Australia & Pacifics

Australia is the first country to let patients with depression or PTSD be prescribed psychedelics

SYDNEY (AP) — Australia is now the first country to allow psychiatrists to prescribe certain psychedelic substances to patients with depression or post-traumatic stress disorder.

Beginning Saturday, Australian physicians can prescribe doses of MDMA, also known as ecstasy, for PTSD. Psilocybin, the psychoactive ingredient in psychedelic mushrooms, can be given to people who have hard-to-treat depression. The country put the two drugs on the list of approved medicines by the Therapeutic Goods Administration.

New Zealand Bans Plastic Bags From Tomorrow

WELLINGTON, Jun 30 (NNN-XINHUA) – New Zealand’s major supermarkets have been preparing for the second phase of the national plastics ban, starting from tomorrow, which will see the phase-out of more single-use plastics.

The second round will ban plastic produce bags and stickers, plates, bowls, cutlery, and straws, according to the Ministry for Environment’s website, released today.

Those plastics will be taken off the shelves from tomorrow, with businesses to be possibly fined up to 100,000 NZ dollars (60,853 U.S. dollars) if they do not comply.

Australia’s Koalas Vigilant By Researchers’ Drones: Study

CANBERRA, Jun 24 (NNN-AAP) – Koalas become increasingly vigilant when drones are flying nearby, recent Australian research found.

In the first study of its kind, a team from Flinders University in the Australian state of South Australia (SA), fitted 16 of 34 koalas at the Cleland Wildlife Park with heart rate monitors, to measure the impact of drones on the iconic species.

Australia Labor Party passes resolution urging government to recognise state of Palestine

19 June 2023; MEMO: The Australian Labor Party passed a resolution yesterday, during the final day of the Victorian party conference, calling for the federal Australian government to recognise the state of Palestine.

"In re-affirming the resolution carried at the 2018 and 2021 national conferences, the Albanese government will join with 138 countries and the Vatican, which have already done so," the motion read.

Australian senator invites International Criminal Court to probe officers in war crime in Afghanistan

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — A senator invited the International Criminal Court to investigate what Australian military commanders knew about war crime allegations in Afghanistan in a bid to pressure Australia into launching its own review.

Sen. Jacqui Lambie, an influential independent legislator, sent an Article 15 Communication to the Hague-based court Tuesday because she argues military commanders have not been held accountable for their soldiers’ alleged war crimes.

Fiji: Japan should refrain from contaminating sea with nuclear waste: scholar

SUVA, June 13 (Xinhua) -- A scholar on Tuesday slammed Japan's planned discharge of radioactive wastewater from its crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant into the Pacific Ocean.

"The contamination will affect the South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone Treaty areas as well when it eventually flows there," said Kalinga Seneviratne, a visiting lecturer at the University of the South Pacific, in an interview with Xinhua in Suva, capital of Fiji.

"Also, since fish stocks are migratory, contaminated fish could be caught within the treaty area," Seneviratne added.

New Zealand’s Coastal Marine Heatwaves Grow Longer, Stronger, More Frequent: Research

WELLINGTON, Jun 12 (NNN-XINHUA) – Marine heatwaves have become longer, stronger, and more frequent across coastal New Zealand since 1982, especially over the last 10 years, according to a research today.

Different regions experienced more marine heatwaves in different seasons, with the greatest increases observed in the Chatham islands in winter, central New Zealand in autumn, north-eastern New Zealand in summer and autumn, and Bounty and Antipodes Islands in spring, according to the research published on the New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research.

Driver charged after Australia's worst bus accident in decades kills 10 wedding guests

SYDNEY, June 12 (Reuters) - A man was charged with dangerous driving on Monday after at least 10 wedding guests were killed when the bus they were travelling in crashed at a roundabout in Australia's worst bus accident in almost 30 years, police said.

Twenty-five people were injured in the accident around 11:30 p.m. (1330 GMT) on Sunday near the town of Greta, about 180 km (112 miles) northwest of Sydney, police said.

New Zealand's national broadcaster probes 'inappropriate editing' of Ukraine war stories

WELLINGTON, June 12 (Reuters) - New Zealand's national radio broadcaster has launched an investigation and put a staff member on leave after it said a series of news stories on its website about Russia's invasion of Ukraine had been edited to present "a false account of events".

Radio New Zealand (RNZ), which is government-funded but has editorial independence, had by Sunday corrected 15 stories on its website dating back to April 2022 because of what it termed "inappropriate editing".

China leads tech race, highlighting need for AUKUS sharing, says think-tank

SYDNEY, June 6 (Reuters) - China leads research in 19 of 23 technologies set as priorities by the AUKUS defence partnership of Australia, Britain and the U.S., including hypersonics, electronic warfare and undersea drones, highlighting the need for Western allies to pool research results, an Australian security think-tank says.

The Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) said on Tuesday its survey of the world's top science papers showed China led research in most of the technologies likely to come under the defence partnership's so-called Pillar Two.

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