ISL News and Media

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Amnesty International designated him a prisoner of conscience and called him "one of the bravest human rights defenders in Iran".

Lawyer, Abdolfattah Soltani jailed for co-founding the Human Rights Defenders Centre (DHRC), spreading anti-government propaganda and endangering national security has been awarded the "International Bar Association’s 2012 human rights award". 

The announcement was made in Dublin, Ireland at the close of the annual International Bar Association (IBA) Conference.  Soltani’s daughter Maede Soltani and Iranian lawyer Mahnaz Parakand accepted the award on his behalf.

Parakand delivered Soltani’s acceptance speech saying, ‘Colleagues’ that Iran has ‘a collection of bad laws; but I must say that the fundamental demand and wish of many civil and political activists in Iran, is the correct implementation of even these bad laws! But the ugly truth is that the political establishment in Iran, in many cases by using a few non-independent judges has turned the whole judicial system into a tool for implementing their own wishes. They are using these courts as a heavy hammer to suppress the legitimate and legal demand of the population.’

On an up note Soltani concluded, ‘I hope that access to a just judicial process and civil rights, a guarantor of the establishment and expansion of democracy, will advance day by day’.

Soltani’s daughter also addressed IBA attendees saying, Iranian authorities had attempted to depict her father as unfit “to join the board of the Iranian Bar Council.”  She went on to say how over years there had been a variety of accusations leveled against her father and all designed to intimidate him and hinder his work.

During his high profile career, Abdolfattah Soltani represented the family of slain Iranian-Canadian photojournalist Zahra Kazemi, who was allegedly tortured and murdered in Evin Prison back in July 2003.  Solatni was later changed with espionage after questioning the fairness of the trial brought against Kazemi’s family.

Soltani also represented Akbar Ghanji, a human rights activist who exposed and implicated several government officials in the murders of intellectuals and journalists during the 1990s.

While many Iranian lawyers shrunk at taking on risky cases, Soltani continued defending protesters, teachers, political activists, students and fellow human rights lawyers.

In 2009 Soltani was arrested again and taken to Evin Prison where he was held for 72-days. During that time, the human rights attorney says he was accused by Judge Majid Matin Rasekh of questioning the presidential election results.  Soltani’s daughter also claimed her father was told that if he disassociated himself from the Human Rights Defenders Centre they’d let him go.

His final arrest happened in September 2011 while preparing to defend a group of Baha’i leaders.  The Tehran revolutionary court initially sentenced the 58-year old to 18-years in prison but later reduced the sentence on appeal.

Soltani’s daughter says her father was promised a further reduction of his sentence if he apologized and denounced Iranian Nobel Peace Laureate Shirin Ebadi, business partner and co-founder of the Human Rights Defenders Centre.

Exhausted and unwell from incarceration, Soltani soldiers on serving out his 13-year sentence in Iran’s notorious Evin Prison.  As a further punishment, the human right lawyer has been banned from practicing law for an additional 20-years. He joins a staggering list of Iranian human rights defenders behind bars.

This is Soltani's second human rights award.  Maede Soltani says he father was reprimanded for accepting the “illegal” 2009 Nuremberg International Human Rights Award.

Akira Kawamura, IBA President said, ‘Mr Soltani reminds us all that for many lawyers across the world, performing their professional and legitimate duties is both challenging and dangerous. As 5,000 lawyers gather in Dublin to celebrate the achievements and progression of the legal profession, we recognize and thank Mr Soltani for his noble and courageous work.’

 

 

 

 

On Friday March 9, 2012 The Hon. Chris Bowen MP delivered the keynote address at the 6th annual CPD Immigraton Law Conference - ILAA (Immigration Lawyers Association of Australasia).  His address focused on changes to the skilled migration program and the employee sponsored Visa program plus the Government's anticipated outcomes.

Below is an authorized transcript of the minister's speech:

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I had the honour of addressing last year's Immigration Lawyers Association of Australasia conference.

A lot has happened since then and it's good to be back to give you an update on progress over the last year in relation to our reform of skilled migration.

The last few years have been a period of significant reform when it comes to skilled migration.

We've embarked on a series of reforms to make sure Australia's two-speed economy gets maximum advantage from what is a very significant program.

