Aaron Bunch Journalist with Australian Associated Press | Collection of published work | + 61 484 008 119 | abunch@aap.com.au
Photo Stories
Bushfire-ravaged Qld community struggling
A Gold Coast hinterland bushfire has been extinguished, but residents are battling a mammoth and costly task of making their homes liveable again. October 8, 2019 A month after a massive Gold Coast bushfire destroyed eight on her street, Binna Burra resident Sharon Innis is struggling in the aftermath of the massive blaze. The 43-year-old cleaner […]
Nervous wait for Qlders in bushfire zones
A Gold Coast hinterland resident evacuated due to a bushfire threat says she has her most precious possession with her. September 7, 2019 Binna Burra resident Sophie Bryden doesn’t know if her home is still standing. And she may not find out for days due to the ongoing bushfire threat near her property. “You don’t know what […]
Indonesia tougher than Somalia for refugees
After Somalian militants burned down her hotel, Igra fled to Indonesia for safety, but the former business owner has fallen through the aid safety net. April 2, 2018 Somalian refugee Igra hadn’t heard of Indonesia before being dumped in Jakarta by people smugglers. The former hotel owner fled her civil war-wracked country in 2015 after militants threatened to cut off her […]
Refugees in Indonesia selling sex to survive
Somalian refugees fleeing war and violence are being taken by people smugglers to Indonesia where many turn to sex work to survive. April 2, 2018 Homeless mother-of-three, Sahra, fled to Indonesia for safety after Islamists killed her family in Somalia, but with prostitution as the only way to survive, she tearily says life in Jakarta is “much […]
Refugees in Indonesia may be put to work
The UNHCR wants refugees in Indonesia to be able to work for food and shelter as resettlement options dry up and international aid budgets are stretched. April 2, 2018 Refugees in Indonesia may be put to work as the UN Refugee Agency battles a growing global humanitarian crisis, fewer resettlement options and stretched aid budgets. The humanitarian agency has asked the […]
Homeless refugees do it tough on Indonesia streets
Photo essay: People-smugglers promised them new lives in Australia, instead, they were dumped penniless on Jakarta’s streets where they’re forced to sleep rough. April 2, 2018 Some of the saddest stories I have heard are those of Somalian women living rough on Jakarta’s streets. Most had lost their family to war or were raped – […]
Faces: Somalian refugee women in Indonesia
Photo essay: Penniless Somalian refugee women forced to live rough on Jakarta’s streets after their families were killed by Islamic militants and they were smuggled to Indonesia in the hope of finding a better life. April 2, 2018
Family wants ‘justice’ over Manus Island death
Sydney-based lawyer George Newhouse says the family of Iranian refugee Hamed Shamshiripour, who died on Manus Island this week, wants justice. August 9, 2017 A lawyer acting for the family of Iranian refugee Hamed Shamshiripour, who died on Manus Island earlier this week, has called for an inquest into his death. George Newhouse says Mr Shamshiripour’s […]
Rocks, rip tides kill tourists on Australian beaches
March 9, 2017 Jonathan Barrett, Aaron Bunch Notices in several languages emblazoned with the symbol of the skull and crossbones caution against the risk of being swept off the rocks at Maroubra Beach in Sydney’s eastern suburbs. But the warnings were not enough to prevent Nepali university students Shristi Bhandari, 23, and Sudeep Uprety, 26, from […]