Updated: 08:03, Sunday September 30, 2012

The government insists its new tougher policies on asylum seekers need more time to take effect, as authorities process another 333 arrivals from the latest three boats intercepted in Australian waters.

Two of the boats, one carrying 198 passengers and the other 63, called for assistance on Friday, while a third, with 72 aboard, was later intercepted by an Australian navy vessel.

The suspected asylum seekers were being taken to Christmas Island on Saturday for security, health and identity checks.

Under the federal government's new offshore processing regime, they could be sent to Nauru or Papua New Guinea's Manus Island.

The latest arrivals have made September a record month for the number of people arriving by boat.

But a spokesperson for Immigration Minister Chris Bowen said while people smugglers 'continue to test our resolve' the government was still committed to implementing all of the recommendations made by the Houston independent panel.

Its report was given to the government last month, recommending 22 measures on asylum-seeker policy.

'As the minister has already said, there is still some way to go before we see the real effects of these policies,' the spokesperson said on Saturday.

'But we are starting to see positives, such as today's voluntary return of a Sri Lankan group.'

The government on Saturday announced 28 Sri Lankan men had decided to return home after choosing not to pursue their asylum claims.

The group consists of asylum seekers who arrived both before and after new regional processing arrangements were announced on August 13.

They include two from Nauru, 20 from Christmas Island and six from mainland facilities including Villawood in NSW and Yongah Hill in Western Australia.

Mr Bowen earlier said: 'Regular transfers to Nauru and more Sri Lankans returning home is further proof that people smugglers only sell lies and make false promises about what awaits people in Australia'.

Meanwhile, the opposition's immigration spokesman Scott Morrison is urging the government to put in place arrangements with Sri Lanka to have asylum-seeker boats intercepted outside Australian borders turned back to the southern Asian nation.

This would 'send a clear message that Australia's borders are closed', Mr Morrison said.

'Safe return policies for Vietnamese were a key part of the regional response to the Indochinese refugee crisis in the late 1980s,' he said.

'There is no reason why similar policies cannot now be put in place in Sri Lanka.'

Sky News: Govt defends asylum policies

Stephanie Peatling

Political Correspondent for the Sun-Herald

September 30, 2012

 

View more articles from Stephanie Peatling

SUPERMARKET giant Woolworths is earning hundreds of millions of dollars a year from some of the country's poorest regions because of the concentration of its poker machines in low-income areas.

The first study of the locations of pubs and clubs owned by Woolworths shows it is making more than $300 million a year in net revenue from pokies in venues in seven Victorian local government areas with low average incomes.

''The fact is they have a lot of machines in areas which by anyone's standards are disadvantaged,'' the author of the report, Monash University gambling expert Charles Livingstone said.

''We are not talking about an accidental distribution. There seems to be careful planning … Woolworths is a massive Australian company which prides itself on being socially responsible, and this doesn't sit well with that.''

Woolworths owns or operates 6 per cent of the country's electronic gaming machines through the ALH Group, in which it is the major shareholder. This makes Woolworths the largest operator of pokies in Australia.

The 294 ALH venues across Australia contain 12,650 pokie machines, which bring in an estimated $1.2 billion in net revenue each year.

In Victoria, Woolworths operates or manages 93 hotels or clubs, of which 89 contain 5594 poker machines. The machines generate net annual revenue of $835 million, or 31.5 per cent of all revenue from pokies in Victoria.

Many of the machines are in local government areas with low personal incomes, including Brimbank, Greater Dandenong, Hume, Maribyrnong, Monash, Whittlesea and Wyndham.

Those seven areas contain nearly a third of the venues owned or operated by Woolworths in Victoria. The venues house 1867 poker machines, which bring in $313 million in net revenue a year.

Dr Livingstone's research was funded by GetUp!, which wants Woolworths to adopt a $1 bet limit at an extraordinary general meeting in November.

''The Woolworths board should get out there and see the impact their products are having on Australian families,'' GetUp! campaigner Erin McCallum said.

''Whether it's deliberate or accidental, you can't escape the conclusion that machines are targeting people who are most disadvantaged.''

A spokeswoman for Woolworths, Claire Kimball, rejected the suggestion the company deliberately placed venues in low-income areas.

''Most ALH hotels were established before poker machines were in pubs,'' she said. ''Each hotel now has a government-mandated cap on the number of machines, which are just one part of a pub's offer.''

Ms Kimball said the board had yet to finalise its position on the $1 bet limit proposal.

'''We take our responsibilities very seriously but don't believe restrictions that would single out just one operator in isolation will be effective when there are many others pubs, clubs and casinos, as well as other forms of gambling,'' she said.

Woolworths' pokies 'target low-earners'

Video: Alan Jones is under fire for a speech in which he said Julia Gillard's father died of shame (ABC News)

Related Story: Jones wins Ernie for sexist comments

Related Story: Jones says Deans not up to job

Related Story: Gillard to leave APEC talks after father's death

Related Story: Gillard returns home after death of her father

Sydney broadcaster Alan Jones has been condemned as being "cruel and offensive" in comments he made about Prime Minister Julia Gillard's late father at a Liberal function last week.

In an address to the Sydney University Liberal Club president's dinner last Saturday, Jones claimed Ms Gillard's father "died of shame" because of the political "lies" his daughter told.

In a secret recording by a News Limited journalist, members of the audience at the $100-per-head dinner can be heard gasping with surprise at the comments.

