The announcement came on Holocaust Remembrance Day marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp.

Spokesperson, Rodney Croome, said the development of the new centre was welcomed, but it was important that the whole story of the Holocaust was featured.

“We call on the Government to commit to the memorialisation of all victims of the Holocaust, including LGBTIQA+ people.”

“Educating young Australians about the Nazis’ persecution of LGBTIQA+ people is an important response to rising anti-LGBTIQA+ hate in Australia.”

“We also want the Government to ensure LGBTIQA+ advocates and historians are involved in the planning of the Centre, alongside representatives of other communities who were persecuted during the Holocaust.”

Today’s announcement of a national Holocaust Education Centre sited in Canberra was accompanied by a funding pledge of $6.4 million. The funding includes $4.4 million to set up the national centre, and a $2million funding commitment to upgrade the Education Centre in Yokine, Western Australia run by the Holocaust Institute of WA. 

Croome also called on the Federal Government to bolster its proposed hate speech laws to prohibit intimidation, humiliation and incitement to hatred against all vulnerable groups, including LGBTIQA+ people, not just incitement to violence as currently proposed.

“Federal hate speech law should come up to the high standard set in some states rather than fall below that standard”, he said.

“Every Australian deserves equal and effective protection from speech that incites hate.”

It is estimated that up to 100,000 LGBTIQA+ people were arrested in Nazi Germany with up to 10,000 sent to concentration camps.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said it was essential all Australians understand the Holocaust.

“We must never forget the atrocities of the Holocaust.” the Prime Minister said today.

“That’s why my Government is making this investment in the National Holocaust Education Centre and in the Holocaust Institute of WA’s Education Centre at the JHub.

“The Centre will serve to educate our young Australians about the horrors of the Holocaust and teach them from an early age that such prejudice, hatred and violence has no place here. Not now, not ever.”

Member for Perth Patrick Gorman said it was important that education about the Holocaust was promoted.

“I am proud to have supported the JHub throughout construction, including the Holocaust Education Centre. This new funding will ensure the vision for this vital community centre can be fulfilled.

“Local Holocaust education is essential to ensuring the horrors of the past are never repeated.” Gorman said.  

Dr Mike Kelly, who is a member of the National Holocaust Education Centre project team said the announcement would be welcomed by Australia’s Jewish communities.

“This announcement is tremendous news. It has come at a critically important time and will be great encouragement to Australia’s Jewish community during a difficult period.

“Most importantly this project will make a critically important contribution to the national effort to reinforce social cohesion and build understanding.

“The location of the National Holocaust Education Centre in the nation’s capital will enable the thousands of school children who visit Canberra every year to learn about the deep evil that racial discrimination can lead to and how this has affected many people around the world. It will also reinforce the importance of our democracy and the need to be well-informed citizens.” Dr Kelly said.

Opposition leader Peter Dutton, who attended a Memorial Service in Perth today alongside the Prime Minister said a future Liberal-National government would also provide the funding for the upgrade to the WA centre.

“Educating Australians about atrocities of the Holocaust and the October 7 attacks is an important mission that deserves support,’’ Mr Dutton said.

“By gaining awareness of the persecution and atrocities committed against Jews, Australians will have a better understanding of why there is no place for antisemitism in our community.’’

“We hope this sort of education will drive awareness and foster positive action within the Western Australian community.’’ the Opposition leader said.

Western Australian senator Dean Smith said the centre was needed because one in four people knew nothing about this period of history.

“The WA Jewish community is an incredibly important and valued part of our state and deserves all possible support, especially in the face of rising antisemitism under Labor.”

“With 25 per cent of Australians knowing nothing about the Holocaust, education remains a crucial step in combatting discrimination – the Coalition understands that.”

“While the Albanese Government has demonstrated complacency, our commitment to this centre and measures like the Courage to Care program respond to this crisis with the urgency it requires.”

The post Call for new Holocaust Education Centre to include acknowledgement of LGBTIQA+ victims appeared first on OUTinPerth.

Defence Minister Richard Marles has overturn the morning tea ban introduced by his predecessor Peter Dutton.

