BHP to pull a Rio Tinto

WHAT’S MINE IS ORE, APPARENTLY

According to The Guardian, BHP is preparing to destroy between 40 and 86 historic Aboriginal sites — including 10,000-15,000 year-old rock shelters and surrounding evidence of 40,000 years of ongoing occupation — in the central Pilbara in order to expand its $4.5 billion South Flank iron ore mine.

Western Australian Minister for Aboriginal Affairs Ben Wyatt approved the expansion plan on May 29, just three days after Rio Tinto destroyed the historic Juukan Gorge, but has very kindly asked BHP to “cooperate on management [of] changed circumstances”.

Lest there be any “misunderstanding” over whether or not First Nations people want to see their culturally and historically irreplaceable sites destroyed, Banjima native title holders have explicitly called on BHP to protect all 86 archaeological sites.

ADANI STILL ON: In more not-great news for native title holders, The Sydney Morning Herald reports that Adani has, since November last year, secured insurance from Liberty International Underwriters, HDI, XL Australia and Aspen for construction work on the Carmichael mine.

AUSTRALIA’S ‘LINE’ TO ESCAPE RELATIVELY UNBENT

According to the AFR ($), the OECD forecasts that Australia will effectively lead the developed world out of the global recession, with expected economic output (5%) and consumption (7.6%) to just trail South Korea, China and Indonesia.

However, while the OECD has also called on Australia to consider industrial reform and boost unemployment stimulus, Scott Morrison has told the AFR ($) he still plans on wrapping up JobKeeper and returning JobSeeker to below-poverty level in September.

The latter comes despite modelling from Deloitte last year demonstrating increase in unemployment payments create a net-economic benefit via increased spending, with the added benefit of keeping human beings alive.

BLACKFACE FINALLY TAKEN OFF AIR

Amidst the growing, global Black Lives Matter movement, Deadline reports that Netflix has removed four shows by Chris Lilley doing brown/blackface — Angry Boys, Summer Heights High, We Can Be Heroes, and Jonah From Tonga — while The A.V. Club notes the online streaming giant has launched a new Black Lives Matter series.

Following Netflix’s announcement, Deadline reports that the BBC has since removed clips of Angry Boys, after earlier claiming the decision to delete shows depicting blackface is limited to Little Britain.

Across the pond — and in light of horrific examples of police brutality amidst the US protests — the BBC reports that Paramount has cancelled COPS after 25 years on air. Clock’s ticking, Border Security…

ART IS COMPLICATED: As the BBC also reports, HBO Max has temporarily pulled Gone With The Wind over its depiction of slavery, but will return the film with a “discussion of its historical context” and leave it otherwise untouched, saying “to do otherwise would be the same as claiming these prejudices never existed”.

[free_worm]

STATE VIRUS WATCH: NSW’S GYM JUNKIES

• NSW has reached 14 days without recording a case of community transmission, however, as The Sydney Morning Herald reports, Premier Gladys Berejiklian faces pressure from her deputy John Barilaro over plans to keep home limitations in place for five people but, from Saturday, allow up to 100 people in large gyms.
• Launching the territory’s first ever, four-year Creative Industries Strategy, the Northern Territory government yesterday pledged to establish a Creative Industries COVID-19 Recovery Working Group to “provide expert and strategic advice to inform the sector’s recovery in the short-term and the implementation of other Strategy recommendations over the coming years”.
• South Australia has pledged $600,000 from their $650 million response package to extend its new domestic violence disclosure scheme by 12 months and maintain a phone app that links at-risk women to police and domestic violence services.
• The Tasmanian government announced that the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery will reopen from Tuesday, 23 June, and the state’s Mental Health Reform Program has recommenced after staff were redeployed to clinical roles earlier in the pandemic.

THEY REALLY SAID THAT?

When you look at pop culture, some of the most successful and popular people have got a diverse background, such as on MasterChef at the moment … One of the judges is Chinese, er, has ethnic Chinese background, and many of the contestants who are hugely popular.

Alan Tudge

The acting Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister takes a break from trying to nab detained migrants’ phones to vaguely point to Melissa Leong as proof Australia could not be racist.

CRIKEY RECAP

Latino Americans are dying by cop too, but fears of la migra stall mass mobilisation

Antonio Castillo

Jun 10, 2020

“Sean Monterrosa, a Latino, was fatally shot by Vallejo police in California’s San Francisco Bay area within days of the killing of African American George Floyd on May 25.  Monterrosa was shot five times by a cop who, apparently, mistook a hammer on his waistband for a gun.

“Today Floyd’s funeral took place in his home town of Houston. Houston is also the home town of Latino Vietnam War veteran José Campos Torres who, on May 5, 1977, was beaten to death by a group of police officers. Campos Torres was 23.”

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Government loses sight of the real goal on childcare — and stuffs the politics as well

Bernard Keane

Jun 10, 2020

11

“After stumbling on both the politics and the economics of its construction industry stimulus last week, the government looks set to repeat the error on childcare — although not exactly in the way its critics are claiming.

“The announcement of free childcare in early April was always explicitly aimed at keeping the sector afloat, and in turn enabling it to continuing providing care for the children of essential workers (remember those?).”

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Junk science: dodgy COVID research sparks mini-pandemic as papers retracted

Amber Schultz

Jun 10, 2020

7

“Trials were halted and hydroxychloroquine abandoned as a potential COVID-19 treatment after The Lancet and The New England Journal of Medicine published papers linking it to harmful side effects.

“But the research has since been accused of being junk science: the papers were retracted last week and the datasets questioned.”

READ ALL ABOUT IT

George Floyd’s brother Philonise asks the United States Congress to ‘stop the pain’ of police killings

‘A wake-up call and opportunity’: Call for a national anti-racism strategy as complaints spike

Local government told to unlock $19bn of construction projects ($)

Chinese international students defend Australia as a ‘safe’ educational destination

Rapper Wretch 32 shares video of police Tasering his father

Jeffrey Epstein grand jury records to stay sealed

Robodebt: total value of unlawful debts issued under Centrelink scheme to exceed $1bn

Almost 200 Australian childcare providers being investigated over Covid-19 funding rules

Coronavirus: No spike in home violence, police say ($)

Hundreds of ex-US officials urge review of Barr’s role in protest crackdown

NSW police pursue 80% of Indigenous people caught with cannabis through courts

THE COMMENTARIAT

It’s the PM’s show: he doesn’t take out the garbage ($) — Niki Savva (The Australian): “Mathias Cormann used to be somebody. He was even touted as a contender, if only he would shift from the Senate to the lower house. As Finance Minister he eclipsed treasurer Joe Hockey and he continued to ride high when Scott Morrison became treasurer. Cormann was one of the most important­ and effective figures in the administrations of Tony Abbott­ and Malcolm Turnbull. Not so much now.”

Defunding the police could bring positive change in Australia. These communities are showing the way — Chris Cunneen (The Conversation): “Divestment from police and prisons must be in equal measure about investment in the community. Specifically, this means investing in the types of services that are likely to ameliorate the social issues that can compromise personal and/or community safety.”

Biden: We must urgently root out systemic racism, from policing to housing to opportunity — Joe Biden (USA Today): “I’ve long been a firm believer in the power of community policing — getting cops out of their cruisers and building relationships with the people and the communities they are there to serve and protect. That’s why I’m proposing an additional $300 million to reinvigorate community policing in our country.”

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