Australia Archives - Woman & Thoughts

Posted on 28 March 20254 April 2025 by Zahra Pedram Jafari — Leave a comment

Australia’s Social Media Ban for Under 16s: Control or Protection?

“The Australian Government passed the Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Bill 2024 in November to ban young people under the age of 16 from using certain social media platforms. This will include Snapchat, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram and X, among others.” Source

The ban is going to take effect by December 2025. To allow social media companies time to conform to the new laws. Learn more

Freedom of Choice

People often overlook the fact that freedom of choice is just as important as freedom of speech. While discussions about democracy and freedom still abound, one of the key issues that significantly influenced voter decisions in the 2024 US election was whether the government should allow women to have abortions.

All cults, dictators, religious figures, and communist leaders began their careers by establishing rules and restrictions that they believed to be better suited to the society based on an ideology or a divine authority. But are they really?

Posted on 25 September 202428 September 2024 by Zahra Pedram Jafari — 1 Comment

A mesmerising encounter in the Southern Highlands!

Nafisa

Nafisa (نفیسه) means precious and is a popular name among Iranians/Persians. During the 1980s, I knew a girl in Iran named Nafisa who lived in my childhood neighbourhood in the north of Tehran. I did not expect to see the same name next to a series of outstanding artworks in a gallery in Bowral, Australia, 40 years later.

Last Saturday, we decided to go on a short trip to Bowral, a long overdue plan to visit the beautiful Southern Highlands of NSW that is only a 2-hour drive from Canberra.

The most fascinating moments in my life have happened just like this one out of the blue. There was a time when I had to handle some administrative work related to our immigration procedure at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the heart of Tehran. Spurred by my usual curiosity, I found my way to the nearby Malek Museum. This incident led to my acquaintance with Malek’s daughter, which resulted in many other memorable adventures, including an invitation to one of their incredible 300-year-old residences from the Safavid dynasty in Isfahan.