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January 2025

Great time to be alive and in Australia for Palestinian terror supporters

Tuesday, 21 January 2025

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And in full, from the Department of Home Affairs - it's specifically for 'Hamas Conflct'

https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-and-support/hamas-israel-conflict/information-for-palestinian-israeli-nationals-temporary-humanitarian-stay

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​​​​The Australian Government is committed to supporting people from significantly affected areas of the Occupied Palestinian Territories and Israel who have arrived in Australia on temporary visas due to the conflict between Hamas and Israel.

The Australian Government is offering a temporary humanitarian stay visa pathway to eligible Palestinians and Israeli nationals on a case by case basis. This will afford Palestinians and Israelis impacted by the Hamas-Israel conflict support and stability.

The temporary humanitarian stay pathway is by invitation from the Minister only. You cannot apply for this visa without an invitation. The Minister is working towards making offers as quickly as possible.

The temporary humanitarian stay pathway is a two-step process. This involves being granted a Humanitarian Stay (Temporary) (subclass 449) visa, followed by a Temporary Humanitarian Concern (subclass 786) visa. The subclass 786 visa will be granted for three years.​

You must meet all visa criteria for us to grant you these visas. This includes health, character and security criteria.

Who is eligible?

All Palestinian and Israeli nationals in Australia who hold a temporary visa are eligible for consideration for an offer of temporary stay. It does not matter when they arrived in Australia. The person must be:

  • a Palestinian or Israeli national
  • in Australia on a temporary visa, and
  • unable to return to their usual place of residence.

If you do not meet the eligibility criteria the Minister will not consider you for an offer of temporary stay. People outside Australia are not eligible for this offer.

Important information for eligible individuals from the Occupied Palestinian Territories

The Australian Government will make offers of temporary humanitarian stay to all eligible Palestinians in Australia on temporary visas. The Minister will make offers on a case by case basis as soon as possible.​

These offers will include people who have already applied for a Protection visa.

You do not need to express interest to receive an offer, however we will prioritise consideration of eligible Palestinian nationals who express interest using the webform at the bottom of this page.

The department will contact you via email if the Minister makes you an offer of temporary humanitarian stay.

You should keep your contact details up to date via the ‘Update us’ tab in ImmiAccount. This will ensure you receive offer information as soon as possible.

If you do not have an ImmiAccount you can use the Update contact details form.

If you have applied, or may apply for a Protection visa

If the Minister offers you a temporary humanitarian stay it may affect your future visa pathway options in Australia.

Under the Migration Regulations 1994, people offered a temporary humanitarian stay cannot meet the criteria for a Protection visa. This applies even if they have already lodged an application before getting an offer.

We recommend that you consult with a registered migration agent or legal practitioner before expressing interest in, or accepting an offer for, the temporary humanitarian stay pathway. For more information see Using a migration agent.

Benefits of the temporary humanitarian stay pathway

The temporary humanitarian stay pathway enables you to receive a range of social and settlement supports. These include:

  • Special Benefit payments
  • work and study rights
  • Medicare access (for subclass 786 visa holders only)
  • support provided under the:
    • Humanitarian Settlement Program (HSP)
    • Settlement Engagement and Transition Support (SETS) program
    • Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP).

You can refer to the Services Australia website for more information about support for 449 or 786 visa holders.

Individuals are eligible for HSP services as soon as they accept an offer from the Minister. HSP services are provided on a needs basis, and can include:

  • ​support to find long-term accommodation in the private rental market
  • a package of basic household goods
  • assistance to register with Centrelink (for subclass 449 and 786 holders)
  • assistance to register with Medicare (for subclass 786 visa holders)
  • help opening a bank account
  • help with school enrolment
  • support to apply for recognition of pre-arrival skills and qualifications
  • support to register with the Adult Migrant English Program and attend English lessons (for subclass 449 and 786 visa holders).
  • referrals to support services including health and family support services if your visa entitles you to these services.

HSP service providers can also provide any relevant settlement orientation content.

Subclass 786 and subclass 449 visa holders receiving support through the HSP can get help to understand Australia’s employment market and how to implement employment strategies. This can include:

  • support to access employment services, such as Workforce Australia, and implement employment strategies identified in their Job Plan
  • access to support services to establish a business; and
  • support to enrol in relevant education and training opportunities and obtain recognition of pre-arrival skills and qualifications.

If you have accepted the offer of temporary humanitarian stay, a HSP service provider will contact you to discuss your settlement support needs.

You can register your interest in being considered for the offer by filling out the webform at the bottom of this page.

