Simply Extraordinary...

Simply Extraordinary of Kevin Rudd
by GDL

Those who have followed Australian politics would know and agree that never in the history of federation has so much been accomplished by so few in such a short period of time.
I am referring to what the new Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and his new cabinet have achieved in just a few weeks after taking office.
Kevin Rudd has distinguished himself as a real leader with real policies and not just playing politics of empty slogans (used by the opposition). Kevin since coming back to the top job has tackled the pressing problems facing the country heads on.
He first redefined the economic agenda in the wake of the decline of the mining boom.There will be no carbon tax as from July next year while the compensation will stay.
Kevin used his diplomatic skills while visiting Indonesia and obtained the cooperation of the Indonesian government to deter Iranians using Indonesia as a transit to Australia. The Indonesian government will not only organise a meeting of leaders of the region, but has already changed the visa rules for Iranians. From now on they will need a visa before boarding planes to Indonesia. The Indonesian government is already tracking down illegal Iranians in Jakarta.
Through his visit to Papua New Guinea, Kevin negotiated with the Prime Minister; there is now an accord where PNG will host the asylum seekers coming by boats to  Australia. The rules are in force since Friday 19th July. This is real problem solving and not using confrontation and turn the boats using force. This is diplomacy at its best and Kevin is just a master of it. This excellent decision has been hailed by Tony Abbott himself who never though outside the square but, as always, is just narrowly focused and not seeing further than the tip of his nose,
This new policy will deter people from jumping the queue and pay people smugglers to come to Australia. Now is the time to see whether Iranians and others were real refugees fleeing     persecution or were merely entering Australia by the backdoor.
If, as they say, they are fleeing real persecution, which is not always true,  then PNG is  surely  good because beggars cannot be choosers. If one is in real trouble, one just catches any hand that is handed to one. Now people smugglers will be out of business as they were selling Australia as a compassionate country. They were saying you take the boats and people like Sarah Hanson-Young and the Greens, as well as some idiots calling themselves refugees advocates, will defend you.
People of Australia were sick of seeing boat people coming to our shores every day. Some of them are economic migrants and others could be criminals who are being accommodated, fed and nourished at the expense of  taxpayers' moneys, sweat and blood.
Enough is Enough! Now let's see if the boats keep coming and if they come they will end up in PNG. Let's see if the are real refugees fleeing persecution or they are just economic migrants or queue jumpers and illegals as many in the community think they are.
Now that Kevin Rudd has cut the grass under the opposition's feet they have nothing to say but to make personal attacks on Kevin Rudd, resurrecting his past. They are failing miserably.
The Opposition who wanted the elections to be a referendum on Carbon Tax is not even mentioning the word.
The opposition who wanted the elections to be a referendum on boat people and claimed they could stop the boats, has been taken aback. The boats will stop coming under Kevin  not under Mickey Mouse.
Conclusion, the Opposition is dead. They have no strategy and policies. They are now on the defencive. They have nothing credible to say. There is no need for a new government and still less an incompetent and controversial person like Tony Abbott in politics.

The table has turned on Tony Abbott

The opposition losing grounds by GDL

The political landscape has changed since the comeback of Kevin Rudd
as the new Prime Minister and leader of the Labor Party.
It is hardly two weeks that Kevin has been in the job that all the polls are
showing that the Labor Party is gaining grounds and that Kevin is by far the
preferred Prime Minister.
For the past year, i.e. since the last general elections, the opposition has been
pushing the government on the defence and was constantly leading in the polls.
Even if the opposition was not presenting any concrete policy, even though the
voters never knew what is in their  manifesto, even if they were nothing but being
negative and never proposed anything valid, they were leading in the polls!!!
Tony Abbott and the opposition were just sitting back and watching how Julia Gillard
and her team were making mistakes. You could see them on the opposition bench
laughing and joking like school kids mocking their vis-à-vis. Their tactics were to
let the boat people continuous arrivals sink the boat of Julia Gillard. They only
pretend that they care for the asylym seekers when if fact they were praying that
more boats arrive and more people drown. How pathetic !!

Anyway it is clear that Tony Abbott was put in a straight jacket and given the
instructions not to give long interviews, all what he says to the press is scripted.
This is one of the reasons why he is not accepting Kevin's challenge for a debate.

The news of the increasing popularity of Kevin Rudd is sending shockwaves in the
opposition. They are in panic mode and trying everything to discredit Kevin Rudd. But
the more they attack him, the more popular Kevin becomes and more is he talking to
the people and the more they are listening.

