NEWS & ANALYSIS ON DEMAND
Australia-Indonesia people-smuggling framework to remain secret
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Australia's Foreign Minister, Stephen Smith, says the new Australia-Indonesia framework on people smuggling is not an instant solution to the problem.
Canberra backs Indonesia's sovereignty over Papua
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Activists have used the visit of the Indonesia's president to Australia this week to call on Canberra to raise alleged human rights abuses in the region.
Indonesia president heads to Papua New Guinea
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Indonesian President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, arrives in Port Moresby this afternoon for a two-day state visit.
Thailand gets new security laws
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Tough new security provisions akin to martial law have come into effect in Thailand today, ahead of a major protest.
Australian navy rescues asylum seekers off northern coast
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Australia's immigration department says the navy has rescued a boat off the Northern Territory coast with 24 asylum seekers on board.
Pitcairn's governor says new constitution will protect human rights
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The British Pacific territory of Pitcairn Island has a new constitution.
Australia's new baby elephant 'progressing well'
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Staff at Taronga Zoo in the eastern Australian city of Sydney say a baby Asian elephant is progressing well after its dramatic birth yesterday morning.
Australia condemns of attack on World Vision staff

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The Australian government has condemned a deadly attack on a World Vision office in Pakistan.
China says Climate change is a fact
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A deputy director of China's most powerful economic ministry has come out swinging against climate change denial.
Fiji authorities to investigate alleged assassination mastermind
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Fiji interim Prime Minister has declined to comment on allegations made in court last week that the mastermind of an assassination plot against him, has escaped punishment.
Pacific warned of slowing in tourism growth
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The Asian Development Bank has warned the Pacific will see a new slowing of tourism growth in this year.
Australia to help protect New Caledonian reef
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Australia has agreed to help New Caledonia protect its massive coral reef, the world's second largest after Queensland's Great Barrier Reef.
Tropical depression spotted northeast of Wallis
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A tropical cyclone alert has been issued for Wallis and Futuna.
US indicates earlier Afghan withdrawal
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United States defence secretary Robert Gates has raised the prospect of some American troops withdrawing from Afghanistan earlier than expected.
Indonesian PM welcomes Bali bomber's death
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Indonesian counter-terrorism forces say they have killed a man believed to have been one of the masterminds of the 2002 Bali bombings.
Australia's Chilean community sends aid to quake victims
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The first donation from Sydney's Chilean community to help the victims of the Chilean earthquake will be handed over on Thursday.
Israeli minister apologises for settlement announcement
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An Israeli government minister has apologized to the US Vice President Joe Biden, for embarrassing him, by announcing plans for new Jewish settler housing during his visit to the region.
Malaysian sea turtles facing extinction
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Conservationists are warning Malaysians are eating local sea turtles to extinction because of their voracious appetite for turtle eggs.
Antarctic whale expedition returning home
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An Australian-led Antarctic whale expedition is on its way home after six weeks in the Southern Ocean.
Pakistan players suspended over poor cricket performance
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Several senior Pakistani cricketers have been banned from the national team over their poor performance in Australia this summer.
Australian surfer wins top sporting award
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Australian surf queen Stephanie Gilmore has become the first Australian to win a Laureus Award since 2004.
NZ interest rate remains on hold
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The Reserve Bank in New Zealand has left interest rates on hold but has indicated that rates will start rising around the middle of the year.
Thai airport prepares protest contingency plan
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Thailand's main international airport, which was besieged by protesters in 2008, says it has contingency plans for anti-government rallies expected in Bangkok this weekend.
Indonesia's president 'humbled' as he addresses Australian Parliament

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Indonesia's President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has delivered an historic address to Australia's Parliament.
Human rights groups denounce new Burmese electoral laws

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Burmese democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi will have to be expelled from her political party under electoral rules announced by the country's ruling military government.
Fears Australia has forgotten boatful of Tamils
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Refugee advocates have staged a rally in the eastern Australian city of Sydney to mark 150 days since a boat load of asylum seekers moored in Indonesia.
Solomons Islands faces its violent past
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Old wounds have been reopened in the Solomon Islands as the country delves back into its violent past.
French Polynesia declares natural disaster
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French Polynesia's declared a state of natural disaster for the capital Pape'ete and other towns and villages on the main island of Tahiti.
Tonga disaster victims get relief funds
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The survivors, and the families of those who died in last year's Tongan ferry disaster, have started receiving compensation.
Fiji inspectors try to identify areas of typhoid risk
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Health authorities in Fiji say they have identified the cause of a typhoid outbreak in the country's Northern Division.











