NEWS AROUND PRISON AND LAW  /  AUSTRALIA AND OCEANIA

30. Dezember 2005

AUSTRALIA

am 5. januar wird der 150 jahre alte knast in der stadt bendigo / bundesstaat victoria offiziell geschlossen. das bendigo senior secondary college ( 11. und 12. klasse) wird den knast als schule benutzen.

Classrooms to open in Bendigo jail

There may not be such a difference between prisons and schools after all, with Victoria's oldest operating jail closing to make way for classrooms. The 150-year-old Bendigo Medium Security Jail will be officially decommissioned on January 5. Bendigo Senior Secondary College will use the prison building. Victorian Corrections Minister Tim Holding says the last of the prisoners are being moved to other jails and staff have been offered positions elsewhere. "It'll no doubt be a sad time - some very interesting and intriguing memories over the life of the prison, but of course also an opportunity now to use that site for more appropriate purposes that will help support activities in the central activities district there in Bendigo."

[  abc.net.au

26. Dezember 2005

NEW ZEALAND

271 menschen, deren haftt zwischen dem 15. dezember und dem 5. januar beendet wäre, wurden anfang dezember entlassen.

Almost 300 prisoners get out of jail early for Christmas

Almost 300 prisoners were let out of jail early this year as part of a Christmas release programme. 271 prisoners whose release dates would have fallen between December 15 - January 5 were released from jail in early December. Prison Service general manager, Phil McCarthy says releasing prisoners slightly early allows them the opportunity to find work, accommodation and meet support services prior to Christmas. Mr McCarthy said the numbers granted early release this year was slightly higher than in the past; which he said was a reflection of the high prison population.

[  radionz.co.nz

15. Dezember 2005

AUSTRALIA

nach einer statistik des sentencing advisory council ( beirat für verurteilungen/ strafhöhe) sind 166 männer in den jahren 1999-2004 wegen vergewaltigung verurteilt worden. 79% der verurteilten wurden zu knaststrafen verurteilt, 6 % zu bewährungsstrafen , 5% zu kurzen knaststrafen mit bewährung, 3 % zu jugendknast ( wieso das nicht zu knast zählt keine ahnung), 3% zu communitystrafen ( das kann gemeinnützige arbeit sein, ist aber auch die registrierung bei der polizei, sind auflagen bestimmte orte nicht zu betreten, ist das benachrichten der nachbarn etc.), 2% zu ambulanten therapien und beobachtung durch polizei und bewährungshelfern und 1% wurde in kliniken eingewiesen.

LITTLE or no jail for 11% of rapists

MORE than one in 10 men convicted of rape received a wholly or partly suspended jail sentence between 1999 and 2004, statistics reveal. Released by the Sentencing Advisory Council yesterday, the statistics show that 166 men were sentenced for rape during the period. Six per cent of the total received wholly suspended sentences and 5 per cent received partly suspended sentences.

The proportion of men sentenced to immediate imprisonment increased from 70 per cent to 79 per cent between 2000 and 2002 and has remained around this level since. Sentencing Advisory Council chairman Professor Ari Frieberg said the council had recommended abolishing suspended sentences as a sentencing option "and these figures reveal why it is an issue".

Last year, about 10,000 people rallied at Parliament House to object to "soft sentences" handed to sex offenders. The rally was sparked by the wholly suspended jail sentence given to David Leslie Sims, who was convicted of two counts of rape, indecent assault and aggravated burglary. Professor Frieberg said the proportion of men sentenced to jail for rape, and sentence lengths for rape, had increased in recent years.

He said that in most cases men prosecuted for rape faced multiple charges, and that the sentence imposed for rape had to be considered in this broader context. The average effective imprisonment period for rape fell from seven years (with an average non-parole period of four years and 10 months) in 1999 to six years and one month (with an average non-parole period of four years) in 2001.

But Professor Frieberg said this figure increased to seven years and eight months in 2003, with an average non-parole period of five years and five months. Apart from one indefinite sentence, the longest total effective sentence was 22 years and nine months. All 166 people sentenced for rape between 1999 and 2004 were male. More than one in five ? 23 per cent ? received sentences other than immediate imprisonment. Other than those who received suspended sentences, 3 per cent were sentenced to youth detention, 3 per cent received community-based orders, 2 per cent received intensive correction orders and 1 per cent a hospital security order.

Professor Frieberg said those who had lighter sentences may have included young and intellectually disabled offenders with no prior convictions accused of less grave sexual assaults. In 2003, the Victims of Crime Compensation Tribunal granted 102 compensation applications by rape victims and, on average, about $6000 was awarded to each victim.

[  theage.com.au

27. November 2005

AUSTRALIA

mehrere bedienstete der knäste in nsw ( new south wales ) sind in den letzten 12 monaten in 30 fällen wegen körperverletzung an gefangenen und in 8 fällen wegen sexuellen übergriffen angezeigt worden. Im gleichen zeitraum wurden 10 wärter wegen alkohol u.a. diziplinarvergehen und 3 wegen drogengebrauchs entlassen.

Jail staff accused of sexual assaults

PRISON staff have been accused of attacking and sexually assaulting 38 NSW inmates in the past year, new figures show. Minister for Justice Tony Kelly said there had been 30 reports of alleged assaults by custodial staff and eight alleged sexual assaults. Responses to questions on notice from a Budget Estimates hearing also revealed drugs and alcohol have been a problem plaguing NSW jails over the past year.

Ten prison officers have been dismissed for drunkenness or disciplinary reasons in the past 12 months and three had their contracts terminated for drug use. A further 18 staff members were referred for alcohol counselling. Greens MLC Lee Rhiannon called on Mr Kelly to disclose whether these allegations of assault were being investigated. "There have been a disturbing large number of allegations of assaults and sexual assaults committed by prison staff on inmates in NSW jails," she said. "I have asked the Minister what investigations have been undertaken into these allegations. Where assaults have occurred surely all Corrective Services staff who have been involved in these attacks should be banned from any interactions with prisoners."

Opposition juvenile justice spokeswoman Catherine Cusack said drugs were an issue in prisons among inmates and staff. She said visitors caught attempting to smuggle drugs should be investigated and charged. "Out of 2200 visitors screened, 162 were refused entry on the basis of a positive indication by drug-detector dogs," she said. "I am extremely unhappy that anyone caught by a drug-detection dog trying to smuggle drugs into a custodial facility would be merely turned away. Police should have been called to investigate these positive results and serious charges possibly laid."In Dubbo, drugs were discovered in the nappy of a baby being brought to visit his 17-year-old father, who was in detention. "There were no charges resulting from the incident."

Opposition justice spokesman Andrew Humpherson said prison staff who allegedly committed the assaults should be punished. "The fact there has been little action taken against staff for the alleged assaults suggests that the Government is happy to allow a culture of violence to be maintained in NSW prisons," he said. "It's innocent citizens who will be the victims once these offenders are released from jail. "There is a responsibility on government to ensure that the prison system is not creating hardened criminals who, upon release, will go and perpetrate further crime."

