Abbott introduces draconian policy to Australian Public Service

[yibbida]

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/co...itical-web-posts/story-fnii5s3y-1226875635588

PUBLIC servants will be urged to dob in colleagues posting political criticism of the Abbott government on social media, even if the comments are anonymous, under new Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet guidelines.

The sweeping new rules will even cover public servants posting political comments anonymously, including mummy bloggers on parenting websites, if a colleague knew their online identity.

The new policy clearly states it covers the use of social media in an official and unofficial capacity, whether for professional or personal use. If public servants are found to have breached the Australian Public Service Code of Conduct they could be sacked. Colleagues will also be encouraged to dob in each other.

Apart from the glaring obvious restriction of free speech, this seems to be a direct contradiction of http://www.oaic.gov.au/privacy/privacy-act/australian-privacy-principles

 

[Pessimistic]

You have a right to criticize minorities, except liberal politicians

 

[sherb]

I wonder what George thinks of this?

People have the right to be bigots but some don't have the right to criticize the government?

 

[yibbida]

http://theaimn.com/2014/04/04/the-c...ism-and-how-we-might-note-its-presence-today/

1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism: Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.

2. Disdain for the recognition of human rights: because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of “need.” The people tend to look the other way or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarcerationsof prisoners, etc.

3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause: the people are rallied into a unifying Patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial, ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.

4. Supremacy of the Military: Even when there are widespread domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service is glamourised.

5. Rampant Sexism: the governments of fascist nations tend be almost exclusively male dominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Divorce, abortion and homosexuality are suppressed and the state is represented as the ultimate guardian of the family institution.

6. Controlled Mass Media: sometimes the media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.

7. Obsession with National Security: fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.

8. Religion and Government are Intertwined: governments in fascist nations tend to use the most common religion in the nation as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed to the government’s policies or actions.

9. Corporate Power is Protected: the industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite.

10. Labour Power is Suppressed: because the organising power of labour is the only real threat to a fascist government, labour unions are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed.

11. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts: fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility to higher education, and academia. It is not uncommon for professors and other academics to be censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts and letters is openly attacked.

12. Obsession with Crime and Punishment: under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses and even forego civil liberties in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.

13. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption: fascist regimes almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government positions and use governmental power and authority to protect their friends from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for national resources and even treasures to be appropriated or even outright stolen by government leaders.

14. Fraudulent Elections: sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassination of opposition candidates, use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and manipulation of the media. Fascist nations also typically use their judiciaries to manipulate or control elections.

In relation to Australia we can immediately rule out 1 (although even here there is the false mantra that refugees are illegal) 11, 13, and 14. And with 4, 6, and 8 there are identifiable elements but not the whole.

But the rest 2, 3, 5, 7, 9, 10, and 12, half, are certainly present in the current federal government rhetoric and behaviour. And if you add elements of 4, 6 and 8, there is a strong shift to the right with a sense of an essence of fascism pervading.

In the current federal government there is:
- a complete disdain for human rights (treatment of indigenous communities, gay people, people who need welfare support payments, disability pensioners, refugees);
- they have manipulated the population by identifying an enemy and scapegoats (“terrorists”, Muslims, refugees);
- the military is not supreme but it is being utilised for civilian purposes, therefore it has been elevated (customs and border control, the indigenous intervention); there is sexism (as demonstrated by Abbott, Pyne and Bernadi among others), and to add – Umberto Eco writes that fascism thrives on creating fear over difference;
- there is a sense of control by cronyism with media, and there is censorship in regard to the refugees coming by boat;
- there is an obsession (pathological) with national security;
- religion is not intertwined but members of the government use their religious affiliation as a bargaining point and they use religious rhetoric to push agendas (Bernadi on the traditional family – whatever that was or is);
- corporate power is definitely protected, even exclusively with environmental considerations, workers rights, and community needs overlooked;
- the corollary is that labour power is suppressed by legislative means;
- there is an unmitigated obsession with crime and punishment (this would be more true of State rather than Federal government but it is present in both).

 

[Pessimistic]

You have a duty to dob in other members of the public service, but not the public service as a whle, especially politicians ?

Perhaps public servants need to be told exactly which other public servants are exempt. Spin doctors are public servants, staffers are public servants

Unworkable policy as usual

 

[noddy]

The more i see of Abbots style of governing the more similarities i see of him with Putin.

 

[DivideandMultiply]

I keep saying they have fascist aspirations and they keep proving me correct.

Should I feel vindicated or vaguely concerned?

Can we please at least now drop the pretense they are a conservative government.

 

[yibbida]

I keep saying they have fascist aspirations and they keep proving me correct.

Should I feel vindicated or vaguely concerned?

Can we please at least now drop the pretense they are a conservative government.

Would you not consider them socially conservative?

 

[DivideandMultiply]

Would you not consider them socially conservative?

Probably not. The PPL, enforced curriculum changes, position on Visa loopholes (to access cheap foreign labor) and direct action aren't really socially conservative policies.

