Ukrainian church desecrated in Sydney

A UKRAINIAN church in Sydney has been desecrated with racial slurs in an attack the NSW government has labelled vicious and abhorrent.

MEMBERS of the Ukrainian community woke on Saturday morning to find the St Andrew's Ukrainian Catholic Church in Lidcombe covered in spray paint.

Among the vandalism is a swastika symbol and the message "traitors fascists".Father Simon Ckuj said the church partly commemorated Ukrainians who fought against Nazism in World War Two."This act completely defiles the memory of those who died fighting fascism," the parish priest said on Saturday.Despite the offensive crime, the church says it will pray for the graffiti artists at a Sunday morning service.Peter Shmigel, of the Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organisations, says the act trashed the principals of a multicultural and democratic Australia."There is no room for people like those who attacked our church to import their foreign conflicts to Australia and Sydney, where our community has made a positive contribution for 65 years," he said in a statement.The church says the graffiti, once translated to English, also reads "burn in hell for the sins of Poroshenko", referring to the President of Ukraine.Communities and Citizenship Minister Victor Dominello said the act was completely unacceptable."To use an international racial dispute to vilify a community in Sydney is abhorrent," he said."The use of swastikas as a means of denigrating and attacking any community in NSW is utterly offensive."The church says the vandalism has been reported to police.

23.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

Royals defend apartment spending

The Voice star Joel comes clean

THE Voice coach Joel Madden has opened up about his hotel room drug bust and beating the odds to become a ­successful rock star, husband and father.

Early bird gets the Christmas toy

CHRISTMAS shopping has begun early as bargain hunters cash in on midyear sales with thrifty, time-conscious mums expected to lead the charge.

You pay for sister city excursions

VICTORIANS are spending more than half a million dollars on overseas travel so councillors and staff can connect with their international sister cities.

Teenagers turn off technology

PARENTS are increasingly turning to school back-to-basics programs which force children to abandon technology with the aim of building life skills.

Cold case search for the $6m man

POLICE suspect the same people are behind a string of serious crimes spanning at least 26 years. ANDREW RULE and MARK BUTTLER report

23.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

Another Tamil man sets himself on fire

ANOTHER Tamil man has set himself alight, the latest in a spate of self-immolation cases involving asylum seekers who fear being sent back to Sri Lanka.

THE 40-year-old man splashed himself with petrol and ignited it, but his housemates intervened and managed to put out the fire.

It happened late on Friday at a home in the Melbourne suburb of Noble Park, according to a statement from the Tamil Refugee Council.There were similar incidents in May, when Leo Seemanpillai burned to death outside his Geelong home, and also in April when a Sydney-based Tamil man also set himself alight but survived with burns to 75 per cent of his body.In the latest case, the man suffered burns to his legs and was taken by ambulance to Dandenong Hospital."We are very lucky on this occasion that the man's housemates were aware of what he was planning to do otherwise we may have had another death on our hands," council spokesperson Sri Samy said."I have had seven young men tell me in the past few weeks that they are thinking of doing this."They are fearful of being sent back to Sri Lanka and say they would prefer to die here than be sent back to torture, which is what the Australian government is doing to many Tamil asylum seekers."The man involved in this latest case came to Australia by boat in 2012, and he was on a bridging visa awaiting assessment of his asylum claim.He fled Sri Lanka, leaving his wife and daughter behind, after security police broke his legs.The council said last week he had learned his brother, held in a Sri Lankan prison for four years, had disappeared and was feared dead.The man feared the same fate if returned to Sri Lanka."The previous Labor government, and the current Coalition government, have sent back more than 1000 Tamil asylum-seekers under an enhanced screening process," Mrs Samy also said."That does not allow time for proper assessment of asylum claims."She called on Immigration Minister Scott Morrison to alleviate fear among Tamil asylum seekers by granting protection to genuine refugees.* Readers seeking support and information about suicide prevention can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Suicide Call Back Service 1300 659 467

23.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

Hendra virus kills NSW horse

Hendra virus has killed a horse in northern NSW, causing authorities to quarantine a property. Source: AAP

HENDRA virus has killed a horse in northern NSW, causing authorities to quarantine a property as they run tests on its stablemates and the five people who handled the animal.

IT'S the first case of Hendra discovered in NSW this year.

