Shark spotted chomping on whale carcass

Sight to be man of vision's legacy

HE was a man of vision who gave Sydney one of her greatest treasures. But tragically, Sydney Opera House architect Jorn Utzon later experienced a steady decline in his sight through macular degeneration.

Skaf rapist Sanoussi off to halfway house

CONVICTED Skaf rapist Mohamed Sanoussi has walked out of prison and was immediately escorted to a halfway house near Long Bay jail.

'Rape' stubby holder gets an Ernie

STUDENTS at Sydney University have been awarded the 2013 Ernie award for sexist comments over a stubby holder which read "It's not rape if it's my birthday".

Jobseekers quizzed over abortions

OIL and gas giant Chevron has been criticised for asking highly personal questions of prospective employees and their partners including whether they have had a miscarriage or abortion.

Astonishing moment shop exploded

CCTV footage captures the destruction of the Wentworthville shop blaze which severely injured the owner, who has been charged with arson.

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New opera to be based on Beaumont kids

AN opera based on the missing Beaumont children is being developed to premiere in 2016, coinciding with the 50th anniversary of their disappearance.

State Opera of South Australia, in partnership with ensemble SINGular Productions, have received a major commission grant from Arts SA to create the work, Innocence Lost.

It's being adapted from the novel Time's Long Ruin by Adelaide author, Stephen Orr.

Adam Goodburn, a founding member of SINGular Productions, said Innocence Lost is loosely based on the disappearance of Jane Beaumont, 9, her sister Arnna, 7, and brother Grant, 4.

He said the story is about friendship, love and loss; about those left behind and how they carry on; and about the disappointments, plans and dreams that are only ever put on hold.

The Beaumonts failed to return home on Australia Day 1966, after a trip to Adelaide's Glenelg beach.

The case remains unsolved.

Mr Goodburn said Innocence Lost was set in a time when people left their doors unlocked and kids went to the beach alone.

"Opera has a place in our Australian society and we want to make it accessible to everyone.

"It's not all about large women with spears singing with glass-shattering accuracy.

"It can be down-to-earth and have a powerful impact on the listener, regardless of social status."

Anne Cawrse, who will compose the opera, said she was thrilled and excited about the project.

"To have the opportunity to provide the musical landscape for such a profoundly moving and heartbreaking story is both a challenge and a privilege," she said.

State Opera's artistic director Timothy Sexton said the work had the potential to be very special.

"It's a tragic, real and confronting story. Anne Cawrse's music will bring the right colour and temperament to the story."

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NSW to face extreme fire danger

A TOTAL fire ban has been declared for 15 areas in NSW ahead of hot and gusty weather conditions.

Sydney, the Blue Mountains, Central Coast, Illawarra, Shoalhaven and Greater Hunter areas are forecast to face extreme fire danger on Thursday, the NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS) says.

Total fire bans will be in place for those areas and 12 others, including northern, western, and southern parts of the state.

NSW RFS Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons said there was the potential for some locations to reach "catastrophic" fire danger - the highest on the bushfire danger scale - if the weather deteriorated.

"These are dangerous conditions, and it's critical that you understand the risk and make your final preparations now - do not leave it until the last minute," he said.

"Under these conditions, any fire that starts and takes hold will spread quickly and may threaten homes and lives without warning."

The Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting a maximum 37 degrees in Sydney on Thursday with north-westerly winds of up to 50km/h.

The RFS recommends residents living in or near bushland to ensure everyone in their family knows how to act if there is a fire.

Emergency services are also appealing to the community to keep an eye out for and report firebug activity.

Over last year's bushfire danger period - between October and March - 87 people, including 55 juveniles, were the subject of legal action for 117 bushfire-related offences.

Police Assistant Commissioner Alan Clarke said anyone caught deliberately lighting bushfires could face penalties of up to 25 years' imprisonment.

Strike Force Tronto is in place to investigate suspicious or arson-involved bushfires that lead to death, serious injury or significant property loss.

