Murray Smith

Those who were expecting to see the supporters of Scottish independence dispirited ― and who hoped that the issue of independence was settled for at least a generation ― were quickly disappointed after the September 18 referendum. This defeat, in which the pro-independence vote lost by roughly 45% to 55%, bears the seeds of future victory ― for at least three reasons.

The result for Jose Bove in the April 22 first round of France’s presidential election in the “overseas territory” (the polite term for colony) of New Caledonia, known as Kanaky to its indigenous inhabitants, was interesting. Bove came in fourth with 5.88%. But in the predominantly Kanak provinces of the North and the Loyalty Islands, his scores were respectively 10.89% and 14.55%. The main reason was the active support given to Bove, who has frequently visited the territory, by the Union of Kanak and Exploited Workers (USTKE).

The first striking thing about the initial round of the French presidential election, held on April 22, was the extraordinarily high turnout — nearly 85%. You have to go back to the 1965 election to find a slightly higher figure. This was a sign of the increasing politicisation of French society in recent years, as was the fact that more than 3 million new electors registered to vote.

PARIS &#151 As the danger of a general strike against his planned reform of the pension system receded, French social affairs minister Francois Fillon knew who to thank. He paid tribute to the "responsible attitude" of Bernard

PARIS — France was again brought to a standstill on June 10 by the movement against the government's attacks on workers' pension rights. The demonstrations were as massive as on previous occasions: 200,000 marched in Paris,

PARIS — Millions of French workers participated in a huge one-day general strike on June 3 in an attempt to defeat the government's attacks on pension rights. There were also massive street demonstrations across the country.

PARIS — Following the success of the massive one-day general strike on May 13, the government of French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin is in deep trouble. The May 13 strike, the largest since 1995, was in response to the

PARIS — On May 13, French workers held their biggest one-day general strike since 1995, as 2 million people took to the streets of a hundred towns and cities. In Paris, 250,000 marched in Paris, 200,000 in Marseilles, 100,000 in

France has been absorbed by a debate over the right of young Muslim women to wear the hijab, which includes the Islamic headscarf, in state schools.

PARIS — More than 600,000 people marched here on May 25 — 1 million across France — in an impressive show of working-class opposition to the French government's attack on pension rights. The demonstration was the latest in a