Shadow home affairs minister James Paterson and Liberal MP Julian Leeser have unequivocally called on the Australian government to strengthen its security process as as it prepares to grant visas to Palestinians from Gaza as many of them could be Hamas supporters.
ASIO boss Mike Burgess said Palestinians who expressed"rhetorical support"Senator Paterson , flanked by Mr Leeser - a prominent Jewish Liberal MP - said the government needed to urgently clarify its visa processes to insure they weren't granted to individuals who harboured terrorist sympathies.
"Secondly, the Department needs to be directed to not approve the visa of any person who can be identified to be a supporter of a terrorist organisation." "It was disturbing at the weekend to hear the director general of security state the government position which was that mere rhetorical support for a terrorist organisation was not enough to have a visa cancelled," Mr Leeser said.
"We call on Tony Burke to take action and to demonstrate to the country that he's serious about his job," he said at the press conference. "One, there is no problem for having rhetorical supporters of terrorist organisations come to this country, as he has not been asked to look for that. And two, that they will only refer some applications for visas from the Palestinian territories for ASIO, for security assessment," Mr Paterson said.
Hamas Tony Burke Paterson Leeser
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