Dutton introduced the ban in 2021 after he discovered defence personnel had marked International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Interphobia and Transphobia.

“I’ve been very clear to the chiefs that I will not tolerate discrimination. But we are not pursuing a woke agenda,” Dutton told The Age when he implemented his ban. “Our task is to build up the morale in the Australian Defence Force and these woke agendas don’t help.”

The ban applied to both uniformed personnel and civilian staffers, and drew a wide range of criticism.

Union leader Brooke Muscat dubbed Dutton the “Minister for Culture Wars” after he made his announcement.

“If having a morning tea for reconciliation week, international women’s day or international day against homophobia is stopping our national security efforts, then we have a real problem,” the Community and Public Sector Union deputy national president, Brooke Muscat said speaking to The Guardian.

In a message to staff the new Defence Minister outlined that he had a different view.

“Each year we recognise events of significance and importance. Many of these events contribute to our inclusive culture by acknowledging and promoting awareness of our diverse workforce.

“Last year a direction was issued in the DEFGRAM 2021/2021 regarding how events of significance be conducted, including those activities which should cease. The Deputy Prime Minister has instructed that this direction be lifted, with effect 23 August 2022,” the email to the staff read.

Friday’s Wear It Purple Day and R U Okay Day, which is later this month, are two of the events that staff will now be allowed to observe.

OIP Staff

You can support our work by subscribing to our Patreon
or contributing to our GoFundMe campaign.

The post Defence Minister Richard Marles overturns Dutton's ban on morning teas appeared first on OUTinPerth.

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has revealed his shadow cabinet which features some significant changes of personnel and portfolios.

The line up features ten women in the Shadow Cabinet, which has a total of 24 members. The opposition said his team had a great depth of talent, but he also wanted to give opportunities to some fresh faces.

“What you’re seeing in this line-up is some fresh faces,” Dutton said. “We have incredible depth of talent — not just on the front bench, but on the backbench as well.”

“I’m cognisant of trying to bring people through for an opportunity.”

Deputy Liberal leader Sussan Ley will be the Shadow Minister for Women, as well as taking on Industry, Skills and Training and Small and Family Business.

Deputy Prime Minister and Nationals leader David Littleproud will be Agriculture Minister. While Western Australian MP, and former military officer, Andrew Hastie will be the Shadow Minister for Defence.

Western Australian senator Michaelia Cash who served as Attorney-General in the Morrison government following the resignation of Christian Porter, moves to back to Employment and Work Relations, while NSW MP Julian Lesser gets a big promotion into the Shadow Attorney General position, while also representing Indigenous Australians.

Former Foreign Minister Marise Payne had requested to be given a shadow cabinet position, but Dutton said he convinced her to take on the smaller role of Cabinet Secretary.

Senator Simon Birmingham will serve as Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs, with Tasmanian senator Claire Chandler promoted to the role of Shadow Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs.

Several prominent members of the Morrison government have been dropped completely including former Defence Minister Linda Reynolds, and Morrison ally Alex Hawke, as well as Mellissa Price and Keith Pitt.

Alan Tudge will return to an active role as the Shadow Education Minister, Stuart Robert who had been filling his position in government is demoted to Shadow Assistant Treasurer. The Shadow Treasurer will be Angus Taylor, while Western Australian senator Dean Smith is promoted to Assistant Shadow Minister for Competition, Charities and Treasury.

Karen Andrews retains the Home Affairs portfolio, while Sarah Henderson will take over the Communications portfolio. Anne Rushton has been given Health and Aged Care.

Former Nationals leaders Barnaby Joyce and Michael McCormack have both been given new roles, Joyce will be Shadow Minister for Veteran’s Affairs, while McCormack will take on International Development and the Pacific.

OIP Staff

You can support our work by subscribing to our Patreon
or contributing to our GoFundMe campaign.

The post Peter Dutton reveals his shadow ministry with big changes in roles appeared first on OUTinPerth.

Peter Dutton has been elected as the new leader of the Liberal party, with Sussan Ley as his deputy.

Both Dutton and Ley were elected unopposed in a party room meeting, following the leadership resignation from former Prime Minister Scott Morrison.

