Dale Mills, Sydney
A mere two months after NSW police numbers were boosted by 600, another 750 officers are being added at a cost of $80 million per year. This brings total police numbers in NSW to more than 15,000, not including an estimated 3000
-
-
Dave Riley If you are among the 4 billion or so of this planet's occupants who hail from the Third World, a moment of fame can be yours if, by some extraordinary good fortune, you take part in the tournament we like to refer to as the Commonwealth
-
Zoe Kenny Craig Ingram, the state MP for East Gippsland and a long-term campaigner for the regeneration of the Snowy River, spoke to Green Left Weekly about the Snowy River Hydroelectric Scheme privatisation plan. What have the NSW and Victorian
-
In France in May-June 1968, there was a potentially revolutionary situation. For several months leading up to May, students had protested for better conditions. When the government used riot police to stop their protests, the students resisted
-
Virginia Brown Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (SSCS) founder Captain Paul Watson recently visited Australia, following the organisation's 2005-06 campaign against Japanese whaling in Antarctica. During his visit he spoke to Green Left Weekly
-
Peter Boyle Correction: A recent report, quoted in Green Left Weekly, that the CEOs of the big corporations belonging to the Business Council of Australia (BCA) were paid 63 times the average wage of their companies' employees, was wrong.
-
Marg Hutton Less than five years after surviving the horrific sinking of SIEVX, Amal Basry lost her three-year battle with breast cancer. She passed away in the presence of her son Rami and daughter-in-law Daniella on March 18. Amal and Rami were
-
On March 18, majority Labor governments were elected in both South Australia and Tasmania. Voters' refusal to give the Liberals government in those states undoubtedly reflected, at least in part, the huge public opposition to Howard and Co.'s current
-
Murray Smith, Paris The movement of French students and workers against the right-wing French government's new First Employment Contract (CPE) law is entering a decisive phase. The law was approved by parliament on March 10, and allows employers to
-
Graham Matthews Under regulations that will give effect to the Work Choices legislation, employers will be able to pay wages below the minimum wage, so long as the workers' average wage over the year reaches the minimum. This provision, along with
-
Ed Ascroft The federal government's propaganda about its "voluntary student unionism" (VSU) legislation, rushed through parliament on December 12, emphasised "choice". But already, universities are feeling the impact of this "voluntary" law in cuts
-
Pip Hinman Dr Hugh Tyndale-Biscoe, a marsupial biologist employed by the CSIRO for 20 years until 1995, is one of a growing number of critics of the way the CSIRO handles the balance between its private and public research. He is also critical of
-
Rachel Evans The March 16 edition of the gay and lesbian newspaper SX quoted from the Australian Federation of Aids Organisations (AFAO): "Since 2000 the rate of diagnoses of HIV in Australia have risen from 656 a year to 912 last financial year.
