Morning Mail: Australia ‘cobweb of cruelty’, mining boss’s coffee crackdown, Cate Blanchett on shame

Martin Farrer
<span>Asylum seeker Mano Yogalingam, who took his own life in Melbourne.</span><span>Photograph: Supplied</span>
Asylum seeker Mano Yogalingam, who took his own life in Melbourne.Photograph: Supplied

Good morning. Mano Yogalingam was 23 years old and had “his whole life in front of him”. But the stresses and strains of living with the prospect of being deported back to Sri Lanka pushed him over the edge and he took his own life this week. Plus, billionaire mining boss Chris Ellison wants to stop staff going out for a coffee, Cate Blanchett on our “lack of shame”, and there’s sporting action from Paris and New York where Jordan Thompson has caused a major upset overnight.

Australia

  • ‘Hold them captive’ | The billionaire mining boss Chris Ellison – who has already banned home working – has said he does not want staff to step out of the office for coffee either and wants to hold workers “captive”.

  • ‘Cobweb of cruelty’ | Refugee advocates say the death of Tamil asylum seeker Mano Yogalingam in Melbourne has exposed the failings of the fast-track immigration system. “All of these people have been failed by the system. It’s a total cobweb of cruelty,” one said.

  • Demographic data | Darwin had the youngest population of Australian state and territory capital cities in 2023, while Adelaide had the oldest, according to new population data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

  • Antibiotics alarm | Chronic and unregulated use and disposal of antibiotics in animal research facilities is contributing to the emergence of drug-resistant superbugs that could pose a threat to human health, according to new research.

  • Windy weekend | Australia’s southern states have been buffeted by dangerous winds this week and our explainer forecasts more to come, while Paul Daley ruminates on the “discombobulating, disquieting” winter warmth.

World

  • No shame? | Cate Blanchett has spoken about the “distinct lack of shame” in modern society during a discussion about her new Apple TV+ series, Disclaimer, in which she plays a famous journalist faced with having her darkest personal secret revealed to the public.

  • US elections | Donald Trump has dismayed his campaign team by returning to lewd remarks about Kamala Harris on his Truth Social platform, while the army has confirmed an official was pushed aside by Trump team members at Arlington cemetery. Trump’s failure to land punches on Harris so far leaves his team praying for a good debate performance next month.

  • Mosque attack | The Israeli military says it had killed five Palestinian fighters inside a mosque in the West Bank city of Tulkarm, in the midst of one of the largest assaults on the occupied territory for months.

  • Anti-piracy win | An international anti-piracy coalition including major Hollywood studios has claimed victory over Fmovies, a large illegal streaming operation based in Vietnam.

  • China lockdown | Two women in China have been accused of child abuse after they separated a crying toddler from her grandmother and locked her in the toilet of a plane, on a domestic flight.

Full Story

Newsroom Edition: Is Labor folding too often on ‘divisive’ debates?

Bridie Jabour speaks to editor-in-chief Lenore Taylor, national news editor Josephine Tovey, and head of news Mike Ticher about whether Labor risks losing voters if they don’t deliver on their promises such as the gender diversity question in the census.

In-depth

It’s five metres high, cost $500,000 and is set to become a landmark on Brisbane’s Queen’s Wharf. But Sheila, a bronze artwork by sculptor Justene Williams, is also set to divide opinion between those who think it’s “ugly” to those who judge it “exceptionally invigorating” in its take on femininity. Joe Hinchliffe finds out more.

Not the news

We have a visual treat for you today with a selection of pictures from the Australian Geographic nature photographer of the year competition. There are sea lions, numbats, humpback whales and tailings dams, but I was drawn to this one of a tree burning from the inside near Jervis Bay in NSW. The exhibition is on at the South Australian Museum until 3 November.

The world of sport

Media roundup

The Sydney Morning Herald boasts an exclusive saying that the rump of Balmain Tigers rugby league club wants to break away from Wests Magpies to end an unhappy merger. Former prime minister Scott Morrison rejected a push for nuclear power because polling showed it was unpopular, the the Daily Telegraph reports. An Aboriginal man has been found dead in a police cell in the ACT, the Canberra Times reports. Jacqui Lambie says she will never run candidates for her party again after sacking two Tasmania senators after they refused to back her campaign against a state minister, the Hobart Mercury reports.

What’s happening today

  • Pacific | Communique from the Pif meeting in Tonga is due to be released.

  • Canberra | Chief executives of NAB and ANZ to face parliamentary committee.

  • Business | Australia Post and Star Entertainment Group full-year results, plus ABS to release July retail trade figures at 11.30.

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Brain teaser

And finally, here are the Guardian’s crosswords to keep you entertained throughout the day. Until tomorrow.

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