Australia is big enough to deal with Asylum Issues, Manus is not

ONE COUNTRY

In John Howard's 11 year reign of Australia we witnessed some of the most corrupt scandals of all time. He was involved in the bribing and corrupting of Saddam Hussein in the AWB Wheat Board scandal. Howard and Downer paid no less than 1 Billion Kina to Saddam Hussein in bribes and chose to ignore UN sanctions. Fortunately when the scandal broke, he appointed the Chairman of the Cole Inquiry with terms designed to protect himself, Downer and other of his Ministers involved. The Cole Inquiry only caught the little fry, the big fish got away.

Another scandal was that of the Weapons of Mass destruction in Iraq. On the 4th of February 2002, Howard addressed the Australian parliament, echoed London and Washington, and sought to make the connection between Iraq and 'the war on terror'. He lied to the Australian parliament and misled the Australian people, and took Australia to war in Iraq. Every drop of Australian blood spilled, along with the rivers of blood that today flow mingled with the Tigris and Euphrates will be on the hands of Howard, on his conscience and shall be a permanent blight on his soul. For more than 2 million Iraqis today lie dead and their ancient nation bombed to oblivion in the name of Freedom and Democracy. With the same hubris has Afghanistan, again another faraway desert country, been invaded, a people with whom we the people of the Pacific bear no animosity toward. Yet Australia has gone and created animosity with them and co-opted us, sovereign ancient people, into its wars.

Australia's actions are in support of their Anglo-American cousins, for control of oil, for America's continued supremacy.

Yet, there was another even darker, yet corollary scandal that Howard is known for- the treatment of International Refugees and the creation of Pacific Solution, the subject of this article. Pacific Solution came on the back of increasing pressure on Australian Politicians to find a lasting solution to the boat people arriving unannounced. The numbers have increased with the bombing of Iraq and Afghanistan. The access to media and the courts have exposed the inhumane conditions that the Australian government has subjected these people to with the Tampa and Children over-board scandals Howard found himself increasingly on the defensive. He decided to sell his soul to the devil. He decided that Australia will circumvent and not live up to the UN Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention on Status of Refugees. He decided he was going to join the likes of Stalin and Hitler and sacrificed the hard won freedoms and rights after the First and Second World War on the altar of political expediency. He created a parochial election issue out of human suffering.

In the last 5 years more than 500 men women and small children have drowned in the EEZ and territorial waters of Australia, while being watched by Australian government run surveillance and military crafts and observation centres. They know and spot boats as they enter the Australian waters, they also know and sometimes watch when these, usually overcrowded boats capsize and

the people drown. As recently as 4 months ago, they stood by and watched a boat full of helpless men women and children smashed against the rocks on Christmas Island. The Australian Navy stood by and allowed them to run straight for the rocks. They could have been saved, with earlier intervention.

Australia has a fundamental problem. Having ratified the International Convention on Status of Refugees and acceded to the UN Declaration of Human Rights, everything that it has been doing has been in breach of and or against the spirit of this Convention and Declaration. Australia, instead of treating these people as human beings and processing their applications for asylum expeditiously, tried to pass clever laws to treat these people like criminals and terrorists. It has been seeking to re-define refugees and those who claim to be such, as criminals and law breakers that need to be isolated in prisons and jails called processing centres. It isolates them from media exposure to the Australian electorate of their plight or their conditions. It isolates them from the Courts and lawyers of Australia, in places like Manus and Nauru. All these in breach of their Human Rights.

Yesterday, Julia Gillard went to East Timor, to set up a processing centre there. The Catholic Archbishop of Dili rejected it out-right as an evil ungodly inhumane set up. The government of Timor, of Godly men rejected the Australian Government Plan.

Today, Julia has run to Sam Abal, Don Polye, Michael Mauwe and Paul Tiensten. The Aussie High Commission has approached Manus Provincial government directly and promised them certain goodies. To cut to the chase, Julia wants to bribe us again, to become part of her corruption of humanity.

PNG is a signatory to the UN Convention as well as acceding the Declaration. We must recognise and tell Australia that its treatment of these people is wrong. That we can no longer facilitate something that is clearly against our International obligations and against International law.

Australia went and bombed their homes to rubble in the name of democracy. Now it has a responsibility to make real the promises of democracy and freedom to these people, these human beings. Its Leaders should not spinelessly creep around the Pacific bribing us and co-opting us, innocent people and innocent nations, into their international crimes against humanity.

Australia is a huge country that needs more people to settle it. It has a lot of space and facilities for processing of these people. Why is it seeking to treat these people as less than animals in a zoo? why cant it process them quickly on its own soil? Alfred Kahn once said 'If you can’t explain what you are doing in simple English, you are probably doing something wrong'. Australia loves to preach democracy, transparency and governance, but does not practice it. Spending a lot of money, bribing PNG and other countries to set up processing centres is the ultimate corruption of the soul of Australia as a humane and caring nation. It is the ultimate corruption of the soul of a nation when it deliberately uses the suffering of helpless people as political pawns, abuses and debases their intrinsic value as humanity.

For as long as Australia keeps using this policy, it can never become a great nation. A nation is great because its Leaders think live breath and practice greatness in their daily lives. PNG must never allow itself to be fooled by this morally bankrupt, inhuman and repugnant policy regime of Australia. Sam, Do, Michael, you are all innocent men. Let not the blood of innocent people be spilled on our soil or be found on your hands. Do not defile the land of our forefathers with the suffering, the blood, the tears and the curses of these people. Let Julia redeem herself and her nation, and in doing so find greatness for herself and her nation.

Sir Michael Somare did not want the blood nor curses of these people on us and our children. That is why he closed Manus when he became PM. That was an act of greatness. Let the record stand.