Strike at Edith Cowan University
BY CLAUDIA FRENTE
PERTH — All four campuses of Edith Cowan University were reduced to ghost towns here on August 16 and 17, thanks to militant union picketers, some of whom were forced to join the picket lines
Issue 417
News
Destroying native forests for 'renewable' energy
BY JIM GREEN
Friends of the Earth and the Alternative Technology Association have slammed the Australian Labor Party for supporting federal Coalition government legislation which will allow the
Students oppose restructure
BY FEDERICO FUENTES
SYDNEY — Students at the University of Western Sydney Macarthur in Bankstown rallied on August 15 to protest university management's planned end-of-year restructuring, which will amalgamate UWS
Howard's IVF discrimination opposed
BY LYDIA LEONARD
BRISBANE — More than 100 people rallied here on August 15 to oppose the federal government's plan to alter the federal anti-discrimination act to exclude lesbians and single mothers from
Women to march for world justice
BY KAMALA EMANUEL
HOBART — Groups in at least 157 countries and territories will be part of the World March of Women against poverty and violence against women on October 17, the United Nations' day for the
March on detention centre planned
BY PAUL BENEDEK
SYDNEY — Migrants, refugees, anti-racists, students and all supporters of human rights are being encouraged to join a huge protest for refugees' rights planned for August 26. The demonstration
'Solidarity' is the cry
BY MARG PERROTT
WOLLONGONG — "Solidarity!" was the cry at two functions here. On August 11, a Broad Left forum attended by 50 people heard Tim Anderson, Sharon Beder and Max Lane discuss globalisation. On August 17,
BY NICK EVERETT
SYDNEY — Several hundred people gathered to hear deposed Fijian Prime Minister Mahendra Chaudhry speak at the Marrickville Town Hall on August 12. Also speaking were Fiji Trades Union Congress general secretary Felix Anthony and
BY KIM BULLIMORE
SYDNEY — Citing noise complaints, damage to the park and disruption to park users, but denying accusations of racism or Olympics-inspired paranoia, the mayor of South Sydney John Fowler has sought and received a court injunction
Books of Fidel's speeches launched
BY GAIL LORD
SYDNEY — Cuba's consul general in Australia, Maria Luisa Fernandez, on August 9 spoke to a full Resistance Centre in Parramatta when she launched two new books containing recent speeches by Cuba's
New push for up-front uni fees
BY NIKKI ULASOWSKI
SYDNEY — University entry requirements in New South Wales will be lowered from next year, to allow those able to pay up-front tuition fees easier access to courses. The announcement has sparked
Selleys workers 'sticking to the union'
BY SHANE BENTLEY
SYDNEY — Workers at the Selleys plant in Padstow here have taken strong action against what they see as an attempt to break their union. The 130 members of the Australian Liquor,
World
Philadelphia protesters still in jail
PHILADELPHIA — At least 20 of the anti-corporate protesters arrested by Philadelphia police during the week of the Republican National Convention remain in jail as of August 15. Hundreds more face trials in
EAST TIMOR: Jose Ramos Horta: 'CNRT will cease to exist'
EAST TIMOR: Jose Ramos Horta: 'CNRT will cease to exist'
DILI — Speaking at a meeting of the just weeks-old East Timor Press Club on August 12, Jose Ramos Horta, vice-president of the
LOS ANGELES — On the night of August 14, cops showed off their months of anti-protest training for the Democratic National Convention. Police shot high-pressure water and pepper spray pellets at protesters on a peaceful, festive march through
The names that didn't appear centre stage at the Democratic Party convention in Los Angeles are the ones that will actually pay for the event — names like General Motors, British Petroleum, Microsoft and AT&T. These corporations are
US democracy goes online
"In the current election system, the voter is a product to be sold to the corporations. But they're being sold through this convoluted method of advertising, consultants, [and] travelling. Voteauction is making a more
GERMANY: Authorities' hypocrisy on racist violence
KIEL — After years of racist crimes perpetrated against immigrants and refugees, Germany's establishment is giving the impression that it is finally willing to act to stop it. This follows a bomb
MALAYSIA: Penans appeal for international help
More than a hundred Penan people, from various settlements in the interior of Sarawak, have gathered at Long Kevok to stage a non-violent protest against sustained logging activities in their communal
Haider, Austria and resistance
VIENNA — On August 10, 3000 people gathered outside Government House to take part in the usual Thursday demonstration against the coalition government of the conservative Austrian People's Party (VP)and the extreme
Major donors to the Republican convention
Organisation Total to convention Total soft money, PAC & individual contributions Dems Repubs
General Motors $1,000,000 $469,665 $126,550 $338,215
Microsoft Corp $1,000,000 $2,282,868 $1,143,014
Who's driving, where?