[  thesundaymail.news.com.au

21 November 2005

SOLOMON ISLANDS

die insassen des rove knast haben den australischen behörden vorgeworfen für die unruhen die mitte oktober ausbrachen verantwortlich zu sein. Im oktober hatten sich 200 gefangene drei nächte lang geweigert in die zellen zu gehen. Sie bestanden darauf dem polizeiminister eine petition auszuhändigen in der sie u.a. die grausame und menschenunwürdige behandlung durch die knastleitung anprangerten. Der aufstand endete am 14 . oktober nachdem knastwärter und die von australien geführte regional assistance to the solomon islands truppen ( ramsi ) tränengas benutzten um die unruhen zu beenden.[  Operation Helpem Fren

Am 18. november waren die gefangenen in den blocks 1 und 2 immer noch für 22 stunden täglich in den zellen. Den gefangenen wurde gesagt das dieser lock down jeden monat eine stunde reduziert wird , voraussetzung ? gutes verhalten?. Die mosquito netze , der beste schutz gegen malaria, wurden allen gefangenen abgenommen, auch denen die sich nicht an der unruhe beteiligt waren. Der grund sind die schleudern die angeblich damit hergestellt wurden. Knastbedienstete hatten behauptet , daß der knast mit chemischen mittel gegen die mosquitos behandelt wurde. Bis zum 18. november hatten sich 10 gefangene mit malaria infiziert. Neun männer , die als mitglieder von gruppen die die interessen der gefangenen vertreten bezeichnet werden, wurden als angebliche anstifter der unruhen in iso ? zellen gebracht. Der knast wurde vor einiger zeit privatisiert und gehört jetzt einer firma die zu dem konzern des australischen medienmoguls kerry packer.

Solomon Island prisoners accuse Australian authorities of abuses

Inmates at the Rove Prison in the Solomon Islands have blamed Australian officials for a major disturbance that erupted in mid-October. For three nights, 200 prisoners refused to return to their cells, insisting that the police minister accept a petition. The standoff ended on October 14 after prison guards and Australian-led Regional Assistance to the Solomon Island (RAMSI) officers used tear gas to quell the unrest.

According to several media reports, which sought to trivialise the events, the inmates were angered by the fact that the minister responsible for prisons, Augustine Taneko, refused them access to television as well as any privacy with their wives. However, several prisoners have been able to communicate their version of events to the World Socialist Web Site. They say the Australian officials in charge of the jail have engaged in “cruel” and “inhumane” practices in an effort to intimidate inmates, some of whom are still awaiting trial.

Under an Australian government “aid” package, the Solomons’ prisons are managed by GRM International, owned by Australia’s richest individual, media magnate Kerry Packer. More than 700 people have been arrested—with about 300 held in Rove—since July 2003 when Canberra dispatched 2,000 police and soldiers to the Solomons and took over key economic and administrative posts to help secure its strategic interests in the Pacific region. Prisoners resorted to open defiance of the prison management after it refused to send the inmates’ submission to the country’s High Court complaining about maltreatment and poor conditions. A prisoner wrote: “We are calling for an independent investigation, for a human rights group to come and investigate and inspect the treatment of inmates at Rove Central Prison at the Solomon Islands”.

This plea is the result of longstanding complaints. As early as 2003, prisoners and lawyers claimed that RAMSI was involved in the maltreatment of prisoners. This was substantiated in August 2004 when a riot broke out over the lack of rights and poor food. Detainees were heard shouting slogans calling for RAMSI’s withdrawal from the country. The High Court ruled that conditions at the prison were “unlawful” and “unreasonable” (See: Solomon Islands: prison protest over lack of rights under Australian intervention). Since last month’s events, the authorities have singled out nine members of the prisoners’ representation committees as the instigators of the previous riot. The inmates have been placed in a segregation unit that the Red Cross has deemed too small for human habitation. The Red Cross previously called for the demolition of the building, which lacks ventilation.

In an attempt to justify the actions of the authorities, Barry Apsey, the Australian-appointed Commissioner of Prisons, wrote to the Solomon Star on October 26, congratulating the prison staff on their handling of the incident. Apsey stated: “Immediately after Friday evening’s incident, those inmates involved were locked down for 24-hours. Restrictions will be progressively eased as is standard practice”. Apsey’s claim of a lockdown lasting only one day, followed by “easing”, is a gross deception. According to the letters received by the WSWS, on November 18—more than a month after the latest disturbance—prisoners in blocks 1 and 2 were still being locked up for 22 hours a day. Prisoners have been told that the lockup will be reduced by just one hour per month, subject to “good behaviour”.

Earlier, on October 25, one inmate wrote: “Since last Friday we prisoners in Rove are still locked up for 23 hours a day and our mosquito nets are still not returned. We Solomon Island prisoners want the outside world to know that the GRM project is encouraging cruelty in our happy isles the Solomon Islands”. The writer expressed outrage at the treatment of inmates in the long-term block and the female block, who were not involved in the incident. Moreover, one of the females was on remand, not having been convicted of anything. These prisoners have also had their mosquito nets confiscated on the grounds that they were making sling shots from the material.

Rove authorities have claimed that the jail was sprayed to deter malarial mosquitoes. Mosquito nets, however, are the most effective means of preventing infected mosquitoes from transmitting malaria. According to Canberra’s own official aid agency, AusAID, the Solomon Islands has one of the highest malaria rates in the world. Prisoners have reported that by November 18, about 10 inmates had contracted malaria. If the authorities were genuinely concerned about nets being turned into sling shots, the obvious question is why the nets could not be checked on a regular basis for tampering. It seems that by increasing the likelihood of contracting malaria, the jail management is attempting to intimidate the prisoners into submission.

Among the other complaints voiced by the prisoners at Rove is that the normal supply of water was stopped. Now prisoners have to drink from the taps within their cells, which were meant for toilet facilities only. Prisoners say this is leading to dysentery as well as infected throats. At various times, inmates have also had their guitars and bibles confiscated. Two warders who were trying to treat the inmates humanely were removed from the jail and replaced with less sympathetic guards. By these means, prisoners allege, “the adviser management is trying to break our spirits”.

Lawyers acting for the inmates say their treatment amounts to a form of torture contravening the UN Convention Against Torture Article 1:

“For the purposes of this Convention, torture means any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person ... punishing him for an act he or a third person has committed or is suspected of having committed ... when such pain or suffering is inflicted by or at the instigation of or with the consent or acquiescence of a public official or other person acting in an official capacity”.

It appears that RAMSI is also flouting the High Court’s 2004 ruling. Chief Justice Albert Palmer said the relevant prison regulations set limits on the punishment that could be inflicted by the authorities. Confinement in a separate cell could be imposed for no more than 14 days.

The regime inside the Rove Prison is one expression of the entire neo-colonial exercise being carried out by the Howard government. Australian corporate and strategic interests in the Solomons and the wider Asia-Pacific region have nothing to do with the welfare and well-being of the population. The only answers that RAMSI offers to unemployment and poverty are more police and repression, along with bigger jails.

[  wsws.org

13. November 2005

AUSTRALIA

im baxter abschiebelager gab es mehrere brände, die angeblich absichtlicht gelegt wurden . 58 männer wurden evakuiert , 6 mußten wegen rauchvergiftung behandelt werden. Eine Abc radio meldung ,nach der es im knast zu riots kam, wird von einem sprecher der einwanderungsbehörde als übertrieben bezeichnet. es hätte "einigen aufruhr gegeben" in der zeit als das feuer ausbrach, "die situation war aber schnell unter kontrolle."

Blazes ravage Baxter centre

BAXTER detainees covered their faces with handkerchiefs as they tried to escape a blaze which destroyed half their compound yesterday. Emergency services were called to the Port Augusta immigration detention centre at 4.16am after the fire -- believed to be deliberately lit -- broke out in the kitchen. A further five fires at the White 1 compound gutted 34 transportable accommodation units, the recreation hall, laundry and officers' station.

