Indian Consul General Sunjay Sudhir and NSW Premier Mike Baird celebrate Diwali as the Opera House was lit up in a golden orange to mark the Hindu festival of light

NSW Premier Mike Baird wishes Happy Diwali to Indian community

On this occasion of Diwali festival, the Premier of New South Wales Mike Baird wished the community a happy Diwali after the the sails of the Sydney Opera House were lit up Thursday evening... Read more »
Richard Green’s EC135 VH-GKK

Australian Photographer Richard Green killed in helicopter crash

SYDNEY – Renowned Australian landscape and nature photographer Richard Green was killed hen Green’s Airbus Helicopters EC135, VH-GKK,  crashed in mountainous terrain His wife Carolyn and friend John Davis were also killed while the trio... Read more »

Recovering student loans from overseas residents

People who have benefited from Australian student loans and now live overseas will pay for them the same way as they would if they lived in Australia following the passage of legislation... Read more »

Australia to help Pacific Island states to counter drought & frosts

Australia will provide assistance to Pacific Island countries as they strive to deal with the challenges caused by the El Niño weather pattern. Last week Australian Foreign and Immigration Minister Rimbink Pato... Read more »
Defence Force chief Mark Binskin says DHA is an "essential service" for ADF personnel and families. ABC News Photo: Gregor Salmon

Australian Defence chief warns Government against privatising military housing

The Chief of the Australia Defence Force (ADF) has taken the unusual step of publically warning the Turnbull Government and Finance Department against privatising the body that manages housing for Australian military... Read more »
Australian Prime Minister designate Malcolm Turnbull with Deputy Prime Minister designate Julie Bishop during a press conference in the Blue Room, after winning the Australian Federal leadership in a party ballot vote, at Parliament House in Canberra, Monday, Sept. 14, 2015. (AAP Image/Sam Mooy) NO ARCHIVING

PM Turnbull to visit Indonesia and Germany ahead of G20, APEC

SYDNEY (Australia) – Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull will visit Jakarta and Berlin ahead of the G20 and APEC Meetings this month, according to a media release by PM office. The Prime Minister... Read more »
Lightning strikes "like silly string" over Parliament House. Photo: Glenn Martin

Canberra experiences stormy start to November with 20mm rain

A storm which put on a spectacular light show across the ACT has dumped about 20 millimetres of rain in the national capital. The storm attracted amateur and professional photographers alike, keen... Read more »

Measures to counter violent extremism in NSW announced

More counselling and support services will be provided to students in NSW schools and staff will have access to additional training to assist schools in countering violent extremism (CVE), NSW Premier Mike... Read more »

Australia drops knights and dames from honours system

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has announced that Australia will no longer appoint knights and dames under the honours system. Mr Turnbull said the titles were “not appropriate” in modern Australia, and that... Read more »
New Zealand players celebrate victory at the final whistle. Photograph: David Rogers/Getty Images

New Zealand beat Australia to retain Rugby World Cup in a thrilling final

New Zealand became the first team to retain the World Cup three times New Zealand became the first team to retain the World Cup third time after they held off a fierce... Read more »

Australian submarine rebuild showcases its Defence industry expertise

ASC sub rebuild showcases defence industry expertise Adelaide-based submarine builder and maintainer ASC has taken another step towards achieving international benchmark performance with Collins Class submarine HMAS Farncomb rolling out of the... Read more »
National Indigenous Human Rights Awards recognize Aboriginal rights struggle in Australia

National Indigenous Human Rights Awards recognize Aboriginal rights struggle in Australia

The National Indigenous Human Rights Awards (NIHRA), in its second year, was held again at NSW Parliament Wednesday evening in October. These truly national awards recognise and acknowledge the most important social justice struggle... Read more »
Minister Ayres with Vice Governor of Jakarta signing the MOU with NSW

Australia and Indonesia sign agreement on Trade

NSW and Jakarta Agreement to enhance trade in areas of Agriculture, Education, Technology, Infrastructure services NSW and the Jakarta Capital City Government have today renewed their long-standing Sister State Relationship by signing... Read more »
Australia's Social cohesion and multiculturalism stronger than ever

Australia’s Social cohesion is stronger than ever

Eight year high for social cohesion in Australia The latest Scanlon-Monash Index of Social Cohesion report has confirmed that social cohesion in Australia is at an eight-year high. The Assistant Minister for... Read more »
Parramatta’s birthday will be celebrated in style on Saturday 7 November, with a host of tastes, activities and entertainment planned as part of Parramatta Day 2015.

