Secret negotiations as Australia is drawn into USA’s war machine
none of these negotiations have been shared with the Australian public
Nuclear drumbeat grows as US eyes Australia, Crikey, by Harley Dennett , 3 Aug 12, 
Australian policymakers could not be getting a clearer picture of what our US ally expects of us. Nuclear weapons and joint military bases aimed at containing our largest trading partner will, sooner or later, be put in our backyard — and we’ll be expected to pay for the privilege.
The Center for Strategic and International Studies report making headlines over a proposal to establish a US base in Perth to host nuclear-powered aircraft carriers and manned and unmanned ISR (intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance) drones is but the first report commissioned by this Congress. The second — as revealed by Crikey in May — will focus on positioning nuclear force in the Pacific.
Defence Minister Stephen Smith’s denials overnight were revealed as word trickery by the comments of the US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Plans Robert Scher in Congressional hearings early this morning, who pointed out that “no US bases” really means they expect Australia and other allies to share the costs of hosting large numbers of American troops at these so-called “shared facilities”: Continue reading
The plot to frame Julian Assange
Australian TV Program Exposes Julian Assange Frame-up http://www.democraticunderground.com/101636930 http://www.wsws.org/articles/2012/jul2012/assa-j28.shtml “Four Corners”, an Australian Broadcasting Corporation current affairs program, this week broadcast what amounted to an exposé of the frame-up of WikiLeaks editor Julian Assange on allegations of sexual misconduct in Sweden. Assange remains inside the Ecuadorian embassy in London, seeking political asylum from the threat of being removed to Sweden, which would in turn facilitate extradition to the US.
By tracing the chronology, the program also clarified the connection between the Swedish witchhunt and the Grand Jury operation underway in the United States to charge Assange with espionage for WikiLeaks’ exposures of US war crimes (see: “Sex, Lies and Julian Assange”).
The program provided substantial evidence that the allegations against him were false and politically motivated. The unproven accusations were used to blacken his name in Sweden and around the world, and counter the widespread public support that he and WikiLeaks had won for courageously exposing the crimes and machinations of the US and other powers.
Assange has still not been charged with any crime.
Julian Assange’s mother claims to have documentary evidence of USA’s intentions to prosecute him
Assange’s mother says U.S. bent on extraditing WikiLeaks founder The Star, By Eduardo Garcia QUITO (Reuters) 31 July 12, – Julian Assange’s mother said she handed evidence to Ecuador’s government on Monday indicating Washington is bent on extraditing her son to the United States, where she fears the WikiLeaks founder could face execution….. Neither U.S.
nor Swedish authorities have charged Assange with anything. Swedish prosecutors want to question him about allegations of rape and sexual assault made by two WikiLeaks supporters in 2010…
.. Christine Assange is due to meet with Ecuador’s President Rafael Correa later this week. She described the socialist leader as “very brave” and said she trusts that Correa will not allow his country’s sovereignty to be manipulated by foreign interests.
Both Correa and Julian Assange have alienated Washington. Correa is an ardent critic of what he calls U.S. “imperialism,” and U.S. authorities accuse Assange of damaging its foreign relations with his leaks http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/7/31/worldupdates/2012-07-30T220338Z_3_BRE86T0R9_RTROPTT_0_UK-ECUADOR-ASSANGE&sec=Worldupdates
Ecuador asked Sweden to question Julian Assange in London
Assange suffering, mother says THE AUSTRALIAN, AP July 31, 2012 THE mother of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange says her son’s health is suffering after more than a month confined to Ecuador’s embassy in London. Christine Assange is in Ecuador to meet with officials about her son’s political asylum request.
Ecuadorian officials have said they will not announce a decision until after the London Olympics end in mid-August.
Christine Assange told an Ecuadorian TV station on Monday that her son, owing to his cramped living conditions and inability to exercise, has extreme psychological stress. The activist who published secret US documents took refuge in the
embassy on June 19 to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he is wanted for questioning about allegations of sexual misconduct.
Assange says he fears Sweden will extradite him to the United States. Meanwhile, Ecuador says it has asked Sweden to question Mr Assange in London…… The WikiLeaks founder fears that from Sweden, he could subsequently be re-extradited to the United States to stand trial for espionage, on account of the trove of leaked US diplomatic cables and military logs that were published on his website…..
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/in-depth/wikileaks/assange-suffering-mother-says/story-fn775xjq-1226439239285
Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) unfair monopoly on selling radiopharmaceuticals
He alleges the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation used “duplicitious” and 
“uncompetitive” tactics to push Cyclopet out of the NSW marketplace.
a report by the Productivity Commission’s Australian Government Competitive Neutrality Complaints Office that backs his allegations,
PET peeve provokes a stoush BY: LEIGH DAYTON The Australian July 28, 2012 Cyclopharm’s James McBrayer believes Cyclopet could have flourished in a fair playing field. JAMES McBrayer is not a happy man. Since 2006, the company he heads has spent nearly $10 million on establishing a business producing and supplying a radiopharmaceutical used in positron emission tomography, or PET scans. Continue reading
USA keeps Australia in the dark on its plans for Julian Assange
US pushed to clarify Assange intentions, The Age, July 25, 2012, Dylan Welch THE West Australian Labor MP Melissa Parke has called on the US Attorney-General, Eric Holder, to make a categorical statement ruling out that America is seeking to extradite the WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange, to prosecute him for espionage.