​Medicare access

You can only access Medicare once we have granted you a Temporary (Humanitarian Concern) (subclass 786) visa.

You cannot access Medicare while you hold a Temporary Humanitarian Stay (subclass 449) visa.

If you have access to Medicare on your current visa, we will restore access once we grant you a subclass 786 visa. We will work to minimise any gap in your coverage.

Health checks

If you have accepted the offer you will need to undertake mandatory health checks. This is part of the subclass 786 visa assessment process. The checks will include a chest x-ray for most people.

HSP will cover the costs of these health checks for people in financial hardship. A HSP service provider will contact you to help organise your health checks. 

We will re-use health checks you have had for prior visa applications where possible. We can do this if you had the health checks in the last 12 months. We will request new health checks where required.

Travel

If you hold a subclass 786 visa, it does not permit you to travel to and re-enter Australia and will cease when you leave Australia. You will not be able to re-enter Australia unless you are granted another visa.

For information on other visa options, see Explore visa options.

If you hold a subclass 786 visa and wish to be considered for the grant of a Subclass 449 visa to enable you to re-enter Australia, please contact [email protected] prior to departure.​​

​​How to register your interest

You can register your interest in being considered for the offer by filling out the webform at the bottom of this page. Please note that registering your interest is not a requirement for you to be made an offer of temporary humanitarian stay, but we will prioritise consideration of those who have expressed interest.

You can submit one webform for you and your immediate family members who wish to be considered for the offer.

The webform will ask you to answer some questions and ask you to provide some personal information.

Stages of the Temporary Humanitarian Stay pathway

The guide below shows the stages in the visa process for the Temporary Humanitarian Stay pathway.

Stage 1

Register your interest in being considered for the Australian Government offer of temporary humanitarian stay by completing all the details on the webform.

You can submit one webform for you and your immediate family members. You can do this yourself or have someone else do it on your behalf. This could be a legal representative or migration agent.

Stage 2

The department will consider the information in the webform. We will refer eligible cases to the Minister.

Stage 3

The Minister will consider your case and may decide to make you an offer of temporary humanitarian stay.

We will contact you via email notifying you of the offer. This will also ask if you wish to accept the offer.

If you accept the offer we will assess you against the visa criteria for the subclass 449 and the subclass 786 visas​. 

If you do not accept the offer you can consider other visas. For more information see Explore visa options.

Stage 4

The department will send a subclass 449 visa grant letter/email to each person granted a visa. We will tell you if we need any further information to grant you a subclass 786 visa. This will include a request to complete:

  • mandatory health checks. A HSP service provider will contact you to help you make an appointment.
  • security checks, including collection of your biometric information (if we don’t already have it).
  • a character declaration.

Stage 5

We can process and grant the subclass 786 visa once you have:

  • met all requirements
  • completed the relevant health checks
  • provided your biometrics.

Any health issues identified as part of your health check will not result in a visa refusal. We may ask you to provide other health related information if you have health issues. 

Expression of interest webform

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Posted at 01:01 PM | | Comments (35)

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President Trump withdraws the USA from Paris Agreement. Just like that!

Tuesday, 21 January 2025

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By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered as follows:

Section 1.  Purpose.  The United States must grow its economy and maintain jobs for its citizens while playing a leadership role in global efforts to protect the environment.  Over decades, with the help of sensible policies that do not encumber private-sector activity, the United States has simultaneously grown its economy, raised worker wages, increased energy production, reduced air and water pollution, and reduced greenhouse gas emissions.  The United States’ successful track record of advancing both economic and environmental objectives should be a model for other countries.

In recent years, the United States has purported to join international agreements and initiatives that do not reflect our country’s values or our contributions to the pursuit of economic and environmental objectives.  Moreover, these agreements steer American taxpayer dollars to countries that do not require, or merit, financial assistance in the interests of the American people.

Sec. 2.  Policy.  It is the policy of my Administration to put the interests of the United States and the American people first in the development and negotiation of any international agreements with the potential to damage or stifle the American economy.  These agreements must not unduly or unfairly burden the United States.

Sec. 3.  Implementation.  (a)  The United States Ambassador to the United Nations shall immediately submit formal written notification of the United States’ withdrawal from the Paris Agreement under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.  The notice shall be submitted to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the Depositary of the Agreement, attached as Appendix A.  The United States will consider its withdrawal from the Agreement and any attendant obligations to be effective immediately upon this provision of notification. 

