PHONE TAPPING

[newstart2380]

Should Tony Abbott apologise for the Labor parties phone tapping when Rudd was PM ?

Or should KRudd stand up and apologise for what happened under his leadership ?

Aparently most countries participate in phone tapping and if the Indonesian government is upset and want to take it furtther then withdraw tthe aid Australa gives Indonesia and encourage people to stop holidaying there, that would give them something to think about. Typical bluff tactics from the Indonesians. I am not condoning the practise but they are getting a bit to precious over the whole thing.

[newstart2380]

Sorry, can't agree, I think KRudd would have had another knee jerk reaction and made a monumental mess up of the problem. Even bill shorten agrees the PM is doing it right

[newstart2380]

We do not live in a perfect world and all governments practise phone tapping even the Indonesians, their egos are bruised and they think Australia should apologise but they don't think they have to for phone tapping in the past. Very narrow minded thinking and apparently many Australians were asked in Bali today what they think and the major response was " cut the aid if they want to get stroppy over this " Indonesians in cafés were asked and they are worried about tourism because Australia has issued a travel advisory against Indonesia. They are very good at the blame game. We should not bow down to their whims and our government should stand firm. If we apologise now we will be seen as weak.

[the_great_she_elephant]

We do it, they do it, everyone does it. Some are better at it than others, some have more resources at their disposal. Pretending outrage when it happens to you is called grandstanding, dealing with the grandstanding is called diplomacy, dealing with it competently is called statesmanship.

[newstart2380]

We do not live in a perfect world and all governments practise phone tapping even the Indonesians, their egos are bruised and they think Australia should apologise but they don't think they have to for phone tapping in the past. Very narrow minded thinking and apparently many Australians were asked in Bali today what they think and the major response was " cut the aid if they want to get stroppy over this " Indonesians in cafés were asked and they are worried about tourism because Australia has issued a travel advisory against Indonesia. They are very good at the blame game. We should not bow down to their threats and our government should stand firm. If we apologise now we will be seen as weak.

[the_great_she_elephant]

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@the_great_she_elephant wrote:
We do it, they do it, everyone does it. Some are better at it than others, some have more resources at their disposal. Pretending outrage when it happens to you is called grandstanding, dealing with the grandstanding is called diplomacy, dealing with it competently is called statesmanship.

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And this is definitely NOT an example of either statesmanship or diplomacy:

 Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott was urged to distance himself Thursday from a Liberal party adviser who described the Indonesian foreign minister as resembling “a 1970s Filipino porn star.”

Campaign strategist Mark Textor made the derogatory comment on Twitter as ties between the two countries plunged to their lowest point in years after a series of spying allegations.

“Apology demanded from Australia by a bloke who looks like a 1970′s Pilipino [sic] porn star and has ethics to match,” said the tweet, which has since been deleted.

http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/abbott-adviser-compares-indonesian-foreign-minister-to-70s-porn-...

[red_wolfey]

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@the_great_she_elephant wrote:

---

@the_great_she_elephant wrote:
We do it, they do it, everyone does it. Some are better at it than others, some have more resources at their disposal. Pretending outrage when it happens to you is called grandstanding, dealing with the grandstanding is called diplomacy, dealing with it competently is called statesmanship.

---

And this is definitely NOT an example of either statesmanship or diplomacy:

 Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott was urged to distance himself Thursday from a Liberal party adviser who described the Indonesian foreign minister as resembling “a 1970s Filipino porn star.”

Campaign strategist Mark Textor made the derogatory comment on Twitter as ties between the two countries plunged to their lowest point in years after a series of spying allegations.

“Apology demanded from Australia by a bloke who looks like a 1970′s Pilipino [sic] porn star and has ethics to match,” said the tweet, which has since been deleted.

http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/abbott-adviser-compares-indonesian-foreign-minister-to-70s-porn-...

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^^^^^^^^^

class act all the way .....great diplomatic skills

He has now apologised on twitter after being joked at  about viewing phillipino porn.

[nevillesdaughter]

Is it only me Crikey, or is it all sounding a little "Spy Vs Spy" from the old Mad magazines, or maybe Colonel Flagg  from MASH?

I don't really think anyone has much plausable deniability in the spy game.

Marina.

[polksaladallie]

many Australians were asked in Bali today what they think

Now there's a true font of knowledge and wisdom, Australians in Bali, let's consult them.    

[red_wolfey]

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@polksaladallie wrote:

many Australians were asked in Bali today what they think

Now there's a true font of knowledge and wisdom, Australians in Bali, let's consult them.    

---

hahahaha

[izabsmiling]

Perhaps he should have worked the past of both Countries into  public comments (in a diplomatic way) 

I need to c&p the whole article 

Contrasting Reactions to Spying Charges: Australia 2004, Indonesia 2013

by Sunny Peter,20th Nov 2013

Indonesian spies had tapped phone calls of Australian politicians and military officials during the 1999 East Timor crisis and also made unsuccessful attempts to enlist Australian officials as double agents. This was revealed in 2004 by a then retired

Indonesian spy General Abdullah Mahmud Hendropriyono. What makes this old story relevant now, according to NewsCorp Australia is the response of the Australian Prime Minister then, John Howard who refused to comment of the scandal and affirmed that Australia's relations with Indonesia remained "very strong."

As the diplomatic war of words between Indonesia and Australia surges, NewsCorp Australia reveals how Mr Howard reacted to revelations made by the Indonesian spymaster.

"Indonesia's former spymaster openly boasted about spying on Australian politicians and officials and said that Australia would be "silly" if it didn't do the same thing," wrote Ian McPhedran in NewsCorp Australia publication The Australian on Wednesday.

"I am not going to talk about any aspect (of) something like that,'' was Mr Howard's response at that time.

"I neither confirm nor deny stories about those sorts of security things,'' the then Australian prime minister had said.

In contrast, Indonesia has gone public with its anger and demanded an explanation and apology from Australia.

In a volley of angry tweets on Tuesday, Indonesia President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono decried as deplorable "the statement of Australian Prime Minister who underestimates the wiretapping of Indonesia, without sense of guilt."

Reacting to the news of the spying, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott had said he regretted the embarrassment that the spying reports had caused President Yudhoyono, but refused to give an explanation or apology.

"Australia has deep respect for Indonesia, for its government and for its people," he said.

Indonesia's Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa, meanwhile on Tuesday said in response to Mr Abbott's comments that Australia and not Indonesia should be embarrassed following the disclosure.

"I don't get it. Why would the President of Indonesia be embarrassed?" Mr Marty said in an exclusive interview with Channel News Asia.

"I believe the embarrassment should belong to the government of Australia. They are the ones ... the intelligence community in Australia ... who have committed this unacceptable practice," the Indonesian foreign minister said.

http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/523713/20131120/australia-indonesia-phone-tapping-reactions.htm#.UpEv...