Violence against women a ‘scourge’ that is ‘perpetrated by men’, attorney-general says
The attorney general, Mark Dreyfus, was speaking on ABC RN just earlier about the recent stabbing attacks across New South Wales.
Host Patricia Karvelas read out a question from a listener, who asked: “Can we make it a terrorism offence to kill women, maybe then more will be done?”
Dreyfus responded that “I think we can talk about violence against women without blurring the lines into something else.”
We’ve got a crisis of male violence in Australia. We know that it’s a scourge in our society, we know it must end and I think it’s really clear women can’t be expected to solve violence against women although it is time for men to step up.
I don’t think debating definitions is the way to go … We need to act, we need to educate ourselves, men need to step up, we need to talk to our sons, to our colleagues, to our friends. We need to work together to a solution. And I think going down some kind of almost a wrong path to say let’s redefine – it’s not about definitions. This is about action. We need to shift the way in which we think about this …
Violence against women in Australia is perpetrated by men, we’ve got a crisis of male violence in Australia. It’s a scourge and we all need to act on it and that’s not a matter of how we define it.
Key events
John Mullen to commence on Qantas board more than two months earlier than planned
John Mullen will commence as non-executive director and chairman-elect of Qantas from Monday, more than two months earlier than previously announced.
Qantas confirmed Richard Goyder remains as chairman. As previously reported, Goyder will retire before the company’s annual general meeting in late 2024.
A statement published today reads:
Mr Mullen’s position on the Board will be put to a shareholder vote at the AGM. He expects to reduce his existing professional commitments over time.
Charges laid over hundreds of weapons allegedly bound for gangs
A man has been charged with possessing more than 400 banned weapons allegedly bound for Melbourne street gangs after police raids and seizures in the city’s southeast, AAP reports.
In October last year, police seized weapons, including samurai swords, zombie knives and butterfly knives in raids at two shops in Narre Warren and Boronia, and a factory in Dandenong South.
Police also found quantities of methylamphetamine, cannabis, 111 cartons of illegal cigarettes and more than 17,000 vapes, some containing nicotine.
A Cranbourne North man, 52, was arrested at the shop in Narre Warren and is now facing 140 weapons and other charges. Victoria police said in a statement:
It will be alleged the man was selling prohibited weapons – including knives and machetes – to known youth gang members in the Greater Dandenong area.
The man is scheduled to appear in Dandenong magistrates court on 16 July.
AFP commissioner outlines facts of Wakeley stabbing case, calls for unity
At a press conference earlier this morning, Australian Federal Police commissioner Reece Kershaw spoke about the 16-year-old who allegedly stabbed a bishop on Monday night and is facing terrorism charges.
He outlined the facts of the case as follows:
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On Monday evening police will allege the 16-year-old attended the Christ The Good Shepherd Church in Wakeley where he allegedly stabbed the bishop.
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On Tuesday, investigators with the joint counter terrorism team completed search warrants at this home and seized a number of items.
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After examination and when other evidence was obtained, investigators sought to interview the alleged offender. He was interviewed yesterday and charged with a terrorist act under under section 101.1 of the Criminal Code (Commonwealth) 1995, which carries a maximum penalty of imprisonment for life.
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He has been refused bail and is expected to appear before a bedside hearing today.
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The investigation will remain ongoing as this moves through the justice system, Kershaw said.
Kershaw said: “We target criminality not countries. We investigate radicalisation and not religion.”
There is a saying in police – the police are the community and the community are the police. We’re only as strong as effective as our bond to each other. We know that grief hangs heavy over Sydney at the moment and there are many communities with questions, but our answers will have more meaning if we find commonality and not difference.
Greens’ Janet Rice to resign today after previously announcing retirement
Today will be Victorian Greens senator Janet Rice’s last official day in her role.
In a video message to X, she reflected on her 10 years in office and said she would shortly send her resignation email off, effective immediately.
Today I officially become a former senator. I feel sad, excited and grateful. I’ll still be working for a just, green world while also taking a much needed break when I can. See you around the traps, and cheers! pic.twitter.com/wv4XTKDXkz
— Janet Rice (@janet_rice) April 18, 2024
Shorten suggests ‘more soldiers and police officers’ should be patrolling shopping centres
The NDIS minister, Bill Shorten, also weighed in on the calls from police for tougher knife crime penalties, as we reported earlier.
Shorten echoed sentiments from the PM that the government would support what states and territories decide. But as a parent and a Westfield shopper, he said “we do need tougher penalties”:
You know, when I say tougher penalties, it should be, if you’re carrying a knife and use it, that’s aggravated … And so you need to have tougher penalties.
Shorten acknowledged that knives can be a form of recreation, or something people collect, but was not convinced “very long knives” should be available for sale.
It’s not just the knife laws. It’s not just being safe. It’s also the reassurance … I think we need more soldiers and police officers actually patrolling Westfields and perhaps even the big shopping centre companies who make a lot of money can actually be asked to co-pay, so we have a stronger visible police presence.
Both sides of politics urge social media platforms to adhere to ‘social licence’
The opposition leader, Peter Dutton, and the NDIS minister, Bill Shorten, have weighed in on social media’s role in spreading misinformation and graphic images after two separate stabbing attacks in Sydney.
