Talking points

Our editors will be looking ahead today to these developing stories ...

Gillard suffers the first anniversary blues

Today marks a year since Julia Gillard became Australia's first woman prime minister. However, she finds herself weighed down in opinion polls by an unpopular greenhouse gas tax policy and lingering anger over how she overthrew her predecessor, the Putonghua-speaking Kevin Rudd. The beleaguered leader is expected to keep the one-year anniversary low-key, as it revives bitter memories for many about how she overthrew Rudd in a sudden internal government coup last July 24. The anniversary comes as the ruling Labor Party fares worse in opinion polls than it had in the weeks before party power brokers decided to dump Rudd in favour of Gillard, then his deputy.

Former minister to hear genocide verdict

Judges at the UN court for Rwanda will hand down their verdict on the first woman to be charged with genocide before an international court, 14 years after her arrest. Pauline Nyiramasuhuko, a former minister for the family and women's empowerment, has been charged with genocide and incitement to rape committed in Rwanda's southern Butare region during the 1994 genocide. Nyiramasuhuko, 65, is the only woman detainee at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. The tribunal was formed in late 1994 and has been given the job of trying the masterminds of Rwanda's genocide in which some 800,000 people were killed in the space of 100 days.

Wen on economic mission to Europe

Premier Wen Jiabao begins a trip to Hungary, Britain and Germany. China said it was concerned with the recovery of European economies from the current debt crisis. Wen is expected to lobby for the removal of obstacles for Chinese business in Europe and for giving China the status as a market economy during his trip. The release of activist Ai Weiwei should help reduce the pressure Wen is going to face in Germany, where Ai is highly popular.

Official comes to the aid of the party

Wang Qinfeng, deputy minister in charge of the Communist Party's Organisation Department, will speak at a press conference on the recruitment of new party members and expansion of its grass-roots apparatus as it strives hard to stay relevant in a rapidly changing society. The press conference is among a series of functions to mark the 90th anniversary of the party's founding.

Crusaders do battle for quake-hit city

Canterbury Crusaders begin their attempt to lift the spirits of residents in their home city of Christchurch when they take on the Coastal Sharks in the quarter-finals of the Super 15s rugby union play-offs. 'The guys want to do it for the people at home who are really hurting,' said coach Todd Blackadder. The New Zealand government has announced thousands of people in quake-crippled Christchurch will lose their damaged houses.

Prada struts its stuff on Hong Kong bourse

Shares of luxury-fashion group Prada begin trading on the Hong Kong stock exchange, making it the first Italian firm to list in the city after an initial public offering that raised US$2.14 billion.