Thursday 31 August 2006

Indigenous Governance Awards The Australian 31 August 2006

31 AUGUST 2006.
John Stapleton
AT the age of 31 Leonard Ritchie has his first job - as a car detailer in the aboriginal-run enterprise Deadly Detailers in Wagga Wagga in central western NSW.
Yesterday Gannambarra Enterprises, which owns Deadly Detailers, won the Indigenous Governance Award for Australia's best run aboriginal enterprise less than 10 years old, funded by BHP Billiton and presented by Reconciliation Australia.
Manager for Gannambara Enterprises Maria Rodgers said it was not unusual for aboriginals in their mid to late-twenties to have never worked a formal job and a successful business such as Deadly Detailers improved race relations. ``This gives the indigenous people credibility within the whole Wagga Wagga community,'' she said. ``They have low self esteem because they feel they are not worthy of anything. Part of our role is to make them feel they are equals in society.''
She said working with cars was an easy sell to aboriginal men, who loved cars just as much as their European counterparts. ``We are helping them to develop a good work ethic. That is really important. For Leonard Ritchie working here has been very significant. He has made major changes in his life.''
Mr Ritchie said he was proud to be a good role model to his two-year-old daughter Tiajay. Of his past he said: ``It is a long story about that one, you wouldn't want to know. I was brought up criminal minded, and I just decided to change my ways.''
The present is a complete break from his troubled past. ``I can see that I am doing something for the community, other than doing wrong,'' he said. ``People treat me with respect. It's good to say I've done an honest days work.''
One of the judges for the award, Chief Executive of the Australian Industry Group Heather Ridout, praised the scheme. ``We hear so much bad news about what is going on in indigenous communities, these are the good stories,'' she said. ``These stories will inspire you. All Australians should take their hats off to these people.''
She said as part of her involvement with the Awards she had been obliged to visit an aboriginal community in the Kimberleys in WA. ``These communities are places to go when you want to do something with your life. They take kids and get them to believe in their dreams.''
Ms Ridout said with some isolated communities barely 30 years from first contact, the problems facing aboriginal people should not be understated. ``It is great for business, as part of our broader social role, to take an active interest in these issues,'' she said.
Reconciliation Australia Director Professor Mick Dodson said indigenous success stories helped break the cycle of despair and promoted the wellbeing of aboriginal communities. ``Success is now my guiding light,'' he said.
Finalists included the Wangka Maya Pilbara Aboriginal Language Centre in WA, dedicated to preserving the 30 Aboriginal languages of the region and the Wunan Foundation, also from WA, which provides a business service centre supporting remote community organisations.
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Wednesday 30 August 2006

Links with DPP lawyer in Einfeld parking case, The Australian, 30 August, 2006.

Links with DPP lawyer in Einfeld parking case: [1 All-round Country Edition]