Entertainment extravaganza planned for Parramatta Day 2015

Parramatta Day 2015 to begin on Saturday 7 November Parramatta’s birthday will be celebrated in style on Saturday 7 November, with a host of tastes, activities and entertainment planned as part of ... Read more »
NSW Premier, Mike Baird, with top Australian actress, Cate Blanchett, at an event to mark the 70th anniversary of the United Nations at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney.

Sydney Opera House turns #UNBlue to celebrate 70th anniversary

SYDNEY (Australia) – The Sydney Opera House was one of the first buildings to light up the sky to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the United Nations and commemorate UN Day. More than... Read more »

Introduction of EFT facility Pak Consulate Office Sydney: Abdul Aziz Uqaili

Sydney, 28 October 2015:    The Consulate General of Pakistan Sydney is pleased to announce the introduction of Electronic Funds Transfer at Point of Sale (EFTPOS) facility, which will be operational by mid... Read more »

Halal Expo Australia 2016: Melbourne’s event moves from Jan 10 to April 3 – no change in Sydney’s event on April 10, 2016

Sydney (Announcement from Halal Expo Australia by Sarwat Hassan): Some of the major sponsors of Halal Expo Australia and exhibitors have shown their unavailability to participate in Melbourne’s event of Halal Expo... Read more »
Brazilian natives of the Pareci tribe dance before playing head football with a hand-made ball, during the first day of the International Games of Indigenous Peoples, in Cuiaba, state of Mato Grosso, on November 10, 2013. AFP PHOTO / Christophe SimonCHRISTOPHE SIMON/AFP/Getty Images http://epaper.pakobserver.net/201507/07/back.php http://pakobserver.net/detailnews.asp?id=276512 http://pakobserver.net/detailnews.asp?id=275113 http://pakobserver.net/detailnews.asp?id=275638 EXHIBITION TO REMEMBER ONE OF CUBA’S BEST ARTISTS 60th anniversary of Pak-Cuban diplomatic ties Thursday, October 22, 2015 - Islamabad—The new custodian of the Cuban embassy, Jesús Zenén Buergo Concepción, Ambassador of the Republic Cuba in Pakistan, Wednesday, received the elites of the town, diplomats and art aficionados at the exhibition of the works of Cuban artists. According to Zenén Buergo the day was important for three reasons; it marked the National Culture Day of the Republic of Cuba, 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Pakistan and Cuba and was featured in the memory of great Cuban singer Sara Gonzalez. One could see a large number of diplomats taking interest in 30 engravings by Cuban artists put on display at the embassy. The title of the exhibition should have been ‘30 engravings by 30 artists’ quipped a guest, however another standing nearby said it was very thoughtful of Zenén Buergo to name the exhibition after a great Brazilian star Sara Gonzalez. “For the first time in Pakistan works of 30 Cuban artists was put on display,” said she. Ambassador Sara Gonzalez too made a reference to this earlier in his speech saying such a magnificent collection has never been displayed before at the Embassy of Cuba. Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed was the guest at the evening. Most of the art pieces were lithographic, some Xylographic and a couple of them were calligraphic. Visitors also took interest in Silkscreen printing work. The titles of the engravings were also wistfully chosen like “Si me Pides el pescado” or “If you ask me the Fish,” “Canto del Amor y la Vida” or “Singing of Love and Life,” Cancion de Acero” or “Song of Heart of Steel”, “La mona de Sara” or “The Monkey Sara” and “Ofrendo” or “I offer”. Here one must compliment the staff and officials of the embassy in briefing the guests about each piece of art and engraving. Though this is the exhibition first of its kind, yet one hopes and wishes it will not be the last as Pakistani art lovers find many common aspects in the artworks of the artists of the two countries, remarked an art lover while talking to Pakistan Observer. Cuban art is derived from the roots and rituals of its peoples so does Pakistan’s and I see no reason this does not find its prominent place in our local art world and the credit for this will go to the Cuban ambassador, he further said. An exhibition showcasing a Cuban art collection was organised at the residence of the Swiss Embassy’s Deputy Head of Mission Roger Kull on Saturday. Titled “Archivos Babalú”, the exhibition comprised over 70 small and medium silk screen prints produced by various Cuban artists who were trained under contemporary Cuban artist Liudmila Lopez Dominguez. “I’m very happy to be the first one to bring Cuban art to Pakistan,” said Dominguez, adding that through the exhibition, she aimed to bridge cultures and explore the potential for exchange opportunities from both countries. Dominguez’s work also featured in the exhibition among the 40 Cuban artists who have presented silk-screen printing, an old Chinese art technique prepared manually. “Whatever you see here has been produced in my workshop,” said Dominguez, who is the owner and director of her studio-gallery “Bablú Ayé” in Havana, Cuba. Using solid, bold and bright colours, the art pieces were quirky and vibrant with a mix of themes, layers and subjects. There was a recurring element of women’s feet clad in richly-detailed and elaborately-ornamented footwear, painted toe-nails with intermittent props such as guitars, the Cuban flag, eyes, blank slates and black-and-white spirals. The talented young Cuban artist Liudmila López Domínguez is an example of that. Her inspiration is women’s shoes, and they have been the theme of a countless number of works that she has exhibited in many countries. “Shoes reflect my interest in continuing my discourse about gender, which involves what I can symbolically depict. This allows me to make connections between my own personal history and the collective one that are related to glamour, classes, comfort, and even states of mind.” López is a graduate of the José Joaquin Tejada School of Fine Arts in the eastern province of Santiago de Cuba. She devoted the initial years of her career to painting, and especially to engraving, and believes that as one of the most complete techniques, it gave her a strong background. López has exhibited her work in many solo and collective shoes in Cuba and abroad inlcuding Spain (2001), United States (2002), Greece. This young artist has won many awards and mentions for her outstanding work Compositora, Cuban singer and guitarist Cuban Singer songwriter Sara González, member of the Movimiento de la Nueva Trova (Cuban New Song Movement) Singer-songwriter Sara Gonzalez, one of the original voices of the New Cuban Song Movement, has died in Havana, official media reported. She died in Havana, Cuba in 2012 at the age of 60. The Cuban newspaper Granma published an article entitled “Sara will always be the voice of victory”, which described her as one of the paradigmatic voices of the Cuban New Song Movement over the past 50 years.