"Every person in the caucus of the Labor Party knows that Julia Gillard is a liar," Jones said.

"The old man died a few weeks ago of shame.

"To think that he had a daughter who told lies every time she stood for Parliament."

Jones also suggested that Ms Gillard's "tears of grief" for her 83-year-old father sparked a leap in the polls.

The Prime Minister's father, John Gillard, died earlier this month after battling illness for several years.

Ms Gillard described him as her inspiration. Others described him as a proud father.

Jones's comments have sparked a vicious backlash around the country.

On Twitter, Liberal frontbencher Malcolm Turnbull was quick to react, labelling the comments as cruel and offensive.

"Alan Jones' comments about the late John Gillard were cruel and offensive," Mr Turnbull said.

"He (Jones) should apologise to the PM and her family."

Federal Trade Minister Craig Emerson earlier lashed out at Opposition leadership, saying it has had "ample time to repudiate" the comments made at the Liberal function.

'Out of context'

The Sydney University Liberal Club has this morning apologised for Jones's comments, but says they were taken out of context.

"We apologise for recent comments. Although out of context and not our own, they've caused offence and distracted from the national debate," it posted on Twitter.

The day after the speech, the club tweeted: "Brilliant speech by Alan Jones last night. It's no wonder he's the nation's most influential broadcaster!"

That tweet has since been deleted.

2GB has also moved to distance itself from Jones's comments.

Broadcaster Mike Williams was hosting the graveyard shift overnight when a talkback caller asked him about what Jones said.

Williams says Jones was not speaking as a representative of the radio station.

"I'm not going to make comment on that. What Alan Jones does in the privacy of his speeches and what he does around the traps, it certainly wasn't done at the radio station, so that's up to Alan Jones," he said.

'Pathological pursuit'

Former New South Wales Labor MP Meredith Burgmann says Alan Jones is on a "pathological pursuit" of Ms Gillard.

It's quite clear that it's gone beyond political discussion," she said.

"It is now a pursuit, it's gender language, it's quite misogynistic.

"What he said the other night when he thought he was saying it among friends is just the final remark in a series of vicious, vicious attacks on the Prime Minister."

Video: Feminist slams Jones's 'pathological pursuit' of Gillard (ABC News)

Jones says PM's father 'died of shame' - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

By chief political correspondent Simon Cullen

Updated Fri Sep 28, 2012 5:43pm AEST

Photo: Mr Rudd says he will continue to campaign against the possibility of an Abbott government. (AAP: Dave Hunt)

Kevin Rudd has declared he will do everything possible to ensure Tony Abbott never becomes prime minister, in his first public appearance since former finance minister Lindsay Tanner launched a blistering attack on those who toppled the former Labor leader.

He side-stepped questions about whether he was pleased Mr Tanner had leapt to his defence, describing it as a "political debate" for others to contribute to.

"Mr Swan's contributed to it, Mr Burke's contributed to it, Ms Roxon's contributed to it and now Mr Tanner has as well," Mr Rudd told reporters.

"We should be broad-shouldered enough to sustain that sort of debate."

The three current Labor frontbenchers mentioned by Mr Rudd were some of the most outspoken critics of the former prime minister during February's leadership challenge.

At the time, Treasurer Wayne Swan described Mr Rudd's leadership style as "dysfunctional" and his approach to colleagues as "deeply demeaning".

Ms Roxon and Tony Burke both declared they would refuse to continue serving as Ministers if Mr Rudd were to return to the top job.

Mr Rudd today fronted a press conference outside the Princess Alexandra Hospital, which is in his Brisbane electorate of Griffith, to campaign against what he described as potential moves by the State Government to cut support for the Organ and Tissue Authority.

He said correspondence between the Queensland Health Minister Lawrence Springborg and the Federal Parliamentary Secretary for Health Catherine King cast doubt over the state's commitment to the issue.

"I take seriously my responsibility to get out there and argue the case for what the Australian Government is doing in health and hospital services when they are being ripped and torn apart by the Liberal National Party at the state level," Mr Rudd said, before turning his attack on the Federal Coalition.

"It's my continued objective to do everything within my power to prevent Mr Abbott from becoming the next Prime Minister of Australia.

"Because what we have with (Queensland Premier) Campbell Newman, Barry O'Farrell in New South Wales and Ted Baillieu in Victoria, we have simply the entree - the entree of slash and burn to basic government services nationwide.

"Tony Abbott - he's the main course."

Mr Rudd says he will continue to campaign against the possibility of an Abbott government as long as he thinks he still has a contribution to make.

While Mr Rudd was speaking to the media, Mr Newman took to Twitter to challenge the former Labor leader to explain potential tax changes to superannuation contributions and withdrawals.

Mr Rudd fired back, describing the comment as a distraction and proof that Mr Newman had his priorities wrong.

"If the Premier of Queensland has time to monitor my press conferences and send out a tweet, can I suggest he just comes down here... and provide a rolled-gold guarantee... that the delivery of critical health and hospital services will not be affected," Mr Rudd said.

Rudd keeps it local in Abbott attack - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

By chief political correspondent Simon Cullen

Updated Wed Sep 26, 2012 3:30pm AEST

Video: Removal of Rudd over opinion polls 'bad for the country': Tanner (ABC News)

Related Story: Rudd interview sparks renewed speculation

Related Story: Big boosts for Gillard, Labor in latest Newspoll

Former finance minister Lindsay Tanner has launched a blistering attack on those who moved against Kevin Rudd's leadership and he has questioned what the Labor Party now stands for.

