Stuart Rees

The treatment of Labor MP Shaoquett Moselmane, a staunch supporter of the Chinese community and of Palestinians, and the sentencing of environmental protester Deanna ‘Violet’ Coco to fifteen months in jail and refusal of bail have been tests of principle and of courage in public life. NSW Labor leader Chris Minns has failed the test.

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Due process in the administration of justice requires respect for a defendant’s right to a fair trial, acknowledges a role for public scrutiny of court practices and insists that judges should be recused if they have a conflict of interest which would amount to bias. In the prosecution of Australian citizen Julian Assange, such principles have been trashed. (more…)

Imagining the arrival of peace with justice in Ukraine needs two caveats. In any peace negotiations, Ukrainian citizens’ judgements about the future should be a priority. (more…)

Beware privileged people who have learned to speak with confidence yet appear blind to the benefits of social class. Beware powerful people who claim that democratic governments, in the US, UK, Australia, administer justice always according to some time-honoured principle about rules of law. (more…)

When reporting on Russian atrocities, mainstream media have also been preoccupied with the supply of arms to Ukraine, with news of Finland and Sweden joining NATO and with fingers crossed forecasts of the defeat of Russia. In media minds and in academic circles, advocacy of peace finds little or no space. (more…)

A principle known for centuries by Indigenous peoples, teaches that the health of the land affects the wellbeing of people, a principle familiar to citizens of Lismore in northern NSW. After catastrophic floods submerged homes and commercial properties, one thousand citizens still live in emergency accommodation and thousands more survive in homes where walls, ceilings and windows need repair. Faced with powerlessness and uncertainty, people’s mental health is more difficult to restore than walls and windows, yet signs of love in Lismore display potential benefits for a whole country. (more…)

Across Australia, a hopeful Australian public are praising the Albanese government for showing a sense of justice in permitting the persecuted yet dignified Murugappan family to return to Biloela albeit only on bridging visas. It is rumoured that deliberations are underway to end the mind-boggling prosecution of Bernard Collaery. If that’s the case, Prime Minister Albanese could achieve a moral trifecta by asking his British counterpart to cease the incarceration of Julian Assange and allow this worthy, significant Australian citizen to walk free. It’s time. (more…)

Victor Yeimo, leader of the West Papuans’ struggles for freedom has been in prison since May 2021. The world needs to know. To argue for his interests, Australia needs to summon a touch of courage. Without persistent pressure on the Indonesian government to provide urgently needed medical treatment for Victor, he is likely to die in prison, another casualty in the histories of colonial administration. (more…)

In the grinding weeks of an Australian Federal election, something needs to happen to change the language, to prompt debate, to craft vision, and even generate excitement. That something could be the goal of peace with justice. (more…)