World

Australia’s parliament on Wednesday censured ex-prime minister Scott Morrison for secretly appointing himself to several key ministries during the Covid-19 pandemic, delivering a rare and stinging rebuke.

By a vote of 86 to 50, the parliament said that the former conservative leader’s actions “eroded public trust in Australia’s democracy” and made proper accountability impossible.

It is the first time in Australian history that a former prime minister has been formally censured by the House of Representatives.

Over two years, Morrison had himself sworn in as minister for finance, home affairs, treasury, resources, agriculture and environment — without telling the public, parliament or existing ministers.

“He owes an apology to the Australian people for the undermining of democracy,” said Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, whose centre-left party ousted Morrison in a May 2022 election.

Wednesday’s vote fell largely along party lines, with political rivals seeking to frame the debate as beyond party politics, or motivated entirely by it.

Morrison was in the chamber for much of the debate and listened largely impassively as he was denounced.

When he rose to speak, it was to issue a strident defence of his actions, and to accuse the Labor government of partisanship, “political intimidation” and trying to “impose its retribution”.

– ‘Unintentional offence’ –

“I am proud of my achievements in this place, and I am proud of my government,” he said. “I gave it everything I had.” 

Morrison did express some misgivings about keeping his appointments secret and claimed he would have told the public if asked by journalists.

“I acknowledge that the non-disclosure of arrangements has caused unintentional offence and extend an apology to those who were offended,” he said.

“I do not apologise for taking action, especially prudent redundancy action, in a national crisis in order to save lives and to save livelihoods.”

Members of Morrison’s party lined up to shake his hand as they left the chamber.

But there were isolated acts of dissent.

Morrison’s party ally Bridget Archer described her former leader’s actions as “an affront to our democratic Westminster system” and voted in support of the censure. 

“This is not a game, there are things that sit above the cut and thrust of politics.” 

More than a dozen members did not vote.

A recent inquiry by a former high court judge found Morrison’s actions had been “corrosive of trust in government” and recommended closing several loopholes that allowed the appointments to remain secret.

Morrison’s actions were ultimately found to be legal, but his use of extraordinary ministerial powers to block a major gas project is being challenged in court. 

Morrison has refused calls to resign from parliament.

Albanese has signalled that parliament will now try to change the law to make sure ministerial appointments have to be made public.

Two leaders of the far-right Oath Keepers militia, including founder Stewart Rhodes, were found guilty of sedition on Tuesday in the most high-profile case yet stemming from the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol by supporters of then-president Donald Trump.

A federal jury convicted Rhodes, 57, and Kelly Meggs, 53, leader of the militia’s Florida chapter, of the rarely pursued charge of seditious conspiracy, which carries up to 20 years in prison.

The 12-person jury acquitted three other members of the Oath Keepers — Kenneth Harrelson, Jessica Watkins and Thomas Caldwell — who faced the sedition charge, but it convicted them of lesser offenses such as obstructing an official proceeding.

Rhodes, an eyepatch-wearing former soldier and Yale law school graduate, and the four other group members were accused of plotting to keep Trump in power and overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election won by Democrat Joe Biden.

During the nearly two-week trial in Washington, prosecutors said the Oath Keepers “concocted a plan for an armed rebellion… plotting to oppose by force the government of the United States.”

Hundreds of Trump supporters have been arrested for their roles in the assault on Congress but they have faced less serious charges than those lodged against Rhodes and the other Oath Keepers.

The jury deliberated for three days before reaching a verdict in the case, which the defendants characterized as a political trial carried out by the Biden administration against supporters of Trump, who has announced plans to run for the White House again in 2024.

US Attorney General Merrick Garland named a special counsel this month to oversee the investigation into Trump’s own efforts to overturn the election result and the attack on Congress by his supporters.

The special counsel will also take over the Justice Department’s probe into a cache of classified government documents seized in an FBI raid on Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida in August.