Prior to the election the deputy leader had been former Treasurer Josh Frydenberg, but he failed to be returned, his inner city Melbourne seat of Kooyong falling to independent Zoe Daniels.

Speaking after the vote Scott Morrison offered his support to the new leadership team.

“They’re incredibly experienced, well-versed, deeply committed Australians to both the Liberal cause and, of course, the cause of the nation,” he said.

“I think they’ll do an outstanding job and I look forward to giving them all of my full support.”

Peter Dutton was first elected to parliament in 2001, he represents the Queensland seat of Dickson. Prior to entering parliament he served in the Queensland police, before embarking on a successful business career.

In the Howard government he was appointed to the outer ministry as the Minister for Employment Participation, and later Assistant Minister to the Treasurer, serving under Peter Costello.

During the six years the Liberals spent in opposition while the Rudd and Gillard governments were in power he served as Shadow Minister for Health.

In the Abbot government he was Minister for Health and Sport, and later moved to be the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection. In 2017, under Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, he became the Minister for Home Affairs, overseeing a large super-department the amalgamated several different portfolios.

In 2018 he unsuccessfully challenged Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull for the leadership of the party, but was not successful. A few days later Turnbull resigned from his role but the leadership position went to Scott Morrison. Under Morrison he continued as Home Affairs Minister before switching to Minister for Defence and Leader of the House.

Following the Coalition’s election loss Dutton has been working hard to cast off his ‘hard man’ image and present himself as a family man and inclusive leader.

During his parliamentary career Peter Dutton has been an advocate for traditional marriage, and during the debate over marriage equality memorably told businesses supporting same-sex marriage to “stick to their knitting”. After his constituency voted in favour of changing the laws he voted in favour when the bill was presented to parliament.

Sussan Ley also joined the Australian parliament in 2001, represented the rural New South Wales seat of Farrer. Prior to her political career she was the Director of Technical Training at the Australian Tax Office.

She was a cabinet minister in the Abbott, Turnbull and Morrison governments. She has served as Assistant Minister for Education, and Assistant Minister for Regional Development, Minister for Aged Care, and also held the Health, Sport, Environment portfolios.

In 2017 Ley resigned as Minister for Health while an investigation was conducted into her travel expenses. Questions arose over the Ley’s frequent trips to Queensland and her purchase of an apartment, she maintained all her travel was within the rules, but repaid the costs of several trips.

Ley added an extra letter to her name after studying numerology.

OIP Staff

You can support our work by subscribing to our Patreon
or contributing to our GoFundMe campaign.

The post Peter Dutton confirmed as Liberal leader with Sussan Ley as deputy appeared first on OUTinPerth.

Activist Shane Bazzi has won an appeal against the defamation action brought by Defence Minister Peter Dutton.

Bazzi won an appeal earlier this week against a defamation proceeding that was handed down back in November last year. Dutton sued Bazzi in the Federal Court over a now deleted tweet which accused him of being a “rape apologist”.

The unemployed refugee activist published the tweet on 25 February 2021. The tweet read ‘Peter Dutton is a rape apologist’ and contained a link to an article in The Guardian, which concerned Dutton’s claim that women in immigration detention use rape allegations to get to Australia for medical treatment.

The court awarded Dutton $35,000 in damages and legal costs, with Justice Richard White finding the communication contained a “defamatory imputation” about the politician’s character.

The full court however found that the decision was not sound, and overturned the judgement. Justices Steven Rares, Darryl Rangiah and Michael Wigney said it was not reasonable to find that the individual tweet at the centre of the case contained enough information for a reader to access the alleged specific meaning.

Speaking to the media outside court Bazzi said the case had certainly taken a toll on him.

“This case was not just about me,” he said.

“It was about anyone who wants to make political comment or criticism on social media.

“I feel very grateful that the court has set such a clear and compelling precedent.”

OIP Staff

You can support our work by subscribing to our Patreon
or contributing to our GoFundMe campaign.

The post Activist Shane Bazzi wins appeal against Peter Dutton defamation decision appeared first on OUTinPerth.

