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Red-carded Australian miner signals intention to play on in Greenland

Mongabay 12 July 2021: An Australian mining company hoping to build a vast open-cut rare earths and uranium mine on a mountain in southern Greenland has told shareholders it will persist with the project despite the mine having been rejected by the people of the Arctic nation. Publicly listed Greenland Minerals Limited has been working to develop … Continue reading

Environmental Defenders Under Pressure Across Southeast Asia

The Diplomat, 6 September 2018: A recent regional forum addressed the “global crisis” of killings and abuses linked to land. A lack of U.S. engagement is contributing to a “declining, dictatorial and more dangerous environment” in Southeast Asia, where the abuse of fundamental rights is increasing alongside the killing of land activists, Human Rights Watch … Continue reading

Call to depoliticise Murray Darling Basin management

Numurkah Leader, 21 February: THE Victorian Farmers Federation is calling for a depoliticisation of the Murray Darling Basin Plan after a vote in Canberra last week blocked changes proposed by the Basin Authority and prompted threats by Victoria and NSW to pull out of the $13 billion scheme. Victorian Farmers Federation Water Chair Richard Anderson … Continue reading

‘If it’s going to kill us, OK, we’ll die’: Villagers stand firm as Cambodian dam begins to fill

Mongabay 18 October 2017: On Sept. 25, amid a continuing crackdown on media, political opposition and civil society described by commentators as “a slide into dictatorship,” Prime Minister Hun Sen officially launched Cambodia’s biggest hydropower project. At the ceremony the gates were closed on the $800 million Lower Sesan 2 dam, a joint venture between China’s … Continue reading

International investors called to account for violence and oppression in Sarawak

Mongabay 15 August 2017: On June 21 last year in Sarawak, Malaysia, opposition politician and indigenous rights campaigner Bill Kayong was shot dead through the window of his pickup truck as he waited at traffic lights on his way to work in the coastal city of Miri. Kayong was a popular land rights activist, whose … Continue reading

Cigarettes – time to kick the habit?

Jakarta Post, 19 February. A journey to quit cigarettes in a tobacco-clinging city. “If you have good motivation to stop smoking, use it,” says smoking cessation expert Tribowo Ginting. “Don’t avoid it, don’t neglect it. Just follow your heart and do it. Everybody can stop.” According to the psychiatrist, 30 percent of people who try to … Continue reading

Violence and discrimination increasing in Indonesia: Human Rights Watch

There was little improvement in Indonesia’s human rights situation last year, with women and religious minorities in the archipelago facing increasing violence and discrimination and more than 100 citizens imprisoned for political reasons, according to the international NGO Human Rights Watch, which launched its 2013 World Report in Jakarta yesterday. The organization called on President … Continue reading

The tomatina – world’s biggest food fight

Sydney Morning Herald, 26 August 2006: I was scared of drowning in tomato soup. “People will pull you out,” Mike said. “Anyway, you’ll be with me.” A tall New Zealander with tattoos and a background in adventure sports, Mike was the person to be around if there was any chance of drowning. It had been … Continue reading

Rod Quantock’s comedy of collapse

‘The Insane Asylum (You’re Standing in It)’ Melbourne Comedy Festival 2011 Bananas, according to Rod Quantock, are good for your sense of humour. It’s the lecithin in them, he says. With Queensland flood damage pushing prices up to $4 a piece, the comedian worries for his audience, who won’t be able to claim the fruit … Continue reading

Blair visit

26/7/11 Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who is on an Australian speaking tour, was in Melbourne today and met for talks with Prime Minister Julia Gillard. Mr Blair expressed support for the government’s plan to reduce carbon emissions, but declined to comment on details of the policy. The former leader spoke about a worldwide … Continue reading