Monday, April 7, 2008

The Australian Bureau of Statistics is responsible for some of Australia’s largest surveys, including the Census of Population and Housing, held every five years. At its head is the Australian Statistician. The current Statistician, Brian Pink, started in his position on March 5, 2007, following the retirement of predecessor Dennis Trewin. Wikinews recently caught up with Brian Pink to talk with him about his first year in the position, as well as his previous tenure as Government Statistician at Statistics New Zealand, and the state of mathematical education in Australia.

((WikiNews)) : Good afternoon.

Brian Pink: Good afternoon.

((WN)) : And congratulations on spending a year as Australian Statistician.

BP: Yes, it’s gone very quickly. (laughs)

Friday, May 11, 2018

On Tuesday, Pakistan’s parliament passed a bill at Islamabad’s National Assembly which granted transgender people various civil rights. The bill, “Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act”, which was presented by Pakistan Peoples Party’s lawmaker Naveed Qamar, was approved by the senate in March, and now awaits signature of the president Mamnoon Hussain.

The bill ensures people have the right to identify themselves as male, female or as “third gender”, also known as khawaja sira in Pakistan. This identity choice is to be reflected in the National Database and Registration Authority, as well as other official documents like passports and driving licence.

Per the bill, transgender people can now cast votes, run for election, have the right to assemble, and can obtain loans for business startups. They are also eligible to inherit property per their identified gender. Transgender people are to be no longer discriminated at school, working place, for medical services, public transportation facilities, by their employers, or at private business. Separate confinement areas, jails and prisons are to be established for transgenders. Anyone found guilty of forcing transgenders to beg is to face a six-month prison term as well as 50 thousand rupees fine.

The legislation was sent to and later approved by the Council of Islamic Ideology, a government advisory body. Lahore-based activist Mehlab Jameel, who was involved in writing the bill, said the Council of Islamic Ideology “appreciated that the bill included directions on inheritance in accordance with Shari’a” law.

Last year, transgenders were included for the census count for the first time. Mehlab Jameel said, “the definition of ‘transgender’ […] was basically based on genitals” in the initial draft of the bill, written last year.

Speaking to National Public Radio, Jameel said, “This kind of development is not only unprecedented in Pakistani history, but it’s one of the most progressive laws in the whole world.” Human Rights Watch has reported at least four deaths of transgenders in the country since the beginning of 2018, and at least 57 transgenders were killed in Pakistan since 2015. Pakistan’s —reportedly— first transgender news anchor and activist Marvia Malik told Images the transgenders “are forced to dance and beg because they have no other means to make ends meet.” “My trans friends who have masters degrees don’t have jobs which is why they end up on streets or become sex workers”, Malik added.

The draft for the policy to implement this bill is not yet prepared. From the date the bill was approved, President Hussain has ten days to sign the bill or reject it.

Thursday, April 28, 2005

Cambridge, Massachusetts —Harvard University planners met with the Agassiz Neighborhood Council to update the community about Harvard’s construction and expansion plans in the neighborhood on April 26, the Harvard Crimson reported today. The two major topics discussed were the Northwest Science Building, which is currently under construction on Oxford Street, and the expansion of the Harvard Law School. According to the Crimson, Harvard officials outnumbered the number of community members present at the meeting.

The plans for law school expansion are still unfinished, the Crimson reported. The director of community relations at Harvard, Thomas Lucey, said that Wyeth Hall may be demolished. According to the Law School website, Wyeth Hall is “the most popular dormitory at Harvard Law School”. It is adjacent to the Berkman Center for Internet and Society on Massachusetts Avenue, just south of Three Aces pizzeria.

The Crimson also noted that Tom Murray, the project manager for the Northwest Science Building, was slated for completion by May of 2007, with landscaping completed the following spring.

A visit to the science building site by Wikinews reporter Pingswept last week verified that the pouring of cement had begun. Four large cranes had been brought to the site; one of them was being used with a clamshell attachment twice the height of a grown man to dig a deep trench. The truck “wheel wash” station marked on the site plan was operational, in the form of a man with a pressure washer, though in this reporter’s brief observations, more windshields were washed than dirty tires.

Sunday, June 1, 2014

Police in China announced yesterday the arrests of six people who reportedly pled guilty to murdering a woman by bludgeoning her to death at a McDonald’s restaurant in the city of Zhaoyuan, Shandong province. Police said they believed the suspects, who included a man, his reportedly twelve-year-old son, and two daughters, along with two other women, were members of a cult known as Quannengshen, Chinese meaning “All-powerful spirit”.