Defence Minister Peter Dutton has spoken about his ban on the military acknowledging ‘woke’ days such as International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Interphobia and Transphobia (IDAHoBIT).

Appearing on Alan Jones television program Minister Dutton said it was important that the military represented the wishes of the tax payers who funded their activities.

“Part of the problem in this whole ‘woke’ debate more generally at the moment is you’ve got activists on social media who might have a dozen followers who all of a sudden are bullying companies and government departments into positions that does not reflect the majority view.” Minister Dutton told the program.

“People who are working their guts out in the suburbs and in regional towns around the country, they work hard for their money, they pay their taxes and they pay the wages of the Australian Defence Force.” Minister Dutton said.

“They expect the defence force to be trained the best that they can, not to be off on these frolics and I’ve made it very clear that this is not to happen again.”

The Minister said that since his orders had been made public he’d received a lot of support from the Australian people.

“Over the course of the last few days there’s been an enormous amount of support for this stance that we’ve taken, it’s a common-sense approach, and most people want our defence force to be in the best possible shape they can be in.” Minister Dutton said.

Dutton said he had made it clear to the chiefs of the defence force that discrimination would not be tolerated on any basis, but they needed to focus on making sure the nation was secure and protected.

“When your telling people that you can’t use language like ‘husband’ or ‘wife’ or your asking people for pronouns – I’m sorry it doesn’t have a place in the modern defence force.

“We don’t discriminate against people, I don’t care about people’s sexual orientation, their skin colour, their race, their religion, it’s completely irrelevant, we treat everybody the same, and we don’t have the time, the capacity to embark on these sort of quasi-political agendas.” Minister Dutton said.

The minister said the focus for the Australian military was to make sure they were the best trained and prepared fighting machine in the world.

“That’s why our allies respect us and our enemies fear us,” Minister Dutton said.

Jones introduced the segment reading an email he received from an ex-soldier who asked “How are we ever going to fight a war against China when we’re busy running around waging a war on pronouns?”

After the Ministers intervention was revealed in the media last week he has faced criticsim, including accusations her was a “warmonger”.

Graeme Watson

You can support our work by subscribing to our Patreon
or contributing to our GoFundMe campaign.

The post Peter Dutton says Australians support his IDAHoBIT ban appeared first on OUTinPerth.

Defence Minister Peter Dutton has been criticised over his crackdown on events that celebrate diversity.

Following events that marked International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Interphobia and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT), Minister Dutton ordered defence force chiefs to ensure their are no future events that suggest people wear particular clothing to show support for marginalised groups.

Union leader Brooke Muscat dubbed Dutton the “Minister for Culture Wars” after he made his announcement.

“If having a morning tea for reconciliation week, international women’s day or international day against homophobia is stopping our national security efforts, then we have a real problem,” the Community and Public Sector Union deputy national president, Brooke Muscat said speaking to The Guardian.

“This has Peter Dutton written all over it, the federal minister for culture wars.”

Rodney Croome from LGBTI rights organisation Just.equal said the Minister would be better off ensuring the defence forces were prepared for actual wars.

“Mr Dutton has ordered the ADF to fight his phoney culture war, when it should be preparing to defend Australia in actual wars.” Croome said.

“Affirming diversity in the ADF, as in any organisation, is good for recruitment, retention, morale and productivity.”

Just.equal said Minister Dutton was falling short in his ministerial responsibilities by imposing his views across the army, navy and air force.

“By imposing his own narrow, personal, anti-diversity values on the ADF, Peter Dutton is undermining the organisation and betraying his duty as minister.

“In 2017 Mr Dutton told business CEOs who publicly supported marriage equality to “stop throwing their weight around” and “stick to their knitting”?

“It seems that advice doesn’t apply to him.” Croome said.

Yesterday Minister Dutton confirmed his directive to The Age newspaper, telling them he was against discrimination but was on a mission to stamp out a ‘woke agenda’ within the armed forces.

“I’ve been very clear to the chiefs that I will not tolerate discrimination. But we are not pursuing a woke agenda,” Mr Dutton told Nine. “Our task is to build up the morale in the Australian Defence Force and these woke agendas don’t help.”

