Householders and small businesses who were victims of the floods that hit Brisbane in January are considering a legal challenge against insurance companies 鈥渦sing region-wide hydrology reports to deny thousands of flood-related claims鈥, the March 10 Courier Mail said.
Insurers NRMA, CGU and Comminsure have used the reports to claim many policyholders were subject to riverine flooding, which is not covered by most insurance policies, rather than stormwater or flash-flooding.
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Peter Tatchell is an internationally renowned lesbian, gay, transgender, bisexual, intersex and queer (LGTBIQ) human rights activist based in England. He was one of eight 鈥渉eroes鈥 selected to take part in the lead float of the 2011 Sydney Mardi Gras.
Tatchell spoke to 91自拍论坛 Weekly鈥檚 Rachel Evans, Hannah Wykes and Farida Iqbal about his history of activism and the fight for equal marriage rights.
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When did you get involved in activist politics?
The Australian proclaimed a 鈥渨ar over the carbon tax鈥 and the leader of federal Liberal party Tony Abbott called for a "people's revolt" against a price on carbon.
Media reports paint Alice Springs as being in the midst of an out-of-control crime wave.
Action for Alice, a group of local business owners, has produced a commercial for Imparja television. The ad calls for a law and order push to end the alleged crime wave, which it blames on Aboriginal youth.
The level of hysteria reached a new pitch in an article by Nicolas Rothwell in the February 19 Australian. Rothwell claimed that Alice Springs was plagued by rampaging young Aboriginal people, fuelled by alcohol.
As it stands, the carbon tax proposed by the federal Labor government and the Greens is perfect material for a right-wing scare campaign. But it offers very little real action to cut emissions.
About 150 people rallied in Sydney on March 6 to call for an end to the persecution of WikiLeaks. The protest was organised by the Support WikiLeaks Coalition.
The rally also called for the release from jail of US private Bradley Manning. For nine months, Manning has been held in isolation in US military prisons for allegedly leaking more than 250,000 US diplomatic cables to WikiLeaks.
On March 2, the US army laid new charges against Manning, including the capital offence of 鈥渁iding the enemy鈥. If convicted, Manning could face the death penalty.
The Tasmanian environmental campaign group Still Wild Still Threatened has called on Tasmania鈥檚 Labor/Greens coalition government to back down on its plan to build the Brighton Bypass and agree to demands from Aboriginal activists to change the bypass route.
Still Wild Still Threatened spokesperson Lily Leahy said on March 1 that the group 鈥渟tands in solidarity with the Aboriginal community in opposing this plan as it will destroy the artefacts and unique values of a 40,000 year-old site.
The following statement, initiated by the Illawarra Socialist Alliance, seeks to build a community consensus against racism and for solidarity and social justice. It has been signed by: Gordon Bradbery, independent candidate for the seat of Wollongong; Dr Munir Hussain, Chairman, Omar Mosque; Illawarra Greens; and Illawarra Socialist Alliance.
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Take a stand against racism
We condemn the recent comments made by ministers and members of the Liberal Party, whose actions aim to divide the community based on racial and religious grounds.
Two hundred people rallied outside the Queensland parliament on March 5 to oppose plans by coal seam gas company QGC to expand its operations near the town of Tara, 300 kilometres west of Brisbane.
Friends of the Earth campaigner Drew Hutton chaired the rally. Other speakers included Tara resident Scott Collins as well as campaigners and farmers from the Lock The Gate Alliance 鈥 a national campaign to keep coal seam gas companies off private land.
Below is the resignation letter of two former members of the Labor party in NSW, Jairo Quintero and Edgar Pena (both formerly of the ALP Parramatta branch). This follows the February 17 resignations of Luis Ernesto Almario and Rosendo Duran.
Victoria's alcohol and drug treatment services have failed to keep pace with the growing substance abuse epidemic after a decade of neglect, an Auditor General's report revealed on March 2.
The report reviewed the Department of Health's $136 million alcohol and drug prevention efforts. It found the system is flawed and underfunded after the former state government failed to act on 31 internal reviews during its 10 years in office.
Andrew Ferguson, former NSW Secretary of the Construction Forestry Mining Energy Union (CFMEU), recently retired from that position and announced he would stand on the Australian Labor Party鈥檚 NSW Legislative Council ticket.
Ferguson, who identifies as a socialist, is likely to get the sixth position on the ticket. The top two spots will go to NSW Treasurer Eric Roozendaal and Planning Minister Tony Kelly, both of whom are from the ALP Right faction. Peter Boyle interviewed Ferguson for 91自拍论坛 Weekly.
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