Today's Headlines
Friday 8th December 1995
International:
Both the Australian and the Indonesian flags were burnt in a demonstration in Darwin, Northern Territory to mark the 20th anniversary of the invasion of
East Timor by the Indonesian army..
Political:
When political correctness takes away what is fair, right and decent it tells a sorry tale about the way a nation is run. The Hindmarsh Bridge fiasco has led to the
bankruptcy of the project by property developers Tom and Wendy Chapman who were left with debts of Au$15.5 million after the Federal Government stepped in and halted the development of a bridge
between the South Australian mainland and a small island called Hindmarsh.
The development had been approved by the South Australian State Government and the business had gone through all the correct approvals and channels. Building on the
bridge had started as had the property development on the island.
Then an Aboriginal from the Ngarrindjeri tribe complained "out of the blue" that the bridge would interfere with a sacred Aboriginal site. This was then called "woman's business" and men (including
the courts) were not allowed to know the nature of the woman's business. No-one is still sure of what the "woman's business" was but word later leaked out that the complaint
was founded on a photograph taken from a plane which with the wildest stretch of the imagination showed a similarity in shape between a woman's private parts and the island.
The photo allegedly became the basis of the Aboriginal complaint which was funded by the Australian tax payer service: the South Australian Aboriginal Legal Aid Department.
Westpac pulled the plug on the property developers and Aboriginal Labor Minister Robert Tickner called the decision to halt the development a victory for the Aborigines and
their rights. After months of going through the courts and the resignation of a senior Liberal Minister Ian McLaughlin whose office inadvertently opened an envelope and
viewed the secret "woman's business" the Federal Court ruled that the whole thing was flawed (ie a farce).
The property developers were jubilant and quite rightly have called for Aboriginal Minister Robert Tickner's resignation saying: "We have a case here of farce upon farce,
fiasco upon fiasco, and debacle upon debacle - it's an endless merry-go-round of absurd and impractical decisions made by a Minister with no credibility at all."
Business:
James Hardie has reported a 38% drop in interim profits due to the housing slump in Australia..
Sport:
The visiting Sri Lankan spinner Muthiah Muralidaran believes that the allegations levelled at him for "chucking" the ball are groundless and is naturely a bit peeved about them.
The first test against Sri Lanka gets under way today in Perth, Western Australia
Social:
There has been a slight drop in unemployment in Australia this month with the national rate going down to 8.6%. Bad news is that interest cuts have now been discounted.
Personal trivia:
Quiet day at home yesterday working on a couple of major webs. Global Web Builders are about to embark on a major expansion program together with a couple of
projects which we will tell you about.. at the right time!
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