Police step up surveillance of young people
By Justine Kamprad
CANBERRA — Over the last week there has been a substantially increased police presence in the city area, particularly in Garema Place, a paved area with seats and a small
Issue 266
News
Student protest shuts down meeting
By Jo Williams
MELBOURNE — Sixty angry students occupied the Law building at Melbourne University on March 3 and shut down a university council meeting. The meeting was set to vote on the university's
By Tully Bates
MELBOURNE — Public transport workers went on strike for 48 hours March 8-10, causing serious disruption to the Grand Prix. Predictably, the move sparked outrage from the state government and media, with Premier Jeff Kennett
Bosses prepare to slash conditions
By James Vassilopoulos
The Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry is coordinating a campaign to slash working conditions. It is preparing a test case to be put to the Australian Industrial Relations
Bougainville pickets
@body intro =— "Withdraw the PNG army from Bougainville. Lift the blockade. No mercenaries to Bougainville. Open up Queensland hospitals for Bougainville victims of the war." These were the demands raised by an emergency
By Bernard Wunsch
IPSWICH — Some 350 people attended a forum titled "One year of Hanson: Exposing the myths" on Sunday, March 2, in the Ipswich Workers Club. The forum, organised by the Ipswich Anti-Racism Committee, was aimed at discussing
Education campaign at ANU
By Martin Iltis
CANBERRA — An education forum organised by the Australian National University Students Association affirmed the need to have both ANU and cross-campus education collectives build actions such as
New attack on public sector workers
By James Vassilopoulos
Minister for industrial relations Peter Reith has escalated the government's attack on public sector workers by allowing departments to introduce Australian Workplace Agreements or
MELBOURNE — In late April, a massive open air concert is planned in the Treasury Gardens to highlight the plight of 1300 East Timorese asylum seekers facing deportation to Portugal. Since the invasion of East Timor by Indonesia in 1975, there has
By Tim Gooden
CANBERRA — A long-running dispute between the Transport Workers Union and concrete company Ready Mix came to a head recently when police were used to arrest union officials. According to Trevor Santi, ACT branch secretary of the
Challenge to Tasmania's gay laws
By Marina Cameron
On February 26, the High Court announced a unanimous decision to allow a legal challenge to the Tasmanian government's anti-gay laws to be heard. Gay activists Rodney Croome and Nick Toonen
International Women's Day '97
Thousands of women and male supporters rallied and marched on March 8 against the attacks on women's rights. Rallies around the country heard speakers representing Aboriginal people, migrants, trade unionists, young
Socialist candidates call for community control
By Bill Mason
BRISBANE — "Brisbane needs a council that is controlled by ordinary working people, who are the majority — not a council that panders to developers and big business: a
Unionists protest WorkCover changes
By Michael Bull
MELBOURNE — Ten thousand construction workers marched through Melbourne on March 5, condemning the Kennett government's changes to WorkCover. Their rally voted to continue a campaign of
Ted Roach, 1909-1997
@box text intro = Ted Roach, secretary of the South Coast branch of the Waterside Workers Federation during the pig-iron dispute in 1938, passed away on February 25.
Born in Coledale, NSW, in 1909, Ted learned
ANZ to sack hundreds
By James Vassilopoulos
Esanda, the financial services arm of the ANZ Bank, plans to sack 700 workers — a 40% of its work force.
Esanda has been undertaking an 18-month review to restructure and cut costs. Some of
World
By Norm Dixon
Fighters of the Bougainville Revolutionary Army (BRA) are on "red alert" in preparation for attacks by South African mercenaries hired by the Papua New Guinea government. The pro-independence Bougainville Interim Government has
APCET meets in Manila
By Jon Lamb
The Asia Pacific Coalition for East Timor (APCET) held a council meeting in Manila on February 25-26. APCET involves East Timor solidarity groups from within the Asia Pacific region, but also includes
Comment by Bernardo Zamora
The changes in El Salvador over the past five years are the result of 11 years of armed struggle led by the Frente Farabundo Martì para la Liberacion Nacional (FMLN) for liberation, progress and democracy. The
Growing support for Indonesian election boycott
By James Balowski
In the context of widespread anger against the ousting of popular opposition figure Megawati Sukarnoputri from her position as leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party
Thousands of trade unionists in South Africa, Swaziland and Mozambique prevented trucks entering or leaving Swaziland on March 3, in solidarity with the Swaziland Federation of Trade Unions.
