LAUNCESTON — The Socialist Alliance took a step forward with its state conference held here on April 5-6. Conference participants included members and observers from Hobart, Launceston, and the west and north-west coasts.

The conference brought together students, pensioners and unionists, socialists, Greens and environmentalists and anti-war campaigners from around the state.

“This conference has certainly given a boost to the Socialist Alliance branches in Launceston and Hobart” said conference organiser Alex Bainbridge. “And we were especially pleased by the roll-up from Tasmania’s west coast and the enthusiasm expressed for renewed socialist organising there.”

A youth-led “rally for a world without war” was held in conjunction with the conference on April 5. Organised by the Socialist Alliance and the socialist youth organisation Resistance, the rally was attended by 80 people.

Student anti-war activists Sam Clarke from Launceston College, Loki Campbell from Hellyer College in Burnie, and Duncan Meerding from Hobart College spoke out in opposition to the war. After open microphone contributions, the protesters marched through Launceston, staging a “die-in” in the street next to the mall, to symbolise the victims of war on Iraq.

After the march, the Socialist Alliance state conference was launched with a public meeting entitled “Visions of a world without war”. Addressed by left-wing writer Tim Thorne and Lisa Macdonald, who was the Socialist Alliance’s lead upper-house candidate in the recent NSW election, the meeting sparked wide-ranging discussion about the war on Iraq.

At the conference, the reports on the anti-war campaign heard contributions from activists from Burnie, Devonport, Launceston and Hobart, and reports from St Helens and Strahan.

Community activists used a workshop to plan a “shock and awe” poster campaign to raise public awareness of the impact of war on Iraq, linked to a postcard and petition campaign to call on the Senate to block the budget. Other workshops discussed student and union campaigns against the war.

An all-in session devoted to the prospects for socialist unity was addressed by Workers Liberty representative Riki Lane, who is also a national co-convener of the alliance, and Bainbridge, who is a member of Democratic Socialist Party national committee.

The second day of the conference included discussions about the draft trade union and general perspectives documents that are being discussed in preparation for the alliance’s May national conference.

There was also a feature session in which Macdonald outlined the socialist case for democratic planning of the economy to solve the environmental crisis.

The conference adopted resolutions on a range of measures to improve the functioning of the alliance as well as campaigning against war and supporting the campaign against land mines.

Resolutions adopted at the conference and greetings to the conference (from Jack Mundey, the Freedom Socialist Party and the International Socialist Organisation) have been published on the Socialist Alliance web site and will be printed in the next Tasmanian Socialist Alliance newsletter.

From Green Left Weekly, April 16, 2003.
Visit the Green Left Weekly home page.

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