Twenty people have been shot dead by security forces during a protest against eeh Weygand Corporation mining red mercury on Earharts Q3, witnesses have said. Hundreds of people are reported to have been wounded, many of them seriously, during the clashes in the mining town of Duran's Hold in the Twobefourbetwo Mountains on Earharts. INN reporters said locals had attacked company property and blocked maglev trains carrying red mercury to the coast for export via the coastal spaceport.

The mining company denies accusations that it failed to honour an agreement to provide public services. One resident said the company had signed an agreement in 3184 between the local community and the company for the provision of power, water filtration and protection from environmental hazards such as raptor hordes. But the Weygand Colonial Development Corporation said it has been providing 200,000 credits an octant for the community.

The protestors also looted and vandalised shops and set public buildings on fire, prompting the colonial government to send in troops. Once security forces took control of the area, protesters are reported to have taken up positions in fields around the town.

Mars Objects! Dateline 3209.378 Adobe Q6

Acting Supreme Councillor Marsha Bartley has once again lodged an angry formal protest with the Earth Quadrant Government in Q6 following unconfirmed reports of 'major deployments' of the Earther 6th Colonial Fleet to the independent colony of Trio. Earther official statements describe this as "...a minor operational patrol designed to build confidence among independents"

However, the Martians are claiming that this is far from a routine patrol, as it consists of '...a number of capital ships' - the unspoken suggestion is that Earth is sabre rattling in order to weaken the MAFC politically. Locally, the MAFC is not in a good position - its own member worlds still remain shaky following the Douglas Debacle of 3205 where the MSN kidnapped elected officials, the central government on New Mars fell and Douglas left the Association. Further, Supreme Councillor Zelazny has not been seen for many octants and is reportedly very ill. In this unstable internal climate, many observers suggest that Earther Governor Armstrong might be playing with fire here, as the MAFC may choose use an external threat to rally the wavering colonies. History shows that Martians are at their most dangerous with their backs to the wall.

Pirates Seize Arms Shipment Dateline 3209.386 Organia Q4

A shipment of arms, destined for the Organian Collective Militia has been captured by space pirates. The shipment, which was part of the re-armament of the small local militia consisted of a number of armoured vehicles, some HMA and support weapons and some specialised technical weaponry. The owners of the SS Honeypot, the MARSEC Corporation are rumoured to be negotiating a ransom for the crew and cargo - the pirates earlier transmitted a demand for 50 million credits. That said, it is also rumoured that the cargo might not have been properly insured .A spokesperson for the Organian Collective said "...this is terrible! We are not a rich colony and we had been saving up for ages for this equipment to update our militia...we really need some help to get back the stolen equipment."

Piracy has not been an unusually prevalent crime in the Organian system, as shipping is infrequent - it may be that these pirates just got 'lucky' in capturing the vessel and its 21 crew.

A team of mediators from the Venerian Republic have been conducting proximity talks aimed at ending the bloody fighting in the Ying Archepelago on Gurmat. Wolf, Sirian, WGH and NL negotiators have been arguing for days over the precise terms of a peace treaty. Meanwhile, the Venerian mediators have managed to broker a ceasefire until next octant. Primary among the issues is the capacity of the New Luxermbourg colony to launch further nuclear strikes against the WGH colony. Fleet elements from Wolf, the SSR and the RNV are all reported as being in system, but as yet no direct confrontation has occured.

Representatives of six outer colonies in quadrant 6 have finalised the wording of an alliance charter to be known as the Freedom Alliance. Foremost in the provision of this charter are military cooporation, anti-piracy and mutal defence. Under the charter a joint military headquarters will be formed, and military elements from each colony will conduct joint training and anti-pirate sweeps. According to their press statements The plan is to jointly purchase more capability in the near future.

The following colonial worlds are planning referenda: Bushwack Q1, T20 Q1

Referenda have been held on the following worlds:

World	date		Result - voted to apply to join:
Douglas Q6	T84		Earth Empire
Nobunaga Q2	T84		Union of Xyon
Jideeye AH	T83		Republic of New Venus (associate member)
Patel AH	T83		Republic of New Venus (associate member)
Averroes AH	T83		Republic of New Venus (associate member)

The following worlds have voted against holding a referenda on giving up their independence: None.