Category: Australia

The coronavirus cluster on Sydney’s northern beaches has grown to 83 cases, as record numbers of people come forward for testing in NSW.

More than 38,500 people were swabbed for the virus in the 24 hours to 8:00pm yesterday, with 15 new local infections recorded.

While the number of new cases is significantly lower than the 30 found in the previous reporting period, Premier Gladys Berejiklian said: “Unfortunately, one day’s results doesn’t tell us it’s a trend.”

She said authorities were monitoring the situation “on an hourly basis” and that they would on Wednesday morning provide an update as to what restrictions would be in place for Christmas.

“I would love to be able to tell everybody today what Christmas might look like in New South Wales or the northern beaches, but we’re not in a position to do that yet,” she said.

The cluster first emerged last week, and has already swollen to be the state’s second biggest since July.

It has surpassed other outbreaks at the Crossroads Hotel (57 cases) and several funeral services at Bankstown (76 cases), and is closing in on the Thai Rock restaurant (114 cases).

Ms Berejiklian said contact tracers would be adding more infected venues to Sydney’s already extensive list today.

The Premier was cautiously optimistic that the number of new cases had decreased when compared to the previous two days.

“But as we know in a pandemic, things can be volatile and can move quickly,” she said.

Health Minister Brad Hazzard said contact-tracing efforts had been hampered by people who had lied when checking in to venues.

“What we are finding is that some of the visitors to various venues still think that it is funny to be caught putting in there that you’re Donald Duck or Mickey Mouse or a false phone number. That must stop,” he said.

“This is a worldwide COVID pandemic and thinking it’s smart to call yourself Donald Duck or Mickey Mouse is about as stupid as it gets. So that must cease.”

The Premier also scolded people who thought they were being funny.

“We do have, I believe, one of the best if not the best contact tracing team on the planet. But they can’t contact trace people if they don’t have the details,” she said.

It’s not a normal Christmas gift you’d find under a tree, but one Tasmanian family were shocked to discover a snake hiding amongst presents.

Felicity Richardson, from Glenlusk on Hobart’s outskirts, was woken by her barking dogs around 1:00am on Monday.”I got up to them all under the Christmas tree, I assumed it was a mouse or rabbit,” she said.

Ms Richardson said she moved her dogs — Roxy, Oreo and DJ — to another area of the house and then grabbed her largest pot from the kitchen.

“I put it over the snake and then woke my daughter … she absolutely loves snakes and would have been devastated if she missed out,” she said.

Ms Richardson and her 13-year-old daughter Ella slid chopping boards under the pot to move the venomous copperhead snake to a larger container while they waited for advice from reptile experts.

“[I had to take] some time to gather my thoughts, calm myself and get my adrenalin in check,” she said.”She suggested Santa finally came through with the goods, and delivered her a snake under the tree, to which I replied, ‘I don’t think so buddy!’”

Justin Kneebone from Reptile Rescue Tasmania said it wasn’t the first time they’ve been called out to a snake under a Christmas tree.”If snakes are out in the heat, they’ll try and seek shelter wherever they can,” he said.

“On really hot days, we don’t have much activity during the day, it is more early morning and when the sun goes down.”

Mr Kneebone said due to the size of the snake, he advised the family to keep the reptile confined until a ranger could arrive.

“A little copperhead is totally different to a large tiger snake,” he said.

“I just gave them some advice on how to safely confine it, but it isn’t something we recommend people do all the time.”

He said a ranger came to collect and relocate the snake later that morning.

“When the weather has been nice, it is not unusual for the phones to start ringing from early in the morning and going right through to evening.

“We receive between 40 to 50 calls a day, if not more.”abcnews

Labor’s foreign affairs spokeswoman Penny Wong wants Australia to respond calmly and strategically in the face of deliberate provocation by China.

Mr Morrison described it as “repugnant” and called for it to be deleted, but China’s foreign affairs ministry has not backed down.

Senator Wong said the community was “united” in condemnation of the post, but added that a careful response was required.

“What we need to do, and what we should do, is to respond calmly and strategically, and not be emotional in what is obviously a deliberate — in relation to what was a deliberate — provocation,” she said.

“It’s very important that we respond in a very calm and measured way and make very clear what we believe is acceptable.”