Mr Tanner has described the decision to dump Mr Rudd in favour of Julia Gillard as "poll-driven panic" by factional warlords who would now privately concede it was wrong.

He also contends the Labor Party has become an electoral machine largely devoid of wider purpose.

Mr Tanner, who was a member of the so-called gang of four within cabinet, announced his retirement from federal politics soon after Julia Gillard became Prime Minister.

He says Mr Rudd's overthrow was unjustified and an "extreme overreaction" to the government's problems.

"We certainly had very difficult circumstances, there had been some misjudgements and some obvious serious political problems, but we didn't have an election due for five or six months, so there was time to sort those problems out."

When Mr Rudd tried to retake the top job in February, several Labor frontbenchers described his leadership style as chaotic and his government as a dysfunctional shambles.

Mr Tanner says the criticism was unfair and the Labor Party will have to live with the consequences of that for some time to come.

"Early this year we had a range of statements made about how that (Rudd) government had functioned, which I thought were just completely over the top, gross exaggerations, that I think will sully the legacy of a very good government.

"We've now entered a world where prime ministers and in effect governments can be terminated according to short-term opinion poll trends and I think that's inimical to the whole concept of governing well and governing in the national interest."

"I think it's a very bad precedent, and once the genie's out of the bottle it's hard to put back in."

But Mr Tanner says Labor's problems go beyond the issue of leadership and cut to the heart of the party's existence.

He believes Labor could be entering a period of "unprecedented bleakness" because it has become largely devoid of wider purpose.

"The Labor Party is ceasing to be an incubator and a driver of reform," he said.

"It is becoming a reactor, a passive political player that sits there responding to circumstances and pressures rather than being the driver of where our nation heads.

"That's a problem for the Labor Party."

He has pointed to the development of the National Disability Insurance Scheme as an example, saying the process was essentially driven by people outside of the Labor movement.

Video: Listen to Lindsay Tanner's comments and the reaction from Foreign Minister Bob Carr (ABC News)

'Push over'

But speaking on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York, Ms Gillard has rejected Mr Tanner's criticisms.

"I can be very clear about the Government's purpose and the Government's purpose is to keep the economy strong, to make sure that not only today but tomorrow Australians have got the best of opportunities and we maximise our prosperity as our region changes," she said.

Foreign Affairs Minister Bob Carr, who is also in New York, says he is sick of people publicly bagging the Labor Party.

"If I were in retirement, if I hadn't taken on this job, it would've been a push over to have polished off another book - number 20 - on what's wrong with the Labor Party. It's too easy," Senator Carr said.

"I'm sure there's terrific analysis in Lindsay Tanner's book because Lindsay is very brainy.

"But it's got a bit too easy to write another book spelling out what's wrong with the battered old Australian Labor Party."

Senator Carr says there have been many books written about the party but he has questioned who is reading them.

Mr Swan, who was particularly outspoken in his criticism of Mr Rudd during February's leadership challenge, is standing by his comments.

And he says Labor's purpose is clear.

"We have always put to the fore traditional Labor priorities of supporting jobs."

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott says every day Labor Party members are fighting among themselves is another day when they are not focused on the welfare of ordinary Australians.

And Opposition frontbencher Christopher Pyne says the comments show Labor is divided.

"There's been a lynch squad sent out to sink the boot into Lindsay Tanner today, led by Julia Gillard and Wayne Swan and Bob Carr and Mark Butler, and quite frankly it's time that the Australian public didn't have to put up with a Government that is a pantomime in Canberra," he said.

Tanner attacks Labor Party 'devoid of purpose' - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Sophie Gosper From: The Australian

September 17, 2012 12:00AM

Sheik Mohamadu Saleem at the Werribee Mosque in Victoria. Picture: David Geraghty Source: The Australian

THE Victorian Board of Imams will hold a meeting this week to introduce a range of measures to prevent violent protests among Melbourne's Muslims.

The imams, who will meet today or tomorrow, say they will preach in their sermons on Friday that there is no place within Islam, or within Australia, for such violence. Mohamadu Saleem, a spokesman for both the Victorian board and the Australian National Imams Council, told The Australian: "There is a consensus among the imams that demonstrations have to be peaceful, and that any violent protest has to be stopped immediately."

Scenes of violence erupted in Sydney's CBD on Saturday when hundreds of angry Muslims took to the streets in protest against a YouTube video mocking the prophet Mohammed that has triggered a string of deadly riots around the world.

Police used batons, capsicum spray and dogs to control protesters who carried signs such as "Behead all those who insult the prophet" and "Our dead are in paradise, your dead are in hell".

"Muslims are very upset and provoked by this film," Sheik Saleem said. "But as other political leaders in Middle-Eastern countries have said -- you are allowed to protest in any democratic country in a democratic way, but it has to be free of violence.

"Imams are in contact with each other and plan to have a meeting (today) or the day after to respond to this particular issue."

Sheik Saleem said he had so far not heard of any Islamic protests being planned in Victoria, but he did not rule out the possibility.

"I would urge anybody who is going to show their displeasure about this film that it should be completely and comprehensibly peaceful," he said.

He said he hoped that people elsewhere in Australia took some lessons from what happened in central Sydney.

Islamic Council of Victoria general manager Nail Aykan said the council was "appalled" by extremists who turned a peaceful protest into a dangerous riot.

"It is something that has concerned and disappointed everyone, not just Muslims here in Australia," Mr Aykan said.