While Kevin Rudd is on the attack and enouncing policies, the opposition
is on the defensive  trying desperately to get some attention. The opposition is now
in a very awkward position; their role has changed and they were not prepared for such
a situation. Now they have to rethink and adjust rightly or wrongly. But it all seems
they have already emptied their reservoirs of slogans and cannot find anything credible
to talk about to convince the voters. Apart from the carbon tax and turn back the boats
no one in the public knows more what the opposition stands for. They can only talk
about the past, the days of John Howatd and has not realised that the people of Australia
has sent him to retirement (dans koro kann !!!).
Trying to resuscitate  John Howard means that Tony Abbott is not the real leader and
that he has no credentials. He is not articulate and very weak in economics
and does not  know much about technology and broadband.

Since a few days, the table has turned on Tony Abbott. the pressure is now on him and
as he is fit physically, but morally down, he can start climbing Mount Everest as he has
always said. But it does not look like he will reach the top.
Malcolm Turnbull is surely laughing heaps at Tony's expense.

.

Multicultural Australia by GDL

Globalisation, culture, values and multiculturalism

By GDL

The advent of Globalisation, economic, cultural and military, has no doubt been instrumental to the world becoming a global village and this is even more exemplified by the instant and rapid digital communication. 

News and other information are now available instantly and most of the time “freely” thanks to global and online media. Radio and Television also receive and diffuse the latest news as soon as they are received and edited.
However the quickest way of obtaining information today is via the 3G mobile phone. The news of Steve Jobs death was first announced on iPhone, then ipad and then the other electronic media before it hit the traditional media.
The social media are another aspects which make people from different part of the planet feel closer and this is a good thing. Today people do not feel lonely although they are” alone” in the computer room. With the help of the computer they feel that they belong to a global communication network and feel closer to the most distant relative or friend. Via Facebook, one can have many virtual friends without having a real one and still not knowing the name of the next door neighbour.  But who cares?
Today there is that notion of a global individual, the global citizen or what Virginia Nightingale calls “network individualism”. However she said that social network is a powerful option available to marginal and individual audiences. (V N, 2007). For his part, Jim McGuigan referred this to the mobile privatisation as “ a new pattern of life associated with unban-industrial society in general as much as with the  specific use of communication technologies.( J M, 2007).
The global communication, the advance of technology, the new media and the rest, reinforce the notion of cultural globalisation and the push towards a mass culture. The new global or mass culture is a strategic agenda setting by global media, media barons using marketing and advertising for more consumption to the liking of business and wealth concentrators.  The consequence of which we have a new  society embedded in consumerism and subject to  aggressive marketing.
The advent of modernism and post modernism bring also the notion of a new set of values: economic independence, career focus, labour mobility, online shopping, online dating, less time for the family, less time for real face to face communication and less time for parent-children interaction, less time to care about the elders. Values and cultures take a new dimensions.
With the advent of a “new” cultural globalisation comes the disintegration of traditional cultures and subsequently community or societal values. Religious philosophy is a thing of the past which is no longer a priority. Religion as an organisation is failing to cope with change towards post modernism.    In western society particularly where globalisation is at its best, people today do not need religion to tell them how to live their life. The notion of marriage as well as divorce for example, has a similar or different meaning. They are not regarded only as a sequence of the life cycle. Child bearing and having a family is today a choice, according to circumstances. Family breakdown has become a current event.
This new culture has turned everyone into an individual, a free person, an independent one. The individual does not longer feel part neither of a family nor of the local community nor member of a village, town or country. He is a global citizen with a free mind and can move and travel easily; the only preoccupation is to be economically independent and free.
The influence of new media and global culture has had a free ride with the collapse of communism. It was a system which placed too many restrictions on the individual to be part of a society or country and abide to rules. It restricted freedom of speech and association and was doomed to fail.  With post- communism came a benign hegemony with the ideology of liberalism, individualism, free-market and consumerism: the modern capitalism dogma.

The Islamists fundamentalist in the wake of the collapse of communism feared a   western cultural culture invasion. They had recourse to terrorism and suicide bombers to stop the decline of Islam. Unfortunately their methods were not acceptable by most of us and particularly by many moderate Muslims. They also antagonised the other nations and religions and bred “Islamophoby” to some extent. This was surely not the way to go. But for them this is a jihad that they will pursue.