Australian Federal Police are investigating the fires, which forced the evacuation of 58 male detainees and left a damage bill expected to run into hundreds of thousands of dollars. "There was believed to be some unrest within the compound and six individual fires suggests these were a deliberate act," Metropolitan Fire Service spokesman Richard Gray said yesterday afternoon. Six detainees were treated by paramedics at the scene for smoke inhalation. One man was taken to Port Augusta Hospital for further treatment but was back at Baxter yesterday. A detainee advocate, who regularly visits Baxter, said two detainees in the compound during the fire had telephoned her yesterday.

The woman, who did not want her name published, said the men were told by staff to grab whatever they could carry from their rooms. "The fellas didn't know (what was happening). They only saw fire and lots of smoke," she said. "They said it was pretty scary." She said many detainees had lost all their belongings in the fire and there was growing concern that crucial legal documents had been destroyed.

"They said, 'I put a hanky over my face and alI I have is what I am standing in'." Fire cause investigators travelled from Adelaide to establish if it was arson. Eight fire crews, including one from Adelaide, were initially forced to douse the blaze from outside the fenced compound until detainees could be evacuated to a secure section of the compound. Department of Immigration spokesman David Seale said four male detainees had been identified as "people of interest" and would be interviewed by federal police.

[  heraldsun.news.com.au

Fire clears detention centre

Fifty-eight men being held at the Baxter detention centre in South Australia have been evacuated after a fire, believed deliberately set, broke out. A spokesman for the immigration department said a fire in the White One compound was started at around 4.20am today and 58 men were evacuated.

Police, ambulance and fire crews rushed to the centre in Port Augusta. Six detainees were treated for smoke inhalation with one of them taken to hospital for further treatment. The spokesman said the fire had been put out but it was unclear at this stage how much damage had been caused. Police are investigating. "Details of how and why the fire started are unclear at this stage," he said. "However, it appears it was deliberately lit."

ABC radio said there are reports of detainees rioting, although this had not been confirmed by the immigration department. A spokesman for the immigration department said a fire in the White One compound was started at around 4.20am today and 58 men were evacuated. Police, ambulance and fire crews rushed to the centre in Port Augusta. Six detainees were treated for smoke inhalation with one of them taken to hospital for further treatment. The spokesman said the fire had been put out but it was unclear at this stage how much damage had been caused. Police are investigating.

"Details of how and why the fire started are unclear at this stage," he told AAP. "However, it appears it was deliberately lit." ABC radio said there are reports of detainees rioting, although this had not been confirmed by the immigration department.

However, the immigration department spokesman said reports of rioting at the centre had been exaggerated. "While there was some commotion around the time of the fire, the situation was quickly brought under control," he said. "The facility is now calm. Police, ambulance and the fire brigade were on the scene and worked with Baxter staff to bring the situation under control as quickly as possible." The immigration department and detention services provider, Global Solutions Ltd, would assist police with their inquiries, the spokesman said.

"Our primary focus is for the welfare of the facility's residents and staff," he said. The men will be accommodated in another part of Baxter, which currently detains around 250 people. Refugee activist Pamela Curr said she had concerns about the safety of detainees in the event of a fire because of the electronic doors. She said detainees at a detention centre at Amsterdam's Schiphol airport had been killed during a fire last month because authorities had been unable to manually open the electronic doors. "Thank heavens nobody seems to have been hurt today," she said.

[  theadvertiser.news.com.au

27. September 2005

AUSTRALIA

die neuen "antiterror"-gesetze wurden von den einzelnen bundesländern bestätigt und treten in kürze in kraft.

Australia to impose "draconian" anti-terror laws

Australia is to impose "draconian" counter-terrorism laws after state and territory leaders agreed on Tuesday to wide-ranging security proposals made by Prime Minister John Howard in the wake of the London bombings.Howard said the new laws, which include detaining suspects for up to 48 hours without charge and using electronic tracking devices to keep tabs on terror suspects, were needed to combat "unusual circumstances".

"We do live in very dangerous and different and threatening circumstances, and a strong and comprehensive response is needed. I think all of these powers are needed," Howard told a news conference after the leaders' terrorism summit in Canberra."I cannot guarantee that Australia will not be the subject of a terror attack ... but as a result of the decisions taken today we are in a stronger and better position to give peace of mind to the Australian community," he said.

Howard also unveiled plans to spend A$20 million on an Australian Federal Police chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear research facility.The new laws come from a review of Australia's counter-terror laws following the July 7 London bus and subway bombings.Australia, a staunch U.S. ally with troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, has steadily beefed up security and anti-terrorism laws since the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.

Australia has never suffered a major peacetime attack on home soil, but 88 Australians were among 202 people killed in the 2002 Bali bombings and 10 Indonesians were killed when the Australian embassy in Jakarta was hit by a suicide bomb on September 9, 2004Under the planned changes, existing sedition laws are to be replaced by a new law making it a crime to incite violence against the community or against Australian soldiers serving overseas or to support Australia's enemies.

"In many sense the laws that we have agreed to today are draconian laws, but they are necessary laws to protect Australians," Queensland state premier Peter Beattie told a news conference.Howard agreed to a demand by the states and territories for a review of the new laws, which have been condemned by civil rights activists, after five years and a sunset clause meaning that they would have to be reauthorize after 10 years.

Australia's six states and two territories are all governed by leaders from the center-left Labor party, which is in opposition to Howard's conservative Liberal/National coalition at a federal level.The leaders agreed to strengthen citizenship laws to make immigrants to Australia wait three years instead of two before they would qualify to become Australian citizens.Police would also be given wider powers to stop and search people, and it would become a crime to leave any baggage unattended at an airport.

[  reuters.com

10. September 2005

AUSTRALIA

nach den bombenanschlägen in london plant die regierung neue gesetze. Bürgerrechtsgruppen halten die bereits bestehenden gesetze für sehr repressiv.

Civil rights groups baulk at anti-terror laws

Proposed tough new anti-terror laws are causing concern among civil rights groups that believe existing laws are repressive.

Prime Minister John Howard announced the new laws as part of the package he promised after the London bombings. Terror suspects could be forced to wear electronic tracking devices for up to a year, and their freedom to travel and of association could be restricted. People suspected of links to terrorism could be held for 48 hours in an emergency and law agencies will get greater powers to question and search people. Random bag searches will be permitted, and surveillance will be extended.

Financing terrorism will be a criminal offence, checks to ensure charities are not funnelling money to terrorists will be stepped up, and becoming a citizen will take a year longer. It will become an offence to leave bags unattended at an airport or to incite violence - including against Australian troops serving overseas. Howard rejected suggestions the laws would create a police state. "There is nothing in these measures that can possibly be regarded as a creating a quasi-police state," he said. But the Law Council of Australia said the new laws would allow large numbers of Australians to be investigated and held for long periods. And Council for Civil Liberties chairman Terry O'Gorman said they would push Australia down the path of becoming a police state. Muslim groups have also warned that potential radicals would be driven underground. They also said legitimate opposition to situations such as Iraq could be suppressed.

[  nzherald.co.nz

8. September 2005

AUSTRALIA

laut einem anwalt des melbourne refugee and immigration legal centre arbeiten asylsuchende in den abschiebeknäste bzw. flüchtlingslagern für weniger als $1 dollar die stunde.

Asylum seekers 'exploited'

ASYLUM seekers were being paid as little as $1 an hour for work in detention centres in what a lawyer says could be a breach of the Migration Act.

