Housing Department Put Profit Over Safety
The QLD Ombudsman has found the housing department put profit over the safety of two domestic violence victims, evicting one woman from public housing because she couldn’t make rent payments.
In another case, a woman became homeless after the department refused to relocate her from a residence where her ex-partner discovered and abused her.
Domestic Violence support advocate Shaan Ross-Smith says “If you don't feel safe in your own home, where else can you feel safe?"
Queensland Government Targeted by Hackers
The Queensland government has been targeted by international cyber attackers in a string of online attacks over the past year.
State government IT experts defended 19 distributed denial of service attacks, with the specific intention of the attacks being unknown.
DDoS attacks such as these have the potential to cause major outages, with Spotify, Netflix and Twitter being affected in 2016, inconveniencing millions of users.
Brutal Punishments Inflicted on Young Gymnasts
The Melbourne National Centre of Excellence has been accused of inflicting “brutal” punishments on young gymnasts.
The organisation has been called out by parents who reported that their children were subjected to belittlement and harassment, including being made to swing from bars until their hands bled.
Gymnastics Australia board member George Tatai says the organisation is sweeping the issue under the carpet.
Sydney Opera House Advertising Backlash
The NSW government is facing backlash after it announced plans to use the Sydney Opera House to market a $13 million horse race.
National Trust NSW conservation director, Graham Quint, says projecting commercial material onto the Opera House may be in breach of the Heritage Act.
In a public protest, more than 206,000 signatures have been amassed in a petition to stop the promotion.
Pakistan Seeking Financial Aid
Pakistan’s new government will be seeking financial assistance from the International Monetary Fund in light of their economic crisis.
The country is currently struggling to overcome a balance-of-payment crisis with an 18 billion dollar deficit.
Finance minister, Asad Umar, stated at least $8 billion would be required to meet external debt payments until the end of the year.
Cameroon Election Outcome
Cameroon’s opposition candidate has claimed victory in Sunday’s presidential polls, despite a government warning to not announce results.
Movement for the Rebirth of Cameroon candidate Maurice Kamto said he won the election and will organise a ‘peaceful way to transfer power’.
However, deputy secretary general Gregoire Owona accused Kamto of breaking the law, and said it was too early to know if anyone had won yet.
8am Zedlines
Good Morning, this is Sam and Shirley with your 8am Zedlines.
Billion-dollar Brisbane infrastructure rollout
With $17 billion dollars worth of infrastructure expected to be delivered to Brisbane by 2026, residents are being advised to expect years of interruptions.
Ten city changing projects are now either under construction or working towards approval, which include the Waterfront Precinct, Queen’s Wharf Brisbane and Herston Quarter.
Deputy Mayor Adrian Schrinner believes the years of disruption would be short term compared to the “pain the city would feel without…the Cross River Rail and Brisbane Metro”.
QLD sushi businesses accused of wage theft
Over 39 sushi businesses in Queensland, New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory have breached workplace laws, according to a Fair Work Ombudsman audit.
Inspectors have found 37 businesses are underpaying their staff, with 29 businesses breaching record keeping and pay slip laws.
Fair Work Ombudsman Sandra Parker stated sushi eateries were often employing young migrant workers, who may not be aware of their workplace rights and entitlements.
Aussie scientists discover heart attack ‘game changer’
In a world first study, Australian scientists have discovered which DNA can raise your risk of heart attacks.
Aussie scientists were able to create a ‘genomic risk score’ which heart disease experts are calling ‘game changing’.
Currently, people with high-risk DNA are four times more likely to have a heart attack than those without.