Bloody Sunday commemoration
MELBOURNE — On January 30, SKATV will commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Bloody Sunday shootings in Ireland.
On Sunday 30th January 1972, British soldiers shot dead 13 unarmed civilians as they participated in a civil rights march in Derry, Northern Ireland. One man was shot in the back while wounded on the ground, another was shot while his hands were raised. A third was shot while waving a white handkerchief.
In September, amendments to the Australian Defence Act made the possibility of a Bloody Sunday occurring in Australia one step coser. Speakers at the SKATV event, including Dr Jude McCulloch from Deakin University, will discuss the implications of using military and intelligence agencies against public dissent. Starting at 7.30pm, the event will be held at the Victorian Trades Hall. For more information email <accessnews@skatv.org.au>.
Aircraft Workers challenge company
PERTH — Workers at Eagle Aircraft in Henderson, south of Fremantle commenced a round-the-clock community picket of the company on December 17 in protest at the bosses' decision to close the plant and move operations to Malaysia.
The company used Australian government funding to hire Malaysian staff and fly them to Perth for training just before announcing the move. Although claiming that the plant closure was the result of the "global aviation downturn", Eagle Airlines profits' did not decrease in the last quarter.
The Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union is demanding fairer redundancy provisions for the 40 staff employed by the company. Supporters are welcome at the picket line on Cockburn Rd in Henderson.
From Green Left Weekly, January 23, 2002.
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