– ‘Off-mission’ –

A not-guilty verdict on the sedition counts for all five defendants would have been a setback for the Department of Justice, which plans to try members of the Proud Boys, another right-wing extremist group, on the same charges.

The verdict was hailed by the congressional committee investigating the Capitol assault.

“Today’s convictions are a victory for the rule of law and reinforce the fact that the violence of January 6th included a deliberate attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 election and block the transfer of presidential power,” a statement from the committee’s chairs, Democratic Congressman Bennie Thompson and Republican Liz Cheney, said.

Edward Tarpley, an attorney for Rhodes, said he was “disappointed.”

“There was no evidence introduced indicating that there was a plan to attack the Capitol,” Tarpley told reporters.

During the trial, prosecutors accused the Oath Keepers of stocking weapons at a hotel near Washington and joining the crowd that stormed the Capitol in a bid to block the certification by Congress of Biden’s election victory.

Prosecutors showed videos of the attack by dozens of group members dressed in military-style combat gear.

Prosecutors also showed the jury text messages between Rhodes and his followers that called for action if Trump himself failed to act to prevent certification of Biden as the next president.

Rhodes did not personally enter the Capitol but directed his followers like a battlefield general, prosecutors said.

Rhodes took the witness stand during the trial and denied his group planned to assault the congressional complex, saying they were in Washington only to provide security at rallies.

“It was not part of our mission for that day to enter the Capitol for any reason,” Rhodes said.

Speaking in military jargon, he admitted that a number of Oath Keepers went “off-mission” and entered the building. 

He said Meggs, the Florida chapter head, was “an idiot” for taking his people inside.

“I think it was stupid to go into the Capitol. It opened the door for the political persecution of us. And that’s where we are,” Rhodes told the court.

Iranians had been hoping for a repeat of their 1998 World Cup victory over the United States but their 1-0 defeat in Qatar on Tuesday plunged Tehran into disappointed silence as they exited the tournament.

There was no replay of the street celebrations last Friday, when people danced after Iran beat Wales.

In a cultural centre in the north of the capital, a dozen families had gathered at the start of the evening to watch the game in Qatar on a big screen.

“Come on, come on,” parents and children cried, waving Iranian flags.

A US goal in the 38th minute however soon put a damper on hopes of a repeat of Iran’s 1998 win.

The match had been billed as the “Mother of all football matches” in the runup, after decades of mutual enmity between the geopolitical foes.

But watching the game, Asghar Mohammadi, a 50-year-old shopkeeper, said he was surprised by the friendly atmosphere on the pitch.

“Many said this game would be contaminated by politics, but we only saw friendly behaviour between the players on the pitch. Every time a player fell, the opponent helped him up,” he said.

“Our players fought with all their might, especially in the second half,” he added.

While it was not the World Cup final, the match still made headlines because of its symbolic and political significance to two countries which have not had diplomatic relations in more than 40 years.

“Politicians sometimes use football as a political tool, but in my opinion sport should not be politicised,” said Amir Moradian, a 45-year-old topographer.

“I wanted Iran to win the match. I was very sad about the result. This loss makes people sad, it’s natural, but we mustn’t lose hope, and think about the next tournaments,” he said.

Another spectator criticised the tactics of the national team.

“In my opinion, our players were looking for a draw, it was a bad tactic, they should have played to win, they were capable of it. We should have won against America. It was a shame.”

If Iran had drawn they would have advanced to the last 16 for the first time in their history.

Prince William and his wife Kate head to the United States this week for their first visit in eight years, and the popular couple’s inaugural trip as prince and princess of Wales.

The three-day visit to the northeastern city of Boston culminates on Friday evening with a star-studded ceremony for William’s Earthshot Prize initiative to tackle climate change.

The awards ceremony — described by royal insiders as William’s “Superbowl moment” — is now in its second year, and rewards five innovators with £1 million each ($1.2 million).