Chris Merritt, John Stapleton. The Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 30 Aug 2006: 3.
Show highlighting
Solicitor Gaurav de Fontgalland, who represented Mr Einfeld over a disputed parking ticket yesterday, is related to DPP lawyer Shirani de Fontgalland.
Ms de [Fontgalland] is a former honorary representative in South Asia of Mr [Marcus Einfeld]'s company. In 2004, she attended a legal seminar in Sri Lanka with Mr Einfeld and NSW DPP Nicholas Cowdery.
Credit: Gaurav de Fontgalland, Shirani de Fontgalland, Marcus Einfeld
THE solicitor who appeared for former judge Marcus Einfeld over a parking fine matter yesterday is related to a lawyer in the office of the NSW Director of Public Prosecutions.
Solicitor Gaurav de Fontgalland, who represented Mr Einfeld over a disputed parking ticket yesterday, is related to DPP lawyer Shirani de Fontgalland.
Ms Fontgalland also has long-standing links with Mr Einfeld's failed company, Australian Legal Resources International.
NSW Opposition legal affairs spokesman Chris Hartcher demanded the DPP ensure transparency in any assessment of the police investigation into Mr Einfeld, who claimed a dead woman was driving his car when it was clocked speeding in January. "It should be ensuring the community can have confidence due process is followed," Mr Hartcher said.
The former Federal Court judge pleaded guilty yesterday to disobeying a no-stopping sign at Bondi Junction on January 5. He was fined $75 and ordered to pay court costs of $67. planned to dispute the fine, but changed his mind.
Mr Einfeld's case was handled by Mr de Fontgalland, who was admitted as a solicitor less than five months ago. He joined the defence team after solicitor Michael Ryan stepped aside over disclosures of a long-standing relationship with a prostitute.
Mr Einfeld did not attend court, but in a statement to the magistrate, he pleaded his case for leniency. "I was only in the parking spot for a very short time, perhaps five to eight minutes. I cannot walk far as I have a pin in my left leg as a result of a fractured femur. Furthermore I also had my mother with me, who is frail and elderly," he wrote.
Police are still considering whether to take action against Mr Einfeld over his evidence in the speeding case.
Two other traffic offences, which Mr Einfeld beat in 1999 and 2000 by blaming an Australian academic based in the US, are also under police investigation.
Ms de Fontgalland is a former honorary representative in South Asia of Mr Einfeld's company. In 2004, she attended a legal seminar in Sri Lanka with Mr Einfeld and NSW DPP Nicholas Cowdery.
The Office of the DPP declined yesterday to say how many of its other lawyers had links to the company.
Credit: Gaurav de Fontgalland, Shirani de Fontgalland, Marcus Einfeld
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Wednesday 23 August 2006

Problems with Dads On The Air Website. Dispute with site manager Glen Burns. 23 August, 2006.




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Tuesday 22 August 2006

Five-year-old drowned The Australian 22 August 2006

TUESDAY 22 August 2006.
John Stapleton
A woman who allegedly drowned her five-year-old son at his father's house did so on the anniversary of her own mother's suicide, family members said yesterday.
The alleged incident occurred shortly before 5 pm on Monday evening in an upmarket townhouse overlooking Gosford on the NSW Central Coast.
The 37-year-old woman's late model Suzuki remained in the driveway of the townhouse yesterday. The father, who had been separated from the mother for some time, is reported to have arrived home as the woman was drowning the child in the bath.
Ambulance officers who arrived at the scene following an emergency call were unable to revive the child, and the five-year-old boy was declared dead on arrival at Gosford Hospital.
The woman was due to appear at Gosford Local Court yesterday morning charged with murder of her five-year-old son, but did not appear in the dock.
The woman's lawyer Stuart Tipple told Gosford Local Court yesterday that his client did not wish to appear and was not applying for bail. He told the court that the mother had a history of psychiatric problems, including a history of self-harm, and requested that she be allowed to continue on her present psychiatric medication, which had not been made available to her in custody.
Magistrate Jim Swanson formally refused bail but agreed to continuation of the woman's medication. He also accepted the lawyer's recommendations that due to the nature of the alleged crime the woman be kept in protective custody. The magistrate also recommended a psychiatric review. The mother may be moved to a psychiatric institution following the assessment.
The woman's father and the dead child's grandfather said it had been a very difficult week. ``It is a tragedy for a person who has been under pressure for five years and on the anniversary of her mother's death she found it too hard to handle,'' he said.
Outside the court lawyer Mr Tipple confirmed the boy's death had occurred on the anniversary of his grandmother's suicide. ``This is just a tragedy,'' he said. ``It is not a case of looking to condemn or punish anyone. It is more a question of how we can help this lady and her family. We have a lady that needs help. I call upon everyone to show compassion and understanding.''
Neil Young, a neighbour of the father, said he had seen playing ball with his son on the weekends. ``He was a lovely little boy, nice little boy,'' he said. He said he had seen the woman walking about outside the townhouses in a white bathrobe at about 11am on the day of the incident. ``I thought it was a bit unusual,'' he said. ``I went to speak to her and she turned and didn't acknowledge I was there. That was an odd thing, she seemed very distant. I thought she must be worried about something.''
The NSW Coroner will conduct a post-mortem on the child's body to determine the cause of death. The woman is due appear in court again on 19th September.
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Saturday 19 August 2006

