Welfare is not an infinite pit: Gina

Mining magnate Gina Rinehart. Picture: AAP Source: Supplied

MINING billionaire Gina Rinehart has criticised welfare recipients for dragging the country into debt and attacked the political left for spending the "bottomless pit" of revenue generated from mining taxes and royalties.

"We are living beyond our means," Ms Rinehart, worth an estimated $19.89 billion, wrote in an opinion article. "This 'Age of Entitlement' and its consequences is creating problems for all of us, our children and our grandchildren."

In her latest column for Australian Resources and Investment magazine, Ms Rinehart echoed Treasurer Joe Hockey's call for an end to the age of entitlement — albeit with a sharper attack on the $130 billion spent annually on the five million citizens receiving income support.

"Australians have to work hard or actually harder and smarter to create the revenue to be able to pay that bill … something has to give, we can't do it all."

Treasurer Joe Hockey escaped Gine Rinehart's barbs. Picture: Gary Ramage Source: News Corp Australia

She heaped praise on the late Margaret Thatcher and quoted one of her favourite lines from the controversial former British prime minister: "The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money."

"Great quote. Let's learn from it," she wrote.

The billionaire predicted an outpouring of personal attacks on her for the comments.

"I can already hear the left boiling with rage that I dare challenge their 'bottomless pit' and the belief that money doesn't have to be earned before it is spent mentality.

"More nasty twisted articles will appear, forests and splinters of them. But every day Australia goes further into debt with no clear planning operation to get back even close to where we were.

"The political left is torn and confused. One moment they hate our very existence and even want us closed down — but in another, they don't want to stop spending the revenue that they count on from us in taxes and royalties."

She urged leadership, said the government could learn from Mrs Thatcher and claimed she was not alone in wanting politicians to act.

"Now is the time to change some thinking and urge leadership. We all have a role to play in mitigating the thinking that's not helping our country's future, including the entitlements mentality of individuals, companies — and our leaders.

Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Picture: AAP Source: AP

"The left don't want to address the issue. Instead they get hysterical and personal about who speaks out — in this case, sometimes me."

Rinehart this week dropped 10 places on the Forbes Magazine rich list, despite getting richer. Her current wealth is estimated to have increased in the last year by $US700 million but her ranking dropped from 36 to 46.

In her own family, a bitter battle over who was entitled to control a $5 billion family trust has been dragging through the courts for two years.

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‘Oscar prayed over dying Reeva’

Day three of the Oscar Pistorius murder trial sees a witness who says the track star asked a friend to take the blame for a gun incident a month before the murder of Reeva Steenkamp. Nathan Frandino reports.

Day four ... Oscar Pistorius at the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria. Source: AFP

OSCAR Pistorius shook slightly, his hands covering his ears as a neighbour described in court how the famous athlete knelt next to his dead or dying girlfriend, praying as he tried to help Reeva Steenkamp breathe.

The testimony in high court in Pistorius's murder trial was riveting and was the first detailed public description of the immediate aftermath of the shooting of Steenkamp, a 29-year-old model, by the double-amputee Paralympic champion in the pre-dawn hours of February 14 — Valentine's Day — last year.

"It was obvious that she was mortally wounded," said Johan Stipp, a radiologist, as he described what he saw at Pistorius' villa. Stipp said he was one of the first there.

"At the bottom of the stairs ... there was a lady lying on her back on the floor," Mr Stipp testified.

A few minutes later, Mr Stipp said, Pistorius went upstairs - the area where he had shot Steenkamp - and then returned. At that point, Mr Stipp said he was concerned that the gun used in the shooting had not been recovered and that a distraught Pistorius was going to harm himself. The testimony did not address what Pistorius did when he went upstairs.

Hard to hear ... Oscar Pistorius, puts his hands to his head while listening to evidence from a witness speaking about the morning of the shooting of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. Source: AP

Sitting on a courtroom bench on Thursday, Pistorius bent forward and put his hand over his face, then moved them to cover both ears. He stayed that way for a while, even when one of his lawyers reached back to reassure him and touch him on the head.

"I went near her and as I bent down, I also noticed a man on the left kneeling by her side,'' Stipp said under questioning by prosecutor Gerrie Nel.

"He had his left hand on her right groin, and his right hand, the second and third fingers in her mouth. I remember the first thing he said when I got there was 'I shot her. I thought she was a burglar. I shot her.'"

Mr Stipp, who said he didn't know that man was Pistorius until later, said he tried to help, but that he knew it was probably no good because Steenkamp showed no signs of life. Mr Stipp said he noticed a wound in her right thigh, in her upper arm and in the right side of the head, and there was brain tissue around the skull.

Distressed ... Oscar Pistorius was emotional during the testimony of neighbour Johan Stipp. Source: AP

Pistorius is charged with shooting Steenkamp three times out of four shots through a toilet door in his home. Prosecutors said the athlete intentionally killed Steenkamp after an argument but Pistorius says it was a mistake.

"She had no pulse in the neck, she had no peripheral pulse. She had no breathing movements that she made," Mr Stipp said. "Oscar was crying all the time," he said. "He was praying to God, 'Please let her live.'"

Pistorius said he would dedicate "his life and her life to God" if she would live and not die that night, according to Mr Stipp.

Flanked ... Oscar Pistorius, centre rear, arrives at the high court for the start of the fourth day of his trial. Source: AP

Pistorius, who ran at the 2012 Olympics on his prosthetic legs and who was known as the Blade Runner, is charged with murder with premeditation.

Pistorius's lead defence lawyer started the fourth day of the trial by cross-examining another neighbour and questioning whether the man heard a woman screaming and then gunshots on the night Steenkamp died.