"The 31-year-old stockhorse gelding died overnight on Thursday after being found in a dam earlier that day and receiving treatment from a private veterinarian for very low body temperature," NSW deputy chief vet Therese Wright said in a statement."Three people who handled the horse plus the veterinarian and an assistant are being assessed and monitored by NSW Health."In recent weeks no horses have moved off the property, west of Murwillumbah, and there are no dogs or cats about, Ms Wright added.The paddock where the horse was kept "has regular flying fox activity," she said.Horses are believed to contract the Hendra virus from feed contaminated by urine, saliva or birthing fluids from flying foxes."Do not place feed and water under trees and cover feed and water containers with a shelter so they cannot be contaminated from above," Ms Wright said.Hendra virus was found in four horses and a dog across four separate mid-north coast properties last year."Winter is the season when horses have been infected with Hendra in NSW in the past so now is the time to get a vaccine booster for your horse," Ms Wright said.In Queensland four people have been killed by Hendra virus since 1994.And in December councils across the state were given permission to trim trees and use smoke, lights and loud noises to drive flying fox colonies away from urban areas without needing a permit."If a horse becomes sick, owners should contact their veterinarian immediately," Ms Wright warned.

23.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

Thailand disappointed at US blacklist

THAILAND says it is disappointed with a decision by the US State Department to blacklist it for its failure to do enough to fight human trafficking.

BUT the southeast Asian country vowed it would continue to fight the scourge.

The United States on Friday released its assessment of how governments around the world have performed in fighting the flesh trade and other forms of exploitative labour.The report lowered Thailand to its lowest ranking, "tier 3". President Barack Obama has 90 days to determine whether to apply sanctions which could hurt Thailand's lucrative seafood and shrimp industries.Sihasak Phuangketkeow, permanent secretary of Thailand's foreign affairs ministry, told reporters on Saturday in Bangkok that Thailand had stepped up its struggle to combat trafficking.

23.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

Pregnant woman airlifted to hospital

A PREGNANT woman has suffered serious head injuries after a car crashed into a northwest Sydney house, also injuring a teenage girl and another woman.

THE 25-year-old, who is four months pregnant, has been airlifted to Westmead Hospital with serious head and leg injuries, police say.

The girl, 14, also suffered head and leg injuries and was taken to hospital along with a 48-year-old woman, who sustained pelvic injuries."All three remain in a stable condition," police said.They were hit while standing on the front veranda of a Windsor Downs home on Saturday afternoon.The male driver was treated by paramedics and has been taken for mandatory drug and alcohol testing.His male passenger wasn't hurt.Police have established a crime scene and are investigating.

23.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

SUV carrying rapper ScHoolboy Q fired on

A gunman has fired on an SUV carrying rapper ScHoolboy Q after a concert in Colorado. Source: AAP

A GUNMAN with a rifle fired on an SUV carrying rapper ScHoolboy Q after a concert at the popular Red Rocks outdoor amphitheatre near Denver but he wasn't hurt.

THREE other people suffered non-life threatening injuries during the attack late on Thursday in a parking lot at Red Rocks.

Investigators speaking Friday did not release a possible motive for the shooting and said they do not know if ScHoolboy Q was targeted. No arrests have been made."We have a lot to learn," said Jacki Kelley, a spokeswoman for the Jefferson County Sheriff's Department.ScHoolboy Q, whose birth name is Quincy Matthew Hanley, is from Los Angeles. His most recent album, "Oxymoron," debuted at No. 1 earlier this year and reflects his life as a father and former gang member.He and Kendrick Lamar, who was nominated for seven Grammys this year, are members of Black Hippy.ScHoolboy Q said on Twitter Friday that he was OK."im str8...... dont trip," he wrote.Ray Alba, a representative for ScHoolboy Q, didn't immediately return a phone call seeking comment.The rapper and at least four other people were in a white SUV that was fired on at the venue in the foothills west of Denver, authorities said.They drove themselves to a Denver intersection about 24 kilometres away, apparently in search of a hospital, before being stopped by Denver police and taken for medical attention, Kelley said.ScHoolboy Q and another uninjured person were briefly handcuffed while police assessed the situation, but no one in the vehicle was arrested. Kelley said ScHoolboy Q was not a suspect in the shooting.Nas and Flying Lotus also performed at the concert that benefited three groups, including the Gang Rescue and Support Project of Denver."We want to know what's going on so we can help out in any way," said Cisco Gallardo, director of the gang rescue group."There could have been (a) prior beef, prior problems."About 4500 people attended the concert at the amphitheatre, which seats as many as 9525 people.Promoters said the gang rescue group got five per cent of the profits. Two other groups also got five per cent each: Preserve the Rocks, which helps preserve the Red Rocks venue, and Helping Our People Excel, a Denver-area charity with a food pantry and other services.

23.15 | 0 komentar | Read More