At the end of last week, Green Left Weekly spoke to political economist at the University of Malaya Professor JOMO K. S. about the developments in Malaysia.
Question: What do you think is happening in Malaysian politics?
Many informed observers
-
-
Write on: Letters to the editor Australian 'democracy' Our PM, gently chiding Dr Mahathir on his authoritarian approach to unrest in Malaysia, tells him that the better way is the ballot box. Remember Chris Corrigan and Patrick bringing in
-
In 1995, the environment movement had the Keating Labor government on the run when it mobilised thousands of people around the country to demand an end to woodchipping in Australia's native forests. The potential existed to
-
The same old routine Now that the election is over, maybe we can all get back to normal. — What do you mean "normal"? Run of the mill existence, same old routine ... that sort of thing. — But we've just had an election. So? —
-
Several weeks ago, surfers visiting Australian political parties' web sites might have been surprised to see the Liberals' site defaced and full of links to pornography sites. As well as severely embarrassing the Labor Party
-
Coalition has no mandate for a GST John Howard claims that his government has "won the mandate from the Australian people" for a goods and services tax. He warned the Senate not interfere with this mandate by blocking or seeking to amend the GST.
-
Hypocrisy — they just keep doing it The script of a currently screening television advertisement goes: "Why is there no "Friday Night Netball"? Why are girls who like sport called tomboys? Why are women who play sport accused of being
-
Actively Radical TV — Sydney community television's progressive current affairs producers tackle the hard issues from the activist's point of view. CTS Sydney (UHF 31), every Thursday, 10pm and Saturday, 7pm. Ph 9565 5522. Access News —
-
By M-J Milloy It took the early white missionaries and explorers weeks to navigate the rugged coastline of northern Washington State to reach the Makah nation, perched on the very north-western tip of the United States. It won't take that long for
-
The widespread protests against the Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohammad's sacking of deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim have revealed an unexpected depth of discontent among urban Malay youth and professionals. Twice during the
-
Under the draft terms of the Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI) being designed by the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development, transnational companies will gain the unrestricted right and freedom to buy, sell
-
MELBOURNE — The September 25 explosion at the Longford gas processing plant near Sale left two workers dead and millions of Victorians without gas. Hundreds of thousands of workers have been stood down. While the
-
ADELAIDE — South Australia ("the driest state in the driest country") relies on the Murray River and rainfall in the Adelaide Hills catchment for its water supply. These sources are heavily polluted from sewerage, agricultural
-
Chris Rock By Brandon Astor Jones [T]he liveliest effusions of wit and humour are conveyed to the world in the best chosen language — Jane Austen 1775-1817 (From Northanger Abbey, 1818, chapter 5.) I find myself in agreement with the late
-
It's been said that the only honest person to enter parliament was Guy Fawkes (who tried to blow up the English parliament building in the early 1600s). Looking at the major parties in Australia, one is inclined to agree. But there
-
Peter Montague A study by the New York State Department of Health released in June reports that women living near solid waste landfills where gas is escaping have a four-fold increased chance of bladder cancer or leukemia (cancer of the
-
Arguments for socialism: Unemployment A grotesque number of workers — 1 billion — are unemployed or underemployed worldwide, according to a new report from the International Labour Organisation (ILO). This one statistic reveals absolutely that
News
-
JABIRU, NT — About 300 protesters congregated outside Energy Resources of Australia's (ERA) Jabiluka mineral lease site on September 29 to send a final pre-election message to voters that the proposed uranium mine should be
-
Students and young people "voted with their feet" against racism on September 30 in actions around the country. Organised by the socialist youth group Resistance, the protests were the latest in a series of demonstrations by young
-
The Metal Trades Federation of Unions (MTFU) held mass meetings on September 30. The meetings voted to launch a wages and conditions campaign and endorse the make-up pay claim for injured workers. At an enterprise level, the
-
Beyond Freud "We're not going to allow it." — Nancy-Ann DeParle, administrator of the US Medicare program for the aged, on the disclosure that some medical centres were billing Medicare US$600-700 a day for psychiatric care that consisted of
-
Bosses' meeting picketed over injured workersMELBOURNE — The Metal Trades Industry Association meeting held here on September 30 was picketed by unionists from the metal division of the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union
-
Union rally condemns CoalitionMELBOURNE — About 12,000 people rallied here on September 30 in protest against the federal Coalition government's industrial relations laws. The protest was called by the Victorian Trades Hall
-
BRISBANE — Speaking to a full lecture theatre at the University of Queensland, Amien Rais, chairperson of the Partai Amanat Nasional (National Mandate Party of Indonesia), declared himself a candidate for president in
-
MELBOURNE — The National Union of Students' women's policy conference, "Fem X", was held at Melbourne University on September 26-27. About 100 women from around the country attended. The conference agenda was broad, including
-
5000 rally against JabilukaMELBOURNE — More than 5000 people rallied outside the State Library on the evening of October 2 to demand a halt to the Jabiluka uranium mine. The rally was planned to raise the profile of the