David Mann, a lawyer from Melbourne's Refugee and Immigration Legal Centre, said the detainees were being exploited."The private contractor is paid handsomely, over $100 million a year to provide these very core services, and what we're seeing here is people in detention routinely performing those services," he told ABC radio."What we know is that in some circumstances at least, they're being paid as low as $1 an hour."Such practices could be a breach of the Migration Act, which contained a clause preventing unlawful non-citizens from being paid for work, Mr Mann said.

He called for an inquiry into the matter."We need an urgent investigation into the exact amount of these figures and what they represent and whether or not the private contractor is in fact profiteering from all of this," Mr Mann said.A man who spent four months this year at the Curtin detention centre, a remote facility in Western Australia's far north, said he was paid $2 an hour to teach English to other detainees.

"For the English teacher work I was offered payment for that," he told ABC radio."I was first told (I was) to be paid $4 per hour, but I got only $2 per hour when they paid me the money, so I was angry about that."While no money actually changed hands, he said the money was put into an account for him but he received nothing when he left the facility.The man, who is now an Australian citizen, also said his friend was paid $1 an hour to teach computer programming at the detention centre.

In a statement released to the ABC, the Immigration Department said the detainees were not paid wages, with any money used as a merit point system while they were detained.But the department also said the private contractors which run immigration detention centres should ensure they have adequate staffing levels and should not be relying on detainees to perform work.Mr Mann's claims follow those by Unions NSW yesterday that staff at Sydney's Villawood Detention Centre paid a detainee with cigarettes and telephone cards to carry out their work.

[  news.com.au

4. September 2005

AUSTRALIA

im bundesstaat new south wales wurde ein neues hooligan gesetz erlassen

SOCCER match riot helps brings about new legislation for hooligans

Spectators convicted of violence-related offenses at sporting events could be banned from matches for up to 10 years under new legislation in New South Wales state. The law, to be introduced into state parliament in the next week, would see bans for a first offense set at up to five years, and up to 10 years for a second offense. The state government began considering the introduction of an anti-hooligan law after a riot at a match between the Sydney United and Bonnyrigg White Eagles soccer clubs in Sydney in March. State Premier Morris Iemma said Sunday people who breach the bans could be sent to prison for up to six months.

"We know the majority of fans who go to sporting fixtures do so with the intention of supporting their teams and enjoying the game with family and friends," he said in a statement. "The penalties we are imposing are intended to send a timely message to deter the minority ratbag element who have no regard for the enjoyment and safety of others.", AP reported.

[  newsfromrussia.com

1. September 2005

AUSTRALIA

die polizei in new south wales wird eine eigenständige riot- gruppe aufbauen. Als grund werden die riots in macquarie fields und redfern sowie die proteste während der zur zeit stattfindenden forbes vorstandskonferenz. Bei den protesten wurden bis jetzt 15 menschen verhaftet.

Full-time riot squad for police

NEW South Wales Police has created a full-time riot squad after the "lessons learned" during the Macquarie Fields riots and Forbes conference protests.NSW Police Commissioner Ken Moroney announced the squad's formation today, saying its members would be handpicked and specially trained.

The 45-member team would be led by Kings Cross commander Superintendent Steve Cullen, who has been directing police security for the Forbes Global CEO conference in Sydney this week.The move follows criticism of police handling of both riots in the Sydney suburbs of Redfern and Macquarie Fields, with the police response deemed unsatisfactory."We have drawn on the lessons learned from Macquarie Fields and are mindful of the public order incidents witnessed at the Forbes Global CEO Conference," Mr Moroney said.

Police have arrested 15 people in the past two days of protests outside the Forbes meeting at Sydney Opera House.Mr Moroney said while police recognised the right to freedom of speech, they would not allow people to break the law and damage public property."We also have to be prepared for future challenges such as the APEC Leaders Summit in 2007, which will again showcase our great city before a global audience."The Sydney metropolitan policing area would also be split from two regional commands into three.

Other changes included promotions and a restructuring of positions for senior officers in the hope that the next police commissioner would emerge from within the ranks.Mr Moroney said yesterday that he would extend his tenure as police commissioner for another two years until August 16, 2007.He has not ruled out Deputy Commissioner Andrew Scipione as a likely successor.

[  news.com.au

27. August 2005

AUSTRALIA

ein jetzt 10 jähriger iranischer junge verklagt die regierung und die betreiberin der abschiebelager( acm) in denen er mit seiner familie inhaftiert war, weil er schwer traumatisiert ist.

Child refugee sues over detention trauma

In a landmark case, a young Iranian refugee is seeking compensation for the time he spent in two of Australia's immigration detention centres.

Shayan Badraie and his family were detained at Villawood in Sydney and the now-closed Woomera detention centre in South Australia for about two years from March 2000.As a five and six-year-old, Shayan Badraie witnessed riots, protests and various acts of self-harm.Psychiatrists say the 10-year-old is still suffering post-traumatic stress. In the first case of its kind, Shayan Badraie is suing the Federal Government and the then-operators of the detention centres, Australasian Correctional Management (ACM).

The Federal Government has always argued the Badraie family's detention was lawful.But Shayan Badraie's lawyer, Rebecca Gilsenan from the firm Maurice Blackburn Cashman, says that is not the point."We accept that detention is mandatory and that's what the Migration Act requires," she said."What the case is about is the manner in which Shayan was detained, what he witnessed while he was in detention - the fact that he witnessed many events that no child should ever have to witness."

Psychological shutdown

Shayan Badraie's trauma was first revealed on ABC TV's /Four Corners/ program four years ago.His desperate parents recorded a secret video inside Sydney's Villawood detention centre documenting the boy's psychological shutdown.In the video, Mohammad Badraie explained that his son would not drink water nor eat.

He said the boy was very fearful and anxious and that Shayan just sat in a corner not speaking.Fleeing religious persecution in Iran, the Badraie family arrived in Australia by boat in March 2000.They were held at South Australia's Woomera detention centre for a year and there another child - a girl - was born.Ms Gilsenan says the family was living in a very volatile environment."It was overcrowded, it became a very volatile environment in which there were riots, protests, there was use of tear gas and water cannons in an attempt to control those protests," Ms Gilsenan told ABC Radio's /AM/ program.

"There were a lot of unhappy, angry and mentally ill adults."There were a lot of suicide attempts, hunger strikes, conflict between detainees and between detainees and detention officers."

Night terrors

Ms Gilsenan says the situation did not improve when the family was transferred to Sydney."At Villawood detention centre, he [Shayan] and another child found a detainee in his room who had just slashed his wrists and when they found him, he was said to be bleeding profusely from his wrists and that's something that actually figured later on in Shayan's drawings - the man who slashed his wrists," she said.

After that event, Shayan Badraie became mute, suffered night terrors and was medicated, with several psychologists regarding his development as poor.The boy had to be admitted to hospital and on eight occasions Shayan had to be rehydrated and drip-fed.Ms Gilsenan says the damage is expected to be permanent."Given his severity of his symptoms now, the seriousness of his psychiatric diagnosis, I think that Shayan will find it very difficult to develop as a normal adult, to be able to form normal relationships and to hold down employment and interact with the world as normal adult," she said.

Neither the Federal Government nor the former private operators of the detention facilities have been available for comment.ACM has since become another company and the Immigration Department contract is now held by the company GSL.

Legal fight

The landmark case is due to begin in the New South Wales Supreme Court on Monday.It is listed for four weeks and lawyers in other immigration cases - such as those of wrongfully detained women Cornelia Rau and Vivian Alvarez Solon - say they will watch it very carefully.Whatever the outcome, the Badraie family appears to have another legal fight ahead.Their temporary protection visas are about to expire and they are expected to seek permanent Australian residency.

