The look isn't good for the Liberals. A few party members, now dismissed, created a prank letter drop. It had a fake Muslim organisation praising the ALP for things the ALP have done. Liberal staffers who objected to the idea reported it to the media who have inflated it beyond all recognition, claiming it is an election eve rort and proof that the Liberal Party will say the truth even if it is unpopular.
The media have ignored the ALP leaflets which have made many false allegations. Some have claimed that Howard is secretly planning to extend Workchoices so as to hurt workers. Others claim that Howard supports nuclear terrorism. Not a skerrik of truth, nor policy from the ALP and the media pass allows them to produce such stuff unquestioned. But when a few Libs pull a stunt .. and still print truth ..
===
How about the media address those issues the ALP haven't told the public about?
How about ALP's proposed IR legislation. When will the ALP say what their legislation will be? Will it address the issues, as Workchoices does, but which NSW IR legislation doesn't, that saw a cover up over the investigation into the accidental death of a boy? Will it address the cover up of a bungled paedophile investigation? Will it address the issue of harassment of non union workers by the public service?
3 comments:
Poll smear a 'Chaser-style prank'
from news.com.au
THE Liberal Party has been hugely embarrassed over a campaign team caught delivering fake letters linking Labor with the Bali bombers.
The grubby night-time operation in St Marys, in the western Sydney seat of Lindsay, was busted by a squad of ALP sleuths who conducted a stake-out.
Police have been called in to investigate the distribution of the letter, as well as the Australian Electoral Commission. The Liberal Party yesterday expelled two members involved in the scheme.
The gang included Gary Clark, husband of retiring MP for Lindsay Jackie Kelly, and party state executive member Jeff Egan. Another was named by Labor as Troy Craig, president of the Glenmore Action Group.
Prime Minister John Howard has said the leaflets were completely unacceptable. "I condemn it, I dissociate myself from it. It's no part of my campaign and the party has acted promptly to deal with it," he has said.
On ABC radio this morning, Ms Kelly has said her first instinct was to laugh when she saw the pamphlet. She has said the leaflet was a parody of shadow foreign minister Robert McClelland's comments about the death penalty for the Bali bombers.
"My view is that it is a bit of a Chaser-style prank," she has said. "I think its intent is to be a send-up, but it obviously hasn't worked. If you read it you would be laughing.
"An ALP goon squad, which I understand was led by some unionists, have chased down and hunted down and tried to intimidate. I understand there was even a fight."
But Labor spokesman Anthony Albanese has said it is no laughing matter. "This isn't a lark, this is serious," he has said.
Fake group
Liberal sources said earlier that a group of campaign volunteers were involved and had not been authorised.
The letter appeared to be from a Muslim organisation, the Islamic Australia Federation. But the organisation does not exist.
The fictitious group was said to be backing Kevin Rudd because Labor supported forgiveness for "our Muslim brothers who have been unjustly sentenced to death for the Bali bombings".
It also said Labor endorsed construction of a mosque in St Marys.
"In the upcoming federal election we strongly support the ALP as our preferred party to govern this country and urge all other Muslims to do the same," the letter read.
Dismal spelling
It was clumsily worded and ended with "Ala Akba", a dismal attempt at the traditional Islamic salute of "God is Great" - "Allah Akbar".
Labor officials were tipped off and on Tuesday night staked out a Penrith house in the same street as Ms Kelly.
They followed a small convoy of cars to St Marys, where the group split up and began putting the dodgy material into boxes. The Labor officials later confronted the men, identified three and photographed two.
The letter drop was reportedly organised in the family home of Ms Kelly and Mr Clark.
But Ms Kelly has denied the pamphlets were printed in her office and has said she does not know who funded or authorised the printing.
"Everyone has got home printers and what not. You can do up dodgy flyers how you like. Anyone could have, even the goon squad following," she has said.
Mr Albanese has said the Liberal Party must come clean. "This hasn't been done up in a kitchen, this has been done up professionally by someone using resources unknown, and Jackie Kelly doesn't explain where it came from."
Formal complaint
ALP national secretary Tim Gartrell yesterday formally complained to the AEC, citing the offence under the Electoral Act of printing, publishing or distributing election material without authorisation or the name of the printer.