She said Australia needed to work with international partners to enforce the “standards of behaviour we want for the region and the world”, and she suggested the USA’s incoming Joe Biden administration would provide an opportunity to improve relations.

Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese supported the Prime Minister’s comments yesterday.

As the diplomatic stand-off continues, other senior Labor figures have laid out how they believe Australia needs to respond.

Labor’s defence spokesman Richard Marles said he wouldn’t have expected such a reaction from China, and said Australia needed to reset the relationship between Canberra and Beijing.

“It is important that we make our voice heard clearly, in a dignified way, but I think that’s what has happened in the last 24 hours,” he told Radio National.

He said he had been critical of the Government’s recent handling of the relationship, but said he welcomed recent steps to “reduce the temperature”.

“It is important that we attempt, when it comes to national security, when it comes to strategic policy, that there is a Team Australia approach,” he said.

He called on the Government to articulate a set of guiding principles underpinning the relationship with China.

Former Labor leader Bill Shorten accused China of behaving like a bully and encouraged Australia to hold its ground.

“Perhaps China feels they can be the big authority, the big power, but I think they’ve underestimated our resolve,” he said on Nine’s Today Show.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said her Government had contacted China about the fake image.”Our concern over the use of that image was that it was an unfactual post and of course that would concern us, that’s something that we’ve raised directly in the way that New Zealand does when we have such concerns,” she said. Liberal senator James Paterson said Australia’s relationship with China would get worse before it got better, but said tensions would pass eventually.

“This will be a test of our national resilience, it is going to be a difficult period ahead in China-Australia relations and unfortunately a very lucrative trading relationship which has benefited both sides is going to be disrupted,” he said.

“All we’ve sought to do is stand up for ourselves and protect our own interests.”

ANU professor of strategic studies Hugh White said the Government’s response yesterday had been “understandable … but I’m not sure it’s an effective one”.

He said it was important in diplomacy, especially amid heightened tensions, not to respond in anger.

“I can understand [the Prime Minister’s] anger but I think you always end up risking looking a bit rattled and weak,” he told RN, adding the Prime Minister doesn’t “have his messages sorted out”.

Australia Post’s chief executive has stood aside pending a review into the gifting of the four watches, which cost around $8,000 more than previously stated.

Four luxury watches bought for Australia Post executives cost almost double the amount disclosed to parliament, it’s been revealed.Australia Post chief executive Christine Holgate stood aside on Thursday pending a review into the gifting of four Cartier watches for senior staff, which a Senate estimates committee heard cost $12,000. But on Friday evening, Australia Post chair Lucio Di Bartolomeo said the watches – which cost $7,000, $4,750, $4,400 and $3,800 – actually totaled $19,950.The Cartier watches had been given to senior staff as a reward for a deal to do banking in post offices.

Mr Di Bartolomeo also said the Australia Post board did not sign off on the watches, as had been suggested by Ms Holgate.

“The board was advised at today’s meeting that a check of board papers and minutes from this period show the then-board was not asked to approve or note the purchase of those Cartier watches,” he said.

“The board was further advised today that these papers and minutes do not record any subsequent reference to the purchase.”

Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Friday put all government-owned businesses and agencies on notice that luxury gifts and above-limit expense claims wouldn’t be tolerated, after it was also revealed ASIC chairman James Shipton had stood aside pending an investigation into $118,000 in expenses, which he has pledged to pay back.

His deputy Dan Crennan has also committed to paying back $70,000 in expenses.

“Let’s see. But I think there wouldn’t be a board member of a government agency or a CEO of a government agency that did not get my message yesterday,” he said.

“I think they got it with a rocket.

“And so my advice to them is to get it.”

Mr Morrison said the watches would not have passed any test with the Australian public.

“Companies that are owned by the government, I believe, through their board and their management executives, will be held to that standard, and I think I applied that very firmly yesterday.”

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said people were right to be angry.

“Christine Holgate obviously has come from the private sector and that might be an acceptable way to provide a bonus or reward to staff,” Mr Dutton said.

“But in Australia Post where you’re talking essentially about taxpayer dollars, the Australian government, the Australian people are the shareholders in Australia Post, then it’s unacceptable.”

Mr Marles accused the chairman of the board of making the call on the watches and the board of backing his decision.