A host of stars are expected at Boston’s MGM Music Hall, including singers Billie Eilish and Annie Lennox, sisters Chloe x Halle, and actor Rami Malek.

As last year, the British naturalist and television presenter David Attenborough will contribute, alongside the actress Cate Blanchett, who is on the judging panel.

The trip is the most high-profile since 40-year-old William became heir to the throne in September, when his father succeeded queen Elizabeth II to become King Charles III.

The new monarch soon made his eldest son prince of Wales — the traditional title of heirs apparent dating back to the 13th century.

The last princess of Wales was William’s mother, Diana.

In Boston, the couple will meet the city’s mayor, Michelle Wu, and tour the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum with the former president’s daughter, Caroline.

Caroline Kennedy is currently Washington’s top envoy to Australia.

Other engagements include discussions with local officials about rising sea levels in the city on the North Atlantic coast.

They will also meet charities working with disadvantaged young people and a laboratory specialising in green technologies.

Kate, who has three children aged four to nine with William and has an interest in early years education, will visit Harvard University’s Child Development Centre.

– No Harry or Meghan –

No meeting has been announced between Prince William and his estranged younger brother Harry, 38, who lives in California with his wife Meghan, 41, and their two young children.

The two couples have been at loggerheads particularly since Harry and Meghan — also known as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex — sensationally quit the royal family in 2020.

Relations soured further after they gave a television interview to Oprah Winfrey last year and accused the royal family of racism, prompting a public denial from William.

The death of William and Harry’s grandmother failed to bring about any visible meaningful reconciliation.

The two couples made a frosty joint appearance at Windsor Castle to view floral tributes and both attended the queen’s state funeral.

Unusually though for William and Kate, who are used to their public appearances dominating headlines in the UK, they may have to deal with playing second fiddle to Harry and Meghan in the United States.

The Sussexes are more popular in the United States and on December 6 are due to receive a major humanitarian award from the Robert Kennedy foundation in New York.

Comparisons between the two couples will inevitably fuel interest in the royal soap opera even before the expected release next month of a documentary about Harry and Meghan on Netflix.

The royal family is also bracing for the release of Harry’s memoirs “Spare” on January 10 in which he promises to lift the lid on his life in Britain’s most famous institution.

William and Kate’s US visit will be seen as a more conventional approach to royal outreach.

Among the 15 Earthshot finalists are a Kenyan initiative for a cleaner-burning stove and a Dutch invention to stop maritime plastic pollution.

A pair of French and Spanish entrepreneurs is also in the running with their biodegradable seaweed packaging.

The couple made their first official visit to the United States in 2011, when they met Hollywood A-listers in California.

In 2014, they visited New York and Washington, in a trip that included a reception at the White House with the then-president Barack Obama and his deputy, Joe Biden.

French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Washington late Tuesday for a state visit hosted by President Joe Biden where hard-nosed disagreements about US-EU trade will overshadow the White House pomp and ceremony.

Due to Covid delays, this is the first formal state visit of Biden’s presidency and US officials say the choice of France for the honor reflects both deep historical ties and their intense current partnership in confronting Russia over its war in Ukraine.

Macron touched down at Joint Base Andrews, the air force facility used by Biden outside Washington.

While in the capital, the French leader will be given a full ceremonial military welcome to the White House, an Oval Office sit down with Biden and a state banquet on Thursday, where Grammy-award winning American musician Jon Batiste will perform.

Compared to Macron’s edgy first experience of a state visit as the guest of Donald Trump in 2018, this trip — concluding with a stop Friday to the once-French city of New Orleans — will be a carefully choreographed display of transatlantic friendship.

Certainly the diplomatic furor that erupted last year when Australia canceled a deal for French submarines and instead signed up for US nuclear subs is now buried.

But even with little risk of Trump-style fireworks, Macron has major grievances to air.