Following the Minister’s edict, a note was sent to all military personnel saying that the defence forces must at all times be focused on a primary mission to protect Australia’s national security interests and must not be putting effort into matters that distract from this central goal.

“Peter Dutton is a warmonger” says Senator Kristina Keneally

Labor Senator Kristina Keneally has described the Defence Minister as a “warmonger”.

“The Australian Defence Forces personnel are drawn from the Australian community, which is diverse,” she said. “One of the great things about Australia is that we celebrate our multiculturalism and diversity, and I applauded the ADF for doing so.” Senator Keneally told the ABC on Satuday.

“I will say this, Peter Dutton is a warmonger. He is a warmonger, and whether it comes to picking fights with countries in our region, pitching culture war fights, Peter Dutton likes to be a warmonger, and frankly he is the wrong person for the defence minister portfolio.

“Some of our best defence ministers – think of Kim Beazley – have understood that a defence minister is not about starting wars, it is about finding peace.” Senator Keneally said.

OIP Staff

You can support our work by subscribing to our Patreon
or contributing to our GoFundMe campaign.

The post Peter Dutton slammed for his stance against diversity events appeared first on OUTinPerth.

Defence Minister Peter Dutton has ordered Defence Force Chiefs to ban any celebrations that encourage personnel to wear particular clothing to mark a significant day of recognition.

The edict follows International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Interphobia and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT). Speaking to The Age newspaper Dutton said he would not allow the department to follow a “woke agenda”.

“I’ve been very clear to the chiefs that I will not tolerate discrimination. But we are not pursuing a woke agenda,” Dutton told The Age.

“Our task is to build up the morale in the Australian Defence Force and these woke agendas don’t help.”

Earlier this year IDAHOBIT was highlighted to Defence staff in an internal communication. It suggested staff could show support on the day by holding a discussion or hosting a morning tea. It was suggested that attendees could be asked to be conscious of people’s pronouns, or show their support by wearing rainbow clothing or a pin to show they are an ally.

Following IDAHOBIT the Minister has now asked Defence Force chiefs to ensure that in future no events will ask people to consider wearing clothing that supports a particular issue or group. A new directive has now been issued to all uniformed and civilian staff.

IDAHOBIT was first marked in 2005 to mark the 1990 decision to remove homosexuality from the World Health Organisations’s list of mental disorders.

OIP Staff

You can support our work by subscribing to our Patreon
or contributing to our GoFundMe campaign.

The post Defence Minister Peter Dutton bans celebrations that ask people to dress up appeared first on OUTinPerth.

The federal government is considering banning Chelsea Manning from speaking in Australia, with new Immigration Minister David Coleman reviewing her visa.

Manning is scheduled to speak at the Antidote Festival at the Sydney Opera House on Sunday night, following by speaking engagements in Brisbane and Melbourne.

Manning, who was an intelligence analyst in the US army who served in the Iraq war, spent seven years in a military prison after being convicted of leaking nearly 750,000 classified military and diplomatic documents to WikiLeaks. Prior to her incarceration she began the process of gender transition.

Her 35 prison year sentence was commuted by President Barack Obama, and Manning was released having served seven years in prison.

The Australian government has informed Think Inc, the organisers of her speaking tour, that her visa is under review and she may not be permitted to enter the country.

Think Inc’s director Suzi Jamil has written to supporters asking them to lobby the Immigration Minister to allow Manning to speak in Australia.

“We have just received a notice of intention to consider refusal under s501 of the Migration Act from the Australian government in regards to Chelsea’s visa,” Jamil said in a message to supporters.

“We are looking for support from relevant national bodies or individuals, especially politicians who can support Chelsea’s entry into Australia. We are seeking letters of support to send to the minister for immigration in order for him to reconsider his decision.”

Section 501 of the Immigration Act allows the Minister to refuse an person entry in Australia on the ground that they fail a character test. It has previously been used to stop convicted criminals enter the country. Controversial speaker David Irving, who denies the Holocaust ever occurred, has previously been denied entry, as have musical artists Chris Brown and Snoop Dogg.

