TRANSCRIPT
- Queensland begins holding educational forums ahead of a truthtelling and healing inquiry
- A warm welcome for Pope Francis in Timor-Leste
- The Socceroos prepare to face Indonesia on the path to qualifying for the 2026 World Cup
Queensland has begun holding educational forums, ahead of the launch of its truthtelling and healing inquiry later this month.
In the Torres Strait, some of the first forums were held on Waiben, Thursday Island, in the Torres Strait.
Elders and community members say they are glad the process will finally begin.
Waanyi and Kalkadoon man Josh Creamer is the chairperson of the inquiry.
He told NITV, the inquiry will be seeking to hear the voices of those who haven’t been heard before in history.
"For us the role is looking at the impact of colonisation on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people - hearing the stories, the evidence of Torres Strait Islander people of events that occurred across this region."
Other states that have taken up the truthtelling process include: Victoria, Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales.
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Pope Francis has received a raucous welcome as he arrived in Timor Leste to celebrate the country's 25th anniversary of the UN-backed referendum that paved the way for independence from Indonesia.
The 87-year-old pontiff smiled as he waved at those who gathered to greet him, waving Timorese flags and holding umbrellas to shade themselves from the scorching sun.
(Sounds of cheers)
Delivering a speech, Mr Francis applauded the Timorese people for having recovered from their "greatest suffering and trial" to put Timor Leste on the path of peaceful development.
President José Ramos-Horta says the Pope's visit is significant and presents an amazing opportunity.
"In Timor-Leste, his Holiness is a friend and his visit is the biggest, best marketing that anyone can aspire to promote the country - to put the country on the tourist map."
Francis arrived in Dili from Papua New Guinea as part of his historic trip through Southeast Asia and Oceania.
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The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights is urging countries not to accept Israel's "blatant disregard" for international law in the occupied Palestinian territories.
Addressing the opening of the U-N Human Rights Council in Geneva, Volter Turk says the international community is at a 'fork in the road'.
He says if the state of human rights in the world continues on it's current path, then people are facing a dystopian future and warns that an endless cycle of military escalation and misinformation threatens both humanity and the planet.
Condemning Israel's increasing violence in the occupied West Bank and its ongoing aggression in Gaza, Mr Turk says leaders must uphold the rule of law.
"A wider situation of illegality across the occupied Palestinian territory, deriving from Israel's policies and practices as so clearly spelled out by the International Court of Justice in its advisory opinion in July. Must be comprehensively addressed. States must not and cannot accept blatant disregard for international law including binding decisions of the Security Council, and orders of the International Court of Justice, neither in this, nor any other situation."
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Typhoon Yagi, Asia's most powerful storm this year, has left at least 49 people dead and 22 missing in Vietnam.
It made landfall on the country’s north-eastern coast on Saturday, cutting power to millions of households and companies
The country's weather agency is warning of more floods and landslides.
Among the affected is 45-year-old restaurant owner and mother Nguyen Thi Thom, who after COVID invested in renovating her restaurant to welcome tourists with money she borrowed from friends and relatives.
She says the extent of the loss is devastating.
"I have lost everything. There is nothing left. When I look around, people have also lost all they had, just like me. Even though I am sad I can't talk about it because it is not just me who is suffering. I can only try to recover from this."
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Typhoon Yagi, Asia's most powerful storm this year, has left at least 49 people dead and 22 missing in Vietnam.
It made landfall on the country’s north-eastern coast on Saturday, cutting power to millions of households and companies
The country's weather agency is warning of more floods and landslides.
Among the affected is 45-year-old restaurant owner and mother Nguyen Thi Thom, who after COVID invested in renovating her restaurant to welcome tourists with money she borrowed from friends and relatives.
She says the extent of the loss is devastating.
"I have lost everything. There is nothing left. When I look around, people have also lost all they had, just like me. Even though I am sad I can't talk about it because it is not just me who is suffering. I can only try to recover from this."