Cultural and economic globalisation have definitely led to decline of religion, the anthropological form of culture. This in turn has diminished the concept of values as they are very much part of religion and culture. In the western world today, we see the emergence of a  value-free society. The notion of morality is weak if not inexistent. While the society is still law abiding, it will not take long to have a debate on what is also legal, who are the lawmakers and their mandates.
However the picture is different in multicultural society like Australia. In the wake of western culture propaganda and marketing, it is noted that many ethnic communities approach and accept cultural globalisation from a completely different angle.  The culture at home is strong even if it tends to be loose outside the family circle. E.g. eating McDonald for lunch and pasta at home. wearing jeans outside and watching bollywood movies at home, children are taught moral and religious values at home even if they accept secularism outside.
In Australia, the ethnic communities are becoming more and more visible through the media; they have their own radio programs, their own newspapers, their own magazines and having more and more social and cultural gatherings and parties. These factors demonstrate that they are not moving towards a mono culture in a western society but rather towards a more hybrid and multicultural society. 
Multiculturalism has been beneficial to Australia by enriching the social and  cultural landscape and all the signs are there that it will keep flourishing like a garden with many colourful flowers. This is the new Australia of today and tomorrow.

GDL.

The new Australian Labor Party

The new Labor Party of Australia
by GDL

On the 10th of June (see below), I wrote that there was political instability in Australia.
This period of uncertainty was becoming unhealthy and could not last as it was bad for
the country both socially and economically. The government was in a sort of stalemate
and business was losing confidence and well as consumers. There was a need to break the deadlock.

Then on Wednesday 26th June, some brave members of the Labour took the bull by the horns
and requested a leadership spill. The once deposed leader Kevin Rudd stood as a challenger to
sitting prime minister Julia Gillard and eventually won the contest.
So on Thursday 27th June Australians had a new prime minister, Honourable Kevin Rudd.
Three years later Kevin Rudd had his revenge on Julia Gillard and she was deposed the same way.
She cannot be too angry as she now bears the consequence of her own action. She paid the price
of deposing a first time sitting prime minister to fulfil her ambition of being the first female
prime minister of Australia. In retrospect she must be saying that she went to fast or burned
the red light.

Julia Gillard did not win the  elections in 2010 but managed to stay in power by negotiating with the Greens and the independents. Her alliance with the Greens was a mistake and was toxic; they forced her to introduce a carbon tax and prevented her to contain the asylym seekers, who came en masse during her term of office. This was another of her many failed policies.

During the prime minister ship of Julia Gillard, the opposition led by Tony Abbott was surfing on a wave of popularity. All the polls were favourable to the opposition from every corners. The polls indicated that voters were sick of this government and its prime minister. But whether they really
wanted a change of government and did they really trust the opposition and wanted Tony Abbott to be the next prime minster, was the real debate.
The question was answered by a snap poll which taken the night that Kevin Rudd replaced Julia Gillard as leader of the labor party. It showed that the primary vote of the labor party had increased by seven points, that on the two party preferred the result  was 50-50 and  that Kevin Rudd was the preferred prime minister. The polls also showed that it will not be a landslide victory of the opposition but a rather close election.

Now the opposition has a real battle on their hands. They cannot be complacent and can no longer
practice the politics of negativity, can no longer use slogans and has to put forward their policies
and plans for the country. Tony Abbott which was up to now sleeping quietly, has to wake up and
show his party's credentials. No excuse will be accepted by the voters, it is only three months to the
general elections and the people need to know the social and economic policies of the opposition.
The media which have up to now focused on the government troubles, will now shift their
attention to the opposition by scrutinising their policies. The pressure is now squarely on the opposition.

The real contest starts now, it is not a personality contest but one of ideas and policies. The party
who can convince the voters that they can best govern for the good and welfare of all the citizens
will be the winner.
Kevin Rudd has already taken the lead. It is up to Tony Abbott to follow.

Thursday 20 th June : World refugee day.

World refugee day : reflection par GDL.

Following the first and second world wars, many people in Europe were displaced
i.e. had to flee their own countries because of the remnants of the wars.
The Jews, most particularly, paid the price after the atrocities by the Germans under
Hitler and had to hide or flee from their counties of origin. It was a prelude to the
refugees (or displaced people) as we know them today. The refugees came from
Germany, Poland, Ukraine, Hungary, Checkoslovakia looking for protection. They were
hosted by countries like France, Israel and as far as Australia  and the USA.
The advent of repressive and dictatorial regimes in Latin America also caused refugees
from Chile, El Salvador, Argentina  to flee persecutions.
Civil wars in Lebanon, Vietnam and Korea also added to the phenomenon of refugee.
In the new century, civil wars in Africa have added to the lot of refugees. Today the
war in Syria has caused 1.5 million Syrians to flee their country.