Skilled migration reforms

Back in 2009, under the stewardship of my predecessor, Chris Evans, we reformed our temporary skilled worker (457) program to make this program more responsive to the business cycle, better protect vulnerable workers and complement local training and employment opportunities.

Because the 457 visa program is our principal and most effective response to skill shortages, last year the Government spent $10 million opening up a new dedicated processing centre in Brisbane, designed to halve the median processing time for complete 457 visa applications.

I am pleased to say that, according to our latest figures, the median processing time for all applications this year has been reduced by 53 per cent on the average processing time when we came to office. It is now 19 calendar days.

Of course, as a median figure, this means that many complete applications will be processed faster than that — and, in fact, of the applications lodged in January this year, the majority were decided within ten working days.

So the 457 visa program is now more efficient and more responsive to changes in the labour market than at any time in its history.

You can play a big role in reducing these processing times further. Every time the department needs to ask for more information in order to assess an application, it results in delays in processing. With resources projects coming on line rapidly, delays mean dollars. So you can help to speed up processing by working with our officers and by using e-lodgement so that we can give Australian businesses the best possible processing times.

Last year, I also announced the introduction of the sponsorship accreditation scheme. The scheme recognises that many 457 sponsors have a long record of compliance with immigration law and should receive streamlined processing to speed up positive outcomes for employers and industry.
While the accreditation scheme is still in its infancy, to date a number of employers — including hospitals and scientific research bodies — have been granted accredited status. I am sure that many more important Australian businesses will take up this opportunity in the coming months and I welcome this development.

Another important reform we introduced — back in 2010 — was the new, more targeted Skilled Occupations List for Independent Migration. The new, shortened List is focused on high-value occupations for the economy over the long term and is underpinned by Skills Australia's independent analysis.

Then, last year, we introduced a new points test to better select independent migrants who are best equipped to find a place in the labour market through all stages of the economic cycle. The points test focuses on factors such as strong English language proficiency, on-the-job work experience and higher levels of education.

And this year we are introducing Skill Select. Skill Select gives the government the tools to prioritise and rank intending migrants in their order of relative merit. It also allows us to tweak the spread of occupations in any given program year — preventing the situation of recent years where the bulk of the program is dominated by only a handful of occupations.

Skill Select will also connect Australian employers, and state and territory governments, with potential job candidates. Applicants will benefit from online lodgement of Expressions of Interest and can be more confident of a positive outcome when they pay their application fees. All in all, Skill Select provides a more efficient and better-administered program, benefits that will bring productivity improvements for the labour market.

Employer Sponsored Visa reforms: a simplified, stronger program

This brings me to our latest reforms to strengthen and simplify the Permanent Employer Sponsored Program.

The defining characteristic of employer sponsored migration is the use of market-based employer processes to select potential migrants. That is, employers throughout Australia can sponsor foreign workers for permanent residence to fill genuine job vacancies in their businesses.

Because of this, these visas are highly responsive to labour market demands. They are good for Australia — in that they are our best performing permanent visa category in terms of employment and economic outcomes. For example, 96 per cent of Employer Nominated Scheme (ENS) migrants work full-time and their median income is $77 000 per annum.

Given this strong performance, we've put a lot of emphasis on growing this program — transforming it into the Government's main skilled migration program.

It was therefore prudent to take a good look at the program to ensure that it is well placed to meet both our labour market and integrity objectives. In undertaking this review, my department found that, while the employer sponsored program performs very well, there is still room to improve in three key areas:

• simplifying the program and reducing administrative costs
• better aligning the program with our broader economic; and
• limiting the vulnerability of visa holders; and
• reducing the potential for employers to manipulate the program to access cheap, less skilled labour

Today, therefore, I am pleased to announce reforms to improve the operation and effectiveness of the permanent Employer Sponsored visa categories: the Employer Nominated Scheme and the Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (RSMS).

Our reforms will address all three areas for improvement. They also deliver on the Government's commitments to visa simplification and to creating a more efficient pathway to permanent residence for 457 visa holders.

These changes will effectively conclude the comprehensive review of the Skilled Migration program, which has modernised our system of skilled migrant selection.

As I say, it has been a period of significant reform in skilled migration. This reform has been necessary but I also recognise that change is disconcerting and people — both prospective immigrants and employers — need to see these reforms implemented and allowed to work. Once this round of reforms is implemented, I see us then embarking on a considerable period of consolidation.

