Australia

cross-posted from: https://feddit.org/post/2131571

Australian Senators said UN Resolution 2758 does not establish the People's Republic of China's sovereignty over Taiwan and does not determine the future status of Taiwan in the UN.

Taiwan's de facto embassy in Canberra has heaped praise on Australia after the Senate passed a bipartisan motion criticising China's attempts to use a 50-year-old UN resolution to claim Taiwan as part of its territory.

China's government has consistently tried to use UN Resolution 2758 — which recognises the People's Republic of China as the "only legitimate representative of China to the UN" — to advance its claim that it has sovereignty over the self-ruled island of Taiwan.

It has also repeatedly claimed that Australia accepts that Taiwan is merely a province of China, an argument which Australia rejects.

Under the agreement signed by both countries when they established diplomatic ties Australia recognised the PRC as the sole government of China but only "acknowledged" China's claim that Taiwan is part of its territory.

cross-posted from: https://sh.itjust.works/post/24046152

Today, the 22nd of August 2024, marks 100 days since army lawyer David McBride was imprisoned in Canberra for exposing war crimes committed by Australian forces in Afghanistan.

David stood up for truth and integrity, yet now he endures death threats and solitary confinement, while those responsible remain free.

This is not how we should treat our whistleblowers in Australia! ⚖️

Demand justice! 📢 Take Action:

• Contact Mark Dreyfus or your local MP today to express your support for David.

• Create and share a social media post or a short video using the hashtag #SpeakUp4McBride to spread the word.

• Donate to support David’s legal appeal to help get him out of jail: https://chuffed.org/project/davidmcbride

• Hang the provided poster in a high-visibility location, take a photo, and share it online to encourage others to join the movement.

• 👍 Like, 💬 comment, and ↪️ share this message!

#FreeMcBride. #Justice4Afghanistan.

• In short: A man is in hospital after he was hit by a whale's tail while fishing near Tweed Heads.
• Authorities located the men and brought them back to shore.
• The man sustained superficial facial injuries and is in a stable condition.

• In short: Musicians passed a vote of no confidence in the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra's managing director and operating officer on Friday night after the cancellation of a performance by a pianist who spoke about the conflict in Gaza.
• The move has also prompted well-known band The Cat Empire to postpone three shows with the MSO.
• What's next? The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra says it will conduct an independent review into its policies

• In short: The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra admits it made an error when it pulled pianist Jayson Gillham from an upcoming performance over comments he made about the killing of journalists in Gaza.

• The MSO said it made an "error" in cancelling his performance, but maintains their concert was not an appropriate place to express personal views.

• What's next? The orchestra's August 15 concert, which was expected to go ahead without Mr Gillham, has now been cancelled due to security issues but the MSO wants to reschedule the performance.

The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra has removed Australian-British pianist Jayson Gillham from an upcoming performance for “introductory remarks” he made regarding the ongoing Israel-Hamas during a solo recital last weekend.

At a recital performance on 11 August at Iwaki Auditorium, Gillham gave the world premiere performance of Connor D’Netto’s Witness as an unannounced addition to the program that the MSO confirmed it had granted permission for. Written for Gillham, Witness is dedicated to journalists killed in the ongoing Gaza conflict.

Reportedly, Gillham’s introduction noted the specific targeting of journalists by Israeli forces. As a result, the MSO has removed Gillham from its Mozart and Brahms program on 15 August at Melbourne Town Hall, during which Gillham was to perform Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 12. Gillham’s name was removed from the online concert listing earlier today, with the addition of a note stating that an update to its repertoire ‘will be announced soon’.

Queensland’s Labor government turned heads last week with a bold new election promise. If returned to power, it would set up 12 state-owned petrol stations and limit fuel price rises to just five cents a litre on any given day.

The proposal certainly tapped into a pain point for Queenslanders – Brisbane topped national petrol price rankings last year.

But it was quickly met with a predictable pile on from opposing political commentators, industry bodies and some economists, attracting labels like “risky” and “dumb and stupid”.

Mark McKenzie, chief executive of the Australasian Convenience and Petroleum Marketers Association, called it a “wildly bizarre intervention” in the retail fuel market.

So is the Queensland premier really out of his mind, trying to win votes less than three months out from an election? Or is there actually some merit to this proposal?

Four Corners has spoken to more than 200 people to investigate allegations of Channel Seven's toxic culture, uncovering allegations of bullying, sexism, and exploitation.

Warning: This story contains coarse language and a description of a suicide attempt.

In short:

• Australia's domestic spy chief says three to four countries have been caught actively seeking to interfere in diaspora communities.

• Mike Burgess said Australians would be shocked that those seeking to interfere were nations considered friends.

What's next:

• He has warned that he would be willing to call out nations publicly if the threat persists.

This is a follow up to that time that they baited him into self-incrimination and fed into/encouraged his fixation back in 2021