Abbott and Co out to emasculate the NSW Nationals?

All is not well between the Liberal-Nationals Coalition in the lead up to the next Australian federal election and strong language is the order of the day in this letter (originally published by The Australian) in reply from Nationals NSW President Christine Ferguson to Federal Liberal Senator Arthur Sinodinos on 5 March 2012. 
Nationals NSW President Christine Ferguson's Letter To Federal Liberal Senator Arthur Sinodinos

APN's Peter Chapman turns even nastier than usual on the Fraser Coast

Excerpt from the Fraser Coast Chronicle on 13 April 2012:

Which...

...high-profile candidate is so worried about Election Gossip that he has been digging for some dirt of his own?

This man has even gone so far as to make calls to certain people in Grafton, New South Wales, in a desperate attempt to find anything at all he thinks he could use as a shield.

If this candidate believes he can spare himself the scrutiny of the Chronicle, he had better think again.

Stay tuned...

...the Stealth Reporter hears all...

It doesn’t take a genius to see the visage of Fraser Coast Chronicle Editor, Peter Chapman, behind this ‘column’ which appears dedicated to anonymous and scurrilous gossip concerning mayoral and councillor candidates in the Fraser Coast Regional Council Election called for 28 April 2012.

The Clarence Valley would not tolerate the ugly side of Mr. Chapman’s editorship of Grafton’s The Daily Examiner and told him so early and often. He left the Valley after less than fifteen months at the newspaper and went north into Queensland – sped on his way by widespread community dislike of his divisive journalistic personality.

I suspect that the Fraser Coast is now paying the price for not following the Valley’s example.

* Graphic from The Fraser Coast Chronicle

How not to win friends and influence people in a NSW Legislative Council inaugural speech

When sly digs at a senior member of your own parliamentary party should not be a personal order of the day…………

As an aficionado of the Village People, Mr President, you, like me, will no doubt recall that they sang, "No man does it all by himself". {NSW Hansard,Hon. Dr. Peter Phelps MLC,2011,Inaugural Speech}

Developer's dream goes west in Yamba?

For years longtime Yamba residents have pondered the possibility that the ill-advised release of a large section of flood storage land for future urban development would be a graveyard for the speculative developers who currently own this land.

In 2012 they are perhaps seeing the first cracks in the Clarence Valley Council-NSW Government grand plan to eventually place over 2,000 new residents in flood prone West Yamba – with Lot 8 DP1062514 apparently coming onto the market in a forced sale.

This lot is subject to Stage Two of the Yamba By-Pass Road construction. Stage One is currently being progressed by Council.

22 Carrs Drive, YAMBA NSW 2464

Receiver Sale - Residential Subdivision - Yamba

- Potential for 172 lots
- 17.66* ha majority zoned residential (2C)
- 300 metres* to town centre and close to famous surfing beaches
For Sale by Offers to Purchase Closing Thursday 24 May, 2012 at 4pm

Extracted from ASIC's database at AEST 07:21:44 on 15/04/2012

Name EAST COAST PTY LTD
ACN 074 704 028
ABN 91 074 704 028
Type Australian Proprietary Company, Limited By Shares
Registration Date 03/07/1996
Next Review Date 03/07/2012
Status ** UNDER EXTERNAL ADMINISTRATION and/or CONTROLLER APPOINTED **
Locality of Registered Office Yamba NSW 2464
Jurisdiction Australian Securities & Investments Commission

Date Number Pages Description
13/03/2012 7E4331310 11 5011B Copy of Minutes of Meeting of Members, Creditors, Contributories or Committee of Inspection Under S.436e Or S.439a

'Troll' Phelps crying wolf on Twitter

The Hon. Dr Peter Phelps MLC tweeting on 5^th April:
Peter Phelps‏ @PeterPhelpsMLC
Yesterday, NSW Labor refused leave to allow me to move my motion on Free Speech in Australia (Motion No.599) #theipa http://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/prod/lc/lcpaper.nsf/0/D16FDBEB3231CD8BCA2579D5004ACF67/$file/Notice%20Paper%2076%20-%204%20April%202012.pdf

Peter Phelps‏@PeterPhelpsMLC

@BULMKT They can 'deny leave' for me to proceed, unless motion is set for debate. It would have been quick and easy, but they hate freedom.

