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Showing posts with label Aussie. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Aussie. Show all posts

Wednesday, August 27, 2014

Clive Palmer's racist 'bastards' hurts Australian more than Chinese!!

Clive Palmer - Australian mining mogul and member of parliament



Clive Palmer's tirade cannot be ignored

Clive Palmer, an Australian legislator and mining magnate, delivered a scathing harangue in a TV program on Monday, referring to the Chinese government as "bastards," who "shoot their own people" and want to usurp control of Australia. He called Chinese resources companies "mongrels," which send workers to destroy the wage system and take over Australian ports and plunder minerals for free.

This is the most vicious attack by one of the Australian elite in recent months.

Not long ago, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and Prime Minister Tony Abbott also made bitter remarks against China without any reason, which was quite astonishing. Now Palmer's "bastards" ravings have intensified this.

On Tuesday, several government ministers and opposition parties in Australia damned Palmer's comments - a rare unanimous move - as an attack on Australia's biggest trading partner. However, China has already fallen victim to this foul war of words.

People can imagine what would come next if a Chinese politician or business tycoon made such unscrupulous remarks by calling a whole country "bastard." This person will be doomed. But in Australia, Palmer will probably not bear too much cost for his nonsense.

China cannot let him off, or show petty kindness just because the Australian government has condemned him. China must be aware that Palmer's rampant rascality serves as a symbol that Australian society has an unfriendly attitude toward China.

China should consider imposing sanctions on Palmer and his companies, cutting off all business contacts with him and forbidding him and his senior executives into China. The sanctions could also be given to any Australian companies which have business dealings with Palmer's. China must let those prancing provocateurs know how much of a price they pay when they deliberately rile us.

Australian society has been aware that Palmer crossed the red line too far and his remarks, along with those of Bishop and Abbott, pose a direct threat to Australian-Sino relations. Canberra is waiting for China's reactions, from which they can assess the tenacity of Chinese diplomacy.

If China generously accepts the condemnations against Palmer by Australian public opinion without taking solid action to punish him, this risks giving Australians the impression that China has too much good will to bother toning it down. On the contrary, Palmer could be the last straw for worsening Sino-Australian relations. How we respond will be a turning point for Australia's understanding of China.

Palmer should be damned as the culprit. Because of him, China must teach Canberra a lesson for sabotaging a bilateral relationship. Australia has picked sides and embraced the US and Japan, but in the meantime, it keeps racking up economic profits from China. This situation is making it a radical "double-dealer" among all the nations which have relationships with China.

Business with Australia should continue, but this country must be marginalized in China's global strategy. Canberra boasts about itself having so-called strategic values, most of which, however, are created out of its own delusions.

Hooligan politics is being employed by the Australian government to deal with China. But China shouldn't care too much about it, or it will only shock us once again.

Australia is a remote business partner, and a place where the Chinese can take a trip and learn some English. These basic understandings should be the starting points for China to re-orientate Sino-Australian relations.

Source:Global Times Published: 2014-8-20

Racism against China hurts Australia

When I studied at the University of Sydney in 2009 for a master's degree in media, I was surprised by the interest ordinary Australians had in China. Not only was China the topic for class discussions every week, one of my lecturers also told me during an after-class chat that she was sending her son to learn fencing in Shanghai in the upcoming summer holiday as China had emerged as an ideal place for his training. Later, my supervisor at a local magazine where I had a month's internship told me his son was studying Chinese at Beijing University of Languages and Culture, as he believed the language advantage would help his son find a job in Australia which was forging an increasingly closer bond with China.

He assigned me to write an article about how small and medium companies run by Australian-Chinese were faring and whether their connections with China actually helped their businesses. During my interviews, I was amazed that a rising number of Australian-Chinese were actually making a decent living out of exporting Australian products to China.

However, when news came earlier this month that China's Wanda Group had bought the famous Jewel Project on Australia's Gold Coast and planned to invest $900 million developing it into a luxury resort, I did not even raise my eyebrows. I also laughed it off when an Australian friend in Sydney sent an e-mail informing me that Chinese developers are also reshaping and rejuvenating Parramatta, a suburban city on the western edge of the city.

True, the depth and breadth of China-Australia ties have grown immensely since 2009 when I first set foot in the biggest country in the Southern hemisphere. Apart from lucrative trade, exchanges between the two peoples have also expanded rapidly.

More and more Chinese people have easier access to Australian products. Australia has become a popular destination for Chinese tourists and for Chinese students seeking education overseas.

With the rising presence of Chinese in Australia, there are reports of how Chinese buyers are ratcheting up property prices in major Australian cities, Sydney in particular.

To me, it is a natural trend toward a win-win outcome if more people from both China and Australia are visiting each other's country and doing business with each other in accordance with law and international practice.

