david96

July 10, 2005

Trafficking into Australia

The number of people trafficked into Australia is unknown. A recent parliamentary inquiry into sexual servitude in Australia was given varying estimates of the number of trafficked women, ranging from 300 to 1000 each year.

The inquiry found that most of the women trafficked into Australia are recruited from South East Asia and China for the sex industry. According to the inquiry report, traffickers facilitate the women's entry to Australia by a range of fraudulent means, including providing visas (usually student or holiday visas), false passports and funds. The women are then sent to brothels around the country where their movements are usually restricted. It is not unknown for women to be forced to repay debts of up to $40 000.

July 9, 2005

Sex trafficking under the microscope

July 10, 2005

The Sun-Herald

Sex industry figures and brothel workers have been summonsed in an Australian Crime Commission investigation into sex slave trafficking.

The ACC has called up 44 people in NSW, including brothel and karaoke employees, suspect migration agents and women believed to have been trafficked.

Six search warrants have been issued in four states and investigators have seized large amounts of documentation believed to be records relating to organised trafficking operations bringing women to Australia for prostitution.

Eight further notices requiring the handover of more documents have also been served.

ACC chief executive officer Alastair Milroy said more hearings would be held in Canberra and the Northern Territory.

Mr Milroy said the syndicates might now be shifting their operations to other crimes. "I think a lot of the attention ... has raised the level of awareness in the community," he said.

"Those who are involved and are affected by this, as all criminal groups are when you pay them attention, step back and realise this is too difficult and that there are easier ways of making money."

Intelligence indicates that organised crime groups involved in drug trafficking, credit card and identity fraud may also be involved in people trafficking for sexual servitude.

The ACC is to produce a report for its board in September.

Sydney has been identified as the most significant entry point for women being trafficked into Australia, and NSW and Victoria remain the states where most trafficked women have been found and where most of the syndicates operate.

South Korea, Thailand and China were the main source countries, while the cases of most concern involved Thai women.

Although the ACC found the prevalence of Thai women in the sex industry had fallen, there had been a reported increase in the number of South Korean sex workers in Australia.

May 27, 2005

This is a good link for anyone wanting to know information about drug smuggling

involving airlines and baggage/cargo internationally.

http://www.espania.com/aspa/bibliot/secur.htm

May 27, 2005

"The law in NSW and every other Australian jurisdiction is absolutely identical to that in Indonesia respecting the 'onus of proof' in drug importation cases. Where a defendant is found to be in possession of drugs (whether heroin, cocaine, or marijuana) on entering this country, the normal 'burden of proof' (ie: 'innocent until proven guilty') is reversed. This means that in Australia, just as in Indonesia, it is the responsibility of THE ACCUSED to prove that they were not 'knowingly concerned' in the importation of the drugs. They do not, however, have to prove this 'beyond reasonable doubt', but only 'on the BALANCE of the evidence'. (This unusual reversal of 'the burden of proof' also applies in certain tax cases.) It may be unfair - but that does not alter the fact that the law in this respect is the same in Australia as it is in Indonesia. People also seem to lose sight of the fact that anyone found in possession of a traffickable quantity of drugs upon entering ANY country, must expect to have to clear themselves at law... normally before a court. And then it will be up to the court to determine whether the accused is innocent or guilty.

May 27, 2005

1 SLCs bag was virtually made for the job of carrying the package.

It could have been placed in her bag by someone she trusted.

It would have been removed by others at their destination.

2 Who carried the bag to the check-in counter at Brisbane?

3 She was travelling with three other companions, not alone.

4 The marijuana was in a sealed vacuum packed plastic pack ( 4.1kgs).

5 Security screening on outbound baggage is for dangerous goods.

6 You are held responsible for what is in your baggage.

7 Did she pack her baggage herself?

8 The bag was not locked /secured at check-in.

9 When apprehended at Denpasar by customs she used this as a defence as to why

the marijuana was in her bag.

10 She was an experienced traveller, and had visited Bali several times before.

11 She was apprehended as a courier smuggling a class A drug between Australia and

Indonesia at Denpasar.

12 She checked in late at Brisbane at 0533hrs, the aircraft departed for Sydney at

0600hrs on 08/10/2004.was there any reason for this late check-in?

13 All of the baggage was checked though to Denpasar and would have the destination

airport code on the baggage label.The code for Denpasar is DPS.

14 Why was all the baggage checked in under her name?

15 She may not have realised that she had been detected by customs and then tried to

bluff her way though but she was already under surveillance once the baggage had

been claimed at the carousel.If she was carrying the bag herself why did she not

notice the extra weight?

