In April last year, the government of the Marshall Islands announced it would be taking nine nations — China, France, India, Israel, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia, Britain and the US — to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague over their possession of nuclear weapons. The Marshallese have paid a heavy price for other countries’ nuclear weapons. After World War II, they were incorporated into the United Nations Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands administered by the US.
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A Short History Of Social Democracy: From Socialist Origins To Neoliberal Theocracy By John Rainford Resistance Books $20, 184pp. The rise and then fall of social democracy as a movement for fundamental social change is a modern tragedy of Shakespearean proportions. It is one of the epic stories of the 19th and 20th centuries.
The United Front is a new organisation in South Africa initiated by the National Union of Metal Workers of South Africa (NUMSA) that held its first People's Assembly in December under the slogan “Kwanele Kwanele!” (Enough is Enough!)
The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), campaigning groups and labour-supporting members of the European parliament launched protests this month about the continued harassment and jailing of trade unionists and democracy campaigners in Swaziland. ITUC general secretary Sharan Burrow has noted that, in Swaziland, “Violations against the fundamental rights of workers have become systemic”.
About 80 people gathered at the Eight Hour Day monument opposite Melbourne Trades Hall on April 24 to commemorate the second anniversary of the collapse of the Rana Plaza building in Bangladesh. In the collapse, 1139 garment workers are known to have died, with others still missing.
'People are capable of governing themselves'
Socialist Alliance councillor Sue Bolton spoke to Dave Holmes about her work as a local councillor in Moreland, a municipality in Melbourne, Australia. Bolton was elected in 2012 on a campaign slogan of “community need not developer greed”, which she says “struck a chord with residents”.
Marta Harnecker: From Allende to Chavez
Sovereign Union of First Nations and Peoples in Australia released this statement on April 25.
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Organisers of the undeclared Frontier War’s parade condemned the actions of the Australian Federal Police during the Canberra ANZAC day parade for refusing to allow 200 Aboriginals and their supporters to peacefully march up ANZAC Avenue to lay a wreath to commemorate all those who died in wars, including those who died in the 18th, 19th, and 20th century Frontier Wars defending their country.
Nearly one million children in Nepal are in urgent need of aid after a catastrophic earthquake struck, leading children's charity UNICEF warned Sunday.
At least 940,000 children are living in areas badly affected by the 7.9 magnitude tremor, which has killed over 3,200 so far. According to the charity, supplies of food and water are dwindling, electricity is down, and hundreds of thousands of people are sleeping out in open areas out of fear of strong aftershocks, which have further impeded rescue efforts.
Oil giant Chevron Corp is fighting to avoid paying compensation awarded to about 30,000 Ecuadorean citizens severely affected by the dumping of billions of gallons of toxic waste in the Amazon. Chevron called on a US appeals court on April 20 to stand by a US court decision last year that ruled the US$9.5 billion compensation package awarded by an Ecuadorian court had been secured fraudulently.
Massacre is an explosive theatre work about the politics and violence of East Timor. Produced by Stone/Castro (Australia) and Colectivo 84 (Portugal), it features John Romao as “Timor” and Paulo Castro as “East”.
They work with “weapons of grotesque, sarcasm and a thrash metal soundtrack to create a scenic, hypnotic and dangerous game. The mutant metamorphosis of Australia, Indonesia and Portugal make for an in-your-face confrontation to the East Timor crisis.”
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