As many as 180,000 people would gather to light candles in #Victoria#Park to remember June 4th 1989,
when China’s army brought a bloody end to weeks of peaceful pro-democracy protests in Beijing.
(China has never put a figure on the number who died in what it terms a counter-revolutionary incident.)
Hong Kong’s vigils became a symbol of #defiance of mainland authority
and an ardent evocation of the city’s #independence.
“It was magnificent,” says one resident. “We wanted to make [the massacre] known, not just in Hong Kong, but throughout the world.”
🔥 Organising such a vigil would be unthinkable now.
The commemoration was #banned in 2020, ostensibly because of covid-19.
Some 20,000 people gathered anyway.
The following month the central government in Beijing imposed a draconian national-security law on the territory,
a response to large pro-democracy protests in 2019.
The authorities have since snuffed out memories of Tiananmen.
Memorials have been removed.
The commemoration’s organisers have been jailed;
-- in March they lost a bid to overturn their conviction.
Wearing black or lighting candles near Victoria Park on June 4th may now be considered criminal activity.
This year, like the last, the park is filled with food trucks instead of candles.
Pro-Beijing groups have organised a carnival in the vigil’s stead.
Victoria: Hundreds of patients died after catching COVID in Victorian hospitals, new data shows
Almost 1 in 10 patients who caught COVID in hospital died.
Documents obtained by ABC News under Freedom of Information laws reveal at least 6,212 patients caught COVID in hospital in 24 months — 3,890 in 2022 and 2,322 in 2023. Of those, 586 died — almost 6 per week, on average — with men dying at a higher rate than women (11 per cent vs 8 per cent).
@blaise If you're taking the ferry, show up to it as early as you would for a plane. I showed about an hour before and there was already a long line. Also, their threshold for luggage being checked is significantly smaller than the TSA's, so bare that in mind when you pack.
@blaise@si_irini Will you be driving at all? I’d highly recommend getting out of the city and going for a drive. The coastline is spectacular and there are some great little towns along the way - in particular, the pretty town of Chemainus famous for its 53 outdoor murals. It’s only an hour outside of Victoria.
#StreetArt from #Benalla#Victoria#Australia
I like Sofle's concept of painting on all surfaces of a carpark.
My favourite was Melanie Caple's Ned Kelly contemplating
Do you live in a #ShareHouse in #Victoria#Australia ?
My friend has a PHD student researching share housing and would like to speak to you if you wanna.
I'm at work bored again posting in the bathroom while they film an Instagram video for my jobs social media (I do not consent lol) I'd like to prove grassroots social media is better. So in #yyj#victoria big wheel burger has BOGO burgers on Uber eats. Order and put "davbot says join mastodon." In the notes.
"A single mum who continues to suffer from COVID nearly 4 years after catching it at Geelong aged care home has won a legal battle to launch proceedings for pain and suffering."
@timrichards
I have breakfast out with some of the Vinnies ladies once every 8-10wks & may have lunch with a friend once a month or so, but that’s it. I only go out for dinner on special occasions. I rarely even get takeout either. It’s just cheaper not to.
This recumbent bike was abandoned near my house a few days ago, Victoria BC. Anyone able to reconnect it with it's owner?
Please boost! #yyj#victoria#bikes#recumbent
Victoria: Three aged care nurses who broke Victoria’s 2020 lockdown for a baby shower at their workplace, before a COVID outbreak in which 38 residents died at Epping Gardens Aged Care Home, have been suspended.
Australian state orders 30,000 people to evacuate due to ‘catastrophic’ fire risk
By Kathleen Magramo and Morayo Ogunbayo, CNN
Published Feb 28, 2024
"Firefighters in Australia are battling a huge blaze that has forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of people amid some of the worst fire conditions the country has seen in recent years.
"Hot, dry and windy conditions have created “extreme to catastrophic fire dangers” in parts of Victoria and #SouthAustralia, according to Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology.
"#SevereThunderstorms are also forecast in the region, which bring the threat of #DryLightning – strikes that occur during a storm where the rain evaporates before hitting the ground.
"Around 30,000 people had been ordered to evacuate parts of #VictoriaAustralia before midday Wednesday, when authorities warned it would be too late to leave.
"Temperatures are rapidly rising to the 40°C range (104°F), with wind gusts reaching 60 to 70 kilometers per hour (37 to 43 mph), according to an update from Jason Heffernan, chief officer at #Victoria’s Country Fire Authority (CFA), the state’s volunteer fire service.
“Extreme fire dangers are coming to fruition, and in fact we’re currently seeing catastrophic conditions in #Casterdon, Hamilton and #Kanagulk in the #Wimmera weather district,” he said.
[...]
"Experts have warned that #Australia could see another catastrophic fire season this year as the impacts of El Niño event — a natural climate fluctuation which can bring hot and dry conditions to parts of the country — with the underlying trend of human-caused #GlobalWarming.
As the world continues to heat up, increasing the likelihood of the '#FireWeather' that fuels faster and more intense blazes, scientists say the risk of extreme #bushfire seasons will increase."