News

Alex Bainbridge, Hobart After years of advocating for a bill to legalise brothels, the state government announced on October 5 that it would amend draft legislation to instead ban brothels outright. The new legislation was passed by Tasmania's

Paul Benedek, Sydney One-hundred people packed the Newtown Neighbourhood Centre on July to launch the Socialist Alliance's federal election campaign across Sydney. Compered by Raul Bassi, the Socialist Alliance's Blaxland candidate, the launch

Alex Bainbridge, Sydney Sixty unionists and their supporters gathered to defend specialised maintenance workers at the Sydney Opera House on February 24. The protest was directed against a new anti-union contractor who has refused employment to the

Max Lane On March 24, the Senate resumed debate of the Greater Sunrise Unitisation Bill 2004, a bill to allow for the implementation of the Greater Sunrise International Unitisation Agreement that the East Timorese government was pressured to sign

Graham Matthews, Melbourne Staff cuts and lengthening queues were the subject of a street protest organised by the Wills branch of the Socialist Alliance at the Moreland Centrelink office on July 9. Forty people participated in the protest,

"[Prime Minister] John Howard's intention to follow George Bush in using federal powers to defend discriminatory practices against homosexuals is despicable," Greens Senator Kerry Nettle said in a March 8 press release. Nettle condemned Howard's

Dale Mills, Sydney NSW Police are to trial Tasers hand-held stun guns that fire two metal probes attached to copper wires, delivering 55,000-volt electric shock that lasts for five seconds. Victims typically fall to the ground and involuntarily

Alex Tighe, Adelaide Federal workplace relations minister Kevin Andrews visited South Australia earlier this months to publicly declare that the state Labor government "must abandon the Fair Work Bill" because, he claimed, if passed into law it

Peter Short, Perth "The voice of West Papua must be heard, it has been silenced for 45 years", West Papua solidarity activist Ned Byrne told a crowd of 140 people who packed into Fremantle's Kulcha venue on January 31. Organised by Project

The following letter was sent by the Western Suburbs Community Campaign Against Racism (to the residents of the Redfern Block in mid-February. Dear friends, We wish to express our condolences to the family and friends of Thomas "TJ" Hickey. This

Peter Boyle Have you had enough of the tug of war between John Howard and Peter Costello over who gets to run the government of the corporate rich in Australia? You promised me I could be PM, whines Costello. Howard responds with standard Howardian

Amanda Zivcic, Melbourne On January 25 and 27, Union Solidarity organised a community picket outside the Fitzroy Postal Delivery Centre. The picket was called in solidarity with shop steward Peter Vining, who was sacked last year. "Peter was