Masters has earned the highest awards the industry gives, and despite his concern for some poor standards, he admits he still likes, and—for the most part—admires journalists.

He delivered the 11th Annual Manning Clark Lecture at the National Library of Australia (4 March, 2010), on the subject ”Journalism: a career post mortem”.

Reflecting on his almost 43 years with the ABC, he confessed affection for the majority of journalists, despite their being “a quarrelsome lot and often absurdly competitive”.

He challenged popular opinion when he said the time had come for journalists to better communicate their worth, “to sell ourselves just a little”; to defend their craft, but to remain aware that “no one owns these stories, nor do we have—nor should we have—power over our own reputation”.

Most journalists, the ones he sees at work, “every day put public interest before personal gain”.

Speaking to NowUC, he said, “Some of us are more inclined to exploit rather than explain. I think journalists come to live with the opprobrium.”

Despite this common disapproval, he said, “there is plenty of proof of public benefit” arising from journalists’ work.

Masters was a reporter on the ABC’s Four Corners, for nearly 25 of his 43-year ABC career, between 1983 and 2008 — this makes him “the longest-serving reporter on Australia’s longest-running public affairs television program”, according to the ABC and his own website.

He still works in the media, as a contributing editor at the Daily Telegraph, and as an independent author. He has won numerous Walkley and other awards for his exemplary work on Four Corners, and for his 2006 book, Jonestown: the power and the myth of Alan Jones.

His work bears the mark of an adherence to true reporting, something he fears young reporters could lose sight of, “that is, identifying, researching and telling the story”. He worried that there was an importance being placed on ‘what to think’, rather than ‘how to think’; this might lead young journalists to “believe they will be honoured more for original analysis rather than an ability to uncover a fact”.

He was also worried about “a trend towards the forgiving of poorly researched commentary”, and that he believes journalists do better when “opinions are formed after we get out there and hunt down public wisdom”.

While he was not simply against commentary per se, he said he was “opposed to an absence of research in any reporting”.

“A lack of time is no excuse for resting hard opinion on soft research,” he said.

In the lecture he stressed the basic need for the development and promotion of research, narrative and explanatory skills in all journalists. There was a case for greater collaboration between the industry and the universities, to “drive research back into mainstream journalism”. This is something Masters says he has pushed for a number of years, especially now through his position on the Board of the Foundation for Public Interest Journalism, set up last year through Swinburne University’s Institute for Social Research.

University of Canberra’s Professor of Journalism, Matthew Ricketson, said he saw the initiative as an encouraging step into (what others, elsewhere, have described as) the “both very exciting and very scary” future of journalism practice.

In exploring new business models, the foundation could counter the very real problem facing the industry at present: exactly how to continue to pay for “the time, research and resources required to produce good quality journalism… the sort produced by Chris Masters and others of his kind,” Professor Ricketson said. That is, “long form, heavily investigated, carefully presented, investigative work that challenges people and organisations in positions of authority”.

Asked what role journalists’ could play in society, Masters said he saw “the journalist as a gatekeeper, developing socially useful skills—identifying what is important, applying thorough research, forming the narrative—and ultimately making what is important interesting. I like the idea of the industry operating first of all as a public service”.

The report, A Case for Justice, written by Maryann Athaide with Toora Women Inc., details the difficulties immigrant women experience when they escape domestic violence while still on a partner visa with their abuser.

Arshi immigrated from India to the ACT on a partner visa, having been promised a “good life” in Australia. Her arranged marriage became abusive, and false statements were used to have Arshi committed to a mental health facility.

“I lived in the dark, felt like a slave, then woke up in a hospital and realised it was a mental hospital,” she said. “I had no English to explain I shouldn’t be there.”

Arshi spent days in the facility before meeting a doctor who spoke a similar language to her own.

After telling him her story, she was sent to Heira House, a domestic violence refuge run by Toora, where she lived for almost two years.

“[I had] many sleepless nights over immigration and housing…,” she said. “Women in this country without permanent residency simply do not exist…I had no rights.”

ACT Council of Social Service director, Roslyn Dundas, said women like Arshi are trapped in a “limbo-land” with little access to the support and resources they need.

“We should be doing so much better,” she said. “I want to no longer hear these stories … not because they’ve been silenced, but because they’re not happening.”

Toora Women’s executive director, Jacky Cook, said it is a “tough” situation to be in.

“Imagine if they country you’re living in doesn’t recognise you as a citizen,” she said.

Australia’s Migration Regulations require immigrants on partner visas to be fully supported by the sponsoring partner for their first two years in the country, even if the relationship is abusive.

