APSNet Semi-Weekly Bulletin, August 21, 2008

Recommended Citation

"APSNet Semi-Weekly Bulletin, August 21, 2008", APSNet Semi-Weekly Bulletin, August 21, 2008, https://nautilus.org/apsnet/apsnet-21-august-2008/

APSNet 21 August 2008

  1. Seasonal Workers for Australia
  2. Pacific Forum Warns Fiji of Suspension
  3. Science Doesn’t Back Ramos Horta Story
  4. Diggers Play Role in Taliban Leader’s Death
  5. Securing Australia’s Maritime Domain
  6. Philippine Peace Process in Disarray

1. Seasonal Workers for Australia, Nic Maclellan, APO, 2008-08-20

Seasonal workers schemes in NZ and Canada show there is a need for regulation and monitoring of all aspects of the programs. Trade unions and government agencies must be engaged in supporting the labour rights of workers, who are operating in a totally alien legal and political framework. No member of the Pacific Islands Forum has signed or ratified key ILO conventions on the rights of migrant workers, and Pacific labour legislation is often outdated and inadequate to cope with an increasingly globalised work force.

2. Pacific Forum Warns Fiji of Suspension, ABC, 2008-08-21

Pacific leaders have warned Fiji it faces the possibility of suspension from the Pacific Islands Forum if it continues to show disregard for democracy.

3. Science Doesn’t Back Ramos Horta Story, Paul Toohey, Australian, 2008-08-20

President Ramos Horta told the Timor Post that [The Australian] and Australian forensic authorities were trying to destabilise his nation by suggesting Reinado and his offsider, Leopoldino Exposto, were shot at close range. It was Ramos Horta who acted unconstitutionally in drawing up “letters of comfort” that allowed the armed rebels with arrest warrants to remain free, despite the repeated demands of the Dili Court that they be detained. This deeply annoyed the Australian-led International Stabilisation Force. Ramos Horta maintains that Reinado and Leopoldino were shot from a distance. Science suggests otherwise.

4. Diggers Play Role in Taliban Leader’s Death, Sarah Smiles, Age, 2008-08-20

Australian Special Forces have helped kill a senior Taliban commander in a missile air strike in southern Afghanistan. Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said the Pakistan-Afghanistan border areas were the “current international hotbed of terrorism” and there could be serious consequences for Australian troops in Oruzgan province unless it was brought under control.

5. Securing Australia’s Maritime Domain, Lee Cordner, Australian Review of Public Affairs, August 2008

With its endless coastline and vast Exclusive Economic Zone, Australia has one of the largest maritime security challenges in the world. Regulation and enforcement of jurisdiction over this vast domain will require innovative solutions, particularly given Australia’s relatively small population and small maritime sector workforce. Some have suggested a coastguard, but other ideas might get us further.

6. Philippine Peace Process in Disarray, AP, IHT, 2008-08-20

The beleaguered Philippine peace process was thrown into disarray, with the government saying a proposed deal with Muslim rebels must be renegotiated after the guerrillas shot or hacked 37 people to death. The announcement came as the peace process with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front already appeared to be unraveling after the rampage Monday, which also led 44,000 people to flee their homes for evacuation centers in the troubled south.

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Richard Tanter,
Project Co-ordinator