Six soldiers booted for demeaning women

Six soldiers have been sacked for producing and distributing inappropriate material demeaning women. Source: AAP

DEFENCE has booted out six soldiers for their part in the so-called "Jedi Council", an informal ring that shared offensive material including vision of secretly filmed sex acts.

Another seven may be sacked.

Army chief Lieutenant General David Morrison said their services had been terminated for production or distribution of highly inappropriate material demeaning women - and the message was clear.

"If you engage in misconduct, or you fail to uphold the army's standards, then you will be held to account," he said in a statement.

The "Jedi Council" scandal emerged in June when it was revealed a group of about 100 people, mostly soldiers, had been exchanging offensive material on the Defence computer system and the internet.

The group was allegedly co-founded by a former commando reservist officer who emailed video of himself having sex with a woman to associates on the network.

Up to 60 Defence personnel viewed the imagery, commenting on her appearance and performance.

Police identified several female victims of the "Jedi Council", variously referred to as "married moll number five" or "virgin moll". The group made references to gang-bangs and demands for more images.

Group members also allegedly exchanged images of women accompanied by offensive commentary, digitally altered images and images of naked women.

Of the six now discharged - ranging in rank from sergeant to major and from regular army and reserve units - NSW police are still investigating three who might face civil charges.

Another 11 have been implicated and Defence is considering whether to sack seven. The other four have faced, or will face, internal action.

General Morrison said Defence had concluded investigations into another 172 mostly army members identified as peripheral to the group's email exchanges. They too may face internal action.

"The Australian Army is overwhelmingly an organisation of 44,000 talented and professional men and women, who serve their country with pride and distinction," he said on Thursday.

"The standard of behaviour we expect of our serving members is clear."

He revealed on Thursday that 122 army members had been sacked this year.

That includes 15 officers and 35 soldiers for misconduct or unacceptable behaviour, one officer and 52 soldiers in relation to drugs and 19 soldiers for civilian offences.

"Where any serious case of misconduct or unacceptable behaviour is proven, the Chief of Army is resolved to take every step available to remove the individual responsible from the army," Defence said in a statement.

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One dead, 220 ill in salmonella outbreak

An elderly woman has died and at least 220 people are ill after a salmonella outbreak in Brisbane. Source: AAP

A BAD batch of eggs is being blamed for a salmonella outbreak linked to Melbourne Cup functions in Brisbane which has left a woman dead and more than 220 people ill.

Seven people have needed hospital treatment following the contagion, which health officials say was a contributory factor in the death of a 77-year-old woman.

Piccalilli Catering said on Thursday it was the company at the centre of the scare, blaming eggs used to make fresh mayonnaise for 40 Cup functions in the city last week.

It says it has since dropped the wholesaler who provided the eggs.

Metro North Hospital and Health Services says up to 700 people could have been exposed to the bacteria and it urged people showing symptoms of the infection to seek medical attention.

Director Dr Susan Vlack said people should be vigilant even if they had not yet been ill. She said some people could become sick up to two weeks after exposure.

"The next few days is the time to be aware," Dr Vlack said.

None of the seven people hospitalised were critically ill, but two were reasonably sick, she said.

She has written to all companies and private function co-ordinators who used Piccalilli to advise them of the situation.

The salmonella bacteria can spread to humans through contaminated food such as meat, poultry and eggs.

Symptoms include fever, headache, diarrhoea, abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, and last between four and seven days.

Most people recover, but salmonella infection can cause severe illness in young children and older people.

"There were no cases at all evident until three days after the Cup and gradually cases have been presenting," Dr Vlack said.

Piccalilli Catering co-owner Helen Grace says the company is distressed at the outbreak and has launched its own probe.

"We feel very disappointed and let down that the normally reliable fresh food supply chain has failed us and our clients on this occasion," she said in a statement posted online.

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Senator slams ABC's objectivity

A Liberal senator says the ABC news agenda is unbalanced and fixated on same-sex marriage. Source: AAP

A FEDERAL politician has taken a swipe at the objectivity of ABC journalists, questioning whether taxpayers should continue to fund the national broadcaster.

Queensland Liberal senator Ian Macdonald told the upper house on Thursday he faces an increasing number of queries from constituents about when the ABC will be privatised.

"Quite clearly the ABC ... its news broadcasts, its television broadcasts, are no longer in the way of dissemination of fact," Senator Macdonald said.

Presenters are offering their own opinions to viewers, he said.