"It's not just a NSW thing -- I think we all share the same sentiments that it was a terrible incident that took place.

"All it takes is 0.5 per cent of the population to start trouble."

Imams meet to prevent violence | The Australian

WHERE do I start? Perhaps with the viral image that will come to define this episode: a child who'd be three or four hoisting a sign triumphantly above his head blaring ''Behead all those who insult the Prophet'' while a woman, presumably his mother, thinks this is cute enough to capture on her smartphone. Alternatively, I could begin with the observation that the trailer for the anti-Islamic film that ostensibly started this all, Innocence of Muslims, is now a blockbuster, with YouTube hits in the millions thanks largely to the protesters around the world who think nobody should see it.

This is the behaviour of a drunkenly humiliated people: swinging wildly with the hope of landing a blow, any blow, somewhere, anywhere.

No. Let's start with the fact that so few of the protesters who descended on Sydney's CBD this weekend seem actually to have seen the film that so gravely offends them. When asked by journalists, they bluntly admit this, one even adding that she refuses to watch something so offensive. It's almost impressive how cyclical this stupidity is. But it's also instructive. In fact, this is the key to making sense of something so gobsmackingly senseless. The protesters - at least the ones quoted in news reports - know nothing except how offended they are.

Sydney CBD protest

Muslims protest against American movie. Photo: James Brickwood

Click for more photos

That, you see, is all that matters. This isn't about a film. It's about an excuse. We know because we've seen it all before, like when Pakistani protesters vandalised American fast food outlets and burnt effigies of President George W. Bush in response to the Danish cartoons.

We know because so much of the weekend's ranting was nakedly gratuitous: ''Our dead are in paradise, your dead are in hell''. Pardon? Which dead? Weren't we talking about a movie?

This is the behaviour of a drunkenly humiliated people: swinging wildly with the hope of landing a blow, any blow, somewhere, anywhere. There's nothing strategic or calculated about this. It doesn't matter that they are the film's most effective publicists. It doesn't matter that they protest using offensive slogans and signs, while protesting against people's right to offend. It doesn't matter that they object to insulting people on the basis of their religion, while declaring that Christians have no morals. This is baffling only until you realise these protesters are not truly protesting to make a point. The protest is the point.

Defining image ... a child carries a sign in Hyde Park on Saturday. Photo: James Brickwood

It feels good. It feels powerful. This is why people yell pointlessly or punch walls when frustrated. It's not instrumental. It doesn't achieve anything directly. But it is catharsis. Outrage and aggression is an intoxicating prospect for the powerless.

Accordingly, it is not an option to leave an insult unanswered because that is a sign of weakness, rather than transcendence.

The irony is that it grants an extraordinary level of power to those doing the offending. It puts them constantly at the centre of your world. That's why, when Gallup polled 35 Muslim majority countries, it found that of all the gripes the Muslim world has against the West, among the most pervasive is the West's ''disrespect for Islam''.

And it is this disrespect that is the overarching grievance that subsumes others. Everything, global and local, can be thrown into this vortex: Swiss minaret bans, French niqab bans, military invasions, drone strikes, racist stereotyping, anti-immigrant politics, and yes, even films so ridiculously bad that, left to their own devices, they would simply lampoon themselves.

This is what gives Innocence of Muslims meaning: not its content, but its context. It's a symbol of contempt, which is why protests against it so quickly turn into an orgy of anti-Americanism. So, ''Obama, Obama, we love Osama'' they scream, mainly because it's the most offensive rhyme they can muster. Osama, too, is a symbol; the most repugnant one in their arsenal. How better to prove you exist than to say something outrageous?

That the Obama administration immediately condemned the film in the strongest terms doesn't register. Nor that the White House took the extraordinary (and ultimately unsuccessful) step of asking Google to pull the video. This is invisible to an audience of humiliated souls waiting desperately to be offended and conflate every grievance. Indeed, they need the offence. It gives them the chance to assert themselves so they can feel whole, righteous even. It's a shortcut to self-worth.

The trouble is that in our digital world, there is always something to oblige. Anyone can Google their prejudices, and there is always enraging news to share with others. Entire online communities gather around the sharing of offensive material and subsequent communal venting. Soon you have a subculture: a sub-community whose very cohesion is based almost exclusively on shared grievance. Then you have an identity that has nothing to say about itself; an identity that holds an entirely impoverished position: that to be defiantly angry is to be.

Frankly, Muslims should find that prospect nothing short of catastrophic. It renders Islamic identity entirely hollow. All pride, all opposition, no substance. ''Like the Incredible Hulk,'' observes Abdal Hakim Murad, a prominent British Islamic scholar, ''ineffectual until provoked.''

Sometimes you need a scandal to demonstrate an underlying disease. And that's the good news here. The vast bulk of Saturday's protesters were peaceful, and Muslim community organisations are lining up to condemn the outbreak of violence. But now a more serious conversation is necessary. One that's not about how we should be speaking out to defend our prophet and ourselves. One that's more about whether we can speak about anything else.

Waleed Aly hosts the Drive program on ABC Radio National and is a lecturer in politics at Monash University.

The Incredible Muslim Hulk proves to be no friend of Islam either

"We want to explain to them, to let them understand that this is dear to us" ... Taji Mustafa justifies Saturday's demonstration. Photo: James Brickwood

THE Australian branch of the political group Hizb ut-Tahrir has denied any involvement in Saturday's riot in Sydney, but declined to join the many other Muslim groups condemning the actions of violent protesters.

