Issue 248

News

Since August 30, Ben Alterman, an inmate at Loddon Prison, Castlemaine, has on an indefinite hunger strike to protest the withholding of mail, including newspapers, magazines and books, and the confiscation of political posters from his cell. In
By Paul Oboohov MELBOURNE — Last week, the National Delegates' Committee of the Community and Public Sector Union in the Department of Employment, Education, Training and Youth Affairs met to discuss its response to the proposal by the Howard
By Carla Gorton The minister for Aboriginal affairs, Senator Herron, recently announced plans to introduce special legislation to exempt the Hindmarsh Island bridge from the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act 1984 and
Fighting the cuts By Jen Crothers SYDNEY — Fighting the Cuts, a public meeting convened on September 18 by a new alliance of organisations, was attended by 50 people. Speakers from the NSW Teachers Federation, the Ethnic Communities Council,
By Chris Martin Aboriginal organisations working to reunite children of the "stolen generation" with their families will be shielded from the effects of the federal government's 11% cut to indigenous funding, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Successful fight back forum By Alex Bainbridge NEWCASTLE — Thirty people from a variety of backgrounds attended the Fight Back Seminar here on September 14, initiated by the Democratic Socialist Party. Speakers and participants included the
Motion on support for democracy The following motion, adopted by the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union national seminar held on August 17-18, can be put to trade union members and delegates' meetings at the branch, state or national
Classics faces extinction y Zoë Loh MELBOURNE — The Classics Department at the University of Melbourne is threatened with massive cuts. Consultation between the head of Classics, Tony Sagona, and staff has been minimal, and consultation
By Dr Kamala Emanuel Doctors in the NSW public hospital system are preparing to take industrial action over changes to Medicare announced in the federal budget. The changes would deny Medicare provider numbers to about a third of new doctors each
By Cameron Lucadou-Wells and Sarah Stephen HOBART — On September 18 students claimed victory over Vice- Chancellor Don McNichol's plans to change the University of Tasmania's exam timetable. Students learned only hours beforehand of a meeting to
By Rebecca Meckelburg The Maritime Union of Australia announced on September 18 that it has launched rolling bans on Indonesian cargo and shipping to protest against the arrests of independent labour leaders Muchtar Pakpahan and Dita Sari. The
By Kylie Moon HOBART — Student elections on the Hobart campus of the University of Tasmania finished last week. The successful candidate for president, Catherine Miller, won 807 of the 1382 votes. Sarah Stephen, from the Resistance ticket, won
'Shame, Howard, shame' By Caroline Tapp and Sally Mitchell DARWIN — On September 13 more than 500 Aboriginal people marched for NAIDOC (National Aboriginal and Islander Day Observance Committee) Week shouting "Shame, Howard, shame". They were

World

By Lisa Macdonald The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) last week approved new regulations allowing widespread air transport of plutonium and other nuclear materials. The decision massively increases the possibility of extensive nuclear
By Renfrey Clarke MOSCOW — "Russia's Federal Security Service [FSB] said yesterday that it had observed all relevant legal norms in its arrest and detainment of Alexander Nikitin", an Itar-Tass report on September 11 stated blandly. The security
By Steven Katsineris Ariel Sharon has re-entered the government of Israel. Sharon is minister of national infrastructure, which includes energy, land management, railways, roads, mines, water and settlement roads in what Israel calls the
Okinawans oppose US bases On September 7, almost 90% of voters in Okinawa voted for a reduction of the US military presence on their island. Okinawan government officials said 482,538 votes supported the reduction and 46,232 voted against. Okinawa
Profits from poverty Since President Clinton signed the bipartisan law abolishing the 60-year-old guarantee of federal aid to poor children, one startling development has been proposals by giant corporations to take over the running of welfare
Brazil's foreign debt up According to a report in the Folha de Sao Paulo, Brazil paid US$49.53 billion in interest alone to its foreign private and government creditors between 1990 and July 1996. Despite this, the total amount of the foreign debt
By Russel Norman AUCKLAND — It's election time here. There are four major parties competing in the October 12 election under New Zealand's new proportional representation system: National, Labour, New Zealand First and the Alliance. The polls
Peter Montague Researchers studying clear lakes in Canada have found that climate warming, acid rain and increased ultraviolet sunlight (from depletion of the stratospheric ozone layer) all interact to allow more ultraviolet light to penetrate

Culture

Practising Feminism: Identity, Difference, PowerEdited by Nickie Charles and Felicia Hughes-FreelandRoutledge, 1996. 228 pp., $36.95 (pb)Reviewed by Carla Gorton I was drawn to Practising Feminism by its claim to be "an important contribution to the
Legalised sexual assault Strip searchProduced by Simmering Video and Coalition Against Police ViolenceReviewed by Justine Kamprad This video documentary discusses strip search as a form of sexual assault and humiliation. It provides an interesting,
Courage Under FireDirected by Edward ZwickWith Denzil Washington, Meg Ryan and Lou Diamond PhillipsReviewed by Norm Dixon The build-up to the release of Courage Under Fire made much of the US military's refusal to cooperate with its production. The
LifeDirected by Lawrence JohnstonReviewed by Vanessa Sparrow Lawrence Johnston's Life is a stark yet compassionate film. Based on the 1991 play Containment (written by lead actor John Brumpton), it is ostensibly about a group of male prisoners,
Save our ABC: The Case for Maintaining Australia's National BroadcasterEdited by M. Fraser & Joseph O'Reilly$10.00 from Friends of the ABC in each state: GPO Box 4065MM Melbourne 3001; PO Box 1391 North Sydney 2059; 7 Grantley Ave Rostrevor 5073; 344
SYDNEY — Anqelique Kidjo sang to a packed Metro last week. For two solid hours this charismatic African diva had the enthusiastic crowd dancing and singing — even though most of Kidjo's songs are in Fon, her native Beninois language. Fifa, which
By Tony Smith The Sydney Theatre Company demonstrated a modern approach to the sale of its 1997 season of plays by inviting media and friends to the theatre for an upbeat launch. The set was dominated by strawberry mountains and champagne lakes big
The anatomy of PC The Myth of Political Correctness: The Conservative Attack on Higher EducationBy John K. WilsonDuke University Press, 1995205 pp., $28.50 (p)Reviewed by Lisa Macdonald John K. Wilson has documented a huge array of right-wing
Liberty Against the Law: Some Seventeenth Century ControversiesBy Christopher HillAllen Lane, 1996. 354 pp., $50 (hb)Reviewed by Phil Shannon The 17th century in England boasts its famous names. Shakespeare was still writing in the early decades,