Albanese talks up the importance of engagement with China | Midday News Bulletin 11 July 2025

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Source: SBS News

The Prime Minister prepares to visit China on a visit focused on trade... more concern that measures to stop antisemitism in Australia may stifle free speech... and Ireland's Ben Healy wins the sixth stage of the Tour de France


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TRANSCRIPT

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is emphasising the importance of engaging with China.

He will embark on a six-day visit to the country, starting tomorrow [[Saturday]], and will meet with the country's leadership, including President Xi Jinping.

Mr Albanese says the face-to-face meetings are important on multiple fronts

"Engaging in our national interest is important for our security, to be able to raise issues one-on-one with the Chinese leadership. But of course it is important for our economic interests as well."

Mr Albanese will be accompanied by business leaders, as he tries to further enhance trade ties between Australia and China.

25 per cent of Australian exports go to China, making it by far Australia's most significant trading partner.

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Concerns are being raised that the new national plan to combat antisemitism in Australia could stifle free speech.

One recommendation made to the federal government by antisemitism envoy Jillian Segal is to strip funding from organisations that fail to address hatred against Jews.

Some, including the National Union of Students and the Australian Jewish Council, are worried that hurt those making legitimate criticism of Israel, particularly admidst the current conflict in the Middle East.

Speaking with SBS Arabic, a Board Director of Palestine Australia Relief and Action, Reem Borrows, is concerned advocacy for Palestinians will be deemed antisemitic.

“Let’s be very clear; we unequivocally condemn any form of racism. For context, antisemitism is not a Palestinian construct. The Palestinian struggle has always been about freedom, dignity, and equal rights, not just for ourselves but for all people. So it is deeply troubling to see legitimate criticism of the Israeli government, especially regarding Gaza, being conflated with antisemitism.”

Ms Segal says these concerns are misplaced, and only those calling for the elimination of the state of Israel will be deemed to be antisemitic.

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The Prime Minister says he will not be providing the reasoning behind a 62 year-old Palestinian woman being detained as a national security risk.

A document seen by SBS News revealed national security agency ASIO [[ay-zee-oh; Australian Security Intelligence Organisation]] assessed Maha Almassri to be "directly or indirectly a risk to security".

Her family has told SBS Arabic Ms Almassri lost family members, before fleeing Gaza.

Her brother Solomon has condemned the government for detaining Ms Almassri, who he describes as a harmless old woman.

"They just came a bunch of police officers and some federal police and they just stormed the house and they had a search warrant. And they terrorised everyone inside the house."

He was not present when she was arrested at another family member's home yesterday [[10 July]].

Australia's Migration Act grants the Home Affairs Minister — or a chosen delegate — the right to cancel a person's visa on character grounds if it is deemed to be "in the national interest".

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Members of the Bosnian community in Australia have gathered to mark the Srebrenica [[shreb-ra-nitz-uh]] Massacre, on the anniversary of the tragedy.

In 1995, more than 8000 Bosniak Muslim men and boys were killed near the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The international court of justice has since recognised the event as an act of genocide - the worst since the second world war.

Selma Music [[mew-sitch]] is a clinical psychologist who lost a parent in the Bosnian War.

Dr Music has told SBS Bosnian coming together to remember the event helps survivors and loved ones of those who died cope.

"For various reasons, including that we share together the experiences of what has happened, but also that we alleviate a little bit of the pain and suffering that we carry with us every day."

Many families still don't know what happened to their loved ones in Srebrenica, with around 1000 people missing since the atrocity.

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Police are treating a fire at a Sydney childcare centre in the early hours of this morning [[11 July]] as suspicious.

Play to Learn in Turramurra on Sydney's upper-north shore was set alight, with the directors alerted around four thirty in the morning.

The centre's operations manager, Gemma Quinlan, has told Channel Nine she has no idea why the centre was targeted.

"We're here to serve the community, we're here for our families and our children. We've been operating for 19 years on the Central Coast and have an amazing reputation up there. We have generations of families who have been through Play to Learn and this has never happened to Play to Learn before. We are absolutely dumbfounded and it just hurts."

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On World Population Day, which is today [[jul 11]], experts are urging state and federal governments to use the challenge of an ageing population as an opportunity to develop transport infrastructure.

Dr Sohani Liyanage is a Research Fellow in Sustainable Transport at Swinburne University of Technology who spoke with SBS Sinhala.

She says the nation needs to move beyond building more roads and concentrate on developing public transport networks, especially those living in less-connected areas.

"Many people in outer suburban areas face longer travel times, fewer options and higher transportation costs. So, the government needs to invest not just in services, but the things like lower fairs, paid passes and safe bike lanes. And more accessible stops and stations. "

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U-S President Donald Trump says he'll impose a 35 per cent tariff on goods from neighbouring Canada- and is threatening to make the rate even higher if Canada retaliates.

The tariff will go into place on the 1st of August, much like Mr Trump's proposed tariffs against Brazil, and other countries.

But Brazilian President Lula da Silva has not been cowed by Mr Trump's threats against retaliation, saying he will impose reciprocal tariffs on U-S goods if a diplomatic solution cannot be found.

Mr Trump has threatened 50 per cent tariffs on Brazilian goods, and has linked his decision on tariffs against the country to the treatment of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who is on trial on charges of plotting a coup against Mr da Silva in 2023.

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Irishman Ben Healy has won the sixth stage of the Tour de France, becoming the first Irishman in five years to win a stage at the world's most-famous cycling event.

Healy says winning the 201.5 kilometre stage from Bayeux to Virie Mormandie is a dream come true.

"To grow up watching the Tour and one day wishing that I could maybe even be there so to even be here is an achievement, and now to win a stage, is just yeah, so, so, so amazing."

Michael Storer finished third- the best finish by an Aussie in the race so far this year.

Matthieu Van der Poel is now the overall race leader, snatching the yellow jersey from reigning champion Tadej Pogocar.


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