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Letter gives new insight into Ned Kelly

A new account of bushranger Ned Kelly's capture has been donated to the State Library of Victoria. Source: AAP

NED Kelly had a "soft and mild looking face and eyes" and cried "I am done I am done" when finally shot by police, according to a 133-year-old letter that gives new insight into the infamous bushranger.

Kelly staggered when hit by the force of rifle bullets, the eyewitness reported, "but it was only when they got him in the legs and arms that he reluctantly fell".

The account was from Scotsman Donald Gray Sutherland who was working at the Bank of Victoria in Oxley when Kelly made his last stand 133 years ago.

The previously unknown letter described Kelly as a "powerful man" who lay on a stretcher "quite calm and collected" after sustaining five or six gunshot wounds in the stand-off with police.

Sutherland goes on to describe the famous armour - weighing about 97 pounds or 44kg - that caused police bullets to slide off Kelly "like hail".

"They were firing into him at about 10 yards in the grim light of the morning without the slightest effect," he wrote.

Sutherland had heard of an affray involving the Kellys while in Oxley and went to nearby Glenrowan, in northeast Victoria, to see the "desperados" who caused him "so many dreams and sleepless nights".

He then documented what he saw in a letter to his family.

Now, his descendants have handed that letter dated July 8, 1880 over to the State Library of Victoria.

A lock of hair from Kelly's horse was enclosed with the letter.

State Library of Victoria chief executive Sue Roberts said the letter is a remarkable document.

"This letter is a very personal account of events that have become part of Australia's folklore," she said.

"It will join Ned's armour, Jerilderie Letter and other important items in our Kelly collection - one of the largest and most significant in the world."

The letter will be on display in its Changing Face of Victoria exhibition from Monday.

It can also be viewed online with a full transcript on the State Library website.

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Man, 74, dies after fall from scooter

A 74-YEAR-OLD man has died in southern NSW after falling off a child's motorised scooter and tumbling three metres down an embankment, police say.

The man died in hospital shortly after the incident in Nethercote on Sunday.

Police on the far south coast have appealed for witnesses who saw him riding the scooter before the fall to come forward.

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ASX says no plans for a merger

AUSTRALIAN share market operator ASX Ltd has no plans to merge with any Asian market operators.

ASX chief executive Elmer Funke Kupper said the opportunities for consolidation between market operators were in the United States and Europe where there was pressure to gain scale.

"We don't have any pressure nor do we have any plans (for a merger)," Mr Funke Kupper told reporters at a British Australian Chamber of Commerce lunch.

ASX raised $553 million in capital in June, prompting speculation that the stock market operator was clearing debt to free it up to take part in a merger.

Mr Funke Kupper said at the time that the capital raising was linked to tough new global rules requiring minimum money to be kept in its clearing business.

In 2011, the Singapore Exchange was blocked from taking over the Australian Securities Exchange in an $8 billion deal on national interest grounds.

Mr Funke Kupper also urged that a review of the financial system mooted by Treasurer Joe Hockey be broader than just a focus on the financial settings in Australia.

"These reviews are not just about stability and competition domestically. They're also about the competitiveness of the country, not just the settings in the country," he said.

"And I think that has to be an increasing focus, that we don't just adopt policies from overseas that are not particularly relevant to us."

Mr Funke Kupper said he would like to see reviews of the financial sector set horizons longer than 18 months or two years before the next review.

He said businesses make material investments in infrastructure and need decisions based on a time frame of five to 10 years.

Shares in ASX were six cents higher at $34.22 at 1550 AEDT.

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Aust retirement system among world's best

AUSTRALIAN retirees have got it pretty good, according to a report ranking the lucky country as having the third-best pension system in the world.

Compulsory superannuation combined with a generous Age Pension helped Australia maintain third place in this year's Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index.

Denmark took first place with the Netherlands coming in second.