-
Correction In the last issue of GLW, a typing error in the article "14 reasons to vote against a GST" resulted in the sentence: "A GST would result in a massive transfer of wealth from the rich to the poor" instead of " ... from the poor to the
-
On September 30, environment groups in Cologne and Bonn in Germany demonstrated in front of the Cologne Cathedral in protest against the Jabiluka mine. The activists likened the mining of Kakadu to mining under the Cologne
-
CANBERRA — ACT Jabiluka Action Group and members of the Aboriginal Tent Embassy held a colourful and vocal picket outside the National Press Club luncheon on September 30. Kim Beazley was addressing the luncheon. About 20
-
CPSU prepares for action in the ACTCANBERRA — The Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) has notified the Australian Industrial Relations Commission of its intention to bargain with the ACT government. This allows the
-
Toxic dump close to defeat The long community campaign to stop the toxic waste dump at the abandoned Werribee quarry seems likely to succeed. A stand-off between CSR, the company that wants to establish the dump, and the local community has
-
The Queensland Supreme Court on September 28 rejected an appeal by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation to lift an injunction that prohibits the playing of a satirical song, "I'm a Back Door Man". On August 28, 1997, the
-
Left win at Griffith UniversityBRISBANE — The broad left ticket at Griffith University, LEFT, scored a sweeping victory at the recent student representative council elections. With much of the executive vote counted, LEFT has won
-
Sri Lankan minister rejects Tamil homelandCANBERRA — The Sri Lankan minister for housing and construction, Inika Gunawardena, told a Friends of Peace in Sri Lanka meeting here on September 29 that a united Sri Lanka was the
World
-
IRVINE, California — At the end of August, the gate into the Friction auto brake plant in Irvine swung shut for the last time. Its 110 workers moved on. It's not unknown for factories in the United States to close as their
-
Throughout US history "race" has been a major factor in the country's politics. The English occupation and the westward drive by settlers to conquer and slaughter the native peoples was justified in the name of advancing
-
The following is abridged from an analysis of the September 27 German federal election results written last week by Germany's Party of Democratic Socialism. After 16 years, the era of Chancellor Helmut Kohl has come to an end in Germany. The
-
As South Africans awoke on September 22 and tuned their radios to the morning news, they could be forgiven for thinking they had entered a time-warp. The acting president, they heard, had ordered a force of 600-800 South African
-
"There is a credit crisis going on around the world, and it was brought home to us in spades by the bailout", Henry Cavanna, the head of JP Morgan Investment Management told Bloomberg news agency on September 25. Cavanna was commenting
-
Serious public health and environmental problems related to pesticide use exist in both Nicaragua and Guatemala, according to a recent report from the Danish Agency for International Development (DANIDA). The report found that new estimates place the
-
RAMALLAH — On September 10, the Israeli government announced it had killed two Palestinians in a shoot-out near the West Bank town of Hebron. The next day it revealed that the two dead men were Adel and Imad Awadallah, two Hamas
-
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — On September 23, Sri Lanka's ruling party asked parliament for 12.2 billion rupees (A$184 million) more than the 44 billion rupees ($665 million) which was budgeted for the military for 1998. Parliament is likely to approve the
-
World economic crisis begins to hit USThe stock market was sent reeling by the news that Long Term Capital (LTC), a highly speculative investment firm, was bankrupt and had to be bailed out by a group of banks as a result
-
ASIET attends human rights meeting in JakartaOn September 28-30, human rights and solidarity groups from around Asia met in Jakarta to discuss coordinating campaigns in support of democratisation in Indonesia. Groups based in
-
Habitat conference in Cuba The Second Regional Parliamentarian Forum on Habitat took place in Havana September 17-19. More than 18 countries participated. Two of the main issues discussed were the sustainable development of human settlements and
-
International news briefs Metalworkers strike continues Members of the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa employed in small workplaces associated with the motor industry are continuing their indefinite national strike that began on
Culture
-
How Green is My Planet?By Mark LynchOrin Books, Melbourne, 1998$14.95 (pb) How Green is My Planet? brings together Mark Lynch's best environmental cartoons. Comedian Spike Milligan provides the foreword and environmentalist David Suzuki writes the
-
Walking with my SistersProduced and directed by Bronwyn KiddWednesday, October 14, 8pmSBS Review by Margaret Allum In April 1997, the native title deal between the NSW government and four sisters of the Arakwal people of Cape Byron was hailed as
-
Growth industry "Uranium is a growth industry",Says the Mining Maggot, always smilin' —You're sure to get a growth out of it, you idiot!Just look at the people from the Marshall Islands! Denis Kevans
-
By Anne O'Casey MELBOURNE — What is controversial, inspirational, irreverent and goes with your corn flakes? Radio Resistance — the latest addition to community radio 3CR's line-up. The half-hour, weekly show will debut on Friday, October 9
-
Review by Sean Healy The Truman ShowDirected by Peter WeirWith Jim Carrey and Ed HarrisNow showing at cinemas everywhere This is one film where you have to try to forget who the star is, and what he represents in Hollywood-land — this is not a