Australia and Oceania news and discussions

[wjfox]

Climate-threatened Tuvalu holds election closely watched by China and Taiwan

Fri January 26, 2024

Voting began on Friday in the tiny Pacific island nation of Tuvalu in a national election that is being closely watched by China, Taiwan, the United States and its ally Australia, amid a tussle for influence in the region.

Tuvalu, with a population of about 11,200 spread across nine islands, has campaigned at international conferences for greater action to help low-lying nations address climate change, because science shows its capital Funafuti risks being inundated by tides by 2050.

Most of Tuvalu is forecast to be flooded by high tides by 2100, says the United Nations Development Programme, which is working with Tuvalu to bolster its coastline.

A contest for influence in the Pacific between China and the United States has seen Tuvalu courted, with Washington recently pledging to connect its remote population by undersea cable to global telecommunications for the first time.

Tuvalu is one of three remaining Pacific allies of Taiwan, after Nauru cut ties this month and switched to Beijing, which pledged more development support.

https://edition.cnn.com/2024/01/26/asia ... index.html

[caltrek]

Australia vs. Rupert Murdoch
by Sean Kelly
January 29, 2024

Introduction:

(Mother Jones) Six years ago, Australia held a nationwide vote on gay marriage. During the brutal campaign, Sydney-based author Benjamin Law published a long essay accusing Rupert Murdoch’s media empire of stoking a “moral panic” over a program safeguarding queer kids from bullying. Then he waited for the blowback. He knew it was not a question of whether the operation would retaliate but how. Soon after, he got an email from a journalist at one of Murdoch’s papers, asking for his reaction to a story they were writing about him. He felt dread. “You know that things are going to get really hairy.”

Around the world, Murdoch’s publications are known for maliciously pursuing their enemies. The technique is known as “monstering,” and the British journalist Nick Davies has likened it to the way “muggers in back alleys use their boots, to kick a victim to pulp.” Sometimes, these targets have earned attention by doing something egregious. Just as often they have simply picked the wrong side of a culture war. The simplest, most reliable way to signal you have made this regrettable mistake is by publicly criticizing Murdoch or his outlets.

As far as News Corp is concerned, it is merely holding people to account, the way other media companies do. This seems hard to square with how little pretext is required to justify the attacks. In Law’s case, he had recently tweeted, as a joke, “Sometimes find myself wondering if I’d hate-f*ck all the anti-gay MPs in parliament if it meant they got the homophobia out of their system.” Murdoch’s national broadsheet The Australian contacted members of the government for their reactions to the tweet, published their scathing comments, and editorialized against Law. Meanwhile, some of Murdoch’s biggest tabloids ran columns slamming him; one described him as a “bottom-feeding blogger.” The predictable onslaught had its predictable effect: “Just being a minority person in the public eye, you’re going to get threats and harassment and abuse,” Law told me. “That’s par for the course, but it really ratcheted up in terms of volume and intensity.” He worried for his safety. There was shame too: Law was privately criticized by allies who blamed the tabloid reporting for hurting the gay marriage campaign.

Read more here: https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2 ... ominion/

[weatheriscool]

[weatheriscool]

[wjfox]

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[wjfox]

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[firestar464]

More on that by CBC:

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/papua-new ... -1.7215586

[weatheriscool]

[wjfox]

New Zealand, once a utopia for Trump-weary exiles, turns to the right

The populist National-led government is undoing many of Jacinda Ardern’s progressive initiatives, including gun control and environmental protections.

July 2, 2024 at 5:00 a.m. EDT

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — After the debate between President Biden and Donald Trump turned disastrous for the incumbent Thursday, comedian Jon Stewart quipped on “The Daily Show” that he needed to “call a real estate agent in New Zealand.”

Stewart was riffing on some American liberals’ fantasy when Trump was last in power. Many talked of moving to New Zealand, a faraway place they viewed as utopian, with a progressive leader in Jacinda Ardern and natural beauty that was second to none. A significant number actually did: Data from the 2018 Census shows a jump in American-born residents in New Zealand of nearly 30 percent, or more than 6,000 people, compared with five years earlier.

Americans, like Stewart, looking for an escape hatch will find New Zealand a very different place this time around. Ardern is gone, and so too are her policies. This country is now led by a coalition of center-right, libertarian and populist lawmakers who have formed its most conservative government in decades.