[  abc.net.au

26. August 2005

AUSTRALIA

einem flüchtling im baxter detention centre wurde von den wärtern das fußgelenk gebrochen nachdem er sich mit anderen über die qualität der lebensmittel beschwert hat.

Guards broke my ankle, says detainee

A BAXTER detention centre detainee has claimed a guard deliberately broke his ankle after inmates objected to the quality of their food. Refugee advocates say the fight broke out on Monday after guards from the privately contracted security firm Global Solutions Ltd "roughly handled" a detainee recovering from a hernia operation.

Zimbabwean asylum-seeker Paul Jackson Mode said he was assaulted by guards when he sought to protect another inmate, John, who had complained that the fish tasted of dust and threw his meal against a wall.Mr Mode said seven guards arrived at John's room on Tuesday night to take him to the isolation unit."I started arguing with them no you can't take him out of his room, he had an operation last week," he said on ABC radio."They know that he had an operation about one week (ago) and the operation hasn't healed properly yet.

"They grabbed me too and they crouched me tightly, put hand at my back. They want to put handcuff, then I was struggling. I refused. I don't want to be handcuffed. Why do you want to handcuff me. They pushed me into the cupboard."And then I was trying to struggle with them and then the pushed me down to the ground and then one of the officers held my leg. I was kicking back, just leave me alone."Then they pushed the leg and it broke to the ankle."Mr Mode said he told the guard he had broken his leg but he continued to twist.

He said he wasn't fighting and had never fought with the guards or anyone else during his year at Baxter."I didn't touch anyone. I was just struggling with them. Just leave me alone. I don't want to go to isolation for no reason," he said.Mr Mode said he was crying and in pain but he was taken to isolation - in the maximum-security Red One unit - without treatment.He said it was half an hour before he was seen by a nurse who recommended he go to hospital.A spokesman for the Immigration Department confirmed that an incident involving several detainees, including one who sustained a broken leg, was referred to the South Australian police.

Immigration Minister Amanda Vanstone has to date denied claims that the Red One unit was used for punishment.Senator Vanstone has instead said the department used the facility for detainees with "behaviour problems".GSL officers had incurred "minor injuries", the spokesman said."The incident has been referred to (police) for investigation."All people involved received appropriate medical detention. The detainee who sustained the broken leg and several GSL officers were transferred to hospital and have since returned to Baxter."

GSL is bound by its contracts with the Government not to comment on incidents in its detention centres.Immigration confirmed "an incident involving two detainees on Monday evening"."This issue is currently under review," a spokesman said.The Howard Government's $300 million contract with GSL, which runs six immigration detention across Australia, was placed under review earlier this year.The firm was fined more than $500,000 for "humiliating" treatment toward detainees during a transfer from Melbourne.

The Palmer Report into the wrongful detention of Australian woman Cornelia Rau criticised the private contractor, following damning Australian National Audit Office reports.The department was heavily criticised for its contract with security firm Australian Centre Management, which lost control of the facilities to GSL last year.The Federal Opposition has demanded that the centres be returned to public management, after the Howard Government privatised the facilities in 1999.

[  thecouriermail.news.com.au

21. August 2005

AUSTRALIA

auch der zweite entlassene mann der nach victoria geschickt wurde soll gezwungen werden nach western australia zurückzugehen.

Call to send pedophile back to WA

A CONVICTED pedophile that moved to Victoria under a parole transfer scheme should be forced to return to Western Australia, a child protection group said today. Charles Alan Smith was released from a Perth prison in February after serving less than eight years of a 15-year sentence. He had been convicted of 39 sex offences against boys aged 10 to 17 between 1964 and 1978.

His parole was transferred to Victoria earlier this year.The Australian Childhood Foundation today said the Victorian government should not "import" sex offenders like Smith into the state.Smith, a former Salvation Army major aged in his 70s who once ran a house for homeless boys, had earlier pleaded guilty to a further 76 charges relating to offences committed between 1958 and 1977.

Reports suggest he may have moved in with his son and daughter-in-law.The move comes following an outcry over another WA paedophile, Otto Darcy-Searle, who was paroled to NSW.Australian Childhood Foundation chief executive Joe Tucci said he was concerned about what he described as the lack of transparency behind the release of both Smith and Jones.

"It's undermining confidence in the community about how well the system is able to monitor the risk of sex offenders to children," he said.He called on authorities to inform the community about how sex offenders would be monitored and the risk they posed to children after their release.Dr Tucci said Smith should not be allowed to remain in Victoria."There's no reason he should stay, particularly in a system where we can't guarantee he's not going to be a risk to children."

[  sundaytimes.news.com.au

19. August 2005

AUSTRALIA

ein auf bewährung entlassener mann, der wegen pädophilen taten verurteilt wurde und vor 3 monaten entlassen wurde, ist solange wieder im knast bis neue bewährungsbestimmungen erlassen werden. hintergrund ist die zurückgenommene einwilligung des staates new south wales das der mann dort bei seinen angehörigen wohnen kann.

Pedophile takes himself back to jail

HANDCUFFED and hiding beneath his suit jacket, the pedophile at the centre of an interstate brawl returned to Perth after voluntarily boarding a flight from Brisbane. Otto Darcy-Searle, 63, who is today back behind bars, faces the prospect of a further 21 months in prison after the NSW Government reversed an earlier decision to accept the paroled sex offender.

His return prompted West Australian Attorney-General Jim McGinty to accuse the NSW Government of being "unhelpful" and "less than honest" in its handling of the case.A born-again Christian who married a fellow churchgoer in 1992, Otto Darcy-Searle was living with his second wife in Queensland when the law finally caught up with his heinous sins.Five years ago he was charged with 104 sex offences against young boys from a soccer club between 1978 and 1982.Yesterday, he was escorted off the plane by Western Australian Justice Ministry officers.

He had been released from jail and sent to NSW three months ago after serving five years of an 11-year sentence for assaults on four 10-year-old boys.Under a trial rehabilitation program, he was relocated to the NSW coastal town of Banora Point to live with his sister and brother-in-law, but outraged residents demanded his removal after learning of his presence.NSW Premier Morris Iemma promised to send him back to Western Australia as a row broke out between the two states over whether the NSW Corrective Services Department had agreed to take him.

Mr McGinty yesterday welcomed the decision to return Darcy-Searle to jail.But Mr McGinty said Darcy-Searle should be released again when a new parole plan had been worked out.However, he could remain in jail for a further 21 months if no suitable release arrangements can be made.Mr McGinty said it was preferable for prisoners to be released on parole "into a structured, controlled environment, particularly when there's any risk whatsoever of reoffending"."That is what the parole board tried to do on this occasion by sending him to NSW, but the reaction from the NSW Government frustrated that, in breach of long-established protocols," he said.

Two NSW parole officers were suspended earlier this week for failing to pass on the recommendation of a senior West Australian colleague that Darcy-Searle not be released because of fears he would reoffend.But Mr McGinty believes the NSW Government reneged on the transfer agreement."They reacted in a knee-jerk way, they threw established protocols out the window, they threw an express written agreement out the window, and they have contributed more to the sensationalising of this particular dispute."

But West Australian Opposition justice spokesman Rob Johnson said he believed Darcy-Searle had been illegally transferred to NSW and called on the Government to use the Mahoney inquiry into the prison system to examine the case."There needs to be a thorough investigation into this through the Mahoney inquiry and the Premier must stand down the relevant minister who has, essentially, set free this pedophile," Mr Johnson said.

