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Midday News Bulletin 11 September 2023

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SBS NEWS Source: AAP

Members of the Moroccan community in Australia express concern for the safety of their relatives after a deadly earthquake, The Albanese government ramps up its campaign in support of an Indigenous Voice to Parliament, Novak Djokovic wins the US Open, claiming his 24th grand slam singles title.


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Presented by Sam Dover

Source: SBS News


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Members of the Moroccan community in Australia express concern for the safety of their relatives after a deadly earthquake, The Albanese government ramps up its campaign in support of an Indigenous Voice to Parliament, Novak Djokovic wins the US Open, claiming his 24th grand slam singles title.


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TRANSCRIPT

  • Members of the Moroccan community in Australia express concern for the safety of their relatives after a deadly earthquake.
  • The Albanese government ramps up its campaign in support of an Indigenous Voice to Parliament.
  • Novak Djokovic wins the US Open, claiming his 24th grand slam singles title.

Members of the Moroccan community living in Australia are expressing concern for the safety of their relatives as the death toll after Friday's earthquake continues to rise.

Over 2,100 people are confirmed to have died, making it the deadliest earthquake in Morocco in more than six decades.

Morocco has declared three days of mourning and King Mohammed the sixth has called for prayers for the dead to be held at mosques across the country.

Moroccan activist Nadia Bouchti told SBS Arabic24 she has been in constant contact with her relatives online and is deeply concerned for their safety.

"Since we are far away and don't know the extent of the damage caused by the earthquake, I cannot describe the feeling, especially at first, when we knew that the earthquake had occurred and didn't know the damage. As a result, we felt fear for our families with whom we communicated on the Internet."

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The Albanese government is set to ramp up its campaign in support of an Indigenous Voice to Parliament over the next few critical weeks.

Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek told Channel 7 it will be vital for 'yes' campaigners to convince those who are still undecided about the proposal.

She says it's an important and simple step led by Indigenous Australians to acknowledge at least 65 thousand years of First Nations' history.

"It's a way of saving money and getting better results. This idea came from Aboriginal people, well over 80% of them support it. This is not a committee that has a veto over parliament, it doesn't get to stop things happening, it doesn't run programs. It’s a committee to give advice. It's really a lot less scary than some of the 'no' campaign are making it out to be."

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Victoria's wage regulator has filed 2,425 criminal charges against one of Australia's biggest catalogue distributors for allegedly breaching child labour laws.

Wage Inspectorate Victoria has filed the charges against Ive Distribution, accusing them of allegedly hiring more than 400 children under the age of 15 last year to deliver catalogues and flyers, despite not possessing the appropriate permits.

In Victoria, if an employer holds a child employment permit or license, it's legal for children 11 years old and up to deliver newspapers and advertising content.

The matter is expected to be heard in Melbourne's magistrates court on the 2nd of October.

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Members of the Coalition continue to question the government's decision to deny Qatar Airway's request for additional flights into Australia.

Transport Minister Catherine King has faced scrutiny over the decision, which saw a rejection of a bid by Qatar Airways to double the 28 weekly services it currently offers.

Queensland One Nation Senator Malcolm Roberts says the Opposition will continue to demand answers in parliament this week, as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese arrives back in Canberra following Indo-Pacific summits in Indonesia.

"The Opposition will be continuing to press the Transport and Infrastructure Minister Catherine King and the Prime Minister as to why he application for additional flights to and from Australia by Qatar airways was rejected, why this government has stood in the way of additional competition in the aviation sector at a time when airfares are 50 per cent higher than they were prior to the pandemic?"

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Novak Djokovic has won his 24th grand slam singles title, beating Russia's Daniil Medvedev in the final of the US Open.

The victory at Flushing Meadows puts Djokovic on the same level as Australian female tennis star Margaret Court who holds the all-time majors record.

The clash with Medvedev was a rematch of the 2021 final, which Medvedev won in straight sets for his lone grand slam title.

Djokovic has now won two more grand slam singles titles than any other men's player in history.

He says the win has exceeded even his most ambitious childhood dreams.

"I had the childhood dream when I was seven, eight. I wanted to become the best player in the world and win Wimbledon trophy there was there was only thing the only thing I wanted. But then when when I, when I realized that, you know, obviously I started to dream new dreams and set new objectives, new goals. I never imagined that I would be here sitting standing with you talking about 24 slams, I never thought that that that that would be the reality. But, you know, last couple of years I felt that have a chance."


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