The Age from Melbourne, Victoria, Australia • Page 1

The Sumpay Age vr VICTORIA'S N0.1 FOOTBALL PAPER FREE STICKERS QgD (J 10 fl MAGPIES, SAINTS HOLD ON Sport Liftout Inside TV magazine DL1A1Y HUMPH AT A GLANCE Mr Cruel executed Karmein: police if ft. fe win jolts Liberals lar local football hero, had pulled three times as many votes from Labor as from the Liberals. "This spells a massive defeat for Labor in a general election. Labor backbenchers tonight must be wondering if they made the right decision when they dumped Hawke for Keating." But Mr Keating said the complexities of the byelection the recession; the nature of the former Prime Minister, Mr Hawke's departure from the electorate, and a popular Independent meant the seat was "always going to be hard for "The important message Is that people won't cop Dr Hewson's 15 per cent consumption tax. In the battle of ideas and philosophy, the people have turned away from Dr Hewson's survival of the fittest agenda." The Liberal Party's deputy federal director, Mr Grahame Morris, said he was "tickled pink" with the result, which had seen the vote Labor had seen as rock bottom under Mr Hawke Mr Morris said the most immediate Implications of the vote were for the Premier, Mrs Joan Klrner, who now faced the prospect of annihilation at the Victorian election.

He said the Liberals apparent failure to Improve on its primary vote of 1990 was understandable given the number of candidates, the profile of Mr Cleary and the seat's history as a Labor stronghold. Mr Morris said the election was not a test of Dr Hewson's Fightback package, Including the goods and services tax. "Once Cleary entered the field, it wasn't a test of anything." An assistant national secretary of the ALP, Mr Gary Gray, described the result as a response to unemployment. But be said it showed that voters did not see the alternative proposed by the Opposition as a solution. "They cannot embrace It They will not embrace It," he said.

"Unemployment In Wills is 20 per cent It you deduct 20 per cent from our primary vote in 1990, you end up with a primary vote of 28 per cent The size of the swing against Labor is directly proportional to unemployment" The primary votes lost by Labor had gone to Mr Cleary, he said. "They did not go to the Liberals because voters do not see them as having the solutions." Mr Gray said he did not believe the result would halt the momentum picked up by Mr Keating since the release of his One Nation statement earlier this year. "I don't think it's a matter of momentum. We've always said this byelection would be hard to win." his son Phil. MetmWAmumcv community-led victory over the Canberra political machine.

His campaign was one funded largely by the proceeds of a grog raffle, donations from the textile, clothing and footwear Industry, anonymous cheques, and the odd $20 note thrown In by a friend. 0 Landslide Labor and Michael Gordon, national affair THE Left-wing Independent, Mr Phil Cleary, yesterday overwhelmed both major political parties to win the seat of Wills, vacated by the former Prime Minister, Mr Bob Hawke, earlier this year. The seat was wrenched from Labor for the first time since the electorate was created in 1949, with the ALP's primary vote crashing by around 20 per cent a figure roughly equivalent to the area's unemployment rate. But despite the disenchantment with the Federal Government, voters were reluctant to embrace the Liberal alternative. Amid the worst recession in 60 years, the coalition's primary vote also fell.

With more (Don 80 per cent of the primary vote counted last night, Mr Cleary had 34.3 per cent. Labor's Mr Bill Kardamltsis 29.5 per cent (down 19.2 per cent), and the Liberal Party's Mr John Delacretaz 27 per cent (down 7.5 per cent). The Australian) Democrat vote also slumped 7.5 per cent to only 2.1 per cent at the expense of Jhe Cleary campaign. Despite a record 22 candidates and the high non-English speaking proportion of the electorate, the Informal vote only accounted for 6.7 per cent Mr Cleary, 39, became only the second. Independent to be elected to the House of Representatives In 25 years.

He joins Mr Ted Mack, who took the seat of North Sydney from the Liberals In 1990. "We have defied the might of the Canberra political machine to win one of the greatest victories in Australian political life," Mr Cleary told a packed victory party at the Coburg Football Club last night The unorthodox Geary campaign topped the ballot at more than 20 of the 37 polling booths in the electorate, which covers more than 75,000 voters. Although the Opposition Leader, Dr John Hewson, has ruled out any retreat from the planned goods and services tax, the result will bring pressure to review key aspects of coalition policy. Including protection and immigration. At the very least, there will be pressure for what one source described as a "major re-think of the selling But the collapse of Labor's primary vote also represents a major setback for the Prime Minister, Mr Paul Keating, with voters effectively telling the major parties there Is "a plague on both your Dr Hewson said Mr Cleary, a popu That's my boy! Ron Cleary congratulates punctuated by an 18-hour diet of several packets of Benson and Hedges cigarettes, no food and the occasional beer.

Last night the Coburg coach, ABC football commentator, newspaper columnist and on-leave history and poll-tics teacher spoke proudly of his 1 Claary, Philip "independent: 20,180 vDolacretaz, John 15,852 Kardamltsis, Bill ALP: 17.340 Savage, Katheryne Independent: 1499 David McKay Democrat: 1227 Vote counted: 63,066 TIIE REACTION Pad Keating: 'The ALP can take heart that the Right wing Ideology of Dr Hewson was rejected in a byeiectton which should have been a certainty for the Liberal Party. The Important message is that people won't cop Dr Hewson's 15 per cent consumption Dr John Hewson: 'Paul Keating has tost Labor's heartland to a popular local football hero. This spells massive defeat for Labor in a general election backbenchers tonight must be 'wondering if they made the right 'decision when they dumped Hawke for Joan Kknsf: 'There Is no joy for Hewson and the GST working people have rejected both. The result Is much more damaging for Jeff Kermett and John Hewson than Labor, they only have Ftghtback to go on. I see PhD Cleary as Independent Labor, a representative of working INSIDE a Michael Gordon's analysis.

