These ‘people smugglers’ need an apology from all of us
By Ross B. Taylor AM It hardly made any news. An Indonesian ‘people smuggler’ last week successfully appealed to the full bench of the Federal Court to have his conviction eventually quashed. This particular people smuggler served two years in a maximum security prison in Perth (Hakea Prison) and Albany for smuggling asylum seekers from Indonesia to Christmas Island in 2010. He has told stories of how he was denied the services of an interpreter, how he was stripped nak…
More Jakarta and less Geneva: Great idea, just bad timing.
By Ross B. Taylor AM When Tony Abbott made his, ‘More Jakarta and less Geneva’ speech in 2013, it was seen as heralding a new era in Australia-Indonesia relations; a reflection of views held by Paul Keating in 1994 when the then Prime Minister said, ‘No country is more important to Australia than Indonesia.’ With Indonesia’s economy poised to pass that of Australia within ten years, a 245 million population including over 90 million young people and an annual growth ra…
By hook or by crook, we need to rebuild trust between Indonesia and Australia
By Ross B. Taylor AM Prime Minister Tony Abbott has calculated that despite the anger and complaints from Indonesia, his ‘no comment’ line on the allegations that Australia paid-off people smugglers will not cost him any votes, and may actually increase the popular perception that Australia will continue to be tough on issues surrounding our borders and sovereignty under his leadership. He is probably right. Many Australians simply want the boats to remain ‘stopped’, and that our government should do whatever it takes to ensure our b…
As Aussies call for Bali boycott, China quietly steals our crown
News release Psst...want to know a secret? Last February, for the first time ever, more Chinese visited Bali than Australians. And as Australian social media goes into 'overdrive' calling for a widespread 'Bali Boycott' in protest at the executions of Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, China is sending a 'tsunami of tourists' around the world; and Bali is next. "China is currently redefining travel all over the World", said Ross Taylor, President of the Perth-based Indonesia Institute (Inc). As…
Bali Nine duo execution will produce a terrible outcome for their families, Australia, Indonesia, and the region.
The execution of Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan is now confirmed for the early hours of tomorrow - Wednesday 29th April 2015 - and with this execution will come the greatest test for Indonesia-Australia relations since the East Timor crisis in 1999. The execution of the Bali Nine duo will come at a time when a relatively new government in Indonesia is facing an enormous backlash from around-the-world, including Australia , over its decision to proceed with the execution those who traffic drugs. Following the executions, ther…
Could Bali’s Nyepi be Australia’s Good Friday?
West Australian’s love Bali with its beaches, cafes, night clubs, adventure parks and of course, Bintang beer. But once a year our paradise island comes to a crashing, or should I say silent, halt as this predominately Hindu island celebrates Nyepi, a day of ‘stillness’ and ‘self-reflection’. And for those currently in, or heading to, Bali this weekend remember that Nyepi-2015 will be celebrated on Saturday of this week. A ‘Day of Silence’ might be fine for the Balinese, but for us Aussies it also means all cafes and pubs in Bali wil…
Fuzzy heads prevail as execution fiasco continues
“Australia offers to pay Indonesia for the Bali Nine duo to serve a life sentence” This headline stunned not only many Australians but also added fuel-to-the- fire of anti-Australian sentiment that now prevails throughout Indonesia. Are we seriously saying to Indonesia that we will cover their costs of keeping Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan in jail for the next forty or fifty years if Indonesia will spare their lives? Are we seriously suggesting to President Joko that we feel the only reason why he has rejected their clemency pleas …
Abbott polarizes pro-death penalty debate in Indonesia
By Ross B. Taylor AM In 1984 the then Labor Government abolished the death penalty in WA. It was a brave and visionary decision given public opinion, based on research conducted by the Roy Morgan Group, showed around 60% of the population either in favour or undecided about retaining executions for serious crimes. Thirty years later, all Australian states have abolished the death penalty and that it should never play a part of a modern democracy. Ironically, estimates suggest that there is still some 36% of the populat…
Bali boycott may put Oz-Indo relations on knife edge
The statement late last week by foreign minister Julie Bishop that should Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran face the firing squad in Indonesia within the next few days - and that is now highly likely - Australians should boycott Bali as a tourist destination, is understandable. In reality however, Ms Bishop's threat is simply not sensible, nor is it going to happen. Pragmatically, let's look at why such a boycott call is not a good idea: Firstly, based on a poll conducted two years ago, almost 52% of Australians going to Bal…
Tony Abbott's Knighthood to Prince Philip:..... Why Ellen’s service to our community should matter!
Ross B. Taylor AM I was at King Edward Memorial Hospital for Women two days ago to visit our daughter Lisa and our gorgeous first granddaughter, Ember Katherine. KEMH is a wonderful old maternity hospital with incredibly dedicated staff and doctors. The hospital cafe is, so I learned, operated to raise reasearch money for babies and mums’ who have been disadvantaged or facing major challenges in their life. As I waited for Lisa’s coffee I couldn’t help notice the lady behind the counter. Her name was Ellen and her badge also s…
Indonesia back-flips on Visa-free Bali holidays for Aussies
Ross B. Taylor AM The Indonesian Government’s plan to waive the visa requirement for Australian visitors to Bali and other parts of Indonesia has been dropped amid concerns surrounding repeated turbulence over Jakarta-Canberra diplomatic ties. Jakarta has decided to only proceed with the visa-free policies for Chinese, Russian, South Korean and Japanese tourists, Co-ordinating Maritime Affairs Minister Indroyono Soesilo said on Thursday. “We have confirmed the visa-free policy for Japanese citizens. Russia and South Korea…
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