Health News at Your Fingertips

Today is the International Day of People with Disability. Speaking to the ABC earlier, the disability discrimination commissioner, Dr Ben Gauntlett, said 52% of all discrimination complaints made to the Australian Human Rights Commission related to disability discrimination. He said:

When you consider the Australian Human Rights Commission covers sex discrimination, race discrimination, age discrimination and human rights complaints, that’s an incredible number of complaints relating to disability discrimination and something we need to change …

We need to have a focus on recruiting, retaining and advancing people with disability in employment … We need to also acknowledge that 80% of disability is invisible in nature, but you can’t be what you in a sense can’t see, or can’t see as reflective of yourself. We need to acknowledge that people with disability can be academics, can be artists, musicians, sportsmen or can just do something which they enjoy.

The Australian-born WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange, who is battling extradition from Britain to the US where he is wanted on criminal charges, has submitted an appeal to the European Court of Human Rights, the court confirmed on Friday.

Britain has given the go-ahead for his extradition, but Assange has launched an appeal at London’s high court, with the first hearing expected early next year, Reuters reports.

Assange, 51, is wanted by US authorities on 18 counts, including one under a spying act, relating to WikiLeaks’ release of vast troves of confidential US military records and diplomatic cables which Washington said had put lives in danger.

His legal team have also launched a case against Britain at the ECHR, which could potentially order the extradition to be blocked.

In January 2021, a British judge ruled Assange should not be extradited, saying his mental health meant he would be at risk of suicide if convicted and held in a maximum security prison.

But that decision was overturned after an appeal by US authorities who gave a package of assurances, including a pledge he could be transferred to Australia to serve any sentence.

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, on Wednesday said he had raised the issue of Assange’s release with US officials, saying the matter should be brought to a close.

The case has gained prominence this week with major media outlets that had originally worked with Assange over the leaked material, including the Guardian, expressing in an open letter that his prosecution should end.

Assange spent seven years holed up in Ecuador’s embassy in London to avoid extradition to Sweden where he was wanted for questioning over a sexual assault investigation that was later dropped.

However, he was dragged out and jailed in 2019 for breaching bail conditions, and has been held in prison in London ever since while his extradition case is decided.

Christopher Knaus

Push for ‘victim advocates’ to support alleged rape survivors in court

There are growing calls for a major overhaul of the way rape complainants are treated within the justice system in the wake of the Bruce Lehrmann trial, with a former federal court judge urging governments to appoint victim advocates to support women through the process.

Prosecutors in the ACT on Friday announced they would not seek a second trial of Lehrmann because of the “significant and unacceptable risk to the life” of Brittany Higgins who is receiving mental health support in hospital.

The decision means Lehrmann, who pleaded not guilty to one count of sexual intercourse without consent, will not face trial and retains the presumption of innocence.

But revelations about the impact of the court process on Higgins have prompted calls for changes to better support complainants.

The Australian National University’s Global Institute for Women’s Leadership, of which Higgins is a member, said the case underscored the “huge toll faced by complainants in sexual assault prosecutions”. It said in a statement:

There is a clear need for ongoing law reform and practical changes in both the criminal justice system and the laws, processes and institutions that prohibit workplace harassment and ensure safe, respectful workplaces.

Read the full story here:

Welcome

Donna Lu

Good morning. It’s Donna here, taking you through your Saturday from a sunny Melbourne/Naarm, where it’s finally starting to feel like summer. Here is a look at the day’s top stories:

• The Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has submitted an appeal to the European court of human rights over an extradition order from the UK to the US, where he is wanted on criminal charges.

• Excitement is building ahead of the Socceroos match against Argentina tomorrow morning at the World Cup. It is only the second time that the Australians have progressed to the knockout stages of the finals.

• Two people have died after a multi-car crash that closed Sydney’s Anzac Bridge. It occurred shortly before midnight.

• Ambulance Victoria called a code red in metropolitan Melbourne for three hours overnight after experiencing “extremely high demand”.

• A council decision to remove dozens of bridges and lower the road level around the NSW town of Moulamein is under scrutiny as unprecedented flood waters cause millions of dollars in damage.

• Further down the Murray, locals in the South Australian town of Renmark are preparing for a surge of water. Flows down the Murray are expected to peak in the town in about two weeks, with water levels predicted to be the highest since the 1970s.

• The former Australia cricket captain Ricky Ponting was taken to hospital on Friday after suffering a heart problem.

If you spot anything, do get in touch at Donna.Lu@theguardian.com or on Twitter at @donnadlu.