At AusNewsLanka , we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Australia is being hit hard by a wave of respiratory illnesses, and the flu is leading the charge. In fact, we’ve seen record-breaking inter-seasonal flu numbers since the start of the year — way before the typical winter peak. But surprisingly, the flu still flies under the radar. “It’s the underdog of infectious diseases,” says Prof Julie Leask from the University of Sydney.“People don’t take it seriously enough, and that’s a big reason why vaccination rates remain low.” How many cases are we talking about? As of this week, Australia has recorded 83,402 flu cases in 2025 — that’s over 10,000 more than this time last year. And it’s not just the flu circulating. So far this year, we’ve also seen: 67,141 COVID-19 cases 52,611 cases of RSV (a virus that targets the lungs, especially in young kids and older adults) According to infectious diseases expert Prof Paul Griffin from the University of Queensland, this is the highest number of flu cases ever recorded in Australia outside of the winter months. “Flu numbers in January, February, March, and April this year are well above anything we’ve seen in the past five years,” Griffin says. What does this mean for the winter flu season? That’s the big question — and the answer isn’t clear yet. “We don’t know exactly what the rest of the season will look like,” Griffin says.“But we already know this surge, combined with low vaccination rates, means the flu is having a bigger impact than it should.” So, how are the vaccination rates looking? In short: not great. Despite the clear risk, flu shot uptake remains low across all age groups, especially among kids. Here’s a quick look at the numbers: Only 11.7% of children aged 6 months to 5 years have been vaccinated — and they’re among the most vulnerable. Just 7.6% of kids aged 5–15 have had the jab. Among adults: 12.8% of 15–50 year olds 21.2% of 50–65 year olds Only 46.9% of those over 65 (despite being a high-risk group) What can you do to protect yourself? Griffin says it loud and clear: get vaccinated. “With flu numbers this high, vaccination is our best defence — and uptake is nowhere near where it needs to be.” Leask adds that the key is to build the habit. People who get vaccinated one year are much more likely to continue the habit every year after that. She says healthcare workers can play a big role by starting those conversations early. And beyond the shot? Griffin recommends: Good hand hygiene Using air purifiers Wearing a mask, especially if you’re high-risk or in crowded indoor spaces This year’s flu season is off to a roaring (and early) start. The best thing you can do? Book that flu shot, encourage your loved ones to do the same, and take those simple extra steps to stay healthy. Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka  – the leading platform for news for Australians .

At AusNewsLanka , we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. In a dramatic and controversial move, the Trump administration has revoked Harvard University's ability to enrol international students, sparking global concern — including from Australia. Australia’s ambassador to the U.S., Kevin Rudd, said the embassy is actively working with the U.S. government to understand the decision and how it will affect Australians currently studying at Harvard. “We’re seeking further details on the decision,” Rudd said. At the heart of the controversy is a sudden announcement by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which claimed that Harvard had created an "unsafe campus environment" and allowed what they described as “anti-American, pro-terrorist agitators” to harass Jewish students. The department also accused the university of collaborating with the Chinese Communist Party, saying Harvard had trained members of a Chinese paramilitary group as recently as 2024. Based on these accusations, the Trump administration stripped Harvard of its Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) certification — a key designation that allows international students to obtain visas to study in the U.S. What does this mean?Harvard can no longer enrol any new foreign students, and the thousands who are already enrolled must either transfer to another school or leave the country. That includes about 116 Australian students currently studying across various Harvard programs. Harvard Calls the Move 'Unlawful' Harvard isn’t taking this quietly. In a strong statement, the university called the decision “unlawful”  and said it’s working urgently to provide guidance and support to its international student community. “This retaliatory action threatens serious harm to the Harvard community and our country, and undermines Harvard's academic and research mission,” the university said. The situation escalated after a letter in April from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who demanded Harvard hand over information on foreign students allegedly involved in campus protests or “violent activity.” According to her, Harvard’s failure to comply led to the sanctions. In her latest communication, Noem said Harvard could reverse the decision — but only if the school provides a trove of records within 72 hours. That includes surveillance footage, audio, and any records of international students allegedly involved in protests or what the administration considers “dangerous” conduct. “This administration is holding Harvard accountable for fostering violence, antisemitism, and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party on its campus,” Noem said. What's Next? The decision has stunned the academic world and could have wide-reaching implications for higher education in the U.S. Harvard alone enrols nearly 6,800 international students — more than a quarter of its entire student body — from over 100 countries. For Australia, the focus now is on supporting the 100+ students caught in the crossfire and navigating what this means for future enrolments. Stay tuned — this story is developing fast, and with Harvard expected to challenge the decision, things could change quickly. Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka  – the leading platform for news for Australians .