The UK was ranked ninth while the US came in at 11, not far ahead of Brazil and Mexico in 14th and 15th place, respectively.

Superannuation reforms helped Australia to better its overall score this year but there was still room to improve, research author and Mercer senior partner David Knox said.

Dr Knox suggested that to improve the system the pension age should be raised as life expectancy increased and that older people be encouraged back into the workforce.

He also suggested restrictions be placed on how people accessed their superannuation, with a requirement that part of the funds be used as an income stream instead of being accessed as a lump sum.

"What's put us in third place is our compulsory system that means virtually every employee is covered and has got superannuation, so we're all saving money for our future," Dr Knox said.

"But the fact that we have no requirement as to what you do with the money, we believe, is a short-coming."

Dr Knox said the ageing population meant Australians needed to change their attitudes toward retirement and that businesses needed to develop more flexible workplaces to take advantage of the skills older workers have to offer.

"We're not suggesting you work until you drop and you also have to recognise that blue collar workers may well be burnt out, but the community needs to recognise that we need to be a bit more flexible about how we retire people," Dr Knox said.

"We've got a lot of people who are going to retire in the next 10 years and the economy can't withstand the sudden reduction of that workforce, so we have to find ways to ensure they gradually retire.

"It's all about people recognising the issue of the ageing population, recognising that we all need to do something about it and with a little bit of imaginative thinking, it's possible for people to work in a part-time capacity."

The Index ranks 20 countries and covers 55 per cent of the world's population.

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Morrison pledges crack down on refugees

ASYLUM seekers who live in the community and are charged with a crime are having their visas cancelled or being returned to immigration detention centres.

Immigration Minister Scott Morrison said the crackdown came after a rise in the number of serious offences allegedly committed by asylum seekers on bridging visas or in community detention.

"Warnings from the coalition about risks to the community and the need for tighter controls were not only ignored, they were mocked," the minister said on Monday.

The federal government has revoked 14 bridging visas due to criminal charges, including 10 cancellations since the federal election, Mr Morrison said on Monday.

There are more than 21,300 people in Australia on bridging visas.

Another 14 people have had their community detention arrangements revoked because of criminal charges.

At the end of August, there were 2739 people in community detention, which is different to immigration detention.

Community detention involves reporting regularly to officials, living at a designated address and not doing any paid work.

The charges laid against the 28 people include assault, acts of indecency, stalking, indecent assault on a minor, people smuggling, rape and drink driving.

The government was also providing police with the addresses of asylum seekers in community detention and developing mandatory behavioural protocols.

"Setting some clear standards and taking strong action to revoke the privileges of those who violate those standards is an important early step in restoring integrity to the bridging visa and community detention programs," he said in a statement.

"While there is no suggestion that the incidence of charges is disproportionate for illegal boat arrivals released into the community, I have a zero tolerance attitude for those who violate the trust given by granting them permission to live in the community."

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Xenophon demands Papuan trio explanation

Three West Papuan activists have been convinced to leave Australia's consulate in Bali. Source: AAP

INDEPENDENT senator Nick Xenophon says West Papuan activists were "effectively threatened" to leave the Australian consulate in Bali ahead of Prime Minister Tony Abbott's arrival for the APEC summit.

Senator Xenophon is demanding an immediate explanation for the departure of the three men, after they scaled a wall into the mission early on Sunday morning.

He alerted AAP to the incident after being contacted by human rights groups.

It's understood Australian officials persuaded the trio - Rofinus Yanggam, Markus Jerewon and Yuvensius Goo - to leave the consulate about 7am local time.

The three men were calling for international journalists to be allowed into the troubled Papuan provinces and for the release of at least 55 political prisoners from Indonesian jails, including Filep Karma, who has been jailed for 15 years in Abepura prison.

The security breach came ahead of Mr Abbott's arrival for the APEC leaders' summit on Sunday.

Senator Xenophon called on Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop to provide a detailed timeline and explanation of what occurred.

