CHRIS HURLEY SUSPENDED OVER MULRUNJI'S DEATH

AT LONG LAST!
JUSTICE WILL TAKE ITS COURSE

Senior Sergeant Chris Hurley

Following the decision of Queensland Attorney-General, Kerry Shine, to charge Senior Sergeant Chris Hurley in relation to the death of Cameron (Mulrunji) Doomadgee, the Queensland Police Commissioner has issued the following press release:

Officer suspended following legal advice

As a result of today’s advice by Sir Laurence Street and the Attorney-General’s decision to proceed with legal action, Senior Sergeant Chris Hurley will be suspended from further duties until the matter is resolved through the judicial process.

Commissioner of Police Bob Atkinson stated given this status it would not be appropriate to comment further about the case at this time.

Last updated 26/01/2007

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So, it is the rich what gets the pleasure - National - theage.com.au

I sure do hope they are doing something constructive with all that dough because, you see, I couldn't help thinking of this

Then Jesus said to His disciples, "Assuredly, I say to you that it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." When His disciples heard it, they were greatly astonished, saying, "Who then can be saved?"

Matthew 19:23-25 (New King James Version)New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.

BILL FARMER, HEAD OF DIMIA RESIGNS POST

The Prime Minister, John Howard to-day announced the resignation of Bill Farmer AO from his position of Secretary of the Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs. See New Senior Appointments - 10 July 2005. Ordinarily, this would be a matter for much rejoicing in those seeking reform within the Dept of Immigration. However, his departure has been suspected as being imminent for two reasons:

1. He apologised to a Parliamentary Committee
2. He received an AO at the recent Queen's Birthday awards.

Awards are not unusual prior to the resignation of a senior public servant or their transfer to a significant overseas posting. In this case, Bill Farmer will become Australia's Ambassador to Indonesia. This posting need not be seen as unusual since his service prior to DIMIA was with the Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade (DFAT). If there is anything punitive in these changes to Bill Farmer's career because of the massive failures within the operations and organization of his department, it is not evident.

As a Christian and a practising Anglican, I have been particularly disappointed in the handling of immigration matters because Bill Farmer is the spouse of an Anglican priest in the Anglican Diocese of Canberra-Goulburn and because the excesses under his leadership also occurred under the ministry of that other well-known Anglican, Philip Ruddock, now the Commonwealth Attorney-General.

All of us can be forgiven and all of us deserve the right to a clean slate and a fresh start. I hope that Bill Farmer has been able to learn from what has occurred within the Department of Immigration and understands how the Department he led has been the bureaucratic hand of gross injustice. I also hope that his new position gives him more time for biblical study - in particular, I hope he has a glance at the references in the Old Testament on how the Lord God of Israel instructs us to care for the sojourner - because you were once sojourners. The New Testament could provide material for reflection - particularly the matter of Jesus, with his parents Mary and Joseph, fleeing persecution to become asylum seekers in Egypt. There is no mention of how the Egyptians treated this little family of refugees but clearly they were not locked in interminable detention and were, at an appropriate time of their choosing, able to return. And thereby hangs a story! Now, Bill, narrative theology is a worthwhile pursuit. Listen to the stories.