Ride through history, camelback

29/07/2017 0 Comments read Features, Travel

Red Sun Camels at Cable Beach in Boome. Photo Credit: © Neena Bhandari

By Neena Bhandari

Broome, 29.07.2017 (The Hindu): Australia invokes images of kookaburras and cockatoos, sharks and spiders, kangaroos and koalas, but it is also home to thousands of camels.

Camels were brought into Australia from the Indian sub-continent in the 19th century for transporting material for building roads and railways, and carrying food, water, medicines and mail to the isolated and inaccessible pastoral and mining communities of the central and western regions of this arid continent.

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Women Bear the Brunt of Violence in Papua New Guinea

29/07/2017 0 Comments read Environment & Development, Features, Gender, Health & Science

International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) chief official in PNG, Mark Kessler speaking to Foreign Correspondents in Sydney. Photo Credit: © Neena Bhandari

By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 29.07.2017 (IDN): Violence is one of the most pressing issues, especially in the highlands, of Papua New Guinea (PNG) – one of the world’s most ethnically and linguistically diverse nations.

“Increased access to high-powered guns such as military style M16s and home-made shotguns, and the breakdown of traditional rules of warfare, has amplified the effects of violence, resulting in dozens – if not hundreds – of violent deaths and thousands of displacements each year, especially in the Highlands,” says International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) chief official in PNG, Mark Kessler. ”We are seeing wounds that one would see in war zones.”

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Is this innovative program the best way to get skilled migrants into work?

14/07/2017 0 Comments read Features, Human Resource

By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 14.07.2017 (HRM): Of the highly trained humanitarian skilled migrants entering Australia, few end up in jobs that make use of their skills. Some companies, however, are beginning to realise what they’re missing out on.

Rami Yousifani, a graduate in computer communications engineering from the Al-Mansour University College in Baghdad, arrived in Australia under the Special Humanitarian Program last September. Despite having in-demand skills, he was one of many skilled migrants almost certain of not finding employment.

“I didn’t have an Australian degree, local work experience or local references, which I was told were essential for getting a job. So, I decided to refine my communication skills and enrolled at an English language school, Navitas English in Fairfield,” says Yousifani.

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