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Save TAFE campaign readies for mass protests

A student rally against the Victorian government’s TAFE cuts on May 23 projected a mass mobilisation next semester. The rally against the TAFE cuts was organised by RMIT TAFE students. Protesters from several TAFE institutions in Melbourne met at the RMIT Carlton TAFE campus where speakers denounced the consequences of the Victorian government funding slash. Afterwards, chanting "No ifs, no buts, no education cuts” they marched through the city to parliament, slowing down traffic and stopping trams.

Detained refugee to take ASIO, gov’t to High Court

Refugee lawyer David Manne and a pro bono legal team will take the federal government and ASIO to the High Court to challenge the indefinite detention of refugees found to be “security threats”. The case will argue that refugees should be told the full reasons for ASIO's decision, so they are able to appeal adverse findings. Manne said the situation now is “like being sentenced to life imprisonment without even having been charged, tried and convicted. It's a secret trial”.

Community cooperative points to new food system

A large public forum was held in Victoria’s Goulburn Valley on May 16 to officially launch a community cooperative that local people hope will become an example for the rest of the country. The launch came almost a year since Heinz announced it would shut down its tomato processing plant in the nearby town of Girgarre. The closure left 146 workers without a job and affected about 600 people whose livelihoods depended on the factory.

Don’t target wharfies for crime, says MUA

The Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) has accused the federal government of unfairly targeting waterfront workers as part of a so-called crackdown on organised crime. Home Affairs minister Jason Clare said on May 25 that federal police would be given new powers to put waterfront workers out of a job if they have a criminal record or are suspected of involvement in organised crime.

Greek left to anti-NATO protesters: 'Bring the war home'

Greece's Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA) sent a message of solidarity to the thousands of people who protested against the NATO summit in Chicago on May 20. SYRIZA came second in Greece's May 6 poll on an anti-austerity platform. It is polling first, with a vote as high as 30%, for the new elections scheduled for June 17

Newman’s attacks to provoke queer resistance

Premier Campbell Newman'a Liberal National Party (LNP) government wasted no time launching an all-out attack on gay rights and on community services in Queensland. The May 20 Courier Mail said the government was preparing to overturn the civil unions law passed under the previous Labor government earlier this year.

NATO’s ‘withdraw’ from Afghanistan 10 years too late

The Stop the War Coalition Sydney released the statement below on May 24. * * * The NATO announcement on May 21 that it will “withdraw” troops from Afghanistan in 2013 is an admission of defeat. But there are no victors in this war. The country is no closer to peace and security today than when the Taliban were forced out in 2001.

Boss Watch: Qantas starts new job cutting binge

Qantas cuts 500 more jobs Qantas said on May 21 it would axe more than 500 engineering jobs from Tullamarine and Avalon in Victoria. Qantas said: “Further changes to Avalon are expected as the business continues to modernise.” Qantas CEO Alan Joyce said the company had to cut maintenance costs to match its competitors, and that newer aircraft “require less maintenance, less often”.

Postcard from Montreal — students in the street

In Occupy-style, they are pop-up and pop-out protesters on Montreal's streets. A jester threw juggling clubs high in the air, a masked face beamed — the sweat of the warm day glistening over her make-up — and the nose of a clown tilting up to figures on stilts, occasionally twisting round in a dance-trot. An impromptu band shook beans in glass bottles and beat drumsticks, while an accordion played old favourites. Whistles tried to organise the crowd. Dogs menaced one another, tying themselves up in their leashes as their owners passed by.

Qld miners strike for safe work conditions

About 4000 unionists at six coal mines in Central Queensland have struck for a week from May 24 after enterprise bargaining talks with employers BHP Billiton and Mitsubishi again broke down. The 18-month-long dispute between the Construction Forestry Mining Energy Union (CFMEU) and mineowners the BHP-Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance (BMA) centres on a push by the company to replace union-appointed mine safety officers with management officials.

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PHOTOS: TAFE students outraged about Victorian government cuts

Photos by Gina Xing