[  theaustralian.news.com.au

19. August 2005

AUSTRALIA

hemalige asylbewerberinnen/ flüchtlinge die ,z.t. nach 5 jahren, jetzt entlassen wurden, kommen "mit dem leben außerhalb nicht zurecht".

Former detainees not coping with life outside, spokesman says

A human rights lobby group says some released asylum seekers have been pleading to be taken back to the Baxter detention centre in South Australia because they cannot cope with life outside.Project SafeCom says the Immigration Department has made enormous progress by releasing children and their families from immigration detention.Spokesman Jack Smit says there is no policy of mandatory resettlement, so many freed asylum seekers are not taking advantage of trauma counselling and other services.He says some people just do not know how to cope."For five years we lock them up and suddenly we tell them you're a refugee and we throw them on the street," he said."So people have been begging, 'please take us back to Baxter because I'm scared and I don't know how to do this'."

[  abc.net.au

17. August 2005

AUSTRALIA

die unrechtmäßige inhaftierung von etwa 100 menschen als "illegale" wird von der ministerin für einwanderung verteidigt.

FEDERAL Immigration Minister Amanda Vanstone has defended the decisions to lock up almost 100 people as illegal immigrants, despite the fact they were all in Australia legally.

The Immigration Department revealed today that 97 people had been held in detention facilities for at least four days, with 56 detained for more than three weeks.They were among 201 people who were potentially wrongfully detained between July 2000 and April this year.But Senator Vanstone said authorities were not necessarily wrong to detain people whose credentials were checked, even if the detainees were eventually found to be in Australia lawfully.

"Later found lawful doesn't mean wrongfully detained," she said on ABC Radio."There will be some in there, of course, in my view, who it turns out were, but not necessarily, wrongfully detained at the time."

Opposition immigration spokesman Tony Burke was stunned by Senator Vanstone's justification. "To say whether someone is lawfully detained is one thing, but she's actually saying they weren't even wrongly detained ? but it wasn't wrong," he said."That's an extraordinary statement. These are people who were here with every lawful reason."If part of the change of culture in the Immigration Department was meant to be that Amanda Vanstone would show a more human face to the administration of it, there was no evidence of that today at all."

Senator Vanstone conceded some of the 97 cases could have been resolved more quickly, but she said immigration officials could have been faced with barriers that delayed a speedy resolution.2I think the more likely scenario is (they were) not quickly enough resolved," she said."If you had a reasonable suspicion at the time that someone was unlawful, you've rightfully detained them. "Some of those people will be detained for a very short period, some for a longer period.

"To the ones for a longer period, there might be some that have mental health issues ... some might have had language issues."Mr Burke said the latest revelations reinforced Labor's call for a royal commission into Immigration Department bungles, and for Senator Vanstone to be sacked."You can't fix these things in secret," he said."You need to have an inquiry that's taking the evidence publicly because as long as it's in secret you get people in the department feeling they can continue to cover up."

Immigration Department responses to questions taken on notice during Senate budget estimates hearings in May also revealed the Government paid almost $1 million in compensation to 11 people held in wrongful detention, including an Australian citizen.Since 1993, 11 people from nine countries ? Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, China, Fiji, France, Malaysia, South Korea and Britain ? were paid a total of $920,000 compensation for wrongful detention.

Not included in the 11 were Australian citizen Cornelia Rau, who was detained for 10 months, and Australian resident Vivian Alvarez, who was deported to the Philippines in 2001.Labor and the minor parties said the 97 people who were wrongfully detained should be compensated for their ordeal.Senator Vanstone told Parliament that two children - Ian and Janie Hwang - who were taken by immigration officials from a Sydney school on March 8, and detained until late last month, were not among the 201 cases.

[  news.com.au

12. August 2005

AUSTRALIA

der aussenminister hat angekündigt daß jeder australier der einer terroristische organisation beitritt ( "al qaida oder andere") mit unbegrenztem knast bestraft wird.

Downer warns terrorists face indefinite detention

Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer says any Australian who joins Al Qaeda or other terrorist organisations could be jailed indefinitely.

Mr Downer stresses that a man shown on Arabic television promoting terrorism against the West has not been identified.Police have been investigating whether he might be a missing Queensland man."He is one of a small number of Australians we've had concerns about... who have trained with Al Qaeda," he said."Whether this is the person - that's a matter that's still being considered."Mr Downer says the Government would not be keen to see Australian members of terrorist groups released from jail, despite them having no right to a civil or military trial.

"They have gone to war with us, but they have not won the uniform of another army, they belong to a terrorist organisation," he said."They are in great deal of difficulty if they are detained."It's possible for a country to detain them indefinitely, it's quite legal for that to be done."Combatants who are detained are not to be tried in courts, that's one of the provisions of the Geneva Conventions."

Inciting violence

Lawyers in Australia say those who call for Australian soldiers to be killed in Iraq and Afghanistan can currently be charged with treason or the lesser charge of sedition.But they say charges are one thing, proving that someone's words are treasonous under existing laws is difficult and unwise.The president of the Law Council of Australia, John North, met with federal Attorney-General Philip Ruddock yesterday to discuss issues related to security.Mr North says the Government is looking very closely at comments by radical community members, who justify attacks on Australian servicemen and women.

"The Attorney-General will look at all possible legislative changes, including those that are being made in Britain," he said."But he is aware that there needs to be a balance between freedom of expression and the safety of the individuals in Australia."Incitement is currently covered as part of existing laws of treachery in Australia.Treason traditionally means the attempt to overthrow or undermine a government by means of violence or by assisting an enemy to do so.But under the section on treachery in the Commonwealth Crimes Act it is also a charge to "assist by any means whatever" or "intend to assist" persons to whom Australia's Defence Forces are opposed.

Success unlikely

The Law Council says it is unlikely the charge of treachery could be successfully prosecuted for comments inciting violence against Australian soldiers because a link would have to be made between the comments made in Australia and a resulting attack overseas.

But Mr North says that does not mean the Federal Government is not looking at how to make it a crime."It is possible for the Government to legislate to make public utterances an illegal act," he said."What they have to be really careful is that we don't move from a robust, free, democratic nation into one where neighbour begins to denounce neighbour because they happen to say things that some one else doesn't like."

In other developments:

A former Australian soldier who went missing in central Asia four years ago may be the masked man in an Al Qaeda video.

Prime Minister John Howard says Australian authorities are continuing to investigate the origins of a video that appears to show a masked extremist with an Australian accent.

[  abc.net.au

01. August 2005

AUSTRALIA

ein neues, anfang juli in kraft getretenes gesetz, nachdem sexualstraftäter nach ihrer haftstrafe bis zu 15 jahren unter strenger bewachung stehen, soll auf etwa 12 männer angewandt werden. die männer wurden verurteilt bevor das gesetz zur unbegrenzten inhaftierung von sexualstraftätern erlassen wurde.

New watch on our worst sex offenders

VICTORIA'S worst child sex offenders are being short-listed for up to 15 years of close scrutiny when they are released from jail.

A tough new monitoring law designed for the feared pedophile Mr Baldy may be used against the state's "dirtiest dozen" child sex offenders.Corrections officers have been ordered to review the files of all sex offenders in jail and produce a list of high-risk pedophiles thought likely to reoffend when released. Investigations of about a dozen of the highest-risk cases would include psychological reports and assessments of their criminal and prison histories and previous parole behaviour, a prison source told the /Herald Sun/.

