Queensland’s hardline on youth crime reached new heights today as the Palaszczuk government announced?it will override?its own Human Rights Act to charge children for breaching bail.
“The government accepts that these provisions are incompatible with human rights,” the police minister, Mark Ryan, wrote.
The premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk, justified the tough measures as “putting community safety first”, but experts fear a human rights emergency and are?calling on?the Labor government to adopt a smarter approach.
Queensland already has more children behind bars than anywhere else in the country – and?nearly 63%?of the children detained in the state are First Nations.
- UN torture body cancels Australia visit |?Australia joins Rwanda as the only countries to have had?visits cancelled by the UN subcommittee on the prevention of torture, after New South Wales and Queensland denied inspectors full access to detention facilities in October. Australia’s Human Rights Commissioner, Lorraine Finlay, called it a “wake-up call”, while expert Prof Rosalind Croucher said it was “detrimental to Australia’s international standing”.
- Indigenous voice referendum likely to be held in October |?Anthony Albanese confirmed the referendum?will be held?between October and December. Given the busy parliamentary schedule around that time, it’s looking more feasible the date will land somewhere in early October.
- El Ni?o threat to Antarctica |?Research from Australia’s national science agency, the CSIRO, shows that future increases in the strength of El Ni?o may?accelerate the irreversible melting?of ice shelves and ice sheets in Antarctica.
- BHP to sell more coalmines as profit slides |?The world’s largest miner will sell two Queensland coalmines after?it reported a 32% fall?in its underlying profit to US$6.6bn in the six months to December. The weak results come amid rising costs and volatile commodity prices caused in part by pandemic lockdowns in China.
- Tourism rebounding |?It’s been one year since Australia reopened its borders, and?the figures are encouraging. International arrivals in December 2022 were at 60% of December 2019 arrivals – up from only 20% in March 2022. Visitor arrivals are projected to exceed pre-pandemic levels in 2025.
- Alec Baldwin charges downgraded |?The actor is now facing a maximum of 18 months in prison if convicted of involuntary manslaughter after prosecutors opted to?pursue a reduced charge?against him over the film-set death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. Prosecutors previously sought a five-year sentence.
- Italy drought alert |?Venice’s canals are running dry – in winter. The Alps have?received less than half?of their normal snowfall, leading to concerns that a new drought is looming for the Mediterranean country.
- Four-day work week trial in UK hailed as a success |?The push for a?32-hour work week?just received fresh impetus after a successful trial in the UK. The vast majority of participating companies have opted to continue with the new working pattern. Several Australian companies, including Telstra, recently launched their own trials.
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????Social Justice/Women’s Rights Activist/Trauma Survivor (views are my own & do not reflect any institution I have studied or worked in)
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