The neighbour, Charl Johnson, said he also owned a gun, a 9mm pistol, and knew what gunfire sounded like.

"I can confidently say I heard gunshots," Mr Johnson insisted on cross-examination by Barry Roux. Later, Mr Johnson said: "I'm convinced that I heard a lady's voice."

OSCAR PISTORIOUS MURDER TRIAL DAY 3: Pistorius fired gun in restaurant

OSCAR PISTORIOUS MURDER TRAIL DAY 2: Pistorius breaks down in court

OSCAR PISTORIUS MURDER TRIAL DAY 1: What really happened

WHAT THE OSCAR PISTORIUS MURDER TRIAL WILL CENTRE ON

Lonely figure ... Oscar Pistorius at the Pretoria High Court on March 5. Source: Getty Images

The sequence of events soon after 3am on the morning of February 14 last year is a critical aspect of the case. Prosecutors say there was a loud argument between Pistorius and Steenkamp before the shooting. Pistorius says there was no argument and he killed Steenkamp, a 29-year-old model, by accident thinking she was an intruder in his home.

Mr Roux, who was at times interrupted by the judge to clarify some of his questions, also attempted to throw doubt on the validity of Johnson's testimony and that of his wife Burger.

Mr Roux says the banging sounds were actually Pistorius hitting a toilet door with a cricket bat and the screaming was the distressed athlete calling for help — and there were no sounds from Steenkamp who had been shot in the head.

Mr Johnson said he "disputed" some of what Roux was saying and described in more detail what he heard on the night Pistorius shot his girlfriend to death. Mr Johnson and his wife live around 177 meters from Pistorius' villa.

"The fear ... in the lady person's calls contrasted with a very monotone male voice," Mr Johnson testified. "The man almost sounded embarrassed to be calling for help."

Model and reality TV personality ... Reeva Steenkamp. Source: News Limited

Awakened by a sound — Mr Johnson admitted he is unsure of what — he told the court that he heard screaming and awoke his wife, jumped out of bed and ran to the balcony of their home.

The screaming continued and Mr Johnson said he called a security company at 3.16am, speaking for 58 seconds according to his mobile phone log, before running approximately 30 feet back out to the balcony.

Earlier, Mr apologised to Mr Johnson reading his mobile phone number out in court.

Mr Johnson told the court this week that he was inundated with calls after Mr Roux read his number out on Tuesday.

One call was from a person accusing him of lying in court. As a result, he had to keep his phone switched off.

Blade runner ... Oscar Pistorius wins gold in the men's 400-meter T44 final at the 2012 Paralympics in London. Source: AP

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Shark cull drum lines to stay on WA coast

Anti shark cull campaigners have lost their bid to stop the WA Governments controversial shark-kill policy.

WA's controversial drum lines used to catch and kill big sharks will remain after an application for an injunction to have them removed was rejected. Source: Supplied

ANTI shark cull campaigners have lost their bid to stop the WA Government's controversial shark-kill policy.

WA Supreme Court Justice James Edelman threw out the application from Sea Shepherd Australia for an immediate injunction to have the baited drumlines removed.

The conservationists had argued the decision by the government to exempt itself from its own laws was invalid because it had not been published in the Government Gazette.

In his decision, Justice Edelman not only threw out the injunction but essentially ruled the government did not need to publish its decision to allow the killing of great white, tiger and bull sharks over three metres that ventured in designated "kill zones".

"As I explained at the outset, this hearing involved a purely legal question," he said."It is a legal question that is not without considerable difficulty.

"The line between the administrative act and the legislative act is blurred.

"The application of this approach in this case means the exemption instruments and particularly these made under the Fish Resources Management Act do not have legislative effect.

"I would also conclude that if they did have legislative effect, then the requirement of public exemption in the Gazette...would be inconsistent with the scheme and provided in the Fish Resources Management Act.

"For these reasons the preliminary question must be answered no."

Sea Shepherd Australia director Jeff Hansen said despite today's ruling the group would continue its fight to stop the WA Government's policy.

He said they were now hoping the Federal Environmental Protection Authority will carry out a full environmental assessment of the catch and kill strategy.

"They have two weeks from tomorrow to make a decision and we are hoping they will show some urgency with that decision and call for a full environmental impact to be done at a state level and call for the drumlines to be removed immediately," Mr Hansen said.

"We will continue to do whatever we can to ensure that our beaches are safer, that are oceans have this healthy marine environment that we rely on.

"An ocean without sharks is a dead ocean. And that's a planet without people. So we will continue no matter what. We have right on our side. We are right.

"What the Premier is doing is completely wrong."

Sharon Burden, who son Kyle died after he was bitten by a shark off the south west coast in 2001, said while she was disappointed with the outcome she believed taking the legal action was the right thing to do.

"If you are in a situation where a state government can just exempt itself from a law so easily that disturbs me. And I think any situation where you feel uncomfortable you should do what is necessary to find out if that process was done correctly and what other avenues are open to you and what comes of that decision as well.

"I raised Kyle to believe that if you firmly believe in something, an idea, or a value, that you should pursue it and shouldn't just let it go because it seems difficult or that you may not get the outcome that you were hoping for. If you are passionate about something you should pursue it and that is why I have stepped forward on this particular issue."

Greens MLC Lynn MacLaren said she was disappointed at the decision.

"While the request for the drum lines to be pulled immediately was denied, we are still hopeful that we will win the fight," she said.

"Despite both environmental and legal concerns surrounding the catch and kill policy, the drum lines remain.

