World

Igor O'Neill, Jakarta On January 7, riot police opened fire on local residents protesting against the environmental and social impacts of Melbourne-based mining company Newcrest's Toguraci goldmining operation on the Indonesian island of Halmahera.

Barry Sheppard, San Francisco The Democratic Party nationally got a big scare when Green Party candidate Matt Gonzalez came close to winning the race for mayor of San Francisco on December 9. Gonzalez received 47% of the vote, while his

On October 31, the 22-year-rule of Mahathir Mohammed ended, when he handed over Malaysia's prime ministership to his deputy, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. Mahathir's rule ended with controversy, when he remarked at the Organisation of

Headlines such as "Workers strike against impossible quotas" and "Wildcat strike forces workplace reforms" abound in the Vietnamese media. They not only indicate the proliferation of labour struggles, but also the unabashed

Opposition supporters stormed Georgia's parliament on November 23 and took it over, forcing President Eduard Shevardnadze, who held the position since 1993, to flee. Tens of thousands of protesters outside demanded his

Abdul Teng is in his element. Teng is here to talk about his home, Gag Island in violence-ridden West Papua, the scene of a four-decade-long struggle for independence. The 56-square kilometre island is located 150km north-west of

MOSCOW — A year ago, political life in Russia was like a stagnant swamp. President Vladimir Putin's victory in the presidential election had solved none of the country's problems, while providing ample demonstration that

Latin America has emerged as the frontline of struggle against neoliberalism. This year alone: two mass uprisings have swept through Bolivia; trade union struggles have intensified in Peru and Chile; political opposition has grown

JOHANNESBURG — On November 19, the African National Congress (ANC) government finally conceded that it must begin providing anti-retroviral (ARV) medicines to hundreds of thousands of people who are HIV-positive. Activists hope

On the evening of December 2, tens of thousands of working-class supporters of Venezuela's radical left president, Hugo Chavez, poured into the streets of the country's capital, Caracas, to celebrate the defeat of the

OTTAWA — The past year has been a busy one for a new left-wing party, the Union des Forces Progressistes (UFP — Union of Progressive Forces) in Quebec, Canada's French-speaking province. Founded in 2002, the party fielded

The biggest loser in the November 13 Catalan regional election was the Socialist Party of Catalonia (PSC), the Catalan sister organisation of the social-democratic Socialist Workers Party of Spain (PSOE). For two decades, the PSC