Watch the book launch of A Secret Australia: Revealed By WikiLeaks Exposés, essays written by 18 prominent Australians.
Click above to watch the replay of the live event.
In this new book, A Secret Australia, eighteen prominent Australians discuss what Australia has learnt about itself from WikiLeaks revelations – revelations about a secret Australia of hidden rules and loyalty to hidden agendas. Watch the book launch live here and on replay, simulcast by CN Live! with WikiLeaks lawyer Jennifer Robinson and one of the book’s editor, ABC journalist Peter Cronau.
However Australians may perceive their nation’s place in the world, WikiLeaks has shown us a startlingly different story.
This is an Australia that officials do not want us to see, where the Australian Defence Force’s ‘information operations’ are deployed to maintain public support for our foreign war contributions, where media-wide super injunctions are issued by the government to keep politicians’ and major corporations’ corruption scandals secret, where the U.S. Embassy prepares profiles of Australian politicians to fine-tune its lobbying and ensure support for the ‘right’ policies.
The revelations flowing from the releases of millions of secret and confidential official documents by WikiLeaks have helped Australians to better understand why the world is not at peace, why corruption continues to flourish, and why democracy is faltering.
This greatest ever leaking of hidden government documents in world history yields knowledge that is essential if Australia, and the rest of the world, is to grapple with the consequences of covert, unaccountable and unfettered power.
The contributors include author and former Greens Senator Scott Ludlam; former Defence Secretary Paul Barratt; lawyers Julian Burnside and Jennifer Robinson; academics Richard Tanter, Benedetta Brevini, John Keane, Suelette Dreyfus, Gerard Goggin and Clinton Fernandes, as well as writers and journalists Andrew Fowler, Quentin Dempster, Antony Loewenstein, Guy Rundle, George Gittoes, and Helen Razer, and psychologist Lissa Johnson. It is edited by Cronau and Felicity Ruby.
If Peter says “we all have opinions” about Julian Assange I wonder why. I don’t have an opinion about Julian. I have not met him. Should I have an opinion about Rupert Murdoch ? I haven’t met him either. He might be very messy in his bedroom and not make his bed. He might be terrible to his cat. Would that be important ? Should I worry about the personal hygiene of a global media mogul ? If not, why should I have an opinion about Julian Assange, publisher and journalist at Wikileaks ?
David Otness, above, writes “And yet we persist.Why?”-implying that that there is no hope whatever of opposing this kind of oppression, so why bother. Thre is too mjuch of this passive acceptance, resignation about. I can absolutely see his point,, but for as loing as we can resist in any way whatever, we should do so. Years ago, when I was much younger but already disillusioned I asked meyself, whether I saw any hope for the future of humanity and my answer was “None.” But then I told myself, “You can’t ask a flower whether it needs water and sunshine to frow; it can’t answer the question.” So we cannot but go on living as though everything were possible, even if it isn’t.
There are still things to be done in various movements, porotest moivements, ìrevealing the truth, supporting podcasts like this one, Grayzone and others.
I’m too old and weak to do much, but shouldn’t we get people organised to write to or phone members of parliamemnt and others?
Persist, persist, persist.
“What does this mean in a democracy?” (the variety and volume of illegal machinations against Julian Assange, his legal team, and other journalists subject to totalitarian enforcement of secret government actions vs its citizens.) What does this mean?
Oh come now. We are all adults. There are no illusions here. Only delusions. The train has left the station already. That means it is far past time to call this what it is. Rogue and despotic government. Totalitarianism brought by secret intelligence agencies.
And yet we persist. Why?
Jennifer and Peter, are you guys aware and if you are can you consider taking up the case of 8 million people in Indian Occupied Kashmir being held in the largest prison in the world, with India, since August 5, 2019, denying them basic human rights.There are some 50,000 Indian troops committing horrific crimes on the Kashmiri people, with mass torture, rape, murder and incarceration without trials, and the world’s press being denied access to the valley so these crimes of genocide go unreported. Youngster who come out in the streets to protest are met with pellet guns aimed at their eyes, that leave them blinded for life.
You are doing a sterling job by uncovering US & Australian crimes committed in Afghanistan; You are appealing to the conscious of the world and this appeal will not go unheard by world public opinion. That’s why I would like to appeal to you to please look into the human rights violations being committed everyday in Indian Occupied Kashmir.
Should you chose to raise the conscious of the world with regards to these daily crimes in Kashmir, we know for certain, world opinion will have heard the meek voice of the Kashmiri people.
Australia should be ashamed of itself.
I believe some remission is in order.
I said this a long time ago. New Zealand is the other part of the “puzzle”. Really.
Do you doubt that the time of change is upon us? Watch and see, but that could be hazardous cause you don’t want to be behind the curve of change do ya? Get out in front of the change if you can, and make it happen and remember this – you are not alone!
BK
Ken, Quote, “you are not alone!” Unquote. WRONG ! Been there, done that, we are most certainly alone. I once functioned as a Union President for my fellow workers, being under the impression we could achieve something and maintain our employment conditions which were fought for tooth and nail over 90 years. Initially, once elected to the position, I did have the support of the rank and file. However I quickly discovered I was in way beyond my depth. I had to formal training whatever, thanks to the Labor party destroying the Union college in Canberra by none other than that turn coat Bob Hawk, thus was not equipped to stand toe to toe with University educated industrial relations experts. In Court I found myself up against none other than Queen’s Cpuncils and when I objected to the judge, the responce was, “well Mr XXXX you got this far in the process so your not exactly uneducated in the process at all”. My objection was over ruled, and the case was proceded. Outcome was in our favor, but moneys stolen, (court ruled not stolen, but improperly obtained ??? Seriously) and that they were to be paid back. That was 20 years ago, not a cent paid back, and one of the individuals now dead, so no chance of ever obtaining justice therein. Biggest shock was to discover BOTH political parties working in unison to destroy our Union, to allow the Government to then sell off the business and invite privatisation to buy it up. We ended up going on strike, something which scared the daylights out of me, because my state had passed laws making strikes illegal without approval from Government first. I stood to loose everything as a result. But strangely, the Government never followed thru, wonder about to this very day. Anyway, the rank and file turned to water after the first week, with no funds coming in wives were displeased and started to pressure their husbands to go back to work. Within 7 days I lost the support of 90% of the membership simply because of that reason. So NO, don’t try telling me, we ‘re not alone, because my hard earned experiences tell me we most certainly are.