Activists in Melbourne braved rain on October 31 to remember Shaun Coolwell, who died after being restrained by police in Kingston, south of Brisbane, on October 2.
His brother died in similar circumstances four years ago.
The rally called for an end to deaths in custody and for the Deaths in Custody Royal Commission's recommendations to be implemented.
The rally noted that not a single police officer or prison officer has been convicted for any of the 99 cases of Aboriginal deaths in custody between January 1, 1980 and May 31, 1989 that were investigated by the Royal Commission.
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This is an edited version of the speech given by Jackie Kriz, the president of Geelong Trades Hall Council, at the Geelong Reclaim the Night rally on October 31.
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I would like to thank the women of Reclaim the Night collective who, with support from Geelong Trades Hall, have worked tirelessly for months to organise this rally.
When it was revealed last month that Malcolm Turnbull has in the Caribbean tax haven of the Cayman Islands, I'll admit I felt some relief. At least our prime minister appeared committed to helping someone's economy, even if It was just a banking system once described by Barack Obama as 鈥渢he biggest tax scam on record鈥.
The Annual General Meeting of Transfield Services (where shareholders voted to change its name to Broadspectrum) was the focus of refugee rights protests in Sydney on October 28.
The Refugee Action Coalition, along with other groups including No Business in Abuse (NBIA) protested at the meeting. Around 150 protesters were stationed at the front of the building, drawing attention from shareholders, onlookers and the media.
The Mike Baird Coalition government sold $1 billion of state-owned property in 2013 and 2014, escalating its neoliberal drive to privatise public assets. Office blocks, hospitals, schools and even an island are on the block in this wholesale theft of the people's property, in the interests of the banks and big business.
In 2011鈥2012, the state government sold assets worth $5 million. In late 2012, it established a new agency, Government Property NSW, to identify and manage the state's substantial real estate holdings.
One hundred medical students and their supporters took action at Sydney University against offshore processing and the detention of children on November 5.
Taping their mouths shut to represent the attempt to gag workers under the Border Protection Act, the students held up signs saying 鈥淚 am a Medical Student Against Kids in Detention #DetentionHarmsChildren #KidsOut.鈥
Queensland refugee advocate David Sprigg was fined $1000 on November 4 for throwing his shoes at immigration minister Peter Dutton at a citizenship ceremony on June 14.
Sprigg told the court he was not remorseful for his actions, which were in protest against the government's border protection measures and detention of refugees.
Greens MP Jamie Parker gave this speech at the Sydney rally for World Kobane Day on November 1.
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I'm here in solidarity with the people of Kobane and with all Kurds.
I have spoken about the YPG and YPJ before, but now I also want to speak about the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).
In this country there is only one party in the parliament, the Australian Greens, which fully supports the unbanning of the PKK. The PKK is not a terrorist organisation and we have stood against its banning since 2005, when the government first sought to list the PKK as a terrorist organisation.
Carol Hucker worked in Manus Island detention centre as a counsellor for International Health and Medical Services (IHMS) and as a case worker for the Salvation Army from June 2013 to July last year.
She has allowed 91自拍论坛 Weekly to publish her account so that people can become more aware of what is happening in Australia's offshore detention centres.
She said: 鈥淚t is my hope that through this brief account the men on Manus will not be forgotten.鈥
This is the last part of a multi-part series and covers her time there in June and July 2014.
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