"This is an upsetting decision for 80-95 per cent of Australians that are against the cull."

WA Premier Colin Barnett today welcomed the Supreme Court decision.

"We felt we had followed a rigorous, legitimate process in deploying drum lines at popular beaches in the South West and metropolitan area," he said.

"This policy has been driven by concerns for public safety, given the increased number of fatal shark attacks in Western Australian waters in the last three years.

The drum lines will stay in place until April 30, as we work with the Federal Government to extend the program into next summer."

Environmental group Sea Shepherd Australia launched the legal action yesterday, arguing the WA Government's decision to exempt itself from the Fisheries Resources Act was illegal.

In order to carry out the "mitigation" policy, the WA Government granted itself an exemption to allow the killing of any white, tiger and bull shark over three metres which ventured in to designated "kill zones".

The campaigners were also seeking an interim injunction against the program to have the baited drumlines removed from WA waters immediately.

The state will seek to recover $19,000 in costs from activists over the legal battle.

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Revealed: Where to buy for $35k

RUSTIC living at Sapphire in Queensland for only $29,500. picture: realestate.com.au Source: Supplied

Move aside Kensington Palace, the price tags on these homes are nothing to sneeze at on Hot Homes this week.

AFFORDABLE houses aren't as hard to find as many may think, you just need to travel further afield, Oh, and be prepared to spend quite a bit on renovating.

While median house prices much higher in all capital cities are much higher than that, there are still plenty of bargain houses to be bought throughout the country.

There are 34 suburbs or towns in Australia where the median house price is below $100,000.

In New South Wales there are 12 suburbs or towns with a median house price of less than $100,000.

The cheapest is in north western New South Wales at Collarenebrin where the median is only $28,200, followed by Ungarie in the central west which has a median of $60,000.

Among the cheapest on offer are a former church in the Ootha township of Forbes which has an asking price of just $35,000.

The iron-clad building has power and town water.

WITH a little divine intervention this former church in the Ootha township in Forbes NSW could be converted into a home. Picture: realestate.com.au Source: Supplied

For something more traditional a three-bedroom home in Aubrey St, Fords Bridge in New South Wales comes with a price tag of just $30,000.

It is advertised as perfect for a "weekend getaway'' just 70kms from the township of Bourke.

UNFORTUNATELY for $30,000, you don't get much grass with this home at 9 Aubrey St, Fords Bridge NSW. Picture: realestate.com.au Source: Supplied

In Victoria there are ten suburbs or towns with median house prices below $100,000, with Rainbow in the Wimmera region the cheapest at $72,000, Ouyen in the Mallee region is $73,750 and Jeparit also in the Wimmera is $76,000

Bargains include a one bedroom, one bathroom home at Vernon St, Korong Vale for only $20,000. There is a fireplace in the lounge, but as you can see from the pictures, it is a little breezy.

VERNON St, Korong Vale, Victoria is listed as a "golden opportunity'' within a short drive of the gold mining town of Wedderburn. Picture: realestate.com.au Source: Supplied

THERE is a fireplace but the lounge area could do with a bit of work. Picture: Supplied realestate.com.au Source: Supplied

It's technically not a house — well actually not even technically, it isn't a house, but we couldn't resist this boat shed and landing at Nelson in Victoria.

Who cares what your house looks like if you can spend all your spare time here. The shed has one bathroom, and a new Colourbond roof and gutters. It also comes with a 1920 built fibreglass riverboat and has been reduced to $25,000.

NOT a house, but a riverfront shed for $25,000. Picture: realestate.com.au Source: Supplied

The Northern Territory has proven to be one of the country's more expensive real estate markets and doesn't have any suburbs or towns with a median house price of less than $100,000.

In fact the cheapest is Zuccoli in Palmerston which has a median house price of $232,000, followed by Johnston in the same region at $240,000 and then Tennant Creek at $245,000.

The cheapest property listed for sale in the Northern Territory is a "handyman's delight'' priced between $159,000 and $179,000 at Ambrose St, Tennant Creek.

It has two bedrooms and one bathroom.

AMBROSE St, Tennant Creek is one of the cheapest houses listed in the Northern Territory. Picture: realestate.com.au Source: Supplied

Queensland has only one town with a median house price of less than $100,000 — Cunnamulla in the south west of the state, which has a median house price of $77,500 based on 14 house sales in the past 12 months.

Otherwise the suburbs or towns with the cheapest median house prices are Monto in the Wide Bay Burnett region, $124,000; Hughenden in the north west $125,500 and Quliplie in the south west, $128,500.

You can secure yourself a three-bedroom home in Blackwater for $40,000, the only problem is land isn't included. The home has to be removed.

BYO land if you are keen on securing this Blackwater, Queensland home for $40,000. Picture: realestate.com.au Source: Supplied

In South Australia there are four suburbs or towns with a median house price of less than $100,000 with Coonalpyn in the Coorong Murray Lands the cheapest at $73,750.

It is followed by Nangwarry in the southeast of the state $80,000 and Peterborough in the north at $92,250.

A cute cottage at Stephen's St, Booleroo Centre is seeking offers of $40,000.

The two-bedroom one-bathroom stone cottage has a sleep-out.

A quaint cottage in Booleroo Centre, South Australia will set you back $40,000. Picture: realestate.com.au Source: Supplied

If you are after something a little more rugged you can buy a freehold dugout site in Coober Pedy for $39,500.

It has three street frontage and is 1.43 ha. It has already been checked out by 2195 visitors at online listing site realestate.com.au.

FOR the more adventurous a dug out in Coober Pedy is listed for $39,500. Picture: realestate.com.au Source: Supplied

Tasmania has three suburbs or towns where the median house price is less than $100,000.

