Australian Politics
Sunday, May 26, 2024
Why UK nurse Kelly Wainwright took an Aussie health job in Mount Isa 'nobody wanted' but was forced to flee the country within months
There are large groups of Aborigines in and around Mt Isa and their young people have learned that they are largely immune from prosecution for violent acts. Official racism has a lot to answer for
A British nurse who got a job in an Australian country town thought she would be living her dream, but it very soon turned into a nightmare.
Kelly Wainwright had always dreamed of working in Australia, but at the age of 43 her visa options were limited - until she took a role 'nobody else wanted' in the Queensland town of Mount Isa.
Within months, she was back on a plane to the UK, fleeing Australia not because of 'the weather or the creepy crawlies' she thought might be hard to cope with, but because violent crime made her feel unsafe in her own home.
Before she arrived in the outback town, Ms Wainwright was not aware of its high levels of crime and violence.
When she arrived, she thought it 'just looked like any dusty old cowboy town in the middle of the outback', but she soon found out the looks were deceiving.
Ms Wainwright took a manager's role in the sexual health unit of Mt Isa Hospital, a position that had been vacant for almost two years before she arrived.
She told 9News that not 'for one second' did she think 'the volatility of the area' would soon see her flee the town and the country.
Six weeks after she arrived, Ms Wainwright's government-provided home was broken into.
Not long after that, her home was targeted by teenagers, who allegedly brutally assaulted a 14-year-old relative staying with her.
Footage of the alleged attack showed a vicious brawl with kicking, punching and slapping between at least three teenage girls at the house.
Ms Wainwright reported the attack to police but said she was told: 'You live in Mt Isa, I suggest you go and learn how to fight.'
Her employers were so concerned for her safety they asked senior health officials to move her and her teenage cousin to a safer home.
But the request was denied, she said.
Emails obtained by Nine revealed the nurse's manager writing: 'I have fears for Kelly and her family's immediate emotional wellbeing as a result of informing them that their request to move was not supported.'
Ms Wainwright soon found she could not cope with the situation any longer, but as her visa was specifically tied to the Mt Isa Hospital job, she decided her only option was to go home to the UK.
She left in such a hurry that she just packed her bags and got out of there.
'I just gave all (my possessions) away and off we went with just our suitcases,' she said.
Not being supported in 'the way that we should've been' was 'really disheartening', she said.
North West Hospital and Health Service would not comment on individual matters but said it provides 'safe' accommodation that 'meets the needs of our employees'.
In a recent crackdown on youth violence in Mt Isa, more than 30 young people were arrested between April 26 and May 3, resulting in 84 charges.
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Sydney pro-Palestinian students suspended after classes ‘significantly disrupted’
Two Sydney University students have been suspended after classes were “significantly disrupted” by protesters last week, as the encampment on the institution’s quad lawns enters its fifth week.
In a letter of support, the Sydney University Student Representative Council (SRC) said the university was attempting to silence protesters by handing the two students immediate one-month suspensions.
The SRC said the suspensions were a result of the students making announcements at the start of classes about the university’s ties with Israel and encouraging students to be involved in the campaign for Palestine.
“Such announcements before classes begin do not seriously disrupt teaching activities and usually finish before staff are ready to begin class,” the letter read. “They are a routine part of campus life and have been given around many political issues in the past.”
In a letter to staff and students last week, the university said some individuals had gone beyond the bounds of acceptable political announcements before classes began.
This included deliberately covering their faces to conceal their identity, not allowing classes to commence at the scheduled time, and acting in a way that was considered intimidating.
It said it was also aware of counter-protesters allegedly engaging in intimidatory behaviour towards the encampment overnight and was co-operating with police in their investigations of this behaviour.
A university spokeswoman on Thursday confirmed that two students had been temporarily suspended pending disciplinary proceedings, after two incidents of classes being significantly disrupted last week.
One affected subject has had its in-person lectures for the remainder of the semester cancelled.
“We continue to be very clear about our expectations of behaviour on our campus, writing to students and staff again last week about acceptable and unacceptable conduct,” the university spokeswoman said.
The students are demanding the university disclose and end all ties with weapons manufacturers and Israeli universities over the war in Gaza. Members of the local branch of the National Tertiary Education Union earlier this month voted overwhelmingly to support an institutional boycott of Israel in alignment with the student encampment demands.
Protesters at the university’s encampment have vowed to continue until their demands are met. Vice Chancellor Mark Scott has said he would meet protesters this week, but an agreement is yet to be reached.
‘Too little, too late’
It comes as University of Melbourne protesters agreed to end their encampment after the institution agreed to provide more transparency around its research partnerships.
Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-chief executive Peter Wertheim said the suspensions were welcome but were “far too little and come far too late”.
“The constant noise from their shouted slogans and incessant beating of drums has disturbed and disrupted classes and created a pervasive atmosphere of fear and anxiety among students and staff,” he said.
“Today, a number of buildings went into lockdown. Under state legislation, the university senate has the management and control of all university property, including crown land, but the university has been too timid to use its powers to order external demonstrators to leave its grounds.