The Opposition Leader, Tony Abbott, accused the group of nurturing ''preachers of hate'' and said the federal government should revoke the visa of Taji Mustafa, a British activist and speaker who addressed the Hizb ut-Tahrir group's annual conference in Bankstown yesterday.

In a speech in Sydney on Friday, Mr Mustafa said Australian Muslims should be ''peaceful'' in their protests against the YouTube clip that derided Islamic beliefs, but also said they should ''kick out'' the US ambassador.

''Yes they shouldn't go and kill him but we should demand that they kick out the US ambassador,'' Mr Mustafa said in the speech.

''If you insult Anzac Day they're going to get angry with you; they get angry when you insult what's dear to them. So we want to explain to them, to let them understand that this is dear to us,'' he said.

The Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, said she would not be revoking Mr Mustafa's visa and Hizb ut-Tahrir was not on the government's list of proscribed terrorist groups. ''We have very tight laws on people who urge violence and very tight laws on people who incite terrorism,'' Ms Gillard said.

A spokeswoman for the Immigration Minister, Chris Bowen, said the former attorney-general Philip Ruddock had rejected calls in 2007 for the group to be banned. As with any visa applicant, Mr Mustafa would have been assessed on character and public interest criteria according to migration law, the spokeswoman said. Any accusations of inciting violence or terrorism would be investigated.

Mr Abbott said: ''This particular organisation, Hizb ut-Tahrir, has been preaching hatred for some years now.''

He said he had not read any of Mr Mustafa's writings, but had received briefings on the topic.

''They have been regularly on the record calling for the destruction of Israel. Some of their leaders have been on the record calling for violence against Australian troops in Afghanistan,'' he said. ''I don't think we need the preachers of hate in this country.''

A spokesman for the Australian branch of Hizb ut-Tahrir, which is a global Islamic political movement, said that while it does not condone violent protests it does not agree with Islamic leaders condemning those involved.

''I think everyone condemning it is not going to do anything - let's talk about the real issues,'' said the group's spokesman, Uthman Badar.

''This is not just about a random film that happens to erupt the entire Muslim world. That's a bit superficial. It's a trigger that brings to the fore deep-seated tensions between Muslims and the West.'' In his speech on Friday, Mr Mustafa said Muslims should respond to the YouTube clip being blamed for the global protests in a ''vocal'' but ''peaceful'' manner.

A spokesman for YouTube said the offensive film trailer - called Innocence of Muslims - had been taken down in some countries but would not be taken down altogether.

with David Wroe and Dan Harrison

Muslim group refuses to condemn rioters

by: Jared Owens From: The Australian

September 17, 2012 12:00AM

Watch the video Sky News16 September 2012

Text sparked Sydney protest

NSW police are searching for the source of a text message that sparked the anti-Islamic protest in Sydney.

 

Watch this video Sky News16 September 2012

Politicians condemn Muslim protests

Australia's political leaders have joined together to condemn the violence from Muslim protesters in Sydney.

 

Eight-year-old Ruqaya speaks at the Khilafah Conference in Bankstown, Sydney. Picture: James Croucher Source: The Australian

AS Julia Gillard struggled to explain how Muslim children could be used to incite violence, eight-year-old Ruqaya yesterday fronted a congress of Islamic fundamendalists in Sydney to espouse her love for jihad. Addressing a 600-strong crowd at the Australian chapter of Hizb ut-Tahrir in Bankstown in the city's west, the young girl urged all Muslim youth to fight for the restoration of the Islamic caliphate, a single global government for all Muslims established under strict sharia law.

"My dear brothers and sisters in Islam, as the world gathers against the believers in Syria ... seeking to hijack our sincere and blessed uprisings, children in Sydney would like to send their message of hope and support to the Muslims of (Syria), especially to the children and mothers," she read from notes. "These uprisings have demonstrated that this umma (global Muslim community) is alive and well, her love is for jihad, she is unshackled herself from the fear which she held, and she yearns to once again live under the banner of (the Islamic state).

"Children as young as myself can be seen on the streets joining the uprisings, risking their lives to bring food, water and medicine to their wounded family members, some of them never returning to their mothers ... Nobody is too young," she said.

Ruqaya was the seventh of nine speakers at the "Muslims Rise" conference.

Organisers of the event invited the media to report on her address.

Julia Gillard yesterday expressed her horror at images showing Muslim children carrying inflammatory placards at a protest in Sydney on Saturday, including one that read "Behead all those who insult the Prophet".

Another sign at the protest read "Our dead are in paradise, your dead are in hell".

"I do not want to see in the hands of anyone, particularly children, offensive signs that call for the killing of others," the Prime Minister said.

"This is not the Australian way.

"We believe in freedom of religion and we believe that every religion should be treated with respect."

Hizb ut-Tahrir is an international political movement devoted to restoring a caliphate, the last of which collapsed in the 1920s.

The movement hopes Islamic fighters in Syria will replace the Assad regime with a caliph-led state that will eventually annex other Muslim countries and promote Islam in the West.

The caliphate would also threaten Western nations with jihad if they did not prevent their citizens from defaming the Prophet Mohammed or Islam.

It would be established under the same constitution imposed under Mohammed, which could not be reformed.

Ruqaya said: "We must work hard to achieve victory. It is enough that your generation and your parents' generation were raised in the absence of the khilafa (caliphate). Do not allow my generation to be added to that list."

