Australians need to be alarmed? January 23, 2020 It's still not clear whether the virus can be transmitted from human to human. It started as a few cases of pneumonia in workers at a fish market in central China. Now a new virus has the world on alert. Late December 2019, doctors began seeing a new type of viral pneumonia — fever, cough, difficulty breathing — in people who worked at or visited a seafood market in the suburbs of Wuhan in China. Since then, hundreds more cases have been reported and a handful of people have died. On Tuesday, it was confirmed a Brisbane man was in isolation in his home as Queensland Health authorities ran tests on whether he was carrying the new strain. Australian airports are ramping up their screening procedures of passengers arriving from China. Cases have also been reported in the United States, Thailand and Japan, among others. The Australian Department of Health said in a statement it was aware of the outbreak and was watching developments closely, but there was no need for alarm in Australia. Chief medical officer Brendan Murphy says Australia has well-established procedures to ensure people with illnesses travelling into the country are detected at the border.
Compulsory Reserve Call Out to Become Voluntary January 23, 2020 The Government will request the Governor-General revoke the current compulsory Call Out of the Australian Defence Force Reserves with effect from 7 February 2020. As the immediate, wide-scale emergency threat has eased, Australian Defence Force (ADF) support is moving from assisting to save life and property, to relief and recovery operations. Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the ADF would continue to provide support where it’s needed most, for as long as it’s needed, with its full-time forces and volunteer Reserve personnel. “It’s now time to allow ADF Reserve personnel who were part of the compulsory Call Out to return to their jobs, families, communities and personal commitments if they wish,” the Prime Minister said. Almost 6,500 full time and Reserve personnel have been providing direct support in the field, at sea, in the air, and from Defence bases as part of Operation Bushfire Assist. Minister for Defence Senator the Hon Linda Reynolds CSC said Reservists would continue to serve under Operation Bushfire Assist, on a voluntary Call For basis. “I am so proud of the service our ADF Reserve members have provided as part of this response,” Minister Reynolds said.
Delivering Australia Day address 'was a great honour' 22/01/2020 'Buy From the Bush' Founder Grace Brennan says being chosen to present the Australia Day address for 2020 was a "great honour". The founder of the social media campaign presented the address at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, saying the speech was aimed at promoting the connection between "the city and the bush". Ms Brennan's campaign has helped transform drought-ravaged communities over the past year by showcasing local businesses from regional areas. "I think the more we can kind of feel connected the better," Ms Brennan said.
Abbott compares belief in climate change to religious dogma 22/01/2020 Former prime minister Tony Abbott has compared belief in climate change to religious dogma, downplaying the link between the bushfire crisis and climate change. Speaking at a conservative think tank in the US, Mr Abbott claimed every extreme weather event was now taken as proof of climate change. He conceded climate change may have played a role in the drought but said Australia has always suffered bushfires.
Worker missing at Tasmania gold mine 23/01/2020 A worker is missing at the Henty Gold Mine in western Tasmania after colleagues lost contact with him. Emergency services were called to the scene about 4am on Thursday morning after a section of earth was found collapsed underground and workers surfaced to raise the alarm. A rescue team is on standby to continue looking for the man when it is declared safe to do so.
Bushfires force Canberra airport closure January 23, 2020 Canberra Airport has closed due to nearby bushfires, with no flights leaving or arriving as of Thursday afternoon. A bushfire south of the airport was set to “emergency” level on Thursday. Residents in the Canberra suburbs of Beard, Oaks Estate as well Queanbeyan’s Crestwood have been told to seek shelter. People in the streets north of Uriarra Road were told to leave immediately for David Campese Oval. The blaze started on Wednesday but strong winds and high temperatures have seen conditions in Canberra deteriorate. A second fire near the airport that started on Thursday morning is at “watch and act”. That bushfire is burning off Kallaroo Road in the suburb of Pialligo, close to a separate blaze that started on Wednesday. Nearby residents were told to get their bushfire plans ready as authorities warned conditions could get worse. Firefighters were also responding to a burning trees in the southern Canberra suburb of Monash. ACT emergency services have issued a total fire ban. A large fire near Adaminaby, south of the ACT, is at “emergency” level while the Clyde Mountain fire on the NSW south coast has been upgraded to “watch and act”.
Mud delays play at Melbourne Park January 23, 2020 An overnight storm of rain and dust has wreaked havoc on day four of the Australian Open. Several matches were delayed after thick layers of murky water and dirt were strewn across the outdoor courts. Matches on some outdoor courts have been delayed by at least four hours as staff work feverishly to clean the courts. Well-known tennis reporter Christopher Clarey said the conditions would have been a “first” in Grand Slam tournaments history.