May 18, 2005

Carry ID proof at all times, lawyer says

May 18, 2005 - 5:24PM

The lawyer for a Chinese-born Australian wrongly held in a detention centre has warned overseas-born Australians to carry proof of their citizenship at all times.

Sydney solicitor Nick McNally said his client, whom he identified only as "Howard", was held for three days at Sydney's Villawood detention centre in 2002 despite showing immigration officials a valid driver's licence.

The man's girlfriend and three-year-old son were also held for 48 hours at the centre.

The case follows the wrongful deportation to the Philippines of Australian woman Vivian Alvarez, who says she was kicked out of the country after she was unable to prove her citizenship.

Mr McNally, who has filed a civil lawsuit, said Howard showed the officials his driver's licence, Medicare card and proof of employment but did not have his passport on him at the time.

He was freed only after a lawyer took his passport to the immigration department.

Mr McNally issued a warning to overseas-born Australians.

"If you're not obviously not someone from overseas you need to carry conclusive proof of your citizenship status at all times," he told ABC Radio.

"Howard was carrying his driver's licence which was not regarded as good enough and if you need some stronger proof of your identity the next thing in line is a passport."

Mr McNally said legal action was the only option available after his client's rights were infringed.

"At the end of the day there are fairly limited ways of keeping the government accountable.

"How does one really hold the authorities accountable if your rights are infringed other then to bring it to the courts.

Mr McNally said Howard's girlfriend from China, who had overstayed her visa, was later deported.

He said he would not object if Howard's case was investigated under by the inquiry into immigration bungles, which is looking at the Alvarez case and that of Cornelia Rau.

Ms Rau, a German-born Australian resident who has schizophrenia, was mistakenly detained as an illegal immigrant for 10 months.

April 3, 2005

How many travellers do not lock their baggage when travelling? Quite a number do not. An Australian citizen is on trial in Indonesia for smuggling 4.1 kgs of ganja,she claims that it was placed in her bag by baggage handlers at Brisbane Airport. As yet there is no proof of this.But travellers should be warned to lock and secure their baggage and make sure they know what they are carrying when going through customs. It could happen to anyone.

March 2, 2005

How does one copy and paste an image file into a post? Control + C and Control +V does not work but is OK for text.

February 26, 2005

Ref. AS/NZS3000:2000 Wiring Rules Section 5 Earthing arrangements and earthing conductors.If the TT system is used it is essential that RCDs or RCD/MCBs are installed on all final circuits.RCDs must disconnect the supply in less than 300ms.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

thats the rules as they apply here in Oz and nz but in reality Los has no rules

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Quite correct I was looking at a standard reference as a guide. Thailand has been influenced by Japanese and US wiring codes in the past but chose to adopt the european 220/380/50Hz system. The US does not have the same attitude to electrical safetyas in UK and Aust/NZ. For all practical purposes earthing does not exist in residential electrical instalations in Thailand.

February 26, 2005

Ref. AS/NZS3000:2000 Wiring Rules Section 5 Earthing arrangements and earthing conductors.If the TT system is used it is essential that RCDs or RCD/MCBs are installed on all final circuits.RCDs must disconnect the supply in less than 300ms.

February 19, 2005

Hi to all !
I am thinking of moving to Thailand , setting up a Thai company ( with 51% Thai ownership ) and purchasing a house and 2 condos . If I purchase the house , I believe I can not own the land . If this is the case , what are the chances of me losing my house , even if I " own " it ?

I mean can the 51% shareholders claim a share ? Has this ever happened ?

Or if the lease runs out , must I sell it within a year ?

Thanks for any replies !

David .

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Imay have interpreted the posts incorrectly but how can one control a company with only 49% ownership?

February 14, 2005

Cost of living in Thailand a good rule of thumb would be one third of the cost of living in Australia. Based on 25THB to the AUD.It all depends on your individual lifestyle.

December 25, 2004

It would be interesting to know how many visas are issued per year for thailand for

1 O-marriage 2 O- retirement 3 B work. Tourist and other excluded.Also the number by nationality.

June 26, 2004

1000 sex slaves enter each year

By Investigations editor Natalie O'Brien, Elisabeth Wynhausen and Elizabeth Colman

June 25, 2004

AUSTRALIA'S border protection policy has been sidestepped by sex-slave traders using bogus documents to bring up to 1000 women and girls a year into the country.

Student and holiday visas, as well as false passports, are some of the tricks used by sex-slave traders to fool immigration officials, according to a wideranging inquiry by the Australian Crime Commission's parliamentary watchdog into the trafficking of women for prostitution.

