Cornelia Rau not Australian (letter)

by L.B.Loveday

News Weekly, September 10, 2005
Sir,

Your article, "Dangers of a national ID card" (Canberra Observed, News Weekly, July 30, 2005), refers to "German-born Australian citizen Cornelia Rau".

Rau is not, and never has been, an Australian; she is, and always has been, a German.

The "Australian citizen" claim was an untruth disseminated by anti-Howard media commentators to make an unfortunate event seem even worse, and News Weekly should do better than follow their lead.

And how does the acronym DIMIA, quoted in the same article, become "Deport Now, Make Inquiries Later"?

L.B.Loveday,
Blakeview, SA

Editor's note:
Cornelia Rau was a permanent resident, not a citizen of Australia.

The acronym DIMIA is a play on the initials of the Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs, and should read "Deport Immediately, Make Inquiries Afterwards".