Most importantly, the reforms will ensure that our Skilled Migration Program remains geared towards delivering significant benefits to the economy through greater productivity and migrant employment outcomes.

What are we doing?

What we'll be doing is cutting the red tape for all applicants and streamlining the visa for those people who've already been through the rigorous 457 visa process and have a proven work record in Australia. That's about 78 per cent of the entire program or around 15 000 places.

For the remainder of the program — that is, those people seeking direct entry — we're putting in place improved checks and balances.

We have retained the core strengths of the program while implementing a suite of changes. I'd like to touch on the key elements of the package that will commence on 1 July 2012.

Around half the people who take up a job opportunity on a 457 visa end up staying and becoming permanent residents. Most of these stay with the same employer doing the same job. Our reforms will better align the program with our broader economic objectives and streamline the pathway to permanent residence for these workers. We know they can do the job and are ready to make a commitment to Australia.

In practical terms, this means that the visa applicants skills will not be assessed a second time. Nor will we re-test English skills if they've been tested for their 457 visa.
Of course, businesses will still need to comply with their sponsorship obligations and applications will still be considered on their merits.

For those who apply directly for permanent residence and are mostly untested in the Australian labour market, we need to ensure that they can do the job in Australia.

Improved checks and balances will position us to select the best and brightest for the limited number of available visas — those people best equipped to succeed in the labour market and participate in Australian society. It will also mean that these migrants are less vulnerable to exploitation.

In particular, applicants seeking direct entry will be subject to an English requirement of IELTS 6, and an assessment of their qualifications and professional work experience. To reduce the complexity of the system, the current six visa classes for the permanent employer sponsored program will be reduced to two new visas: an ENS and a RSMS visa. This includes eliminating the onshore and offshore legal requirements, removing administrative barriers and simplifying visa rules.

In addition, a single, consolidated 'sponsored' occupation list will be introduced to replace three current occupation lists for the Employer Nomination Scheme, subclass 457 and the State and Territory Sponsored General Skilled Migration visas. This consolidated list will make it a lot simpler and clearer for employers and prospective permanent migrants to navigate migration rules.

This approach will be further strengthened with the removal of the subjective 'exceptional circumstance' provisions from RSMS.

In fact, last program year, almost 36 per cent of occupations nominated for RSMS claimed 'exceptional circumstances'. These included skilled trade occupations — such as plumbers and mechanics – and non-trade skilled occupations, such as hotel managers and law clerks. Any system which requires over a third of applicants to prove they face 'exceptional circumstances' is in need of reform.

It makes sense to have a more generous 'standard' program for RSMS will be available, including a broader range of eligible occupations and skills. The new rules will be simpler, clearer and more objective, thus saving time and expense for migrants, employers and my department.

At the same time, the program will be brought into line with the core premise of the Skilled Migration program — to focus on just that, skilled migration. The single, consolidated occupation list for ENS will concentrate on truly skilled occupations, as will RSMS, while semi-skilled occupations can be negotiated through a new Labour Agreements stream within ENS or RSMS.

Of course, I recognise that there are areas of the country that are crying out for semi-skilled workers. That's why I recently announced the Regional Migration Agreement program to cater for these needs. I have also taken steps to reduce the time it takes to approve a Labour Agreement, making the program a more viable option for employers.

Overall, the changes that I have announced today will strengthen the Permanent Employer Sponsored Program by attracting those people best-suited to meet Australia's and employers' unique labour force needs and make a contribution to Australia. This will provide for a more streamlined, flexible and simplified visa approval process.

I note that a plenary session on the reforms to the Skill stream, including the changes to the Permanent Employer Sponsored Program, will be conducted by departmental officers later this morning. They will provide a more detailed and technical summary of these changes to the Permanent Employer Sponsored Program. If you have any specific questions on the detail of the changes, I'm sure they'll be happy to answer them.

Conclusion

I have talked a fair bit today about the economic imperatives of our skilled migration program.

However, as you all know, immigration policies also have, at their core, a human dimension — and changes to them have real impacts on real people. It is therefore essential that changes to migration policy settings are made with an understanding of their effects on all facets of our economy and society, and recognition of their real world impacts on our clients and stakeholders. I like to think that our changes are made with this consideration firmly in mind.

