NT News letters to editor for January 25

Japanese troops in the Top End, Australia Day and the ongoing issue of bullying are on the minds of NT News readers today

Japanese troops in the Top End, Australia Day and the ongoing issue of bullying are on the minds of NT News readers today.

VISIT NOT RIGHT

SIMPLY put, it is unsettling that Japanese military forces are poised to visit these shores for a second time.

I believe that such deployment of Japanese troops is insensitive, even though they now come in peace, and as allies.

The military histories of their forefathers’ behaviour and treatment of Australians is too graphic to ever be expunged in memory or to be dismissed, or now regarded as irrelevant.

Of course forgiveness is a trait Christians embrace, but, for instance, the beheadings of our POWs on Ambon and elsewhere is still as abhorrent today as it was then or will be tomorrow.

We welcome Japanese tourists and civilians, but Japanese military deployments, I submit, is a different matter.

My sentiments will be roundly condemned and dismissed as out of time and context, but I believe there will be many in an older age group whose hearts sadden or are appalled at the reminder of a savage former foe now to be marching here in uniform by invitation of our politicians. For many it will be hard to bear.

Ted Dunstan

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BULLIES SHOULD FACE SPOTLIGHT

RIP Dolly, your suicide is a tragedy of epic proportions.

Bullying of any sort is a disgusting act usually perpetrated by pathetic, inadequate, insecure individuals.

Since Dolly’s death it appears that all we have read about is preventative measures, education, training in the schools, workshops, think tanks, policies, blah, blah, blah!

What about some justice for Dolly and the thousands like her who are bullied by cyber bully cowards, what about putting these cowards under the spotlight!

I feel they should be named and shamed, put their faces on the front of the newspaper, let them have the focus on what they did, face the consequences of their heartless, disgusting commentaries, maybe then they will comprehend a small iota of the stress, pain, anxiety and trauma that they put Dolly and thousands like her through!

John Rayner,

Nightcliff

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SAFETY ENSURED

NBN Co, the company rolling out Australia’s broadband network, strongly refutes claims published by the Sunday Territorian on January 21, and in a press release from Ace Body Corporate Management dated 21 January 2018, in relation to the disconnection of emergency lift phones and fire alarms.

This type of commentary is unhelpful and serves only to unnecessarily confuse and concern the public.

NBN Co has been working closely with the monitored fire alarm and lift emergency phone industries for a number of years to maximise awareness of the need for building managers to migrate fire and lift services off the legacy copper network.

In September 2015, the Department of Communications, NBN Co and industry convened a Roundtable and formed two working groups to develop fire alarm and lift emergency phone migration plans and provide advice to industry and building owners. The resulting Good Practice Guide provides assistance to industry and building managers.

We also created a monitored fire alarm and lift emergency phone register in 2015 to enable NBN Co to support the safe migration of these devices registered with NBN Co, as the nbn™ network rolls out.

Importantly, as part of the industry roundtable, Telstra and NBN Co deferred the mandatory disconnection of existing monitored fire alarm and lift emergency phones for nearly two years to allow industry and building managers to develop products and prepare themselves for the necessary migration. This industry-led carefully managed migration process is under way, though it is important to note it is a separate process to residential disconnections. We are working closely with industry and building managers to ensure registered fire and lift services are not left without a working connection.

It is also important to note that the Northern Territory Fire and Rescue Service’s in-house fire alarm monitoring system (NTFAST) is a radio-based system with no reliance on the copper PSTN network. The Northern Territory Fire and Rescue Service has advised that monitored fire alarms within this system will not be affected by the nbn™ rollout and thus are not required to be migrated.

Ultimately, the safe working condition of monitored fire alarms and lift emergency phones is a health and safety responsibility of the building manager.

Mike North, NBN Co Executive Manager

Planning and Industry

Migrations

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JUST CELEBRATE

AUSTRALIA Day is a celebration of all the great things in OUR country?

You can sook as much as ya like about the bad stuff. But are we really so divided that people can’t look past that and enjoy the day for what it is?

I was born on the same date the Titanic sank, but 50 years later? Am I supposed to say sorry for that?

Geoffrey Douglas,

Girraween

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THE GREENS’ FAULT

LET’S hope EVERY AUSTRALIAN can be free to celebrate Australia Day especially in the Territory, it is for all Australians to celebrate this great country we all live in.

If the indigenous really want reconciliation, they are going about it the wrong way, you can’t force it on people and then expect them to embrace it, it has to be wanted by everyone.

Don’t let the Greens force this divisive action on us because what’s next — change our great name perhaps? ... Vote no Greens.

MJ