Over 2,000 ethnic athletes to participate in World Indigenous Games in Brazil

Participants arrive for first ‘indigenous Olympics’ from dozens of Brazilian ethnicities as well as from such far-flung nations as Ethiopia and New Zealand PALMAS, BRAZIL — World’s first “indigenous Olympics” kicked off... Read more »

First Nations Treaty(ies), Sovereignty and an Australian Republic

By Ghillar Michael Anderson Former PM Paul Keating’s foray back into Aboriginal politics (16 October 2015 Sydney Morning Herald article Paul Keating pushes ‘unfinished business’ of Indigenous treaty and republic) where he talks up... Read more »
Communities Plus project to boost social and affordable housing in NSW

Communities Plus project to boost social and affordable housing in NSW

Minister for Social Housing Brad Hazzard today called for interest in delivering the new generation of world-class social, affordable and private housing in NSW. “Communities Plus is a new generation of integrated... Read more »
Artist Yadegar Asisi stunning Great Barrier Reef panoramic art installation at the Panometer in Germany. (Photo: Yadegar Asisi)

Panoramic artwork of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef mesmerizes visitors

Artist creates stunning, immersive 360-degree art installation of Great Barrier Reef By Michael d’Estries (Mother Nature Network) Artist Yadegar Asisi, famous for his use of panoramic video and art, has brought the beauty... Read more »

Religious Scholar Nazeer ul Hassan Thanvi will manage religious affairs of Halal Expo Australia

Sydney (Press Release from Halal Expo Australia); It is a great privilege for Halal Expo Australia that a well-known Australian religious scholar and Imam brother Nazeer ul Hassan Thanvi will manage the religious affairs and matters related to first... Read more »
Sydney voted as one of the top cities in the world

Sydney voted as one of the top cities in the world

“With Sydney’s buzzing night life, spectacular harbour and beaches and world-class restaurants, it’s no wonder that this city is continually loved by visitors from across the globe,” Minister Ayres said Sydney has once again... Read more »