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John Percy Laurie Aarons, general secretary of the Communist Party of Australia in the crucial years 1965-76, died earlier this month at the age of 88. The Aarons family played an important role in the CPA: Laurie's grandparents were members, his
Federal education minister Brendan Nelson refuses to adequately fund the higher education sector. Yet he has been splurging on corporate hospitality, spending $600,000 on wining and dining business executives, including: $70,508 in 2001-02
West Papua and Indonesia since Suharto — Independence, Autonomy or Chaos?By Professor Peter KingUniversity of NSW Press, 2004240 pages, $40 (pb) REVIEW BY PAUL BROWNRIGG The island of New Guinea, our northern neighbour, is a tremendously rich
Jon Lamb, Darwin Civil rights and legal advocates have been angered by the cruel treatment of four Aboriginal teenagers, who were driven 1000 kilometres in the rear steel cage of a police wagon at high speed without breaks. The four were detained
Ilana Eldridge As the 1997 Kyoto Protocol took effect on February 16, despite the Australian government's refusal to sign on, experts pointed out that global warming will have a devastating effect on the country's Indigenous communities. Prime
The US Food and Drug Administration has approved a trial involving US soldiers who have served in Iraq, to test if MDMA, the active ingredient in ecstasy, can relieve the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. According to the US centre for
Environmental pressures "More than 200 scientists employed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service say they have been directed to alter official findings to lessen protections for plants and animals, a survey released Wednesday says... More than half
Sarah Stephen In the days after former Guantanamo Bay detainee Mamdouh Habib's interview with Channel Nine's 60 Minutes program aired on February 15, the Howard government and the heads of ASIO and the federal police were feeding every conceivable
Kathy Newnam, Darwin In her quest to expose the truth about the death of Douglas Scott in Berrimah Jail on July 5, 1985, Letty Scott has uncovered more evidence of prison guards' brutality against her husband. Letty was given access on February
Alison Dellit On February 18, Tahiti's semi-autonomous parliament passed a no confidence motion in President Gaston Flosse, toppling his government. The parliament is due to meet again on February 23 to elect a new president, likely to be fiery
This letter was sent to Green Left Weekly for publication by Zely Ariane, the international affairs spokesperson of the Aceh solidarity group SEGERA. Green Left Weekly has been asking our readers to assist SEGERA's appeal after the tsunami, for
On February 15, Nicaraguan teachers entered their third week on strike, demanding that a pay rise approved by the country's National Assembly in the 2005 budget be paid to them. After Nicaraguan president told protesting teachers to "shut up" on