HOWARD'S LEGACY OF RACISM AND DIVISION

It's very ironic, that Howard states that he sees 'no underlying racism in Australia". This coming from a much hated PM who has adopted and championed racist policies of Hanson, won an election with racist lies, presided over racist immigration policies, including deporting Australians. Howard has bred a climate of division and racism in Australia. Extreme right groups are naturally taking advantage of this.
Here are some well researched articles from Indymedia:

Neo-Nazis helped to bring disgrace to Sydney's Cronulla beach
by Mark Fontaine 11:32pm Mon Dec 12 '05 (Modified on 12:41am Tue Dec 13 '05) article#62300
Neo-Nazi agitators and far-Right group such as Jim Saleam's Australia First Party were involved in drawing the lynch-mobs to Sydney's Cronulla district on Sunday.


From the TV coverage and press reports, it is clear that the lynch-mobs were not just looking for "people of Middle Eastern appearance". They were looking for anybody of ANY exotic background. One TV station showed how the lynch-mobs pounced on two young men who were not Middle Eastern at all -- they were two students from Bangladesh, which is next-door to Burma, nowhere near the Middle East. Another bulletin reported how the lynch-mobs targeted an Australian man of Italian background (presumably he had a brownish complexion).

Here are some media mentions of Jim Saleam's Australia First Party and other neo-Nazi agitators:-

1. The Australian reported: "Far-Right groups, including Australia First, distributed inflammatory literature at the beach, as did skinhead groups. Australia First NSW secretary Jim Saleam confirmed that his group had been distributing anti-multicultural and anti-immigrant literature at the beach. Mr Saleam also confirmed the group had helped mobilise people for the demonstration." -- THAT NEWS ITEM WAS FOUND HERE

2. The Daily Telegraph (which itself often tries to stir up xenophobic feelings among Howard's battlers) reported: "A number of groups, including the notoriously racist Australia First Party, sought to manipulate the incident and exacerbate ethnic tensions." -- THAT ITEM WAS FOUND HERE

The Sydney Morning Herald reported: "White supremacists were among those who took part in yesterday's race riots in Sydney's south, Police Minister Carl Scully said today." -- THAT ITEM WAS FOUND HERE

On Monday 12 December (the day after the riots) Channel Seven's "Today Tonight" program reported that the lynch mobs had been encouraged by shock-jocks at Sydney's talkback radio stations -- for example, Jason Morrison at 2GB and Tim Webster at 2UE.

On Monday morning, 12 December, Channel Seven's "Sunrise" program (at 7.00am) indicated that another Sydney shock-jock -- Stan Zemanek -- was also an offender. (Zemanek is an ordinary man of appalling ignorance and is therefore popular with Howard's battlers.)

cartoon: Bill Leak