THE Federal Government has rushed to excise about 4000 islands off the coast of Australia from the nation's migration zone after the arrival of about 14 boat people near Darwin yesterday.
The move, approved by an urgent executive council meeting yesterday afternoon, is sure to reignite the controversy over Australia's attitude to boat people.
The excision will apply retrospectively and is understood to have taken effect from midnight Monday. It means those on board a small Indonesian fishing vessel that arrived at Melville Island off the Northern Territory coast will be prevented from accessing Australia's legal system.
An Australian navy ship is towing an asylum seeker boat out to sea, away from Australia.
The boat is being towed away from Melville Island, north of Darwin.
The Immigration Department says the boat is carrying 14 people, who claim to be Kurds from Turkey.
Defence Minister Robert Hill says the asylum seeker boat has been fixed and this afternoon is being towed further out to sea by HMAS Geelong.
"It was disabled," he said.
"It has been repaired. It's been, as I understand it, adequately repaired to be able to move itself but not fully repaired.
"And so if it needs to go anywhere under its own propulsion, it can do so."
"The Northern Territory Supreme Court in Darwin has been told that 14 suspected asylum seekers were wrongly removed from Australia and are being detained unlawfully on the high seas.
The Commonwealth has argued that the men are free to go wherever they want in the world except Australia, and their removal from Australian waters was legally valid."
Can't say fairer duck-shoving than that. The rest of the world is these ingrate's oyster. Move on ... and bloody quick smart to boot!
Friday, November 07, 2003
Who, why, what, if, when ... NEVER HAPPENED!!
Who, why, what, if, when ... NEVER HAPPENED!!
From Al Jazeera.net
The current not so sotto voce accusation appears to be about a royal being less like an ostrich and more like a rutting stag and putting a body part (allegedly not a head, but who knows?) in strange places.
A person who looked like the Prince of Wales, but who definitely was not the Prince of Wales was seen by a butler playing naked leap frog with the Master of the Royal Hunt. This is an unsubstantiated, speculative rumour which is probably untrue, especially if it didn't happen. On the off chance that there is some substance to this baseless innuendo a court order has been obtained to supress publication of this utter balderdash.
A person who was allegedly the Prince of Wales but who probably wasn't the Prince of Wales was seen deflowering a bunch of pansies behind the potting shed at Windsor Castle. There is a particular sadness about this allegation because it was made by a former Royal Household floral arrangement which, unfortunately, has suffered from post-pruning stress disorder and has previously suffered from premature wilting following active service in the Chelsea Flower Show.
Dickie Arbiter, (True! The Rant of the Week even at it's lowest point could not make that name up.) the Queen's former press secretary, has told the Rant of the Week that these ludicrous claims could not be true.
"Nobody could have seen any of these alleged sordid events. I have never known any of the Royals to undertake rumpy pumpy activities with the lights on. I distinctly recall his Royal Enormously Large Lugholes saying this to me one evening after we'd finished buggering the Royal ferrets. "
"I don't know whether he had or not, but I did it anyway. Not that it actually happened of course. None of the above is verifiable, and if it is there's an injunction on the way to Lord Pippi Longstockings as we speak. Not that I have uttered a single word about these things that never happened. My lips are a sealed section."
DISCLAIMER: The Rant of the Week does not possess any polaroids of any of these non existent incidents which can be purchased for the giveaway price of 150 guineas each. Not at all, definitely not. (Unmarked, used notes preferred.)
Prince Charles denies 'incident' charge
No one is exactly sure what happened, but Britain's Prince Charles says he didn't do it.
What may possibly be the most bizarre story to come out of the scandal-plagued British royal family, the heir to the throne denied on Thursday being involved in an "incident" that has been hinted at - but never revealed - in the country's scandal-mad press.
Royal biographer Una Mary Parker said the decision by the royal family to come forward and deny the mystery allegation was a change of tack for the embattled palace.
"They have been accused of being like ostriches and putting their heads in the sand," she said.
The current not so sotto voce accusation appears to be about a royal being less like an ostrich and more like a rutting stag and putting a body part (allegedly not a head, but who knows?) in strange places.
"But I think if you're going to make a statement you've got to go all the way and make a full statement. Because people are not even sure what the allegations are. It's confusing to the general public."The problem seems to be more about a royal going all the way and not making any sort of statement, full or not.
Charles' private secretary, Michael Peat, said he hoped the allegation would be treated on its merits and dismissed out of hand. "There is a lot of gossip about it. There is a lot of innuendo, there is a lot of speculation and I thought it might be helpful if I made it entirely clear that it is untrue."After 300 hours piecing together a tea chest full of shredded documents found around the back of Clarence House The Rant of the Week provides the following evidence which substantiates Mick's denials. (If these denials were actually made. The Rant of the Week awaits confirmation of the existence of the denials and indeed the existence of the alleged Mr Michael Peat.)
A person who looked like the Prince of Wales, but who definitely was not the Prince of Wales was seen by a butler playing naked leap frog with the Master of the Royal Hunt. This is an unsubstantiated, speculative rumour which is probably untrue, especially if it didn't happen. On the off chance that there is some substance to this baseless innuendo a court order has been obtained to supress publication of this utter balderdash.
A person who was allegedly the Prince of Wales but who probably wasn't the Prince of Wales was seen deflowering a bunch of pansies behind the potting shed at Windsor Castle. There is a particular sadness about this allegation because it was made by a former Royal Household floral arrangement which, unfortunately, has suffered from post-pruning stress disorder and has previously suffered from premature wilting following active service in the Chelsea Flower Show.
Dickie Arbiter, (True! The Rant of the Week even at it's lowest point could not make that name up.) the Queen's former press secretary, has told the Rant of the Week that these ludicrous claims could not be true.
"Nobody could have seen any of these alleged sordid events. I have never known any of the Royals to undertake rumpy pumpy activities with the lights on. I distinctly recall his Royal Enormously Large Lugholes saying this to me one evening after we'd finished buggering the Royal ferrets. "
"Judge of Plonkers, old chap, one of the royal customs that sustains me in my "I'm a little tampon short and stout" relationships with Cammie is the old black, bible black bedroom. Bugger me if I've actually seen her face and her juicy bits in the same room at the same time."
"I don't know whether he had or not, but I did it anyway. Not that it actually happened of course. None of the above is verifiable, and if it is there's an injunction on the way to Lord Pippi Longstockings as we speak. Not that I have uttered a single word about these things that never happened. My lips are a sealed section."
DISCLAIMER: The Rant of the Week does not possess any polaroids of any of these non existent incidents which can be purchased for the giveaway price of 150 guineas each. Not at all, definitely not. (Unmarked, used notes preferred.)
Monday, November 03, 2003
Interesting reading ...
I've been away for awhile, pretty much like everyone else around here. I got a call from my local Barnes & Noble bookstore last week informing me that they had some massive book in stock called "The Greyminster Chronicles". Remembering that I'd ordered it in a drunken haze, I went and got it. With my current schedule I should actually get around to reading it within the next decade.
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