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka , your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans  in Australia and beyond. වාහන ආනයනය සඳහා ඇමරිකානු ඩොලර් මිලියන 450 ක් පමණ වටිනා ණයවර ලිපි (LC) දැනටමත් විවෘත කර ඇති බව මහ බැංකු අධිපති ආචාර්ය නන්දලාල් වීරසිංහ මහතා පවසයි. බ්‍රහස්පතින්දා මහ බැංකුවේ පැවති මාධ්‍ය හමුවකදී ඔහු ප්‍රකාශ කළේ ඇමරිකානු ඩොලර් මිලියන 200 ක් පමණ වටිනා වාහන දැනටමත් රටට ආනයනය කර ඇති බවයි. 2025 දී වාහන ආනයනය සඳහා ඇමරිකානු ඩොලර් බිලියන 1 ක් දක්වා වෙන් කිරීමට අපේක්ෂා කරන බව රජය නිවේදනය කර තිබේ. Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka  – the leading platform for news for Sri Lankans .

At AusNewsLanka , we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. If you’re in Sydney today, especially in the south-west, brace yourself – the weather is wreaking havoc across the city. Non-stop rain overnight has led to flash flooding, and now authorities are warning residents in low-lying areas to prepare for possible evacuations. Some parts of the city have been absolutely drenched: Sydney Olympic Park and North Parramatta both recorded 118mm of rain Hornsby saw 116mm, and Auburn wasn’t far behind at 115mm Even the city’s core got hit – Observatory Park saw 72mm and Sydney Airport got 60mm And that rain is now turning into a serious flood risk. Residents along Cobbitty Road and Cut Hill Road in Cobbitty have been told to get ready to evacuate. The Nepean River is rising, and emergency services are warning people not to wait until it’s too late. "If you remain in the area, you may become trapped without power, water, and other essential services," the NSW SES  said."It may be too dangerous for NSW SES to rescue you." Other areas on alert include: Cooks River at Tempe Bridge Georges River at Milperra and Liverpool Hawkesbury River at Windsor and North Richmond And Gronos Point, where people are being told to prepare to isolate due to rising water It’s not just homes being affected — travel across Sydney is a mess. At Sydney Airport: Runways were temporarily shut down this morning because of the weather, and now delays and cancellations are hitting flights.Qantas and Virgin services are among those impacted, and flights into Newcastle, Coffs Harbour, and Port Macquarie are also disrupted. Port Macquarie Airport is completely shut down. If you’re flying today? Check with your airline. Things are changing quickly. On the train lines: Floodwaters shut down parts of the network earlier today.The North Shore Line between Central and Town Hall was impacted, but it’s now back up and running.There were major delays on the Leppington, Liverpool, Inner West, and Airport & South lines due to flooding near Bardwell Park and Bexley North, but those waters are starting to recede and things are slowly returning to normal. Still facing issues? The Eastern Suburbs and Illawarra Line is still delayed, thanks to flooding near Oatley and a broken-down train at Bondi Junction. “We’ll have engineers doing checks in the next hour or two,” said Sydney Trains CEO Matt Longland . “We’re hoping to reopen that line later today.” The Central Coast & Newcastle Line and the Hunter Line are also affected — with flooding near Cockle Creek and Sandgate causing disruptions. And if you were planning to head out for Vivid Sydney tonight? Officials are asking people to consider postponing their trip. “Services later this evening may still be disrupted,” said Howard Collins from Transport for NSW. “If you can, maybe plan to visit on a different night.” Oh, and one more wild scene — in Parramatta, the wharf is starting to flood, and water is rising right up to the opal gates. So if you’re in Sydney today — stay dry, stay safe, and keep an eye on updates. This storm’s not done with us yet. More updates to come on AusNewsLanka .