"These three young men were not asking for West Papuan independence from Indonesia. All they were asking for is entirely consistent with the Lombok Treaty of 2006, signed by both Australia and Indonesia," he said.

"Instead of getting sanctuary and help, the Australian government effectively threatened them and now there is serious concern over the activists' safety."

Senator Xenophon's calls were backed by Professor Clinton Fernandes of the University of NSW, who has written extensively on West Papua and the Australian/Indonesian relationship.

He said when the media circus had moved on after APEC, the trio "may be tried, most certainly they will be beaten, and at some point might be disappeared".

Mr Yanggam told the Guardian Australia he left the consulate in fear for his life after the consul-general, Brett Farmer, told them the Indonesian police and army would be called.

"They told us: 'We don't accept you to stay here. If you stay here for five minutes, I will call the Indonesian army to come and take you out'," Mr Yanggam said.

"I know that if I am arrested then my life will be over. So better to get out now."

In a letter addressed to the Australian people, the trio said they wanted Mr Abbott, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and US Secretary of State John Kerry to stand up for Papuan rights.

"We want these leaders to persuade the Indonesian government to treat Papuan people better," the handwritten letter said.

Many of their colleagues had tried to have their voices heard but had ended up in prison, they said.

"These political prisoners committed no crime. They are explicitly committed to non-violence," the letter said.

"The Indonesian government arrested and jailed them for discussing their political human rights beliefs."

The trio ended the letter with a plea for help.

"We seek refuge and plead for our safety."

Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said the trio had left the consulate "voluntarily" at 7am Bali time after delivering a protest letter.

Interim Labor leader Chris Bowen said he had full confidence that the consul-general and Australian officials were acting appropriately.

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APEC leaders seeks ways to foster growth

INDONESIA'S President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is urging Asian business and political leaders to do more to counter the economic headwinds confronting developing countries by dismantling barriers to trade and investment.

Yudhoyono told a regional summit that as advanced economies are speeding up after a gradual recovery from the global recession, emerging economies are slowing, dogged in some cases by trade deficits, capital flight and weakening currencies.

"The advanced economies are experiencing recovery and showing faster growth while emerging economies ... are facing a slowdown," he said at the annual meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum held amid tight security on the Indonesian resort island of Bali.

"APEC is in the ideal position to help the recovery of the global economy," said Yudhoyono, emphasising the importance of preventing protectionism and opening markets further to maximise prosperity.

His comments were consistent with a draft of the APEC leaders' declaration, seen by The Associated Press, which is set to be released at the end of the summit. It says the region faces the backdrop of a fragile and uneven global economic recovery and should guard against pressures to raise trade barriers.

Reductions in tariffs over the past 25 years have yielded nearly $59 billion in savings for businesses, said Yudhoyono, whose own country is struggling not to lose gains that have made the world's largest Muslim country a rising economic power in the region.

Yudhoyono said Indonesia's recent troubles with a weakening currency and inflation were transient.

"We are convinced this is a short-term challenge. Indonesia will remain a land of opportunity and growth," he said.

Singaporean prime minister Hsien Loong said that Asia is pressing ahead with reforms as the US, China and Japan - the world's No. 1, 2 and 3 economies - grapple with their own internal issues.

The APEC summit offers Indonesia a chance to showcase its own progress and possibly attract foreign investment it needs to help modernise its roads, ports, and other infrastructure.

"As the chief sales person of Indonesia incorporated, let me urge you to take advantage of our opportunities," Yudhoyono said, pointing to a potential $1.8 trillion in business prospects in a wide array of businesses.

With the US bogged down in a congressional stalemate over the national budget, forcing President Barack Obama to call off his own attendance at the APEC summit, smaller economies in Asia are watching closely to see how the biggest economies fare.

The 21 economies in APEC, which range from tiny Brunei to giant China, are hoping to reach agreement on at least some reforms that might help break a logjam in world trade talks ahead of a WTO meeting in Bali in December.

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