-
Marriage Is it just me and Jimmy Somerville that feel this way, but is there something missing from the campaign for same-sex marriage? Where is the broader campaign for the recognition of the rights of all couples (regardless of sexuality) not to
-
Zoe Kenny The Snowy River Hydroelectric Scheme (SRHS) is once again in the spotlight following Victorian Premier Steve Bracks' announcement that his government will follow the example of the NSW and federal governments in selling off its share of
-
Sue Bolton, Melbourne In the last issue of Green Left Weekly, union leaders from NSW and Queensland explained why their unions support the national day of action called by the ACTU for June 28. This week, Victorian union leaders explain why a big
News
-
Linda Waldron, Melbourne On March 22, 40 people attended a Green Left Weekly forum on the topic "The Hamas Victory: What now for Palestine, Israel and the 'peace process'?" Addressing the forum were Michael Shaik from the International Solidarity
-
Dick Nichols, Melbourne The March 18 Victorian state conference of the Socialist Alliance, held in Melbourne's Trades Hall, focused on the fight against the Howard government's Work Choices legislation and its racist policies against Muslim and
-
PERTH — On March 21, labour historian Michael Crosby presented the WA Labour History Society's annual Harold Peden Memorial lecture to 50 people at the Unions WA office. Crosby, author of Power at Work — Rebuilding the Australian Trade Union
-
SYDNEY — In a March 23 media release, Kate Gauthier, national coordinator of the A Just Australia refugee policy group, said that disclose a third case of unlawful detention of another Australian citizen by the commonwealth ombudsman's report in to
-
BRISBANE — On March 23, students at Griffith University's Nathan campus discussed the fight against the Howard government's new industrial relations laws. Organised by the Education Action Group (EAG), the forum was addressed by Ron Edwards, the
-
Peter Short, Perth On March 21, the monthly Unions WA council meeting looked set to decide against organising an ACTU-proposed June 28 protest rally against the new federal industrial relations laws. However, several unions intervened to get
-
Niko Leka, Newcastle On March 16, Boeing conceded on three demands made by the Australian Workers Union on behalf of 25 aircraft maintenance workers employed at the company's Williamtown centre. The previous day, the AWU lodged objections with the
-
Ben Courtice, Melbourne Australian climate and refugee policy was condemned by British professor Norman Myers, an expert on global warming issues, in his address to a seminar in Melbourne on the topic of environmental refugees on March 21.
-
Alex Bainbridge, Sydney More than 200 students gathered on March 23 to support an orchestra strike at Sydney University's Conservatorium of Music ("the Con"). The protest was called over the administration's handling of the visit by US Secretary of
-
Chris Latham, Perth The ALP retained the WA state seat of Victoria Park in a by-election held on March 11, with its candidate Ben Wyatt polling 61% of the vote on a two-party preferred basis. The by-election was prompted by the surprise resignation
-
Just like the 'evidence' for WMD "I think we are going to succeed in Iraq, I think the evidence is overwhelming." — Lord Darth Cheney, March 19. Lord Darth Cheney every morning "The situation on the ground remains tense. In the face of
-
Liam Mitchell, Sydney Around 150 people marched through inner-city Glebe on March 25 to protest against the Howard government's Work Choices legislation. The rally was organised by Inner West Your Rights at Work (IWYRaW). Rally speakers included
-
SYDNEY — The new Coalition for Justice and Peace in Palestine will be launched on April 2 at the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) offices in Lidcombe, Palestinian activist and CJPP convener Jamal Daoud told Green Left Weekly
-
PORT MACQUARIE — On March 5, 60 people attended a screening of David Bradbury's new documentary Blowin' in the Wind, which focusses on the use by the US military of depleted uranium munitions. The DVD showing raised funds for Amnesty
-
KATOOMBA — "The Venezuelans have learned a lot from the experiences — good and bad — of other revolutions, and out of that are building a 'new' socialism for the 21st century", Fred Fuentes told a public meeting organised by Green Left Weekly
-
Doug Lorimer Almost two-thirds of Australians want all Australian troops to be withdrawn from Iraq immediately or no later than May, a telephone poll of 500 randomly selected Australians conducted from March 10-13 found. Australia was one the
-
