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Loretta Lohberger
Loretta Lohberger is a journalist at ABC Hobart. She began her career in 2005 at the Circular Head Chronicle and has also been a political and court reporter at The Launceston Examiner, and a court and religious affairs reporter at the Hobart Mercury. In 2020, Loretta won the Excellence in Legal Reporting category at the Tasmanian Media Awards. You can follow Loretta on Twitter @johnstonloretta
Latest by Loretta Lohberger
'I saw Grace Tame and then I saw a picture of him': TV episode prompts new abuse claim against Nicolaas Bester
Peter was in prison when he happened to catch an episode of Australian Story about Grace Tame. When he saw her abuser — Nicolaas Bester — pop up on the screen, he says he "froze".
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'We're just getting started': Tasmania's Australian of the Year recipients announced
The founders of three charities, including Motherland's Stephanie Trethewey, and musician and Indigenous activist Naarah are recognised at an awards ceremony in Hobart.
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This footage of 'the last Tasmanian tiger' is famous — but researchers disagree on what it shows
By Loretta Lohberger and James Dunlevie
New research disputes a recent hypothesis the last captive Tasmanian tiger was a female, and argues the animal did not die from neglect.
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Catholic Church-owned insurer says it can't sustain amount of compensation payments for abuse
Paul O'Halloran regularly sees the damage decades of abuse at a Catholic school have had on his community. He's worried about the impact of the collapse of the Catholic Church-owned insurer and says the church has a responsibility to prop it up so that it can continue to compensate victim-survivors of abuse.
Concerns Tasmania Police review not truly independent if it's 'on the police's terms'
Kylee Pearn's experience dealing with police was positive when she reported she had been sexually abused as a child. Now, she's concerned about police involvement in a review of its handling of child sexual allegations made against a former officer.
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It took 10 years for Tasmania Police to investigate allegations against one of its own, now a review will look at what happened
Commissioner Donna Adams says a review will assess the actions of Paul Reynolds and whether there had been any misconduct by police officers involved in the investigation.
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When this lawyer sifted though abuse complaints kept by a Tasmanian department, he made an 'alarming' discovery
The claims of abuse made by former youth detention detainees were not acted on and crosschecked with a list of current staff, meaning children kept making complaints about the "same" people, a lawyer says.
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The key takeaways from Tasmania's landmark child sexual abuse report
It was described as a landmark report into how Tasmanian authorities handled allegations of child sexual abuse in hospitals, schools, detention and out-of-home care. So what did it say?
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Children 'disbelieved' as decades of sexual abuse allowed to continue in Tasmania's institutions, report finds
By Daniel Miller and Loretta Lohberger
Tasmania's children have been abused in the government's institutions — from hospitals to schools — and failed by a state response that has "too often been inadequate", a long-awaited report finds.
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'I'm a victim of Garth Hawkins': 20 years ago, Steve had to fight in court to identify himself
Twenty years ago, Steve Fisher became the first person in Tasmania to win the legal right to identify himself as a victim-survivor of child sexual abuse. Now, with a groundbreaking report to be handed down this week, he says the reckoning has only just begun.
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A mining company wants to explore Nick's farm, but he's worried — what happens if they find something?
A mining company wants to explore Nick's farm for rare earth elements — but he's worried about what would happen to his farm if exploration turns into actual digging.
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'Finally, they have to listen': Victim-survivors react after 191 inquiry recommendations made
A landmark inquiry made almost 200 recommendations for protecting Tasmanian children from abuse. Those who shared their pain will ensure the government now follows through.
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Tasmanian child sex abuse inquiry refers more than 100 people to police and child protection
After 29 months, the Commission of Inquiry into the Tasmanian Government's Responses to Child Sexual Abuse in Institutional Settings has held its final hearing. Its president has called for change, saying more children will be abused without it.
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'Work with the men's shed': Mon faces challenges with trying to set up a 'she shed'
Men's sheds have become important community spaces, but for some women who want to learn practical home maintenance skills, it is not an environment they feel comfortable in.
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Tasmania's year 11 and 12 school system underwent a dramatic shake-up. Is it working?
With most urban and suburban year 11 and 12 students in Tasmania still going to a dedicated seniors college, questions are being raised about the big teacher resources going to a handful of students in public high schools.
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Five-year-old Gaye drew men differently to other kids. Her drawings held a sinister revelation
Gaye was sexually abused when she was a young child. Warning signs at the time were ignored or brushed under the carpet and when her fragments of memories of the abuse came together years later, she found she was still being "silenced".
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Paramedic Dave hoping skills learned in Tasmania will assist in upcoming mercy mission to Ukraine
Tasmanian paramedic Dave has been following the war in Ukraine — now he and a colleague will go to the front line, hoping to make a difference.
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Outdoor swimmers in Hobart won't have a pool to go to this summer
All three of Hobart's public 50m swimming pools used to be outside, but the only one left won't open this summer — and could close permanently.
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Fears Catholic school course 'will give LGBTIQA+ students the impression there's something wrong with them'
Catholic Education Tasmania is reviewing a religious instruction course planned for college students next year after feedback from principals. An LGBTIQA+ support group has called it "discriminatory" and has threatened to lodge formal complaints.
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Analysis
analysis:Will council mergers take the local out of local government? Some still think so
What were you listening to in the 1990s? If you were in Tasmania, chances are the radio was playing Meatloaf and Whitney Houston and the local news was carrying stories about forced council amalgamations.
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'It breaks my heart': Psychiatrists fear for vulnerable patients ahead of practice closing
Two psychiatrists say they will have no choice but to close their practices when a Hobart private mental health hospital stops operating next month — cutting loose thousands of patients in an already stretched system.
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Eighteen months after a report urged truth-telling in Tasmania, has anything changed?
While other states take steps, and even strides, towards reconciliation with their Indigenous communities, what’s happened in Tasmania in the 18 months since a report urged the Tasmanian government legislate a framework towards a treaty?
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Who are the winners and losers of Tasmania's budget?
By Loretta Lohberger and Adam Holmes
The Tasmanian government promised a budget that focused on health, education and cost of living. See how these sectors fared — and who are the winners and losers of this year's budget.
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Analysis
analysis:Rogue MPs who plunged Tasmanian Liberal government into minority stay mute ahead of budget
Two ex-Liberal MPs who stunned Tasmanian political watchers with their defection eight days ago stonewall during a much anticipated radio interview — with one conceding it had been a "difficult week".
Newly independent MP Lara Alexander says Rockliff 'only has himself to blame'
Newly independent MP Lara Alexander says a "huge weight" has been lifted from her shoulders, while the Tasmanian Greens' push to axe Hobart's new stadium look set for failure without Labor's support.
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