Such a hard done by MLC – on that particular day he only got to rise to his feet for two of the four motions he had listed.

But what about the principle of free speech and the Opposition's supposed hatred of freedom? Well, this is where it gets interesting.

The February 2012 ANZACATT Bulletin tells us that; "On 12 October 2011, on a motion of the Leader of the Government, the House referred terms of reference to the Privileges Committee to inquire into and report on whether the conduct of Mr Shoebridge in relation to this matter constituted an abuse of privilege, namely the privilege of freedom of speech…..In its report, the Privileges Committee noted that the House has not identified and adopted appropriate principles to be applied in relation to the exercise of members' freedom of speech. In those circumstances, the Committee concluded that 'any finding of abuse of privilege under present circumstances could be perceived as an unwarranted restriction on members' freedom of speech'. The Committee was guided by this precedent in considering the statements made by Mr Shoebridge. In its report of November 2011, the Committee found that given the paramount importance of preserving the privilege of freedom of speech of members, and noting that the House has not adopted guidelines on what constitutes abuse of the privilege of freedom of speech, it would be unreasonable to adjudge Mr Shoebridge guilty of an abuse of the privilege of freedom of speech."

Now, Phelps took part in debating the 12^th October motion by way of points of order and unless he had ducked out for a pee just as the question was put he formed part of this – as did other Coalition MLCs and presumably all their Labor counterparts:

"Question—That the motion be agreed to—put and resolved in the affirmative.

Motion agreed to.

So it's a bit rich for him to be claiming to champion free speech, when he took part in what seems to be only the fourth attempt by the Legislative Council to compel a member into silence by way of formal sanction since 1989.

# For those interested in procedural minutiae, Phelps motion is recorded as "Notice given 11 October 2011—expires Notice Paper No. 64" on 23^rd February 2012 and as "Notice given 27 March 2012—expires Notice Paper No. 91" on 4^th April 2012.

Hansard Running Record displays "Obj. taken, item not considered as formal business" on 4^th April.

# Thanks to Clarencegirl for finding a pdf of the ANZACATT Bulletin for me.

Second National Rural Regional Law and Justice Conference, 18-20 May 2012 at Coffs Harbour, NSW

The Second National Rural Regional Law and Justice Conference is to be hosted by University of New England in collaboration with Deakin University School of Law.

This national conference has a triple focus:

• On sharing knowledge amongst attendees with different professional backgrounds and concerns, but a shared interest in the future of rural and regional Australia
• On critical analysis of issues and problems
• On practical strategies for delivering greater social justice for rural and regional communities

Dates: 18 - 20 May 2012
Venue: Aanuka Beach Resort, Coffs Harbour, NSW

Registrations:
Early Bird: $300 close 23 March 2012
Standard: $395 close 20 April 2012
Register for the conference today.

Keynote speakers listed here.

More information:
Visit the National Rural/Regional Law and Justice Conference website.

The mining boom is an unmitigated good in the eyes of many and further proof that Australia is indeed the lucky country. But it is not luck shared by all. Farming, mining and Indigenous communities are amongst those many Australians suffering its downside. Its economic benefits frequently fly over these communities, leaving them only with its adverse social and environmental impacts.

Several speakers at the 2nd National Rural and Regional Law and Justice Conference will take up these issues. National leader writer for The Australian and research scholar at ANU, Paul Cleary has subjected the impacts of the mining boom to the sternest scrutiny in his best selling 'Too Much Luck: The Mining Boom and Australia's Future' and the forthcoming 'Mine-Field: The Dark Side of Australia's Resources Frenzy'. His keynote address will look at the implications of the boom for rural and regional communities.