All three are in the West Coast council region with Zeehan the cheapest at $65,000, followed by Queenstown, $70,000 and Rosebery $71,500.

Among the cheapest properties are a three-bedroom house in Grafton St, Queenstown with an asking price that has been reduced to $40,000.

The covered porch leads into a lounge area with wood heating.

36 Grafton St, Queenstown, Tasmania, is surrounded by greenery. Picture: realestate.com.au Source: Supplied

In Western Australia there are four suburbs or towns with a median house price of less than $100,000.

They include Norseman in the South eastern region $30,000, Mount Magnet in the central region $60,875 and Carnamah in the central region $62,500.

You can grab yourself a three-bedroom, one bathroom home in Norseman for $30,000, which has been described as a "renovators delight''.

A renovators delight in Norseman, Western Australia. Picture: realestate.com.au Source: Supplied

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‘Ram your racist exploitation’: Ludlam

WA Greens Senator Scott Ludlam has launched a scathing attack on the Prime Minister during his final parliamentary speech ahead of next months election re-run.

SUNDAY TIMES SPECIAL - Greens Senator Scott Ludlam at Parliament House in Canberra . Source: News Limited

WA GREENS Senator Scott Ludlam has launched a scathing attack on the Prime Minister during his final parliamentary speech ahead of next month's election re-run.

During the adjournment debate speech, delivered on Monday night, Senator Ludlam invites Tony Abbott to visit WA, but urges him to leave his "excruciatingly boring three-word slogans at home".

The speech concludes with the Greens Senator telling the Prime Minister to take his "heartless racist exploitation of people's fears and ram it as far from Western Australia as your taxpayer funded travel entitlements can take you".

"When you arrive at Perth airport... understand that you are now closer to Denpasar than to Western Sydney, in a state where an entire generation has been priced out of affordable housing," Senator Ludlam told Parliament.

"Recognise that you are standing in a place where the drought never ended, where climate change from land clearing and fossil fuel combustion is a lived reality that is already costing jobs, property and lives.

"Mr Prime Minister, at your next press conference we invite you to leave your excruciatingly boring three-word slogans at home. If your image of Western Australia is of some caricatured redneck backwater that is enjoying the murderous horror unfolding on Manus Island, you are reading us wrong. Every time you refer to us as the 'mining state' as though the western third of our ancient continent is just Gina Rinehart's inheritance to be chopped, benched and blasted, you are reading us wrong.

"Western Australians are a generous and welcoming lot, but if you arrive and start talking proudly about your attempts to bankrupt the renewable energy sector, cripple the independence of the ABC and privatise SBS, if you show up waving your homophobia in people's faces and start boasting about your ever-more insidious attacks on the trade union movement and all working people, you can expect a very different kind of welcome."

Prime Minister Tony Abbott during Question Time in the House of Representatives in Parliament House Canberra. Picture: Gary Ramage Source: News Corp Australia

Senator Ludlam is one of six WA Senators preparing for a fresh WA Senate election on April 5 – six months after winning back his lost seat in the controversial recount, which saw 1370 votes go missing.

He hopes to win a crucial balance of power seat in the new poll.

"People are under enough pressure as it is without three years of this government going out of its way to make it worse," his speech continued.

"It looks awkward when you take policy advice on penalty rates and the minimum wage from mining billionaires and media oligarchs on the other side of the world-awkward, and kind of revolting. It is good to remember that these things are temporary. For anyone listening in from outside this almost empty Senate chamber, the truth is that Prime Minister Tony Abbott and this benighted attempt at a government are a temporary phenomenon. They will pass, and we need to keep our eyes on the bigger picture.

Just as the reign of the dinosaurs was cut short to their great surprise, it may be that the Abbott government will appear as nothing more than a thin, greasy layer in the core sample of future political scientists drilling back into the early years of the 21st century...

"Mr Abbott, your thoughtless cancellation of half a billion dollars of Commonwealth funding for the Perth light rail project has been noted. Your blank cheque for Colin Barnett's bloody and unnecessary shark cull has been noted. Your attacks on Medicare, on schools funding, on tertiary education-noted. The fact that your only proposal for environmental reforms thus far is to leave Minister Greg Hunt playing solitaire for the next three years while you outsource his responsibilities to the same Premier who presides over the shark cull has been noted too."

Senator Ludlam went on to tell the Prime Minister "every time you open your mouth, the Green vote foes up", before telling him to ram his "heartless racist exploitation of people's fears".

"You and your financial backers in the gas fracking and uranium industries have inspired hundreds of people to spend their precious time doorknocking thousands of homes for the Greens in the last few weeks," he said.

"Your decision to back Monsanto's shareholders instead of Western Australian farmers has inspired people across the length and breadth of this country to make thousands of calls and donate to our campaign.

"As for the premeditated destruction of the NBN and Attorney-General George Brandis's degrading capitulation to the surveillance state when confronted with the unlawful actions of the US NSA-even the internet is turning green, 'for the win'. Geeks and coders, network engineers and gamers would never have voted Green in a million years without the blundering and technically illiterate assistance of your leadership team.

"For this I can only thank you.

"And, perhaps most profoundly, your determined campaign to provoke fear in our community-fear of innocent families fleeing war and violence in our region-in the hope that it would bring out the worst in Australians is instead bringing out the best in us. Prime Minister, you are welcome to take your heartless racist exploitation of people's fears and ram it as far from Western Australia as your taxpayer funded travel entitlements can take you.