Recently there have been calls to deny entry to a number of right wing speakers including Milo Yiannopoulos and Lauren Southern – but their speaking tours were allowed to proceed.

The Home Affairs department will not comment on Manning’s case but a spokesperson said there were many reasons a person may fail the character test.

“A person can fail the character test for a number of reasons, including but not limited to where a non-citizen has a substantial criminal record or where their conduct represents a risk to the Australian community,” a spokesperson said.

James Brown, from the Unites States Study Centre at Sydney University, has voiced support for Manning to be denied entry to the country describing her as someone who has “worked to undermine our national interest and the security of our troops.”

Speaking to ABC News the academic said Mannings crimes were substantial and if people wanted to hear what she had to say they could read articles she’d penned online and watch videos, but there was no need for Manning to be appearing in public in Australia.

“This is not a freedom of speech issue.” Brown said. “No one is saying you shouldn’t read Chelsea Manning’s books or her columns in The Guardian or watch movies in which she features, it’s just the we have the right to determine who comes to Australia and we shouldn’t have someone who has this kind of record and has actively worked against our national interests.”

Brown said the fact that Manning had spent seven years in prison was a clear indicator that she should not be permitted to enter the country.

Labor’s Shadow Minister on Immigration, Penny Wong, has called on the government to explain why Manning may not be allowed into the country, using it to highlight to mystery around Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton waiving visa cancellations around three au pairs who had arrived on tourists visas.

Speaking on the ABC’s Radio National Wong said the government appeared to have an “inconsistent” approach to immigration when controversial speakers were being denied but Ministers were stepping in to rescue au pairs.

OIP Staff

The post Government may stop Chelsea Manning from speaking in Australia appeared first on OUTinPerth.

Breaking News

Scott Morrison will be sworn in as Australia’s 30th Prime Minister after toppling Malcolm Turnbull in a long and drawn out leadership battle.

Morrison defeated Peter Dutton who had been driving the push for leadership change. Western Australian Julie Bishop has also stood for leadership but knocked out in the first round of voting.

Energy and Resources Minister Josh Frydenberg was elected as the new Deputy Liberal leader succeeding over Greg Hunt and Steve Ciobo.

It has been reported that 45 Liberal members voted for the leadership spill motion, with 40 members choosing not to have the leadership ballot. Political commentators noted that it was a surprisingly large vote of support for Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to continue.

The first round of voting for a new leader saw Western Australian MP Julie Bishop being eliminated from the competition.

Bishop has previously indicated that she will leave the parliament ending her parliamentary career. The 62 year-old Foreign Minister has served a Deputy Leader of the Liberal party for 11 years serving under Brendan Nelson, Malcolm Turnbull and Tony Abbott.

A second round of votes saw Peter Dutton eliminated from the competition. Morrison won with 45 votes to 40.

Fifty year-old Scott Morrison who represents the New South Wales seat of Cook first entered parliament in 2007 following a career which saw him work as the Director of the NSW Liberal Party and serve time as the head of Tourism Australia.

He has previously held the portfolios of Social Services and Immigration before becoming the Treasurer under Malcolm Turnbull. Morrison has a strong religious background and attends a Pentecostal church. He campaigned against marriage equality and abstained from voting when the final legislation was presented to parliament. He is however seen as a moderate liberal in comparison to the more conservative candidacy of Peter Dutton.

The result is seen as a disastrous turn of events for Queenslander Peter Dutton who had been driving the push for leadership change. Emerging from the party room Dutton told reporters that he would have “absolute loyalty” to the new Prime Minister.

Former Prime Minister Tony Abbott said the party had lost a Prime Minister today but there was still time to save the government. Abbott said while there had been a lot of disagreement within the party but all members were “patriots” who wanted the best for Australia.

Greg Hunt, who failed in his bid to be Deputy Leader, said he was delighted for Scott Morrison and Josh Frydenberg describing them as a “next generation” leadership team.

“They’re amazing people, they’ll take the party forward, they’re a next generation leadership team. I think they’ll do an excellent job.” Hunt said.

OIP Staff

The post Scott Morrison is Australia's new Prime Minister following leadership war appeared first on OUTinPerth.