Domestic violence provisions allow for independent permanent residency to be granted after this period, but applicants cannot access services such as public housing, legal aid, or social security before then.

ACT Australian of the Year 2010 and law professor Patricia Easteal said the process was one more hurdle in a line of many:

“There’s an inability for some of these women to get the evidence needed – we are losing some women,” she said.

The executive director of Housing and Community Services ACT, Maureen Sheehan, said, “These women are a very real problem for service providers”, and the response to them needs to have “the full strength of all mainstream services.” In her report, Ms Athaide suggested a government-funded training program for community organisations that regularly encounter women without finalised permanent residency who are experiencing domestic violence.

The Opposition spokesperson on multicultural affairs, Steve Doszpot, said while there was an obligation to support all members of our community, regardless of their citizenship status, the provision of funding for such services “is always a balancing act”.

The ACT Minister for Women and Multicultural Affairs, Joy Burch, could not be reached for comment.

The surveyor, who did not want to be named, said the rain had not caused any delay. The site preparation is complete and the first blasting of rock is scheduled to start this week.

Construction was running on schedule.

The rains had proven that the environmental safety measures were adequate and no pollution from the site had entered the water.

“The rains were good because it showed us that the runoff systems worked and also identified a couple of places that needed adjusting for future falls,” he said.

Blasting is to begin this week to remove rock from the abutment where the new dam wall will be constructed.

An Actew spokesperson said that a 700 metre exclusion zone will be set up for the blasts and that local traffic may be disrupted with some roads being closed for up to 20 minutes per blast.

“Signs around the construction site will show the date and time of the next blast, and traffic controllers will ensure that the blast area is free of vehicles when the blasts occur,” he said.

Dr Gary Bickford, who was Actew’s Program Director for Water Security during the planning of the dam, said the enlargement was only part of the plan to secure Canberra’s water supply for the future.

“The Cotter Dam Enlargement is a part of a wider plan to ensure Canberra’s water supply is secure for the future,” he said. “The Murrumbidgee to Googong transfer pipe as well as buying irrigation water licences from NSW farmers completes the current plan to increase the amount of water Canberra is able to use.”

When complete at the end of 2011, the dam’s capacity will increase from 4 gigalitres to 78 gigalitres, making it Canberra’s second largest of storage behind Googong and increasing Canberra’s overall water capacity by 35 percent.

One million tonnes of concrete will be needed. Aggregate will be coming from the debris from the blasting of rock.

Actew’s website says the rock will be transported to the specifically built rock crushing shed on the site for processing and eventually end up in the concrete for the dam wall.

The program means prisoners are given clean syringes while taking illegal drugs to stop the spread of infection caused by exchanging needles. The president of the Family and Friends Drug Law Reform, Brian McConnell, said yesterday (11 March 2010) that the program would reduce the spread of blood-borne viruses in prison.

“In the ACT inmates with a blood borne virus amount to about 60%, thus there is a very high risk of cross infection,” he said. “And when the inmate’s are released there is a high risk of increased infection in the generalpopulation. The provision of an NSP in prisons would reduce those risks.”

The ACT Government is concerned that the program will encourage prisoners to use illicit drugs in a facility that should be drug free. Studies have shown, however, that the program does not increase the amount of drugs in jails overseas.

“Many overseas countries have recognised the risk and have introduced NSPs in their prisons with no adverse effects,” Mr McConnell said.

ACT health researched the health of prisoners for the past year to see if the NSP would reduce the spread of blood-borne viruses. Their studies, released on a website file, have shown that 56% of males at AMC and 71% of females have Hepatitis C. One prisoner contracted the virus in the facility during the experiment while using an exchanged syringe. Corrective services are worried that the increase in syringes used in the facility may risk the safety of correctional staff. AMC Administration officer Rebecca Chapman said yesterday (11 march 2010) that the safety of correctional staff would not be affected by the introduction of sterile needles.

“Prisoners that do smuggle syringes at AMC have them hidden from the staff,” she said. “If we knew about every syringe in the centre we can control the placement of the syringes.”

AMC is one of the only prisons in Australia that runs under a strict human rights code. Mr McConnell said because of this code it was unfair to offer drug users clean syringes in ACT streets without giving prisoners the same right.

In the meantime detainees are given bleach to sterilise their syringes as a harm minimization tool. If the bill is passed the program will be introduced in September, 18 months after the opening of the AMC facility.

The latest pathology data collected by SHFPACT suggests that 1 in 14 sexually active people under 25 years of age have chlamydia and may not be aware of it.

The manager of communications and promotions at SHFPACT, Matt Schmidt, was hesitant to label the prevalence of chlamydia in the ACT as an outbreak.