Khaled Sukkarieh, the chairman of the Islamic Council of NSW, said images of children at the protest shocked many in his community. "Someone put that (banner) in the hand of a child.

"That is a poor, innocent child. It is abhorrent and a very sad way of using children," Mr Sukkarieh said.

Girl, 8, calls on Islamic youth to back jihad | The Australian

From: AAP  September 17, 2012 9:03AM

FEDERAL Labor is treating two new polls showing a jump in support for the government with caution.

The latest Newspoll, published in The Australian on Monday, has Labor and the coalition sharing the two-party preferred vote at 50 per cent each.

The Nielsen poll, published in Fairfax newspapers, has the coalition holding a six-point lead - down two points from its August sounding.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard's standing with voters improved in both polls and she has a clear lead over Opposition Leader Tony Abbott in Newspoll.

Foreign Minister Bob Carr says he thinks everyone on the Labor side is treating the polls with some caution.

"Polls spike and dip all the time," he told ABC television.

"The trend line is happier than it has been in recent months but we won't be reacting to it beyond saying that."

Fellow cabinet minister Craig Emerson was just as reserved, describing the results as encouraging.

But he did say the polls appeared to reflect the government's positive agenda and the coalition's negative approach.

Voters also had been given a preview of an Abbott government by the cost-cutting approach of Liberal state administrations, Dr Emerson said.

Liberal frontbencher Christopher Pyne blamed a Labor campaign of personal denigration and vilification of Mr Abbott for a drop in voter support for the coalition and the opposition leader.

"The Labor party has spent the last two weeks and the better part of the last few months demonising Tony Abbott," he told ABC television, likening it to a similar campaign against Queensland LNP leader Campbell Newman before the state election earlier this year.

"They want to destroy his character."

Mr Pyne said Mr Abbott was the most experienced "would-be prime minister" in history.

"Unfortunately, with the Labor party, when they have their backs to the wall and they've tried everything else, they eventually turn to the chum bucket," Mr Pyne said.

If Mr Abbott felt troubled by the personal attention, Australian Greens leader Christine Milne had some handy words of advice: release some policy.

Australians still had no idea how he planned to plug the coalition's "$70 billion budget black hole", she said.

"Tony Abbott hasn't put out a single policy, not one," Senator Milne told reporters in Canberra.

"So if he's not prepared to say exactly what he'll do, then people have a right to say 'well, who are you?

"'What do you stand for and what could we expect from you?'"

Independent senator Nick Xenophon welcomed the latest results, which he partly attributed to the ease with which the carbon tax was introduced.

"We finally have a competition," he told reporters, adding it was a good thing for democracy.

"It'll keep both parties on their toes and (there'll be) more accountability all round."

Nationals senator John Williams said the results were an unsurprising side-effect of tough state government spending cuts in NSW and Queensland.

"When you're making budget cuts like (Queensland premier) Campbell Newman and (NSW premier) Barry O'Farrell have had to do, then of course you're going to be unpopular," he said.

"But of course, they'll pick up."

Senator Williams also noted Labor's jump in the polls came on the back of big pledges for disability insurance funding and education reforms.

"It's easy to promise the world," he said.

He defended Mr Abbott as a "darn good bloke" who shouldn't be condemned for what he may or may not have done at university 35 years ago.

"I mean, fair dinkum. As Barnaby Joyce said over the weekend at the Nationals conference: 'Who cares?'"

Labor MP Andrew Leigh said you may as well toss a coin as pay attention to the opinion polls, which were "all over the place".

"What we are getting is an incredibly noisy inactive indicator driving far too much commentary in Australian politics," he told reporters.

"These polls are fairy floss and they are rotting the teeth of this place."

Mr Pyne said Mr Leigh was an academic and polls were the daily fare of journalists and politicians need to respond to them.

Asked if the Nielsen poll, which shows twice as many voters prefer Malcolm Turnbull to Mr Abbott, would prompt any leadership tensions, he said: "Absolutely not."

The coalition was "100 per cent locked in" behind Mr Abbott, who would lead them to the next election.

"When Malcolm Turnbull was leader you might remember that when he exited the leadership he was deeply unpopular and again he had been the subject of a demonisation campaign by the Labor party."

Labor views 'positive' polls with caution | News.com.au

The Australian September 13, 2012 3:17PM

Melbourne's al-Furqan Centre and bookshop in Springvale South. Picture: Stuart McEvoy Source: The Australian

THE leader of a Bosnian mosque in Melbourne has slammed the Australian Federal Police (AFP) for its handling of anti-terrorist raids, saying the broader Islamic community will suffer a public backlash as a result.

Imam Ibrahim Omerdic says fringe Islamic preacher Sheikh Harun led a group of followers away from his Noble Park mosque about 10 years ago and formed the Al-Furqan Islamic Centre.

The centre was among 11 Melbourne properties raided by the AFP and Victoria Police yesterday.

Mr Omerdic has played down the significance of the raids, in which one 23-year-old man was arrested and items seized, including a memory stick police say contains violent extremist material.

The arrested man, from the southeast suburb of Officer, was taken to hospital today after complaining of abdominal pains.

He is expected to be charged with collecting or making documents likely to facilitate terrorist acts, an offence that carries a maximum penalty of 15 years' jail.

Man charged after Melbourne terror raids

A MELBOURNE man charged with collecting al-Qa'ida magazines allegedly held a copy which touted Sydney's Opera House as a  target.