The theme of the World Economic Forum's Melbourne summit, September 11-13, is "Leveraging the New Drivers for Growth". Its focus is on which mix of economic policies will make the region the most desirable for Western
SAN FRANCISCO — It does happen. Not often enough, but it does take place: a defeat for racial bias and white supremacy. On August 2, in a San Francisco Superior Court room, a jury punished the country's largest wholesale baker with a staggering
MALAYSIA: Police beat labour rights advocate
KUALA LUMPUR — Well-known labour rights advocate Tian Chua said that two of his vertebrae were fractured after he was kicked heavily in his back by a police officer while being detained at the Jalan
PHILADELPHIA — The following report on events around the Republic Party convention in Philadelphia by a member of the US socialist group Solidarity was posted on the internet on August 10. It is slightly abridged. What's going on in Philadelphia
It is difficult to imagine a more political person, and at the same time a more passionate and caring person, than our departed comrade Joseph Flexer. Socialist Action has lost more than a central leader, more than a brilliant writer, educator and
The current session of Indonesia's parliament, the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), began with much criticism of President Abdurrahman Wahid by politicians and threats that he would be deposed, forced to appoint a prime minister or made to
ASIA: Economy recovers, bound and gagged
East Asia used to be the Fred Astaire of the world economy until, on a dark night in 1997, it was mugged by the combined crunch of Wall Street currency speculators and the International Monetary Fund. Now,
Rethinking in Ireland
Red BannerPO Box 6587, Dublin 6, IrelandEmail <red_banner@yahoo.com>Subscriptions A$22 Fourthwrite<http://rwg.phoblacht.net> REVIEW BY DAVE RILEY
The fallout from the Sinn Fein-sponsored peace process has
SOUTH AFRICA: Who is bringing the SACP's name into disrepute?
The chairperson of the Johannesburg Central branch of the South African Communist Party (SACP), Dale McKinley, was officially notified of his expulsion from the party on August 16. He
Major donors to the Democratic convention
Organisation Total to convention Total soft money, PAC & individual contributions Dems Repubs
American International Group $2,000,000 $774,362 $315,162 $456,700
BP Amoco Corp $1,000,000 $1,008,070
Culture
A truly free voice
Johnny Cash at San Quentin (The Complete 1969 Concert)Johnny CashColumbia/Legacy REVIEW BY BILL NEVINS
Prison sucks, and Johnny Cash makes no bones about that. In this defiant 1969 prison concert, he pulls fire, freedom and
Blood and roses
A Beautiful LifeBy Matrix TheatreAt Brisbane Powerhouse, BrisbaneAugust 22-27 REVIEW BY BRENDAN DOYLE
Every so often there is a theatrical performance that is not only exciting and totally absorbing, but also intricately connected
Guevara says: Cancel Third World debt!
Guevara says: Cancel Third World debt!
REVIEW BY FEDERICO FUENTES
Hailing from Fairfield, in the heart of working-class Sydney, Guevara is a rebel rock band refusing to write for a commercial market. The
Global Action Radio goes national
BY ANNE O'CASEY
MELBOURNE — People around Australia can now find out about the latest debates and news in the lead up to the September 11 protests against the World Economic Forum here. The Global Action Radio
The best and worst of the union movement
Waterfront — the battle that changed AustraliaBy Helen Trinca and Anne DaviesDoubleday, Sydney, 2000$29.60, 317pp. REVIEW BY BOB CARNEGIE
Writers and journalists play an enormous role in creating public
General
BY ANDREW HALL
CANBERRA — While momentum for the September 11 protest in Melbourne against the World Economic Forum snowballs, the S11 movement has much to work out: including whether it can unite on anything other than the protest itself. A
BY JORGE JORQUERA
MELBOURNE — Trade unions in Victoria are on the horns of a dilemma: do they support the planned protests at the World Economic Forum's Asia-Pacific Economic Summit here on September 11-13 and strike a blow for global justice, or
Plans announced for three-day blockade
BY ANNE O'CASEY
MELBOURNE — The S11 Alliance has announced its plans for the three-day non-violent mass blockade of the Crown Casino, the site of the World Economic Forum's Asia-Pacific Economic Summit,
Activists target Shell
BY SEAN HEALY
SYDNEY — Oil multinational Shell was accused of involvement in murder and gross human rights violations in Nigeria on August 18, when 40 activists staged an action against the company outside the city
Resistance!
By Ruth Ratcliffe
As the fifth largest shareholder in the Asian Development Bank, Australia is a significant imperialist force in this region. The Australian government lends money for a range of projects. Many of the so-called aid projects,
Join the Democratic Socialist Party
By Peter Boyle
Four months after the Seattle protests, representatives of Third World governments met in Cuba for the G77 South Summit Conference. Cuban President Fidel Castro's address to that gathering
The World Economic Forum's (WEF) Asia-Pacific Economic Summit in Melbourne, September 11-13, will bring together 800 representatives of the world's largest transnational corporations and some of the region's most senior capitalist politicians for
Join the resistance!
The wealth of the world's richest 200 people increased from US$440 billion to more than $1 trillion between 1994-98. Compare this to the Third World, where 800 million people are suffering from chronic hunger, 840 million