However, he said that it was still a sexual health issue of concern.

“Chlamydia certainly is quite prevalent in Canberra and is the most common sexually transmissible infection in Australia,” he said.

Dr Jenny Leung, a senior medical officer at one of Canberra’s busiest sexual health clinics, said that up to 15 percent of patients tested for chlamydia received positive test results.

She had seen an increase in the number of young people being diagnosed with chlamydia “compared to ten years ago”.

She said that this increase could be because recent chlamydia awareness campaigns have encouraged more people to get tested than in previous years.

More relaxed attitudes towards contraception could also be a contributing factor.

“Only about half of young people use condoms consistently with casual sex partners,” Mr Schmidt said.

SHFPACT’s latest Chlamydia prevention project, Stamp Out Chlamydia (SOC), offers on-the-spot testing for chlamydia at public events and youth venues in Canberra as well as raising awareness of the infection.

The project also ran the Sexual Health and Guidance (SHAG) Week Twilight Fair at the University of Canberra last week (1-5 March 2010).

Dr Leung said that the SOC project was particularly effective in minimising chlamydia infection rates by encouraging people to get tested.

“Many of my patients come in because they’ve seen the ads or heard of the SOC campaign and thought they should be tested,” she said.

Mr Schmidt said that it was important to remind young people to get tested for chlamydia, because chlamydia usually has no symptoms.

“Most people never think of getting tested,” he said.

The stigma associated with sexually transmitted infections prevented many young people from visiting their doctor.

“Almost everyone has sex, but it’s still easier to go to the doctor about a cold, or a broken bone, than to go and make sure your sexual health is okay,” Mr Schmidt said.

Young people can minimise their risk of transmitting chlamydia by using a condom with casual sex partners and being educated about safe sex.

“Sexual intimacy can be a wonderful thing – enjoy it safely,” said Schmidt said.

To find out more information about Chlamydia, visit Stamp Out Chlamydia

Nurses are frustrated at the lack of parking.

One nurse said, “Evening shift staff have less area to park close to the hospital, let alone securely (with lights and security guard patrols). They have to get security to come and let them out of the boom gates. Ridiculous!”

Patients are finding it difficult to attend regular treatment sessions and many visitors give up on visiting friends and family because of parking problems. “One visitor drove around the car park for an hour and couldn’t get a park so she gave up and wrote a letter to her friend in hospital because it was too difficult to see her,” the nurse said. “It’s just crazy.”

Demolition of the three-storey visitors’ car park has been completed and construction is set to start on a new multi-storey carpark by the middle of this year.

Health Minister Katy Gallagher said last week (17 February 2010) that the nine-storey car park would provide at least 1880 new spaces.

New temporary parking would be provided during the construction of the new Mental Health Inpatient Unit.

A proposal outlining changes and street parking would be put to hospital staff and residents..

Ms Gallagher said, “Ideas and input from local residents are most welcome and we are calling for their support for the temporary arrangements to allow much needed new health facilities to progress more quickly.”

In a public forum held by the committee on Wednesday 17 Febuary, 265 people packed out the Black Opal Room at Thoroughbred Park eager to discuss the proposed funding model for racing in the ACT.

At the present the Government proposed funding model is the lowest of any State or Territory at 4.5% of turnover, Victoria is 6.3% and NSW is 5.1%. The new model is to cut the 4.5% to 3.9% reducing the funding by an estimated $880,000.

The Canberra Racing Club’s chairman, Mr Geoff Bloom, believes the cut will have a detrimental effect on the racing industry.

“It is essential that the ACT Government reconsiders its position to ensure the survival of the industry and thereby securing the future of 85 full time positions and the 400 people who rely on Canberra racing for all or part of their income,” he said.

The cut would also result in a reduction of prize money, a key factor in making Thoroughbred Park appealing to trainers. More trainers will go elsewhere. The Minister for Gaming and Racing, Andrew Barr, believes it is hard to find a balance, given the increasing number of sporting industries in the ACT. “The Government has had to decide how much support to give the racing industry along with various other sports and teams, including the Children’s Physical Activity Foundation, the Capitals, the Raiders and the Brumbies,” he said.

However he is not surprised at the outcry from the Canberra Racing Committee as he believes it is very hard to completely satisfy every industry.

“The industry may not be 100 per cent happy with the level of funding on offer, but then again, it is rare for any group to be completely satisfied with the level of funding provided by any government,” he said.

Senior Constable Helena Cox said the campaign will aim to inform parents “that if they are sending their children to Skyfire, that they know who they are sending them with”.

