Australia PM Tony Ab bott urges regional action against IS

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australian Prime Minister tony abbott has urged Asia Pacific nations to fight jihadist groups， saying Islamic State（IS） has global ambitions.

At a conference in Sydney on countering terrorist propaganda， he said IS was a death cult with far-reaching tentacles.

Australia says more than 100 of its citizens are fighting with militant jihadist groups in Syria and Iraq.

Last year， Australia raised its threat level to high and has conducted a series of counter-terrorism raids.

The two-day regional security summit includes ministers from 25 countries， including Malaysia， Singapore， Japan， Laos， Vietnam and New Zealand.

Representatives from Google， Facebook， Twitter and other social media sites are also attending.

Mr Abbott said the main challenge was working out how to stop young people from joining jihadists groups， which he said would be the work of the conference.

“We need idealistic young people to appreciate that joining this death cult[IS] is an utterly misguided and wrongheaded way to express their desire to sacrifice，” he said.

Amid concern about the domestic impact of jihadist groups， Australia has introduced new national security measures including criminalising travel to terror hotspots and giving extra funding to police and security agencies.

The government recently announced plans to table law to remove citizenship from dual nationals who support extremist groups.

Mr Abbotts remarks come after US President Barack Obama approved sending up to 450 more military personnel to Iraq to train forces fighting IS.

Same-sex marriage still waiting for Australian recognition

The majority of Australians support same-sex marriage but unlike their conservative counterparts elsewhere， Australian politicians are making hard work of the issue.

The UK and New Zealand have backed the gay marriage but Australia’s Prime Minister Tony Abbott remains opposed.

Declaring himself the last holdout in his own family， the conservative Catholic Australian leader， whose sister is in a same-sex relationship， does not support gay marriage.

Officially， neither does his Liberal Party.

On the other side of the political fence， the Labor Party has also dragged its feet on the issue.

Ireland held a historic referendum on same-sex marriage recently， with a resounding majority of voters backing legalization. The result makes Ireland the first country in the world to adopt gay marriage through popular vote.

Around 62 percent of citizens who headed to the polls voted yes to legalization， amid the highest turnout the country has seen in two decades. The vote reflects the changing nature of Ireland’s once-conservative Catholic society， which only decriminalized homosexuality in 1993.

Supporters of the Yes campaign celebrated in the streets of Dublin as the ballots were counted， breaking into the national anthem when the official result was announced.

Seizing the momentum from the recent Irish referendum supporting gay marriage， Australia’s Labor opposition rushed a same-sex marriage bill into Par- liament. But former Labor leaders have opposed gay marriage in recent years.

Opinion polls suggest most Australian adults support legalising same-sex marriage. So， why are their politicians so reluctant to change with the times？

A mix of long-held conservative views， and some MPs’ fears they could lose their seats if conservative voters turn their backs on them， go some way to explain the conundrum， say political watchers.

In Australia， state and territory governments have tried to legislate for samesex marriage but run foul of two Liberal prime ministers opposing change - John Howard and Mr Abbott.

In 2004， the Howard Government amended the Marriage Act to specify marriage was between “a man and a woman”.

The federal government overturned same-sex marriage laws in the Australian Capital Territory

Conservative federal governments have twice used their powers to overturn laws passed by the Australian Capital Territory legislature sanctioning same-sex unions.

Labor Prime Ministers Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard also opposed gay marriage.

Mr Rudd subsequently changed his view - but not the law.

In 2009， his Labor government expanded same-sex couples’ legal entitlements， amending 85 Commonwealth laws to confer on them many of the same rights as those legally married. But the definition remained.

In 2011， the Labor Party’s policymaking national conference endorsed gay marriage but passed a separate ruling that MPs be allowed a conscience vote.

Joe Hockey： Australian Treasurer attacked on social media

“Get a good job that pays good money.”

That was Australian Treasurer Joe Hockey’s message to first-time home buyers.

Mr Hockey was speaking at a press conference in Canberra when he denied Sydney’s property market was becoming unaffordable.

“If housing were unaffordable in Sydney， no one would be buying it，” he said.

“So the starting point for a first home buyer is to get a good job. Then you can go to the bank and borrow money.”

Mr Hockey’s words were slammed by thousands of Australians on social media， with many users criticising him for being “arrogant” and “out of touch”with difficulties faced by young buyers.

“What’s Joe Hockey’s next observation？ Poor people choose to be poor？”said Twitter user Peter Murphy， a teacher in Sydney.

Another user remarked： “Maybe [Mr Hockey] should live off the minimum wage and see how real people live.”

“Learn the fact that ‘society’ isn’t the same thing as ‘economy，’” said one user.

“Put the cigar out， step down and out of the ivory tower and engage with the rest of the nation，” advised another.

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott， who stood by Mr Hockey and defended his comments， was also not spared on social media.

The opposition Australian Labor Party also weighed in with the tweet：“Want a ‘good’ job that pays good money？ Why not apply for one in Joe Hockey’s office！”

Some users also shared their personal difficulties they faced with Sydney’s rising housing prices.

“I am a lawyer， my partner is a lawyer. We are renting inner city in Brisbane. We cannot afford to buy our first property.” said one person.

While others kept their advice for Mr Hockey simple.

But Joe Hockey refused to apologise for his comments and accused his critics of “playing the man”. He also denied he was out of touch by recalling how he purchased his first unit when interest rates were higher than their current historic lows.

“I understand the depth of feeling. Of course I do … yes it is difficult for first home buyers to get into the market，”he conceded.

“For a lot of people， a lot of Australians in Sydney and Melbourne， some other parts of Australia， housing is very expensive and I understand that. I totally understand that. When you’re committing so much of your wage to your mortgage it’s a big ask， with all the other pressures in life.”

Asked whether he thought lowerpaying public service jobs such as nursing and policing were “good jobs”， Mr Hockey agreed but said they could be made “better”.

“They’re good jobs and we want those jobs to be even better. That’s what we’re working towards，” he said.