After World War II, in 1951,  leaders of many countries met in Geneva and signed the
Convention on Refugees. The 1967 protocol amended the Convention to include
universal coverage as it only applied to Europe. Among the many countries,
Australia also signed the convention, which means that it will accommodate refugees.
The convention also establishes the role and duties of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees.

The definition of a refugee according to the UNHCR  is :
"Any person who owing to a well founded fear of being persecuted for reason of
race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion,
is outside his/her country, is unable to avail himself/herself of the protection of that country."
The Convention also states that -
-Refugees should not be penalised for their illegal entry and stay in the host country
-The principles of non-refoulement is fundamental
-The refugees should have access to Courts, primary education, to work and even
  given a passport called the "Nansen passport"
- The state has to cooperate with the UNHCR in the function of its duties
- While protection is not permanent, once assessed the host country will grant refugee status.

The influx of boat people seeking asylum has become a political issue in Australia.
 It has become  a topic of fierce debates inside and outside parliament to the extent
 that some are advocating that Australia should walk out of the Geneva Convention.
According to the UNHCR, there are at date 45 million refugees wandering around the
world and Australia is accommodating only 0.3% of the refugees.
The same report writes that  Australia remains the preferred country of refugees.

The refugee issue and the non-stop arrival of boat people is a big problem for the Labor
 government who has tried everything to reduce the influx but seems to have failed lamentably.
The opposition accuses the actual government as responsible for this situation because
they dismantles the Howard solution when Kevin Rudd came to power. The opposition
says they have the solution to the problem i.e. they will reintroduce the pacific solution
and temporary protection visa (TPV) and turn back the boats. The Greens, for their part,
welcome all asylum seekers and keep reminding the government of its obligations under
the Geneva convention.

As all indications pointing to a change of government in the September general elections,
all eyes will be on Tony Abbott to stop the boats and turn them back. Failure to stop the
boats and deter asylum seekers to come to Australia, even during its first term
in office, will be regarded as a failure and lie from Tony Abbott.

GDL.

Political instability in Australia

Australia needs a strong government
by GDL

The advent of a minority government in Australia since 2010, has but brought instability in the country. Julia Gillard and Labor did not win the elections of 2010, but managed to govern with the support of independents Tony Windsor and Rob Oakeshot.
Labor also had the support of the Greens. This support from the Greens were actually toxic as the latter cornered the government into passing the carbon tax legislation. Gillard promised before the elections that there will be no carbon tax under a government she leads but she later explained that she had no choice. Taxing Carbon is taxing our cheapest form of energy.

Since 2010, there has been political instability in the country. Each piece of legislation had to be negotiated with the independents and the Greens. Many times parliament has to resort to division of votes as there was no clear majority. It was rarely they "yes" have it or the "nos' have it.
Labor had to rely for the most part on the vote of disgraced Craig Thompson and made Peter Slipper, the rat, the speaker to be assured of staying in government.
There was also instability within the Labor party itself. Julia Gillard leadership was challenged twice by Kevin Rudd. The latest challenge resulted in major casualties which saw the resignation of ministers and parliamentary secretaries as well as the whips of government.During the past three years we have also seen cabinet reshuffled three times.

The polls have consistently shown that Labor is in decline but was still showing the unpopularity of Tony Abbott. This was some comfort for the Labor voters; but since Tony Abbott became the preferred prime minister, many saw this as the last straw. It became thus clear that voters have turned their backs on Labor and particularly not listening to Julia Gillard.

The demise of  Labor, besides these instabilities, has also been compounded by many bad decisions and policies starting from the days of Kevin Rudd and all through Julia Gillard's prime ministership. The list is long and exhaustive demonstrating thorough incompetence. Analysts rate Julia Gillard and her government as the worst in the political history of Australia.
This week highlighted the panic in the government ranks to the extent that many have already conceded defeat. This sense of despair was, however, the opportunity for Kevin Rudd to come in the forefront to boost the moral of the Labour supporters.
He made a show of force, mingling with the public to demonstrate that he is still the people's Prime Minster. He also urged his labour colleagues to stand up and fight against Tony Abbott.
This "show" of Kevin Rudd  has again cause for concern to the extent that a reputable journalist like Barry Cassidy of Insiders is saying that support for Julia Gillard has withered and it seems certain that there will be another leadership spill.(sic)
The eventuality of a  Kevin Rudd's return could see another cabinet reshuffle and a new date for the general elections which could be in August.The question remains if Kevin Rudd can repair the damages that he started, and amplified by Julia Gillard. While most analysts (like myself) think it is too late, that the game is over for Labor, others think that Kevin could help save some marginal seats.
Kevin or Gillard will not, according to all polls, be prime minister in September. Who will be the leader of the opposition is also not clear.
It is predicted that  Bill Shorten will be the next leader of the Labor party. We will soon find out.
Qui vivra verra comme le dit souvent mon ami Serge Felix.

