MELBOURNE — About 50 tramway workers and supporters protested outside the Age building on June 19 over a story in the June 14 Sunday Age headlined, "If you drink and drive, you're a bloody tram driver". An accompanying photo purported to show a
Issue 60
News
Rally for abortion rights in ACT By Sue Bolton CANBERRA — "No cop-outs, no committees, we've waited long enough" was the chant from the crowd as Wayne Berry, minister for health, introduced the Termination of Pregnancy (Repeal) Bill in the
By Peter Boyle According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, unemployment in May reached a postwar record of 10.6%. Yet Australia is "technically" well out of recession because, by the end of March, the economy had grown for three quarters
By Sean Malloy "Resistance takes an active stand on issues important to young people. This year's Resistance conference will reflect the diversity and dynamism of our activities this year and our plans for the future", says Jorge Jorquera,
Victoria to trial 'training' scheme By Wendy Robertson MELBOURNE — In response to a 46% youth unemployment rate, the state Labor government has announced that it will pilot a controversial youth training scheme. Critics say it will
By Steve Painter SYDNEY — Despite declarations that he will fight it out, NSW Premier Nick Greiner will probably fall as a result of an Independent Commission Against Corruption finding that he acted corruptly. The finding concerned
Liberals' BWIU ban illegal By Steve Painter SYDNEY — In another blow to the accident-prone Greiner government, some aspects of its ban on government departments dealing with the Building Workers Industrial Union have been ruled illegal by
Safety concerns at Robe River KARRATHA, WA — Workers at Robe River Iron Associates are concerned about safety following a series of dangerous accidents. WA Trades and Labor Council organiser Dave McLane says Robe's accident rate appears to be
Indonesian campaigner to attend By Michael Tardif Prominent Indonesian political activist Helmi Fauzi will attend the Resistance national conference in Melbourne. Fauzi is in Australia as a guest of Resistance, the Environmental Youth
By Steve Painter Telecom workers are preparing for a prolonged struggle over the organisation's plans to cut its workforce by about 15%. Telecom (AOTC) management has already announced a cut of 4400 jobs over the next year, about 6% of the
Jet-cats not accessible SYDNEY — A demonstration at Circular Quay on June 14 called attention to the fact that the new multimillion-dollar jet-cats and river-cats are inaccessible to people with any type of mobility impairment. The
Open door for nuclear waste CANBERRA — The Senate has passed a bill which will allow Australia to become an international nuclear waste dump, says Greenpeace. The Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Bill, supported on June 18 by the
Studded belts now 'weapons' By Pip Hinman MELBOURNE — A decision to charge a receptionist with possession of a regulated weapon by Magistrate Peter Couzens has outraged and amazed the gay and lesbian community, among others. The "weapon"
Young people face growing poverty By Sean Malloy Youth unemployment has reached a rate of 34.1%. Paul Keating argues that it is really only 10% while he organises a hasty unemployment summit to be held next month. Keating argued that the
Melbourne privatisation protest By Michelle Hovane MELBOURNE — Passers-by the Regent Hotel early on June 15 were confronted by the spectacle of "Premier Kirner" cosying up to a rambunctious "John Elliott" in a double bed. Clicking her
World
Australian military surveillance is helping the Papua New Guinea Defence Force to blockade Bougainville by providing information on boats attempting to get through the blockade, according to a Bougainville provisional government representative in
By Peter Annear PRAGUE — British Prime Minister John Major's tour of central Europe in May served not only to improve the electoral chances of the Czech-based Civic Democratic Party. It also drew attention to economic and political
Nuclear cuts reflect changing US strategy By Steve Painter The latest US-Russian nuclear arms cuts, announced by presidents Bush and Yeltsin in Washington on June 16, reflect a continuing move by the US towards armaments more suitable to its
CRA accused of cyanide pollution By Zanny Begg The Environmental Youth Alliance is planning to confront the Australian company CRA over charges that it is polluting the Indonesian environment. CRA is the majority shareholder (67.95%) in