Unfortunately, some in Australia seem not to agree with me. Some even harbor animosity to Australian-bound Chinese people or Chinese investments. There have been several incidents since last year in which Chinese passengers on Sydney trains were the targets of insults.

If these unhappy scenes are just the wrongdoings of some biased Australians, the TV rant against China staged by Australian billionaire-turned politician Clive Palmer last week reflects the ugly undercurrents of racism against Chinese and China beneath the rosy picture of China-Australia interaction.

On Tuesday, Palmer, obviously under huge pressure from the strong condemnation he had received from people in both China and Australia, apologized to the Chinese embassy in Canberra for calling the Chinese government "bastards" and "mongrels" in a media interview.

In a written statement, Palmer said, "I most sincerely apologize for any insult to the Chinese people caused by any of the language I used during my appearance on the ABC television program Q&A."

It is important that the mining tycoon's repentance is heart-felt, and the Australian society truly learns a bitter lesson from undesirable scenarios such as Palmer's TV outburst.

Racism and discrimination against outsiders could easily erode the credibility of a multicultural society such as Australia's, as well as ruin the very foundation of good feelings between Chinese and Australians, which is bedrock for healthy China-Australia cooperation

By Wang Hui (China Daily)/Asia News Network

Clive Palmer apologizes for 'bastards' comment 

 - Insults opportunity for Abbott to change course: community leader

Australian mining mogul and member of parliament Clive Palmer has apologized for calling Chinese people "bastards" in a recent TV interview, following wide-spread condemnation from both China and his home country.

Palmer, who was elected as senator last year and is leader of the Palmer United Party (PUP), made the apology in a letter to Ma Zhaoxu, Chinese Ambassador to Australia.

The letter, which was signed by Palmer on Monday, was released late on Monday.

"I regret any hurt or anguish such comments may have caused any party and I look forward to greater understanding for peace and cooperation in the future," he said, referring to comments he made in a live TV interview on August 18.

During the interview, Palmer said he didn't mind "standing up against the Chinese bastards," and claimed that the Chinese government wants to "take over our ports and get our resources for free."

In a statement posted on the embassy's website Tuesday, Ma stressed that the Chinese people are never to be insulted. "Any remarks attacking or slandering China will not gain support and are doomed to failure," he wrote.

The billionaire's slandering of China drew immediate protest from Chinese government last week. Australia's Prime Minister Tony Abbott also denounced the comments as "over the top, shrill and wrong."

On Tuesday morning, around 200 members of the Chinese community in Australia braved downpours to protest against Palmer's remarks outside Parliament House in Canberra.

"We have been in close contact with Palmer since last week, pressuring him to apologize. Learning that our request for Tuesday's protest was approved by police authorities, Palmer finally softened his stance and released the apology late Monday," said Qian Qiguo, head of the Australian Action Committee for Peace and Justice Incorporated, a group formed by members of the Australian Chinese community.

Palmer had defended himself last week saying his comments were directed at a Chinese company with whom he is locked in a legal dispute.

In the Monday apology, he said, "In keeping an open mind, I now come to the realization that what I said on Q&A was an insult to Chinese people everywhere and I wish to assure them they have my most genuine and sincere apology."

Qian told the Global Times the Chinese community was not satisfied with such remarks in the letter, and demanded Palmer to drop whole paragraph. "At 3:30 pm on Tuesday, Palmer finally sent us a second letter, which took out the unnecessary remarks, and the new edition was also sent to the Chinese ambassador," he said, claiming it a victory.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Australia's Foreign Minister Julie Bishop Tuesday welcomed Palmer's apology, but said it should have come earlier. She also called on Palmer's fellow PUP Senator Jacqui Lambie to "reflect on her words" after Lambie had also lashed out at Beijing.

Last week, while supporting Palmer, Lambie said Australia must build missile systems and defense shields to prepare for an invasion from China even if it costs $60 billion a year, reported The Australian.

As of press time, Lambie didn't respond to a Global Times' e-mail inquiry over her comments on Palmer's apology and whether she will apologize for her words.

Qian said the Chinese community had also contacted Lambie and the PUP, and was assured that she wouldn't make such provocative comments in the future.

Han Feng, a deputy director of the Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times that the new party is trying to promote its visibility through its senators' strong rhetoric. But Palmer's "irresponsible and reckless" comments on China have clearly backfired.

China is Australia's biggest trade partner and about 1 million Chinese are living in the nation.

Palmer's slandering of China raised doubts whether Australian politicians' opinions toward China would fuel anti-China emotions in the country.

A video recently posted online shows an Australian woman racially abusing Asian-looking passengers on a train and demanding them to go back to China. The video triggered uproar on Chinese social media.

Qian said some people who held extremist anti-Asian and racial sentiments emerged years ago, but they are not the mainstream in Australia.

