Wilson should not be allowed to remain an archbishop while he appeals against his conviction, says Turnbull, who is a Catholic.

The National Council of Priests (NCP) in Australia agrees with Turnbull.

"While the Archbishop is exercising his constitutional right to appeal his conviction, his tenure as Archbishop of Adelaide has been compromised," a statement from the NCP says.

"For the good of the Church in Australia and for the benefit of the People of God in the Archdiocese of Adelaide, the Executive of the NCP requests that the Holy Father, Pope Francis, removes Archbishop Philip Wilson from his See." Turnbull's is one of a number of voices calling for Wilson's resignation.

Although they have not sought papal intervention, a number of leading Australian prelates have also called for Wilson's resignation. They include Melbourne's Archbishop-elect Peter Comensoli, who will soon lead the nation's largest diocese.

"I think the path he is taking is not of benefit for God's people in Adelaide, so I along with a number of other bishops have sought to counsel Philip in that regard," Comensoli says.

"There are many leaders that have called on him to resign, it's clear that he should resign and I think the time has come now for the ultimate authority in the church to take action and sack him."

While Wilson stood down from his position as archbishop days after being convicted for covering up child sexual abuse, he is adamant he will resign only if his appeal fails.

"I am conscious of calls for me to resign and have taken them very seriously," he said earlier this month.

"However, at this time, I am entitled to exercise my legal rights and to follow the due process of law. Since that process is not yet complete, I do not intend to resign at this time."

Wilson will return to court in August, when he will be told if he will serve his sentence in prison or at his sister's house in home detention.

He must serve a minimum of six months before becoming eligible for parole.

Source

• Eureka Street
• NZ Herald
• Crux
• Guardian
• Image:ABC

This style of diplomacy has been going on for a number of years.

Whether it's morning-after kayaking on Sydney harbour or taking in our own Southern Alps, the annual Prime Ministerial sleepover says a lot about the relationship between New Zealand and Australia.

That relationship is almost unique for neighbouring countries - close enough culturally and historically to share a lot in common, but far enough away geographically to never have come into real conflict over borders or resources.

The relationship is built on shared values.

They include a strong sense of internationalism, of doing our bit in the world, whether that's in foreign conflicts, peacekeeping or overseas aid. And they include a commitment to honesty and giving people a fair go.

As anyone who can remember a childhood game of truth or dare will know, late at night on sleepovers is when a new level of honesty comes out.

It's when the relationship deepens - when we share secrets and tell the truth.

And that's what we need from English and Turnbull at Friday's soiree, because right now the Australian Government is betraying our shared values.

What has emerged in Australia in recent years would have been difficult to imagine just a decade or two ago.

On Nauru and Manus Island, over 2,000 refugees and people seeking asylum have been forcibly detained in conditions that Amnesty International has found amounts to the legal definition of torture - not a statement we make lightly.

In a tacit admission of guilt, when the Australian Government recently signed on to the UN's Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture, they wrote in a carve-out for their refugee 'processing centres' on Nauru and Manus Island, knowing they would not pass international scrutiny.

Things are so bad, so hopeless, that after three years of cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment on Manus Island, 21-year old Iranian refugee Loghman Sawari recently fled in a bid for asylum in Fiji.

Sadly, he was forcibly returned to Papua New Guinea to languish there some more.

This is not compassion. This is not a fair go. Continue reading

• Grant Bayldon is executive director of Amnesty International NZ.

The Australian Electoral Commission has strongly recommended the government not hold a national vote on the issue before the end of 2016.

But the prime minister's office and senior ministers insist the timing and question are still to be decided by cabinet.

Malcolm Turnbull and colleagues had repeatedly said they hoped to hold the vote this year.

News Corp reported on Sunday he is expected to announce the plebiscite timeline, aiming for February, at a coalition party room meeting on September 13. Read more

A group of Buddhist, Baptist, Anglican and Uniting church leaders sent a letter to Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull on Tuesday.

The religious leaders warned that a public campaign on the issue could polarise people in a "highly politicised moral debate".

LGBTI people and religious believers could suffer as a result.

"We ask that, instead of holding a plebiscite, you allow marriage equality to be resolved by a vote in Parliament as soon as possible," the religious leaders wrote.

Continue reading