(b)  The United States Ambassador to the United Nations shall immediately submit written formal notification to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, or any relevant party, of the United States’ withdrawal from any agreement, pact, accord, or similar commitment made under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

(c)  The United States Ambassador to the United Nations, in collaboration with the Secretary of State and Secretary of the Treasury, shall immediately cease or revoke any purported financial commitment made by the United States under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

(d)  Immediately upon completion of the tasks listed in subsections (a), (b), and (c), the United States Ambassador to the United Nations, in collaboration with the Secretary of State and Secretary of the Treasury shall certify a report to the Assistant to the President for Economic Policy and Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs that describes in detail any further action required to achieve the policy objectives set forth in section 2 of this order.

(e)  The U.S. International Climate Finance Plan is revoked and rescinded immediately.  The Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall, within 10 days of this order, issue guidance for the rescission of all frozen funds.

(f)  Within 30 days of this order, the Secretary of State, Secretary of the Treasury, Secretary of Commerce, Secretary of Health and Human Services, Secretary of Energy, Secretary of Agriculture, Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, Chief Executive Officer of the International Development Finance Corporation, Chief Executive Officer of the Millennium Challenge Corporation, Director of the U.S. Trade and Development Agency, President of the Export-Import Bank, and head of any other relevant department or agency shall submit a report to the Assistant to the President for Economic Policy and the Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs that details their actions to revoke or rescind policies that were implemented to advance the International Climate Finance Plan.

(g)  The Secretary of State, Secretary of Commerce, and the head of any department or agency that plans or coordinates international energy agreements shall henceforth prioritize economic efficiency, the promotion of American prosperity, consumer choice, and fiscal restraint in all foreign engagements that concern energy policy.

Sec. 4.  General Provisions.  (a)  Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect:

(i)   the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or

(ii)  the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals.

(b)  This order shall be implemented in a manner consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.

(c)  This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or any other persons.

THE WHITE HOUSE, January 20, 2025.

Posted at 12:06 PM | | Comments (15)

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Busy first day for President Trump

Tuesday, 21 January 2025

Posted at 11:46 AM | | Comments (12)

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Australia Day this Sunday.

Tuesday, 21 January 2025

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On 26 January, Australians come together to reflect on what it means to be Australian, to celebrate contemporary Australia and to acknowledge our history. 

Australia Day is about acknowledging the contribution every Australian makes to our contemporary and dynamic nation. From our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples who have been here for more than 65,000 years, to those who have lived here for generations, to those who have come from all corners of the globe to call our country home.

Further information is available on the National Australia Day Council website at https://australiaday.org.au/about  

In accordance with flag protocol, all Australian Government departments and associated portfolio agencies should fly or display the Australian National Flag all day on Sunday, 26 January 2025. Other organisations are welcome to participate. 

The financial and staffing implications arising from public holiday flag marshal duties are the responsibility of each organisation.

Information on flag protocol can be found at https://www.pmc.gov.au/publications/australian-flags-booklet/part-2-protocols-appropriate-use-and-flying-flag 

Your assistance is appreciated.

Commonwealth Flag Officer

21 January 2025

Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
1 National Circuit
BARTON  ACT  2600

Posted at 11:40 AM | | Comments (8)

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Muslims massacre more than 50 Christians in one day of slaughter - no report from ABC or SBS

Tuesday, 21 January 2025

Thanks to reader KB who writes:

What a disgrace:

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At least 53 Christians were killed on 15 January in two Islamist attacks in Lubero, North Kivu, north-eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

The Islamic State Central Africa Province (ISCAP, also known as the Allied Democratic Forces) announced the killings in two social media posts, according to the Terrorism Research and Analysis Consortium (TRAC).

One of the two posts declared, “By the grace of God Almighty, the soldiers of the Caliphate attacked the village of Makoko in the Lubero region and killed 41 Christians [who] were stabbed with knives.”

The other post confirmed killing of 12 others in the village of Masakuki.

The terrorist group also abducted 16 Christians, as well as burning houses and motorcycles.

Attacks of this type have been carried out consistently by ISCAP since the group first affiliated to Islamic State (IS, ISIS, ISIL, Daesh) in 2017. However, the scale and frequency of the attacks has increased in the past few weeks.

Relentless targeting of Christians

Including the 15 January attacks, at least 128 have been slaughtered in North Kivu and the neighbouring province of Ituri since Christmas Day 2024.

A TRAC analysis concludes that the brutality of these attacks underscore “the group’s relentless targeting of the Christian population in the region”.

“ISCAP’s repeated assaults on Christian civilians exploit the absence of a consistent security presence in the region,” the analysis continues.

