For supporters of democracy, equality and ecological sustainability, 1991 was a mixture of setbacks and steps forward.
From the Gulf War to the massacre of East Timorese by Indonesia troops, in Dili, the past year has thrown up many tasks for the progressive movements around the world. In this country, Aborigines continue to die in custody, unemployment and poverty escalate as cuts to wages and the social wage continue, and environmental disasters — such as the Coode Island explosion and the contamination of the Darling River by algae blooms — have multiplied.
Yet the year was also marked by determined resistance to the injustices and excesses of the system — the hundreds of thousands of Australians who took to the streets to protest the Gulf war, the final success of the campaign to free Tim Anderson, the victory (at least for the moment) for environmentalists in their battle to save Chaelundi forest in NSW and the defeat of Fred Nile's anti-abortion bill in the same state, Greenpeace's win against BHP intimidation and the successful protests in Canberra against Aidex, to name a few.
Throughout it all, both the defeats and the victories, Green Left Weekly has provided comprehensive, up-to-date and independent coverage which, in its breadth, has not been available anywhere else. For many of us, 1991 will also be remembered as the year that, for the first time, the Australian left and environment movements had a vehicle of their own to report on, analyse, debate and campaign around the events and issues which concerned us as they developed each week.
After less than a year of production of GLW, it is already difficult to imagine how we did without it.
An international perspective
A highlight of GLW since its inception has been its wide-ranging and thorough coverage of international news and views.
The unique and fascinating reports on developments in Europe by GLW's Prague-based correspondents Peter Annear and Sally Low have not only kept GLW readers well informed about the rapid and profound changes occurring in that part of the world, but have also provided a valuable source of news and analysis for other progressive publications in England, the US and Europe which have reprinted a number of our articles in their own publications.
And who can forget Moscow correspondent Renfrey Clarke's on-the-spot story from behind the barricades around the Russian parliament during the Soviet coup in August? Clarke's reports from Moscow have provided us with a sense of history in the making in a way which has not been equalled even by the well-resourced dailies.
In addition to GLW's permanent correspondents, the growing network of overseas contributors has provided a steady flow of original articles from all over the world, from as near as New Zealand — where GLW also has a growing readership — to as far away as the Americas. Combined with the reports on Third World r, by specialist writers and occasional contributors in Australia, this coverage clearly reflects the paper's commitment to presenting an internationalist perspective on politics and society.
A service for the left
When the idea for a broad left and green weekly newspaper was first discussed, there was wide agreement that such a newspaper could fill a major gap in networking progressive groups and individuals in Australia — putting them in touch with each other, letting them know about each other's activities and encouraging others to become actively involved in a choice of issues, events and discussions.
At the end of 1991, we can say with confidence that GLW has not only begun to develop into just such a networking tool, but that it is also proving to be an effective catalyst for political activism.
The full page devoted to the GLW calendar of activities called "Meetings ... Parties ... Anything", for example, is rapidly becoming inadequate to fit all of the groups and activities requesting a listing each week. The feedback received to date indicates that readers have found the calendar a very valuable resource, an opinion which is obviously shared by a number of community radio stations which use the calendar as the text for their own weekly "What's On" segments on the air.
The classified ads section, too, is developing into a useful resource for readers by offering the cheapest way to reach a lot of similar-minded people with a specific request or resource for sale, while the mutual solidarity approach to display advertising in the paper is benefiting both GLW and a number of progressive movements which are using the paper to sell alternative merchandise and publicise events.
The humorous side
How many times has each of us with a progressive political consciousness been accused of having no sense of humour? Next time it happens, maybe you should refer the accuser to GLW. Just a quick glance through any issue would be enough to convince even the most cynical that the left has a well-developed sense of humour.
