Australian News

Latest updates, policy debates, trending ideas, criticisms, provocative essays, expert analysis, commentaries, on-the-spot reporting, insights and opportunities from Australia

Funding ‘simply not enough’ for Rohingya refugees, UN agencies report

In March, the value of the food vouchers for camp residents was reduced from $12 per person per month to $10, and in June,...

Status quo on Korean Peninsula ‘alarming and unsustainable’, Security Council hears

Khaled Khiari was briefing the Council just a day after DPRK conducted the second launch of its Hwasong-18 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), a system...

INTERVIEW: Building bridges between Afghanistan and the world because ‘isolation is not an option’

Since then, as international funding has stalled amid skepticism about the Taliban’s return, the UN has been acting as the world’s "eyes and ears"...

UN in Bangladesh decries devastating new round of rations cuts for Rohingya refugees

The cuts will reduce the value of rations provided to Rohingya refugees to $8 per month, or 27 cents per day. At the beginning of...

Stop tobacco farming, grow food instead, says WHO

Ahead of World No Tobacco Day on Wednesday 31 May, WHO deplored that 3.2 million hectares of fertile land across 124 countries are being...

Children bearing the brunt of Afghanistan crisis: UNICEF

“Because, in what is a deeply troubled country - grappling with humanitarian catastrophe, climate related disasters, and egregious human rights abuses - too many...

Cyclone Mocha leaves ‘trail of devastation’ in Myanmar

OCHA said that communities there had spent the day cleaning up, and counting the cost of the storm, categorized as Extremely Severe, when it smashed into...

Afghanistan: Rights experts alarmed over Taliban use of ‘brutal’ punishments

The urgent call from the ten Special Rapporteurs and members of the Working Group on discrimination against women and girls, came in response to...

Pakistan: Guterres calls for end to violence following arrest of Imran Khan

Mr. Khan pleaded not guilty to corruption charges on Wednesday, appearing before a judge at a police guest house, which also served as a...

Locust outbreak in Afghanistan threatens wheat harvest

The UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) sounded the alarm on Wednesday after locusts were spotted in the country’s north and northeast. FAO said...

UN calls on Taliban to end corporal punishment in Afghanistan

“Corporal punishment is a violation of the Convention against Torture and must cease,” said UNAMA’s human rights chief Fiona Frazer, stressing that the UN...

UN expert urges Japan to ‘step up pressure’ on Myanmar junta

“The international community’s response to the crisis in Myanmar is failing, and that failure has contributed to a lethal downward spiral that is devastating...

India poised to become world’s most populous nation

The main driver of these trends is the fertility level in the two nations, said John Wilmoth, Director of the UN Population Division. Together,...

First Person: The Indonesian power ranger

Known by her nickname, Ega was one of 15 women selected to participate in the UN Development Programme-supported Perempuan Inspiratif Mitra Polhut (Inspiring Women...

Spate of missile launches triggers call for unity on Korean Peninsula

UN Assistant Secretary-General for Europe, Central Asia, and the Americas Miroslav Jenča told the Council that the Korean Peninsula must be “an area for...

Myanmar: Social media companies urged to stand up to junta

In an appeal to internet chat platforms to monitor content more carefully and allocate sufficient resources to do so, the rights experts warned that...

‘Mum does not cry or scream anymore’: Breaking the silence of domestic abuse in...

Like many women in Tajikistan, Shermatova Marjona has experienced gender-based violence. Ms. Shermatova met her husband while she was working abroad as a cleaner in...

Rights experts concerned over intimidation around mega tourism project in Indonesia

The Mandalika project includes parks, resorts, hotels and a motorcycle racetrack hosting international sporting events. It is located on Lombok island, in impoverished West...

UN chief strongly condemns DPRK missile launch

News reports said DPRK had launched a long-range missile on Saturday that landed in the sea in Japan’s exclusive economic zone, which triggered the...

Guterres strongly condemns deadly mosque attack in Pakistan

News reports stated that a militant group has claimed responsibility for the attack, which occurred at a crowded mosque. Reports showed that the bombing...

Afghan girls and women made focus of International Education Day: UNESCO

The agency announced on Thursday that it was dedicating the International Day of Education on 24 January, to the country’s women and girls.  “No country...

Steep increase in deadly boat journeys reflects Rohingyas’ desperation: UNHCR

More than 3,500 desperate Rohingya attempted deadly sea crossings in 39 boats in 2022 – mainly from Myanmar and Bangladesh – UNHCR spokesperson Shabia...

Sunshine, sea, and sustainable tourism: Indonesian women entrepreneurs adapt to a changing world

As the sun sets over the Celebes sea, and its orange glow turns the horizon gold, a couple of dozen tourists are on the...

Myanmar: Hundreds of political prisoners released, but thousands remain in jail

“The release of political prisoners in Myanmar is not only a relief to those unfairly detained, but also their families”, OHCHR Spokesperson Jeremy Laurence...