“ISCAP’s tactic of successive attacks on the same village exacerbates the psychological toll on residents. By revisiting recently targeted areas, the group ensures an ongoing state of fear and insecurity among survivors.

“This strategy often results in higher casualties as panicked civilians struggle to navigate the aftermath of consecutive assaults.”   

 

Posted at 11:34 AM | | Comments (7)

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Only 65 years ago.

Tuesday, 21 January 2025

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#OnThisDay 18 January 1960, in a tunnel beneath Castlereagh Street in Sydney CBD, a technician is installing the racks (top right of pic) that will carry the £3 million coaxial cabel from the City South telephone exchange on the start of its 590 miles route to Melbourne - other cables carry existing telephone lines.
 
It was a telecommunications breakthrough for Australia, described by Sir Robert Menzies as "a remarkable task of teamwork" - a coaxial cable linking Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne.
 
First published in the Sydney Morning Herald on April 10, 1962... The biggest single telecommunications project in Australia, a coaxial cable linking Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne, was opened by the Prime Minister, Mr Menzies, in Canberra yesterday.
The 599-mile cable, with "repeater" stations every six miles, will substantially increase communication channels between the three centres. It took two years to install. The cable contains three pairs of copper tubes, each capable of carrying up to 1,260 simultaneous telephone conversations.
 
Alternatively, each pair is capable of carrying a television program between Sydney and Melbourne. Mr Menzies said the cable was the culmination of a remarkable task of teamwork.
 
He said: "We live in such turbulent, or hurried, times, that we occasionally forget that history is still being made, even though it is being made a little more hastily than it used to.
 
"I dare say that if somebody were living today whose grandfather had been at the laying of the first trans-Atlantic cable, this would be a matter of great family pride and satisfaction."
 

Post Office "Wizardry"

 
Mr Menzies said he had seen a coaxial cable being made, but he still did not know what it was about. "All I know is that by some miracle 1,200 people can speak on it at ore time. "By some wizardry, the Post Office sees that each person is speaking to the right person and not somebody else." Mr Menzies said 1½ million telephone calls were made between Sydney and Melbourne each year, and within 10 years the number was expected to increase to 51 million calls.
 
This illustrated the miracle of the development in communications.
 
He said: "This is only the beginning, It is not the end. "We, while not very rich in numbers of people, but very rich in resources and spirit and enterprise, will have a system of communication which will be the envy of most people in the world.
 

Hard Work, Immense Skill

 
"It will be achieved through a combination of hard work and immense skill. Today we are witnessing the first culmination of this magnificent combination. The more we can communicate direct with ether people, the more we can hear their voice and sense their feeling, the more disposed we will be to understand the fellow or nation whom we rather disliked, but who turned out to be rather a better fellow or nation than we had suspected."
 
The Premier of Victoria, Mr H. E. Bolte, said this was a historic week. It marked the opening of the new cable, and on Thursday the new standard-gauge railway line between Sydney and Melbourne would be opened.
 
Mr Bolte said the cable's huge potential would meet the inevitably bigger demands for communication in an area containing 40 percent of the Commonwealth's population. It would pave the way for subscriber-to-subscriber dialling in Sydney and Melbourne. It was significant that local industry had been given an opportunity of taking part in the project. A total of 85% of equipment had been supplied by Australian manufacturers. The opening involved three luncheons, held simultaneously in each of the three cities, and linked by telephone.
 
The Lord Mayor of Sydney, Alderman H. F. Jensen, and Melbourne's Lord Mayor, Councillor M. A, Nathan, had the first intercity telephone conversation over the cable. They first exchanged formal greetings but quickly achieved first-name friendliness.The two Lord Mayors then exchanged sarcasms about horse racing (both are owners), political attitudes, and the merits of their respective cities' attitudes to s.p. betting and the standard of their airports.
[Photo courtesy Fairfax Archives]

Posted at 11:14 AM | | Comments (3)

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ABC Sydney’s massive fail with its audience.

Monday, 20 January 2025

The ABC’s local station in Sydney is an abortion with a major overhaul of its line-up which included sackings of its older announcers (many of whom were actually popular and rated - as you'll see in the comments below).

So today, they posted a summary of the new team for 2025:

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It didn’t go down well.

As of time of publishing 128 comments. Only one positive. The rest condemning the changes.

It used to be said that you could put any crap to air on the ABC and the lefty diehards would love it and praise it.

Looks like something has changed.

How to f-up one of the few things the ABC does well, in one easy swoop.
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Posted at 04:11 PM | | Comments (24)

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