“This is a board packed full of Liberal mates and there does need to be action in relation to the board,” he said.

Rodney Boys, the chief financial officer of the government-owned business, will act in the chief executive role during the investigation by the federal communications and finance departments, supported by an external law firm.

The Senate estimates hearing was told the total value of Australia Post incentives was $97.4 million in the 2019/20 financial year.

More than $60 million flowed to 2,500 employees involved in the corporate incentive plan, ranging from senior staff to general managers.

A further $21.6 million was “thank you” payments for frontline workers including posties, drivers and processors, while $5.6 million was spent on gift cards for contractors and licensees.

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A TEENAGER is in hospital after being bitten by a shark while surfing at Town Beach in Port Macquarie on Monday morning.

The 13-year-old was surfing just off the reef on Town Beach at about 6am on November 2 when the incident occurred.The species of the shark has not yet been confirmed, but head lifeguard James Turnham who was on the beach when Ambulance NSW paramedics treated the teen, said it could have been a small reef shark or bull shark.”He wasn’t that far out. The waves are only breaking about 30-40 metres out this morning,” Mr Turnham said.”He was in the centre of the beach near the rocks where there is a bit of a reef.”It has made a mess of his ankle and there was a small bite to his finger. It wasn’t life threatening.

“He was in a bit of shock.”

There were surfers along the length of the beach to the breakwall this morning. It is believed the boy’s mother called out for help from other surfers when she realised what had happened.

Ambulance NSW Paramedics were called and treated the teen on the beach before transporting him to Port Macquarie Base Hospital.

He had bites to his ankle, upper leg and finger.”Amazingly, he was in fairly good spirits when our crew arrived and local surf lifesavers did a great job looking after him when he first came out of the water,” NSW Ambulance inspector Susan George said.

“The patient was treated by paramedics at the scene before being transported to Port Macquarie Base Hospital in a stable condition.”I’d say this young man will have a few stories to tell his mates when he’s well enough to return to school!”

Lifeguards have now closed Town Beach.

Mr Turnham said the beach is likely to be closed for the rest of the day.A small, clean swell is coming through on Town Beach but a larger swell is expected to hit the region’s southern beaches today.

Posted by Meryem Aydogan

Four very special guests from four corners of the world came together on Tuesday 25 August to talk about the Erdocide: Erdogan’s Neo-Modern Societal Genocide, on Advocate’s for Dignity’s second human rights themed webinar.

With four very different timezones in play, former Turkish Naval Officer, Huseyin Demirtas; former Head of Department of Public Management at Adiyaman University, Dr Bayram Erzurumluoglu; founder of Global Dialogue for Justice Dr Merj Hemp, and Australia’s very own, former executive producer of ABC Four Corners, Dr Peter Manning, led an eye-opening discussion on the meaning of societal genocide and its prevalence in modern day Turkey.

Since the failed coup attempt in Turkey in 2016, Turkey’s AKP government declared a state of emergency to purge more than 1 million of its citizens. Over one hundred thousand people were arrested on terrorism charges, with those dismissed from their jobs made to live in an open-air prison. The stigma made it difficult to find employment, leaving many in dire financial situations. Some chose to flee whilst others continue to live on family handouts without a job, a future and with withering optimism.

President of Advocates for Dignity, Mr Mehmet Saral, opened the webinar by stating that calling the unlawful crackdown in Turkey a genocide may appear too harsh, as the traditional definition of genocide is the deliberate killing of a large number of people, particularly those of a particular race or ethnicity. As ethnic groups are not being murdered, how can we call what is happening in Turkey a genocide, he asked.

To answer this question, Dr Bayram explained the theory of ‘societal genocide’. He stated that genocide is the implementation of a massive and systematic plan of action intended to destroy all or part of a social group or groups, and is a process that requires preparation, legitimisation and consensus.

“Societal genocide is a form of crime against humanity. It is when you intend to destroy all or part of a social group, along with their friends, relatives, acquaintances or anyone who sympathises or empathises with them, as is happening in Turkey with the Gulenists, many Kurds and other dissidents of President Erdogan,” he said.

“Atrocities committed by political Islamists in Turkey, as part of Erdogan’s regime, is termed ‘societal genocide’ firstly because the regime planned, prepared, legitimised and socially engineered majority of the public’s consent to the atrocities committed as part of its political Islamist ideology, similar to ISIS and the Taliban,” he continued.