Of course, there will always be scope for improvement, as the dynamic nature of our economy dictates that the Migration Program — and the skilled visa categories in particular — have an inherent need to evolve over time to ensure proper calibration of our migration program for current conditions. This does not mean an overhaul to respond to every bump in the economic road but, rather, a strong and durable framework, within which appropriate tweaks can be made.

Indeed, this is why the Government is implementing a Long Term Migration Planning Framework which provides for a more strategic and longer term approach to our immigration policy and settings.

In recent years we have undertaken an ambitious, wide-ranging and effective reform of our skilled migration policy and program settings. This has delivered a more targeted, demand-driven skilled migration program that is better placed to meet our short and medium to long term economic needs, while ensuring that our first priority of jobs for Australians is not compromised.

The employer sponsored migration reform that I have announced today adds to this important body of work. I trust it will provide greater certainty for your clients and better outcomes for Australia's economy and society.

Thank you.

The Hon. Chris Bowen MP

 

 

 

We are proud to announce that our principal lawyer, Mrs Anne O'Donoghue, will be joining the panel of speakers for the "Entrepreneurs and Investors" session at International Bar Association's 5th Biennial Global Immigration Conference.

The Conference will be held in London from the 21st to the 23rd of September 2011. 

A dialogue and discussion of this topic at an International forum is important and highly relevant at the wake of the share market's drop in early August. 

Prominent commentators around the world, especially in the United States, highlighted the importance of assisting immigrant entrepreneurs to reside in their country in order to boost their economy. 

We wish all the panel speakers luck and have the most lively discussion!

The Immigration Lawyers Association Australasia (ILAA), a focus group of the International Law Section (ILS) of the Law Council of Australia, will be holding the 5th Annual CPD Immigration Law Conference at the RACV City Club, Melbourne. 

Our principal lawyer, Mrs. Anne O'Donoghue, will be speaking at the conference on one of the most dynamic and complicated pathway of Australian Immigration-- the General Skilled Migration Program. 

To view the full program, please click here

To register online, please click here

 

 

This morning, our principal solicitor Anne O'Donoghue and one of our staff were fortunate enough to be able to attend the 2010 Law Week Breakfast with NSW Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione as the Guest of Honour and Key Speaker and Professor George Williams as the Guest Speaker.

The topic for the breakfast was "The Role of Legislative Support in Anti-Terrorist Policing". Commissioner Andrew Scipione gave an interesting speech by initially outlining the 'terrorist-related' incident in Australian history including the Eureka Stockade and the attempted assasination of Prince Alfred by Henry James O'Farrell. He then mentioned the three incidents with the biggest impact on Australia: the 9/11 attacks, Bali Bombing and the London Bombings.

As a result of all those incidents, counter-terrorism legislation and measures were imposed (as opposed to the prior anti-terrorism legislation). Commissioner Scipione also stated that the success of counter-terrorism is not on whether or not the police is succesful in capturing the perpetrator. Instead, it is measured on the prevention of a terrorist act.

He also illustrated on what the laws meant by an act of terrorism by adding Michael Kirby's quote: "Let there be no doubt that real terrorists are the enemies of civil liberties..." He closed his speech with the famous quote from the IRA in the aftermath of Margaret Thatcher's attempted assasination in Brighton, 1984:

Terrorists only have to be lucky once. We have to be lucky all the the time.

Recent changes to Australia’s immigration policy on skilled migration sent a wave of alarm to international students, future immigrants, education providers and several industry bodies alike. Senator Chris Evans has indicated in his speeches that these changes were made towards building a more skilled Australia as well as addressing labor concerns of skill shortages in Australia. The new Skilled Occupation List which will be published shortly in April with implementation in mid-2010, for example, will focus on high value professions and trades and will identify the specialist skills that Australia need to plan for.  Our principal solicitor, Mrs. Anne O'Donoghue will be speaking at CPD Immigration Law Conference in Melbourne on the 26th to the 27th of March. She will be speaking on the recent changes to the current General Skilled Migration program, the hottest topic in Australia's Immigration world today. We will shortly be publishing our paper for the conference on our website. Stay tune!