At AusNewsLanka , we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Former U.S. President Donald Trump is stirring controversy again — this time over a discredited conspiracy theory involving South Africa. In a tense and somewhat chaotic meeting with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa at the White House, Trump claimed — without evidence — that white South African farmers are being murdered and their land taken from them in what he described as “the opposite of apartheid.” He even showed a video that he said proved a “genocide” was underway. Trump told Ramaphosa that white farmers were fleeing South Africa for countries like the U.S. and Australia. “They’re being executed,” he claimed. “They happen to be white, and most of them happen to be farmers.” He doubled down later, saying Australia was being “inundated” with white South Africans fleeing their farms and that many were trying to come to the U.S. too. But here’s the thing — none of that is backed up by facts. Yes, crime in South Africa is high, but the vast majority of victims are Black South Africans, not white farmers. The South African government has repeatedly rejected claims of a targeted campaign against white people, calling them simply untrue. Back in 2018, Peter Dutton — then Australia’s Home Affairs Minister — did float the idea of giving white South African farmers special humanitarian visas, saying they deserved attention and needed help “from a civilised country like ours.” But the idea sparked a backlash, and no special visa program was ever created. The South African government also said at the time, “That threat does not exist.” South Africa isn’t even in the top 10 countries for humanitarian entrants into Australia. That list is dominated by places with genuine conflict like Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, and Myanmar. That said, South Africans do make up a sizable migrant community in Australia — they’re the seventh-largest, making up about 0.8% of Australia’s population. Still, Trump stuck to his claims, saying white South African farmers’ land is “valueless” and that thousands want to escape. Just this year, about 50 Afrikaners reportedly arrived in the U.S. after Trump offered them asylum — even though the U.S. has largely shut its doors to asylum seekers from countries like Sudan or Syria. That’s drawn sharp criticism. Senator Chris Van Hollen slammed the move, accusing the Trump administration of creating a system of “global apartheid” by prioritising white South Africans over refugees from war zones. Throughout the Oval Office meeting, as Trump grew louder and more animated, President Ramaphosa stayed calm. He acknowledged that crime is a serious issue in South Africa but made it clear that the majority of victims are Black — not white farmers. Quoting Nelson Mandela, Ramaphosa said, “Whenever there are problems, people need to sit down around the table and talk about them. And this is precisely what we would also like to talk about.” In short, Trump’s claims don’t match the reality on the ground — and leaders and experts from both South Africa and abroad are pushing back hard. More updates to come on AusNewsLanka .

At AusNewsLanka , we aim to keep the Sri Lankan community informed with timely updates. තාවකාලිකව අත්හිටුවන ලද සේවක අර්ථසාධක අරමුදල (EPF) සම්බන්ධ සේවාවන් නැවත ආරම්භ කර ඇති බව කම්කරු දෙපාර්තමේන්තුව නිවේදනය කර තිබේ. නිවේදනයක් නිකුත් කරමින් කම්කරු දෙපාර්තමේන්තුව පැවසුවේ අද දහවල් 12.00 සිට සේවා නැවත ආරම්භ කළ බවයි. මීට පෙර, EPF සේවා සඳහා භාවිතා කරන පරිගණක දත්ත පද්ධතියේ හදිසි නඩත්තු කටයුතු හේතුවෙන් මැයි 23 වන දින දක්වා සේවා තාවකාලිකව අත්හිටුවන බව දෙපාර්තමේන්තුව නිවේදනය කළේය. Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka  – the leading platform for news for Sri Lankans .