The parliamentary joint committee inquiry has recommended the crime commission, the nation's peak crime-fighting body, concentrate on investigating how the traffickers were "able to circumvent Australian immigration barriers through visa fraud".

The inquiry was established last June after months of investigations by The Australian revealed widespread rackets involving the trafficking, exploitation and abuse of women and girls as sex slaves.

Its report, tabled in federal parliament yesterday, confirmed what the federal Government initially tried to deny -- that the problem was widespread and most sex slaves were deported by the Immigration Department before their stories could be told.

Kathleen Maltzahn from Project Respect, an anti-trafficking group, welcomed the report and its recommendations, saying it acknowledged "what we've been saying for years".

"They criticise the frustrating institutional myopia that happens because none of the departments communicate adequately," she said.

Committee inquiry chairman Bruce Baird yesterday revealed how he had been "disturbed" by the graphic accounts sex slaves gave the inquiry.

"We met a number of women in Sydney who had been trafficked and who did not know the role they would be carrying out," he said.

"They had been devastated. As one of the women said, 'I felt so dirty after what happened'."

The deputy chairman, Labor's Bob Sercombe, said the women were not given enough support. But he said the Government had changed its attitude in the past year -- mostly because of the investigations by The Australian.

"We are seeing a change of heart -- these women are being seen as victims, not as criminals," Mr Sercombe said.

Federal Justice Minister Chris Ellison last night pledged the Government would ratify the UN Protocol To Prevent Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons. He agreed the women should be given more benefits, and said the Government would study the committee's other recommendations.

.

June 13, 2004

ANZ, Westpac, National and CBA transfer by TT direct to Thai banks.

Citibank and HSBC transfer to their Thai branch and then onward to your THAI bank. They then charge you an additional fee of 1000THB (HSBC) which is deducted from the amount you are sending.

Hope this is of some assistance.

http://www.westpac.com.au/internet/publish...erseas+payments

June 7, 2004

I have recently been refused boarding on a flight from London to Bangkok because I had a one way ticket. It never occured to me to get a return as I have lived in Thailand 9 years and have a wife and child here. I usually get returns but on this trip back to UK I went one way and sorted a ticket back from there. I have heard of back packers buying one ways and getting their onward ticket in Bangkok but it seems maybe I was just unlucky. The only way I was allowed to get on the plane was to buy an onward ticket immediately showing I was leaving Thailand within 30 days. So I had to get a ticket costing 50 pounds to KL. My young son who was travelling with me was OK as he had a Thai passport. This whole fiasco took 2 and a half hours and we had to srint to the plane to just make it.
Has anyone else had a experience like this when travelling on a one way ticket into Bangkok?

All airlines now require international passengers to have a return or onward ticket.

Source-----FlightCentre ( Australia ) 07/06/2004. I asked this question while booking a flight with Cathay Pacific through Hong kong to Bangkok.

June 5, 2004

People who fail to notify authorities when their passport is lost or stolen may face a $60 penalty, while those who repeatedly lose the document would be issued with restricted passports under proposals being considered by the Federal Government.

The Department of Foreign Affairs is pushing the hardline action to try to reduce the number of missing passports.

Passports Branch assistant secretary Bob Nash said 23,289 passports were lost in 2002-03 and a further 9190 stolen.

Under the proposals before the Government, people who lose two or more passports would be issued with a replacement document that was valid for just one year instead of 10 years. But they would still be charged the full price of $148.

The Government is also looking at imposing a surcharge of $50 to $60 on people applying for a new passport who do not notify authorities within one month that their old one has been lost or stolen.

Foreign Affairs was embarrassed by an Auditor-General's report last year that revealed 2079 passports disappeared in 2001-02 after being posted to applicants by the Government.

Mr Nash said the number of passports that were lost in the mail last year had been reduced by 85 per cent after a decision that they would only be sent by registered mail but he conceded that some still went missing. He said one option was to make applicants pick up the document from the post office.

An Australia Post spokesman said the "vast majority" of lost passports were found but "with a few it becomes a mystery what happened to them". Australia Post said it did not believe it was at fault.

The passport crackdown comes as the Government is investigating how Saleh Jamal, who was arrested last weekend in Lebanon on terrorist charges, was able to leave Australia despite being on bail over a shooting at a Sydney police station. It is believed Jamal fled Australia using a genuine passport belonging to someone else.

Mr Nash declined to speak about that case but said there was a growing problem of "impostors" using legitimate passports. "It happens when somebody who happens to look a bit like the bearer, simply assumes that identity. They don't do anything to the document and this is happening in increasing numbers," he said.

Mr Nash said new technology that compares a photo taken at the place of departure with the image in the passport would overcome the problem.