"What is at stake here, in the most immediate sense, is whether or not Prime Minister Tony Abbott has total control of this parliament in coming years. But I have come to realise that it is about much more than that. We want our country back. Through chance, misadventure, and, somewhere, a couple of boxes of misplaced ballot papers, we have been given the opportunity to take back just one seat on 5 April, and a whole lot more in 2016.

"Game on, Prime Minister. See you out west."

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Witnesses ‘colluded on testimony’

Oscar Pistorius gets emotional at graphic evidence presented at his murder trial, and a heated exchange occurs between his defense lawyer and witness Michelle Burger. Jillian Kitchener reports.

Day 3 ... South African Paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius, accused of murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp arrives to attend a hearing of his trial at the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria. Source: AFP

OSCAR Pistorius's defence sought to prove that a married couple who heard screams on the night of Reeva Steenkamp's death colluded in their testimony, hoping to discredit key witnesses

Pistorius's lawyer Barry Roux attempted to show written statements and testimony from husband and wife couple Charl Johnson and Michelle Burger contained "remarkable coincidences'' that could not be accidental.

Earlier, in vivid testimony that cast doubt on the Paralympian's claims of a "tragic accident,'' the pair told the court they heard a screams then gunshots on Valentine's Day 2013 at Pistorius's home.

— Barry Bateman (@barrybateman) March 5, 2014

The couple's account would undermine Pistorius's claim that he shot his girlfriend, a 29-year-old model and law graduate, through a locked toilet door after mistaking her for an intruder.

As the trial resumed, Roux sought to put the defence back on the front foot, submitting Johnson to pointed cross-examination a day after his wife was reduced to tears in the witness box.

"You have not favoured the court with a strong, independent version,'' he railed at Johnson, citing identical syntax and vocabulary used in Johnson and his wife's written statements to police.

The allegation could lessen the impact of the pair's testimony.

RELIVE DAY TWO OF THE OSCAR PISTORIUS MURDER TRIAL

THE OPENING DAY OF THE OSCAR PISTORIUS MURDER TRIAL

WHAT THE OSCAR PISTORIUS MURDER TRIAL WILL CENTRE ON

Killed ... Oscar Pistorius' girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. (AP Photo/Courtesy of Stimulii) Source: AP

Model ... Reeva Steenkamp was shot and killed at Pistorius' home. (AP Photo/Courtesy of Stimulii-HO) Source: AP

"Maybe you and your wife should have stood together in the witness box,'' Mr Roux said, prompting Judge Thokozile Masipa to step in.

"Aren't you going a bit far?'' she asked.

Ms Masipa did not comment on Mr Johnson's complaint that his "privacy has been compromised severely'' by the reading in court of his cell phone number, and that he had received threatening messages.

Johnson earlier told the court that on February 14, 2013 he was woken by a woman's screams and ran to his balcony, less than 200 metres from Pistorius's home.

"At that point the fear and intensity of her voice escalated and it was clear that this person's life was in danger,'' he said on Tuesday.

"That's when the first shots were fired,'' although Johnson could not recall how many.

Charged with murder ... Oscar Pistorius (C) leaves North Gauteng High Court amid a media scrum after the second day of his trial accused of the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images) Source: Getty Images

On Tuesday the court heard emotional evidence from Ms Burger about her recollection of that event.

"When I'm in the shower, I relive her shouts. The terrifying screams,'' university lecturer Burger said, her voice cracking with emotion as she was unable to hold back the tears.

Another neighbour, second witness Estelle van der Merwe, who lives less than 100 metres (yards) away from Pistorius's home, also told the court she heard arguing coming from the house.

Defence on attack ... Oscar Pistorius' attorney Barry Roux put to husband and wife witnesses that they colluded on their testimony. Source: AP

"I woke up in the morning at 1:56am to sounds of someone talking loudly and fighting,'' she told the court. "It lasted about an hour.''

Later she recalled waking up to the sound of loud bangs.

Pistorius, 27, a double amputee known as the "Blade Runner'' for his carbon-fibre running blades, has pleaded not guilty to murder and three unrelated gun charges.

If found guilty of premeditated murder, Pistorius faces 25 years in South Africa's notoriously brutal jails and an abrupt end to his glittering sporting career.

The track star has appeared composed in court during three days of prosecution testimony, except when the court heard a statement explaining the violent nature of Steenkamp's death.

Emotional ... Oscar Pistorius places his head down while sitting in the dock in court on the third day of his trial at the high court in Pretoria. Source: AP

Seeking to cast doubt on the witnesses' statements, the defence has disputed their claims that they continued to hear Steenkamp's fading screams after she suffered a final shot to the head.

"The person with that brain damage will have no cognitive response,'' continued Roux. "It cannot be. She could not have screamed.''

Hearing this, Pistorius put a handkerchief to his face bowed his head and folded his hands behind his neck.

Prosecution lawyer Gerrie Nel interjected to say it was the last of four shots that struck Steenkamp's head, the first three hitting her right side, the wall and her shoulder.

Meanwhile, across the court, one of Steenkamp's relatives touched a photo of Steenkamp, who had been a budding reality TV star, as a man put his arm around her.

The trial is expected to last three weeks.

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US, Russia hold talks on Ukraine

Russia says it will do 'everything to prevent bloodshed' in Ukraine as the crisis continues in the country.

On alert ... Russian forces look out at the Ukrainian navy ship Slavutich in the harbor of the Ukrainian city of Sevastopol. Source: AFP

• EU commits $15 billion in aid
• Top diplomats meet in Paris
• Putin steps back from brink of war
• Ukraine says war is now unlikely

THE European Union prepared $15 billion in aid to Ukraine and top diplomats from the West and Russia gathered in Paris to defuse tensions over the Russian military takeover of the strategic Crimean Peninsula.