“Secondly, they have labelled, targeted, and victimised thousands of innocent people for crimes that either did not exist or were not committed, on the basis of government blacklists prepared weeks, months or years in advance. Targeted populations were so demonised or dehumanised that husbands, wives, children, parents, siblings, and friends could also be targeted or punished for simply being acquainted with labelled ‘criminals’ or ‘terrorists’.”

These steps, which form part of what Dr Bayram calls Turkey’s neo-patrimonial-sultanism regime, are tightly aligned with Gregory Stanton’s ‘10 Stages of Genocide’.

Huseyin Demirtas, who was unfairly dismissed by Erdogan’s bureaucracy after serving in the Turkish Navy for twenty-two years, authored the book ‘Erdocide: The Creepiest Human Trauma’, based on the concept of social genocide in Turkey.

He elaborated on this concept, stating, “First they produce a privileged clan, they produce blacklists to use as genocidal execution lists under the regime, then they silence the media and society. The privileged clan has absolute power in the state and decide the detainments, purges and dismissals that take place, whether the alleged terrorism crimes really took place or not.”

“Erdocide is a symbolic name… They are killing socially, civilly, economically… they are blocking economic channels from reaching people to survive in society. They are using prisons as concentration camps. They are preventing medical care from reaching those in custody,” he continued.

Dr Merj Kemp, who joined the webinar from the Sunshine State of Florida, reflected on the political turbulence in Turkey based on her own experiences of growing up under a brutal, marshal law in the Philippines.

“Injustice is not new to me, in the Philippines and here in the USA… During the People Power Revolution in the Philippines, every sector of society said enough of dictatorship, killings and torture. People from all walks of life set aside their differences and said we have to topple this dictator,” she said.

“Nuns, farmers, students, and military officers… in the end they realised they need to side with the right side of justice and history and that happened only because they made that commitment to work together.”

She concluded the webinar with an encouraging message: “I think there is hope for Turkey. It is just a matter of time before the people of Turkey say enough is enough.”

The NSW Government has tightened the screws on restricting travel from Victoria, advising people returning from Melbourne’s coronavirus hotspots to self-isolate for two weeks.

The advice from NSW Health comes amid escalating concerns over a second wave of infections, and rising rates of community transmission in Melbourne this month.

As NSW begins to roll back restrictions next month, the State Government has also moved to bar Victorians from Sydney sporting events.

From July 1, up to 10,000 people will be allowed into NSW stadiums which have 40,000 seats or more — but Melburnians will not be allowed to attend.

NSW Health Minister, Brad Hazzard, said the NRL and AFL had assured him in a call they would not sell tickets to Victorians.

“If you’re living in NSW and you’re a supporter of Hawthorn — which would have to be questioned anyway — you can go to the games,” he said.

“If you’re a [Melbourne] Storm supporter and you’re a NSW resident you can go.

“But for the time being, the best thing people in the Melbourne hotspots can do … don’t expect to be able to come because they’re not selling tickets to you and we don’t want you to come.”

NSW chief medical officer Kerry Chant said travellers returning from Victoria should take “precautionary steps” which included avoiding contact with people in vulnerable communities such as hospitals and aged-care facilities.

Returned travellers should also “avoid gatherings outside their immediate household for a period of 14 days”.

“It’s just prudent we take this extra level of precaution for people returning from those hotspots,” Dr Chant said.

“And again, I would urge you not to go to Melbourne until the situation is controlled.”

This morning, the number of COVID-19 fatalities in NSW rose to 51 after an 85-year-old man’s cause of death was reclassified. abcnews

The Australian government on Friday announced a 5 million Australian dollars ($3.7 million) grant to the national news agency as part of pandemic-related assistance to regional journalism.

Australian Associated Press is critical to media diversity and has consistently demonstrated its commitment to accurate, fact-based and independent journalism over its 85-year history, including a strong contribution to regional news, Communications Minister Paul Fletcher said in a statement.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has triggered unprecedented challenges for Australia’s regional media sector, with severe declines in advertising revenue threatening the sustainability of many news outlets,” Fetcher said.

