Bill Shorten Assures Party Dissenters Safe And Humane Policy For Asylum Seekers

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten admitted that his party had devised wrong policies for the asylum seekers when it was in power but assured safe and humane immigration policies in his opening speech at the Labor National Conference on Friday. Even though he rolled out a series of schemes and policies that are placed high in the party’s agenda, he made no mention to the controversial issue of turning back asylum seeker boats.

The ABC news reported that a huge round of applause broke out as Shorten walked up to the stage and acknowledged the crowd with his thumbs up in the air. It was a gathering of 400 delegates that included party MPs, Union Representatives, as well as members of the grassroot level. On the huge red back drop of the stage where Mr. Shorten stood, shone the new party slogan, "Advance Australia."

Shorten is in the midst of an internal dissent for insisting the party to support the turn back of the asylum seeker boats and thus he chose not to bring it up in his opening speech at the conference. But he promised that the immigration spokesperson of the party, Richard Marles, would deliver "safe and humane" policies for the asylum seeker, which drew some amount of booing from the crowd.

Deputy leader of the Labor Party, Tanya Plibersek, also addressed the conference where she told the delegates, "For us unity has never meant conformity, solidarity has never meant silence. We'll have debates at this conference because every one of us here is passionate about the future of our nation."

It has been claimed by Peter Dutton, the Immigration Minister, that Plibersek had been put under "witness protection" as she vocally opposed the policy on asylum seekers. Moreover, according to the Skynews, Shorten advocated for the preselection of the indigenous people and women as Labor candidates at the conference. He also said that his party will target fielding 50 percent women candidates from the caucus region within another 10 years. "We are ready to lead a smart, modern and fair Australia -- ready, friends, to advance Australia," he said.

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