An official Warning to Americans living in Australia

I've spent a little bit of time in Australia in the last 4 years. While I was there, I informed the American Embassy of my whereabouts just in case.
Today I received this email from the American Consulate General in Australia:
Consulate General of the United States

LEVEL 10 MLC CENTRE 19-29 MARTIN PLACE SYDNEY NSW 2000

+612-9373-9200 canberra.usembassy.gov...





PLEASE CIRCULATE THIS IMPORTANT

Emergency Message for U.S. Citizens



September 20, 2012



Sydney law enforcement authorities have advised of possible anti-American demonstrations in Sydney for Saturday, September 22 and Sunday, September 23. U.S. citizens should avoid Sydney’s Hyde Park and its perimeter area and Martin Place on both Saturday, September 22 and Sunday, September 23. Previous demonstrations in Sydney on September 15, 2012 occurred in Martin Place and Hyde Park and turned violent.



Melbourne law enforcement authorities have also advised of possible anti-American protests in downtown Melbourne on Saturday, September 22 and Sunday, September 23. Should they occur, U.S. citizens should avoid the immediate demonstration areas.



Fast-forming anti-American protests in Australia remain possible. U.S. citizens should in all cases avoid any political demonstrations that may develop and continue to monitor the Australian media and Consulate messages to obtain the latest information. In the event an anti-American demonstration develops, U.S. citizens should leave the area promptly.



The Department of State remains concerned about the threat of violence against U.S. citizens and interests throughout the world. U.S. citizens are reminded to maintain a high level of vigilance, to be aware of their surroundings and to take appropriate steps to increase their security awareness. The U.S. Consulate General has advised its staff members to avoid attracting attention to themselves as U.S. citizens. For additional information on maintaining a discreet profile, please refer to "A Safe Trip Abroad".

U.S. government facilities worldwide remain at a heightened state of alert. These facilities may temporarily close or periodically suspend public services to assess their security posture. In those instances, U.S. embassies and consulates will make every effort to provide emergency services to U.S. citizens. U.S. citizens abroad are urged to monitor the local news and maintain contact with the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate.



The Department of State encourages U.S. citizens living overseas or planning to travel abroad to enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP). When you enroll in STEP, we can keep you up to date with important safety and security announcements. Enrolling will also make it easier for the Embassy to contact you in the event of an emergency. You should remember to keep all of your information in STEP up to date; it is particularly important when you enroll or update your information to include a current phone number and e-mail address.



Current information on safety and security can also be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll-free in the United States and Canada, or a regular toll line at +1-202-501-4444 for callers from other countries. These numbers are available from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday (except U.S. federal holidays). You can also stay up to date by bookmarking our Bureau of Consular Affairs website, which contains the current Travel Warnings and Travel Alerts as well as the Worldwide Caution, by “following” the Bureau of Consular Affairs on Twitter and “liking” the Bureau of Consular Affairs page on Facebook.



The Consulate General will continue to monitor the information it receives and will provide updates as needed.



To subscribe or unsubscribe to this list send e-mail to [email protected].



American Citizens Services (ACS)
Level 10, MLC Centre
19-29 Martin Place
Sydney, NSW 2000
Telephone Number: (02) 9373-9200
After Hours Telephone Number: (02) 4422-2201
Email: [email protected]

Anyone living in Sydney or Melbourne, especially Americans, need to heed this warning!

p.s. Australia is the most beautiful country I've ever been to and would love to live there if it wasn't so darn expensive. And the Aussies are fantastic people. They know how to enjoy life.

That's creepy and mind blowing! All my life I thought Australia and such were non violent and stayed away from wars and issues like that.

Australia, what are you DOING?????? I thought they were pro America too.

Next mind blowing for me will be if peaceful New Zealand goes crazy. Sad day for me to read all this.

Yep.

canberra.usembassy.gov...

Stay safe.

Originally posted by fltcui

Melbourne law enforcement authorities have also advised of possible anti-American protests in downtown Melbourne on Saturday, September 22 and Sunday, September 23.

The Department of State remains concerned about the threat of violence against U.S. citizens and interests throughout the world

Who could be the demonstrators involved in these possible anti-American protests which may possibly be violent in Melbourne that Americans should avoid?

It couldn't be members of the religion of peace, could it?

reply to post by ollncasino


I could only hazard a guess that it might be a Muslim demonstration but it doesn't specifically state that in the email

I'd be compelled to put on an Aussie accent and blend in with the crowd to see what the commotion was all about.
If I got the stink eye from anyone I'd drop a few g'days and use some of that famous Aussie slang. Stay safe.

Australia has a huge influx of Muslims from Indonesia, the Philippines, and Malaysia.
Several of my top employees left Jakarta and immigrated to Sydney and set up shop there.
On 2nd thought I would stay away from any protests. Don't let your curiosity get the best of you.

reply to post by sarra1833


I don't believe it's the Aussies that will be demonstrating against the Americans. Actually, the Aussies are very upset that the Muslims have chosen to protest in their cities. So upset that some of them are promoting counter demonstrations. There is a thread addressing this here:
www.abovetopsecret.com...

