Aung San Suu Kyi's extraordinary fall from grace

Editor's note

It’s been a stunning fall: Aung San Suu Kyi has gone from the idolised rock star of the political world to ostracised leader in a very short period of time.

But as Anthony Ware and Costas Laoutides write, Suu Kyi still has an opportunity to show moral leadership on the Rohingya crisis and restore her image internationally. Pledging to cooperate with the international investigation into the atrocities committed against the Rohingya is an important first step.

Closer to home, Australia’s building industry is increasingly relying on renovations, not new constructions. With home renovations creating up to five times more waste than building a new house from scratch, that’s a lot of rubbish going to landfill. Deepika Mathur explains some simple rules for reducing the waste (and cost) of getting your dream home.

Justin Bergman

Deputy Editor: Politics + Society

Top story

Aung Sun Suu Kyi is now seen as an enabler of ethnic cleansing and genocide.

Aung San Suu Kyi’s extraordinary fall from grace

Anthony Ware, Deakin University; Costas Laoutides, Deakin University

Facing increasing international pressure, Myanmar's one-time star leader is running out of time to show leadership on human rights and the Rohingya crisis.

Sensible design can dramatically reduce waste of a renovation. Photo by Nolan Issac on Unsplash

Five ways to reduce waste (and save money) on your home renovation

Deepika Mathur, Charles Darwin University

Renovations can create more waste than new constructions – but they don't have to.

Politics + Society

A Shorten government would subsidise pre-school for three year olds

Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra

The policy would create “a quality, two year program that boosts development in the most important years of a child's development – an investment of an additional $1.75 billion into early education."
ACTU push for industry bargaining increases pressure on Labor

Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra

There are 750,000 fewer workers under enterprise agreements now than when the Coalition was elected, McManus says in her speech to the John Curtin Research Centre.
When unborn children are killed, how does the law deal with culpability?

Lorraine Finlay

The deaths of Katherine Hoang and her unborn twins, along with her sister-in-law Belinda in a car crash at Orchard Hills have raised questions about culpability when children are killed in utero.
World politics explainer: The fall of the Berlin Wall

Andrew Bonnell, The University of Queensland

Though the fall of the Berlin Wall did not bring along the utopia many had hoped for, it is a symbolic moment for the victors of the Cold War.

Environment + Energy
‘Honeygate’ deepens as new tests reveal 27% of brands are adulterated Mark Patrick Taylor, Macquarie University; Xiaoteng Zhou, Macquarie University More than a quarter of commercially available honeys show signs of having been bulked out with cheaper products such as sugar cane and corn syrup, a new analysis shows.

Arts + Culture

The Diggers’ Requiem: playing our finest songs to those lost on the Western Front

Christopher Latham, Australian National University

Seven Australian composers feature in an epic communal piece of music honouring the Australians who died on the Western Front. It will have its premiere in Canberra, this Saturday.
Essays On Air: the politics of curry

Mridula Nath Chakraborty, Monash University

Whether being called 'curry munchers' or pigeonholed as authorities on a dish largely invented by the British, diasporic South Asians are emulsified in a deep pool of curry.

Cities
How city squares can be public places of protest or centres of state control Majdi Faleh, University of Melbourne Today’s urban public spaces tend to represent governments and cities rather than people and citizens. Architects and urban designers should contribute to shaping spaces for freedom and interaction.

Science + Technology

Curious Kids: what’s the history of aircraft squawk codes and how do they work?

Andrew Dowse, Edith Cowan University

Secondary radar is an important tool in the control of aircraft traffic, and helps make air travel safe. It was developed during dangerous times.
And then there were three: finally, another woman awarded a Nobel Prize in Physics

Celine Boehm, University of Sydney

Donna Strickland is the first woman in 55 years to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics. Let's hope the next such award to a woman won't take so long.
Digitising social services could further exclude people already on the margins

Siobhan O'Sullivan, UNSW; Christopher Walker, UNSW

It's the people most dependent on social services, who are least able to easily transition into the digital age.

Health + Medicine

How to improve the NDIS for people who have an intellectual disability as well as a mental illness

Karen R Fisher, UNSW; Erin Louise Whittle, UNSW; Julian Norman Trollor, UNSW

People with intellectual disability experience higher rates of mental ill health than the rest of the population, so NDIS can be doubly relevant.
Hazardous drinking: research finds that 40% of people over 50 drink too much

Andy Towers, Massey University

Research shows that up to 40% of adults aged 50 and over are hazardous drinkers. For men in this age group this increases to almost 50%.

Education
We need to change negative views of the jobs VET serves to make it a good post-school option Stephen Billett, Griffith University Many young Australians and their parents don't consider VET as a potential post-school pathway, even if it might be more suitable for them than university.

Business + Economy

States want the GST guarantee set in legislative stone

Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra

NSW Liberal Treasurer Dominic Perrottet said after the meeting that “all states and territories put forward the strong view” the bill must include this.
Politics Podcast: Clare O'Neil on Labor’s listening tour for banking victims

Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra

Shadow minister for financial services Clare O'Neil says the ALP exercise will give a voice to people in areas the Royal Commission hasn't had time to visit.