The release of up to 150 children under the age of 10 from residential detention is not a humanitarian move by the government, in case you were wondering.
Immigration minister Scott Morrison claimed that issuing bridging visas to 150 children and their families to live in the community was a 鈥渄ividend of stopping the boats鈥.
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The National Union of Students (NUS) organised a national day of action on August 20 against the federal government's changes to tertiary education.
Students were protesting against the proposals in the federal budget that would lift the cap on fees, increase interest on HECS loans, and make changes to Newstart and Youth Alowance.
Up to 700 people joined the protest in Sydney. Students marched from the University of Technology, Sydney to Town Hall.
Students stopped the march on George St and burned a cardboard effigy of Pyne.
The recent media attention given to the case of 鈥渂aby Gammy鈥 鈥 the child of an Australian couple born to a surrogate mother in Thailand, and left in her care by his parents allegedly because he was born with a disability 鈥 has led to suggestions that rules around surrogacy should be changed.
The rates of surrogacy in Australia are very low. In 2011, only 80 women volunteered for it, the reported on August 10.
Venezuelan ambassador to Egypt, Juan Antonio Hernandez, said on August 20 that an Israeli aircraft attacked the Venezuelan humanitarian delegation in Rafah along the border post between Egypt and Palestine, the next day.
The delegation was delivering 12 tons of aid to the Palestinian people. No one was injured during the attack.
Protesters took to the streets of Melbourne on August 16 to condemn human rights abuses by Saudi Arabia and to call for the release of Shia cleric Ayatollah Nimr Baqr al-Nimr, who has been sentenced to death by crucifixion and beheading for calling for religious freedom in the kingdom.
Saudi Arabia is both an absolute monarchy and a theocracy. The regime promotes a Wahhabi interpretation of Sunni Islam, notorious for narrowly defining Islam and intolerance toward other beliefs.
The National Tertiary Education Union at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) took strike action on August 20 after negotiations with UTS management around an enterprise bargaining agreement (EBA) stalled.
Staff and students held a picket line at the city campus and asked students and staff to turn away and respect the picket. The action was held to coincide with the National Day of Action called by students against the federal government鈥檚 proposed education cuts.
The Venezuelan government has released images of the 鈥淗ugo Chavez鈥 shelter, where incoming Palestinian child refugees of the Israeli assault of the Gaza Strip will be housed, on August 16.
President Nicolas Maduro made the pledge last month to shelter Palestinian children who were orphaned and wounded as a result of the conflict, Venezuela Analysis said on August 16. Israel's ongoing assault has killed more than 2000 Palestinians, mostly civilians.
A vibrant student march against the federal government鈥檚 education cuts hit the streets of Newcastle on August 20.
At least half of the 180 protesters were high school students who had walked out of classes, some in defiance of threats of detention and suspension, to join the protest.
Year 12 student at Hunter School of Performing Arts Marianela O鈥橞rien told 91自拍论坛 Weekly that she joined the protest because 鈥渨hen Tony Abbot went to uni he had free education so why can鈥檛 my generation have the same?鈥
鈥淗yperactivity around security legislation is unprecedented,鈥 Professor Jude McCulloch told a public forum in Melbourne on August 21.
"Between 2001 and 2007 when Howard was defeated, the parliament passed 44 anti-terror laws 鈥 one every seven weeks.
鈥淢any legal experts have withdrawn from talking about this because of the difficulty of remaining an expert in this field. The basis of these laws is the politics of fear. The neoliberal government has nothing to offer on education, welfare and health. If a problem can be militarised, it will be militarised."
The US has been carrying out air-strikes in Iraq since August 8 for the first time since officially ending their occupation at the end of 2011.
The strikes were aimed at the extremely violent multinational terrorist group previously known as Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, but which recently renamed itself Islamic State (IS) to reflect its global ambitions.
鈥淗ands up! Don't shoot!鈥
This slogan was taken up by community protesters right after the murder of 18-year-old African American Michael Brown by police in the St Louis suburb of Ferguson, Missouri, on August 9.
Brown had his hands up in surrender and shouted 鈥淒on鈥檛 Shoot!鈥 when a white cop shot the unarmed teen six times.
His body was left lying on the ground for four hours before the police had it picked it up. This callousness further angered the Black community, who make up about 70% of the small town.
More than 300 concerned citizens took part in a peaceful people鈥檚 picket on August 19 at Tasmania鈥檚 parliament house to protest against a bill that would ban the right to protest.
The Workplaces (Protection from Protesters) Bill, introduced by the state Liberal government, passed Tasmania鈥檚 lower house in June. It is due to be debated in the upper house in late October. The bill makes it an offence to hold a protest that prevents business activity. Protesters can be given on-the-spot fines of $2000. Three-month mandatory jail sentences will apply for second offences.
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