PERTH — The perception of Australia as an uninhabited land ("Terra nullius"), which is how it was approached by European settlers, was recently overturned by the High Court in the Mabo vs Queensland case. However, the Mabo
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One hundred Greenpeace activists from across Europe chained themselves to the main gates of the French plutonium reprocessing factory on the morning of October 14. Their aim was to alert the world to the danger posed by
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The Avalon Airshow (primarily a bazaar for military-related aeronautical equipment and systems) does not begin in that sleepy Victorian town until October 21. But already big deals are being made for warplanes. Defence minister
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Newsflash from the Past: Tuning in to a New History of the Americas — While the so-called "discovery" of the Americas is celebrated by apologists for imperialism, the Spanish conquest of the "New World" is to be given a wry and informative
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SYDNEY — I had never seen a "literary event" like it, and obviously neither had author John Pilger and journalist Wendy Bacon. On October 10 Gould's Bookshop in Newtown, a huge cavern packed to the rafters with shelves,
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Kennett plans more privatisation In a letter faxed from a senior Victorian departmental office, it has been revealed that Premier Jeff Kennett is planning to continue his controversial public sector cutbacks. The letter expresses concern for
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Re-regulation of the financial system will be necessary if the problems associated with financial speculation, mismanagement and the concentration of the banks are to be overcome. For instance, to cater for different community
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Serbia's war According to Justin Starchevic (Write on, October 7), "Milosevic should help Bosnian Serbs in their civil war for the same reason that Australia always helped Britain and America in their wars". Good comparison. As socialists, we
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The heart of the beast There was a debate on the committee organising the International Women's Day march and rally in Brisbane this year, regarding the "desirability" of asking representatives of the Movement for the Ordination of Women to
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Money better spent We don't know the final bill for the extra 18 F-111s, but surely there are better things to spend it on in this period of high employment and straining welfare, health and education systems? The Sydney-based People for Nuclear
News
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Bigots seek state fundingHOBART — A group cynically calling itself "For a Caring Tasmania" (FACT) has formed to campaign against homosexuality. It originates in conservative elements of the church. FACT chair David Fry
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Philippines solidarity conference SYDNEY — a conference entitled "The Philippines: 100 Years of Struggle, 100 years of Solidarity" on October 17-18 drew more than 100 people. A delegation of six prominent Filipino activists and leaders of
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Jim Percy, national president of the Democratic Socialist Party, died quietly as a result of cancer, at his home in Sydney on October 12. He was 43 years old and had devoted 27 years of his life to revolutionary socialist politics. Like so many
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Independent Victorian Senator Janet Powell, formerly leader of the Democrats, has given notice of her intention to introduce a bill in November to repeal the anti-union Sections 45D and 45E of the Trade Practices Act. She is
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PORT MACQUARIE — Nurses and local residents are planning a rally outside state parliament in Sydney on October 28 in an effort to stop the privatisation of their hospital services. Green Left spoke to one of the organisers
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Liberals bomb out on job creationHOBART — At a time when the state Liberal government is slashing more than 1100 public sector jobs, a new job subsidy program has failed to create a single job. The "Tas Jobs for Youth"
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But we'll pretend it does "The theoretical notion of a completely free market does not exist in practice. It never has existed and it never will exist." — John Hewson. Realistic A group of Liberals in Alice Springs has invented a board game
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Memorial meetings for Jim Percy Adelaide Monday, October 26, 7pm Resistance Centre, 34A Hindley St, Adelaide Brisbane Tuesday, October 27, 7pm Resistance Centre, 29 Terrace St, New Farm Hobart Saturday, November 7, 6pm Resistance
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Greens to contest federal election in NSW SYDNEY — "NSW Greens are gearing up for the upcoming federal election", according to a spokesperson, Mark Berriman. "We feel that we need to give the federal parliament an increased green presence so
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Tributes Tributes and messages of condolence for Jim Percy received as of Sunday, October 18 (We will publish a range of these in future issues): Aliansi Kekuatan Demokratik Se-Indonesia (AKSI, Indonesian Democratic Something Alliance), Central
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500 years marked in Melbourne MELBOURNE — In an evocative ceremony, members of the Yarra Yarra tribe on October 11 welcomed Domingo Colicoi, a Mapuche representative from the All Lands Council in Chile. With traditional dances, songs and
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South Sydney FestivalSYDNEY — Redfern and the area of South Sydney in general has had its share of bad press and negative public opinion. Residents have also suffered the attempted closure of the Royal Prince Alfred