Sudanese refugees The Australian 19 August 2006

Sunday 19 August 2006.
John Stapleton
Born in Sudan in Africa, William Deng, 11, goes very quiet when asked about life before he came to Australia. ``It was bad in Sudan, there was fighting,'' he mutters into the ground. ``There was too much people fighting, I saw that, there were people fighting.''
In reality William remembers little of his life in Sudan, where his father was killed in a long-running civil war. He fled the country to Egypt with what was left of his family when he was four years old, and after gaining refugee status came to Australia last year.
Yesterday, all smiles, he was part of the launch of a Refugee Youth Soccer Development Program at Granville Park in Western Sydney, initiated and sponsored by the University of NSW's School of Public Health. The program is designed to bring together different refugee groups from all over Africa with volunteers and professionals. The recent high profile of soccer in Australia has made it an easy sell to the kids, who yesterday participated in a ``mini-World Cup'' series of games.
Michael Deng, who acts by tribal tradition in the role of William's father, said: ``It's been a hard time for these kids. It was a difficult life. They like the soccer. They play very well. It is good for them.''
Originator of the program Anne Bunde-Birouste from UNSW, said skills training, referee and coaching clinics, after school and holiday camps and workshops and team and sports management would all be part of the program, which at this stage is being largely run by volunteers.
``Sport is increasingly being looked at as an effective way of bringing people together, to promote not only health, but social cohesion and even peace-building,'' she said. ``Young refugees are particularly vulnerable due to the difficulties of transition to a new country, potentially traumatic experiences before they left their home country and the normal challenges young people encounter.''
One of the helpers at yesterdays event Michael McGlynn said Australia had united behind soccer during the recent World Cup and as such it was an excellent vehicle to unite disparate groups. ``Soccer is truly the one world game, it crosses so many boundaries and it is fantastic to be able to use that to grow a sense of community,'' he said.
Former Socceroo and SBS commentator Craig Foster said many of the African refugee children had arrived in Australia with little but a love of football. ``I say to them we are united in loving the greatest game in the world,'' he said. ``This wonderful initiative demonstrates to these young kids that Australia cares about them. This gives them a chance in life, and that is all they need.''
Youth leader William Dat, from Sudan, said playing soccer helped the kids to settle. ``It is very important, it helps people to forget everything that happened, you have a new life, new friends,'' he said. ``For this country, we need to bring Australia up in the world soccer, and we believe we can help. These boys playing now, they will make Australia number one in the world.''

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Saturday 12 August 2006

Cabin bags changed forever - TERROR IN THE SKIES, Weekend Australian, 12 August, 2006.

Cabin bags changed forever - TERROR IN THE SKIES: [1 All-round Country Edition]

