News

MELBOURNE — Victorian Premier Joan Kirner has hailed proposed new rape laws as "trailblazing", but Melbourne barrister Jocelyn Scutt says the changes will do no more than bring Victorian law into line with reforms in WA, NSW

WA gay pride marchPERTH — Five hundred members of Perth's gay and lesbian community celebrated gay pride through Northbridge on 26 October. The march had a party-like atmosphere with floats, many banners, balloons and the

WA Greens choose senatorPERTH — The Greens WA have chosen a new senator to replace Jo Vallentine, who steps down on January 31, 1992. Christabel Chamarette, formerly better known as Christabel Bridge, but now using her

Coles sackings prompt strikeMELBOURNE — Members of the Shop Distributive and Allied Employees Association at the Coles New World warehouse in Port Melbourne began their third week on strike on November 2. The strike started

Abseilers attack government light billBRISBANE — Environmentalists staged a novel protest against Queensland government power wastage here on the evening of October 30 by abseiling down the side of the Executive Building in

BRISBANE — Farcical scenes broke out in the Queensland parliament on October 31 as attorney-general Deane Wells began to read a statement by special prosecutor Doug Drummond justifying his refusal to proceed with a second trial of

Partial step on driftnets BRUSSELS — Moves against driftnet fishing adopted by the European Community Fisheries Council on October 28 might have been a step in the right direction, if the largest driftnet fleet in the north-east Atlantic had not

Chose wrong constituents "For seven months he performed the high-wire trick of remaining faithful to his poor and clamorous constituency while trying to stay in power." — Time magazine on Haitian President Jean Bertrand Aristide, overthrown in a

SYDNEY — In a new victory for environmentalists, the NSW government lost its appeal on November 1 against the Land and Environment Court's ruling that logging in the north coast Chaelundi state forest would be in breach of

Solidarity with CubaMELBOURNE — About 450 people attended a rousing meeting in solidarity with Cuba here on November 2. Visiting Cubans Nieves Alemany and Eva Seone addressed the crowd which included many people from the Latin

AVS welcomes Vietnam aidCANBERRA — The national meeting of the Australia-Vietnam Society on October 26 welcomed the Australian government decision to resume bilateral aid to Vietnam. National chairperson of AVS Tom Uren

HOBART — The spectacular failure of Tasmania's minority Labor government to pass its resource security legislation may not mean the end of the bill. Although Labor has made an agreement with the five Green Independents that the