Corrections Minister Tim Holding confirmed yesterday that a list was being compiled. "The Department of Justice is preparing a hit list of serious sex offenders it intends to target with these laws," he said."The Government is doing everything it can to ensure the Victorian community is protected from these sorts of people."He said the list was not yet complete and the Government would not be releasing the names of the prisoners on it for legal reasons.

The Serious Sex Offenders Monitoring Act became law last month. The new law provides County or Supreme Court judges with the power to impose strict conditions on released prisoners after the expiry of their normal parole period. It allows the Adult Parole Board to set parole conditions that can be enforced for up to another 15 years under an extended supervision order.

Monitoring and supervision requirements can include the compulsory wearing of an electronic ankle tag.Bans on any contact with children, curfews, residential and employment restrictions, random checks, reporting requirements and compulsory treatment or rehabilitation programs are among the other conditions that can be imposed.

Breaches of an order carry a penalty of up to five years' jail.Before the Serious Sex Offenders Monitoring Act became law on July 1 the Adult Parole Board lost all control over paroled prisoners once their maximum sentence or "end date" was reached.The imminent release of Mr Baldy - Brian Keith Jones - prompted the State Government's urgent introduction of what became known as the "Mr Baldy Bill".

Jones's maximum sentence ends tomorrow.The notorious pedophile, who was formerly known as Brendon John Megson, was released from Ararat Prison on July 13 after 14 years in jail.Jones, 58, was returned to country Victoria after being discovered living in a Housing Ministry house in Ascot Vale the day after his release.

His placement in a suburban area close to primary schools, playgrounds, a kindergarten and many young families sparked community outrage and forced his immediate relocation.Jones is now living in a cottage in the grounds of Ararat Prison while new arrangements are made.More than 200 sex offenders are housed at Ararat. The media is prohibited by a suppression order from discussing any court action involving Jones.Jones, who reoffended within days of his previous release from jail in 1989 after an eight-year sentence, was nicknamed Mr Baldy during the hunt for a child abductor who shaved his victims' heads.

He sexually assaulted six boys aged between four and seven during a 12-month period that terrified families throughout Melbourne in 1979 and 1980.Mr Holding said before the new law was introduced that it would be used only in exceptional circumstances.Mr Holding said then that the extended supervision law was not aimed specifically at Jones, but any serious sex offender who was assessed as posing a risk.

Applications by the secretary of the Justice Department for an order under the new law have to be made to a judge of the original sentencing court.Courts can make an order only if satisfied to a high degree of probability that an offender is likely to reoffend when released.Orders can be reviewed every three years. All released serious sex offenders are already listed on a register and banned from working with children.

People on the sex offenders register have to report annually to police and inform them before moving home, changing their name, buying a car or travelling interstate or overseas. They must provide employment details and memberships of clubs and other affiliations.Jones's last sentence began before Victoria introduced indefinite sentences for sex offenders.One pedophile is among the three sex offenders currently serving indefinite sentences in the state's prisons.

[  news.com.au

1. August 2005

AUSTRALIA

bewährungshelferinnen fordern die entlassung von "mental kranken" menschen aus den knästen. Stattdessen sollen diese u.a. hausarrest oder gemeinnützige arbeit machen.

'Get mentally ill out of jail'

AUSTRALIAN parole officers have called for many mentally ill prisoners to be released from prison and given help in the community. The submission also calls for the creation of a limited number of special courts to deal with offenders with a mental illness.

In a submission to the Senate inquiry on mental health, the Probation and Community Corrections Officers Association said there was an overrepresentation of the mentally ill in prisons nationwide as a result of widespread discrimination."Fears about the potentially violent behavioural problems of mentally ill offenders are conducive to self-serving apathy, exclusion, or a grudging and pessimistic attitude to treatment," association president Brian Norman said.

"A range of community-based sentencing options such as community service orders, home detention and periodic detention in NSW and the ACT, and community supervision have the potential to break the revolving door," he said.The association "emphasises the value of community-based sentencing options for offenders who would otherwise be inappropriately and inhumanely incarcerated.

"A limited number of mental health diversion courts would offer an alternative for people with very challenging or violent behaviours."The submission criticises the implementation of the 20-year-old policy of "deinstitutionalisation", which it says effectively transferred many of those who were mentally ill from asylums to prisons.

The Weekend Australian last month revealed a push by leading psychiatrists for a review of the policies that closed asylums around the country, filling prisons with the mentally ill and forcing health facilities to release dangerous patients into the community.NSW parole officer Lydia Hamilton wrote of one prisoner at the Goulburn Correctional Centre she dubbed "Mr T" who, while not fitting the definition of being mentally ill under the NSW Mental Health Act 1990, had a drug-induced psychosis that resulted in his spending most of his time in prison on anti-psychotic and mood-stabilising drugs.

"This containment approach does little to assist Mr T to work towards his eventual release into the community," she said."Mr T is considered by a number of community agencies as dangerous and has the capabilities of harming himself and others."

Parole officers recently contacted the man's mother to see if he could live with his family but the request was refused because the family believed there was not the community support to help them cope."Mr T will serve his balance of parole and be released without supervision." Ms Hamilton said it was frustrating not to be able to get a satisfactory outcome for the prisoner because of his dual-diagnosis illness.

[  theaustralian.news.com.au

27. July 2005

New Zealand

mehr als 7.200 menschen sind inhaftiert, so viel wie nie zuvor. von der regierung und der polizei wird dies als erfolg gefeiert.

PRISON population at all time high

New Zealand's prison population is at an all-time high, with 7,200 people currently behind bars and the government saying it is proof tougher law and order legislation is working.But while the government and police are hailing the landmark, others say it is putting prison staff at risk and breeding a whole new generation of criminals."I think it's actually a mark of shame for New Zealand that we have such a high imprisonment rate compared to other similar countries," says Prisoners' Aid and Rehabilitation Society spokesman John Whitty.

Corrections Department figures show more than 7,200 people, the population of Huntly, are in cells - an increase of 500 on this time last year.Criminologists say the jump in jailbirds is a result of tougher bail conditions, longer prison sentences and more stringent parole terms.

But critics say it is creating a timebomb.
"If you're going to lock them up and put them away from society, then there are problems of reintegration into society when they are released," Whitty says.Prison guards say overcrowding is putting them at risk. Last week at Waikeria, staff uncovered two escape attempts - both of which involved kidnapping staff. One was with a knife while the other was with a firearm.

A recently released prisoner says there are stresses among everyone including amongst guards and between prisoners and the tension is now at boiling point.Northland's Ngawha Prison opened in March and three new prisons will provide 1,600 more beds next year.Corrections Minister Paul Swain acknowledged the pressure prison staff were under."What the public called for though was to get tougher on crime, and we have more prisoners in prison as a result of that," he says.Meanwhile the prison population is tipped to reach 7,500 - the population of Queenstown - by the end of this year.

[  tvnz.co.nz

6. mai 2005

AUSTRALIA

zur zeit werden in australien verschiedene fälle bekannt in denen menschen mit australischer staatsbürgerschaft entweder in abschiebehaft sitzen oder wie in dem hier veröffentlichten fall abgeschoben wurden.

Deportee identified by consular staff

An Australian woman mistakenly deported by immigration officials four years ago has been identified by Filipino consular staff.