At AusNewsLanka , we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Australians might be getting ripped off on their power bills — and consumer group CHOICE is not holding back. They've just launched what's called a “super complaint” to the ACCC, the consumer watchdog, accusing energy retailers of using sneaky tactics to keep customers in the dark and overpaying. The ACCC now has 90 days to respond. So what’s going on? According to CHOICE, some energy companies are playing a tricky game — creating new, cheaper electricity plans but giving them the exact same name as existing ones. That way, when customers get a "better offer" notice, they might not realise it’s actually a different, more affordable plan. And because of that confusion, many don’t bother switching. CHOICE says this little trick is costing Aussies big — on average, $171 a year, and up to $588 for some households. All up, they estimate consumers are losing out on a massive $65 million. “The idea seems to be to keep people as confused as possible,” CHOICE said. And it’s not just a few people missing out. A recent ACCC report found that 4 out of 5 Australians aren’t on their retailer’s best deal. That’s a huge chunk of the population overpaying on their energy bills. “It shouldn’t be this hard to know if you’re being ripped off,” said CHOICE CEO Ashley de Silva. “We’re calling on the ACCC to take strong court action to stop these dodgy practices.” But the energy retailers aren’t copping the blame without a fight. The Australian Energy Council (AEC) — the group that represents electricity retailers — hit back, saying CHOICE has it wrong. CEO Louisa Kinnear pointed the finger at the Australian Energy Regulator (AER), which actually sets the rules around what wording retailers can use on bills. Retailers, she said, tried to get the rules changed three years ago but were shut down. “The AER decides the wording of those ‘better offer’ messages,” she explained. “Retailers have been in ongoing discussions with them to make things clearer for customers.” In fact, back in 2023, the AEC even told the AER that there wasn’t solid proof the current system wasn’t working — that is, they didn’t think the “better offer” messages were failing to help people find better deals. Now, the AER says it’s reviewing the situation and looking at ways to make things easier to understand. So, if you've ever looked at your power bill and felt confused — or unsure if you're getting the best deal — you're not alone. And now, the pressure is on the ACCC to step in and clean up what CHOICE calls a confusing and costly mess. Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka  – the leading platform for news for Australians .

At AusNewsLanka , we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. One man has been confirmed dead and three others are missing as floodwaters continue to devastate parts of New South Wales, with Premier Chris Minns declaring the event a natural disaster. Speaking to reporters this morning, Minns said the body of a man had been found inside a flooded home in Moto, calling the situation “devastating” for his family and the wider community. “We’re bracing for more bad news in the next 24 hours,” he warned. Three more people are still unaccounted for: A 60-year-old woman from the Dorrigo area, A 25-year-old man believed to have driven into floodwaters near Wauchope, and A 49-year-old man who may have walked into rising water. And it's not just the tragic loss of life—thousands of homes have been damaged, and more rain is on the way. Up to 300mm of rain is expected in some areas over the next 24 hours. Emergency Response Ramps Up About 2,500 emergency personnel and 500 emergency vehicles, including boats and helicopters, have been deployed. The SES has already carried out over 500 flood rescues, mainly in the Hunter and Mid North Coast. “We’re still rescuing people who have driven into floodwaters,” SES Commissioner Michael Wassing  said, urging the public to stay off roads  and follow all evacuation warnings . Widespread Impact The flooding is especially severe around Taree, Kempsey, and Port Macquarie, with more than 140 flood warnings currently active. Major rivers like the Macleay, Hastings, and Manning are still at risk of rising again due to rainfall in the mountains. Some numbers showing the scale of the crisis: Over 50,000 people are isolated by floodwaters. Around 9,500 homes are directly threatened. 