Refugee activists march in Sydney

REFUGEE activists have clashed with police in a peak-hour march through inner Sydney.

Riot police were called in as hundreds rallied along George Street on Friday evening chanting "Free, free the refugees".

At times the throngs spilled onto city roads, disrupting traffic and prompting physical confrontations with police.

The demonstration comes after the death of 23-year-old Reza Berati during violent clashes at Australia's Manus Island immigration detention centre.

Refugee Action Coalition spokesman Ian Rintoul told the rally the Iranian's death would not be forgotten.

"They want to push it aside," he said. "They want it to be covered up in the lies and the cover-ups which are now under way on Manus Island.

"We are not going to allow that to happen."

The protesters have called for the Papua New Guinea facility to be shut down and Immigration Minister Scott Morrison to step down.

"Scott Morrison, blood on your hands," they cried as the march approached the Immigration Department's Sydney headquarters.

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LNP members push for more wild river cuts

LIBERAL National Party members want more wild river protections to be wound back.

Office holders will vote on whether to forward the policy to the LNP government, along with 27 other proposals, at the party's state council meeting in Toowoomba this weekend.

The resolution calls for wild river declarations of the Gregory and Staaten catchments, in the gulf, be rescinded.

Plans are already underway to revoke six other declarations across northern and western Queensland, with new protections to be offered under regional plans.

Other resolutions include increasing sentences by up to 100 per cent where alcohol and drugs were a contributing factor to the crime.

The Queensland Core Skills test should be aborted from 2014, and soon-to-be mothers should receive more support via social media and phone calls to decrease anxiety and depression.

There are a number of recommendations to reduce the cost of living, which was one of the LNP's election pledges.

Land rental on leasehold land should be frozen while a review to overhaul the system is undertaken, and solar feed in tariffs for any new customers should be immediately removed.

The existing solar feed in tariff scheme alone is now forecast to cost on average each customer, in 2015/16, around $276 per year.

Premier Campbell Newman and LNP president Bruce McIver will speak at the event on Saturday, and Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss will address the crowd on Sunday.

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China busts major baby trafficking ring

CHINESE police have rescued 382 abducted babies and arrested 1094 suspects in a national operation that busted four major internet-based baby trafficking rings, the Public Security Ministry says.

The operation came after police in Beijing and the eastern province of Jiangsu last year found four websites selling babies under the cover of adoption, the ministry said, adding that internet technologies have assisted baby traffickers by providing more secretive covers for their businesses.

Child abduction is a major problem in China despite punishments as harsh as the death sentence for traffickers, and national-level busts of trafficking rings have been frequent in recent years.

Strict laws that limit many families to one child, a traditional preference for boys, poverty and illicit profits drive a thriving market in babies and children.

To address the problem, China is considering tougher penalties for parents who sell their children, as well as for the buyers.

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Motorists suffer 'accident anxiety'

MOST motorists are suffering from "accident anxiety", and drivers aged 35-44 are the most worried, according to a survey.

As many as 79 per cent of those taking to the road are anxious about driving, the poll by Allianz Insurance found.

This concern is so great that 17 per cent of drivers have decided not to make a particular journey due to their worries.

Based on responses from 1000 people who drive regularly, the survey showed 83 per cent of drivers aged 35-44 get anxious on the road.

Overall, the biggest worry to drivers is tailgating, followed by road rage and uninsured drivers.

Of those who have accidents, 81 per cent said it was not their fault with 22 per cent saying they felt more worried, more stressed and less confident after a collision, with women being notably more worried than men after a crash.

Yet just seven per cent reckoned more driver training would be the answer.

Allianz Insurance chief executive Jon Dye said: "It's worrying to see that so many motorists feel they will have an accident, and yet so few feel more driver training would help. Drivers can only drive at their best if they feel calm and alert and not unduly worried about what other motorists are getting up to.

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