Immigration Minister, Chris Bowen is continuing to shame Australia overseas, due to his appalling behaviour in relation to the granting of a visa to senior Dutch MP, Geert Wilders.
Whilst Mr Bowen immediately granted a visa to British Islamofacsist and hate cleric Taji Mustafa, he had deliberately sat on Mr Wilders application for three weeks. Whilst Mr Mustafa had called for the overthrown of democracy and Western values, Mr Wilders, the leader of the third-largest political party in The Netherlands has simply dared to speak against Islamic fundamentalism.
When questioned over his decision to grant Mr Mustafa a visa, Mr Bowen said 'I conduct myself, in relation to the character test, in accordance with my responsibilities under the act. To do otherwise would be to open the Commonwealth to potential overturning of the decision and a potential very serious compensation case' He also defended Mr Mustafa, saying he was 'not a member of a proscribed organisation and does not have a criminal record'
The Dutch Foreign Minister Uri Rosenthal has been forced to intervene and try to assist Mr Wilders, whilst Australia has received negative attention right around the world.
Mr Bowen must stop posturing and be consistent.
Meanwhile, a petition has been set up to call on Mr Bowen to follow his own standards, and grant Mr Wilders a visa.
Well said. Another example of a bumbling government that doesn't know what they're doing. Hiring apparatchniks instead of being advised by real public servants seems to be part of the problem.
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