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Issue No. 125 22 February 2002  
E D I T O R I A L

Unfair and Dismal
As the credibility of the Howard Government sunk under lies and conceit this week, Tony Abbott � for a moment - looked uncharacteristically subdued.

F E A T U R E S

Interview: If Not Now, When?
New Labor Council organiser Adam Kerslake talks about his plans to bring unions back to basics.

Activists: Fighting Back
Jim Marr talks to Keysar Trad, a unionist who's left the security of the Tax Office for a much bigger challenge.

Industrial: Croon And Divide
Fly a kite, obfuscate the issues, divide your opponents and continue to hammer people: the one-card-trick Howard Government�s latest kite is unfair dismissal reports Noel Hester.

Politics: Politics of Extinction
Trade unionism is a spent force; a dinosaur. This alleged truism is often heard these days, in one form or another. Rowan Cahill unpacks the lie.

History: Harry Bridges: International Labour Hero
Zoe Reynolds marks the centenary of the birth of an Australian waterfront worker who went on to lead one of America's largest unions.

International: Rats in the Ranks
The relationship between Britain�s Blair Labour Government and the union movement has hit a new low, as Andrew Casey reports.

Review: Follow The Fence, Find The Truth
Tara de Boehmler reviews a new flick that sheds light on the debate around the Stolen Generation.

Satire: Howard Screws Refugee Kids: G-G Turns Blind Eye
Startling claims that Prime Minister John Howard screwed refugee children prior to the last election, and also during a hunger strike at Woomera, have been dismissed by the Governor-General Peter Hollingworth.

Poetry: Let It Be
When a certain former Minister for Defence visited England recently, he met Sir Paul McCartney. The former Beatle thought there was something strange about him, but he didn't say anything. He decided to just Let It Be.

N E W S

 Building Workers' Bid to Win Back Lives

 Dog-Tired � Long Hours Leave Beagles Buggered

 Home Care Workers Reject Sweat

 Building Commission's Costly Spin

 Caltex Asked To Explain Price Hikes

 Palm Sunday Resurrected for Refugees

 Dismissals: Labor Blocks The Lot

 Company Collapses: Union Wants Bank Powers

 Women Wanted for Wharf

 Sanity Returns to the West

 Big Brother Raises Hackles

 Legal Action to Block Job Exports

 New Dawn for Dili Workers

 Councils Targeted in Contracting Campaign

 CFMEU Constructs Lebanese Bridge

 Israeli Aircraft Destroy Most Of Palestinian Union HQ

 Activists Notebook

C O L U M N S

The Soapbox
Shorten's Suite
AWU national secretary Bill Shorten outlines his vision for unionism - from the relations with the ALP to its efforts to regain the heartland.

The Locker Room
Bunnies in the Headlights
Despite their triumphant return to the League, Souths story won't be the last example of tradition being trampled, writes Jim Marr.

Week in Review
Tories in Turmoil
With a constitutional crisis and a dangling mandate, it was compelling viewing for the Howard jeer squad.

L E T T E R S
 Dirty Politics Won't Wash
 Tom's Foolery
 Give Us a Spray!
WHAT YOU CAN DO
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Satire

Howard Screws Refugee Kids: G-G Turns Blind Eye

Extracted from The Chaser

Startling claims that Prime Minister John Howard screwed refugee children prior to the last election, and also during a hunger strike at Woomera, have been dismissed by the Governor-General Peter Hollingworth.
 
 

The Chaser

Dr Hollingworth has ignored the screwing over of the children, despite mounting evidence that the Prime Minister knew that no children had actually been thrown overboard and that no children's lips had ever been sewn together.

"So some children got screwed, did they? Ah, that takes me back to my days in the Anglican Church," Dr Hollingworth reminisced before sweeping the entire matter under the carpet.

The Governor-General has promised that if loud complaints are heard from the children involved, he will hold an internal inquiry before doing nothing.

"Much as I would like to act, I am powerless to act because of overwhelming legal implications," he said. "My mates might get in trouble with the law."

Dr Hollingworth has also invited Peter Reith and Phillip Ruddock to join a new Governor-General's Advisory Committee for the Exploitation of Children for Political Gain.

"I'm a little disappointed they haven't gone through the sham of confessing their sins and being forgiven," he said. "At least the paedophile I appointed to my child abuse committee offered up a quick prayer or two. But Reith and Ruddock are just too experienced in the promotion of indifference to childrens' suffering for us to leave them off."

The government has maintained its opposition to refugees using their children to push their agenda. "We insist that only the government can use refugee children to push their political agenda," said Mr Ruddock.


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