Police seized a number of items from the properties, including a USB memory stick containing violent extremist materials, computer equipment, registered firearms and fake firearms.

“The Muslim community will blame the federal police because they publicised this,” Mr Omerdic told reporters outside the Noble Park mosque.

“Maybe they find nothing, and from one stupid man, everyone will (be) poisoned. And now, especially humble women and children in schools will be pointed out.”

Asked about the items seized, he said, “Everyone has CDs, everyone has a mobile phone, recorders, everyone is using technology today.”

Mr Omerdic called on the AFP to apologise for its handling of the raids.

“The federal police, they should come out in front (of) camera ... they have to say they're sorry (for) what's going on, (and) next time if they're going to raid, to raid without journalists, without cameras,” he said.

“They're going to damage the minority Muslim community.”

The Al-Furqan centre was closed today, with all doors locked and phone calls going unanswered and messages unreturned.

Several nearby residents said they were surprised to learn of the raids, which saw police swoop on the centre in the early morning.

“I've lived here for almost 10 years and it's never been any trouble. You see a few dozen folks gather there every now and then, perhaps for prayer,” said a man who lives opposite the building, who declined to be named.

AAP

Muslims fear backlash after terror raids | The Australian

By chief political correspondent Simon Cullen

Video: Kevin Rudd backs China's health and ALP chances

Related Story: Rudd 'won't be silenced' ahead of election

Kevin Rudd's first major interview since losing February's leadership challenge has sparked renewed discussion among Labor MPs about his ambitions.

In an interview given to the ABC's 7.30 as Prime Minister Julia Gillard took time out to mourn her father's death, Mr Rudd said he "won't be silenced" when it comes to pushing Labor's agenda.

"I'm out there arguing the Labor case. I'll do it anywhere and everywhere that I can," he told 7.30 from the World Economic Forum in China.

One of Mr Rudd's strongest supporters, Labor Senator Doug Cameron, said it was "fantastic" to have the former prime minister campaigning so publicly against the Coalition.

"I think he's one of the best politicians we have and he should be out there," Senator Cameron told reporters in Canberra.

"He's one of the most popular - if not the most popular - politician in the country, so it's great that he's out there, it's great that he continues to play a team game, and it's great that he's sending a Labor message.

"We're in the fight of our lives as the Labor Party.

"I was in the polling booths at the... local council elections (in New South Wales), and it really is a problem for Labor when you've got blue collar workers with the arse out of their pants taking Liberal how-to-vote cards and voting Liberal."

Those pushing for a return of Mr Rudd to the prime ministership have told the ABC that anything he does will be viewed in the context of the leadership, but argue that he has been angered by the savage public service budget cuts in his home state of Queensland.

He's one of the most popular - if not the most popular - politician in the country, so it's great that he's out there, it's great that he continues to play a team game, and it's great that he's sending a Labor message.

Labor Senator Doug Cameron

On 7:30, Mr Rudd said Queensland Premier Campbell Newman had no mandate to sack thousands of public servants, and warned it was just a precursor to what a federal Coalition government under Tony Abbott would do.

"Remember what we've had with Queensland slashing health, New South Wales slashing education not to mention the boost in TAFE fees," he said.

"This frankly is just the entrée, the main course lies with Mr Abbott.

"That's why I've got a responsibility, like all members of the parliamentary party, to get out there [and] put my best foot forward to argue the case."

Mr Rudd spectacularly lost a leadership ballot to Ms Gillard in February, and declared at the time that he would not launch a second challenge against her.

But many Labor MPs believe he still harbours strong leadership ambitions and would be prepared to return to the top job.

Asked last night whether he believed Labor could win the next election under Ms Gillard's leadership, Mr Rudd had to be pushed by host Leigh Sales to mention the Prime Minister's name.

Kevin Rudd: "Of course the Government can prevail against Mr Abbott at the next election."

Leigh Sales: "With Julia Gillard as the leader?"

Rudd: "Under the prime minister's leadership to do so."

Saes: "Under this prime minister's leadership?"

Rudd: "Under the prime minister's leadership to do so."

Sales: "Under Prime Minister Julia Gillard?"

Rudd: "I just said that. Under Prime Minister Gillard's leadership."

Labor frontbencher Tony Burke has described the exchange as a "human reaction" given the history between the pair, and he did not think Mr Rudd was actively campaigning for the leadership.

Mr Burke was one of a number of Cabinet ministers who declared earlier this year that they would not serve under Mr Rudd if he was again made prime minister.

"I made some very strong comments earlier in the year," Mr Burke told ABC Newsradio.

"I don't resile from what I said, but I don't see any point in continuing to trawl over that."

Labor Senator Stephen Conroy, who previously described Mr Rudd as a "'complete and utter fraud", this morning said the former prime minister was simply campaigning against the Opposition.

"Kevin Rudd is campaigning against Campbell Newman's savage cuts to the health and education sectors in Queensland," he told Channel Nine.

"It is very important for every member of the Labor Party to point out where there's been broken promises by Campbell Newman and by Barry O'Farrell."

Colleagues welcome Rudd's return to limelight - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has defended the Coalition's Question Time tactics, amid veiled criticism by former Liberal leader Malcolm Turnbull.

Photo: 'Bit of a mess': Tony Abbott after being thrown out of Question Time last month (AAP: Lukas Coch)

In a speech delivered on Wednesday night, Mr Turnbull noted that the Opposition's Question Time focus for the past two years has been "almost entirely" focused on people smuggling and the carbon tax, and he questioned whether they are the only important issues facing Australia.

