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PAPUA NEW GUINEA: Revelations mount about cold-blooded killings

BY SEAN HEALY A week after police killed peaceful student protesters, it is the government of Prime Minister Makere Morauta under fire, as demands for compensation and a comprehensive inquiry increase and new revelations emerge suggesting that

'Celebrations' on the GST's first birthday

BY ALISON DELLIT July 1 marked the first full year of the Goods and Services Tax but while most birthdays are occasions for great celebration, this was anything but. According to the June 7 Herald Sun, 56% of people feel worse off under the new

Socialist Alliance on a roll

Campaign launched to stop bank closure CANBERRA — The Socialist Alliance here has launched a campaign to stop a local branch of the Commonwealth Bank from closing. The group plans to leaflet and petition locals outside the branch, in Bunda

New NT laws an attack on human rights

BY DAVE MURPHY DARWIN — "The CLP government has passed the harshest laws in the commonwealth this century", Chris Howse of the Aboriginal Justice Advocacy told civil-rights protesters on July 5. The rally took place two days after the Public

Step off the treadmill

Selling the work ethicBy Sharon BederScribe Publications, 2001292 pages, $30pb REVIEWED BY ALISON DELLIT Labour productivity in the First World has increased so dramatically since 1948 that North America could now reproduce the same standard of

RUSSIA: Workers strike against new labour law

A coalition of independent trade unions organised a nation-wide protest on June 19 against a government proposal for a new labour code, which massively weakens the position of workers. The code would nullify collective bargaining, force workers to

Community, staff defend hospital

BY ANNA SWANEPOEL & LESLIE RICHMOND ADELAIDE — A $80 million proposal to "redevelop" the Queen Elizabeth Hospital has sparked concerns that the government intends to eventually privatise the hospital either in full or in part. Members of the

Looking out: Donations

Donations Thanks to the kindness of a New South Wales couple, a bank account dedicated to receiving donations for me is now open. I am glad to inform those readers who have wanted to make a donation to me and to my cause — fighting the death

Beattie forms CHOGM negotiating committee

BY TIM STEWART BRISBANE — Nervous about activist plans to protest at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Brisbane on October 6, on July 2 the state ALP government announced on July 2 a high level "mediation unit" to negotiate with

UNITED STATES: Out-Platting Platt

BY JANE FRANKLIN As the 20th century opened, the United States was codifying future relations with Cuba in the Platt amendment. As the 20th century was ending, the United States was trying to restore past relations with Cuba through the Torricelli

Breaking out of asylum

Last resortDirected by Pawel PawlikowskiWith Dina Korzun, Artiom Strelnikov and Paddy ConsidineScreened at the Sydney Film Festival REVIEWED BY SARAH STEPHEN Last resort is a unique insight into the cold, bleak reality of seeking asylum in

Detained asylum seekers face further attacks

BY SARAH STEPHEN A spate of clashes in recent months between detention centre guards and imprisoned asylum seekers has led the Howard government to escalate its campaign to demonise, and further punish, detainees who protest against the conditions