Her call comes amid persisting public debate about whether the US has secretly convened a grand jury in Virginia with the purpose of prosecuting Mr Assange and others for a ”conspiracy to communicate or transmit national defence information”.
”In the light of the public information regarding a grand jury investigation, it would be helpful if the US Attorney-General would categorically state that the US has no intention of seeking the extradition of Julian Assange from Sweden,” Ms Parke told the Herald yesterday.
It was revealed in April last year a grand jury had been formed in Virginia with the likely aim of prosecuting people involved in the release of more than 250,000 US diplomatic cables in February 2010. A former US army intelligence analyst, Bradley Manning, has been charged with the theft and is about to face trial.
There have been no other arrests, but the US government has served orders on Twitter seeking the records of three WikiLeaks supporters and subpoenaed several people to testify before the grand jury. : http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/political-news/us-pushed-to-clarify-assange-intentions-20120724-22nkr.html#ixzz21gRP6UgM
Review confirms bullying and coverup at Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation
N-plant spill probe ‘seriously flawed’ BY: LEIGH DAYTON, SCIENCE WRITER The Australian July 18, 2012 A DAMNING review by global consultant KPMG has again highlighted safety and bullying concerns at Australia’s nuclear facility.
The review by KPMG’s forensic unit was conducted for the national regulator, the Australian Radiation Protection & Nuclear Safety Agency, and obtained by The Australian yesterday.
It found an ARPANSA investigation into a September 2007 contamination incident at the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation involving radioactive Yttrium-90 was seriously flawed. Continue reading
Australian uranium company alleged to fraudulently use land in Tanzania
named the exploration companies as, Uranium Resources PLC and [Australian uranium company] Western Metals Limited. (Western Minerals Limited changed it name to Indago Resources Ltd in 2009 )
Hunting firm illegally leased block to uranium miners’ BY PATRICK KISEMBO, 12th July 2012 The Opposition camp yesterday told the National Assembly about an alleged scam involving two uranium exploring companies and a hunting firm. They are said to have entered into a fraudulent contract apparently facilitating the subletting of the blocks contrary to the law and regulations. Continue reading
Hypocrisy of Australian govt in helping USA against Julian Assange
The Australian government has liaised closely with the US from the beginning of the US WikiLeaks investigation, which rapidly gathered steam following Bradley Manning’s arrest in Iraq in March 2010.
the released cables showed that the Australian embassy had confirmed through US officials that the US Justice Department was conducting an ”active and vigorous inquiry into whether Julian Assange can be charged under US law, most likely the 1917 Espionage Act”.
ever anxious to demonstrate its loyalty to the US alliance, the Australian government has not uttered any objection to the prospect that Assange may be prosecuted for espionage.
Ministers cagey over Assange, The Age, Philip Dorling, June 2, 2012, Julian Assange fears extradition to Sweden to be questioned about sexual assault allegations.
PRIME Minister Julia Gillard, Attorney-General Nicola Roxon and Foreign Minister Bob Carr all sang from the same hymn sheet this week on the continuing legal saga of WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange. But they chose their words very carefully.
The issue was whether the United States intends to charge and extradite Assange – the Australian journalist labelled by US Vice-President Joe Biden as ”a high-tech terrorist” – with criminal offences for WikiLeaks’ publication of hundreds of thousands of secret US military and diplomatic reports…..
Well aware of successive polls that show a high level of support for WikiLeaks and Assange across the Australian political spectrum, the Australian government has been insistent this week that it has no knowledge whatsoever of any intention by the US to prosecute and extradite the WikiLeaks publisher……. Continue reading
Conflict of interest as mining industry advises Australian Government on coal-seam gas
Coal-seam gas advisers’ links to mining industry exposed BY: NATASHA BITA The Australian May 14, 2012 MOST of the scientists advising the federal government on coal-seam gas pollution have financial links with the mining industry.
Four of the six members of the interim independent expert scientific committee on coal-seam gas and coalmining have a financial connection with mining companies, the Environment Department has revealed…… (subscribes only)
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/coal-seam-gas-advisers-links-to-mining-industry-exposed/story-fn59niix-1226354312451
Who is lying about uranium ? New South Wales Resources Minister, or Queensland Premier
Who is telling the truth? New South Wales Minister for Resources, Mr Hartcher? or the Queensland government?
In fact, both States prohibit uranium mining. New South Wales has recently allowed uranium exploration only.
THE HINDU 4 May 2012, reports that New South Wales Minister for Resources and Energy and Central Coast Christopher Peter Hartcher announced on Friday that both New South Wales and Queensland State governments in Australia had changed their laws which prohibited mining and sale of uranium.
