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The challenges facing the Socialist Alliance

The following resolution was unanimously adopted by the 20th Congress of the Democratic Socialist Party, held in Sydney from December 28, 2002, to January 1, 2003. This 20th Congress of the Democratic Socialist Party: 1. Reaffirms our

Joe Strummer and political punk

BY MIKE BYRNE Punk rock legend and lead singer of the Clash, Joe Strummer, died of a heart attack on December 22, aged 50. Born John Graham Mellor in 1952, the son of a British diplomat, Strummer became disillusioned with his middle-class

IRAQ: US, Britain escalate 'secret' war

BY JOHN PILGER LONDON — The US and British attack on Iraq has already begun. While the British Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair continues to claim in parliament that "no final decision has been taken", Royal Air Force (RAF) and US fighter bombers

Gay law reform: 'a big investment for a big return'

BY ALEX BAINBRIDGE Gay rights activist Rodney Croome believes that the Tasmanian government's proposed changes to relationships laws will give Tasmania one of the best set of lesbian and gay human rights laws in the world. As evidence of this,

Cockburn to become US Navy base

BY CHRIS LATHAM FREMANTLE — On January 6, the USS Abraham Lincoln, the world's largest aircraft carrier, returned to Fremantle just two weeks after its last visit. It had been scheduled to return to the US, but was ordered back to Fremantle to

A woman's place is in the struggle

2003 opens to impending war and $3 trillion in tax cuts for the richest people in the world. We are living in extreme times, terrorised even here in Australia by a $15 million government advertising campaign for free-floating anxiety and

AFGHANISTAN: Rights group slams US cluster bomb use

US-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) has issued a report on the controversial use of cluster bombs in the war on Afghanistan. The report, Fatally Flawed: Cluster Bombs and Their Use by the United States in Afghanistan, reveals that the

IRAQ: Inspections expose US, British lies

BY ROHAN PEARCE "Well, the problem with guns that are hidden is that you can't see their smoke", White House spokesperson Ari Fleischer told journalists at a January 9 press briefing. Fleischer was responding to the interim report delivered to the

Write On: Letters to Green Left Weekly

Weapons of mass destruction or oil? Iraq is a country of rich natural resources. Many experts believe that Iraq has additional undiscovered oil reserves. Iraqi oil is of high quality and is very inexpensive to produce. This makes it one of the

ARGENTINA: 'All of them must go!'

BY FEDERICO FUENTES BUENOS AIRES — The anniversary of the Argentinazo, the popular uprising which resulted in the fall of five successive presidents in two weeks in December 2001, was marked by a massive demonstration here on December

Loose Cannons

Only attack those who can't hit back "There are countries which are developing weapons of mass destruction and we will deal with them appropriately. One country is Iraq... if they won't [disarm], we'll lead a coalition to disarm them. Another

Centrelink workers reject non-union agreement

BY DAVE WRIGHT BRISBANE — Centrelink workers have overwhelmingly rejected management's new enterprise agreement. More than 70% voted against what was an attack on Centrelink workers' wages and conditions. The vote was even more emphatic in