Oil company sued over Burma
The US oil company Unocal is being sued to block construction of a US$1.2 billion pipeline in Burma. The Centre for Human Rights and Constitutional Law, on behalf of the Federation of Burmese Trade Unions, charges the company with collaborating with the Burmese dictatorship to destroy villages in the pipeline's path and using forced labour.
"The Burmese military government has forced entire villages to work while under armed guard by troops", the centre said on September 3. Unocal is working with French oil giant Total and Thai companies to exploit a natural gas field.
Detroit strikers strike up the band
The Cultural Workers and Artists Caucus, a group of striking newspaper workers and their supporters, has released a cassette called DNA Rag with 17 original and traditional songs. Detroit's newspaper workers have been on strike now for more than 12 months. The tape includes original songs about their intransigent employers, the Detroit Newspaper Agency. DNA Rag can be ordered from Teamsters Local 2040, 2741 Trumbull, Detroit, MI, 48216, USA. Phone 1 313 961 4774 or fax 1 313 961 4741. E-mail: EllisBoal@aol.com. Prices: US$10 (people), $25 (scabs), $250 million (DNA management), plus postage. All proceeds go to the striking unionists.
US protests against bombing of Iraq
With less than eight hours' notice, protesters across the US turned out to express their revulsion at the US cruise missile attack on Iraq. On September 3, 300 people mobilised in New York. In San Francisco, 150 chanted, "No blood for oil". Richard Becker of the International Action Centre asked the SF rally: "How can the US justify giving millions of dollars' worth of weapons to Turkey, which has an abominable record against the Kurds in their country, and then say they are the friends of the Kurds in Iraq?".
Demonstrations were reported in Portland, Seattle, Chicago, Detroit, Austin and Cleveland. Former US attorney general Ramsey Clark released a statement saying: "The US-compelled sanctions against Iraq have in six years killed more than one million people, including more than a half a million children and tens of thousands of Kurds. This is a crime against humanity."
Zimbabwe strike ends
Striking Zimbabwean public servants returned to work on September 4 after the government agreed to reopen negotiations on pay rises, reinstate workers sacked for striking and increase pay immediately by 27%. More than 160,000 public sector workers had been on strike for 16 days demanding pay increases of 60%. Unions warned that the strike would resume on September 27 if the government did not agree to further increases and restoration of their annual bonus.
Nader selects running mate
Winona LaDuke, an Ojibwe Native American activist from the White Earth Reservation in Minnesota, has joined Green Party presidential candidate Ralph Nader in his challenge to the US "two-party duopoly". LaDuke has been an organiser for Native American issues in South Dakota, New Mexico and Arizona, and was a leader in the successful opposition to a hydro-electric project in Canada. She is on the board of directors of Greenpeace USA.
At an August 29 press conference, LaDuke said: "It is time that the people had a choice, not only those with privilege. It is time to talk about the future issues of this country, not just the next election. The Greens and Nader promise to open the dialogue." Nader's presidential candidacy has qualified for the ballot in 15 states.