By Michael Jeremy RMA, and Evie Kennedy

The latest Australian Taxation Office Statistics highlights a significant pay gap between Australia’s richest and poorest neighbourhoods. On average, there is an income difference of $155,823 between the richest and the poorest postcode.

A large amount of Australia highest earners fell within the 2027 postcode, which includes Sydney’s Edgecliff, Rushcutters Bay, Point Piper and Darling Point. The professions that garnered the highest taxable incomes included Medical specialists, judges and lawyers, mining engineers and financial dealers.

Australia's largest foreign mission is its embassy in Jakarta. That mission will soon be without an ambassador. Ministerial visits have also been suspended. With contact at the highest levels suspended how will it affect business and the thousands of travellers between the countries?

The Australian Government had hoped that “Indonesia would show mercy to the two young men, who have worked hard since their arrests to rehabilitate themselves and improve the lives of other prisoners,” according to a statement from the office of Foreign Minister Julie Bishop today.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran’s family and friends at this extremely difficult time” Ms Bishop said.

Ms Bishop confirmed that Australia, “will withdraw our Ambassador for consultations once the men’s bodies have been returned to the Chan and Sukumaran families...Ministerial visits will remain suspended” said Ms Bishop.

DFAT nor the DIBP have provided any information on how these measures will specifically affect business or travellers between the countries. However, according to various analysts, Australia’s reaction which as serious as it seems, will not affect the daily operations of the Australian consulates in Indonesia. It does not mean diplomatic relations have ended as the rest of the consulate will continue to operate and provide services.

DFAT’s smartraveller.gov.au website advice is to ‘exercise a high degree of caution’ on travel to Indonesia’ which is at the same overall level of advice prior to the announcement of the downgrading of diplomatic contact. 

For all those people thinking about calling 131 881 to speak to someone in a DIBP call centre here are some tips:

PHONE CALL 1

1. Always ask the operator what their name is.  They may only give you a first name.

Migration Alliance is in receipt of information from a few different RMAs regarding ImmiAccount and missing documents.  The following email from an RMA best describes the core issue:

"I have noticed an issue today with online applications on my ImmiAccount

On a number of my lodged 457 applications, documents which had been attached during lodgement are subsequently missing from the uploaded document list.

Will Immigration minister, Peter Dutton show some heart? The Townsville boy whose mother’s visa was refused because both the delegate and the MRT considered that he would be a ‘burden on the system” has sent a letter to the minister together with a 4000 page petition with over 122,000 signatures pleading that he and his mother who have lived here for over 8 years are not deported because he suffers from autism.

Maria Sevilla is a nurse who works at the Townsville Hospital where she looks after stroke victims. Her son Tyrone suffers from autism, a developmental condition that affects, among other things, the way an individual relates to his or her environment and their interaction with other people. An estimated one in 100 people have autism; that’s almost 230,000 Australians according to Autism Spectrum Australia (ASPECT) the leading service provider for autism here.

Maria and Tyrone’s visa application was rejected by the DIBP whose decision was subsequently affirmed by the MRT. Both held that Tyrone would be a ‘burden on the system’. Apparently, neither properly gave regard to the individual circumstances of the applicants or how they could mitigate against the cost to Australian society with their personal contributions monetary or otherwise. There is no scope in the legislation for this:

“I consider that a hypothetical person with this disease or condition, at the same severity as the applicant, would be likely to require health care or community services during the period specified above" the MRTs judgement noted.

Queensland Disabilities Minister Coralee O'Rourke called DIBPs decision a "cold, heartless decision" and asked for it to be reversed.