became eligible to receive “special benefits” as per legislation. She received this payment for few months, until she received a letter on 7 December 2015 advising her that the payment was “cancelled” for “not completing special benefit review”. The reason was so mysterious, especially for non-English speaking migrant. She went with her husband to local Centrelink office in Liverpool and asked about the reason. They were told that the payment was cancelled because she did not complete and return the form of “special benefits review”. How could she complete this form if she never received it?

Ruba did not fill the review forms, because she simply did not receive them. Once she was given the forms in person when she (and her husband) visited Centrelink offices on 15 January 2016, they filled the review on the spot without hesitation. And there is nothing in the form that constitutes ground to cancel the payment.

But the payments were never restored after it was cancelled on 7 Dec 2015. This time the reason is that the family did not provide bank statements.

Ruba provided bank statements for her bank account (as requested by the review form), and she did not know that she needs to provide statement for her husband’s account.

When she was asked to provide bank statement for husband’s account, the family acted promptly without hesitation on 18 Feb 2016. A clear indication that the family has nothing to hide.

Still the payment was not restored. This time, because the family did not provide written statement to explain why there was one-off deposit in the husband account of $1730 on 8 Feb 2016. Despite the fact that the request for explanation was made by Centrelink officers verbally and the explanation was made instantly in the same verbal manner.

For the next 3 years, Centrelink used the one-off deposit in the husband’s bank account of $1730 as the only reason for cancellation of payments and the refusal to restore the payments for 3 years despite the many requests for review and many intervention by advocates (including intervention by local MP).

This is clear contempt to our welfare system and related legislations. It is also contempt to our intelligence. For many reasons:

1-      Centrelink claimed in the letter dated 3 March 2016 that the husband is “earning money from his work in plumbing”: but has no evidence of this.

At the AAT hearing last Monday, the member was asking me to prove that the husband never worked during the last 3 years, despite the Centrelink’s lack of any evidence to indicate the opposite. This is serious departure of legal principle that any person is innocent, until proven guilty. Centrelink treats Ruba as guilty until she and her husband prove her innocence.

2-      If Centrelink has enough evidence that the husband was working and earning enough money during the last 3 years to support his family, why he was not investigated and his Centrelink payments cut or cancelled?

Why Centrelink cancelled Ruba’s payment for claims that her husband is earning enough money to justify cancelling her payment?

Does this has anything to do with targeting new migrants as they are more vulnerable as they have very limited options to access Centrelink help?

3-      And the most important issues here is: does the legislation consider one-off deposit of $1730 (regardless of the explanation) enough ground to cancel special benefit payments?

This will be departure of another principle in the Social Security Act namely  section 729(2)(e) which states that person continues to be eligible to receive special benefits if he/she cannot earn “SUFFICIENT livelihood” to support themselves and their dependents, not a mere one-off deposit. 

Centrelink staff know very well that Ruba is soft target because of her new arrival and hence her very limited access to Centrelink help. Centrelink manipulated the system by disregarding principles of natural justice and procedural fairness when Centrelink did not insure proper notification and hit this family with unreasonable requests. Then Centrelink cancelled payment based on unreasonable assumption that husband is working, despite the lack of evidence of this.

Later on and after the family sought help from the local MP, Centrelink changed its story of the reason for cancelling the payments.

When Centrelink was contacted by office of local MP for Werriwa, Ms Ann Stanley, to explain why Ruba’s special benefits were cancelled and she is not getting any other payment, Centrelink replied that “Ruba is not eligible for special benefits after receiving her permanent subclass 801 visa, and this visa holders need to wait for 2 years after becoming permanent residence before getting any benefits from Centrelink” in a letter from Ms Stanley to the Ruba dated 7 July 2016.

The local MP should have known, as a legislator, that this advice is wrong and contravene the legislation, namely Section 739A of the Social Security Act which states that the new migrants on partner visa is eligible for Special Benefits after 104 weeks of their initial entry to the country. They will continue to be eligible to receive this benefits until they either find job or become eligible for other payments after they spend another 104 weeks after receiving permanent residence.

Labor party should discipline this MP for not understanding the legislation she helped passing in 2017.

The one-off deposit was just an excuse for Centrelink to cancel Ruba’s special benefits, while the real reason was the direction in Centrelink by minister to target new migrants with different kind of excuses and tactics to justify cancelling their benefits. Such tactics that include hiding information, not delivering notices and use lack of response (which is expected in the event of not delivering requests) as pretext to cancel payments.

All this to achieve saving for the budget and improving the numbers of employment.

My experience with Centrelink dealing with its staff on this case proves this beyond any doubt. Centrelink just ignored my rights as advocate and representative to access information on timely manner. Since mid June 2018 until now, Centrelink failed to provide me with single document about the reasons for this long dispute with this family. They gave me different reasons of the cancellation, with no written response until now. And they changed point of contact with me to make me going into circles not understanding what is happening as a tactic to confuse me and then accept their arguments and hence accept the injustice against this family.

Now, we know that the husband was not working. There was one-off deposit and the husband cannot provide written response because the third party is refusing to come near Centrelink. The husband cannot enforce the other party to comply with Centrelink’s request to provide copy of his bank statement and why he deposited the money. We do not know if this third party had experienced draconian mistreatment by Centrelink and this is the reason why he does not want to come near Centrelink in any way. But it is very clear that a one-off deposit of $1730 within 3 years does not itself constitute enough ground to cancel the special benefits of the wife. And if it does constitute ground, Centrelink should have initiated official investigation of this payment. But the bank statements of both Ruba and her husband show no signs of regular work that will earn the family “SUFFICIENT LIVILEHOOD TO SUPPORT THE PAIR AND THEIR DEPENDANT”.

Mrs Ruba did follow normal procedure of seeking review, time after time. But the Centrelink was deadly slow in dealing with these reviews to the point that simple application for review by Authorised Review officer submitted mid September 2018 was not completed until AAT ordered the review to be completed. It was completed on 23 January 2019. My request to Centrelink to give me reason for the cancellation was dragged from mid June 2018 until today. This is why the case was dragged to this length.

The family is going through very difficult financial hardship because of this unethical “tactics” from Centrelink.

And here is this government's unethical trick: For the last 3 years, the official record states that Ruba is an employed person because she is not receiving any Centrelink payment. When in fact, she is unemployed, and not required to work as she is looking after her young daughter and never worked since 2015.

And we are aware of tens of thousands of Rubas in the community.

That is how this government managed to convince us that unemployment is staying at 5% (and under). We are sure that the real figure is much higher than this.

Ruba will continue her fight for justice. And we will continue supporting her.