By Frank Noakes Protests in Belgrade indicate a growing opposition to President Slobodan Milosevic's attempts to create a Greater Serbia at the expense of Serbia's neighbours. The day after a church-organised procession calling for peace,
Anger over delay to PNG forest act LAE, PNG — Tribal landowners, community organisations and members of the government have reacted angrily to delays in gazetting Papua New Guinea's new Forestry Act, says Sasa Kokino, director of the PNG
British Greens in crisis LONDON — The British Green Party is in financial crisis as its membership plummets under the control of the Green 2000 group, which swept the party's executive positions in elections last year. The party now has 8000
By Peter Annear PRAGUE — Leading Czech and Slovak politicians agreed on a formula that will divide the Czechoslovak federation into two independent republics, during discussions that culminated on June 17. The agreement is the result of
The Urals region is one of the main industrial centres of Russia. However, its social infrastructure lags behind that of cities such as Moscow and St Petersburg, while such industrial centres of the region as Yekaterinburg (formerly Sverdlovsk),
By Renfrey Clarke MOSCOW — On June 5 Gavriil Popov announced his resignation as mayor of Moscow. He was a little short of 12 months into a five-year term. In statements to reporters, Popov indicated that he was quitting in order to
By Michael Karadjis and Sue Bull SYDNEY — "Human life is very cheap in India. Democracy has been reduced to a farce", according to K.G. Kannabiran, president of the Andhra Pradesh Civil Liberties Committee. Speaking to about 50 people at
Privatisation from within SERGEI POROSHIN works at the Lenin Metallurgical Plant in Perm. He is a member of the trade union committee, and also of the Rabochy group. Has the issue arisen of privatising the Lenin plant? The factory has been
Film maker killed in PNG A Swedish documentary film maker and journalist, Per-Ove Carlsson, has been murdered in Papua New Guinea. The murder took place at the end of April, while he was working on a film about the liberation movement in West
Culture
The politics of music By Anthony Benbow PERTH — On June 12, the Court Hotel in Northbridge hosted a forum on the Politics of Music. The evening, part of the monthly Politics in the Pub series, featured speakers from different sectors of
Abortion: Desperate Choices 39th Sydney Film Festival A film by Susan Froemke and Deborah Dickson From "American Undercover" Series by Maysles Films Inc (USA) Reviewed by Kath Tucker The current battles in the USA to retain women's access
Long journey An unusual and ambitious film deserving greater exposure is The Journey, a massive 14.5J243>155DJ0>/.5>255D> hour project lurking in the bowels of the National Library in Canberra. Produced and directed by Peter Watkins, best
Uneven work from the vanguard rappers Apocalypse '91 ... The Enemy Strikes Black Public Enemy Reviewed by James Basle Apocalypse '91 is good, but not brilliant. You tap your feet to the beat, but the beat never really grabs you. In many
Rogernomics come home to roost Feral City By Rosie Scott William Heinemann. $19.95 Reviewed by Dave Riley There is a future. Today's comfort becomes tomorrow's memory. Rosie Scott's new work is a novel, not of fantasy, but of extrapolation
Swoon Written and directed by Tom Kalin Starring Daniel Sclachet, Craig Chester Reviewed by Bronwen Beechey In 1924, Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb, two wealthy and precociously brilliant Jewish teenagers, kidnapped and murdered an
At the Melbourne Film Festival By Ulrike Erhardt Events Leading up to my Death, from Canada, is an inspired and satiric insight into family life. The death in question is that of the dog; he becomes the first victim of this supposedly happy
Traitors By Stephen Sewell Directed by Colin Kenny New Theatre, Sydney Reviewed by Stephen Robson Bringing the poignant political issues of the Soviet Union in the 1920s into stark reality, Traitors focuses on the United Opposition and its
Just for fun Strictly Ballroom Directed by Baz Luhrman Starring Paul Mercurio, Tara Morice, Bill Hunter Reviewed by Lin Wolfe Baz Luhrman's debut feature, despite a few rough edges, deserves to be picked up for wide commercial release. The
Editorial
Justice for refugees Federal court judge Marcus Einfeld made some telling points in his June 17 speech to the National Press Club, launching National Refugee Week. He rightly castigated the federal government's treatment of Cambodian boat