Deposed Australian PM Turnbull quits parliament

SYDNEY- Deposed Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull officially resigned from parliament Friday, sparking a by-election for his Sydney seat that could threaten the government's slim one-seat majority.

Moderate Turnbull, 63, was ousted a week ago in a Liberal party coup driven by a hardline conservative faction and he indicated at the time he would not move to the backbench.

New Prime Minister Scott Morrison paid tribute to his "legacy of great achievement."

"Malcolm Turnbull's retirement draws to a close 14 years of committed service to the Australian people and his beloved electorate of Wentworth, culminating in his term as prime minister," he said.

"The Liberal Party thanks him for his commitment to our values and calm stewardship of our great institution, even in times of difficulty."

Turnbull was unseated after almost three years by a determined challenge from his own Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton, who himself lost out to a stealth campaign by Morrison, a Turnbull ally, in a party ballot.

His transition to civilian life should be smooth. Turnbull was one of Australia's wealthiest parliamentarians and he went to Canberra after previous stints as a journalist, banker, lawyer, and businessman.

His departure will trigger a by-election for his Sydney seat, potentially in early October, leaving Morrison in a precarious position with no majority for two sitting weeks of parliament.

The seat is traditionally a Liberal safe haven, although a backlash against the government's political infighting could make this less certain.

Several Liberal candidates have already emerged, including former Business Council of Australia executive director Andrew Bragg and Dave Sharma, who used to be ambassador to Israel.

The Greens and Labor are also expected to field candidates.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Australia braces for new prime minister after bitter coup

SYDNEY - Australia was bracing for yet another change of prime minister Friday after a revolt against Malcolm Turnbull by hardline conservatives in his Liberal party, with his near three-year reign hanging by a thread.

Former home affairs minister Peter Dutton, an ex-police officer and right-winger, has been the stalking horse seeking to unseat Turnbull after a party backlash against his more moderate approach to politics.

Turnbull survived one attempt to knife him on Tuesday, winning a party room vote 48-35, but since then ministers have been defecting and a second leadership challenge is likely at noon (0200 GMT) Friday.

Dutton needs to prove he has majority backing, or 43 signatures from within the party's parliamentary group -- a requirement for him to force a second crack at the top job ahead of national elections due by mid-2019.

Reports on Friday said at least 40 lawmakers were onboard for a leadership change.

Turnbull, who accused Dutton and his supporters of bullying and intimidation, on Thursday said he would not contest a second leadership challenge and leave parliament, although he did not put a timetable on when he would go.

If he moves out of politics, it would spark a by-election for his Sydney seat, threatening the government's one-seat parliamentary majority.

Even if Dutton gets the numbers for a challenge, there is no guarantee he will assume the top job after foreign minister Julie Bishop and treasurer Scott Morrison, both Turnbull allies, threw their hats in the ring.

During a three-way vote, whoever comes last in the first round will be eliminated with a second round taking place to decide who becomes leader.

Defence industry Minister Christopher Pyne, a Turnbull ally, refused to say he who would be backing and hit out at elements inside his party.

"I think some people should have considered the greater good of the people of Australia, and the government, rather than their own self-interest and ambition," he said.

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The unrest is the latest chapter in a turbulent decade for Australian politics, with no leader managing to serve out a full term since former Prime Minister John Howard lost the 2007 election.

If a new leader takes office Friday, it will be the seventh prime minister in 11 years in a remarkable revolving door at Canberra's parliament house.

Complicating matters, Dutton was referred to the solicitor-general over his eligibility to sit in parliament due to family financial interests in childcare centres that receive government subsidies -- a possible breach of constitutional rules.

The nation's top lawyer has since cleared Dutton to continue in parliament, reports said Friday.

If he succeeds in taking the top job, Dutton will push Australian politics further to the right with a shift in several policies.

He has made clear already that he would slash the migrant intake to counter population pressures and has not ruled out withdrawing Australia from the Paris climate agreement.

The move to oust Turnbull was sparked by his plans on Monday to embed carbon emissions targets in law.

Coupled with the government long trailing the opposition Labor party in opinion polls, the move sparked a revolt that quickly spiralled into calls for his head.

One minister was so disillusioned with the push to oust Turnbull that he took to Twitter to apologise to the Australian people.

"Australia. We owe you an apology. I’m sorry. You deserve better than many of the things our Federal Parliament has served up to you for the past 10 years," wrote Nationals MP Darren Chester, whose party is in a coalition with the Liberals.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Australia celebrates 'day for love', allows same-sex marriage

SYDNEY - Australia became the 26th nation to legalize same-sex marriage on Thursday, prompting cheers and singing from a packed parliament public gallery in a country where some states ruled homosexual acts to be illegal until just 20 years ago.

