Analysis

The following was posted on Climateandcapitalism.com on March 16 by Britain-based environmental and social justice group The Corner House.]

Sam Watson is a Murri leader and the Socialist Alliance Senate candidate for Queensland in the upcoming federal election. He told Green Left Weekly’s Jim McIlroy about the main issues facing Aboriginal people in the lead-up to the election.

An Upper Hunter community campaign for a full comprehensive health study on the effects of air pollution from coalmines and coal-fired power stations is coming to a head.

The Greens face a choice between taking the Australian Democrats road of balance-of-power politics or becoming a more influential left-wing party, Sylvia Hale, Greens member of the NSW upper house, said in the 10th annual Juanita Neilsen memorial lecture on March 23.

According to new research, Australia's richest 1% of taxpayers — those earning more than $197,000 — accounted for 9.8% of total income in 2007-08, up from 8.8% in 2002-03.

According to an immigration department spokesperson, there are currently 275 people housed in eight tents in two separate immigration detention facilities on Christmas Island. One of the detained refugees spoke to Green Left Weekly’s Niko Leka about living conditions there. He asked that his name not be used as he was afraid it would affect his visa application.

The April 9 announcement by immigration minister Chris Evans that, “effective immediately”, Australia would suspend processing asylum claims by Afghans or Sri Lankans is in contravention of the 1951 Refugee Convention.

In February, about 20 people from Victoria and NSW (and three from Germany), spent two weeks constructing a protest house with the people of Ampilatwatja. Actively Radical TV, a Sydney community-based video group, went to document the building of the protest house.

Australians voted out the Howard Coalition government in 2007. But the Labor government's decision to suspend processing new refugees arriving by boat from Afghanistan and Sri Lanka means John Howard's racist refugee policies have been revived.

On March 4, the first IQ² debate was held in Melbourne on the topic “Should Australia embrace nuclear power?”.On March 4, the first IQ² debate was held in Melbourne on the topic "Should Australia embrace nuclear power?".

Arguing the pro-nuclear case, Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation chair Ziggy Switzkowski and Erica Smyth, chair of uranium mining company Toro Energy were joined by NASA climate scientist James Hansen.