The Australian newspaper has revealed the woman who claimed she was kept as a sex slave in Queensland had identified herself to Philippines consulate staff as Vivian Alverez. She is believed to have been born in The Philippines where she had apparently married an Australian man with a surname believed to be Wilson. He wrongful deportation is the latest Immigration Department scandal which has embarrassed the federal government. Police in two states assisted the Immigration Department to deport her in 2001, unaware she had been listed as a missing person until two years later.

The case has been likened to the situation of former Baxter Detention Centre detainee, Cornelia Rau. As in the Rau case, NSW police did not realise Vivian Wilson was listed on the Queensland missing persons register. Queensland police discovered she had been deported in 2003 only when an immigration official apparently recognised her photo on the missing persons register and made the connection with Alverez. The woman, who spoke little English, had told consulate staff she was held prisoner in an apartment building in Spring Hill, Brisbane.

She fled to NSW where she was involved in a car accident while riding a bike in Lismore in northern NSW. NSW police took Mrs Wilson back to Queensland where she was checked into a motel and interviewed by consulate staff. Mrs Wilson told the consulate she had no family in Australia or in The Philippines. "She was suffering from physical injuries and walking with a crutch. Her mind wasn't straight," a Philippines consular official told The Australian. "She claimed she was detained in the apartment at Spring Hill as a white slave and said there were lots of men coming to her, but she was able to escape.

"I don't know if she was telling the truth."She does not know how she was able to come to Australia." The consulate official said Department of Immigration, Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs staff were not able to find records of either Vivian Wilson or Vivian Alverez entering Australia. The consulate confirmed a representative from Immigration Amanda Vanstone's office had contacted their office.

[  heage.com.au

Wrongly deported woman named

AN Australian woman who claimed she was kept as a sex slave in Queensland is at the centre of the latest Immigration Department scandal after the Howard Government admitted she was wrongly deported to the Philippines. The woman, who told Philippines consulate staff that her name was Vivian Alvarez, was born in the Philippines, where she apparently married an Australian man whose last name is believed to be Wilson. Police in two states helped the Immigration Department deport the woman in 2001 and did not realise she had been listed as a missing person until two years later.

In a case with striking similarities to that of former Baxter Detention Centre detainee Cornelia Rau, police in New South Wales did not realise Vivian Wilson was listed on the Queensland missing persons register. Queensland police only realised the woman had been deported in 2003, when an immigration official apparently recognised her photo on the missing persons register and made the Alvarez connection. She had told consulate staff she was held captive in an apartment building in the Brisbane suburb of Spring Hill. The woman, who spoke little English, and communicated in a dialect native to the Philippine province of Cebu, fled to NSW where she was involved in a car accident while riding a bike in the north-eastern town of Lismore. NSW Police transported Mrs Wilson back to Queensland where she was placed in a motel and later interviewed by consulate staff.

Mrs Wilson told the consulate she had no family in Australia or in the Philippines. "She was suffering from physical injuries and walking with a crutch. Her mind wasn't straight," a Philippines consular official told The Australian last night. "She claimed she was detained in the apartment at Spring Hill as a white slave, and said there were lots of men coming to her, but she was able to escape. "I don't know if she was telling the truth. She does not know how she was able to come to Australia." According to the consulate official, Immigration Department staff were unable to find any record of a Vivian Wilson or Vivian Alvarez entering Australia.

Mrs Wilson was removed from Australia by immigration authorities in mid-2001. Believing she was illegal, the department deported Mrs Wilson, accompanied by an immigration official. The consulate said it had to organise a charity organisation in the Philippines so there would be somebody there to meet her. "She seemed to be in her 20s, she was quite pretty but she refused to tell us the truth," the consular official said. The consulate yesterday confirmed a representative from Immigration Minister Amanda Vanstone's office contacted the consulate only yesterday. Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs Minister Peter McGauran last week announced an extension to the inquiry conducted by former Australian Federal Police Commissioner Mick Palmer into the Immigration Department. Prime Minister John Howard apologised today if anything "unfair" had happened to an Australian woman mistakenly deported by immigration officials.

Mr Howard said it appeared the woman had been treated unfairly. "I am very sorry if anything unfairly has happened in relation to that and on the face of it that does appear to be the case," he told Southern Cross Broadcasting. Mr Howard said the closed government inquiry into the detention of Cornelia Rau, a mentally ill Australian woman locked up as an illegal immigrant for 10 months, had been extended to examine the case of Mrs Wilson.

[  news.com.au

21. April 2005

AUSTRALIA

ein wärter, der 2002 einen gefangenen erschossen hatte und von einem gericht 2003 freigesprochen wurde, wird nun wegen mord angeklagt.

Prison officer charged with murder

A PRISON officer who shot dead a prisoner trying to escape from a Melbourne hospital has been charged with murder. In 2003, a magistrate found that prison officer Fabrizio Federico acted in self-defence when he shot and killed prisoner Gary Whyte, 39, in a corridor of St Vincent's Hospital on May 7, 2002. But the Victorian Coroner decided to refer the case to the Director of Public Prosecutions, which has now charged Federico with murder.

A spokesman for the DPP said he could not discuss the details of why the decision had been made to charge the prison guard. "He should have been committed for it, is what the DPP is saying," he said. "The DPP is saying it is a matter for a jury to decide." The spokesman said Federico was not in custody and was due to appear at the Melbourne County Court on June 28.

[  news.com.au

April 2005

AUSTRALIA

Stellungnahme der australischen Gruppe justiceaction gegen Hausarrest

Dear Friends,

Home detention is the future of imprisonment, if we don't stop it now. We have prepared this paper as a resource. Please use or alter it as you wish. Available in Word format.

Why We Oppose Home Detention

Justice Action opposes the use of Home Detention (HD). It damages the family and the home for others without any consideration of the effects, or acknowledgement of the costs. It discriminates by disproportionately effecting women. Families become prison guards to their loved ones, and the home becomes an extension of the State.

While many people, including prisoners themselves, support HD, when you look at the bigger picture, the widespread use of HD is an admission of the failure of imprisonment and damages fundamental social structures. The only approach that could create the illusion that home detention provides benefits is via comparison with the regular prison system. It is the same logic that suggests that a punch in the face is beneficial in comparison to being beaten senseless with cricket bats.

In the past 10 years, across Australia, prisoner numbers have doubled, costs of imprisonment have skyrocketed, and rates of imprisonment have increased in all states and territories. In NSW, 45% of prisoners return within 2 years. This means that the Department of Corrective Services (DCS) has failed in its responsibility to reduce offending in the community. Now the government is trying to give it's problems to the community, but without the support necessary for real, community-based solutions.

THE PROBLEMS:

1) Transfer of the costs of incarceration from the state onto families.

a) Financial costs

- HD is claimed to be a cost-saving alternative to prison, however, the costs are only transferred from the state to the family. It costs the government over $60,000 per year to provide for one prisoner. If offenders are to be diverted from prison, the funds allocated to support them must also be diverted to the community. The family must provide:

- Accommodation - The family shares their home with someone under the control of the state, and subject to surveillance. That lessens the use value of their home and compromises their privacy. Other family members are forced to accept the reluctant inhabitant with them for very sustained periods, without respite.

- Security, health, caring and counselling - To maintain their own stability the family needs to look after a person who would otherwise be in prison, supplying the needs that the state would supply.

b) Emotional & physical costs

- The NSW DCS interviewed families about the effect of home detention .

They reported:

- their sleep and their children's sleep was disturbed by monitoring phone calls,

- their privacy invaded by searches,

- additional stress and tensions within the family relationships,

- increased burden on outside family and friends,

- increased risk of domestic violence.