"Abbott and Bishop made some unfriendly remarks on China when they first came to office, but their immediate condemnations of Palmer this time offered an opportunity for them to correct their position," he said.

Han also noted that the Abbott administration's policy toward China has seen constant adjustments over the past year. "However, it is still concerned about a potential turbulence in the region if the US role is undermined … Canberra hopes that the US could keep its presence to safeguard the existing order. Therefore it is working with the US and Japan to prevent any 'China threat.'"

By Yang Jingjie Source:Global Times Published: 2014-8-27

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Saturday, August 9, 2014

Migrant wives kept like slaves by Aussies

By GLENDA KWEK

Looking out for them: Case worker and former child bride Eman Sharobeem says victims are reluctant to pursue justice through legal means. - AFP

Unhappily married - In Australia, migrant wives in abusive marriages are all the more vulnerable as they are dependent on their husbands. 

KANYA thought she was starting a new life in Australia after arriving from India to marry her husband, but it quickly turned into a nightmare.

She was barred from going out on her own, forced to cook and clean for her partner’s family, and made to sleep outdoors if she did not complete her tasks.

The fate of the 18-year-old, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, mirrors that of others in “slave-like” relationships that Salvation Army worker Jenny Stanger has taken in at a Sydney refuge for trafficked people in recent years.

The women came to Australia under the promise of a happy marriage, only to be exploited by their partners.

“It’s an absolute deception on the part of the perpetrator,” said Stanger of a problem involving nearly a quarter of her safehouse’s residents. Immigration figures show women in such situations come from China, India, the Philippines and Vietnam among others.

“Marriage was the tool that was used to exploit the women for profit, gain or personal advantage.”

“In a typical case, the migrant wife would face extreme isolation, extreme denial of their basic rights around freedom of movement, possibly an exploitation of their labour ... and being denied money,” she said.

Getting a sense of how many marriage visas under Australia’s partner migration programme are used to bring women in for exploitation is difficult. Social workers say victims are often deliberately isolated and threatened if they seek help.

Researcher Samantha Lyneham, co-author of the first Australian study looking into the exploitation of women through migrant relationships beyond forced marriages, said the reluctance of victims to report crimes was a problem – such is their dependence on their abusers.

Lyneham said the fear of being deported, which stemmed from the “precarious immigration status” the women faced, was a key barrier, along with language and also mistrust of police after bad experiences in their home countries.

An inaugural Global Slavery Index published by the Walk Free Foundation in October said roughly 30 million people were living in modern-day slavery, of whom up to 3,300 were in Australia.

Lyneham’s new Australian Institute of Criminology report recorded the experiences of eight female victims – including Kanya – aged 18 to 49, mostly from South-East Asia, but also the Pacific, the Middle East and Eastern Europe.

They found that while some women moved to Australia on marriage visas in search of economic opportunities, others did so for love and to start a family.

All the women had consented to their marriages, having met their spouses through arranged situations, family links, online dating sites and chance encounters. Seven of the women said they married their husbands outside Australia.

Case workers said the husbands – half of whom were from the same countries of origin as the women – were most likely to be dual-citizens.

One woman told of how her husband would lock her out of the house at night. “I would have to stay in the tree overnight,” she said.

Others told of sexual violence and coerced pregnancies, according to the report. The women said their passports were taken and they were blocked from using telephones or having access to money.

Clandestine crime

Lyneham said although the interviews showed cases had been “happening for some time”, it was also clear when she raised the issue with authorities that some were not aware of it.

“It’s a clandestine type of crime that people mistake for domestic violence,” Lyneham said.

The use of domestic violence laws to address cases highlights the difficulties in identifying and prosecuting such crimes, which cut across legislation separately targeting human trafficking, slavery and domestic abuse.

Official Australian data between July 2001 and June 2011 showed 337,127 people were granted partner migration visas, with Britain, China and India the most common countries of origin.

Between July 2006 and Dec 2011, 3,654 people on the visas obtained protection under the Family Violence Provision.

This allows them to apply for permanent residency if they or a family member are subjected to violence. About 12% came from China, 10% from the Philippines and 8% from Vietnam. Others came from India, Britain, Thailand and Fiji.

Lyneham said while the numbers appeared low, previous research showed under-reporting, particularly in migrant communities.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott in June announced more than A$100mil (RM298mil) to fight domestic violence, and vowed a “particular focus” on women from culturally diverse and indigenous backgrounds.

Forced marriages were criminalised and laws against forced labour were strengthened in 2013.

Case worker Eman Sharobeem, a former child bride who was abused during her marriage, said some women who approached her for help were not comfortable pursuing their husbands through the legal system.

While she worked with politicians to help formulate the 2013 laws, what “we are really interested in is educating the community more than just having a law to guide them”.