145 schools are closed today. Rainfall totals have already passed 300mm in some areas in just 24 hours. Heartbreaking Stories of Rescue There have been countless dramatic rescues over the past day. In one case, Taree resident Sam Halloran stayed behind after helping his partner and dogs get winched to safety. Another woman was rescued from her home in Pampoolah with just a few belongings in her arms. “I've got tablets,” she told the rescuer.“We can take some small medication, but that’s it,” he replied, helping her into a helicopter. "One-in-500-Year" Flood Event Andrew Gissing from Natural Hazards Research Australia said the event is likely a one-in-500-year flood—the worst on record for the area. The NSW SES continues to work through the night, with urgent rescues still underway in places like Taree, Oxley Island, Moto, and Glenthorne. “If you’re under an emergency warning and it’s safe to do so, evacuate now,” Commissioner Wassing said.“We can’t guarantee crews will be able to rescue people once night falls.” Support and Evacuation Centres Both the state and federal governments have now activated disaster assistance across 16 local government areas. This support includes: Emergency accommodation Grants for uninsured low-income residents Financial help for structural home repairs Support for small businesses and primary producers Freight subsidies for farmers Evacuation centres have opened in: Dungog RSL Club Gloucester Club Taree Manning Point Bowling Club Wingham RSL Bulahdelah Golf Club Tuncurry Bowling Club Kempsey Showground Panthers Port Macquarie Woolworths says stores between Newcastle and Port Macquarie remain open for now, although Kempsey’s Woolworths and Big W are closed due to the evacuation order. “We’re closely monitoring the situation and working to keep our team and customers safe,” a Woolworths spokesperson said. With rain still falling and more expected , authorities are urging everyone in affected areas to stay alert , follow evacuation orders , and download the Hazards Near Me app  for updates. Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka  – the leading platform for news for Australians .

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka , your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans  in Australia and beyond. සදුදා දිනයේදී ශ්‍රී ලාංකික පුරවැසියන්ට විදේශයන්හි, විශේෂයෙන් ඉතාලිය හා අනෙකුත් යුරෝපා රටවල, ඔවුන්ගේ රියදුරු බලපත්‍ර භාවිත කිරීමේ දී මුහුණදෙන ගැටළු සම්බන්ධයෙන් විශේෂ අවධානයක් යොමු කරමින් සාකච්ඡාවක් පැවැත්විණි. මෙම සාකච්ඡාවට ප්‍රවාහන හා මහ මාර්ග නියෝජ්‍ය අමාත්‍ය ප්‍රසන්න ගුණසේන, මෝටර් රථ ප්‍රවාහන දෙපාර්තමේන්තුවේ කොමිෂනර් ජනරාල් කමල් අමරසිංහ, යුරෝපියානු අංශයේ අධ්‍යක්ෂ ජනරාල් සුගීශ්වර ගුණරත්න සහ මහ මාර්ග අමාත්‍යාංශය සහ විදේශ කටයුතු අමාත්‍යාංශයේ ජ්‍යෙෂ්ඨ නිලධාරීන් රැසක් සහභාගී වූහ. විදේශ නියෝජ්‍ය අමාත්‍ය අරුණ හේමචන්ද්‍ර මහතා පැවසුවේ, රියදුරු බලපත්‍ර ආකෘති නොගැළපීම සහ රටවල් අතර වෙනස් වන පිළිගැනීමේ සම්මතයන් ආශ්‍රිත ගැටළු වැනි ප්‍රධාන කරුණු සාකච්ඡා කෙරුණු බවයි. මෙහිදී ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ බලපත්‍ර පද්ධතිය යාවත්කාලීන කිරීම සහ ඩිජිටල් කිරීම් සිදු කරමින් ජාත්‍යන්තරව ගැලපෙන ආකාරයට සකස් කිරීමේ අවශ්‍යතාවය මතුවිය. “මෙවැනි එක්සත් ප්‍රයත්නයක් යටතේ පනවන නීතිපාලනය වර්ධනය කිරීම, ඩිජිටල් පරිවර්තනය ප්‍රවර්ධනය කිරීම සහ විශේෂයෙන්ම අපගේ විදේශීය සේවකයින් වෙනුවෙන් ප්‍රායෝගික බාධක ඉවත් කිරීමේ වටිනා අවස්ථාවක් මෙම සාකච්ඡාව නියෝජනය කරයි” යැයි ඔහු සදහන් කළේය. නියෝජ්‍ය අමාත්‍ය හේමචන්ද්‍ර මහතා වැඩිදුරටත් පෙන්වා දුන්නේ, ශ්‍රී ලංකා පුරවැසියන්ගේ අයිතීන් ආරක්ෂා කරන අතර ජාත්‍යන්තර සම්මතයන්ට එකඟව ක්‍රියාකරන, ප්‍රායෝගික හා තාක්ෂණික විසඳුම් ක්‍රියාත්මක කිරීම සඳහා රජය කැපවී සිටින බවය. More updates to come on AusNewsLanka .

