COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Rampaging thugs unleash destructive anarchy on Melbourne

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Original article by John Ferguson, Angelica Snowden, Remy Varga
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 22-Sep-21

Sixty-two people were arrested during violent protests in Melbourne on 21 September, in response to the Victorian government’s mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy for construction workers and a two-week shutdown of the sector. An estimated 2,000 people participated in the protest, including construction workers, tradespeople and unionists, while there have been claims that the demonstration had been infiltrated by far-right activists and anti-vaxxers. Further protests are expected in coming days. Meanwhile, the state government has revised downward the number of COVID-19 cases linked to the construction sector since early August from 403 to just 337. This includes 239 cases that are linked to construction sites in metropolitan Melbourne.

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Wuhan doco a winner for Sky

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Original article by Sophie Elsworth
The Australian – Page: 3 : 22-Sep-21

Data from OzTAM shows that a Sky News documentary on the origins of COVID-19 attracted 160,000 viewers, making it the pay-TV channel’s highest-rating program so far in 2021. ‘What Really Happened in Wuhan’ was also watched by 100,000 regional viewers on the free-to-air Sky News Regional channel. Former US president Donald Trump and ex-secretary of state Mike Pompeo are among the people who were interviewed by investigative journalist Sharri Markson.

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SKY NEWS

Two NSW regions return to lockdown

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Original article by Mary Ward, Daniella White
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 17-Sep-21

New South Wales has recorded 1,351 new locally-acquired COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, while the state’s death toll from the current outbreak has risen by 12 for a second consecutive day. The latest fatalities ranged in age from their 40s to their 90s, and Health Minister Brad Hazzard has emphasised that 10 of these people had not been vaccinated. Meanwhile, the regional local government areas of Albury and Lismore will be placed in lockdown for at least seven days after reporting new COVID-19 cases; however, 12 regional LGAs have emerged from lockdown after case numbers stabilised.

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NEW SOUTH WALES. MINISTRY OF HEALTH

NSW to review COVID-19 hotspot boundaries across Sydney suburbs

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Original article by Lucy CormackMary Ward
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 15-Sep-21

New South Wales has recorded 1,127 new locally-acquired COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, as well as two additional deaths from the current outbreak. Meanwhile, the state government is under growing pressure to review its hotspot boundaries and ease the lockdown restrictions for Sydney suburbs that have low case numbers and high vaccination rates. Deputy Chief Health Officer Jeremy McAnulty says the state’s hotspots are assessed on a daily basis. The proportion of NSW residents aged 16+ who have received at least one vaccine dose is expected to reach 80 per cent on 15 September.

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NEW SOUTH WALES. MINISTRY OF HEALTH

Outdoor freedoms could be granted for Victorians within days

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Original article by Paul Sakkal
The Age – Page: Online : 15-Sep-21

Victoria has recorded 445 new locally-acquired COVID cases in the last 24 hours, with 129 having been linked to known clusters. The state has also reported two additional deaths from the current outbreak, including a man in his 20s. The death of a man in his 40s will be included in the daily report on 15 September. Premier Daniel Andrews is set to release details of his government’s reopening road map on 19 September. Clinical epidemiologist Professor Nancy Baxter says the eased restrictions are likely to include allowing people to attend small outdoor gatherings. Some 158 Victorians are currently in hospital with COVID-19, and only one has been fully vaccinated. Meanwhile, the number of COVID-19 cases in regional Victoria is rising, with Ballarat recording its first cases in more than a year.

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VICTORIA. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET

I warned US of virus in 2019: Chinese defector

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Original article by Sharri Markson
The Australian – Page: 1 & 7 : 15-Sep-21

Human rights activist and former Chinese Communist Party insider Wei Jingsheng defected to the US in 1997. Wei has revealed that high-level contacts in Beijing alerted him to a new coronavirus in Wuhan in October 2019 and he warned US intelligence agencies and politicians about it the following month. Wei says he was concerned that the West was not prepared to deal with the coronavirus. The Chinese government did not advise the World Health Organization of the Wuhan outbreak until 31 December, and it did not reveal that the coronavirus could be transmitted between humans until late January 2020.

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COMMUNIST PARTY (CHINA)WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION

Australia on track to live with Covid from early 2022, leading epidemiologist says

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Original article by Melissa Davey
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 8-Sep-21

Deakin University epidemiologist Catherine Bennett believes that Australia will shortly move into a new phase of living with COVID-19. She expects the nation to have the coronavirus under control during the first quarter of 2022 as vaccination rates rise and the focus shifts to suppressing COVID-19. Professor Bennett expects the requirement to wear a face mask indoors and bans on large gatherings to be the last coronavirus restrictions to be scrapped in Australia.

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DEAKIN UNIVERSITY

Tough restrictions, vaccination have saved thousands of lives in Sydney, modelling shows

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Original article by Lucy Cormack, Alexandra Smith
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 8-Sep-21

New South Wales has recorded 1,220 new locally-acquired COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours. The state has also reported an additional eight deaths from the current outbreak. Meanwhile, new modelling from the Burnet Institute suggests that the current lockdown of Greater Sydney and the vaccination program may have prevented nearly 5,000 deaths and almost 500,000 infections across the metropolitan area. The modelling also shows that these measures may have averted 5,808 deaths and 580,000 new infections in the 12 local government areas at the centre of the current outbreak.

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THE MACFARLANE BURNET INSTITUTE FOR MEDICAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH LIMITED

NSW hospitals prepare emergency plans for ICU operations to reach overwhelming status

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Original article by Alexandra Smith, Lucy Cormack, Mary Ward
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 7-Sep-21

New South Wales has recorded 1,281 new locally-acquired COVID-19 cases and six additional deaths in the last 24 hours. Meanwhile, modelling undertaken by the Burnet Institute on behalf of the state government suggest that case numbers in the 12 local government areas at the epicentre of the current outbreak could soon top 2,000 per day. The modelling also forecasts that the number of people in NSW in intensive care will rise to 947 in October, including 560 cases that are directly attributable to COVID-19. Premier Gladys Berejiklian has been criticised for only realising the modelling that relates to the LGAs of most concern. There are 177 people with COVID-19 in intensive care statewide, including four children under the age of 12.

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NEW SOUTH WALES. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET, THE MACFARLANE BURNET INSTITUTE FOR MEDICAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH LIMITED

Sky News Australia denies broadcasting Covid misinformation, saying YouTube is totalitarian

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Original article by Amanda Meade
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 7-Sep-21

Sky News Australia CEO Paul Whittaker says he does not accept the suggestion that it "directly or indirectly" promoted misinformation about COVID-19. Whittaker was appearing before the Senate’s media diversity inquiry, and was responding to a question by Senator Sarah Hanson-Young. Commenting on the decision by YouTube to remove 23 Sky News videos on the grounds that they breached its medical misinformation policies, Whittaker accused YouTube of being "totalitarian".

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SKY NEWS, YOUTUBE INCORPORATED