– Trade war? –

Top of these is tension over Biden’s signature green industry policy, the Inflation Reduction Act, or IRA, which will pump billions of dollars into climate-friendly technologies, with strong backing for American-made products. Similar effort is being put into microchip manufacturing.

Europeans fear an unfair US advantage in the sectors just as they are reeling from the economic consequences of the Ukraine war and Western attempts to end reliance on Russian energy supplies.

Talk in Europe is now increasingly on whether the bloc should respond with its own subsidies and championing of homegrown products, effectively starting a trade war.

“China favors its own products, America favors its own products. It might be time for Europe to favor its own products,” French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told France 3 radio on Sunday.

Biden was certainly in no mood to apologize, saying in a speech at a microchip factory in Michigan on Tuesday that the push for a revitalized US-based industrial base is “a game changer.”

“Companies began moving jobs overseas rather than moving product overseas,” he said. “We’re not going to be held hostage anymore.”

Another gripe in Europe is the high cost for US liquid natural gas exports — surged to try and replace canceled Russian deliveries.

Responding to accusations that the United States is effectively profiteering from the Ukraine war, a senior US administration official said this was a “false claim.”

The official also played down IRA-related tensions, saying a “very constructive set of conversations” is underway on how to prevent European companies from being shut out.

To underline the importance of the issue for Paris, Macron met with dozens of business executives ahead of his departure to Washington, urging them to keep investing in France. These included representatives from US giants Goldman Sachs and McDonald’s.

– Strategizing on China, Ukraine –

The breadth of Macron’s entourage — including the foreign, defense and finance ministers, as well as business leaders and astronauts — illustrates the importance Paris has put on the visit.

However, at the White House, a senior official said the main goal is to nurture the “personal relationship, the alliance relationship” with France — and between Biden and Macron.

That more modest sounding goal will include improving coordination on helping Ukraine to repel Russia and the even more vexing question of how to manage the rise of the Chinese superpower.

“We are not allies on the same page,” one adviser to Macron told AFP, forecasting “challenging” talks with Biden.

Despite his strong support for Kyiv, Macron’s insistence on continuing to maintain dialogue with Russian President Vladimir Putin has irked American diplomats.

The China question — with Washington pursuing a more hawkish tone and EU powers trying to find a middle ground — is unlikely to see much progress.

“Europe has since 2018 its own, unique strategy for relations with China,” tweeted French embassy spokesman Pascal Confavreux in Washington.

A senior US official said even if their approaches were “not identical,” they should be at least “speaking from a common script.”

A 42-year-old mother extradited from South Korea appeared in a New Zealand court for the first time on Wednesday, facing murder charges after the remains of her two children were found in suitcases in Auckland.

Wearing a beige jacket and black T-shirt, the woman appeared briefly at Manukau District Court, south Auckland, a day after landing in the country.

Court suppression orders bar the media from naming the woman or her deceased children. But Judge Gus Andrée Wiltens allowed reporting of the fact that she is their mother.

The suspect, who faces two counts of murder, was remanded in custody without making a plea until her next appearance at Auckland High Court on December 14.

Through an interpreter, she asked to address the judge, but her own lawyer stepped in saying: “I think it would be best if perhaps she didn’t.” 

The judge agreed and the defendant was led out of court.

The hearing took place less than 24 hours after the defendant flew into Auckland airport under police escort after being extradited from South Korea.

She was arrested by Korean police in the port city of Ulsan in September, a month after New Zealand police discovered the remains of her two children, aged between five and 10.

At the time of her arrest, the suspect repeatedly told reporters: “I didn’t do it” as she was led into a police vehicle.

The children’s bodies were found after an unsuspecting family bought the suitcases at an online auction of abandoned goods.

New Zealand police have said the bodies were likely in storage for several years, which had complicated the investigation.

Authorities have stressed that the family who found the bodies were not connected to the homicides and have been given counselling to help deal with the trauma.