8: Ted Mack on the rise of Independents. P9: Exit poll. Mr Cleary goes to Canberra. That's the way to win! By Caroline Wilson AN emotional Phil Cleary last night chose the scene of his past triumphs to claim a historic political victory. Shortly after 8.30 pm the local VFA hero climbed a chair in the Coburg Football Club's function room and announced that he had won the federal seat of Wills.

Then he stepped down into the arms of his father Ron, a retired Coburg butcher, who demanded of his son: "Do you remember me? Do you know who I am?" The moment marked the end of Mr Cleary's longest wait a wait which began when he awoke at 4 am yesterday after a fitful sleep, and which was By Ben Holgate and Paul Daley POLICE believe the killer of missing schoolgirl Karmein Chan executed her by shooting her several times In the head. Police yesterday continued their search for the rest of the skeletal remains of the body, which police sources were confident was Kr-meln's. It was found buried In a shallow grave In a remote paddock in Thomastown on Thursday. It Is a year tomorrow since Karmein, then 13, was snatched from her parents' electronically secured Templestowe home by a masked man with a knife. Police have dubbed him 'Mr Cruel.

Karmein's godfather, Mr Darryl Kerr, said Mrs Chan was resting last night after being told about the body on Friday. He said the discovery might make it easier for the Chans to get on with their lives. "Of course It's a terrible find, but it could make it easier for them, particularly the mother It's aet a good discovery but It could make It easier because we mightn't have to agonise any more about whether she Is alive," Mr Kerr said. Mr Kerr was shocked by the injuries to the body. "I can't understand why anybody would shoot a 13-year-old girl, like Karmein, three times In the head," he said.

"I could understand, perhaps, If this person needed a gun If he was keeping a big man who was a threat to him. But a 13-year-old girl? It's so pointless, distressing. The whole thing Is very hard te believe." The head of the homicide squad. Detective Chief Inspector Peter Halloran, said last night: "It Is outrageous that a young girl has been executed In this fashion." The Homicide Squad Is working closely with the It-member Spectrum taskforce, which was established to Investigate Karmein's abduction and that of Sharon Wills, It, and Nicola Lynas, 13, by Mr Cruel. Karmein and Nicola attended the same school, Presbyterian Ladles College, in Burwood.

The taskforce has recently concentrated its Investigations on where Mr Cruel might be living la Melbourne. a Continued P2 VERTICAL BLINDS EIGHT VERTICAL HINDS FOR I WINDOWS A mother waits: Phyllis Chan, nursing a spark of hope, has left her daughter's room untouched since Karmein was abducted 12 months ago. nctaw wavm ludscy Fairlie Arrow signs $lm record deal ma of CmII uatorthm bt desk and frvlc In town A HOUSEFUL OF ji FOR JUST ski By Andrew Masterson FURLIE Arrow, the Gold Coast singer who faked her own kidnapping last December, has landed a million-dollar contract through a Joint Australian-United States record deal. Record Industry sources said this week that Ms Arrow, 27, had signed a joint-venture deal between Sydney-based Laser Records and a Los Angeles company, Caliber. Ms Arrow Is still on remand over charges laid after she admitted she had fabricated a story about being kidnapped for two days In December, tied to a bed and then left bound and gagged on the side of the road.

She Is due to answer the charges In June. Ms Arrow's manager, Mr Graham Ford, would not confirm the record deal, saying he was still negotiating with an American company. saX Mdj)6uME: COST LOANS failing, home-loan LVwNJV Mr Gene Pearson, head of Laser Records, was happy to talk about the arrangement "I signed up Fairlie Arrow to a joint venture In Los Angeles because no one In Australia would touch her," he said. "She will leave Australia on 1 May and become a resident of the US. The recording agreement Is worth more than $1 million Australian.

The American company is called Caliber." Ms Arrow's record deal represents an enormous boost to her fortunes. Until she pulled her kidnap hoax she was virtually unknown outside the Gold Coast circuit It was thought highly unlikely that even well-known Australian country artists such as Slim Dusty could command as much money for a first American album. Ms Arrow was not available for comment A Gold Coast police officer, when told that she would be going to live In the United States, said: "Thank God for that That's where she deserves to live." i. v. Hllmm 44.

TonvMnw Ithl Mmi atainM warm. tXAMfUtga LOUNGE 100 1 2000 DINiWQ 1400 1 2000 FAMILY 1400 12000 KITCHEN 1200 1200 BEDROOM 1 1 400 1 100 BCDHOOM3 1001400 BEDROOM 3 1400 11400 LAUHOWV 4001400 RSMWN (OH ti -fill frtrtss 471-Ktl FEARS FOR BISHOP GREEN LABELS OUT LOWER HEAD OFFICE: 61 loroflla R4, loreala 702-3008 TitttsttriM 336-ltM turn tM-iiai arTLI Friends fear that Bishop Owen DowNng may never recover from the distress caused by the storm that broke around him this week. a Report, P3 The State Government plans to ban "green" product labels and use of advertising claims such as "errvircmientally friendly." a Report, PS With inflation Interest rates are likely to drop by another half a percentage point early next month. a Report, PtI rw CMrintM M34641 ZjT Oiiimm 712-1223 77 -lit 412424 II Ur4w 3 mum, L-d au ft A 7M4J 1.