Steve Creedy, John Stapleton. Weekend Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 12 Aug 2006: 12.
Show highlighting
AIRLINE cabin baggage has probably changed forever in the wake of the foiled British bomb plot and the emergence of more sophisticated explosives.
Travellers flying to and from the US face an indefinite ban on all liquids in cabin baggage -- including beverages, suntan lotion, creams, toothpaste and hair gels -- as well as screening of all footwear.
"Hand baggage will probably never be the same again -- at least for UK-US flights," said the Centre for Asia-Pacific Aviation, a Sydney-based aviation think tank. "This promises to be a significant inconvenience for travellers, particularly on long-haul flights."
AIRLINE cabin baggage has probably changed forever in the wake of the foiled British bomb plot and the emergence of more sophisticated explosives.
Tough new restrictions placed on US flights and those out of London to combat new types of liquid explosives are likely to remain, experts say.
While it is unlikely the new rules will be as draconian as Britain's temporary ban on all hand luggage except the bare essentials, passengers can expect more inconvenience as airport security is tightened.
Experts say the London bomb plot marks a watershed in airport and airline security that moves beyond the traditional screening for weapons and similar items.
Worries have emerged that terrorists could escape detection by taking bomb-making chemicals on planes and mixing them on board.
And some substances are not readily detectable by explosives- scanning technology.
"The level of sophistication of both solid and liquid explosives ... since mid-90s has increased significantly," said associate professor Don Robertson of theAustralian Centre for Security Research.
"There are all these people busily developing explosives that can't be detected or ... they're simply borrowing technology from legitimate operators, for example miners."
Temporary restrictions introduced on Thursday mean books, laptop computers, carry-on luggage and all liquids have been banned from flights leaving London's Heathrow Airport.
And travellers flying to and from the US face an indefinite ban on all liquids in cabin baggage -- including beverages, suntan lotion, creams, toothpaste and hair gels -- as well as screening of all footwear.
Airlines flying to the US must also implement increased checks on services such as meals and baggage handling.
"Hand baggage will probably never be the same again -- at least for UK-US flights," said the Centre for Asia-Pacific Aviation, a Sydney-based aviation think tank. "This promises to be a significant inconvenience for travellers, particularly on long-haul flights."
Qantas executive general manager John Borghetti said the new restrictions were a response to a specific threat, and he was hopeful they would be lifted as soon as it was resolved.
"Will it get back to the way it was?" he said. "We hope so, but obviously safety and security comes first, and while there are security concerns this regime must be put in place."
However, passengers seemed to be taking the inconvenience in their stride yesterday.
Michael and Mary Middleton, heading off from Brisbane airport to the US to visit relatives and have a holiday, approved of the extra security measures.
"I'm not real thrilled with losing my toothpaste -- it's an international flight," Ms Middleton said. "But when you're up in the plane you start to think about it all, and I would rather go through a few security measures than be in a plane that is falling out of the sky."
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Aiport duty-free sales dry up, Terror in the Skies, Weekend Australian, 12 August, 2006.

Airport duty-free sales dry up - TERROR IN THE SKIES: [1 All-round Country Edition]

Stapleton, John. Weekend Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 12 Aug 2006: 12.
Show highlighting
As a result of the new restrictions, the company was yesterday urging Australians departing on short holidays to pre-order their duty-free goods. This means that they can have their holidays and pick up their duty-free goods on the way back into the country. Australia is one of the few countries where this can be done.
Mr [Strang] said the pre-ordering facility for Australians taking overseas holidays who will be returning to Australia had been in operation for many years.

THE empty aisles at the Downtown Duty Free store next to the United Airlines check-in counter at Sydney airport yesterday afternoon told the story.
Normally busy as hundreds of people buy duty-free goods before they head off on business, holidays or to visit family in the US, theshop assistants had very little to do yesterday.
United Airlines was telling customers they could not take on board anything liquid or in gel form. The ban included alcoholic drinks, sun lotion, perfume, hair gel and liquid cosmetics.
"There is no doubt there is an impact," said the chief executive of Downtown Duty Free, Christian Strang.
As a result of the new restrictions, the company was yesterday urging Australians departing on short holidays to pre-order their duty-free goods. This means that they can have their holidays and pick up their duty-free goods on the way back into the country. Australia is one of the few countries where this can be done.
"All our shops at international airports around Australia will be affected to some degree. We will be advising all our customers to take advantage of the pre-order facility, particularly customers going to the United States," Mr Strang said.
"We are also advising customers to check any restrictions with airlines."
Mr Strang said he had spent yesterday trying to obtain a definitive list of restrictions from Australian airport operators and airlines flying to the US and Britain.
"The issue is that many people don't know exactly what the restrictions are," he said. "Some chocolates, for example, are liquid or cream-filled, and we don't know at this stage whether or not these are restricted."
Mr Strang said the pre-ordering facility for Australians taking overseas holidays who will be returning to Australia had been in operation for many years.

Also published on news.com.au

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Tougher security plan for airports, Weekend Australian, 12 August, 2006. Page One. Additional reporting.