AAP provides services to more than 250 regional news mastheads across Australia, covering public interest content on national, state and regional news. This allows regional mastheads to concentrate on local news stories important for their communities, he said.

AAP Chair Jonty Low and Chief Executive Emma Cowdroy welcomed the funding as an “endorsement of the role that AAP plays in providing a key piece of Australia’s democratic Infrastructure.”

“AAP provides content to hundreds of newspapers and radio stations, most of which are in regional areas, who couldn’t possibly each send journalists to cover what happens in our nation’s capital cities, our courts or our sporting fields,” the executives said in a joint statement.

Opposition communications spokeswoman Michelle Rowland said federal funding should have been provided months ago.

“Why has it taken over five months for this government to respond when things are down to the wire?” she asked.

Earlier this week, three senators who are not aligned with major parties — Jacqui Lambie, Rex Patrick and Stirling Griff — wrote to Prime Minister Scott Morrison urging him to support AAP.

They argued that funding should be provided annually for three years to ensure AAP stays afloat beyond the coronavirus economic crisis.

The funding announced Friday is a one-off grant under the Public Interest News Gathering Program, which began in May to help media organizations maintain public interest journalism in regional areas during the pandemic.

The government has now invested AU$55 million ($40 million) through the program into AAP as well as 107 regional publishers and broadcasters. But scores of rural newspaper have shut their doors.

Details of the AAP agreement will be published within three weeks of the deal being executed.

AAP was bought by a consortium of philanthropist investors in July after its previous shareholders, including Australia’s largest media companies, announced in March that they planned to shut it down by June.

A scaled-down AAP continues without the AU$10 million ($7.3 million) a year in revenue it had earned from its largest previous shareholders, News Corp Australia and Nine Entertainment Co.

Regional Victoria will move to step three of its coronavirus reopening plan from Thursday, meaning sitting in a restaurant, meeting up to 10 people outdoors, kids’ sport and travelling for a holiday will all be allowed.

But masks will remain mandatory and there will still be tight restrictions on the number of people who can visit you at home.

Premier Daniel Andrews said the changes were possible because the daily average for new cases in regional Victoria was down to 3.6 and there had been no mystery cases for two weeks.

“I am absolutely delighted to be able to announce that regional Victoria, from 11:59pm tomorrow [Wednesday] night, will be able to take the third step in our safe and steady road map to COVID-normal,” Mr Andrews said.

“It’s a massive thing. It is such good news. I am so, so pleased and proud of every single regional Victorian who has stayed the course, followed the rules, got tested.”

Here’s what’s changing from 11:59pm on Wednesday.

There will no longer be any restrictions on the reasons to leave home.

You can go out as often as you want.

But there are still some restrictions on who you can meet and the size of the gathering — so no big parties just yet.

You can meet up to 10 people outdoors and create a household bubble with one nominated household.

Up to five people from that nominated household can then visit you at home (kids under 12 months of age are not included in the cap).

You can only choose one household to be in your bubble for as long as regional Victoria remains in the third step.

And this is where it might get awkward. It has to be “an exclusive arrangement”, meaning if another household chooses you to be in their bubble, you can’t choose a different household to be in your bubble. It has to be reciprocal.

It’s even more complicated for share houses.

Your share house can only choose one other household to be in its bubble. Each resident cannot create their own bubble.

Hospitality will be able to offer table service again.

Cafes and restaurants can seat people in groups of up to 10, but it will be subject to density limits and seating will be mostly outdoors.

Mr Andrews said there would be a two-hour time limit on all bookings.

Indoor spaces will be limited to 10 patrons, subject to a density rule of 4 square metres per person.

A maximum of two separate indoor spaces will be allowed to open per venue, meaning larger venues could seat a total of 20 patrons indoors — 10 in each room.

But outdoor areas will be allowed to seat more people and have them closer together.

“The risk of infection is dramatically higher inside,” Mr Andrews said.

The maximum number of patrons in an outdoor area will be 50, subject to a density rule of one person per 2 square metres.

Tables will need to be 1.5m apart.

Retail, real estate and beauty services

All shops can open.

Hairdressers, tattoo parlours and beauty services can resume as long as a face covering can be worn during the procedure.

“Every single business across regional Victoria will be required to have a COVID-safe plan and those plans will be enforced from September 28,” Mr Andrews said.

