Action updates

Issue 

ADELAIDE — An August 11 Adelaide university debate on women's rights to abortion, Resistance and the pro-choice campus clubs versus the "pro-life" group, ended abruptly when National Action forced its closure. National Action, an extreme right-wing group, disrupted the lively, 100-strong meeting mid-way through heckling and throwing eggs at pro-choice speakers. The 12 National Action thugs also threatened Resistance members who questioned NA's anti-choice position. The debate has been rescheduled for August 19 at 1pm in the Little Theatre. Resistance can be contacted on 231 6982.

  • The Reclaim the Night organising committee will meet again on August 29 at 6pm in Security House, 233 North Terrace. All women are welcome. This year's Reclaim the Night march will be held on October 28 around Australia. The Adelaide march will take up the issue of domestic violence in the International Year of the Family.

CANBERRA — Fifty Burmese and pro-democracy supporters protested outside the Burmese consulate on August 8 to mark the sixth anniversary of the "8-8-88" demonstrations in Burma. On that day, hundreds of thousands went on strike and called for an end to military rule. The military responded swiftly, killing over 3000 in Rangoon alone.

DARWIN — The Timorese community and their supporters here were host to education worker Mitvho Takahashi last week. Takahahsi is from the Japan-East Timor Coalition which represents 11 East Timor solidarity groups in Japan. He was here to finalise funding for a Timorese language and cultural school. The school is based on the Tetum language and chaired by exiled Timorese. So far $100 000 has been raised, enough to continue classes which have been operating since August last year. Currently Japan provides 70% of Indonesia's donor aid. A Japanese parliamentary delegation has been in East Timor since August 9.

PERTH — On August 9, 30 members of Perth's Macedonian community demonstrated outside the Labour Centre, where members of the federal cabinet were meeting with WA ALP parliamentarians. The group was angry at recent comments by Senators Nick Bolkus and Gareth Evans which referred to the Macedonian people as "Slav Macedonian". The group made clear that Macedonians are not Slavs, or Greeks, or anything other than Australians of Macedonian ancestry, and to describe them as such without prior consultation is an infringement of their rights. They also called on Bolkus to resign and for the appointment of "an ethnic affairs minister, not a Greek minister".

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