"You've only got to look at any of their current affairs programs and it's always the Green-type agenda that comes up, or the ultra left-wing social agenda."

Senator Macdonald conceded same-sex marriage is an important issue but questioned why it dominates the broadcaster's news agenda.

"The ABC seems fixated on it."

The Senate is considering the broadcaster's latest annual report ahead of an estimates hearing next week when ABC managing director Mark Scott will face the scrutiny of parliamentarians.

Senator Macdonald said people were asking why the public purse should pay for the ABC when it is doesn't appear to be a balanced provider of news.

"There are a lot of lovely people in the ABC and I'm sure very good at their work," he said, adding that regional ABC radio always gives everyone a say.

"But I'm sorry that I can't say the same for the capital city disseminators."

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Govt refuses call for RBA papers

The Abbott government can't release documents on its decision to give the Reserve Bank a grant. Source: AAP

THE Abbott government has refused to produce documentation about its decision to give $8.8 billion to the RBA's Reserve Fund, saying it would breach cabinet confidentiality.

Labor's Doug Cameron earlier this week called for the production of all documents and communication relating to the one-off grant, which Treasurer Joe Hockey said was needed to buffer the central bank against economic volatility.

But in a letter tabled in the Senate on Thursday, Assistant Treasurer Arthur Sinodinos knocked back the request, in recognition of the public interest in maintaining the confidentiality of the deliberative process of Cabinet.

"The 'decision' referred to in the Order was a decision of the Cabinet, and the various categories of documents listed relate directly to that Cabinet decision," Mr Sinodinos said in the letter.

Labor has accused Mr Hockey of playing politics with the RBA, after the treasurer accused the former government of refusing an RBA request for more funding.

Speaking in parliament, shadow treasurer Chris Bowen asked what Mr Hockey had to hide.

"You say the Reserve Bank asked for $8.8 billion this year. Well, show us the request," Mr Bowen said.

"The Reserve Bank transfer of $8.8 billion, of course, increases this year's deficit by that amount.

"Not only has the Treasurer declined to outlined the reasons for that, he has outright refused to release the documentation in breach of an order of one of the houses of the Australian parliament."

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New poll puts Libs ahead in SA

A NEW opinion poll has put victory within the grasp of the South Australian opposition at the March state election.

The Galaxy poll published on The Advertiser website on Thursday put support for the Liberals at 54 per cent, on a two-party basis, compared to 46 per cent for the Labor government.

With a swing of 2.4 per cent to the opposition since the 2010 election, it is poised to pick up five Labor seats.

That would wipe out Labor's majority but would still leave the Liberals one seat short of forming government in their own right.

Three independent MPs would ultimately decide the outcome, though the Galaxy poll has found they also face strong challenges from Liberal candidates.

Labor currently holds 26 seats in the 47-seat House of Assembly with the Liberals on 18.

In 2010 the Liberals won the popular vote but failed to pick up a string of marginal seats the party needed to take power.

While the opposition now looks to be in a stronger position, Labor has lifted its support since a horror opinion poll in March when the government trailed the Liberals 41-59.

The latest Galaxy poll surveyed 860 people on Wednesday night.

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Migration Tribunal case load increases

Sri Lankan asylum seekers had the highest rate of applications to the Refugee Review Tribunal. Source: AAP

SRI Lankans asylum seekers had the highest rate of applications to the Refugee Review Tribunal in the last financial year.

The Migration Review Tribunal (MRT) annual report was tabled in the Senate on Tuesday.

The report said the Refugee arm of the tribunal received 4229 applications - 1518 from asylum seekers who arrived by boat.

The bulk of applicants among boat arrival asylum seekers were from Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan.

Chinese asylum seekers were heavily represented in the non-boat arrival category.

Overall, the Migration Review Tribunal completed 19,347 reviews in 2012/13, up from 10,815 the previous year.

Skilled visas, students visas and partner visa cases made up the majority of cases.

The MRT and Refugee Review Tribunal conduct merit reviews of visa and visa-related decisions made by the Department of Immigration and Border Protection.

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Bombing shows Syrian war risks: Dreyfus

Former Labor minister Mark Dreyfus warns Australians against involvement in the Syrian conflict. Source: AAP

A SUICIDE bombing in Syria by a man thought to be Australian highlights the risk posed by Australians taking part in the conflict, a former Labor minister says.

Former attorney-general Mark Dreyfus says it is a concern that Australians were participating in a "truly dreadful" conflict where barbarities were perpetrated by all sides.

