World

India: mafia, massacres and mass resistance

India: mafia, massacres and mass resistance DELHI — Class exploitation takes extreme forms in India. Workers are forced to sell their labour for a pittance. Landlords and bosses use criminal gangs to enforce subservience, with wholesale massacres

SA cops' culture of racist violence exposed

SA cops' culture of racist violence exposed By Norm Dixon Television footage has graphically illustrated how little the culture of racist violence and lawlessness within the South African Police Service (SAPS) has changed as South Africa's second

South African economic policies disappoint progressives

By Patrick Bond The African National Congress has a long history of accommodating competing political interests within its tent. Unlike Brazil's Workers Party, the ANC does not countenance active internal "tendencies". However, its formal Alliance

May Day around the world

May Day around the world By Norm Dixon May Day, the international day of workers' action and solidarity, was marked throughout the world on May 1. Some of the biggest actions took place where the class struggle is raging. Opposition to NATO's war

The May Days of Moscow

By Renfrey Clarke MOSCOW — Real wages in Russia, the State Audit Chamber reported recently, were down during the first quarter of this year by 30% from the levels a year earlier. In most countries, that would guarantee a hot May Day. May 1 in

Socialist wins seat in first Scottish parliament

Socialist wins seat in first Scottish parliament By Lisa Macdonald A socialist was elected to the first Scottish parliament on May 6. Tommy Sheridan headed the Scottish Socialist Party's (SSP) Glasgow regional list for the second vote, which is

Man Mohan Adhikari, 1920-1999

Man Mohan Adhikari, 1920-1999 On April 23, the chairperson of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist Leninist), Man Mohan Adhikari, died. He was 78 years old. Adhikari had been a tireless leader of the Nepalese communist and workers'

Tamil priest calls for solidarity

Tamil priest calls for solidarity By Bronwyn Beechey ADELAIDE — Fifty people attended a meeting organised by the Tamil community here on May 1. The guest speaker was Father Kasparaj, who hosts a Tamil-language show on Radio Veritas Asia, a

South African left hunkers down for election

By Patrick Bond JOHANNESBURG — The lack of a serious left alternative to the centre-right African National Congress ruling party — whose macro-economic strategy (aside from new labour regulations) is more austere and business-friendly than

East Timor's freedom in the balance

East Timor's freedom in the balance By Jon Land On April 27, as Australian Prime Minister John Howard and Indonesian President B.J. Habibie joked and chatted following their discussions on the situation in East Timor, the people of East Timor

Russian Communist youth defend their independence

By Renfrey Clarke MOSCOW — On April 18, the Russian Communist League of Youth (RKSM) held its fourth national congress here — and survived as the largest, best organised force on the Russian far left. For the RKSM — often known by the

Indian priest calls for peace in Sri Lanka

Indian priest calls for peace in Sri Lanka By Nadeem Ansari CANBERRA — The Reverend Jegath Gaspar Raj told a public meeting here on April 28 that war in Sri Lanka has brought misery to the Tamil people and has polarised the Tamil and Sinhalese