Their approach to many social issues is more in line with a soft form of fascism, or proto fascist than genuinely conservative. Traditional conservatives draw a strong line of demarcation between state and personal life, even if they think traditional values have a part to play.

 

[Gough]

Regardless of what your job is, if you're stupid enough to hang s**t on your boss in social media, you've got to expect someone might ask you to come in and explain yourself. Mountain out of a molehill this one for mine.

 

[DivideandMultiply]

Regardless of what your job is, if you're stupid enough to hang s**t on your boss in social media, you've got to expect someone might ask you to come in and explain yourself. Mountain out of a molehill this one for mine.

This includes anonymous criticism. People are being asked to dob in others, who post critical (not hanging s**t) comments be that of politicians or policy.

Whatever happened to the right to free speech? Public servants are still voters.

Also, technically they are public servants (employees of the wider public), not employees of the primeminister.

 

[Gough]

This includes anonymous criticism.

Also, technically they are public servants, not employees of the primeminister.

We'll see how it goes I guess, don't s**t can your boos on social media would be my advice, if there is something that you really think is of importance you leak. My old dear was in the FSU, South Australian branch and she said this sort of thing was becoming more and more of an issue.

 

[DivideandMultiply]

We'll see how it goes I guess, don't s**t can your boos on social media would be my advice, if there is something that you really think is of importance you leak. My old dear was in the FSU, South Australian branch and she said this sort of thing was becoming more and more of an issue.

Their boss is the public.

This is not aimed at s**t canning, but all criticism, both positive and negative. Being part of the public service, which represent a huge number of people in diverse areas, from health, welfare to education, should not recluse people from political discussion.

Not only is this aimed at critique of Abbott, but critique of the government in general. Heck even front benchers engage in criticism of policy or other members, very publicly on occasion. Why exclude a significant proportion of the population, from open political discussion. Likewise, they aren't just being silenced, but asked to dob in others.

As revolting and anti democratic an action as I have seen, post anti terror legislation.

 

[Pessimistic]

In the victorian ps its better to be anonymous, but youre not allowed to use your position to add gravitas to your argument, ie inside knowledge

 

[Borry]

Bunch of Syds

 

[Lester Burnham]

Are we talking about the changes introduced under Labour in July last year? Or is this something else? Has anyone got a real source?

Changes to the Australian Public Service Code of Conduct will also extend bosses' power to punish staff for off-the-job misbehaviour, including conduct on Twitter and Facebook.​

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/nat...ervice-code-20130515-2jn4b.html#ixzz2y9HIlHlz

 

[Smiling Buddha]

The problem here isn't that it intrudes on 'free speech' (because it doesn't).

The problem here is that it is now government policy for public servants to spy on one another to ensure no whistleblowers.

Which is much, much worse.

The other issue is that an ideological hack who made his name as part of a pro-big business lobby group is now on the public purse for a reported $300k per annum - and is championing this change.

If you still vote for one of the major parties, you deserve what is coming. Your children, on the other hand, do not.

 

[Admiral Byng]

So what about public servants that post on the internet and social media praising the government - do they get sacked too - in the interests of fairness and balance? What happens when there is a change of government - do all of them posting positive things about the previous government switch sides, or do they resign on mass?

 

[yibbida]

Are we talking about the changes introduced under Labour in July last year? Or is this something else? Has anyone got a real source?

Changes to the Australian Public Service Code of Conduct will also extend bosses' power to punish staff for off-the-job misbehaviour, including conduct on Twitter and Facebook.​

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/nat...ervice-code-20130515-2jn4b.html#ixzz2y9HIlHlz

This is what the former government introduced:

http://m.theage.com.au/comment/new-whistleblower-bill-exposes-old-inadequacy-20130625-2ov2j.html

The occasion is historic and meaningfully symbolic (as opposed to merely symbolic). It is historic because if it is passed by the Senate before the Parliament rises, it will be the first time the Commonwealth public service has comprehensive whistleblower protection laws. It is meaningfully symbolic because as a result of the amendments that were made, the law is now properly described as a whistleblower protection law, as opposed to a whistleblower discouragement law.

 

[Lester Burnham]

This is what the former government introduced:

http://m.theage.com.au/comment/new-whistleblower-bill-exposes-old-inadequacy-20130625-2ov2j.html

AFAIK there has been no changes to the Public Service Code of Conduct since then.

 

[romeoh]

Don't really mind some regulation of social media, which can get seriously nasty in a most unaccountable way. Do take issue with the 'dobbing in' aspect as that encourages unsavoury attitudes and fosters divisiveness.

 

[yibbida]

AFAIK there has been no changes to the Public Service Code of Conduct since then.

Why would uncle Rupert print such "lies" then?

 

[clogged]

Their boss is the public.

This is not true.

 

[Lester Burnham]

Why would uncle Rupert print such "lies" then?

Because it sells newspapers?

 

[noddy]

Unfortunately the majority of the population just flip through any good news stories straight to the gory bits & the more bullshit in them the more they enjoy them, usually before before breakfast.