Mining magnate Palmer resigns from LNP

Billionaire Clive Palmer says he isn't worried about being kicked out of the Liberal National Party. Source: AAP

CLIVE Palmer says he has resigned from the Liberal National Party, despite receiving a letter that he said reinstated his membership to the Queensland party.

The mining billionaire said he was resigning from the LNP because he didn't want to "become the issue".

"It's important that with the critical issues facing the state, I don't become the issue," he told ABC's Lateline program.

"So I discussed the issue with my wife and at 8.30pm (AEST) tonight I thought the best course of action for me would be to resign from the LNP straight away."

Mr Palmer said he had received a letter by the LNP president's executive committee confirming his suspension had been lifted as of Thursday morning.

Mr Palmer was suspended from the party on November 9.

The LNP executive was set to meet on Friday morning to decide whether the life member will remain in the party.

Mr Palmer told AAP earlier there was no way he would have been expelled from the party, because there had been no complaint made against him.

He said his resignation would now allow him to speak more honestly because he "wasn't restrained in any way".

"It's a bit of a shock to me to leave a party I've been a member for 43 years, and to leave in such circumstances.

"But I weighed everything up and I think it's very brave and courageous of the state executive of the LNP to restore my suspension and lift that as they did."

He reiterated earlier comments that the Queensland government was too heavily influenced by lobbyists and by business.

He said senior political figures had threatened his business interests because he'd spoken out politically.

"Well, I believe that to be true.

"I believe that our interests have been threatened because of the political stands that I've taken by people, and I think that's wrong.

"I don't want my employees to bear any burden because of the stands I've taken on what I thought was right."

But Mr Palmer did not rule out a future political role, including the possibility of setting up his own party.

"I certainly will remain interested and I certainly won't be silenced by anybody when I see people being persecuted in this country."

23.09 | 0 komentar | Read More

Smartphone users: watch for online tricks

ATTENTION smartphone shoppers: watch for cyber criminals using phony apps or messages in an effort to hijack your device or steal your data.

Law enforcement and security experts say that as more people use their mobile devices in stores and on open Wi-Fi networks, the risks are increasing as well.

The FBI-backed Internet Crime Complaint Center is warning consumers to be on the lookout for fraudulent apps, messages and Wi-Fi networks which can trick users of mobile devices to divulge passwords, personal data or credit card numbers.

"Many times, e-mails, texts or phone calls will look or sound like they are coming from a well-known retailer, stating a need to 'verify' the full credit card number you used for a purchase or ask you to click a link to update personal account information," the center said.

The center said Android devices are often targeted by spyware, including one system called FinFisher, capable of taking a mobile device, or Loozfon, "an information-stealing piece of malware."

Security firm McAfee's Gary Davis said that as the popularity of apps surges, "so have the chances that you could download a malicious application designed to steal your information or even send out premium-rate text messages without your knowledge."

Davis said some fraudsters are using Twitter ads offering special discounts for popular gifts, linking to malicious software.

"Criminals are getting savvier with authentic-looking social ads and deals that take consumers to legitimate looking websites," Davis said.

"In order to take advantage of the deals or contests, they ask them for personal information that can obtain a shopper's credit card number, email address, phone number or home address."

Lookout, a security firm offering free apps for Android and iPhone, also urges prudence.

"Be careful what you do on public Wi-Fi networks especially when you're shopping. Do not expose passwords, account numbers or credit card information unless you are certain that you are on a secure connection," a company statement said.

"Use discretion when downloading apps. Even the most innocent-looking shopping app can contain software designed to steal personal data, make fraudulent charges or even hijack your phone. Only download apps from sites you trust."

23.09 | 0 komentar | Read More

Five charged with Sydney home invasions

FIVE men have been charged in relation to a number of home invasions and armed robberies across Sydney.

Police say two of the men allegedly broke into a man's home at Haberfield, in Sydney's inner-west, at 5.30am (AEST) on Thursday.

The duo allegedly struck the man with a wooden bat before stealing the keys to his car.

They then fled the scene with a group of males outside the house.

Officers later located the stolen car at a fast food restaurant car park about 5km away at Hurlstone Park.

They arrested five men aged between 16 and 19 and later charged them with a number of other offences, including armed robbery and aggravated break, enter and steal.

It is alleged the five were involved in several other home invasion and armed robbery incidents within the Sydney metropolitan area.

All five were refused bail, with four to appear at Bidura Children's Court on Friday, and the other to appear at Central Local Court on Friday.

23.09 | 0 komentar | Read More

Man takes hostages, demands Japan PM quit

A MAN armed with a knife has taken five people hostage at a Japanese bank, police say, with local media reporting he was demanding Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda's cabinet resign.

About seven hours after the drama began on Thursday the man released one hostage, public broadcaster NHK reported.

Television footage showed a woman walking away from the bank as night fell, escorted by a police officer and apparently handcuffed.

She was not immediately identified and the reason for the handcuffs was unclear.

The hostage-taking happened at the Zoshi branch of the Toyokawa Shinkin Bank in the central prefecture of Aichi in the early afternoon, a police spokesman said without elaborating.

Local media said the man, wielding a survival knife, took four employees and a female customer captive and was demanding the Noda cabinet step down as well as asking to speak to journalists.

Noda last week called an election for December 16. He is expected to lose, with polls suggesting the main opposition Liberal Democratic Party will be the biggest party.

The hostage-taker was originally said to be in his 30s or 40s but later reports suggested he was in his 50s.