“This has emboldened the protesters and made the situation progressively worse.”
A few dozen students and external protesters have been camping out each night, with the university moving to cancel some ID cards that have been shared with non-student campers to give them access to facilities, including bathrooms, overnight.
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ACT govt to explore dropping character references for child sex offenders
Good character is unimportant in a Leftist scale of values
There will be a roundtable on Friday with key justice stakeholders to discuss alternative options to references.
The possible change has been prompted by Your Reference Ain't Relevant campaign, which has been seeking to drop good character references for those convicted of child sexual abuse across the country.
Attorney-General Shane Rattenbury committed to the roundtable in his response to a petition led by the campaign's founder Harrison James.
The roundtable's purpose will be "to identify changes that could be implemented which align with the objectives of sentencing, and address the legitimate concerns raised by those with lived experience".
Alternate options could include revised language or "reviewing court processes to mitigate the risks of re-traumatisation for victim-survivors".
A character reference can be taken into account by a magistrate when determining a sentence for a person convicted of a crime.
The option for a good character reference is not available to some convicted child sex offenders such as teachers and religious leaders but can be used by others, including relatives and family friends.
Mr James will take part in the roundtable. He said the aim of the campaign was to shift focus to the seriousness of the offence rather than the perpetrators apparent good reputation.
"This roundtable signifies a crucial milestone in our campaign's trajectory, and I sincerely hope the legal community, the government and survivors can all come together in solidarity and commit to legislative reform," he said.
"It's time to forge a path forward that ensures no other survivor of child sexual abuse suffers the trauma of having their experiences dismissed and invalidated by irrelevant character references."
Mr Rattenbury's responded to Mr James petition earlier this month.
"I recognise the significant impact that the presentation of 'good character' references during sentencing of child sexual abuse offenders has on victim-survivors," he wrote in the response.
"I agree it is timely to consider what reform could look like in the ACT to make the sentencing process more trauma-informed."
The ACT Bar Association has spoken out against the proposal, saying "evidence of prior pro-social conduct of an offender is relevant to the sentencing exercise".
"Sentencing is a nuanced, multi-factorial exercise. One of the factors to which ACT courts are obliged to have regard, and properly so, is the 'character, antecedents, age and physical or mental condition of the offender', the association said in a statement.
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Broke Aboriginal footy legend who once earned almost $300,000 a season opens up about having to explain to his kids why he doesn't own a house or car after stellar 11-year career
Aborigines are notoriously poor at handling money. It is because of that that goverments have made many attempts to regulate how they spend welfare payments
Footy great Byron Pickett has opened up about his heartbreaking financial troubles since retiring, and having to explain to his children why he doesn't own a car or a house.
The dual premiership star who played for North Melbourne, Port Adelaide and Melbourne was a human-highlight reel in his prime, with his bone-rattling bumps and huge kicks giving opponents nightmares.
While playing for Port, he was getting paid almost $284,000 a season before tax, but nowadays Pickett has nothing to show for his 11-year career.
The 46-year-old West Australian still rents, doesn't own a car and had to explain to his kids where all the money went.
'The kids asked me over the years: "Where's the money? What happened? What did you do?",' Pickett told The Advertiser.
'Dad, you played AFL for 11 years but we don't even have a car, we don't have a house. Where's all the money gone?
'I didn't have an answer for them.'
The footy champ claims his former agent Kym Richardson stole more than $250,000 in cash from him - and Pickett is now taking legal action against the AFL Players' Association, claiming that its duty of care to him was breached.
Pickett alleges Richardson withdrew $253,920 without his permission from a bank account opened in trust for him in December 2001.
'Kym had sole control over the ATM card, chequebook and internet banking for the Pickett account,' a statement of claim lodged with the South Australian Supreme Court alleges.
The footballer is accusing his former agent of profiting from real estate deals that he didn't understand.
Pickett intends to 'get back what I deserve' and will continue the legal action.
'I'm not actually doing it for myself,' he said. 'I'm doing it for my kids, for my family.'
Richardson has said the allegations against him are 'absolutely false'.
'I respected Byron and looked after him tremendously, even saving or resurrecting his AFL playing career on a number of occasions,' he said.
'To the best of my knowledge as a considerable time period has elapsed, Byron looked after his own finances from his first year in 1997 through to 2001. The trust was only opened in 2001.'
The big-game player starred in 204 AFL games, and was a huge part of flag-winning seasons for the Kangaroos in 1999 and Port in 2004.
He won the Norm Smith Medal as best on ground in the Power's 2004 grand final victory over Brisbane and is a proud member of the Indigenous Team of the Century.
Pickett retired after playing the 2007 season with the Demons, ending his career with 204 games and 177 goals to his name.
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Also see my other blogs. Main ones below:
http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM -- daily)
http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)
http://pcwatch.blogspot.com (POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH)
http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)
http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)
https://immigwatch.blogspot.com (IMMIGRATION WATCH)
https://awesternheart.blogspot.com (THE PSYCHOLOGIST)
http://jonjayray.com/blogall.html More blogs
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