People charged over their involvement in a February protest outside PM John Howards state memorial service at the Sydney Opera House for media mogul Kerry Packer have called a protest demonstration on the first day of their three-day trial, which begins on October 27.
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One of the first things I usually do on a Saturday morning is read the Number Crunch column in the Sydney Morning Heralds Good Weekend magazine. I find the assorted collection of interesting statistics irresistible.
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A hunger strike will be held on October 20-21 in the Parramatta Activist Centre in solidarity with the “death fast resistance” that has been carried out by Turkish political prisoners since October 20, 2000.
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On October 10, 60 people attended a public meeting at which the keynote speaker, historian Henry Reynolds, spoke about the ongoing oppression of Indigenous Australians.
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The NSW Labor government has been forced to partially back down on its plans to enforce the educationally unsound A-E report system.
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Forums about the occupation of Palestine, film screenings, mock Israeli checkpoints and protest actions were held on university campuses in NSW as part of a week of solidarity with Palestine on October 9-13.
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When invited to address an October 12 rally in defence of womens right to abortion, both Labor Premier Steve Bracks and state Liberal Party leader Ted Baillieu declined to attend. The rally, held on the steps of the state parliament, was initiated by the Socialist Alliance.
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If youre angry, youre not mad declared a banner at a march and rally of 120 supporters of the rights of the mentally ill on October 14. The action was part of the local Mental Health Week activities and was organised by the Association of the Relatives and Friends of the Mentally Ill.
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The trial of four activists who inspected the top secret US-Australia spy base at Pine Gap for terrorist activity began on October 4. Jim Dowling, Adele Goldie, Bryan Law (Cairns) and Donna Mulhearn, members of Christians Against ALL Terrorism (CAAT), face charges under the Commonwealth Crimes Act and the Defence (Special Undertakings) Act (DSU) 1952. If found guilty they face seven years prison.
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On October 10, 50 people joined a memorial service at Melbourne University to commemorate the drowning of 353 refugees when their Indonesian boat the SIEV X sank in international waters off Christmas Island in October 2001. A year after the sinking, a Senate select committee investigation concluded that it was extraordinary that a major human disaster could occur in the vicinity of a theatre of intensive Australian [border patrol] operations and remain undetected until three days after the event, without any concern being raised within intelligence and decision making circles.
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On September 23, the Australia-Cuba Friendship Society and Green Left Weekly held a public screening of Power of Community How Cuba Survived Peak Oil. Around 90 people attended.
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A September 1-3 Newspoll survey commissioned by the progressive lobby GetUp revealed that more than 91% of people in Australia believe Guantanamo Bay detainee David Hicks deserves a fair trial without delay. Only 24% believe he will receive a fair trial at Guantanamo Bay. Visit <><http://www.getup.org.au>.