Around 140,000 people are expected to attend Skyfire on March 20.Last year 40 youths were detained.

Constable Cox said, “The juvenile drinking issue at Skyfire is one of our major issues.”

Former Police Minister Simon Corbell threatened to ban alcohol from the event last year.

More than a quarter of youths aged 14-19 put themselves at risk of alcohol-related harm once a month. The national policy manager for the Australian Drug Foundation. Geoff Munro. believes Australians have “forgotten how to have a good time without the presence of alcohol”, and welcomes a ban on drinking for the event.

Constable Cox remains upbeat about the prospects of the show.

“Last year was an improvement on the year before. . . ,” she said. “That gives us hope that we will see an improvement again”.

Liquor inspectors and extra police patrols will ensure that areas around Lake Burley Griffin remain “friendly and safe”.

“People are becoming aware that that sort of behaviour won’t be tolerated,” Constable Cox said.

“We’re very lucky in Canberra to have these sort of events take place in our little community.”

More than 100 youths were detained at the last two shows.

For Further info:

http://www.fm1047.com.au/pages/page91.asp http://www.drinkingnightmare.gov.au/internet/drinkingnightmare/publishing.nsf/Content/under-18#1 http://www.dassa.sa.gov.au/site/page.cfm?u=88 http://www.adf.org.au/ Nick Fairbairn: n_fairbairn@hotmail.com, 0413788584, 3026380 Helena Cox, Senior Constable ACT Police 62567460, Helena.Cox@afp.gov.au Geoff Munro; National Policy Manager, National Drug Foundation: (03) 9278 8111 (Telephone)
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Education Minister Julia Gillard revealed students will be assigned an ID, which will allow their academic results to be tracked throughout their education.

Under the plan, parents, teachers and other “concerned parties” will have access to a database documenting the performance of students throughout their schooling, regardless of school changes or inter-state transfers.

The “unique student identifier” will be run through the controversial My School program, where individual schools are ranked on the internet in accordance with performance results.

While strict privacy provisions would in theory restrict access to the information, the ACT branch secretary of the union, Penny Gilmour, expresses doubts.

“Right now, I would not be confident myself, that the website would not be free from being hacked . . . and given the lack of protection on the Myschool website for the data itself … the main issue is preventing third parties taking the data and using it for other purposes such as the construction of league tables,” she said Ms Gillard rejected claims about privacy breaches, saying the number itself is a privacy protection.

“The reason we need a number is so as a Government, we don’t need names,” she said.

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has voiced the concerns of civil liberties groups, who believe that the plan will depersonalise children.

“I think that children should have names, not numbers, and I’m concerned about any proposal that seems to commodify our kids,” he said.

Sacred Heart primary teacher Damien Webb, however, says that schools already issue students with identification numbers, and that the information sparking privacy concerns has always been accessible to teachers and parents.

“Currently, parents and teachers already have access to student files, so it’s nothing new,” he said. “Students receive reports and transcripts which are available to parents…although it can be quite hard for teachers to gain access to a child’s full academic history, and so in that respect the idea may have merit.”

According to statistics released by the Australian Electoral Commission, 18 to 24 year olds make up the majority of the 1.2 million Australians not enrolled.

This means that about 400,000 young people will not have their voice heard if they do not to enrol before the federal election is called this year.

Although voting is compulsory in Australia, there is very little the AEC can do to follow-up enrolments, aside from sending enrolment documents to the homes of potential voters and encouraging voting in schools.

Margot Firth, of the AEC Education Centre, says that the AEC runs various programs for different aged students.

“There are programs aimed at primary students learning about the basics of voting, to high school students learning about the importance free elections in a democratic government,” she said.

Despite the education, new enrolment time limits have had an effect.

Laws introduced before the last federal election in 2007 have changed enrolment eligibility. These laws prevent enrolment as soon as the writs are issued for an election, essentially preventing enrolment as soon as an election is called.

These laws combined with the difficulty and tedium of enrolment are said to be a major factor in the lack for youth representation on the electoral role.

“I can understand that many people would find it time-consuming to fill out the enrolment forms, especially those who see voting as a burden rather than a privilege,” Firth said.

For these reasons it has been suggested that automatic enrolment may be a solution. If each Australian citizen is automatically enrolled on their 18th birthday it would obviously eliminate the lack of young people on the roll.

However this approach does not solve the problem of people older than 18 refusing to be on the roll.

“If people were more passionate about voting and realised it’s not so difficult to enrol, maybe we would see more young people at the ballot boxes,” Firth said.

By making enrolment easier and simpler and emphasising the importance of voting in the democratic process, enrolment rates may rise and voter turn-out may increase.