Australia has two agencies, one refugee in Cambodia

One refugee, two agencies, millions of dollars ... veterans suss on census ... car park blues ...

From the Crikey grapevine, the latest tips and rumours …

Your papers, please. A tipster who worked as a census collector in 2011 tells us that privacy concerns are valid, even with paper forms, relating this story about a census collector with a laissez-faire attitude to privacy:

“As I collected the forms, my job was to open the form and look at the front inside cover and record the form’s number (from my recollection, I think it was a number) to ensure all forms were accounted for. I was told that I was not to look past the inside cover or at any other other part of the form and I adhered to this instruction with absolute diligence so as not to even inadvertently view anyone’s personal information. I am personally protective of my policy and accord others the same respect.

“I returned forms a number of times to my supervisor and on one occasion she proceeded to excitedly tell me that I lived right next door to a man she used to know. She went on to explain how she had known my neighbour many years before and that how she saw he now had a child, etc, etc. She was laughing about what a coincidence it was that I lived right next door to him and how she had read all of this in his Census form. When she finally noticed the stunned look on my face, she stopped in her tracks and quickly changed the subject. Sadly, although I felt very uneasy about the whole episode, I did nothing and for years I have regretted not reporting her. Clearly, she had been reading through the forms and she was my supervisor!”

Double handling. The Australian government has changed the company contracted to support the single refugee still in Cambodia, the Phnom Penh Post reports. Connect Settlement Services has been working in Cambodia for the past month, the paper reports, continuing work done by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). IOM is still contracted in Cambodia, but the government has not detailed how Connect Settlement Services’ work is different to IOM’s. The program to send refugees to Cambodia from Nauru has cost the Australian government $55 million, but of the six refugees sent to the Asian nation, just one remains, with the others — including one Myanmarese Rohingya and four Iranians — returning to their countries of origin. The sole refugee left in Cambodia, Rashid, told reporters that he hasn’t heard of the new organisation. So that means we have two organisations, working with millions of dollars, to support the resettlement of a single refugee.

No free parking. Tasmanian Premier Will Hodgman has been forced to apologise for his Minister for Human Services (including responsibility for disability services) Jacquie Petrusma after she parked in a disability car park while visiting a primary school for a photo opportunity. The ABC reported that the car was directed to park there, but it hasn’t gone down well in the Apple Isle. Hodgman wrote on Facebook yesterday:

“It’s totally unacceptable for a Minister’s car to ever be parked in a space reserved for people with a disability — even when directed there by some one else.

“I sincerely apologise for any inconvenience or concern.”

Veterans suss on census. The NSW branch of the Returned and Services League has called for the government to avoid prosecuting people who give fake names or withhold their name and address from the census, due to concerns for the privacy of current members of the Defence Force or veterans. Acting state president of the RSL John Haines says the RSL acknowledges the importance of the census, but there are questions about the security of this data and what that could mean for members of the Defence Force.

“We should be very concerned that the census regulations require everyone resident in Australia, including those in high-security positions, both civilian and military, to submit their personal identification,” he said yesterday.

Haines told Crikey that the RSL was particularly concerned about what could happen to the information, and the possibility that it could result in a threat to their lives. “ADF members, a lot of those members have roles that move into the top secret bracket whether they are serving overseas or here in Australia, and our organisation, we are a spokesperson for the ADF, and our concern is that the wrong people could get the information in regards to the ADF and use it,” he said.

This year is the first time the census will retain people’s names and addresses for four years, storing it in a database with the other data collected in the census. Privacy advocates are concerned with the security of the information being kept, and if their details will remain anonymous.

“As an organisation whose priority is the welfare of serving Australian Defence Force members and ex-service members, our concern is their privacy may be breached if data collected by the census falls into the hands of those who may take advantage of that data,” he said.

Haines also cited the way soldiers and their families were treated during the Vietnam War as a reason for ADF personnel to be concerned about the privacy and security of their information. “We’re just worried about what might happen if the wrong people get hold of [the information].”

Yesterday the RSL said it is not calling for people to boycott the census or give false names, but the organisation wants the government to commit to extra security around the information.

“RSL members — we’re conservative, we’re obedient, we understand that the census has to take place, and we’re not advocating that people don’t fill it out.”

Fascists confused. Blair Cottrell, leader of United Patriots Front — the right-wing anti-Islam group deemed too extreme for Reclaim Australia — has posted a link on his new Facebook page (dedicated to his “philosophical” teachings) to an article about the arrest of one of the group’s members, Phillip Galea, on terrorism charges. In it, Cottrell writes “the fascist state is finally cracking down on fascists. Wait, what?”