Lawmakers, who had cast aside a conservative push to allow religious objectors to refuse service to same-sex couples, waved rainbow flags and embraced on the floor of the chamber, where earlier in the debate a politician had proposed to his same-sex partner.

Fewer than five of 150 MPs voted against the law.

"What a day. What a day for love, for equality, for respect," said Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. "...It is time for more marriages."

The laws, which will also recognize same-sex marriages solemnized in foreign countries, take effect from Saturday. Because a month's notice is required for the state to recognize a marriage, the first legal same-sex unions will be in January.

Australians had overwhelmingly endorsed legalizing same-sex marriage in a postal survey run by the national statistics agency.


The bill cleared the upper house last month and had been expected to pass on Thursday after Turnbull's Liberal-National coalition government and the main opposition Labor Party had previously said they wanted to pass it by Dec. 7.

But religious organisations and conservative lawmakers had voiced strong opposition and proposed dozens of amendments.

During parliamentary debate, they pressed for broad protections for religious objectors, among them florists and bankers, to refuse service to same-sex couples.

"These amendments, rather, are a shield for people and organisations that hold to a traditional view of marriage. They are not a sword to be wielded in the service of bigotry," government MP Andrew Hastie said in parliament.

Amendments to permit lay celebrants to decline to solemnise same-sex marriages and businesses opposed to the unions to refuse service at wedding receptions were all defeated, one after the other, during three days of debate.

"Love has won, and it's time to pop the bubbly," Greens MP and same-sex marriage supporter Adam Bandt said.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Australian lawmaker proposes to same-sex partner on floor of parliament

MELBOURNE - An Australian conservative politician on Monday proposed to his long-term partner on the floor of parliament, ahead of the expected passage of a measure for same sex couples to marry.

Australians overwhelmingly voted for same-sex marriage in a postal vote in September and a marriage equality bill that passed the senate last week is being debated in the lower house, where it is expected to pass this week.

Liberal member of parliament Tim Wilson proposed to his partner Ryan Bolger in the capital of Canberra, the two having already exchanged rings but having pledged to wait for the country to pass the legislation before they wed.

"This debate has been the soundtrack to our relationship," an emotional Wilson said to his partner, seated in parliament's public viewing area above.

"In our first speech I defined our bond by the ring that sits on both of our left hands, that they are the answer to the question we cannot ask. So there’s only one thing left to do - Ryan Patrick Bolger, will you marry me?" asked Wilson, who was formerly Australia's human rights commissioner.

Bolger nodded yes, to applause.

Both Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's Liberal-National coalition government and the main opposition Labor Party have said they aim to pass the law by Dec. 7, but any proposed amendments could stretch out that timeline.

Passage of the bill will make Australia the 26th nation to legalize same-sex marriage, a watershed for a country in which some states considered homosexual activity illegal until 1997.

"This is an issue of fundamental fairness," Turnbull said to parliament later on Monday. "A society that promotes freedom and equality under the law should accord gay men and women the right to marriage."

About 80 percent of eligible voters participated in the voluntary survey, a turnout larger than for Britain's Brexit vote and Ireland's same-sex marriage referendum.

"The message today, to every gay person in this nation, is clear," Turnbull added. "We love you, we respect you, your relationship is recognised by the Commonwealth as legitimate and honourable as anybody else's."

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Celebrations spread after Australia backs same-sex marriage

Celebrations swept across Australia Wednesday as voters emphatically endorsed same-sex marriage after more than a decade of divisive debate, and political leaders immediately began moves to enshrine the historic shift in law by Christmas.

Thousands of marriage equality supporters took to parks and squares across the vast country, hugging, dancing and singing under clouds of glitter when the results of the two-month-long postal survey were announced.

Revelers wrapped in rainbow colors swarmed the entertainment districts of Sydney, Melbourne and other cities, closing streets as the party continued late into the evening.

"This means everything, this means everything," shouted one partygoer named Chris at a huge rally in Sydney, fighting back tears and hugging his partner Victor.

"It has been fantastic. I have been with my partner for 35 years and he was so joyed up that he burst into tears," added another reveller, Gerry Boller.

Almost 62% of the 12.7 million people who participated voted "yes" to the question: "Should the law be changed to allow same-sex couples to marry?"

Just 38.4% voted "no", according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, which carried out the poll.

Irish-born Qantas Airlines chief Alan Joyce, who is openly gay and campaigned strongly for the "yes" campaign, also fought back tears as he spoke of his delight.

"I was so proud of Ireland in May 2015 when they became the first nation in the world to vote for marriage equality... But today I am even more proud of Australia, the country of my selection," he said in Sydney.

Nearly 80% of eligible voters took part in the poll, with the "yes" vote winning a majority in all of Australia's states and territories.


