Morning News Bulletin 8 July 2024
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TRANSCRIPT
- France on course for a hung parliament, with a leftist alliance unexpectedly taking the top spot in the election
- First Nations Elders say this year’s NAIDOC Week is a source of strength
- The Wallabies take a victory to this week’s second Test against Wales in Melbourne
France is on course for a hung parliament, with a leftist alliance unexpectedly taking the top spot in the election ahead of the far right, in a major upset likely to bar Marine Le Pen’s National Rally from running the government.
The early projections put President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist alliance in second place and the far right in third.
The outcome, if confirmed, will leave parliament divided in three big groups with hugely different platforms and no tradition at all of working together.
That could potentially herald a period of instability, unless the left manages to strike a deal with other parties to work together.
Leader of France’s far-left party Jean-Luc Mélenchon has called on President Macron to allow the left-wing coalition to govern.
“This evening, the National Rally is far from having the absolute majority the commentators predicted scarcely a week ago. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. It’s an immense relief for an overwhelming majority of people in our country, those who make up the New France as well as those who’ve always loved the country with a republican passion. The president has the power, the president has the duty to call on the New Popular Front to govern.”
France now faces the prospect of weeks of political machinations to determine who will be prime minister and lead the National Assembly.
Australians are being urged to participate in NAIDOC week community events during the 50th anniversary celebration of First Nations cultures and histories.
The National NAIDOC Committee says this year’s chosen theme of “Keep the Fire Burning! Blak, Loud and Proud” is about recommitting to acknowledging, preserving, and sharing the First Nations cultural heritage that enriches Australia.
Noongar woman and artist Liz Narkle says she has made an artwork in honour of the occasion.
“So it is about the actual theme for this year which is: Keep the Fire Burning! Blak, Loud and Proud. And in the centre you will see there is a fire. And the whole responsibility for all of us – in the lines that go to the outside, with all the symbols of people represent that actually it is everybody’s responsibility to keep the fires burning – both old and young. And every generation after that and every generation before. So we are all responsible to keep that fire burning for our culture.”
Noongar Elder, dancer and songman Nigel Wilkes says Australians are encouraged to get to know about their local First Nations communities in events held around the country.
“It just means everything. With all those pains of the past that happened to us as a people, right now; we got to keep those fires burning because all that strength and effort that happened yesterday. And those pains of the past, now we have got to keep (the fire) alight and show all the young fellas, the resilience and the strength of our fellas before us. This right now, is very important for everybody to understand to keep the fires burning – and to be Black, strong and proud.”
Defence Minister Richard Marles is travelling to the United States to attend the NATO summit.
The 32 members of the military alliance and others are meeting in Washington DC from Tuesday, marking 75 years on since the alliance was founded in 1949.
Mr Marles says a big focus for him will be the annual Australian American Leadership Dialogue, which he says is an opportunity to reinforce and deepen the historic relationship between the two nations.
He will also meet with members of the U-S Congress and senior officials to progress cooperation under the AUKUS partnership.
Hamas says it is waiting for a response from Israel on its ceasefire proposal, five days after it accepted a key part of a United States plan aimed at ending the 9-month war in Gaza.
Hamas has dropped a key demand that Israel first commit to a permanent ceasefire before it would sign an agreement.
Instead, it says it would allow negotiations to achieve that throughout the six-week first phase.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said negotiations will continue this week.
Meanwhile, protesters blocked roads across Israel, as they marked nine months since the start of the Gaza war.
Tomer Lev says he wants the war to stop and the hostages to be brought home.
“I’m here today because my government can’t get the hostages back home. It’s that simple. They just can’t, and they don’t want. And after nine months of war, nine months of protests that are demanding our government to bring them back home they just don’t want to do it. They can’t do it. So, today we stopped the country in demand to bring the hostages back home, and to go on elections so our government can build this country back from the beginning.”
Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt says the team’s first win of the year has set them up well for this week’s second Test in Melbourne.
The team achieved a 25-16 win on home soil against Wales over the weekend.
The result puts the team on a different trajectory, after last year’s Rugby World Cup catastrophe when Australia exited the tournament after a 40-6 loss to the Welsh.
Schmidt says he is impressed with what he’s seen so far.
“We’d love to bring the game back to something like that where our opponents are worried about us and they have to do some homework because we create opportunities. There is a real sleeves-rolled-up mentality in the group. And I’m really enjoying that. The crowd, they were super.
Liam Wright is the seventh Wallabies captain appointed in little more than a year.
He says the result gives the team a huge confidence boost for the second Test later this week in Melbourne.
“It’s great. It just reinforces what we’re trying to work on. As Joe said, we’re a relatively new squad. So we have come together and tried to build a lot of connection. And it is also great for guys – you know seven guys on debut to be able to celebrate with that with their families. It just makes it a bit better going into next week – and reinforces the hard work that we’re putting in can pay off. And we’re just going to have to roll up the sleeves and go again.”