NHK said there was no report of injuries to the hostages and the man had made no demands for money.

However, he was asking for 10 days' worth of food and water, the Asahi Shimbun newspaper said. Broadcasters said he had also demanded cigarettes and a lighter.

Television footage showed a man who appeared to be a police officer carrying a megaphone and a plastic bag to a side door of the building. Shutters were down all over it but lights could be seen inside.

TV footage showed the area around the bank sealed off and guarded by police.

23.09 | 0 komentar | Read More

Aussies living longer 'disability free'

AUSTRALIANS are living longer and the extra years are coming "disability free", new figures from the federal government show.

In the decade to 2009, life expectancy at birth jumped 3.4 years to 79.3 for men. Life expectancy for women rose 2.4 years to 83.9.

Over the same period the number of years men can expect to live without disability rose 3.7 to 61.6 years. For women the figure jumped 2.2 to 64.3 years.

"The good news is when it comes to these additional years many are disability free," Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) senior executive Brent Diverty told AAP.

The AIHW report "Changes in life expectancy and disability", released on Friday, notes that a large part of the growth in expected disability-free years occurred between 2003 and 2009.

That period saw disability rates decline for the first time in 30 years at the same time as there was a relatively slow growth in life expectancy.

The most recent life expectancy figures - for the 10 years to 2011 - were released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics earlier in November.

They show a baby boy born today can expect to live 79.7 years. A girl can expect to live until she's 84.2.

The gap between the sexes is closing over time but, as Mr Diverty says, "it's difficult to say if it will ever completely close".

Life expectancy in Australia rose markedly from the beginning of the 20th century as a result of improvements in sanitation, healthcare and nutrition. Declining smoking rates helped later on.

23.09 | 0 komentar | Read More

Dolphin dies during disputed flight

A dolphin being flown from the Philippines to Singapore has died in transit. Source: Supplied

ONE of 25 dolphins being transferred to a Singapore oceanarium despite protests from activists has died during its flight to the city-state.

Wen Wen, a male dolphin aged about 10, died suddenly less than an hour before the flight from the Philippines landed, a Marine Life Park spokesperson said.

The spokesperson of the park - which opened to the public for the first time yesterday and is part of the Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) casino - said the dolphin appeared fine when medically examined before the flight.

"We are deeply saddened... he will be sorely missed," the spokesperson said.

The other 24 bottlenose dolphins had arrived and were acclimatising to their new home.

"No effort or resources will be spared in ensuring the health and well-being of our dolphins and all marine animals at Marine Life Park," the statement said.

Wen Wen is the third dolphin to die out of 27 which RWS acquired from the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific between 2008 amd 2009.

Wildlife activists in the Philippines - where the dolphins were kept and trained before being exported to Singapore - filed a lawsuit last month to stop them from being flown out.

They said the dolphins' capture violated an international treaty on the trade in endangered animals and plants.

A court in the Philippines initially agreed to a temporary ban on transferring the dolphins but another court overturned it.

A Singapore-based animal rights group also opposed the inclusion of the dolphins in the marine park, saying catching them from the Solomon Islands is detrimental to the survival of the species there.

The remaining 24 dolphins are due to make their public debut at the park's twin attractions the S.E.A Aquarium and Adventure Cove Waterpark only next year.

The aquarium is touted as the world's largest with 100,000 marine animals from over 800 species in 45 million litres of water.
 

23.09 | 0 komentar | Read More

Girl dies in schoolies balcony fall

HUNDREDS of people have been evacuated from a high-rise hotel on the Gold Coast where a teenage girl has fallen to her death.

The girl, believed to be a schoolie, fell from the Chevron Renaissance tower in Surfers Paradise.

Police will only say a woman has died after falling off the balcony of a Gold Coast Highway high rise at 9.30pm (AEST) on Thursday.

They are speaking to members of the family and could not confirm whether she had been part of schoolies festivities.

One witness told the ABC he saw the girl fall onto the pool area of the hotel.

"A girl fell off the balcony - just watched her fall," schoolie Seb Giorgio said.

"I didn't want to watch."

Rory, a barman across the road from the Towers Of Chevron Renaissance, said hundreds of schoolies were standing outside the hotel.

"I saw 200 schoolies out the front of the building, two ambulance (crews), there were cops everywhere," he told AAP.

23.08 | 0 komentar | Read More

Kuwait bails tweeters after emir 'insults'

A KUWAITI court has freed three Twitter users on bail after detaining them for nine days for allegedly insulting the ruler of the oil-rich Gulf state, a rights activist says.

A fourth tweeter however remained in detention as his case will be heard by a court on Sunday, the director of the Kuwait Society for Human Rights, Mohammad al-Humaidi, said on his Twitter account.

One of the tweeters was freed on bail of $US3550 ($A3440) and the other two on $US17,700 each, Humaidi said. Their trial is set for December.

The four were arrested on November 14 and held in police custody pending further investigation on accusations they wrote tweets deemed offensive to Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah.

Three other Twitter users, including a woman, had been arrested with them but only remained hours in custody before being each freed on bail of $US3550.

Kuwait has clamped down on opposition activists and Twitter users mainly on accusations of undermining the status of the emir as the country heads to general polls on December 1 amid a bitter political dispute.

Several former opposition MPs and activists are facing trial over similar charges. Public criticism of the ruler is illegal under the Kuwaiti constitution.

23.08 | 0 komentar | Read More