- 'Yes for love' -


Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, a moderate conservative who backed the "yes" camp, hailed the result of the non-binding vote and vowed to pass a bill legalizing marriage equality "before Christmas".

Australians "voted yes for fairness, yes for commitment, yes for love", Turnbull said, adding that he had already been invited to "stacks" of gay weddings once the law takes hold.

"Now it is up to us, here in the Parliament of Australia... to get on with the job the Australian people have tasked us to do and get this done, this year, before Christmas."

Within hours of the vote result, Dean Smith, a Senator from Turnbull's Liberal Party who is gay, introduced a bill that would legalize gay marriage while allowing religious institutions and clergy to refuse to celebrate same-sex unions if they conflict with their beliefs.

Hardline opponents in Turnbull's party have pressed for more extensive religious protections to allow commercial service providers to reject same-sex weddings and let parents pull their children from school programs they feel undermine heterosexual traditions.

They have support notably from Muslim and some conservative Christian communities which returned a high percentage of "no" votes in the survey.

But Turnbull rejected those calls this week and he and the opposition Labor Party are expected to back a bill based on Smith's proposal with a "conscience vote" in the two houses of parliament.

"We will have a bill that will deliver on the instructions the Australian people have given us to change the law to allow same-sex couples to marry. That is our job. It is over to us now," he said.

A survey of federal politicians by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation published Tuesday found that 72 percent of House members and 69 percent of Senators would support the change to marriage laws.

Turnbull called the postal vote in the face of opposition from hardliners who refused to back a national plebiscite on the issue.

The move was opposed by proponents of same-sex marriage, who wanted direct legislative action.

They said the lengthy vote process was both a waste of money –- it cost just under 100 million Australian dollars ($76 million) -– and exposed gay people and their families to hate speech.

"No" campaigners said they would continue defending their cause.

"In a democracy, just because you win it doesn't mean you... bulldoze forward," said Senator Eric Abetz, a prominent "no" campaigner.

"Keep in mind there are 4.8 million of our fellow Australians that actually voted no... do we say they should no longer be heard? Or do we actually ask them questions as to how can their concerns be alleviated so we can move forward as a nation?"

But the solid margin for the "yes" vote and the high turnout looks to limit the influence of "no" campaigners.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Australia 'disrupts terror plot' to bring down airplane

SYDNEY - Australian authorities said Sunday they had stopped an allegedly Islamist-inspired "terrorist plot" to bring down an airplane with an improvised explosive, after four people were arrested in raids in Sydney.

"I can report last night that there has been a major joint counter-terrorism operation to disrupt a terrorist plot to bring down an airplane," Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull told reporters.

Additional security has been put in place at all major domestic and international airports, with travellers told to arrive two hours early for screenings, he added.

Officials did not specify if the alleged plot targeted a domestic or international flight, but Sydney's Daily Telegraph reported that a local route had been the objective.

The four men, arrested in a series of raids across Sydney on Saturday, were allegedly linked to an "Islamic-inspired" plot, Australian Federal Police Commissioner Andrew Colvin said.

"In recent days, law enforcement has been become aware of information that suggested some people in Sydney were planning to commit a terrorist attack using an IED (improvised explosive device)," he told reporters.

But he added that police did not yet have "a great deal of information on the specific attack, the location, date or time", with the investigation expected to be "very long and protracted".

Turnbull said the alleged plan appeared to be "more in that category of an elaborate plot" rather than designed by a lone wolf, but added that the national terror alert level would remain at probable.

Canberra lifted the alert level in September 2014 and introduced new national security laws amid rising concerns over attacks by individuals inspired by organisations such as Islamic State.

Counter-terrorism police have also made a string of arrests since late 2014 across the nation and say they have prevented 12 terror attacks on home soil, before the latest announcement, in the past few years.

But several attacks have taken place, including a cafe siege in 2014 where two hostages were killed and the murder of a Sydney police employee in 2015 by a 15-year-old boy.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Australia to get new PM as Abbott loses out to rival Turnbull

CANBERRA - Australia will get its fifth prime minister in eight years after the ruling Liberal Party on Monday voted out Tony Abbott in favor of longtime rival Malcolm Turnbull following months of speculation and crumbling support from voters.

Turnbull, a multi-millionaire former banker and tech entrepreneur, won a secret party room vote by 54 to 44, Liberal Party whip Scott Buchholz told reporters after the meeting in Canberra.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop was elected deputy leader of the party which, with junior coalition partner the National Party, won a landslide election in 2013.

Since then, the popularity of the government and Abbott in particular has suffered from a series of perceived policy missteps, destabilizing infighting and leaks.

The opposition Labor Party has consistently led opinion polls, while Turnbull has been consistently viewed as preferred prime minister.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com