By Kishor Napier-Raman and Noel Towell
Simeon Boikov, the pro-Putin propagandist hiding out in the Russian consulate and organising rallies against the Voice to parliament, could soon be forced to ditch his online alias ‘the Aussie Cossack’.
This week, Boikov was granted citizenship of the Russian Federation, according to a decree signed by President Vladimir Putin. An outspoken supporter of Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, Boikov has been living in the embassy for nearly a year, dodging arrest warrants and dreaming of the Kremlin returning him to Russia.
Last December he wrote to the consulate requesting Russian citizenship, claiming to be a “victim of persecution”.
Now, he seems to have got his wish. The Cossack celebrated the news on his Telegram channel with links to Russian news reports, where supporters compared him with Soviet-era dissident writer Alexander Solzhenitsyn. They’re not the brightest bunch.
But here’s where things get complicated. Russia doesn’t allow dual citizenship with Australia, meaning Boikov will have to choose his allegiance. And losing Australian citizenship doesn’t happen overnight – you’ve got to go through a process to renounce it, although you don’t have to tell the government you’ve acquired another passport.
Responding to questions about whether Boikov had renounced his citizenship, a spokesperson for the Department of Home Affairs told CBD they didn’t comment on individual cases.
“Unless it’s brought to the department’s attention, the department may not be aware of a person’s foreign citizenship acquisition,” they said.
Australians can acquire citizenship of another country without losing Australian citizenship, which seems to leave the Cossack in some kind of confusing limbo. Much like his extended stay in the embassy.
All this comes just a week after Russian ambassador Alexey Pavlovsky denied the regime was supporting Boikov in his attempts to undermine the Voice.
And while we doubt the war criminals in the Kremlin are too concerned with Australia’s Voice referendum, the timing of this latest announcement by Putin’s henchmen looks a little off.
TONY TIME
This week, more than 125 health organisations signed an open letter backing a Yes vote in the Indigenous Voice to Parliament referendum.
But the absence of the Australian Orthopaedic Association from the list did not go unnoticed.
Neither did the organisation’s decision to hold an online seminar for members with Tony Abbott on Thursday, with the former PM introduced as “an advisory member of the lobby group Advance Australia, which is supporting the No campaign”.
In an email to members, the association hinted it had tried to remain neutral throughout the whole thing.
“In the spirit of transparency for all members, we were approached externally for the Yes webinar with guest speaker Noel Pearson on September 14 and have responded to the request for a speaker from the No side.”
A spokesperson from the AOA pointed to its recent event with Pearson and told CBD the organisation “regularly conducts member webinars on issues of national importance”.
So it looks like the peak body representing Australia’s fabulously wealthy knee surgeons is determined to sit on the fence.
“AOA has not made a statement in regards to the Voice; it respects the values and beliefs of each member soon required to make their individual decision,” the email introducing Abbott said.
NIXING DIXON
On Thursday, CBD reported the NSW Liberals’ top pick for state director Luke Dixon’s history of bagging out Tony Abbott on Facebook had conservatives in the party seriously peeved.
Within hours Dixon was out, withdrawing from the role just a day before he was supposed to be anointed by the party’s state executive, in yet another shambolic turn for the Libs.
Dixon was meant to replace Chris Stone, who was meant to leave after the March election but has hung around during the protracted process of finding a replacement.
Dixon, who worked for AMP Capital, was approved for the top job by a three-person panel consisting of former Mackellar MP and state president Jason Falinski, NSW MP Mark Coure and retiring Senator Marise Payne.
But his (admittedly quite funny) roasts of Abbott, and the fact he was both a Victorian and an unknown entity, galvanised opposition, which all got a bit too much.
Frankly, it’s getting rather embarrassing.
PEACE IN OUR TIME
Rugby league’s glitterati descended on Royal Randwick on Wednesday night to witness a rare feel-good story for long-suffering Knights fans, as Newcastle fullbacks Kalyn Ponga and Tamika Upton took out the men’s and women’s Dally M medals.
And while the night lacked any proper league shenanigans (they’re waiting for the off-season, don’t you worry), CBD was intrigued by the presence of Rugby League Professionals Association chief executive Clint Newton among the crowd.
Just a month ago, a long, bitter pay dispute between the league bosses and the players’ union that Newton runs finally came to an end, with the parties agreeing to a new collective bargaining agreement.
Before that, things had got so sour between Newton and the NRL, top brass tried to sideline the union boss and league chief executive Andrew Abdo just to help reach a deal.
There was even talk back in July of the RLPA boycotting the Dally Ms altogether. But Newton’s presence on Wednesday was a sign peace had been reached.
MARGIN CALL
The career of sports administrator and businessman Andrew Newbold turned another corner on Thursday when the former Hawthorn footy club president and AFL commissioner called it quits on his four years as chairman of Golf Australia.
The organisation gave Newbold a glowing send-off, thanking him for his efforts which included helping to bring the sport’s two rival peak bodies – Golf Australia and the PGA of Australia – together under the same roof at the newish Australian Gold Centre in the swanky Melbourne bayside suburb of Sandringham.
It’s all happy families down there, these days, they reckon.
Newbold – who took a leave of absence from the footy commission amid the Hawthorn racism scandal and was cleared of any wrongdoing, and has been back at the AFL table since February – will be succeeded by former Bega cheese and Asahi beer executive Peter Margin, who helped helm the Japanese brewing giant’s takeover of Carlton and United.
Wrangling the nation’s golfers should be small beer after that.