NATO prepared to take up the issue directly with Russia in an extraordinary meeting of the military alliance, originally created as a counterbalance to the Soviet Union, and an international team of military observers headed to tense Crimea.

The ultimate goal in Paris is to get the Russian and Ukrainian foreign ministers in the same room, negotiating directly in the fast-moving dispute that has raised tensions to nearly Cold War levels.

Paris meeting ... US Secretary of State John Kerry, waves to the media as he arrives for a meeting on the Ukraine crisis in Paris. Source: AP

"It will be a test this afternoon of whether Russia is prepared to sit down with Ukraine, and we will strongly recommend that they do so,'' British Foreign Secretary William Hague said.

The Paris gathering, originally scheduled to deal with the Syrian refugee crisis, came after Russian President Vladimir Putin appeared to step back from the brink of war, but the crisis is far from resolved.

"This is my first trip to such an important venue where the Ukrainian future, maybe the future of the region, will be decided,'' Andriy Deshchytsia, Ukraine's foreign minister, said of the meetings in Paris. "We want to keep neighborly relations with the Russian people. We want to settle this peacefully.''

On the flight from Kiev to Paris, Deshchytsia told reporters that Ukraine was unlikely to go to war to prevent Russia from annexing Crimea but said doing so wouldn't be necessary because Russia would be unwilling to suffer the resulting economic penalties and diplomatic isolation.

Back from brink ... Russia's Foreign Affairs Minister Sergei Lavrov arrives at the Elysee presidential palace in Paris for a diplomatic meeting dedicated to the situation in Lebanon. Source: AFP

The $15 billion European Union offer matched the Russian bailout for fugitive President Viktor Yanukovych. Mr Yanukovych took the Russian loans instead of a wide-ranging trade and economic agreement with the EU, which fuelled the protests that eventually led to his ouster.

The United States has pledged to financially prop-up Ukraine and Mr Putin denied invading the country as his troops ransacked an air base, his ships were repositioned to block a harbour and his troops took over the border checkpoints to the country.

Both Washington and the Kremlin have agreed on formal talks on the future of the now more than 16,000 Russian backed troops on the Crimea.

ROUNDUP OF KEY EVENTS FROM UKRAINE'S CRISIS

These talks to also involve Germany's leader Angela Merkel could see a cap of 11,000 Russian troops work with international monitors on the ground in Crimea to ensure no human rights are abused by either side.

In a show of support for Ukraine's interim government, the US Air Force One arrived in the capital Kiev with Mr Kerry holding high level talks with the new leadership.

Diplomatic tour ... US Secretary of State John Kerry walks at the barricade at the Shrine of the Fallen of anti-government protesters in Kiev. Source: AFP

The US administration said Congress was close to finalising economic sanctions against Russia for its passive invasion of the southern Ukraine state of Crimea in support of ousted Ukrainian president Mr Yanukovych.

Mr Kerry toured a street near Maidan Independence Square where the people's revolution overthrew the Yanukovych regime with 95 people killed in clashes and 500 others injured.

He lay a bunch or red roses and a shrine close to where protesters were gunned down by police snipers two weeks ago.

"We will be helping," he told locals who had gathered about him.

"We are helping. President Obama is planning more assistance."

Helping hand ... US President Barack Obama comments on the situation in Ukraine. Source: AFP

The US has also pledged to provide Ukraine with technical expertise to track down the billions of dollars Mr Yanukovych and his senior ministers are believed to have laundered out of the country.

Meanwhile about the same time Mr Putin broke his one week of silence to accuse the West of having driven Ukraine to anarchy and supporting the coup to rid Mr Yanukovych who he still considered the real president.

But then in a baffling series of denials and half moves toward reconciliations, Mr Putin said he was pulling back from the brink of war but reserved the right to use force if Russians in the Ukraine were threatened.

In his declarations, he denied Russia had sent any forces to Crimea, said force was a "last resort" only and described the ousting of Mr Yanukoych as an "anti-constitutional takeover and armed seizure of power".

"We reserve the right to use all available means. And we believe that this is fully legitimate. This is a last resort,'' he said.

Keeping us guessing ... Russian President Vladimir Putin looks on during a press conference in his country residence of Novo-Ogaryova outside Moscow. Source: AFP

"We cannot stand aside if we see that they start to persecute or destroy. We very much hope that it does not come to this."

He said the Kremlin had given Mr Yanukovych sanctuary because otherwise he would have been killed.

On Ukrainian and US estimates of 16,000 Russian troops on the ground in Ukraine, Mr Putin said this was wrong and indeed he had none.

"You can go into a shop and buy any kind of uniform. These were local (pro-Russian) self-defence forces,'' Mr Putin claimed.

"Thank God that this was done without a single shot and everything is in the hands of the Crimean people."

But as he came up with that bizarre claim, Russian forces, many of whom have declared their status now, remained in control of Crimea and today the first shots were fired at a column of unarmed Ukrainian soldiers marching back to their air base.

A tense stand-off ensued as the reported Russian troops fired several rounds into the air over the Ukrainian heads and demanded they turn around.

Under orders ... Pro-Russian soldiers guard Ukraine's infantry base in Perevalne, Ukraine. Source: AP

At another air base near Yevpatoria 150 Russian troops broke in, while Russian navy ships have blocked off the Kerch Strait which separates Ukraine's Crimea region and Russia, the Ukrainian border guard service said on Tuesday.