Also Mr Hartcher is quoted “We also respect India’s decision on not signing the Nuclear Proliferation Treaty (NPT)” http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article3384772.ece
See this article – No plans for uranium mining ban rethink http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-05-02/no-plans-for-uranium-mining-ban-rethink/3984350?section=business By Stephen Smiley ABC News May 02, 2012 “The State Government says it has no plans to revisit Queensland’s ban on uranium mining.”
Queensland Premier Newman has recently reiterated the position that uranium mining is banned in Queensland.
And as for Mr Hartcher “respecting” India’s decision on the NPT, he is in the minority. Most Australians are appalled at the idea of selling uranium to a country that won’t sign the NPT.
Australia’s Energy Minister pushes for government spying on behalf of energy companies
Protests against coalmining so far have been peaceful. Resources and Energy Department briefings show that only four protests have interfered briefly with electricity generation.
ASIO eyes green groups, The Age, Philip Dorling, April 12, 2012 AUSTRALIA’S leading counter-terrorism agency has been providing intelligence to the federal government on environmental groups that campaign against coalmining.
Greens leader Bob Brown said yesterday it was ”intolerable that the Labor government was spying on conservation groups” and condemned the ”deployment of ASIO as a political weapon” against peaceful protests……
ASIO is exempt from freedom of information laws and is described on
its website as ”the only agency in the Australian intelligence community authorised in the normal course of its duties to undertake investigations into the activities of Australian persons”. Other FOI documents confirm that Mr Ferguson pressed then attorney-general Robert McClelland in September 2009 to see whether ”the
intelligence-gathering services of the Australian Federal Police” could be used to help energy companies handle increasing activity by coalmining protesters….. Continue reading
Contradictory statements on the return of Lynas radioactive wastes to Australia
Lynas had denied reports that the Western Australian government had refused to accept the radioactive waste from the miner’s RM2.5 billion rare earth plant in Malaysia.
“If the (Australian) government accepts waste, why not they (Lynas) stay in own country?” Himpunan Hijau chairman Wong Tack asked. Wong said Lynas Corp was “clearly taking advantage” of Malaysia’s
“loose environmental laws” and “non-functioning administration”.
Australia: No request from Lynas to accept waste http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/australia-no-request-from-lynas-to-accept-waste By Lisa J. Ariffin March KUALA LUMPUR, March 21 — Canberra
has yet to receive any request from Lynas Corp to accept radioactive waste from the Australian miner’s controversial rare earth plant in Gebeng, Kuantan that will be ready this June.
“Australia has not received any request to import residues from the plant,” an Australian High Commission spokesman told The Malaysian Insider when contacted today. Continue reading
Intimidation tactics against climate scientists
“I have been subject to all sorts of personal attacks, threats to my safety, my life, threats to my family, and it’s not just me, it’s
dozens of climate scientists in the US, in Australia and many other regions of the world where our findings are finding that climate change is real and potentially poses a threat to civilisation if we don’t confront that challenge. That represents a threat to certain vested interests and they’ve tried hard to discredit the science, often by discrediting and intimidating the scientists. “
VIDEO http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/content/2012/s3454652.htm Climatologist slams intimidation of scientists Australian Broadcasting Corporation Broadcast: 15/03/2012
Reporter: Emma Alberici Climatologist and director of the Earth System Science Centre in Pennsylvania State University Michael Mann joins Lateline.
Transcript Continue reading
Australia’s ex-ambassador reveals fears of “complete chaos” in Japan in March 2011
Mr McLean revealed that Australia and other nations began compiling elaborate evacuation plans amid growing concern and uncertainly as the Fukushima plant began to explode.
The former ambassador confirmed Australia had evacuation plans in place but voiced the uncomfortable truth that, in reality, greater Tokyo (population 35 million) would have been almost impossible to evacuate.
Ex-ambassador frustrated by post-tsunami silence BY: RICK WALLACE, TOKYO CORRESPONDENT The Australian March 10, 2012 AUSTRALIA’S former ambassador to Japan has told of his frustrations with the Japanese government for keeping its close partners in the dark about the extent of the damage to the Fukushima nuclear plant at the height of the crisis almost one year ago. Continue reading
1 This month
17 October, Free Public Talk on Nuclear Issues in South Australia
David Noonan will speak on public interest concerns over the new Roxby Downs Indenture Act 2026 on BHP copper-uranium mining and ore processing in SA, and on how AUKUS may face SA with a High-Level nuclear waste agenda.
Dr Jim Green will discuss international developments in the field of nuclear power including ‘small modular reactors’ and Generation 4 ‘advanced’ nuclear reactor concepts.
Help Aunty Sue Protect Her Land and Sacred Sites From Destructive Rocket Testing.
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Australians deserve the truth
about
AUKUS – https://aukuspublicinquiry.com/
PETITION – To: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the Australian Labor Government
of the week – Australians for War Powers Reform (AWPR)
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