Saturday, February 24, 2007

A former Australian Defence Signals directorate officer told an inquiry into the murders of 5 Australian journalists in East Timor, that he felt no duty to 'blow the whistle,' despite government suppression of documents detailing the events leading to their killings.

The officer said he felt distressed by the families' suffering "knowing that what was known by the Australian Government was not known by them."

The inquiry, 32 years after the executions, heard accusations of cover-ups and destruction or 'subversion of evidence' by the Whitlam and Fraser governments and top defence officials.

It's looking a bit difficult to understand why we retire prime ministers on a lifelong pension, right about now...

##UPDATE## a DSD officer from the old 3TU in Perth, talks about the 30 year suppression of info related to the murders of the 5 Aussie journos killed - "this eats into you, this vow of silence"

Friday, February 23, 2007

Since when does the Australian government revoke citizens' right to protest, for a visiting US politician and then, gets the police to do their 'leg work?'
What will you be giving up?

Sunday, February 18, 2007

There are often allegations that WA police use unnecessary violence in arrest procedures, but this particular case is a clear cut case of self defence - he was armed to start with and he resisted arrest.

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

Valentine's Day? Pardon me.

A day like Valentine's Day brings one to ponder the origins of monogamy and patriarchy, and the illusions of gender-based submission and persecution.

One would have imagined a modern-day 'man's world' would have no further need for the persecution of women under superstitious, archaic, sexist law, but it seems the fun never ends for some.

This year marks 315 years since the Salem witch trials, when 'witches' of varying shapes and varieties were hung, to rid patriarchal society of an ignominious evil. The Mayor of Danvers(Salem) has proposed officially pardoning those who were persecuted as witches.

Whilst the world wasn't rid of all women or all evil during the Puritan witch hysteria of the late 17th century, it's been estimated twenty women were executed and 200 gaoled for being:

  • spinsters [unmarried beyond the usual age of marriage]
  • barren
  • ugly
  • extremely successful
  • independent
  • reclusive
  • litigious
  • wilful (Heaven help us!)
  • red heads(anti-ginger campaigner, Twenty Major, would still support that one)
Across the United Kingdom and Europe it was widely recognized the only way to rid the planet of such inherent evil was to burn women at the stake, while their Salem counterparts were terminated with a more humane mode of execution. But Scotland have already pardoned their witches.(lucky them)

In this modern day these attributes still strike fear into the hearts of mere men, but broom-sticks and stones are the tools of any good witch's trade, and a tip for all you chauvinists out there...when you're calling a witch names, just make sure you don't look her in the eye, especially if you're a witch pricker.

I think this one -
"If you see a witch coming, run and put the broom down in front of the door and say, 'Kiss my a--' three times; and she will not be able to step over the broom." (German superstition)
- would work on just about anyone, but if it doesn't, there's plenty more where that came from...

##UPDATE## As mentioned by the Sublimely Gothic Cowgirl, links to a recent story about witches being murdered and persecuted in PNG, by witch prickers.

Saturday, February 10, 2007

Times a changing?

This week finally sees the recognition in WA of the crime of rape being of equal concern to WAPOL, as stock theft, gold stealing and drug dealing.

So you'd think with the attrition of cases and the rape of women (including estimates of unreported rapes) at one in three, it shouldn't have taken this long for the most male-dominated police service in Australia to understand the threat that poses to their own families and communities.

Let's hope the reinstatement of the rape squad heralds a change not only in the way rape cases are investigated, but in the attitudes of those responsible for the protection of our community.

First on the unit's drawing board of things to do will be developing strategies to the uncovered meat defence(congratulations to the Sublimely Gothic Cowgirl) which has been used to 'justify' the rape and degradation of women everywhere, by men of all cultures and nationalities, for centuries, if not millenia.

The Skaff brothers who were part of a group of youths found guilty of gang rapes of teenage Sydney girls were bashed by their fellow-prisoners at the Goulbern Gaol yesterday, & are now in critical condition in hospital having their lives saved by Australian nurses (mostly female & not wearing veils).

In Gary Hughes' blog a WA commenter expresses her experiences with WAPOL:
"Here in WA, we had a recent occurrence where pictures of two men who died in the desert were blasted around the world via email (by sworn officers), with the same glee that others reserve for joke emails.
"Reportedly over 400 officers were involved in this gratuitous misuse of these pictures. As a rape victim in WA, I became concerned that my rape statement was being read for the "pure pleasure" of it, while I was made to wait for a police clearance for my business. After all, it would not be the first time these guys showed a complete lack of regard for victim dignity. "
"I assumed that the police would be covered under the Privacy Act and made a request under that, with no response. I reiterated my response and they acted like they did not know what I was talking about. For good reason, apparently. So, I called the Privacy Commissioner. "Nawp". WAP and all of the other police departments are not covered by the Privacy Act. (exception being ACT Policing) What the H..L?? Businesses have to comply with the Privacy Act, but not the cops? "

So, it really came as no surprise yesterday when a former police sergeant received a 10 month suspended sentence for unauthorized access of information on the WAPOL computer system for the use of a person a Perth court described as a 'serial pest.' His actions came to light during the Minnitti/D'Orazio hearings at the CCC last year.