"Australians who are exposed to that kind of activity, who become radicalised, who become trained in that kind of military activity, it is of course a concern that they might bring back to Australia that kind of knowledge," he told ABC television's 730 program.

During the program a bomber, identified by the ABC as a 27-year-old man from Brisbane, is shown in an online video posted by al-Qaeda-linked group Jabhat al Nusra.

The man, his face pixelated but identified as "Abu Asma al Australi", stands on the back of an explosives laden dump truck reciting passages from the Koran, urging others to participate in jihad.

The truck is then pictured driving away and exploding in the distance.

This occurred in September. Jabhat al Nusra claimed it was driven by the man and said he died in the blast that also killed 30 Assad government soldiers.

However, the man's brother told the ABC it was not true. He said his brother was alive in Turkey, doesn't agree with the war and could not speak fluent Arabic like the man in the video.

A number of Australians have died in the Syrian conflict, all apparently fighting with rebel groups.

In its annual report, ASIO warned of an increasing number of Australian Muslims travelling to Syria to fight - with the risk they could return radicalised and with skills to mount terrorist attacks.

Mr Dreyfus said this was why he proscribed Jabhat al Nusra as a terrorist organisation earlier this year.

That prohibits Australians from joining or participating in any of its activities in Australia or overseas.

Where the government knows a person is intending to participate in the Syrian conflict, it can cancel a passport.

"But of course it's not always possible to determine in advance that someone is intending to participate. They might, for example, state their destination as Turkey," he said.

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Two prisoners escape from Vic jail

Police are searching for two prisoners who escaped from a minimum security jail in Victoria's north. Source: AAP

A MANHUNT has been launched for two prisoners who have escaped from a minimum-security Victorian jail.

Police believe that Stephen Standage and Patrick Honeysett left the grounds of Dhurringile Prison, near Murchison in Victoria's north, some time after 5pm (AEDT) on Tuesday.

Police say Standage, 46, is 175cm tall with a medium build, black hair with grey flicks, brown eyes and of Aboriginal/Caucasian appearance. He has a moustache.

Honeysett, 38, is 175cm tall with a medium build, brown hair in a crew-cut style and is also of Aboriginal/Caucasian appearance. He has tattoos on his right upper arm and on his lower leg.

Investigators believe they may have discarded their prison garb and are now wearing street clothes.

Dhurringile Prison is a minimum security prison for low-risk offenders.

Police say the pair are in jail for burglary and handling stolen goods related charges and advise anyone who comes in contact with them to call triple zero.

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Woman, 80, cleared of murder, not bombings

A German octogenarian has been cleared of murder charges over a fatal 1975 attack on an OPEC office. Source: AAP

A GERMAN octogenarian has been cleared of murder charges in relation to a fatal 1975 attack outside the OPEC headquarters in Vienna, but still faces jail for involvement in a series of leftist bombings during the 1970s.

Sonja Suder, 80, had originally been accused of recruiting one of the assailants in an attack that left three dead outside the offices of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

However, prosecutors had confessed during the course of the trial, which began in September 2012, that it was impossible to prove her ties to the attack.

Instead, she was found guilty in several bombings in southern Germany during the late 1970s that resulted in damage, but no injuries or death. The former radical was sentenced to three and a half years in prison.

Her partner, Christian Gauger, had originally been charged in the bombings, but eventually had his case separated from Suder's. It was later suspended because of his health problems.

Suder, wearing sunglasses, showed no reaction as the verdict was read. However, she did wave at supporters who had gathered in the Frankfurt courtroom.

Both Gauger and Suder have been linked to the left-wing Revolutionary Cells, a group that followed similar aims to the more violent and better-known Baader-Meinhof gang.

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Snowden a criminal: Richardson

DEFENCE Department secretary Dennis Richardson says fugitive US defence contractor Edward Snowden should be regarded as a common criminal, not a whistleblower.

Mr Richardson, the former head of the Australian Security intelligence Organisation (ASIO), said he became irritated every time he saw a reference to Snowden's disclosure of US intelligence information as whistleblowing.

"I thought whistleblowers revealed things that were illegal," he told an Australian Strategic Policy Institute dinner in Canberra on Tuesday.

"As far as I am concerned Snowden is probably nothing more than a garden-variety criminal."

Mr Snowden, a former US defence contractor, revealed details of secret US surveillance programs that were later published worldwide. He's currently in hiding in Russia, where he has been granted asylum for a year.

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