Real estate agents can conduct private inspections and hold auctions outdoors, but there will be limits on how many people can attend.

People in regional Victoria will be able to travel to other regions and book accommodation.

But travel to Melbourne is not allowed until both metro and regional areas are on the same restriction level.

With the weather warming up, many people are asking about campgrounds with shared bathrooms and national parks, but the Premier didn’t have a definitive answer on that at this morning’s press conference.

“I’m not sure where we’ve settled on where and when. I’ll come back to you with some rules,” he said.

“Lots of detail will need to come forward in the next 12 hours.”

Weddings will be allowed with up to 10 people. That cap includes the couple, two witnesses and a celebrant.

Funerals can be held with up to 20 people but infants and people required to conduct the funeral are not included in the limit.

Outdoor skateparks will reopen.

Bootcamps and other outdoor fitness groups can be held with up to 10 people.

Outdoor junior sport is also allowed, for both contact and non-contact sports.

But for adults, only non-contact outdoor sport is allowed. Gathering and density limits will apply.

Mr Andrews said regional Victorians had done “a mighty job” to get case numbers down.

There were no new cases recorded in regional Victoria yesterday, and there are now just 43 active cases.

“This is a day of hope and optimism. This strategy is working,” Mr Andrews said.

“It has worked in regional Victoria. It is working in metropolitan Melbourne.”

Mr Andrews said public health teams would monitor regional Victoria closely and use the data “to inform the early steps and subsequent steps that we will take in metropolitan Melbourne”.

“This is a big step … but it is a safe step,” Mr Andrews said.

“And one that can strike that balance between more economic activity, more money in the till, more people back at work, but not risking having to close down again, not risking frittering away all the hard work that regional Victorians have done.”

Premier Gladys Berejiklian has apologised “unreservedly” for the “unimaginable loss” suffered by people because of NSW Health’s handling of the coronavirus outbreak on the Ruby Princess cruise ship.

A report handed to the NSW Government on Friday identified “serious”, “inexcusable” and “inexplicable” oversights by NSW Health.

The Premier said she was sorry for those who continue to suffer loss or trauma as a result of the outbreak on board the cruise ship.

Ms Berejiklian claimed the incident was isolated.

“I say not only have lessons been learnt, but clearly those circumstances should and will never happen again in New South Wales,” she said.

The Ruby Princess docked at Circular Quay in March, and passengers were allowed to disembark despite several passengers exhibiting flu-like symptoms.

“I can’t imagine what it would be like having a loved one or being someone yourself who continues to suffer and experience trauma as a result,” she said.

“I want to apologise unreservedly to anybody who is continuing to suffer, or has suffered unimaginable loss because of mistakes that were made within our health agencies.”

The Premier was responding for the first time to the report from the Special Commission of Inquiry into the Ruby Princess which identified “serious”, “inexcusable” and “inexplicable” mistakes by NSW Health.

But the report by Bret Walker SC made few recommendations saying health authorities had recognised mistakes made, and would “do things differently if they had their time again”.

The Premier said all of the recommendations would be implemented and that the NSW Government would work with federal agencies involved to strengthen protocols.

Ms Berejiklian said she wanted to stress that Mr Walker’s report found there weren’t systemic issues and had there been, she would have taken action.

“He has full confidence in those agencies continuing to work on the pandemic and I think we can say, since that time we have learnt a lot,” she said.

The inquiry was established in April after thousands of passengers were allowed to leave the cruise liner at the conclusion of two separate voyages in March.

In the weeks that followed, 663 passengers tested positive to COVID-19 in Australia and overseas and 28 people died.

NSW chief health officer Kerry Chant said staff from her office had given evidence “frankly” to the inquiry and had “identified in hindsight they would have made a different decision”.

She staff at the time were under “immense stress” and were dealing with a large number of locally acquired COVID-19 cases at the time.

“It was a very, very busy time and … I don’t provide that as an excuse for the actions, but I think that it is important that we understand the context at the time.”

NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller said that a criminal investigation into what happened was still underway.

But he hasn’t given any timeframe as to if and when charges will be laid.

“There are tens of thousands of documents that have been sourced. There are surveys and interviews. I think there’s 1,200 people so far that have given interviews.”abcnews