I will hate end up comparing Java and Perl, but at least some reactions:

6.where you see jaxp I see XML::Parser, XML::Simple and XML::Dom
To use XML::Parser in clean object oriented way is impossible. My heart screams and my mind blows when I must write something using XML::Parser. API is terrible. Implementation could be fine, but still, it is non-validating parser (AFAIK).
XML::Dom is just that: DOM. DOM is such an unuseable API that it is not used directly even in cumbersome languages like Java. Why use such a beast in elegant Perl? .. and XML::Simple is too simple. It has no deeper design behind it, or it just looks like. I used XML::Grove and was quite confident with it. Nice simple API, but unsupported and unfinished.
Now you have four APIs for the same thing, but none of them quite useable.

8.where you see java.text you realise how annoying string handling is in Java
Yes, you've got it. But ... how often do you need to process text in Java? Look at your best Perl OO code, how frequently do you use patterns?. Modern language needs good pattern library, there is no longer a need for patterns build into a language, when you use structured data all the time.

9.where you see java.rmi I see SOAP and its platform independance
Hah. I worked with SOAP::Lite quite a bit. Try to write your own dispatch routine there. Just try it. You end up with hacking the module because there is no other way. SOAP platform independence is fine, but you still need good (and standard!) languge binding for SOAP. And that is still missing in perl. Look at CORBA, example even older that the mere Web Services concept. You need standard languge binding, or you won't be able to switch ORBs. The same is true for SOAP.

And now, would you be so kind and point out to me any matured Perl API for one of these:

• XML Transformation
• Security services
• Directory access (not LDAP only, but generic)
• Enterprise messaging systems
• Web server API (some kind of generic mod_perl)
• Threading and synchronization (..wait till perl6?)
• Perl components (for visual programming)

It just seems to me, that Perl development is getting slower. Perl community is more traditional, more conservative and it doesn't like changes. But changes needs to be done.