Issue 416

BY SIMON BUTLER SYDNEY — Thirty students from the University of Technology, Sydney were arrested and charged on August 9 after occupying the acting vice-chancellor's office. They were protesting University Council's rejection of official UTS

BY IAN JAMIESON FREMANTLE — A new Resistance Centre has opened its doors in this Western Australian port city. The office is the culmination of many months of concerted effort by members of the Democratic Socialist Party and Resistance. Although

Supporters mobilise for Tent Embassy BY SIMON BUTLER SYDNEY — Following reports that police were about to evict Aboriginal protesters from Victoria Park and close the Aboriginal Tent Embassy there, 150 supporters quickly gathered on August 11.

Greenhouse blues BY BARRY HEALY A report released by the Australian Greenhouse Office in July shows that Australia's greenhouse gas emissions jumped by 16.9% in the eight years to 1998. Under the Kyoto Summit commitments, Australia is supposed to

Bondi speak-out on Olympic deceit BY MELANIE SJOBERG SYDNEY — Riding the wave of protest against the volleyball stadium on Bondi Beach and against the numerous evictions imposed by profiteering property owners in the area, a lively speak-out

Fiji: Why Canberra is soft on military rule The Australian government's expressions of delight and relief at the Fiji military's arrest of coup leader George Speight and hundreds of his supporters on July 26-27 signalled to the military brass that

AUSTRIA: Peak union plays dead Austrian peak union plays dead GRAZ, Austria — At a recent government-organised summit, it was proclaimed that the European Union target of a zero budget deficit could be reached only through joint national

PACIFIC: US military a 'toxic criminal' SAIPAN, CNMI — Greenpeace has declared the United States government a toxic criminal for using the Pacific as a dumping ground for its poisons. Greenpeace and Tanapag villagers have re-fenced and signposted

UNITED STATES: Anti-corporate activists go cross-country Fresh from protests against the Republican convention in Philadelphia, a coalition of pro-democracy groups set out cross-country on August 8 to share their message with unions and the rest of

Shell chief to head renewable energy task force BY SEAN HEALY The chairperson of oil giant Royal Dutch Shell has been chosen to co-chair a new global task force on renewable energy. At its July summit in Okinawa, the G8 (group of eight rich,

UNITED STATES: Greenpeace occupies Arctic-bound barge BY SEAN HEALY Greenpeace activists in Alaska have occupied a massive barge carrying equipment bound for oil giant BP's Northstar development, a controversial artificial drilling island

CISLAC campaigns against US aid As US interference in Colombia has increased, now including a massive aid package to the Colombian military, Committees In Solidarity with Latin America and the Caribbean (CISLAC) made the decision at its June

Earlier this summer, a comprehensive school student from the north-east was refused a place at Oxford University, despite having exceptionally high examination grades. The Labour Party, in a populist outburst which even by their standards of cynicism

Kim appoints investigation panel SEOUL — South Korea's President Kim Dae-Jung appointed a human rights investigation panel to investigate repression of the pro-democracy movement by previous military dictatorships and decide on compensation.

Hypocrisy, Republican style SAN FRANCISCO — The four-day Republican Party convention finally came to an end on August 4 with the formal nomination of Texas Governor George W. ("Dubya") Bush, as the party's presidential candidate in November.

'We were our own censors' The First Casualty: The War Correspondent as Hero and Myth-Maker from the Crimea to KosovoBy Phillip KnightlyPrion, 2000574pp., $35 (pb) REVIEW BY PHIL SHANNON When Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was in South Africa to report on

S11 activists targets Mcdonald's ADELAIDE — Thirty people demonstrated outside McDonald's in the Rundle Mall here on August 4 to protest against the multinational's attacks on the environment, underdeveloped nations and workers' rights. The

Rod Quantock to host McDebate BY JORGE JORQUERA MELBOURNE — Some of the world's best minds and sharpest wits will grapple with the crucial issue of our time here on August 25, when they debate "Whether McDonald's should run the World Bank".

S11: high school activists debate tactics BY JODY BETZIEN MELBOURNE — Beginning September 11, this city will experience a myriad of anti-World Economic Forum (WEF) actions. There is a lot of discussion and debate about how to coordinate and