Liberal state director Graham Jaeschke yesterday said he had been "made aware of an incident" involving unauthorised and false election material.
"The people allegedly involved are no longer members of the Liberal Party. I will refer this incident to the Electoral Commission," Mr Jaeschke said.
He declined to name those expelled when asked by The Daily Telegraph, but said two members were involved and that he thought there had been a total of five men. Ms Kelly has said her husband had not been expelled from the party.
Mr Howard has tried to distance the episode from the overall Liberal campaign. "This is no part of my campaign. It is no part of the Liberal Party's campaign. I don't want anything to do with it.
"I am not in control of the actions of all people who are members of my party."
Sydney-based chairman of the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils Ikebal Patel said falsification of election material created a further rift between mainstream community and Muslims.
"No community, race and religion should be used for one side's political ambition," he said.
- by The Daily Telegraph's Malcolm Farr and AAP
Despicable campaign
Andrew Bolt
What a disgusting tactic:
THE Coalition will spend the last three days of the election campaign fighting off claims of gutter tactics after Liberal Party members were caught handing out bogus leaflets designed to inflame anti-Muslim sentiment against Labor in the marginal Sydney seat of Lindsay.
Gary Clark, whose wife Jackie Kelly is retiring as the member for Lindsay after 11 1/2 years, was named last night as being among those involved in the plot.
State Liberal executive member Jeff Egan, a former adviser to federal Communications Minister Helen Coonan, was also named, although he emphatically denied any involvement…
The pamphlet - from the Islamic Australia Federation, a body that does not exist - claims that Labor supports Muslim extremists and finishes with a misspelt version of “Allah Akbar” (Arabic for “God is great").
The Liberals’ claim the action was “unauthorised”, but some of those allegedly involved aren’t just volunteers off the street. If there’s the slightest link to the Liberal candidate, Karen Chijoff, she deserves to lose on this issue alone.
UPDATE
The leaflets read:
We gratefully acknowledge Labor’s support to forgive our Muslim brothers who have been unjustly sentenced to death for the Bali bombings…
Labor is the only political party to support the entry to this country of our Grand Mufti Reverend Sheik al-Hilaly and we thank Honourable Paul Keating for overturning the objections of ASIO to allow our Grand Mufti to enter this country.
There are faint elements of truth in this - among the lies, such as the claim Labor wants to “forgive” the Bali bombers - which could legitimately be raised by the candidate. But why then not discuss this openly? Why the fraud? I’d guess it’s because these Liberals actually know themselves that what they are doing is nasty, deceitful, irresponsible and shameful.
Jackie Kelly was on ABC radio this morning (no link yet) claiming she understood this was “a bit of a Chaser-style prank”.
Oh, how we laughed, Kelly. Or would laugh if it wasn’t so ugly, and if a senior Liberal wasn’t now defending it.
Marriage on rocks after leaflet scandal
By Ellen Connolly and AAP
LIBERAL candidate Karen Chijoff has split from husband Greg after he was caught distributing fake race-hate election flyers.
"I'm not speaking to him any more," she said yesterday while casting her ballot in the crucial western Sydney suburbs seat of Lindsay.
"I'm personally outraged by the offensive and unauthorised material."
Ms Chijoff maintained she had no knowledge of the misleading campaign, but said it had resulted in severe consequences for her husband.
He had moved out of the family home and they had not spoken in days.
It was the candidate's first public appearance since a group, including Mr Chijoff and retiring Liberal MP Jackie Kelly's husband Gary Clark, were caught on Wednesday distributing bogus leaflets linking Labor to Muslim terrorists.
Mr Chijoff and Jeff Egan, an influential member of the Liberals' state executive, have been expelled from the party.
Mr Clark, who was not a party member, has apologised.
Ms Chijoff, 43, said she had no prior knowledge of the fliers and that "it was unauthorised material".
When asked the whereabouts of her husband - with whom she has two daughters, aged 11 and 14 - she responded: "I would not have a clue. It was a very, very stupid act."
But marital problems and a voter backlash were not the only humiliation for Ms Chijoff yesterday.
The ABC's Chaser team, dressed as Muslim extremists, confronted her as she left a polling booth at Glenmore Park.
Post a Comment