The border guards have said that Russian servicemen are in control of the Crimean side of the narrow channel and that Russian armoured vehicles have been sighted on the Russian side.

"The Kerch Strait is blocked by two Russian ships — from the north and from the south," Pavel Shishurin, the deputy head of the border guards, told reporters.

The Russian military has not confirmed his comments.

The Kerch Strait provides access to the Black Sea for ships carrying grain and other commodities from southern Russian regions.

In the east of the country, troops forced border guards at checkpoints to abandon their posts.

In an unrelated but provocative event, the Russian also chose yesterday to test long range missiles on their home soil.

Sticking together ... people take part in a rally in the southern city of Rostov-on-Don in support of ethnic Russians in the Crimea and Eastern Ukraine. The posters read: "No to Fascism in Ukraine!" "We are together with Ukraine!" "Ukraine without Nazis!" "We stand for Russian Crimea!" "Stop Fascism!" "Don't betray Crimea and Russians!" "Shame on Stepan Bandera's successors!" Source: AFP

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Bid to kill shark laws on technicality

A tiger shark caught on a drum line. Activists have launched a legal challenge to have the shark catch-and-kill laws overturned. Source: AFP

THE WA Government has tried to "carve out its own island of immunity" by exempting itself from its own laws, WA's Supreme Court was told today.

And unless the controversial shark-kill policy is stopped immediately, more protected species will continue to be take, a lawyer representing environmental campaigners also said.

Environmental group Sea Shepherd Australia launched legal action, arguing the WA Government's decision to exempt itself from the Fisheries Resources Act was illegal.

In order to carry out the "mitigation" policy, the WA Government granted itself an exemption to allow the killing of any white, tiger and bull shark over three metres which ventured in to designated "kill zones".

The campaigners, which also includes Sharon Burden, mother of shark bite victim Kyle Burden who died after he was attacked while bodyboarding off Gracetown in 2011, were also seeking an interim injunction against the program to have the baited drumlines removed from WA waters immediately.

Around 50 anti-shark cull supporters packed the courtroom to hear the lengthy legal challenge.

Barrister Richard Hooker, who was representing the campaigners, told the court the WA government was trying to "carve out its own island of immunity" in reference to its decision to exempt itself from its own laws.

He argued that because it had not been given the final rubber stamp, the exemption was not valid.

He also said there was a "strong public interest" in the way the government administered its laws.

"For every day this program continues unrestrained ... more and more sharks are taken, and they are protected sharks.

"If this program isn't restrained right away, on the face of it the program continues to take protected sharks, that's what is critical to the case and why we seek interim injunction."

On February 16, the government said a total of 66 sharks had been caught in the first three weeks of the policy.

A total of 17 of those sharks were killed and another nine were found dead on the hooks, according to data provided by Fisheries Minister Ken Baston.

Earlier, lawyers representing the WA Government raised safety concerns about publishing the names of employees involved in the shark kill strategy.

He said recent allegations of threats made against those contracted to carry out the policy meant it was not in the public interest to "disseminate" their names.

In January baited drumlines were deployed off Perth beaches and the south-west as part of the "mitigation" strategy.

The lawyer representing the government told the court the shark kill policy was an "important public safety program" and that it wasn't going to let anything interfere with it.

He also argued that if the court granted the interim injunction, the government would need to enough time to remove drumlines.

Mr Hooker said his clients would not press for "immediate relief" but if the court did decide in their favour it would expect the policy to cease and would accept reasonable amount of time for it to be implemented.

Justice James Edelman reserved his decision until 4pm tomorrow.

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‘Corby tried to take her life twice’

Indonesia's justice minister says he may revoke Schapelle Corby's parole after watching her TV documentary.

In an interview for Seven's Sunday Night, Mercedes Corby talks to Mike Willesee about Schapelle and how her sister feels after her release from a Bali prison. Courtesy Channel 7/Sunday Night

Sticking to the rules ... Schapelle Corby, pictured with a security guard, reports for parole. Source: Supplied

Indonesian authorities insist Schapelle Corby tried to take her own life twice, despite denials from the drug smugglers family.

INDONESIAN authorities insist Schapelle Corby tried to take her own life twice, despite denials from the drug smuggler's family.

The 36-year-old attempted to take her own life with a knife during a meeting with parole officers at her sister's Kuta home, an official says.

Bali parole board boss Sunar Agus says he visited her on Monday night at the home of her sister Mercedes and brother-in-law Wayan Widyartha, and found her "unstable mentally''.

"She seemed afraid when I tried to have dialogue with her,'' he said.

"She tried to kill herself, she took a knife, but her family immediately prevented her.''

He said Schapelle twice tried to take her own life during the two-hour meeting with her, and added he believes the media is stalking her even as she sleeps.

He met the convicted drug smuggler on Monday night to discuss "various possibilities'' that may follow the Seven Network's program about her release from prison.

Authorities had repeatedly warned the program may breach her parole by causing community unease.

Signed and delivered ... Schapelle Corby's signed parole document. Source: Supplied

When the topic of her parole was broached, she twice ran to the kitchen and grabbed a small knife, he told reporters today.

Corby made an "effort to slice her arm'' with the knife, but was twice restrained by Mercedes and the other parole officers.

SCHAPELLE A SUNDAY NIGHT FIZZER

Mercedes reportedly denies the incident, but the parole boss was clear.

"I couldn't be sure whether Corby held it with her right or left hand because ... from me, there was about a three metre distance,'' Mr Agus said.

He believes Corby thought the officers were there to take her back to prison.

She was also distressed about the media attention.

"According to her, while sleeping in her room, she's photographed by reporters,'' he said.