One of the biggest surprises was the number of very talented, very funny and very committed left cartoonists who wanted to share their work, giving us all a good (and often much needed) laugh at the absurdities of the system we are battling to change. The wonderful irreverence of Jim Cane, Chris Kelly (both of whom have also contributed some our best cover designs), Judy Horacek, Heinrich Hinze, Gavin Smith and Rona Chadwick, among others, has added a special element which is, for many, the highlight of each issue.
A growing distribution
With the enormous effort of just getting GLW off the ground in 1991, most of the available energy was spent on establishing distribution networks in the major population centres.
Despite this, GLW appears to have developed a momentum of its ership is spreading far and wide.
At the end of its first year, the paper is already available for sale in more than 20 towns and cities, including all state and territory capitals, northern Tasmania, major industry towns such as Geelong, Wollongong and Fremantle, tourism centres such as the Gold Coast and rural towns such as Armidale, Lismore and Toowoomba. The geographic spread of subscribers is even wider.
One of the major aims for the coming year is to extend this distribution network much further. Too often, progressive-thinking people and activists who do not live in the capital cities, or even in the centre of capital cities, miss out on resources, discussions and activities which inner-city dwellers take for granted. Access to a weekly newspaper would go a long way to filling some of those gaps for individuals, and a special effort to reach out to these areas is essential if the left is to be as broad, inclusive and effective as possible.
Even within the major cities, there are still many people who have not yet been given the opportunity to see and read GLW. Although sales of the paper to tertiary students has been a significant component of GLW distribution from the outset, we have only begun to realise quite late in 1991, for example, how much high school students like the paper and how important it will be to extend distribution to include as many secondary schools as possible.
Fundamental to the paper's outreach is the terrific commitment of that growing number of activists, the majority of them young people, who spend hours each week standing on street corners, railway stations and shopping centres to ensure that GLW is accessible to as wide a range and as many people as possible. Even with the inevitable development of other methods of distribution over time, street selling — which enables interested readers to talk to GLW sellers about the paper and how they can get more involved — will continue to be an important form of building GLW distribution and progressive activism.
Surviving under capitalism
The launch of GLW in February was accompanied by many questions and doubts, along with a sense of adventure and courage.
Would the thousands of progressive-thinking people in Australia also feel the need for this sort of information source? Would they participate in the discussions in its pages? Could the expectations and wishes of the project's supporters about the quality of journalism, as well as the appearance of the paper, be met every week? Would the paper develop into a serious alternative to the increasingly monopolised mass media?
Even at this early stage, the answer to all of these questions is, it appears, yes — although obviously to varying degrees at this point. Certainly, sales of the paper continue to increase, as does the number of people and organisations contributing articles, photographs and artwork or helping with the technical production of the paper.
The usefulness of GLW to students, teachers and activists who require information about particular issues, or to groups which are l or local campaigns, is being affirmed almost every week through contacts made around the country. In a number of instances, GLW has even been consulted by journalists from the commercial media regarding sources of information, research they have done, etc. Needless to say, we have always been happy to put them on the "left" track!
The question which was the most worrying at the outset of this project, however, was whether or not, in the absence of wealthy supporters or big business donations, GLW could survive financially. Well, despite the best efforts of capitalist economics, the balance sheet seems to indicate that it can.
The success of a large number of GLW fundraising events held around the country during the year (including raffles, quiz nights, parties, harbour cruises, dinners, dances and concerts), as well as the many generous donations from individuals to the 1991 GLW Fund Appeal, means that we will just about make our target of $100,000 for 1991.
Add in the sale of shares in the GLW Association, revenue raised from advertising and the weekly income from paper sales and subscriptions, and while GLW is still in the red, it is on sound enough ground to give us all reason for optimism about its long-term future. In a period of recession, this is quite an achievement and one which everyone who has made any sort of contribution to the paper can be very proud of.
GLW still needs a lot of support on this score. Not only must we duplicate this great fundraising effort in 1992 but, with the goal of actually covering costs each week and thereby making the paper truly self-sufficient and independent, we will be aiming to do even better.