Originally posted by sarra1833
That's creepy and mind blowing! All my life I thought Australia and such were non violent and stayed away from wars and issues like that.

Australia, what are you DOING?????? I thought they were pro America too.

Next mind blowing for me will be if peaceful New Zealand goes crazy.

Sad day for me to read all this.

It's the Islamic fundamentalists, not the average Aussie. You know, the mob that's been protesting around the world of late.

They were at it last weekend, and they say they will be at it again this weekend.

I just talked to my friend in Australia...she just woke up because its friday morning there. I had forwarded this info to her and she just got off the phone with her son who lives in Melbourne. He said that the city of Melbourne was on alert and they were urging people to stay out of the central city because of the possible protests.

Let 'em.

It exposes the extremists for what they are. Indoctrinated fools incapable of a coherent thought of their own. Those of you around there, stay safe.

reply to post by fltcui



News this morning, it's not good.

On Wednesday night, the following text message found its way online, urging non-Muslim Australians in Victoria to unite and fight back at a planned pro-Muslim protest in Melbourne this weekend:

"Let's show these bearded goat-herders that we run this country, not them and if they don't like it, they can f*** off back to whatever s***hole they came from on the leaky boat they showed up on. Spread the word and come ready for a battle for our rights and our land. They thought Cronulla riots were bad. We grew there, they flew there! Australians unite!"

idiocy is contagious man!

Pack mentality, we got it too guys.

So Saturday for the US to be careful and Sunday for the Muslims to be careful, it's pretty dumb when you think about it, and it's not always all about "America" either.

Considering the hate towards American citizens is completely unwarranted..

I will offer a solution.

Simply claim you are Canadian .

Yeah, I know, most Canadians are against it, I'm all for it

~Tenth

reply to post by fltcui


It is just sad that people will abuse other people based not on who they are but where they are from.
Really pathetic. Racist, ignorant and small minded too.

Originally posted by ollncasino

Originally posted by fltcui

Melbourne law enforcement authorities have also advised of possible anti-American protests in downtown Melbourne on Saturday, September 22 and Sunday, September 23.

The Department of State remains concerned about the threat of violence against U.S. citizens and interests throughout the world

Who could be the demonstrators involved in these possible anti-American protests which may possibly be violent in Melbourne that Americans should avoid?

It couldn't be members of the religion of peace, could it?

edit on 20-9-2012 by ollncasino because: (no reason given)

Such an ignorant statement. I'm a Christian, and I'm well-aware that people who call themselves Christians have killed millions. I've also heard many stories about people who call themselves Christians, in the Southeastern U.S. and Texas lynching people for being Black. None of those people are actually Christians, just like nobody who calls themselves a Muslim is actually practicing Islam when perpetrating violence against others. Yeah, yeah, I know, the Koran has lines in it about harming others for this or that...Have you ever read the Old Testament of the Christian Bible?

Seriously, only the most ignorant among us sees the tiny percentage of "Muslims" who act out violently and think it applies to the religion as a whole. It's embarrassing to know there are humans who actually still think in such a small-minded way. It's frightening that the marketing of fear has worked so well also - when did so many of my countrymen become such sissy-cowards? I know several Muslims, and none of them would ever participate in violence against others. What is unfortunate is that of any religious or ethnic group, they probably have more justification to have a gripe than any other on the planet currently.

reply to post by fltcui


yes i live in Australia. When i see all the trouble going on in world im glad i am geographically separated from it. France is great place been there once, love the culture. If americans are concerned about anit americans protesters just say your canadian as we here in Australia cant tell difference between US or Canadian accent. I bet your security advice didnt give you that bit of common sense advice.

I am going to Hyde park with my DLSR and will be snapping away during the protests if they occur again
I was spewing last week I was out of the state and missed it!

reply to post by Agit8dChop


Be careful. I know you're an Aussie, but some of those idiots might not care.

Originally posted by fltcui
reply to post by sarra1833

 

I don't believe it's the Aussies that will be demonstrating against the Americans. Actually, the Aussies are very upset that the Muslims have chosen to protest in their cities. So upset that some of them are promoting counter demonstrations. There is a thread addressing this here:
www.abovetopsecret.com...

I believe the majority are Aussies! Middle Eastern Aussies, Malaysian, African etc. You catch my drift, an Aussie is no longer defined by an Anglo Saxon mate, sorry to burst your bubble Australia is made up of people with different religions Muslim, Christian, Jewish, Buddhist etc, point is they are all Aussies!

The last time I looked Australian's were not all white.

Blah-

THANKS AUSTRALIA...Because OBAMA is too lame to let us know.