Nick Everett, Canberra On March 24, ACT teachers agreed to postpone industrial action planned for this week after ACT education minister Katy Gallagher referred their pay dispute to the Industrial Relations Commission (IRC) for conciliation. This
-
SYDNEY — On March 20, the NSW Refugee Action Coalition held a forum about the 151 Chinese asylum seekers (of 245 detainees) being held in Villawood detention centre. Speakers included Mark Goudkamp from RAC NSW; Chin Jin from the Federation for a
-
Susan Austin, Hobart Progressive people in Tasmania shook their heads with disappointment at the initial results of the state's March 18 House of Assembly election. Pre-election polling indicated the Greens were likely to win one-third of the votes
-
Sarah Stephen On March 23, the immigration department announced that 42 of the 43 West Papuan asylum seekers who arrived in Australia on January 18 and have been held on Christmas Island since then, had been granted refugee status. They will be
-
SYDNEY — Proposed anti-terror legislation may allow police to spy on those who try to contact the Terrorism Hotline, according to the March 18 Weekend Australian. The Telecommunications (Interception) Amendment Bill 2006 is now before the federal
-
Farida Iqbal, Sydney On March 7, the NSW Industrial Relations Commission (IRC) granted the state's childcare workers a 16% pay rise over two years. Childcare workers will be paid between $70 and $166 more a week, following the IRC's ruling in
World
-
Jim McIlroy & Coral Wynter, Caracas Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez rejected recent attacks by the US administration on his government, and slammed President George Bush as a "coward, murderer and responsible for genocide", in an outspoken talk on
-
Omar Hamed, Auckland "Fuck 12 dollars, we want 20", rapped Unite union member and hip-hop MC Fyzykl to around 1000 students and workers in Myers Park on March 18. The occasion was the Supersizemypay.com concert — the Big Pay Out — which
-
Walter Yoia, Buenos Aires On March 24, more than 100,000 people moved toward the Plaza de Mayo, made famous by the mothers of the disappeared who, along with unions, human rights organisations, students and people from all walks of life, demanded
-
Doug Lorimer Undeterred by the erosion of public support for the war in Iraq, in an update of its September 2002 US National Security Strategy document, US President George Bush reaffirmed his policy of "pre-emptive" attacks — what used to be
-
Eva Cheng On founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the Communist Party of China (CPC) declared that "women shall enjoy equal rights with men in political, economic, cultural, educational and social life". In the years after 1949,
-
On March 21, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez announced that a Venezuelan delegation travelled to Bolivia to be part of a new social mission dedicated to eliminating illiteracy in Bolivia. The Venezuelan delegation will start the project in the
-
Kerryn Williams After police attacked a protest outside the Cendrawasih University in the West Papuan capital Jayapura on March 16, several police officers and an Indonesian military intelligence officer were killed. Many students and other
-
Forces from both sides of the debate on Taiwan's independence have mobilised in three actions in Taipei since March 12. The so-called Pan-Blue Alliance — led by Taiwan's former ruling party Kuomintang (KMT) and comprising KMT splinter groups the
-
In a speech in Cleveland on March 20, US President George Bush cited the Iraqi city of Tal Afar, 60 kilometres west of Mosul, as providing a "reason for hope" that the US would win its now three-year-long war in Iraq. Last September, Tal Afar was the
-
Nicole Colson Just how far will the Bush administration go to railroad Zacarias Moussaoui? Moussaoui is the only person to be charged in the US in connection with the September 11 attacks. Although he admits to being an al Qaeda member, he denies
-
Stuart Munckton "A wave of condemnation swept through Bolivia today after the terrorist attacks that killed two people and resulted in the arrest of a U.S. citizen", Prensa Latina reported on March 22. Two bombings occurred at low-cost tourist
-
Detik.com reported on March 21 that the Indonesian Armed Forces (TNI) continue to keep guard against the "danger" of communism. "The TNI is still continuing to monitor the communist movement. We are constantly keeping on guard", Rear Admiral
-
Five bus drivers from the executive board of the Tehran bus drivers' union and metalworker Sattar Amini were released from jail on March 18 and 19. Yet the union's leader Mansoor Ossanlou, as well as auto worker Afshin Bahrami, are still being
-