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ABC team ordered out of Bougainville Heavily armed Papua New Guinea soldiers on October 17 forced an Australian Broadcasting Corporation television news crew to leave Bougainville at gunpoint. The crew, which included the well-known Port
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Fees for national parks?HOBART — Entrance fees to National Parks and botanical gardens are inevitable according to Tom Crossen, the national president of the Royal Australian Institute of Parks and Recreation. Speaking
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Los Angeles youth speak outADELAIDE — Helena Swan and George Evans, two young people from Central Los Angeles who are touring Australia to inform people about life in Los Angeles after the riots, spoke to a Resistance
Analysis
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Kennett's sharp edge The first two weeks of the Victorian Kennett Liberal government have given a sharp edge to politics that even its powerful backers are worried about. The pro-Liberal Australian editorialised that Kennett had already
World
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The German economy is in deep trouble, and so also is Chancellor Helmet Kohl's coalition government. Green Left Weekly recently spoke to Angela Klein, a leader of the United Socialist Party (VSP), and Andrea Lederer, a member
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BLACKPOOL — During the Trade Union Congress conference last month, ARTHUR SCARGILL, president of the National Union of Mineworkers, spoke with FRANK NOAKES from Green Left Weekly. Delegates to the 124th annual conference of the TUC gave Arthur
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Europe in the grip of austerity Swedish Social Democrats back cuts By Dick Forslund STOCKHOLM — "They looked like two songbirds sitting together on a branch — and with about the same brain power." This was one Swedish writer's comments
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HAVANA — In what promises to be the first in a long series of popular demonstrations against US tightening of its economic blockade, thousands of Cuban students massed at the University of Havana on September 29, shouting their
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AMSTERDAM — Sunday, October 4, 6.42 p.m. A disaster occurs. According to the head of the fire brigade at Schiphol Airport, the chances of such a tragedy were "less than nil". A Boeing 747-200 El Al cargo plane loses two of
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Big success for Alliance in Auckland electionsAUCKLAND — I've never seen business leaders and conservative politicians so glum. For decades, they have ruled local politics in Auckland, but in October 12 elections for four
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MANAGUA — The Third Continental Meeting of Indigenous, Black and Grassroots Resistance was held here October 7-12. Delegates from the Miskito, Mapuche, Quechua, Aymara, Sumu, Aleut, Maya and Eskimo communities (to name just
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The European Community has warned US President George Bush that the community's relations with the United States could be seriously damaged if the Torricelli Bill, which bans business between US subsidiaries and Cuba, is signed into law. In an
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The Papua New Guinea government's military blockade of Bougainville is coming under increasing international pressure. The European Community and those countries in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific that receive EC aid (known
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The independence of the media has been a casualty of the Serbian-inspired war in the now independent republics of the former Yugoslavia. This is the finding of an International Organisation of Journalists mission which visited
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Scottish Militant trouncing LabourEDINBURGH — Scottish Militant Labour, formed by activists expelled from the Labour Party, has had a series of victories in local council elections in Scotland's largest city, Glasgow. SML
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On October 14, Italy was paralysed by a 24-hour general strike involving 10 million workers. In this article, reprinted from International Viewpoint, LIVIO MAITAN explains the background to the protest. Italy faces its most severe crisis since
Culture
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It takes the cake The Killing of Sara Lee The Doll Cafe, 16 Ballarat St, Yarraville Thursday to Sunday, Oct 15 to Nov 1, 7.30 p.m. Reviewed by Ray Fulcher Take the Doll Cafe, into it pour seven engaging performers, add a script by Rhondda
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The culture of contentment By John Kenneth Galbraith Sinclair Stevenson (Britain), 1992. $39.95 Reviewed by Scott Wasley Veteran economist John Kenneth Galbraith deals with the attitudes and political power of the large "class" of the
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Picture stories with a twist Every Story Tells a Picture Plays by Maree Walk, Tom Hungerford and Peta Murray The Studio, Subiaco Theatre Centre, Perth, until October 24 Reviewed by Jonathan Strauss This Artrage Festival event involves
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Distant Voices By John Pilger Vintage. 397 pp. $14.95 Reviewed by Frank Noakes "Unless prejudice is countered, it is reinforced. Unless misconceptions are corrected, they become received truth." — Distant Voices George Orwell wrote in
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The Last Days of Chez Nous Directed by Gillian Armstrong Screenplay by Helen Garner Starring Lisa Harrow, Bruno Ganz, Kerry Fox and Miranda Otto Reviewed by Lee Wallace Some films have such an effect that you leave the cinema slightly
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Manufacturing Consent A film directed by Mark Achbar Canada, 1992 Reviewed by Tracy Sorensen Noam Chomsky is famous for a revolutionary development in the theory of language. In the late 1950s, he argued that there was a basic grammatical