Jump to content

horn

Forum Titans
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    56,852

  • Joined

  • Last visited

 Content Type 

Posts posted by horn

    Australian PM Scott Morrison under fire for handling of rape scandal

    in Politics and World Events

    Posted

    Australian PM Scott Morrison under fire for handling of rape scandal
    Critics have demanded an overhaul of what has been called a toxic and sexist culture in Canberra politics
    Published: 17th February 2021 03:11 PM | AFP


    Scott_Morrison_AP.jpg

    Australia Prime Minister Scott Morrison was under mounting pressure Wednesday after a former government staffer who said she was raped in parliament accused the government of revealing sensitive details of the case.

    Critics have demanded an overhaul of what has been called a toxic and sexist culture in Canberra politics, after Brittany Higgins this week alleged she was sexually assaulted by a male colleague two years ago.

    The 26-year-old has said she was treated like a "political problem" when she reported the incident in now-Defence Minister Linda Reynolds' office and the case was badly mismanaged.

    Higgins said Wednesday the government had now publicised key elements of the alleged attack that had not been shared with her previously.

    "The continued victim-blaming rhetoric by the prime minister is personally very distressing to me and countless other survivors," she said in a statement to local media.

    "The government has questions to answer for their own conduct."

    The prime minister initially defended his government's approach to the case before apologising, but on Wednesday faced further questions about what he knew and when.

    Morrison has claimed he knew nothing of the allegation until five days ago. 

    "I'm not happy about the fact that it was not brought to my attention, and I can assure you people know that," Morrison told reporters in Canberra. 

    But it has emerged that staffer who handled Higgins' initial complaint now works in Morrison's office.

    And Higgins has told local media that a "fixer" for Morrison called her to "check in" late last year when other women accused two male ministers of sexism and bullying.

    Former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull -- also a member of the conservative Liberal Party -- declared it "inconceivable" that the case was not discussed at high levels.

    "I find it incredible. That's to say very, very, very hard to believe, that the Prime Minister's office would not have been aware of that incident as soon as it occurred," he told public broadcaster ABC.

    "I mean, if they weren't, it was a complete failure of the system."

    The opposition Labor party is ratcheting up the pressure on the government, suggesting Reynolds should resign for her failings.

    "If I was the prime minister and these events had occurred and a minister in my cabinet had kept any information from me or my office, then they wouldn't be still maintaining that position," leader Anthony Albanese told Sky News.

    On Tuesday Morrison announced two female government officials would lead reviews into the sexual assault complaints process and workplace culture in the parliament.

    But critics believe that work needs to be carried out at arm's length from the government.

    Women lawmakers from minor parties on Wednesday wrote to Morrison demanding an "urgent external review" of current policies and the establishment of an independent body to oversee future workplace complaints, which are currently handled by the Finance Department.

    "We think it's really important that there be for an independent pathway for people who have experienced (this) -- and we know there's been many similar situations to Brittany," MP Rebekha Sharkie said.

    Australia's parliament has been repeatedly criticised for a "toxic" workplace culture that has allegedly spawned persistent bullying, harassment and sexual misconduct against women. 

    The ruling coalition has also been accused of having a "woman problem", with a spate of high-profile female politicians quitting parliament ahead of the 2019 election and several citing bullying as a factor. 

    In response, Morrison boosted the number of women in cabinet and has said other steps were taken to improve the parliamentary workplace. 

    Would you pay thousands to look like THIS...

    in Politics and World Events

    Posted

    7 hours ago, jonski43 said:

    So with royalties in the toilet, where does a relatively unknown rapper get $24 million from to stick a pink diamond to his forehead? Even over four years that's still six million a year to find.

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9220821/Rapper-Lil-Uzi-Vert-gets-11-karat-pink-diamond-worth-upwards-24million-pierced-FOREHEAD.html

     

    38850116-0-image-a-3_1612388018526.jpg

    He will be gunned down very soon if that diamond is real.

    *FLUSHED* Dictator Trump / US politics thread 🚽

    in Politics and World Events

    Posted

    :1251: 

    Trump meets with McCarthy, agrees to help Republicans take back the House
    29 Jan 2021 07:14AM | Steve Holland

    WASHINGTON: Former President Donald Trump had a fence-mending meeting with US House of Representatives Republican leader Kevin McCarthy on Thursday (Jan 28) in which Trump promised to help the party take back the chamber in 2022 congressional elections.

    The meeting came three weeks after McCarthy enraged Trump by saying the then-outgoing president bore responsibility for the deadly Jan 6 riot at the US Capitol by Trump supporters.

    Trump and McCarthy met at the former president's Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, where Trump now lives since leaving the White House on Jan 20 under a cloud of controversy.

    Trump had privately vented about McCarthy to his advisers after the California Republican said Trump was responsible for the Capitol siege in which five people died, a source familiar with the situation said. McCarthy later backtracked, saying he did not believe Trump had provoked the assault. :rolleyes: 

    Trump faces a US Senate trial next month after the House impeached him on Jan 13 on a charge of inciting insurrection stemming from his incendiary speech to supporters before they stormed the Capitol. He has falsely claimed that the Nov 3 election he lost to Democrat Joe Biden was "rigged".

    Advisers say Trump has talked recently about forming an alternative to the Republican Party, the Patriot Party, which could have disastrous effects for Republicans in elections to come if it were to happen.

    But a statement issued by Trump's "Save America PAC" about the Trump-McCarthy meeting suggested Trump had set aside for now the idea of forming a new party. It said they focused on the goal of Republicans taking control of the House in the 2022 elections.

    "President Trump has agreed to work with Leader McCarthy on helping the Republican Party to become a majority in the House," Save America said in a statement.

    It added that the meeting "was a very good and cordial one".

    Republicans picked up House seats in last November's election, reducing Democrats' majority in the chamber to a 221-211 margin.

    McCarthy said in a statement that Trump had committed to electing Republicans in the House and Senate in 2022 and criticised Democrats for "impeaching a president who is now a private citizen".

    “A united conservative movement will strengthen the bonds of our citizens and uphold the freedoms our country was founded on," he said.

    https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-mccarthy-idUSKBN29X2TS

    Would you pay thousands to look like THIS...

    in Politics and World Events

    Posted

    Just now, horn said:

    She said: 'I was being very discreet coming to Thailand as I didn't tell anyone. I am in a Bangkok plastic surgery hospital where I'll spend two weeks in quarantine, and then I'll have the surgery. 

    'I'm going to be staying in Thailand nearly two months. I've literally just arrived.' 

    She added: 'I can't reveal what the surgery is yet, but it's a life-changing one.'  

    I wonder what kind of surgery? :1251: 

    tenor.gif

×
×
  • Create New...