Tougher security plan for airports: [8 NSW Metro Edition]

Patrick Walters, Steve Creedy, Additional reporting: John Stapleton. Weekend Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 12 Aug 2006: 1.
Show highlighting
While Australia's security agencies have no intelligence of any direct threat to Australian aviation, the international scale of the foiled London plot is likely to dictate far-reaching changes in security procedures governing cabin baggage.
Australian Federal Police Commissioner Mick Keelty said security authorities had been aware for some time of the threat posed by liquid explosives.
The national counter-terrorism committee -- consisting of security experts from ASIO, the AFP, and the departments of Transport, Foreign Affairs, Defence and Prime Minister and Cabinet - - yesterday reviewed existing procedures governing Australian aviation security. Cabinet's national security committee is likely to discuss options for tightening procedures here next week.

AIRCRAFT cabin baggage rules will be urgently reviewed by the Howard Government in the absence of screening technology that can detect some types of liquid chemicals.
Australia's top security officials met yesterday to consider the implications of the London arrests and review global intelligence onthe plot to blow up aircraft travelling from Britain to the US.
While Australia's security agencies have no intelligence of any direct threat to Australian aviation, the international scale of the foiled London plot is likely to dictate far-reaching changes in security procedures governing cabin baggage.
Existing airport screening machines can detect many types of chemicals, but they cannot easily identify some substances that can be combined later to make dangerous explosives.
The battle against terrorism means travellers may face draconian measures and severe limits on what they can carry.
Experts say tough new restrictions placed on US flights and those out of London to combat new types of liquid explosives -- includingthe ban on all but the most essential items of hand luggage -- are likely to remain.
And eventually, passengers may even be forced to wear airline- issued tracksuits if detection technology cannot keep pace.
"Hand baggage will probably never be the same again, at least for UK-US flights," said the Centre for Asia-Pacific Aviation, a Sydney- based aviation think tank. "This promises to be a significant inconvenience for travellers, particularly on long-haul flights."
John Howard said yesterday the threat posed by liquid explosives brought a "whole new menacing dimension to the terrorist threat".
The Prime Minister acknowledged the use of such explosives on planes could eventually lead to bans on hand luggage on all flights leaving Australia.
Mr Howard said the plot uncovered by British authorities was a reminder terrorism was still "a very live and menacing" threat.
Continued -- Page 12
From Page 1
Australian Federal Police Commissioner Mick Keelty said security authorities had been aware for some time of the threat posed by liquid explosives.
"The issue of liquids is one that has not been in the public arena but obviously has been thought about behind the scenes," he said.
"Most of the screening equipment we have at airports looks for inert substances and metal-detected substances. Clearly, there has been activity in the background recognising this was a potential problem."
A US Senate committee was told last year that traditional scanners could detect pistols but could not distinguish between hair gel and explosives.
Worries have emerged that terrorists could escape detection by taking bomb-making chemicals on planes and mixing them on board. And some substances are not readily detectable by explosives-scanning technology.
"The level of sophistication of both solid and liquid explosives ... since mid-90s has increased significantly," said associate professor Don Robertson of the Australian Centre for Security Research.
"There are all these people busily developing explosives that can't be detected or ... they're simply borrowing technology from legitimate operators, for example miners."
Temporary restrictions introduced on Thursday mean books, laptop computers, carry-on luggage and all liquids have been banned from flights leaving London's Heathrow airport.
And travellers flying to and from the US face an indefinite ban on all liquids in cabin baggage -- including beverages, suntan lotion, creams, toothpaste and hair gels -- as well as screening of all footwear.
Airlines flying to the US must also implement increased checks on services such as meals and baggage handling.
Qantas executive general manager John Borghetti said the new restrictions were a response to a specific threat and that he was hopeful they would be lifted as soon as it was resolved.
"Will it get back to the way it was?" he said. "We hope so, but obviously safety and security comes first, and while there are security concerns this regime must be put in place."
The national counter-terrorism committee -- consisting of security experts from ASIO, the AFP, and the departments of Transport, Foreign Affairs, Defence and Prime Minister and Cabinet - - yesterday reviewed existing procedures governing Australian aviation security. Cabinet's national security committee is likely to discuss options for tightening procedures here next week.
Mr Keelty said the performance of detection equipment at Australian airports was under constant review.
Attorney-General Philip Ruddock said the Government had no specific information that terrorist groups were planning attacks againstAustralian interests. Australia's existing threat level remains at medium.
"I have no advice suggesting further changes are required at this time," Mr Ruddock said. "We have no specific information that people are planning such an operation in Australia."
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Thursday 10 August 2006