A family source dismissed the reports as rubbish and said the incident had been far less dramatic than described.

They said Corby had been frustrated at not being able to leave her house and had declared that everyone would be happier if she were to kill herself.

It came as criticism of the Corby family's Seven Network interview builds and Indonesian Justice Minister Amir Syamsuddin warned she may be sent back to jail.

"There is a probability that her parole will be reconsidered," he said.

Corby appeared healthy today when she reported for parole. Accompanied by brother-in-law Wayan Widyartha and four burly local bodyguards, she attended the Parole office in Denpasar on her own volition, a week before she was required to appear.

Under watch ... Schapelle Corby accompanied by a security guard on arrival to report for parole. Source: Supplied

She spent less than an hour in the small counselling room with her parole officer, Putu Andiyani and the head of Bali's parole authority, Ketut Artham before heading to the prosecutor's office.

Mr Widyartha, who is Corby's parole guarantor, was with her.

He told News Corp Australia that "she came only give her monthly report and get guidance from Bapas (parole board)".

This comes as Indonesian officials hardened their stance to the Corby family's TV interview last Sunday and warned it could send the paroled drug smuggler back to jail.

Justice Minister Amir Syamsuddin today repeated his earlier promise to carefully review the parole board's report on the program before deciding whether it had crossed the line by causing community unease.

The minister — who hasn't seen the program himself — said he expected the report soon, but didn't want it rushed.

"I'm giving Bapas (the parole board) enough time to be as comfortable as possible because this is something they need to study very well,'' he told reporters.

Mr Syamsuddin said that if his office decides to revoke Corby's parole it would be her family's fault.

Making a splash ... Schapelle Corby takes a dip in the ocean with her brother Michael. Picture: Seven, Sunday Night Source: Supplied

The Corby case had severely tested his patience, he said.

The normally mild-mannered minister said the Corby family did not appear to be grateful for what they had already received — her release on parole despite political and domestic pressure on him not to grant it.

Mercedes today told News Corp Australia: "Our family are very happy and thankful the Indonesian Government granted Schapelle parole."

Speaking to Indonesian newspaper, Kompas, Mr Symasuddin referred to the increasing political and domestic pressure he is facing after granting Corby's parole and then watching as her sister Mercedes did a TV interview.

Threat to freedom ... Schapelle Corby may be sent back to jail, Indonesian Justice Minister Amir Syamsuddin has warned. Source: Supplied

Many believe it was a back door way of getting around the ban on Schapelle herself doing an interview.

He told the newspaper that the interview by Mercedes had made the family look like they had never said thank you or been grateful for what they already had.

"If we are finally forced to take the decision (to revoke the parole), this is not removed from the family's responsibility, which in my opinion, they didn't show their concern to what we have faced," Mr Syamsuddin said.

In the interview Mercedes maintained her sister's proclamations that she is innocent of smuggling 4.1kg of marijuana in her surfing gear in 2004.

Family support ... Mercedes Corby is adamant the family was not paid for the controversial interview. Source: Supplied

Mercedes said the marijuana "could have been from Indonesia'' or that perhaps an airport worker may have been responsible.

Bali's parole office interviewed Mercedes and Wayan to verify the statements made in the interview.

Agus said he hadn't yet found anything worrying in the program, however: "I suggest she (Corby) be more low profile''.

Gusti Kompyang Adnyana, head of Bali's Law and Human Rights provincial office, echoed the minister's view that the report must be considered carefully.

Sisterly love ... an overjoyed Schapelle Corby kisses sister Mercedes after being released from Kerobokan. Picture: Seven, Sunday Night Source: Supplied

"This regards a problem that's quite in the spotlight,'' he said.

"We can't recklessly make the assessment.''

Corby has now left the luxury villa she stayed in for three weeks while the Seven Network was negotiating the story, which it says was unpaid.

She is staying at the family home of Wayan, in busy Kuta, and today reported to parole and prosecution officials for the first time as part of her parole conditions.

Readers seeking support and information about suicide prevention can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Suicide Call Back Service 1300 659 467.

Change of plan ... Channel Seven ran a watered-down version of the Schapelle Corby program after the Indonesian Government's ban. Picture: Seven, Sunday Night Source: Supplied

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Roadblock for family’s safety fight

The family of a teenage mother to be killed in a car accident near Brookton plea to save other young lives on our roads.

Stacy Dunbar has requested safety barriers on Hester Avenue to reduce the risk of any vehicle crashing into her home again, where her son Nate was killed last year in his bedroom. Picture: Emma Reeves Source: Supplied

Nate Dunbar who was killed when a car crashed through his Merriwa home. Source: Supplied

DUE to give birth in two weeks, Merriwa mother Stacy Dunbar is looking forward to having a baby in the house again.

Like any expectant mother, safety is at the forefront of her mind — but even more so with Ms Dunbar given her eight-month-old son Nate was killed in his nursery when a drunk driver crashed into the family's home in January last year.

The Dunbars still live in the same house on the corner of Hester Avenue and Baltimore Parade. Ms Dunbar said she was disappointed the Wanneroo City Council had rejected calls for road safety barriers.

After Butler MLA John Quigley wrote to the Wanneroo Mayor on the family's behalf, the council responded by saying although Nate's death was a tragedy, Main Roads WA had determined the road was not a contributing factor and the City could not agree to the request.

Ms Dunbar said her family had collected 860 signatures for a petition to the Legislative Council in State Parliament.

"The community has been so amazing, they have been so supportive of us and what we're trying to do with road safety," she said. "This part of Hester is like a race track ... (and) is getting busier," she said.

Read the full article here.

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