Senator RHIANNON: Why did the Australian Ambassador to Israel attend a meeting in occupied East Jerusalem with the Israeli minister for housing and construction, the same minister who is forecasting a 50 per cent incre

Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee
29/05/2014
ATTORNEY-GENERAL'S PORTFOLIO - Australian Security Intelligence Organisation

Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee
26/05/2014
Estimates
ATTORNEY GENERAL PORTFOLIO
Australian Federal Police

MEDIA RELEASE
19 May 2014

Former DFAT official in report which furthers case for Sri Lanka's war crimes

The Australian Greens are calling on Foreign Minister Julie Bishop to reveal Australia's relationship with former Sri Lankan Foreign Minister and Australian dual citizen Palitha Kohona in light of a new report on the final days of the White Flag massacre.

Lee respond's to the Sri Lankan government's decision to label 16 overseas Tamil organizations as financers of terrorism.

See PR by Human Rights Watch. 

As the international community prepares to vote at the March meeting of the United Nations General Assembly Human Rights Council on a war crimes investigation for Sri Lanka, the Australian Greens have moved a successful Senate motion calling for the Australian government to support the independent investigation. 

The Australian Senate has sent a powerful message to the UN and international community about supporting an international independent war crimes investigation in Sri Lanka. This is a long awaited response to horrific allegations of war crimes and human rights abuses committed in S

Prime Minister Tony Abbott will be asked to justify his remarks excusing torture in Sri Lanka following the success of an Australian Greens motion today.

The motion by Senator Penny Wright and Senator Lee Rhiannon called on Mr Abbott to retract his comments that 'we accept that sometimes in difficult circumstances difficult things happen' and was passed with the support of the opposition.

We move that the Senate

1.       notes that

a.       10 December is Human Rights Day, proclaimed by the United Nations' General Assembly in 1950;

b.      on 15 November 2013 the Prime Minister said, regarding reports of torture by Sri Lankan security forces, that 'we accept that sometimes in difficult circumstances difficult things happen'; and