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka , your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans  in Australia and beyond. අඩු ආදායම්ලාභීන් සඳහා රඳවා ගැනීමේ බද්දට සම්බන්ධ විධිවිධාන සහ බැංකු ගිණුම් විවෘත කිරීම සඳහා බදු හඳුනාගැනීමේ අංකය (TIN) සම්බන්ධ විධිවිධානවලට අදාළව 2017 අංක 24 දරන දේශීය ආදායම් පනතට සංශෝධන අමාත්‍ය මණ්ඩලය විසින් අනුමත කර ඇත. රජයට අනුව, 2025 අංක 2 දරන දේශීය ආදායම් (සංශෝධන) පනත මගින් රඳවා ගැනීමේ බදු අනුපාතය 5% සිට 10% දක්වා වැඩි කිරීම සඳහා නීතිමය විධිවිධාන 2025 අප්‍රේල් 01 වන දින සිට බලපැවැත්වෙන පරිදි හඳුන්වා දෙන ලදී. බදු අයකර ගැනීම සඳහා වාර්ෂික ආදායම් සීමාව වන රුපියල් මිලියන 1.8 නොඉක්මවන ආදායමක් ඇති පුද්ගලයින්ගෙන් පවා රඳවා ගැනීමේ බද්ද අය කිරීම හේතුවෙන් එවැනි තැන්පත්කරුවන් සහ අඩු ආදායම් ලබන පුද්ගලයින් අපහසුතාවයට පත්වන බව නිරීක්ෂණය වී ඇත. මෙම ගැටලුවට පිළියමක් ලෙස, බදු රහිත ආන්තිකයට වඩා අඩු ආදායමක් ඇති පුද්ගලයින් විසින් ස්වයං ප්‍රකාශයක් ඉදිරිපත් කිරීමේ ක්‍රමවේදයක් හඳුන්වා දීමට යෝජනා කර ඇති බව රජය පවසයි. එබැවින්, වාර්ෂිකව රුපියල් මිලියන 1.8 නොඉක්මවන ඇස්තමේන්තුගත ආදායමක් ඇති සියලුම දේශීය තැන්පත්කරුවන් සඳහා පොලිය මත රඳවා ගැනීමේ බද්ද අයකර ගැනීමෙන් නිදහස් කිරීම සඳහා ස්වයං ප්‍රකාශයක් හඳුන්වා දීම සඳහා මුදල්, සැලසුම් සහ ආර්ථික සංවර්ධන අමාත්‍යවරයා ලෙස ජනාධිපතිවරයා විසින් ඉදිරිපත් කරන ලද යෝජනාව අමාත්‍ය මණ්ඩලය විසින් අනුමත කරන ලදී. සියලු වර්ගවල බැංකු ගිණුම් විවෘත කිරීම සඳහා බදු හඳුනාගැනීමේ අංකය (TIN) ඉදිරිපත් කිරීම අනිවාර්ය කිරීම සඳහා සුදුසු සංශෝධන ඇතුළුව, 2017 අංක 24 දරන දේශීය ආදායම් පනත සංශෝධනය කිරීමේ යෝජනාව සඳහා ද අනුමැතිය ලබා දී ඇත. Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka  – the leading platform for news for Sri Lankans .