James Balowski, Jakarta On March 16, left-wing Acehnese political activists publicly launched the Acehnese Peoples Party Preparatory Committee (KP-PRA), which they hope will provide the basis for establishing the first local political party. The
-
Pip Hinman, Karachi More than 12,000 people from 58 countries packed into the City Sports Stadium on March 24 to launch the first World Social Forum ever held in Pakistan. Among the many participants were peasants from Baluchistan struggling
-
Doug Lorimer The US military has "dramatically increased air strikes in Iraq during the past five months", Tom Lasseter, the US Knight Ridder Newspapers' Baghdad correspondent reported on March 14. "A review of military data shows that daily
-
Jim McIlroy & Coral Wynter, Caracas Venezuelan right-wing parties Accion Democratica, Primero Justicia and Sumate are "up to their neck" in planning for a transport strike that will use as a pretext the increase in crimes that are affecting the
-
Survival International reported on March 22 that at least 15 Bushmen in the New Xade resettlement camp have died suddenly of unknown causes since the start of the year. A further three are in a critical condition. Gaseitsiwe Gaorapelwe, who was
-
KATHMANDU — Armed Police Force (APF) personnel arrested Madhav Kumar-Nepal, general-secretary of the Communist Party of Nepal (United Marxist-Leninist), on March 23. A team of APF officers took him to the APF barracks at Kakani, Kumar-Nepal's
-
Duroyan Fertl Protests by unionists, students and indigenous activists against a free trade agreement (FTA) between Ecuador and the US have strengthened, forcing the government to declare a state of emergency in several states around the capital
-
On March 15, Reuters reported on new findings by the Washington-based World Resources Institute that human-fuelled global warming has reached a "tipping point". The institute has released a report surveying recent scientific research, which found
-
On March 5, the Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's government announced a new joint venture to help reduce transport costs in FMLN-governed municipalities. Part of the alternative Latin American
-
Farooq Tariq, Lahore Thousands of Pakistani bhatta (brick-kiln) workers protested on March 17 in three cities against attempts by employers to maintain the peshgi (advance) system of bonded labour. The demonstrations were organised by the Pakistan
-
Socialist Vietnam and Venezuela, led by socialist President Hugo Chavez, have agreed to build a "strategic relationship" and to bring their economic relationships on a par with their already strong political links. The countries' two-way trade in
-
Federico Fuentes Even before the January 22 inauguration of Evo Morales as Bolivia's first indigenous president, commentators from all sides of the political spectrum, particularly on the left internationally, have begun to speculate about what
-
On March 23, around 500 members of the Mehdiganj community, near Varanasi in northern India, began an indefinite vigil against a Coca-Cola bottling plant. The protesters are vowing to maintain the vigil until the plant is permanently shut down,
-
Tim Anderson In late 2005, while war raged in the Middle East and oil prices rose drastically, governments and oil companies repeated the "market forces" mantra, saying there was nothing they could do about oil prices. However, the Venezuelan
Culture
-
Diplomatic RelationsArtworks by Azlan McLennanThe Anti Mascot Project, part of the New Wave FestivalPlatform Two art space, Flinders Street, Melbourne, until April 2 REVIEW BY ELSIE SNASHALL-WOODHAMS A display of artworks by controversial
-
Little BritainWritten and performed by Matt Lucas and David WalliamsABC TVWednesdays 9pm REVIEWED BY DAVE RILEY Political correctness (PC) is the death of satire in many ways, as it precludes tackling the undercurrents such that you cannot so
-
Rod Quantock is a Melbourne institution in comedy. This year, he marks his 20th anniversary at the Melbourne Comedy Festival with his new show Australia. Australia looks at this wide brown land and examines what's so good about it, other than its
-
The Great War For Civilisation: The Conquest of the Middle EastBy Robert FiskFourth Estate 20051366 pages, $39.95 REVIEW BY MICHAEL GOLDSTEIN This book makes compelling reading. It is a record of Fisk's first hand experiences of events in Iraq,
-
Message Stick: Deadly Yarns — This short film festival includes "Talk About A Walkabout" about Josie, a women of the stolen generations, her father and her love of the land. ABC, Friday, March 31, 6pm. 2013: Oil No More — More than 80% of the
-
Fight the Power: Defend SocialismVarious artists including Emmanuel featuring K, Braintax, Kam, Rodney P, Benjamin ZephaniahSingle Cell PressOrder at <http://www.socialistproductions.org> REVIEW BY EDDIE TRUMAN Some of the leading rap