Tuesday afternoon's news in under 5 minutes.

We’ve rounded up all the latest stories from Australia and around the world – so you don’t have to go searching.

1. Senator George Brandis calls for Gillian Triggs to resign.

By ABC.

Attorney-General George Brandis says he has lost confidence in Human Rights Commission (HRC) president Gillian Triggs and wants her to resign.

Senator Brandis has told Senate estimates the commission “has to be like Caesar’s wife” and “beyond blemish”.

Tensions between the Federal Government and the HRC have been on public display recently, with the Prime Minister saying the commission’s damning report into children in detention was “a blatantly partisan politicised exercise”.

Professor Triggs confirmed the secretary of the Attorney-General’s Department asked her to resign during a meeting on February 3.

She also testified the secretary, Chris Moraitis, told her she would be offered another job if she did.

“The purpose of the meeting was to deliver a request from the Attorney,” Professor Triggs told the hearing.

“And what was the nature of that request?” Labor senator Julie Collins asked.

“The nature of that request was to ask for my resignation,” Professor Triggs said.

She said she was deeply shocked by the request and rejected it.

“My answer was that I have a five-year statutory position, which is designed for the president of the Human Rights Commission specifically to avoid political interference in the exercise of my tasks under the Human Rights Commission Act,” she said.

Professor Triggs said the offer of another job if she stood down was “entirely inappropriate”.

“I don’t recall the precise words but I know that he said that I would be offered other work with the Government.”

She testified she felt her resignation would risk the integrity and independence of the HRC.

Related content: 16-year-old asylum seeker has thrown herself of a detention centre building.

Senator Brandis said he lost confidence in Professor Triggs in mid-January.

“It saddens me to say that because as Professor Triggs herself has said, our relationship has never been anything other than cordial,” he said.

“But after the November [Senate] estimates — when on any view Professor Triggs gave inconsistent and evasive evidence on the circumstances in which the decision was made to hold the inquiry which we have been discussing, in particular when Professor Triggs conceded that she had made a decision to hold the inquiry after the 2013 election and had spoken during the caretaker period, quite inappropriately, with two Labor ministers, a fact concealed from the then-opposition — I felt that the political impartiality of the commission had been fatally compromised.

“The Human Rights Commission has to be like Caesar’s wife, it has to be beyond blemish.”

This story was originally publiushed by the ABC, and was republished here with full permission.

2. New laws in Victoria remove the time limit on child sex abuse claims.

Child sex abuse victims will no longer face time limitiations on claiming damages in Victoria.

As reported by The Guardian, currently, civil claims must be brought within six years of the date the victim realises they have been abused or 12 years from the date of the alleged abuse.

However, new laws to be introduced today will remove these restrictions.

The Victorian attorney general, Martin Pakula, said the limits often discouraged victims from bringing claims to court.

“Victims should have the right to commence legal action knowing that an expired time limit won’t be used against them to knock their claim out of court,” Pakula said.

The new legislation will be retrospective.

The changes come as the state commences the first royal commission into family violence this week.

3. Emma Watson thanks Steve Carell for being a gender-equality hero.

Emma Watson has written and tweeted a letter to Steve Carell in appreciation of his fashion statement for gender equality.

Carell donned HeForShe cuff links on yesterday’s Academy Awards red carpet.

@SteveCarell #HeForShe @MONIQUEPEAN #OscarsCufflinks pic.twitter.com/W5TcnteQwK

— Emma Watson (@EmWatson) February 22, 2015

She wrote:  

Dear Steve Carell, You were pure genius in “Little Miss Sunshine” (one of my all time favourite films), my brother became obsessed with you after “Anchorman”, I wanted to marry you or have you adopt me after “Crazy, Stupid, Love”, I hated that guy you played in “The Way Way Back”, and then you were mind-blowing in “Foxcatcher”. I think you’re so awesome and today you are wearing #HeForShe Monique Péan cufflinks at the Oscars to support Gender Equality. Couldn’t be more proud! THANK YOU. Love, Emma x

The cuff  links feature the HeForShe logo. 

She also penned a similar letter to American Sniper actor, Jake McDorman.

Watson is an ambassador for HeForShe — an initiative of the United Nations to promote and encourage gender equality.

4. Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran’s last appeal has failed.

Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran’s application to challenge the Indonesian president’s refusal to give them clemency has been dismissed by Justice Hendro Puspito.

A preliminary hearing in the state administrative court heard arguments that president Joko Widodo should reconsider clemency for the Bali Nine pair.

The men were scheduled to be taken away from Bali last week to another island for execution, but that was delayed for technical reasons.

Prominent human rights lawyer Todung Mulya Lubis was hoping to stop the executions altogether, and said the president’s refusal to grant clemency was against his human rights election platform.

Mr Widodo has refused to consider pardoning any drug smugglers from the death penalty and admitted denying 64 clemency bids in one go.

Mr Mulya said his legal challenge centred on the president’s alleged failure to follow due process and consider the cases properly.

This article was originally published on the ABC and was republished here with full permission. 

5. Knox Grammar School was home to “large paedophile cohort”

A former student of a Sydney private school says students were sexually abused so often, he was not sure it was wrong when he was assaulted by a teacher in the playground.

Former Knox Grammar student Scott Ashton told the royal commission into child sexual abuse of the shock, shame and confusion he suffered after being abused at the school in the 1980s.

He said it was clear the school harboured “a large paedophile cohort” and the abuse led to him becoming a sex worker as teenager.

Students were abused at the exclusive boys school, on Sydney’s north shore, over a 33-year period from the 1970s until 2003.

Mr Ashton told the second day of the inquiry into the school it was common for teachers to inappropriately touch students, and he was touched in the playground in view of another teacher.

“I was appalled, confused and distressed,” Mr Ashton said.

“The entire episode was completely open and brazen and occurred in the playground in front of the entire school community.

“What especially confused me was that it seemed open and normal in the context of the Knox environment.

“It was so common I wasn’t sure it was wrong for teachers to touch me like that.”

Sex party attended by Knox teachers: alleged victim

Mr Ashton said, in 1986, an acquaintance invited him to a sex party where he was paid for sex work, and which was attended by about 10 Knox Grammar teachers and some students.

He said a few of the teachers in attendance were later convicted of child sex offences.

Five former teachers were convicted, but the commission has been told the problem was worse than first thought.

Allegations that three other Knox staff members abused students were heard on Monday.

The commission also heard there was evidence the school knew about abuse but never told police, and the alleged perpetrators have not faced criminal proceedings.

This article originally appeared on the ABC and was republished here with full permission. 

6. Former female basketball star has died from a suspected overdose.

A Former Canberra Capitals basketballer has been found dead in suspected drug overdose.

Daily Mail reports Janna Maree Sladic, 29, was given two suspended sentences less than two weeks before her tragic death, with the ACT Supreme Court being told Ms Sladic was “on the road to recovery” when she was handed two suspended sentences on robbery and burglary convictions from 2012 and 2013.

ACT Police confirmed to Daily Mail: “officers attended a Page residence (in Belconnen) on Friday, February 20 at about 2.15am where they found a 29-year-old woman.”

Police said family members found her at about 1.30am on Friday at home.

Fairfax Media reports they then called emergency services and paramedics arrived shortly thereafter, but Ms Sladic could not be revived.

They added the woman’s death was being considered “‘non-suspicious”.