“This is the sharpest political swing in a generation, the coalition is the most conservative I have seen in 30-odd years,” said Janet Wilson, a political commentator who previously worked for the mainstream conservative National Party, which leads the coalition government, and is now sharply critical of it.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/20 ... vGfodKiRiM

[firestar464]

I'd looked to it as a place to run to in case there was an imminent threat of nuclear war, but I've since calmed down about the possibility of that happening.

[Time_Traveller]

New Zealand PM suggests Australians are stupid in long-running war of words

6 hours ago



The removal of basic Māori phrases from an invitation to an Australian official was not a snub of the Indigenous language by New Zealand’s government, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has said, instead joking that it actually reflected the “incredibly simple” language required when speaking to Australians.

The prime minister appeared to indulge in a favorite pastime of New Zealanders, who enjoy a friendly rivalry with their closest neighbor: calling Australians stupid.

The jibe from Luxon comes after the removal of the Māori words from an invitation sent to Australia’s arts minister.

It was an attempt to rebuff criticism that his government is anti-Māori, as it seeks to reverse policies favoring Indigenous people and language.“In my dealings with Australians, it always pays to be incredibly simple and clear and use English,” Luxon said, referring to the invitation sent to Tony Burke.

Ripostes between lawmakers across the Tasman have precedent. In the most famous example, a New Zealand leader, Rob Muldoon, quipped in the 1980s that New Zealanders who migrate to Australia “raise the IQ of both countries.”

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/worl ... ments-area

[Time_Traveller]

Australians get 'right to disconnect' after hours

26 August 2024, 04:29 BST

A "right to disconnect" rule has come into effect in Australia, offering relief to people who feel forced to take calls or read messages from employers after they finish their day’s work.

The new law allows employees to ignore communications after hours if they choose to, without fear of being punished by their bosses.

A survey published last year estimated that Australians worked on average 281 hours of unpaid overtime annually.

More than 20 countries, mainly in Europe and Latin America, have similar rules.

The law does not ban employers from contacting workers after hours.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5y32g7203vo

[Time_Traveller]

New Zealand hikes tourist tax prompting warning

5 hours ago



New Zealand will steeply increase an entry tax for foreign tourists in a move some fear could deter visitors.

The cost of the International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy will near triple to NZ$100 (£47.20) from NZ$35 (£16.52) from 1 October.

The government said this is to help economic growth and “ensure visitors contribute to public services and high-quality experiences while visiting New Zealand".

But Tourism Industry Aotearoa - the country's independent tourism body - says the higher fee is a barrier to visitors, making it "incredibly expensive to visit".

The nation is famed for its Māori culture and dramatic scenery, including glaciers, mountains, volcanoes and lakes.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ckgwpkvl97eo

[weatheriscool]

[Powers]

GRN
Green

Lol.

[wjfox]

This seems insane.

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Australian territory resumes jailing 10-year-olds

3 hours ago

Children as young as 10 will soon be able to be jailed once again in Australia's Northern Territory (NT), after the government there lowered the age of criminal responsibility.

Australian states and territories have been under pressure to raise the age of criminal responsibility from 10 to 14, in line with other developed countries and UN advice.

Last year the NT became the first jurisdiction to lift it to 12, but the new Country Liberal Party government elected in August has said a reversal is necessary to reduce youth crime rates.

It has argued that returning the age to 10 will ultimately protect children - despite doctors, human rights organisations and Indigenous groups disputing that logic.

They say the research indicates the laws will not reduce crime and will disproportionately affect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cpqz8gyp500o

[Time_Traveller]

Not my King, Australian senator shouts at Charles

21 October 2024, 04:58 BST

King Charles faced shouts of "you are not my King" from an independent senator just after he finished an address at Australia's Parliament House on the second official day of his engagements in the country.

Lidia Thorpe interrupted the ceremony in the capital city of Canberra by shouting for about a minute before she was escorted away by security.

King had just walked away from a lectern to rejoin Queen Camilla sitting on the stage when Thorpe started shouting as she walked forwards from the back of the assembly.

After making claims of genocide against "our people", she could be heard yelling: "This is not your land, you are not my King."

The ceremony was then concluded without any reference to the incident, and the royal couple proceeded to meet the public who had waited outside the building to greet them.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c79n20r750po

Well the aboriginal senator isn't wrong there he isn't there King.