Her views are echoed by Salvation Army worker Stanger, who praised the legislation but added: “They (victims) are looking for a way out, so ... the more doors we can open, the more likely someone is going to step through that door.” – AFP

Unhappily Married



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Saturday, July 5, 2014

Australian 'racist rant woman'; AUD goes down under




Australian police have charged a woman for racially abusing passengers on a train after a video recording her tirade was posted online and went viral, sparking a social media backlash.

The 55-year-old, named by Australian media as Karen Bailey, was arrested late Thursday after allegedly launching an expletive-filled rant at young children and an Asian woman during a Sydney train journey.

New South Wales police said she was charged with offensive language and will appear in court later this month.

Bailey started to scream at two children aged seven and 10 after she boarded the train, telling their mother to "getting your fucking bogan children off the seat", the mother, Jade Marr, told the Newcastle Herald.

"It was unbelievable to think somebody would say those things and act like that," Marr said.

The Australian slang term "bogan" roughly translates as "trashy".

Bailey then turned her attention to other passengers as they filmed her outburst, telling a man beside an Asian woman that "he can't even get a regular girlfriend, he's got to get a gook".

The term gook is a disparaging term to describe Asians. Bailey also mocked the Asian woman's accent and pulled back her eyes to ridicule her features.

The video, which was posted on YouTube by a passenger on Wednesday, had been viewed more than 250,000 times by Friday morning and attracted almost 1,000 comments.

Most of the comments criticised Bailey for her outburst, although several were supportive of her remarks.

Australia's Race Discrimination Commissioner Tim Soutphommasane said on Twitter that "there is no excuse for acts of racial insult, humiliation and intimidation".

"When confronted with such conduct, everyone should consider a response, including reporting it to a relevant authority," he wrote.

Bailey told media group Ninemsn she was having a "really, really rotten day" and "it's awful what I said to that woman, I do agree".

"There's no excuse to rant at people like that," she said. "It's awful and I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy, regardless of any race."

Bailey initially gave her name as Sue Wilkins to passengers and some media outlets once the video of her rant went viral.

The incident came two years after a French-speaking woman singing on a Melbourne bus was told by a man to "speak English or die" in another video posted on the Internet that went viral.

Two Chinese students were burned, beaten and racially abused on a Sydney train in the same year, sparking an uproar on China's social media sites.

Source: AFP

Australian dollar goes down under
  
Currency in biggest drop since January

Stevens: 'Most measurements would say it is overvalued, and not just by a few cents' - Bloomberg

CANBERRA: Glenn Stevens’ renewed jawboning of the Aussie pushed it toward the biggest two-day drop since January as the central bank governor said investors were underestimating chances of a significant fall in the currency.

“Most measurements would say it is overvalued, and not just by a few cents,” Stevens said in the text of a speech delivered in Hobart.

“We think that investors are underestimating the likelihood of a significant fall in the Australian dollar at some point.”

The Aussie - which has traded as high as about US$1.11 and as low as 77 US cents in the past five years - fell 0.8% on Wednesday, continuing a retreat from an almost eight-month high.

The elevated currency has impeded efforts to stimulate non-mining areas of the economy with record-low interest rates.

“The speech represents the start of a new journey down the road of jawboning,” Stephen Walters, JPMorgan Chase & Co’s chief economist in Australia, wrote in a note. “The gap between AUD and commodity prices remains unusually wide, so the new adventures of jawboning likely will continue.”

Walters said he expects the RBA will hold the benchmark cash rate steady at 2.5 % for at least another year, “but remain of the view that a rate cut in the near term remains more likely than a hike.”

The Reserve Bank of Australia kept its benchmark steady for an 11th month on July 1 and flagged a period of steady borrowing costs.

“Investors in their search for yield and in the very low volatility world that we presently live in where people think that the risk of anything going wrong seems to have completely gone away, I think that’s over optimistic,” Stevens said in response to a question on the currency yesterday.

“And I think part of those are underestimation of the likelihood of the Aussie going down at some point, and possibly quite materially.”

The Australian dollar had gained almost 8% since the RBA moved to a neutral bias in February this year.

It traded at 93.68 US cents at 4:48 pm in Sydney, from 94.30 cents before Stevens’ speech was released.

The comments onthe Aussie are “clear jawboning,” said Sue Trinh, a senior currency strategist at Royal Bank of Canada in Hong Kong. “His comments were taken as noticeably more dovish than what the market was geared up for.”

Stevens said language in recent statements about stability of interest rates was intended to clarify that the central bank did not think a higher benchmark was imminent.

“Overall, I judge that language to have served its intended purpose,” he said.

“Present market pricing suggests that market participants expect interest rates to remain low for some time yet.”

Changes in language should be expected to continue over time as more information becomes available, he said.

Long before any rate increase is considered the board would probably “revert to the more normal formulation that the stable policy settings ‘remained appropriate’ or something like that,” he said.

— Bloomberg