Police said the victim, surname Wu, refused to give the man, surname Zhang, her telephone number when he solicited her for induction into the group, following which, Zhang began to bludgeon her with a mop before the other suspects joined in the assault. The Australian cited claims from uncensored websites saying the women who accompanied Zhang shouted “beat her to death” prior to attacking the victim themselves.

The son, who can’t be held criminally responsible in China due to his age, will be “dealt with separately” according to authorities. Following the incident, state broadcaster China Central Television reported discovery of religious material at a location connected to Quannengshen.

Video footage of the assault has been uploaded to the internet, along with photos of Wu motionless on the floor of the restaurant in a pool of blood. Though taken to hospital, Wu, who was reportedly the mother of a young son, died. The incident has drawn the criticism of netizens online, who highlighted the presence of dozens of other customers in the restaurant who stood by and filmed the assault, while doing nothing to stop the attack or assist the victim.

According to the newspaper Southern Metropolis Daily, Quannengshen, a doomsday cult which bases its ideology on the Christian Bible, began about twenty years ago in Heilongjiang province and now has members based in the eastern provinces of China. Reportedly the Chinese government declared the group an illegal “evil cult” in 1995. In December 2012, according to a report by the Beijing Morning News, seventeen cultists were arrested in Beijing for harassing people with an apocalyptic message in a public park.

The incident comes amid ongoing efforts by the Chinese government to control religious movements who base their teachings on Christianity and Buddhism. Another group, Falungong, also illegalized as an “evil cult”, was suppressed by the government in 1999, and reportedly had a membership of millions. The government has detained tens of thousands of Falungong members and, according to the group, tortured members for their beliefs.

McDonald’s has released a statement on its Chinese microblog, expressing “deep-felt grief” for the incident, along with a promise the company would conduct an investigation. Chinese state news agency Xinhua quoted Shandong authorities, “Local provincial police authorities vowed to severely punish illegal activities of heretic sects to protect the safety of people’s lives and property”. When the Associated Press contacted the police headquarters in Zhaoyuan, they were told by a clerk there was no one available for comment.

Tuesday, January 3, 2006

Three miners have escaped uninjured after being trapped underground by a mineshaft fire on Tasmania’s west coast. The men took shelter in a chamber more than a kilometre underground. A worker noticed smoke coming from a shaft at Avebury nickel mine on Trial Harbour Road near Zeehan at 7.45am.

The blaze started after a truck working 400 metres underground toppled and caught fire. It took nearly five hours for rescue teams to bring the blaze under control, move the burning truck and reach the trapped miners.

Allegiance Mining chairman Tony Howland-Rose said the workers were safe. “The emergency response procedures in place at Avebury were activated and resulted in the vehicle fire being extinguished and the safe rescue of the miners,” Mr Howland-Rose said.

Ambulance crews say the men appear to be in good health. Queenstown Police Inspector Mark Beech-Jones says rescue workers reached the men just before midday.

“We’ve dispatched a number of ambulance service personnel there just to give them a check up but from our initial discussions with them, they are fine,” he said.

The Avebury nickel mine is a new project for the Sydney-based company – Allegiance Mining. Allegiance suspended trading on the stock exchange this morning. Mr Howland-Rose said the suspension of trading would be in place until it became clear what had happened at the mine.

The mine is undergoing a $60 million redevelopment and was due to resume mining later this year.

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

With the People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) having called off Monday’s demonstration and march on Bangkok‘s police headquarters, Thailand’s Queen Sirikit (Thai: ????????????????????????? ???????????????) and HRH Princess Chulabhorn Valayalaksana (Thai: ??????????????????? ???????????????????????? ?????????????) attended the cremation and funeral of Angkana Radubpanyawoot, one of the protesters killed in clashes between police and PAD protesters last Tuesday.

The queen, consort of the highly popular and revered eighty-year old Thai monarch Bhumibol Adulyadej (Thai: ??????????????), was joined by police chiefs, leaders of the PAD movement, and many protesters. Presiding over the ceremonies, the queen was accompanied by army chief Anupong Paojinda (Thai: ??????? ?????????), the opposition Democrat party leader, Abhisit Vejjajiva (Thai: ????????? ?????????), and newly elected Bangkok Governor, Apirak Kosayodhin (Thai: ???????? ?????????). Founder and de-facto head of the People’s Alliance for Democracy movement, Sondhi Limthongkul (Thai: ???? ??????????) attended as the protest group’s representative, along with thousands of others mainly from the PAD.

