Rioters Demand To Be Sent Home
Paul Maley & Paige Taylor; 31/8/10; (14 Items) Nearly 100 asylum-seekers intercepted since election day arrived at Christmas Island yesterday as Indonesian officials said a two-day riot inside Darwin’s immigration detention centre had been triggered by delays of up to nine months in charging the men. Up to 117 Indonesians continued a second day of […] read more…Vatican’s own goal
19/7/10; http://www.theage.com.au/national/letters/only-steps-have-been-backward-20100718-10fwp.html (3 Items) The Vatican has again excelled itself. Its declaration that paedophilia among priests and religious is a crime is at last one great positive step. But its declaration that it is a similar ”crime” for a priest to ordain a woman must rank as one of the most negative and insensitive steps […] read more…Australia can have stronger borders and a bigger heart
Tim Costello; 19/7/10; (12 Items) It is already clear that asylum seekers and ”stopping the boats” will be a critical element of this election. Yet the politics of asylum seekers is both deflating and confounding. Little wonder Immigration Minister Chris Evans, in an unguarded moment, reflected on his frustrations on the issue, which he said […] read more…Leading mental health expert Patrick McGorry visits Christmas Island
Paige Taylor; 19/7/10 – 6 Items Patrick McGorry, touched down on Christmas Island yesterday as a guest of the Department of Immigration and Citizenship. The leading mental health researcher, Australian of the Year and and outspoken critic of immigration detention centres, (he has described them as factories for mental illness), said he was there to “look and […] read more…NSW Government moves to control alcohol consumption
15/5/10 What are these? The NSW government is moving to grant itself sweeping powers to control alcohol consumption. Under changes introduced to state parliament yesterday, the government has moved to seize control of the opening hours of pubs, bars and clubs and give itself the power to impose measures such as lock-outs and service restrictions […] read more…Mulrunji Doomadgee tip-off spoils case
Jamie Walker;15/5/10; (3 Items) The investigation into the 2004 death in custody of Palm Island man Mulrunji Doomadgee was stripped of credibility because of a “perception of collusion” between local detectives and the policeman who caused the Aborigine’s fatal injuries. But Queensland Deputy Chief Magistrate Brian Hine, delivering the findings of the third coronial inquest […] read more…New laws crackdown on people smugglers
13/5/10 (2/Items) People smugglers will find it harder to ply their trade after parliament approved tough new laws. The Federal Government’s Bill, supported by the opposition, creates two new people smuggling crimes. Smuggling ventures to Australia that involve exploitation or the danger of serious harm or death will carry a maximum jail term of 20 […] read more…Literacy tackled in two languages
14/5/10; http://www.smh.com.au/national/education/literacy-tackled-in-two-languages-20100513-v1ud.html It is more than 2500 kilometres from Kempsey to Groote Eylandt, in the Gulf of Carpentaria, but the early childhood literacy work piloted in NSW is about to begin on the island … with one big difference.The preschoolers, aided by family and other community members, will be taught in both the Anindilyakwa language […] read more…Handback of park to traditional owners
Lex Hall; 14/5/10 In a ceremony not far from the site of the Northern Territory’s 1966 Wave Hill walk-off, Aboriginal traditional owners yesterday became joint managers of the culturally rich Gregory National Park. About 300 traditional owners gathered at Jasper Gorge, where Indigenous Affairs Minister Jenny Macklin handed over the deeds to the 1300 sq […] read more…Elderly detainee desperate
Yuko Narushima; 13/5/10 Australia’s longest-serving immigration detainee is a Chinese grandmother who is becoming more withdrawn each day her nine-year detention drags on. The once fashionable Hong Kong business woman panics when there’s a knock at her door. She suffers from severe anxiety and depression, owing to her fear of being deported to China and […] read more…Your fault, council tells James Hardie
Sarah Elks; 13/5/10 Ipswitch City Council has rejected James Hardie’s claims that the council is liable to pay compensation to former employees suffering from deadly illnesses caused by the company’s asbestos products. The Australian revealed in September that Amaca Pty Ltd – also known as James Hardie & Coy Pty Ltd – had sued the […] read more…Scientists document painted portals to a vanished past
Victoria Laurie; 12/5/10 Last year, archeologist Mike Morwood and rock art specialist June Ross took the ride of their lifetime across the northwest Kimberley. They hired a helicopter and flew across largely trackless territory, their pilot landing periodically in spots where he felt he could get his helicopter down safely and where they believed a […] read more…Aboriginal pupils in sharp focus in education plan
Anna Patty & Dn Harrison; 12/5/10; (2 Items) Teachers will need to learn how to teach Aboriginal children as part of their training before they can register to work in public and private schools under national plans to lift the standard of indigenous education. Education ministers have agreed to a revised blueprint on how they […] read more…Sex victims not to blame: judge
Adrian Love; 12/5/10 A Victorian Supreme Court judge has urged the victims and families of a piano tutor who molested 11 young girls not to blame themselves. Justice Paul Coghlan said yesterday it was important that people learn how the victims felt. through their victim impact statements. ”I’m a father, and a grandfather, and I’ve […] read more…You can die at sea, Tamils warned
Paige Taylor’ 12/5/10; (4 Items) A Sri Lankan asylum-seeker says his countrymen must learn that the long journey across the Indian Ocean is perilous. Since November last year, 17 Sri Lankans, including teenage brothers aged 13 and 14, have died in two separate incidents trying to reach Christmas Island. The survivors of the most recent […] read more…Row prompts review of dialysis services
Adam Cresswell; 11/5/10 Dialysis services for kidney patients in Central Australia are to be scrutinised in a joint governmental review following a barrage of criticism over indigenous patients being turned away from Alice Springs. The review, to be conducted by the commonwealth in conjunction with the governments of the Northern Territory, South Australia and Western […] read more…