The comments have been interpreted by some as an attack on Mr Abbott's leadership, even though Mr Turnbull made clear in his speech that it was not a criticism of his leader.

Mr Abbott said he had spoken with Mr Turnbull "on a number of occasions" about the speech, and has today described it as "interesting and elegant".

"We are not a Stalinist party," Mr Abbott told Channel Nine.

"What he said was a perfectly reasonable take on current politics. There was a lot of truth in what Malcolm said."

Mr Abbott conceded Question Time was a "bit of a disaster", but he said that was because the Prime Minister and Treasurer did not tell the truth.

And he said the Coalition's focus on border protection issues and the carbon tax had been driven by Labor's incompetence.

"These are the two biggest failures of this government," he said.

"This is a government that has monumentally failed to control our borders - we have had record months for the past two months when it comes to illegal boat arrivals.

"And this is a government which is introducing a bad tax based on a lie, so of course these are the main question time preoccupations."

Liberal frontbencher Joe Hockey has also defended the Opposition's relentless pursuit of the Prime Minister, saying: "We only go for the weakest links".

Mr Turnbull's speech was a broader critique of the current political environment, arguing it has become increasingly difficult to have a rational and informed debate about policy.

He said the system too often rewarded "spin, exaggeration, misstatements".

"There is almost nothing more important to good government and our nation's future than the quality, honesty and clarity of political discourse," Mr Turnbull said in his speech.

"Yet paradoxically, there is almost nowhere else in our national life where the incentives to be untruthful or to purposefully mislead are so great, and the adverse consequences of such behaviour so modest."

Part of the problem, he said, was cutbacks to newsroom resources, meaning there are fewer journalists to hold politicians to account.

Mr Turnbull said that had resulted in media companies resorting more and more to opinion and commentary, because it is cheaper and easier than having a team of news reporters.

He also said that too often, journalists have been drawn into the political game, by praising politicians for their skilful use of spin.

"Commenting on the play takes a lot less time than painstakingly pointing out where the spin has misrepresented an issue," he said.

Abbott defends Question Time tactics - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Photo: The ABC has been told more work is still needed on things like catering and ablution facilities at the Nauru centre (ABC News)

The Australian Government has confirmed the first asylum seekers to be processed under its new offshore processing legislation could arrive in Nauru this week.

A tent city is being constructed on Nauru to house up to 1,500 asylum seekers.

Australia's Immigration Minister Chris Bowen says the documents to officially nominate the offshore processing locations will be introduced to Federal Parliament today.

"Early this morning, I signed the instrument designating Nauru as a country for regional processing," he said.

"After Question Time today, I'll be moving a motion in the House of Representatives explicitly authorising that designation. I envisage a similar process occurring in the Senate."

A further 600 asylum-seeker are expected to be sent to Manus Island in Papua New Guinea, after Australia and PNG signed a Memorandum of Understanding over the weekend at the APEC meeting in Vladivostok.

Chris Bowen says there are a range of issues that need to be addressed before PNG can be used as a processing location.

"We don't let that stand in the way of the beginning of work - we didn't in Nauru and we don't in PNG," he said.

"Obviously there's a range of logistical issues that need to be worked through in terms of how long it will take to have the physical structure up and running...and then there's the designation.

"As soon as I'm satisfied - not a day before, not a day after - I'll designate PNG as a regional processing country."

Tough line

The government says asylum seekers who have arrived in the past few weeks could be sent offshore to have their claims processed.

The Opposition is urging the Government to take a tough line on dealing with boat arrivals now that the paperwork has been finalised.

"From today, any boat and any person who turns up on a boat must go to Nauru - no exception," opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison told reporters in Canberra.

"They all must go to Nauru from this point on. The government says they are now in a position to send people there, then send them there they must.

"And any exceptions to that will only dilute what is already a half-hearted message that this government is seeking to send."

Mr Morrison says his preference would be for asylum seekers to be sent directly to Nauru after they are intercepted, instead of going via Christmas Island.

Centre preparations

As part of its plan, Mr Bowen says the government has signed a six-month contract with Transfield Services worth $24.5 million for the provision of catering, cleaning, security and transport.

It has also signed a $22 million deal with IHMS for medical services - including mental health.

In addition, the government has asked the Salvation Army to be involved in providing case worker support at the detention centre.

The ABC has been told while tent accommodation in Nauru is ready to go, more work is still needed on things like catering and ablution facilities, meaning the earliest the processing centre can open is the end of this week.

The first group of asylum seekers to be sent to Nauru will be small and include single men who are currently being detained on Christmas Island.

The Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young is again urging the government to put a limit on the time asylum seekers will be held in offshore centres.

"In the absence of that, it is absolutely crucial that there is an independent healthcare expert panel to ensure these people, these very vulnerable refugees, men, women and children are looked after properly," she said.

Ahead of the first flight the Australian Federal Police presence on the island has been boosted and a spokesman for the Immigration Department has confirmed force will be used if necessary to ensure they board the plane.

Paris Aristotle, a refugee advocate and member of the expert committee on asylum seekers, says he hopes that won't be needed.

"I think it's going to be a very difficult situation," he said.

"I think these things are always going to be incredibly difficult, and in an ideal set of circumstances you would hope we don't, we're not in a position of having to do this sort of thing for very long."

Nauru, Manus Island prepare for asylum-seeker processing - Australia Network News - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)