This week: Refugees 2, Ruddock nil - Another Breakout At Woomera...And No
Wonder...Yuppies Take Over Inner City...Detaining Asylum Seekers Is
'Fundamentally Defective'...McDonalds Does It Again...Government Agency
Illegally Spied on Australians...
34 people have escaped from Woomera. At the time of writing several are
still out. The Immigration Department said the break-out happened at about
midnight, when protesters with vans drove up to the compound. Protestors
and refugees broke down the fence and the refugees escaped. This is the
second big breakout at Woomera this year. The first was during the
'Woomera 2002' event (organised largely by Melbourne anarchists). The
protestors who helped with the current breakout said in an email that they
went to Woomera to support detainees on a hunger strike, and decided to
help free them only after seeing how much they were suffering in detention.
(The Age, ABC News website, news.com.au website)
A former guard at Woomera Detention Centre has spoken out about the extent
of violence inside and how it has taken its toll on detainees and staff.
The anonymous ex-staffer told the ABC's 7.30 Report that there were violent
reprisals against detainees after unrest at Easter and the culture is like
that of a jail. CentaCare director Dale West says in many ways Woomera is
far worse than any prison. "In prison people know what they're in there
for, they know what the length of their term is, they are allowed to have
people visit them and certainly the accommodation and facilities in a
prison system are far better than the Woomera Detention Centre," Mr West
said. (ABC News website)
The inner city of Melbourne has changed dramatically in the last few years,
with richer people moving in and displacing poor migrant communities.
Figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics show that the average
income in Northcote, for example, almost doubled from 1996 to 2001. The
number of people born overseas fell from 42 percent in 1991, to 38 percent
in 1996, to 33 percent in 2001. (Melbourne Times)
The New Zealand High Court has ruled that their government's policy of
detaining asylum seekers is unlawful, opening the door for compensation
claims that could total millions of dollars. About 350 asylum seekers are
affected by yesterday's judgment, in which Justice David Baragwanath ruled
that the Immigration Service's new policy of detaining almost all asylum
seekers was unlawful and "fundamentally defective". One asylum seeker has
lodged a claim for NZ$150,000, alleging wrongful arrest. More are expected
to follow. Judges in Australia sometimes look at precedents set by cases in
other Commonwealth countries like New Zealand. (The New Zealand Herald)
McDonalds 'french fries' have been found to contain high levels of the
poisonous substance acrylamide. Tests carried out by the privately funded
Centre for Science in the Public Interest - which acts as an advocate for
nutrition and health and food safety in the US - found that McDonald's
chips had the highest levels of acrylamide among the foods it tested, with
its 170-gram orders containing 72 micrograms. The amount is at least 300
times that allowed by the US Environmental Protection Agency in a glass of
water. Acrylamide, a carcinogen in animals, is used in water treatment, but
more commonly in cosmetics and food packaging. The local arm of McDonalds
has denied any connection between the US results and the french fries sold
in Australia, saying it's ingredients are different. McDonalds recently
paid millions of dollars compensation for falsely implying that their
fries, cooked in beef fat, were vegetarian. They also have previously
described their food as nutritious on the grounds that it 'contains
nutrients' - a definition which would make urine nutritious. (Sydney
Morning Herald).
The Government's spy agency watchdog says it 'has no idea' whether
ministers knew Australians were being spied on during last year's Tampa
affair. In February this year it was revealed that the Government's top
secret electronic spying agency, the Defence Signals Directorate, had
breached its regulations and spied on Australians in Australia. The DSD
admitted spying on three Australian law firms directly linked to the Tampa
negotiations. Defence, Prime Minister and Cabinet (which chaired the people
smuggling taskforce), Immigration, and the Attorney-General's Department
(which includes ASIO), all received the reports. Inspector-General of
Intelligence and Security Bill Blick said there was no political misuse of
DSD activities. However he said his investigation had "not chased every
rabbit down every hole", and that he wouldn't rule out that ministers may
have received reports about the intercepted communications. (Herald Sun,
Sunday Times).
Thanks to Andrew for his help with this week's news.
anarchist news service
write to James, PO Box 503, Newtown NSW 2042
or email [EMAIL PROTECTED]
All the News That Fits appears in the Anarchist Age Weekly Review
(www.vicnet.net.au/~anarchist - PO Box 20 Parkville VIC 3052).
Some other Australian anarchist websites:
www.angry.at/racists - All People Equal. Anarchist/anti-racist music site
with free mp3s, Real Audio, Real Video, band interviews etc.
www.dolearmy.org - information for unemployed people.
www.activate.8m.com - anarchist magazine aimed at teenagers.
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