Pompeo: US to back Lebanese gov't if it meets people's demands 23/01/2020 WASHINGTON-- US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo affirmed on Wednesday that Washington will back the new Lebanese government if it responds to the people's reform demands. "We'll have to take a look at it. I don't know the answer to that yet. I saw what happened over the last 24 hours," he said in an interview with Bloomberg. "We've been very clear about the requirements for the United States to engage. Lebanon has a terrible financial crisis that lays in front of it in just the weeks ahead. "We're prepared to engage, provide support, but only to a government that's committed to reform," he noted. "That's important for America, but if "you look at the protests that are taking place in Beirut and cities outside of Beirut, you can see, just like in Baghdad - go look at the protests in Baghdad - these aren't anti-American protests; these are protests demanding sovereignty and freedom." He pointed out that the US wants a government that reflects the will of the people of Lebanon. "If this government is responsive to that and there's a new set of leaders that's prepared to make those commitments and deliver on that, that's the kind of government that we'll support around the world and the kind of government we would support in Lebanon," he stated. Lebanon announced Tuesday the formation of a new government with 20 ministers under the chairmanship of Hassan Diab. It is the third government in the era of President Michel Aoun.
Photo: Katerina Sakellaropoulou was backed by 261 MPs in the 300-member parliament. Greek parliament elects top judge Katerina Sakellaropoulou as first female president 23 Jan 2020, Greece's politicians elected their country's first female president on Wednesday with an overwhelming majority voting in favour of high-court judge Katerina Sakellaropoulou. Speaking after being formally informed of the Parliament's vote, Ms Sakellaropoulou said she would aim for the "broadest possible consensus" in the course of carrying out her duties. In her first comments as president-elect, the judge noted the "difficult conditions and challenges of the 21st century, including the financial crisis, climate change, the mass movement of populations and the consequent humanitarian crisis, the erosion of the rule of law and all manner of inequalities and exclusions". Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis nominated Ms Sakellaropoulou as a non-partisan candidate who would enjoy broad support from across the political spectrum. In an unusual demonstration of harmony in the fractious world of Greek politics, the conservative-party nominee was backed by opposition parties, including the leftist Syriza party which lost power in an election last July. Ms Sakellaropoulou was backed by 261 MPs in the 300-member Parliament. Greece has a historically low number of women in senior positions in politics, and Mr Mitsotakis had been criticised for selecting a nearly all-male Cabinet after he won general elections in July 2019. In the current Greek Cabinet, all but one of the 18 senior positions are held by men. Speaking after the vote, Mr Mitsotakis described Ms Sakellaropoulou as a "great jurist, a great judiciary personality who unites all Greeks from the minute this procedure began". He said he sought to nominate a candidate who would "symbolise the youth of the Greek nation, and I am glad that the result confirmed that on the big issues, we can finally agree". Ms Sakellaropoulou, from the northern city of Thessaloniki, became the first female head of the Council of State, the country's highest administrative court, in 2018, supported for that position by the then-leftist government. A divorcee who lives in central Athens and is active on social media, Ms Sakellaropoulou has written numerous papers on environmental protection and chairs a society on environmental law European officials congratulated Ms Sakellaropoulou, with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen welcoming the election of Greece's first female president in a tweet that said the country was "moving ahead into a new era of equality." European Council head Charles Michel also tweeted congratulations, saying it was "a great signal to elect the Republic's first female head of state." Ms Sakellaropoulou is to begin her five-year term in March, when the term of the current President, veteran conservative politician Prokopis Pavlopoulos, expires.
China firms issue masks, travel warnings January 23, 2020 Companies across China are handing out masks and warning staff to avoid the central city of Wuhan amid fears that the new flu-like coronavirus will rapidly spread during the Lunar New Year holidays. Firms from Foxconn to Huawei and HSBC have issued advisories. The government has urged members of the public to be extra careful if showing symptoms of a fever or a cold. The death toll rose to nine on Wednesday with more than 470 confirmed cases, Chinese health officials said. At Foxconn's Lunar New Year party on Wednesday, founder Terry Gou advised Taiwan-based employees not to visit mainland China during the week-long holiday period. "Colleagues and their families who have come back from Wuhan are all in isolation at home. The infection is spreading very fast," Gou added. Company workers in Wuhan, the centre of the outbreak, have been wearing facemasks and getting their temperature checked, the Apple supplier also said. Huawei has asked staff to reduce travel to Wuhan and avoid contact with animals, adding that it had set up an outbreak prevention and control team in the city to carry out disinfecting activities, according to an internal note seen by Reuters. Citic and investment bank China International Capital have asked employees to avoid trips to Wuhan and Hubei, the province of which it is the capital, if they can, sources said. Employees who travel there are required to report the trip. Citic has also asked staff to voluntarily quarantine themselves if they do travel to Hubei. Huawei and Citic did not respond to requests for comment. A CICC representative declined to comment. HSBC said it had advised employees that travel can continue to Wuhan, but has asked them to be extra vigilant.          |