The Rodriguans in Melbourne, a vibrant community

Opinion of GDL

 

Rodriguans have been migrating to Australia since the 1950s. The first families were the Calamels. For those who have been to Rodrigues, the colonial house of the the Calamels still stands near the Francois Leguat's Place. The house is now occupied by the well-known, Ben Gontran.

The wave of Rodriguan migration to Sydney and Melbourne happened in the late 1960s. Among the families who came by boats, the big ones, Patris, and Galileo, were the Castels, the Roussetys, the Meuniers and the Raffauts. Ademar Roussety and his family were the first to settle down in Melbourne, according to Marie Fidou Templin, Secretary of the Club.

The largest diaspora of Rodriguans is in Melbourne in the state of Victoria, Australia. There could be around 2,000 Rodriguans living in Melbourne. They came from the regions of Port Mathurin, Oyster Bay and La Ferme. 

The community of Rodriguans in Melbourne is not only vocal but  visible through the  Rodriguan Social Club of Victoria which is a model of solidarity and success.

I was very impressed when I walked into the clubhouse of the RSCV for the first time on 19 February 2012. While the interior decoration of the club is very original, the atmosphere is also welcoming.

It is immediately felt that all the members are very connected to the club as a building but more so as a group who shares the same commitments, the same values and the same passion. There is a great feeling of belonging and solidarity among the members. What is more impressive is the cordial, friendly, community and family atmosphere that prevails at the club house where anyone and everyone feels at ease straightaway.
 

The Rodriguan Social Club of Victoria is one of the most successful ethnic clubs of Melbourne where the community is gathered frequently for social and cultural activities. There is so much happening at the club that Emission Kontak has developed a slogan when referring to the club, " Il se passe toujours quelque chose au club Rodriguais."

The RSCV, commonly known as " Le Club Rodriguais" is the only Rodriguan Club in the world. This year it is celebrating its 18th anniversary. The club was founded by some well wishers who had a vision for the community and a hub for the members and non members to meet and celebrate their culture and legacy. It did not take long for the club and the Rodriguan community to position themselves as a unique community and distinguishing themselves from the other communities and clubs all while forming part of the wider Australian society.
The RSCV is also different from the other Mauritian clubs of Victoria. This is not to say that there is animosity between these two groups as it used to be in Rodrigues in the 60s and 70s, but instead there  a cordial and close friendship between Mauritians and Rodriguans in Melbourne. There are many Mauritians born as well as some Seychellois who feel a strong sense of 'appartenance' to the Rodriguan club. This is due to the shared creole culture, the friendly atmosphere and the many social and cultural activities which fill the leisure of the many baby boomers of Melbourne.

The history of the club is a successful one. It can be classified as a model of democracy.

While the club is under the leadership of a Central Committee, it operates with full disclosure and transparency. Power is decentralised, all the members are involved in one way or another in the running of the club. In politics we call this participative democracy a new and modern paradigm which is gaining momentum and more consideration.

This model is working perfectly for the club. It is a strategy which allows the RSCV to reach its aims, goals and achieve its many objectives. It keeps the bond among members while focussing on the bigger picture, "OUR Club OUR Culture ".

The establishment of the club and now having their own clubhouse is a milestone for the members. They feel a sense of pride for what they have achieved. It is a dream comes true, as was put to me by the actual President, Cyril Appadoo. It is also a dream that they are living in the reality. A baby that has being taken care of with much attention and which has  grown and developed. It is now a fully proud grown-up, 18 years old.

The other intangible, but how big, achievement of the RSCV is the way they are keeping the Rodriguan's legacy and culture alive, in a western city of Melbourne which is also very multicultural. The club has  consistently and frequently put forward the values of their  cuisine, music and dances.

The Rodriguan Community of Victoria has made their culture, and their country of origin  known to the wider Australian Community through their frequent participations in festivals and other cultural events. like Globe to Globe, La Faya or Moumba.

There is no doubt that the Rodriguan community of Melbourne and the RSCV have positioned themselves strategically,  strongly and conspicuously on the social and cultural landscape of Victoria .

 Bravo a Fidou, Cyril, Mikel. Leo et les autres and Happy Birthday to the Klib Rodrigue.