There will also be a ‘once in a lifetime’ chance to listen (and speak) to the leading US commentator on rural democracy and justice, Jim Hightower.  Author of 5 popular books, 2 times Texas Agriculture Commissioner, and one of the most informative and entertaining commentators on rural affairs in the USA, Jim brings a hard-hitting viewpoint that will make everyone think. Jim Hightower speaks for the interests of rural communities across the USA, and broadcasts daily radio commentaries that are carried in more than 150 commercial and public stations, on the web, and on Radio for Peace International.  Jim will be talking about challenges faced by rural communities in Australia and the USA, ‘fracking’ and farming, and the power games that impact on farming communities.

The program features a range of speakers who will explore issues concerning mining development in rural and regional communities, and the role of the law in managing such conflict. The justice and equity issues of mining developments, and the impact these have on communities, will be debated in several thought-provoking and engaging sessions, including:
·         Professor Kerry Carrington, Queensland University of Technology: The social and criminological impact of mining development on rural communities
·         Adam Edwards, University of New England: Grass v Gas: The role of private nuisance in agriculture / mining land use conflict
·         Tony Meacham, University of Southern Queensland: 20 Years after Mabo – Is there any more certainty for pastoralists, miners, and Indigenous people?
·         Dr Jacqueline Williams, University of New England, and Sue Higginson, Environmental Defender’s Office: Mining: Coming to a farm near you

[Email from Jacqueline Williams, BAppSc MAppSc PhD, Senior Researcher AgLaw Centre University of New England]

The power of words strung together

Israel has declared the German author Guenter Grass "persona non grata" and barred him from entering the country because of this poem.

What must be said

Why have I kept silent, held back so long,

on something openly practiced in

war games, at the end of which those of us

who survive will at best be footnotes?

It's the alleged right to a first strike

that could destroy an Iranian people

subjugated by a loudmouth

and gathered in organized rallies,

because an atom bomb may be being

developed within his arc of power.

Yet why do I hesitate to name

that other land in which

for years—although kept secret—

a growing nuclear power has existed

beyond supervision or verification,

subject to no inspection of any kind?

This general silence on the facts,

before which my own silence has bowed,

seems to me a troubling lie, and compels

me toward a likely punishment

the moment it's flouted:

the verdict "Anti-semitism" falls easily.

But now that my own country,

brought in time after time

for questioning about its own crimes,

profound and beyond compare,

is said to be the departure point,

(on what is merely business,

though easily declared an act of reparation)

for yet another submarine equipped

to transport nuclear warheads

to Israel, where not a single atom bomb

has yet been proved to exist, with fear alone

the only evidence, I'll say what must be said.

But why have I kept silent till now?

Because I thought my own origins,

Tarnished by a stain that can never be removed,

meant I could not expect Israel, a land

to which I am, and always will be, attached,

to accept this open declaration of the truth.

Why only now, grown old,

and with what ink remains, do I say:

Israel's atomic power endangers

an already fragile world peace?

Because what must be said

may be too late tomorrow;

and because—burdend enough as Germans—

we may be providing material for a crime

that is foreseeable, so that our complicity

wil not be expunged by any

of the usual excuses.

And granted: I've broken my silence

because I'm sick of the West's hypocrisy;

and I hope too that many may be freed

from their silence, may demand

that those responsible for the open danger

we face renounce the use of force,

may insist that the governments of

both Iran and Israel allow an international authority

free and open inspection of

the nuclear potential and capability of both.

No other course offers help

to Israelis and Palestinians alike,

to all those living side by side in emnity

in this region occupied by illusions,

and ultimately, to all of us.

Günter Grass Nobel Laureate

Translated by Breon Mitchell

The Guardian UK 9 April 2012