At AusNewsLanka , we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. The NSW prison population has hit its highest level since the COVID-19 pandemic, and new data reveals one particularly concerning trend behind the rise. According to the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR), the number of adults in prison across the state reached 13,103 in March 2025—the most since March 2020, when the pandemic began. During COVID, prisoner numbers dropped sharply and stayed relatively low through to late 2023. But since November 2023, that trend has reversed, with the prison population jumping by 1,055 inmates—or 8.8%. One of the most troubling aspects of this increase? A significant rise in unconvicted Indigenous prisoners. BOCSAR revealed that, as of March 2025, there were 4,244 Indigenous adults in custody, making up about 32% of the total prison population—despite Indigenous Australians accounting for only 3.4% of the state’s overall population. This spike is being driven largely by a rise in Indigenous people on remand—those being held in custody while they await their day in court, not yet convicted of a crime. Over the last five years, the number of Indigenous remandees has jumped 63%. One major factor behind the increase? Domestic violence-related arrests, which have more than doubled over the same period. “Unlike the overall prison population, which is still below pre-pandemic levels, the number of Aboriginal prisoners has now surpassed 2019 levels  and is continuing to grow,” said BOCSAR executive director Jackie Fitzgerald . Fitzgerald warned that the numbers paint a worrying picture, especially in light of national commitments. “These figures underscore the urgent need for policy changes  and better intervention strategies to reduce Aboriginal incarceration,” she said.“Current trends are completely out of step with the Closing the Gap target  of reducing Indigenous over-representation in the justice system by at least 15% by 2031 .” In short, while NSW’s overall prison numbers are climbing again, the surge in Indigenous Australians being held without conviction is sparking serious calls for change. Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka  – the leading platform for news for Australians .

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka , your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans  in Australia and beyond. ශ්‍රී ලංකා ඒ කණ්ඩායම ජූලි මාසයේ ඔස්ට්‍රේලියාවට බහු ආකෘති තරඟාවලියක් සඳහා පිටත් වීමට නියමිතය. මෙම සංචාරය තුළ එක්දින තරඟ 3 ක් සහ දින 4ක තරඟ 2 ක් ක්‍රියාත්මක වීමට නියමිතයි. සියලුම තරඟ මරාරා ක්‍රිකට් ක්‍රිඩාංගනයේදී පැවැත්වෙයි. ක්‍රිකට් ප්‍රේක්ෂකයින්ට මෙම තරඟ සජීවීව Kayo Sports සහ cricket.com.au ඔස්සේ නැරඹීමට හැකියාව ඇත. තරඟ කාලසටහන මෙන්න: ජූලි 4: පළමු එක්දින තරඟය – මරාරා ක්‍රිකට් ක්‍රිඩාංගනය (දිවා/රාත්‍රි තරඟය) ජූලි 6: දෙවැනි එක්දින තරඟය – මරාරා ක්‍රිකට් ක්‍රිඩාංගනය ජූලි 9: තෙවැනි එක්දින තරඟය – මරාරා ක්‍රිකට් ක්‍රිඩාංගනය ජූලි 13–16: පළමු දින 4ක තරඟය – මරාරා ක්‍රිකට් ක්‍රිඩාංගනය ජූලි 20–23: දෙවැනි දින 4ක තරඟය – මරාරා ක්‍රිකට් ක්‍රිඩාංගනය More updates to come on AusNewsLanka .