The two, who are typically at odds with one another, agreed that tech companies should be doing more.
Shorten argued that social media companies “need a big rinse out”. He noted the eSafety commissioner had issued instructions for certain content to be taken down, but said it was a shame the government had to “sort of play whack-a-mole here”.
Social media companies [have] got to just understand there’s a social licence, and it shouldn’t involve, you know, ministers and safety commissioners telling them what to do. They should just get on and do it straight away. And if it costs more money to catch the bad feed on their platforms, well, they just have to spend the money to catch it and stop it.
Dutton agreed and suggested AI could be used to flag certain content on platforms.
When they have that red flag, they should take it down. And if there’s a hesitation in putting it up, if it’s an innocent graphic that they’ve caught, well, they can rectify that. But at the moment I think they’ve got complete contempt for families, for kids who spent a lot of time on social media, and the influence that they exert needs to have that social licence, as Bill says.
Planned surgery wait times longest on record, medical association says
Planned surgery wait times in public hospitals are now the longest on record, according to new data from the Australian Medical Association.
The data, released as part of the AMA’s annual “public hospital report card”, also shows emergency departments remain strangled by access block.
The AMA has written to health ministers ahead of a meeting today, arguing the findings of its report highlight the need for governments to take further action on the issues affecting Australia’s hospitals.
The AMA president, Prof Steve Robson, said Australians are waiting almost twice as long on average for planned surgery than they were 20 years ago, “which is unacceptable”.
The report found the national proportion of individuals receiving category two planned surgeries (such as heart valve replacements and curettage nerve decompression) had fallen to the lowest point on record. Robson said:
These surgeries are essential and urgent – they are not elective or cosmetic and every day of waiting can bring serious pain and increased risks to patients.
The national average of emergency patients being seen on time is at the lowest level in the past ten years across all categories except resuscitation, the report found.
And the proportion of people in all triage categories who completed their ED presentation in four hours or less was at 56% – the lowest number since 2011 and a 14% fall on pre-pandemic levels.
Joint Jewish, Muslim and Christian statement released following recent tensions and violence
Three of Australia’s Jewish, Muslim and Christian organisations have released a joint statement calling for unity after the recent tensions and violence in Sydney.
The Jewish Council of Australia, the Islamophobia Register Australia and the Columban Centre for Christian-Muslim Relations said they are “deeply concerned by the heightened tensions and acts of violence that have occurred in Sydney over the past week”.
The groups said they rejected any attempt to use recent tragedies to spread misinformation and “perpetuate antisemitism, Islamophobia or any form of racism, hatred or intolerance”.
Instead, we must come together to support one another, amplify facts over falsehoods, and demonstrate the strength of our shared values of inclusivity and mutual understanding.
Father Patrick McInerney, director of the Columban Centre for Christian-Muslim Relations, stated:
In these challenging times, we call on all politicians, media outlets, and community leaders to act responsibly and openly to combat racism and division. Words and actions have a profound impact, and we urge you to use your platforms to reinforce messages of solidarity, compassion, and respect for our diverse communities.
Attorney general says religious discrimination legislation can be unifying moment for the country
The attorney general has suggested religious discrimination laws would be an opportunity to unite the country, amid so much discussion around Australia’s social cohesion.
Speaking to ABC RN, Mark Dreyfus said it was an opportunity to show “we can be a community that treats each other with respect”:
I see the religious discrimination legislation as something that is entirely consistent with the community coming together, just like we’ve seen in the wake of the horrible tragedy that occurred at Bondi Junction.
We’ve seen the best of Australian values coming forward in the last days, we’ve seen the community coming together, expressing their support for the families of victims, laying flowers in Bondi. We’ve seen the kind of kind, compassionate and unified spirit that Australians I know hold, and I think that the religious discrimination legislation can be dealt with in that same spirit.
Albanese government wants religious discrimination laws passed this year, attorney-general says
Let’s circle back to the attorney general Mark Dreyfus’s earlier interview on ABC RN, where he could not say whether religious discrimination laws would be shelved if an agreement isn’t reached this year.
Dreyfus said the government was attempting to get the legislation passed this year because “we can’t allow this to drag out”. He had a “very good meeting” with senator Michaelia Cash and was “hopeful we can bring the parliament together on this topic”, he said.
But if it can’t be passed this year, will it be shelved? Host Patricia Karvelas pressed the attorney general on this question many times and he repeatedly answered he was working with colleagues and the opposition to “try to reach a resolution”.
We are right now in the middle of negotiations … If we don’t reach agreement, that will be a matter of extreme regret for me and others because we’ve been at this now for several years. And I do think that the issues are well known, and I’m equally – because they’re well known – confident that we can get to a resolution.
Webb warns of misinformation being spread on social media
Karen Webb said there was misinformation being shared through social media and she wanted to assure the community that police would be out in force to keep them safe.
The source of information should be from police and law enforcement and if people have concerns they should check our websites, socials and any other direct news from law enforcement about current information.
If we have current credible information about a threat to the community, we will let them know. We will share that with the community. So, please, be assured that police will be the source of truth and not social media, misinformation.
The social media platforms included WhatsApp and TikTok, she said.
It’s creating fear, unnecessary fear in the community, and it needs to stop.