Civil rights activists are angry that the federal government's witch hunt against Bernard Collaery is continuing. Kerry Smith reports.
Australian Capital Territory (ACT)
Protesters again gathered outside the ACT Supreme Court to protest the secret trial of Bernard Collaery and Witness K, reports Kerry Smith.
The ACT government has declared a Reconciliation Day public holiday on the first Monday on or after the 1967 Referendum anniversary date of May 27, which marks the start of Reconciliation Week.
It is the first time in Australia an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-focused public holiday has been created.
Professor Tom Calma of Reconciliation Australia said he hoped it signalled a shift to celebrating multiculturalism, rather than the proclamation of Australia on January 26.
The Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC) was dealt another embarrassing blow on March 21.
The Federal Court dismissed all claims against the Construction Forestry Mining Energy Union (CFMEU) after finding prosecutors had made a deal with a confessed blackmailer to give evidence for the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC) in return for staying out of jail.
Firefighters save flying foxes
Temperatures above 40°C on February 10 and 11 were perilous for Canberra’s flying fox colony in Commonwealth Park.
Extreme heat can cause them to become distressed and sometimes die, as happened in Singleton, where temperatures over 45°C killed hundreds of grey-headed flying foxes.
Knowing the risk to the animals, volunteers from ACT wildlife, the National Capital Authority, Jerrabomberra Rural Fire Service Brigade and ACT Fire and Rescue combined to spray water on the animals.
The ACT Labor government has boosted its commitment to renewable energy still further, announcing Canberra will be fully powered by renewables by 2020.
The switch to renewable energy began with the decision in 2013 to fund three solar farms. Since then, it has held two wind auctions and signed 20-year contracts with four companies to buy energy for a guaranteed payment from wind farms in South Australia, Victoria and NSW.
Environment Minister Simon Corbell said Canberra was leading the nation on renewables, and reaping the benefits.