Police slammed on gang rape tape, The Australian, 10 August, 2006.

Two arrested over gang rape as police slammed on tape delay: [B Qld First Edition]

Simon Kearney, John Stapleton. The Australian; Canberra, A.C.T. [Canberra, A.C.T] 10 Aug 2006: 3.
Show highlighting
Within hours of distributing the images of the five men wearing white tradesman-style overalls as they walked through Darling Harbour, a 25-year-old man from the southwestern suburb of Leumeah surrendered himself at Bankstown police station. He was charged with aggravated sexual assault.
Detective Inspector Jon Alt yesterday defended the timing of the release of the CCTV footage, which captured the men from behind. Inspector Alt, the crime manager for inner Sydney, said the investigation might have been compromised were the information made public earlier.
NSW police faced similar criticisms earlier this year over the failure of Taskforce Enoggera to release CCTV footage of revenge attacks conducted on the night of the December 11 Cronulla riots.
A POLICE decision to withhold CCTV footage of five Sydney gang rape suspects from the public for two months has been criticised after the release of the tapes yesterday sparked immediate arrests.
Within hours of distributing the images of the five men wearing white tradesman-style overalls as they walked through Darling Harbour, a 25-year-old man from the southwestern suburb of Leumeah surrendered himself at Bankstown police station. He was charged with aggravated sexual assault.
Several hours later, a 17-year-old from the western suburb of Villawood turned himself in at Surry Hills police station. He was also charged with aggravated sexual assault and will appear in Bidura Children's Court today.
Police allege the pair were among four men who raped a 19-year- old woman in a public toilet block on the Darling Walk near theChinese Gardens about 6.30pm on June 8, with a fifth man acting as a lookout outside.
Detective Inspector Jon Alt yesterday defended the timing of the release of the CCTV footage, which captured the men from behind. Inspector Alt, the crime manager for inner Sydney, said the investigation might have been compromised were the information made public earlier.
"We still stand by the fact that today was the appropriate time to release this to the media and the public," Inspector Alt said.
"It is obviously a brazen attack. Anyone who conducts a rape when people are around, it is very brazen and very powerful. Darling Harbour is a heavily populated area. We are appealing for any witnesses." Police believe the incident was a one-off attack.
Police believe they have significant leads on the other men involved after a "good" response from the public yesterday.
NSW police faced similar criticisms earlier this year over the failure of Taskforce Enoggera to release CCTV footage of revenge attacks conducted on the night of the December 11 Cronulla riots.
Enoggera head Detective Superintendent Dennis Bray was sacked in January for withholding the footage amid claims the police were being soft on Middle Eastern crime. He was reinstated after his officers said they had been quietly using the video to identify therevenge attackers.
NSW Opposition police spokesman Mike Gallacher said the public had had a right to know such a brutal attack had occurred in a busy tourist area.
"The offenders know what they did, the victim ... knows what happened and the police know. That investigation could have continued and would have continued," he said.
"The public had a right to know that we had gang rapists blatantly operating in Darling Harbour shortly after sunset on an incredibly packed night."
Just after dark, the victim was strolling along Darling Walk, not far from the Central City police station. Police allege the men engaged her in conversation and lured her to a toilet block near the end of Liverpool Street where the assault took place.
Over the following hour, four of the men allegedly raped the woman, while one stood guard outside.




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