Christmas Island Refugee Crisis – Fonterra Nestle Deal – Children Seized – Michael Coffin Murder – Mark Burton Trial – Melbourne Kiwi Trial – Israel – East Timor - Aaliyah

CHRISTMAS ISLAND REFUGEE CRISIS: The tense standoff on Christmas Island continues tonight. As does the refugee crisis political row. The Norwegian Govt has condemned Australia’s actions as inhumane. The use of force to make the cargo ship leave Australian waters has not been ruled out. The ship’s company entered Australia after issuing a mayday call claiming there was a medical emergency. But an army doctor says there is no emergency. Australian politicians are turning against each other. Meanwhile the crisis is now making international headlines. A frigate is due on the scene tomorrow. Q: What does the public think? A: It seems John Howard has a lot of public support. There is not a lot of public sympathy for refugees. Q: What will happen next? A: John Howard doesn’t seem to have an exit strategy. If this turns nasty and violent then Australians may wonder what is going on. Q: Is there a chance of a diplomatic solution? A: Doesn’t look like it.

FONTERRA NESTLE DEAL: NZ’s Dairy Giant Fonterra has announced a joint venture with Nestle in Latin America. Nestle is the world’s biggest food company. Fonterra is the world’s biggest dairy product exporter. The Latin American dairy market is expected to grow at 4% a year. Jim Sutton is impressed with the deal. The JVs will operate in both South and North America. Cheese and butter will not be part of the deal.

CHILDREN SEIZED: A distraught Christchurch mother has had her four children seized to be sent back to the US. NZ is bound to comply with the Hague convention on child kidnapping. The mother of the children hasn’t seen her children. Her former husband is in jail in the US for 13 years. Her mother in law has threatened to kill her in the past.

MICHAEL COFFIN MURDER: Auckland police have found heavy bloodstains in the car belonging to Michael Coffin which was found in Te Atatu.

MARK BURTON TRIAL: The jury is out in the Invercargill murder trial of Mark Burton. The jury went out at around 3.30pm after hearing four days of evidence. The second psychiatrist to give evidence said that Mark had told him that killing people was not that bad. “He said God does it all the time.” The psychiatrist says that a review of the medical file would have shown that Burton showed a risk for others. The jury came back a while ago and was told that even the prosecution had indicated that Burton was insane when he killed his mother. If Burton is found not-guilty he will be sent to hospital until certified sane.

MELBOURNE KIWI SHOOTING: A NZ family who moved to Melbourne have become victims of a shocking street killing. The police are calling the killing of the kiwi a gruesome execution style killing.

ISRAEL: Israeli troops and tanks have begun withdrawing from the Palestinian village of Beit Jala after Palestinians stopped shooting.

EAST TIMOR: East Timorese have started voting in the country’s first ever elections.

AALIYAH: Two disturbing pieces of evidence have emerged from the Bahamas plane crash that killed pop star Aaliyah. The plane was 1500 pounds over its takeover weight. And the pilot was on his first day on the job. Just two weeks ago the pilot plead guilty to possession of cocaine and selling airplane parts. The pilot is responsible for weight.

© Scoop Media

Alastair Thompson

Scoop Publisher

Alastair Thompson is the co-founder of Scoop. He is of Scottish and Irish extraction and from Wellington, New Zealand. Alastair has 24 years experience in the media, at the Dominion, National Business Review, North & South magazine, Straight Furrow newspaper and online since 1997. He is the winner of several journalism awards for business and investigative work.

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