YOUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER

NOVANEWS

Sri Lanka and Afghanistan are not safe, better remind the Australian government
This is truly shameful and obvious political pandering. If the Australian government seriously believes that both Sri Lanka and Afghanistan are relatively safe for its citizens, perhaps some ministers should visit the war-torn nations and enjoy the local hospitality for a while. Without a security detail:

Australia’s decision to stop processing all new immigration claims from Sri Lankan and Afghan asylum seekers is an illegal “freeze on fairness”, a prominent immigration lawyer says.
The federal government today announced it was suspending the processing of all new asylum claims by people from Afghanistan and Sri Lanka because of “evolving circumstances” in both countries.
But Refugee and Immigration Legal Centre co-ordinator David Manne said there was “absolutely no evidence” that Afghanistan and Sri Lanka had become overwhelmingly safe and secure places.
“The real concern is that a deliberate delay or deliberate freeze on processing can deny people the protection as refugees which they should be granted now,” Mr Manne said.
“To put a freeze on cases on the off chance the situation in the person’s country might improve at some point down the track flies in the face of our international obligations to properly assess refugee claims at the time they’re made.”
The announcement came as the government revealed the interception of the 38th boat, carrying 70 asylum seekers, to arrive in Australian waters this year.
It brought the number of “irregular immigrants” to Australia to 1878, which could make 2010 the biggest year yet for unauthorised arrivals by boat.

Why al-Jazeera listens to Gaza
Ayman Mohyeldin, Gaza correspondent for Al Jazeera English, tells Democracy Now!:

…Since the launch of Al Jazeera International, we have been committed to covering the story of Gaza and the people there under siege. We think it’s the important, if not one of the most important, stories in the region and in the world and has greater implications on the region. So they’ve decided to keep a permanent presence there with a full-time correspondent. So I was there prior to that. I’ve been the only foreign correspondent based in Gaza since May of 2008. So, well before the war began, I was there.
In my personal experience, I have not had anyone from Hamas telling me I cannot run a story, I should not run a story.

Maybe Israelis aren’t really ready for a Muslim Jew

Who is really afraid of screening this film?

Israeli film distributors have snubbed a controversial British comedy about a Muslim man who finds out he was born a Jew.
The Infidel, which was written by Jewish-born comedian David Baddiel and is having its UK premier tonight, is an irreverent culture clash comedy about a devoted Muslim father who discovers he was adopted and that his original parents were Jewish.
In a bid to discover more about his new found identity, the father figure, Mahmoud Nasir seeks out his neighbour Lenny, a drunken Jewish cab driver who begins teaching his new friend how to be Jewish.
For a low-cost British comedy made for little more than £1million it has received impressive global interest. Distribution rights have already been sold in 62 different countries, including a host of Muslims states in the Middle East which are known for their strict censorship rules.
But not a single distributor has come forward to show the film in Israel because of fears that it might cause upset within some sections of the Jewish community.

The real problem with Mt Everest

News flash! (from a world I’m currently inhabiting):

Nepal and China agree Mount Everest is tall – but each have their own idea of just how tall.
According to the Kathmandu Post, the neighboring nations met this week in Kathmandu to end a long-standing feud over the height of the famous mountain, which resides along the border of both countries.
China believes Everest measures about 29,017 feet (8,844.43 meters) high. Nepal, however, believes it to be about 29,029 feet (8,848 meters).
Why the difference? China limits its measurement to the mountain’s rocky peak, while Nepal includes the snow that covers it.

The mainstream media aren’t all the same

A timely reminder of the different ways al-Jazeera and CNN see the world.
See: www.antonyloewenstein.com

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