It seems there is little consideration or provision for privacy in police training and conduct, & systems in place within WAPOL are ineffectual in catching officers acting unethically, when handling citizens' personal details or private lives.

Does the in-station vilification/mockery of people & victims via those personal details that are available to officers, then undermine the quality of police protection they are afforded?

In one of her early books, Shirley Hardy-Rix, described how female officers laughed hysterically during an interview with an unattractive and substance-affected rape victim (who was later vindicated by the guilty verdict of the rapist).

Does the black humour and skepticism that gets coppers through the tough times, undermine their ability to serve their community, which is made up of a myriad of people, vastly different from themselves?

When no punitive measures were used to deal with 2 WAPOL officers who accessed information - not about ordinary citizens - but about a protected witness, could it be safely assumed that the only reason for the scrutiny of the officer last week is because it was discovered via a CCC investigation?

The unauthorized access of Andrew Petrelis' information was investigated by the 2002 Police Royal Commission. Petrelis, who was due to testify against two Perth men with serious criminal histories, died in suspicious circumstances.

But the Petrelis matter was only one instance of unauthorized access of police computer records, but during the royal commission there were many others - how many others went unpunished and uninvestigated, and why did they not warrant further investigation by WAPOL's internal affairs unit prior to the r/c?

How much do these officers anticipate the effects on the community & victims, of the information they access & how do they justify how the info is used?

On Stateline last night, Tom Percy, a Perth barrister who has represented a number of 'high profile' locals, argued the CCC should have their powers curtailed because witnesses are not aware of why they are being called before commission hearings and as such, they are not adequately prepared to field the CCC's probing questions.

The organization has ousted crooked politicians, police and a variety of other public servants during its three years in operation, including scrutiny of one of their own judges. It would appear there might be rather a number of people in this big-small town who would like to see the CCC's powers reined in.

Should local police investigate local police?
Or, should it be solely up to the CCC to investigate matters of police integrity, considering WAPOL's internal affairs unit are ill-equipped to? The Police Union has tipped that the WA police service will be disbanding their police prosecutions unit (labelled as inept by the DPP), and also said the rate of resignations has more than doubled in the last twelve months, requiring more officers to deal with 'front line' duties.

##UPDATE## Courtesy of a friend, here is a transcript from Four Corners from a few years ago, which examines the Petrelis issue - The Ones that got away - for those of you who live in the East and may not be privy to some of the background issues

Monday, February 05, 2007

Paul Upham's sub-editor plays with fire and a young Perth fighter goes 12 rounds in Sydney, but marks one down to experience. Rabah should have known a guy called 'Lovemore,' aint gonna cop a beating easily.

Sunday, February 04, 2007

From his office Nick Possum PI explores a visual history of Sydney

and artist, Joel Tarling, shows us Lara Bingle as you've never seen her before!

Fish out o' water

Can someone please tell Hollywood just because an actor is Australian, it doesn't mean he's like crusty old Cabbage Patch Crowe.

Our exports to Disneyland are better than most other countries' but it would be a shame to see this home-town, affable Aussie bloke turn into a make-shift Crowe or Gibson (or Leonardo!???) by the crazies over there in Plastic Town.

Frankly, I'd prefer to see the Rockingham boy used for a tourism campaign than over-exposed Lara Bungle, but they don't aim tourism campaigns at girls do they?

Can you imagine using Crowe to promote Australian tourism - "holiday down-under where the blokes are pissed & agro," mmm... that'd be a draw card. But at least SW's not yet wearing out his welcome.

It's great Sam Worthington's got a solid gig, which can be a challenge for actors in this country, but Cameron's epics usually have disaster written all over them, don't they?

So where the bloody hell are we?

Perth. Purgatory?

So WA produces a 3rd of the country's GDP, and our real estate agents and property dealers have gone that extra mile and managed to convince the whole of the rest of the nation that they need to migrate to the other side of the continent which is mostly comprised of desert.

Understandable enough, considering they've bollixed up their half irrevocably, but really, I think everyone should mark the invasion down as all one big mistake - if the British had have been a bit smarter they'd have known enough to cut their losses and pack up and go home, just like the Dutch explorers did before them.

Imprisoned in hundred of thousands of little brick & tile ovens stuck in some place that's hot enough that it feels like we've all died and gone to hell, sucking the country dry of fossil fuels and rapidly killing us all off with skin cancer, the attractive contemporary lifestyle in the West, offers safety, great climate, no crime, no drugs, great healthcare and fantastic infrastructure all for a meagre average price of half a million dollars.

I blame this mass migration on these unscrupulous tourism advertising campaigns invariably featuring boobalicious brown bikini clad broads, then, when fellas move their families here under the impression all women over here are 6ft tall with little or no clothing on, then - snap - it's too late - they're caught in the web of false advertising, the burbs and an intergeneration mortgage.

Thursday, February 01, 2007

The lucky country's sliding scale.