Irish nationalist vote to be split
By Mike Heaney
Social Democratic and Labour Party leader John Hume has rejected Sinn Féin's proposal for an electoral pact in the upcoming Westminster elections. Sinn Féin chairperson Mitchel
How Suharto controls the elections
ldirect intervention in the "election" of party leaders
lpreventing campaigning outside the official period
lopposition party activities limited to big towns and cities
lall candidates are
By Adam Hanieh
On February 26, the Israeli government announced the future construction of 2600 housing units between East Jerusalem and Bethlehem on Mount Abu Ghneim. These units will be built for Jewish settlers as part of the continuing
By Max Watts
On March 5, ABC's Lateline interviewed Lieutenant Colonel Tim Spicer, OBE, British army retired. Colonel Spicer was not quite shown, because he insisted on remaining an anonymous shadow. Spicer is now the chief executive officer of
By Glen Barry
Asian industrial loggers are poised to significantly impact the world's largest rainforest wilderness, the Amazon. Within the past year, several of south-east Asia's biggest forestry conglomerates — known for abysmal
By Eva Cheng
Readers of the western press are told that the economy in China has been "booming" in recent years and the people living in increasing "prosperity" due to their new-found economic freedom. The tens of millions of workers in
Culture
EvitaDirected by Alan ParkerStarring Madonna, Antonio Banderos and Jonathon PriceNow showing in all major cinemas Review by Paul Howes
Evita, based on a musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, is another Hollywood flop. There is really
The SeagullBy Anton ChekhovTranslated by Oleg Bichenkov, Anatoly Frusin and Neil ArmfieldDirected by Neil ArmfieldBelvoir Street Theatre, Sydney, until April 13
Review by Allen Myers
"Unrequited love's a bore", according to the song. Not in
Ned KellyBy Douglas StewartAdapted by Pam LevershaTheatreworks, St Kilda, until March 22 Review by Graham Moyes
"If Ned Kelly was king/ he'd make those robbers swing/ he'd bring them down ..." Thus lamented Midnight Oil circa '81, adding another
details = Rocking the FoundationsScreened at the Wild Spaces Film Festival in Hobart in February
Review by Ben Courtice
This film, an old favourite of radical activists, charts the rise of the NSW branch of the Builders Labourers'
Cleaning Up Eveleigh Street
White cirrus above crumbling streetAboriginal mural manifested along brick wallover a train line, locals drinking on their verandas on busted seatsgarbage piled bursting out green bins feeding a moody fire — Zero
1997 Queer Film and Video Festival
By Bronwen Beechey MELBOURNE — The seventh annual Queer Film and Video Festival, running March 14-31, will showcase nearly 100 feature films, documentaries and shorts from Australia, Europe, Asia and North
By Graham Matthews
March is Australia's folk festival season, when some of the best performers from overseas tour the country. This year, one of Canada's finest young songwriters, James Keelaghan, will be performing at five of the major
The Prophet's Children: Travels on the American LeftBy Tim WohlforthHumanities Press, 1994. 330 pp., $26. Review by Adam Hanieh
Tim Wohlforth was a key figure in the US Trotskyist movement from the McCarthy years until the '70s. This highly
Editorial
Close Lucas Heights!
The federal government should not allow nuclear waste to be reprocessed at the Lucas Heights nuclear facility south of Sydney. It should close it down altogether, and withdraw completely from the nuclear fuel cycle.
The
General
The Long Walk
It began in Adelaide and covered 85 kilometres as it made its way south to the town of Goolwa. There it ended in Amelia Park at the water's edge of Kumarangk, also known as Hindmarsh Island.
Walking from November 25-30, 1996,
Hindmarsh Island bridge inquiries
By Richard Owen
Environment, Resources and Development Committee Inquiry (1993)
An open inquiry that recommended: that the bridge be stopped and the ferry service upgraded; the development of a