Melbourne, May 12. Photos by Ali Bakhtiavandi
Australia
A film of a large, peaceful student and staff rally on May 7 against Sydney Uni job cuts, being met by a brutal police and riot squad response. The police presence was organised by the architect of the cuts, vice chancellor Michael Spence.
The NSW Teachers Federation (NSWTF) has called on its members to stop work for two hours on May 18. The union says it has made the decision because “the future of public education in NSW is at stake”.
The federation said: “The purpose of the [stop work] meetings will be to hear detailed reports on the very serious impact that Local Schools, Local Decisions and other state government policies will have on working conditions, student learning opportunities and the resourcing of our schools.”
A group of protesters stage a "die-in" action on day one at the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration (APPEA) conference held at the Adelaide Convention Centre on May 14.
Melbourne, May 12. Photos by Ali Bakhtiavandi
The Wilderness Society released the statement below on May 15.
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Rallies will be held around the country tomorrow (Wednesday, May 16) to protest the outrageous use of police resources to crush community opposition to the proposed James Price Point gas industrial complex in Western Australia’s Kimberley.
The statement below was released by Ray Jackson, president of the Indigenous Social Justice Association on May 15. Jackson tried to visit Tamil refugees in Villawood detention centre, who have been given adverse security checks by ASIO and cannot be released from detention.
Jackson planned to present two men with Original Nation Passports, issued by elder Robbie Thorpe of the Treaty Republic, to let them know the local Aboriginal community welcomed them to Australia.
The Wilderness Society released the statement below on May 14.
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• 250 police sent to Broome; 276 to Eureka Stockade.
• Joint venture partners must speak out or be tainted by Premier’s actions.
Western Australian Premier Colin Barnett has sent 250 police officers to Broome to crush community opposition to the proposed gas industrial complex at James Price Point, not far off the 276 police and soldiers sent to the Eureka Stockade to crush the miners.
CSG Free Northern Rivers brought 7,000 people to the streets of Lismore on May 12 in a colourful and outspoken show of solidarity against Coal Seam Gas Mining in the region. And concerns over coal mining loom not far behind in a groundswell push to renewable energy sources.
Supporters of the National Campaign for the Right To Strike initiated the sign-on statement below.
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Australian law has never provided for the unrestricted right to strike. The first Australian industrial law, the Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Act of 1904, penalised Australian striking workers with fines and jail sentences.
Before that, Australian workers had to comply with the British Master and Servants Act of 1837, which meant that a worker could face jail if they were absent from work for an hour without permission.
Is there a surplus or is there not? Does delivering a $1.5 billion surplus in 2012-13 make Wayne Swan a “good economic manager”? Are you a winner and grinner or a loser soon to be driven to the boozer? Blah, blah, blah. Enough, enough already with the budget spins and counterspins.
You want something real to worry about from the budget? Worry about your job if you are lucky enough to still have one, and worry about what will happen to you if you lose it.
Fair Work Australia’s findings into the Health Services Union (HSU) have revealed serious breaches of the union’s rules, as well as federal regulations governing registered organisations.
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