Queen Sirikit spoke with Angkhana’s father, Jinda Radappanyawut during the Buddhist cremation ceremony. He later discussed their conversation, detailing that the queen had given moral support and said that his daughter was a decent person who had been helping the King and working for the good of the nation. Jinda’s wife, Angkhana’s mother, was not present at the funeral; she continues to be treated for injuries sustained during the protest outside parliament. The Bangkok Post report detailing this meeting mentions that the king has donated funds to help those injured in the police clampdown.

At the closing of the funeral services there were scuffles between PAD protesters and the Army’s Commander-in-Chief, Anupong Paojinda, as he attempted to leave. Security guards had to assist him in reaching his car and protesters banged on the car as it drove away.

With a sub-committee appointed by the country’s Human Rights Commission due to report within the week, details are beginning to emerge accounting for the number of injuries and severity of some in last Tuesday’s clashes outside parliament. Nearly 500 were injured as police employed tear gas to try and disperse the crowd of PAD protesters blockading parliament. The group, originally formed seeking to topple deposed former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his Thai Rak Thai party, had disbanded in September 2006 following Thaksin being removed by a coup. The 2007 general election saw them reform to oppose the new government formed by the People’s Power Party (PPP) who are widely regarded as a proxy for the ex-PM living in exile in the UK. The PAD protest aimed to stop the PPP government from announcing their legislative programme which included measures to amend the constitution and rehabilitate Thaksin and others from the now-outlawed Thai Rak Thai party. Investigations started during the coup period leave Thaksin and others accused of vote buying and electoral fraud.

Porntip Rojanasunan, the director of Thailand’s Central Institute of Forensic Science has indicated that the tear gas employed was likely responsible for the many injuries during the October 7 crackdown. A number of the canisters were found to contain RDX, a militarily employed explosive. RDX is considered a powerful explosive and the quantities likely involved would have left craters. Other types of tear gas were employed, manufactured in the United States and Spain, but during the protest it was the RDX-laced variety which originated in China that had been favoured. Porntip’s agency demonstrated the firing of these tear gas canisters from a shotgun to the Human Rights Commission committee on Sunday, noting that one exploded canister “left a hole in a metal pipe”. It is claimed that the lethal tear gas was sourced from a third party and not directly from China.

Along with the two fatalities, fifteen people remain hospitalised from last week’s police action, with one critically injured having lost his right arm.

Monday’s planned PAD protest and march on Bangkok police HQ was cancelled to allow people to attend the cremation and funeral services for the two dead. No new date for the protest has been announced.

Thursday, November 2, 2006

The New Zealand government has now introduced graphic health warnings on cigarette packs. The new warnings, which replace the text warnings, will show images of gangrenous toes, rotting gums and teeth and diseased lungs and will also include the quit smoking Quitline number.

The new warnings will cover 30% of the front side and 90% of the back.

The new warnings will come into effect January 2007 but the manufacturers will not have to produce the new warnings until February 27, 2008 and retailers have till August 2008 to clear all their old stock.

Damien O’Conner, associate minister of health and ex-smoker, said: “Pictures were more effective than written warnings. Actually seeing what it does to you is probably more acute than just reading the words on a cigarette packet. The approach is designed to shock people into realising smoking kills and causes serious illness. Using powerful imagery to remind people of the real and horrific effects of smoking will act to deter smokers and discourage New Zealand’s young from starting the habit in the first place.”

Other countries which also show graphic warnings include Australia and Canada; they say that the warnings are effective. Chris Laurenson, Health Ministry team leader national drug policy, said that international evidence was strong. “That was confirmed by research in New Zealand which supported the effectiveness of pictorial labelling.”

Altogether there will be fourteen images, of which seven will be released first, with rest following.

Mr O’Connor said: “The images were horrific; but they are what happen to people who smoke in this country.”

The Cancer Society says that the new warnings are good but does say that the manufacturers will bypass the new warnings by:

• including stickers to cover the warnings,
• Peel off labels,
• provide cigarette holders which will enable smokers to bypass the use of the packet,
• slow the introduction by stockpiling old packets in storage.

However, according to Mr O’Conner, one company had used removable sticker that were later removed due to consultation.

The industries will not be reimbursed for any cost that may occur. “They’ve given a commitment to comply by the regulations. They understand what it might mean if they don’t and I’m confident that they will,” Mr O’Connor said.

“The 2008 deadline is way too excessive, […] Pictorial warnings are not a new idea. They have already been implemented in other countries and the NZ tobacco industry has the technology to print the new packets within weeks,” Becky Freeman, the Action on Smoking and Health director said.

World Heath Organization rules make New Zealand obliged to increase the warning sizes on packets.