Indigenous

  • Traditional owners fight for their homelands

    Traditional owners across Arnhem Land will resist the federal government’s proposed 10-year extension of the Northern Territory intervention by refusing to surrender Aboriginal land through 40 year leases. When the five-year leases imposed by the government’s declared "emergency" end in August this year, the most respected Aboriginal leaders across the Top End will not enter into any new land lease agreements until the draconian and discriminatory Stronger Futures legislation is shelved.

  • We need an Abbott-proof fence

    What would Australia look like if Tony Abbott became the next prime minister? The Liberal leader is an outspoken climate denier, a hardliner on locking out refugees, determined to crack down on union and workers’ rights and wants to extend racist and draconian attacks on Aboriginal rights. Yet polls have consistently shown Abbott and the Coalition far ahead of the Julia Gillard Labor government, whose pro-business policies and internal scandals have made it deeply unpopular.

  • Court protest supports Aboriginal Embassy arrestees

    “We are gathered here to support the 33 people who were arrested two weeks ago for defending the Aboriginal Sovereign Embassy in Musgrave Park,” Murri community leader Sam Watson told a rally outside the Magistrates Court on May 31. “Aboriginal people and their supporters were merely exercising their traditional rights in protecting the sacred fire in the park. “These rights are guaranteed by state and federal law. The raid by more than 200 police was a return to the Joh Bjelke-Petersen era by the Newman LNP government, harshly suppressing Aboriginal and democratic rights of citizens.

  • Green Left TV: Resistance Conference 2012 - A Time of Revolution

    The 2012 Resistance conference, in Adelaide July 20-22, will feature international guests including from CLASSE in Quebec (the largest and most radical student organisation leading massive student strikes); the Socialist Party of Malaysia (hugely involved in the Bersih democracy uprising); and from the brave Palestinian People's Party.

  • Green Left TV: Sam Watson — police attack on Tent Embassy

    Aboriginal leader Sam Watson discusses the brutal dawn eviction by 300 police of the peaceful embassy in Brisbane; the importance of the Tent Embassy movement; the need for unity to fight the LNP government which he compares to the infamous government of Joh Bjelke Petersen; and where to for the struggle for sovereignty.

  • Eyewitness: Brisbane tent embassy eviction was an outrage

    Mardi Reardon-Smith gathered at Brisbane’s Musgrave Park with other supporters early on May 16 to support the Brisbane Aboriginal Sovereign Embassy, which was later evicted from the park by more than 200 police officers. Her account of the day is below. * * *

  • Huge police raid evicts Brisbane Aboriginal Embassy

    More than 200 police staged a dawn raid on the peaceful Aboriginal Sovereignty Embassy in Musgrave Park, South Brisbane on May 16. They evicted the 80 people defending the site and arrested about 30. More than 100 protesters outside the wire fence surrounding the park rallied in support, despite a police blockade of all streets around the area from 6am.

  • Trade union support strengthens NT nuclear waste dump campaign

    Beyond Nuclear Initiative released the statement below on May 17. * * * Muckaty traditional owners have welcomed news that Australia’s peak trade union body, the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU), has today committed to actively support the campaign against a proposed radioactive waste dump at Muckaty, 120 kilometres north of Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory.

  • ACTU Congress backs Brisbane Sovereign Embassy

    More than 200 Queensland police evicted the Aboriginal Sovereign Embassy from Brisbane’s Musgrave Park early on May 16 on the orders of Brisbane City Council. Police arrested about 30 activists. A crowd of more than 200 people, including Aboriginal protesters from the embassy together with community and union supporters, later marched to state parliament to protest the eviction. The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) Congress passed the motion below on May 16 in support of the Brisbane Sovereign Embassy. * * *

  • Socialist Alliance releases 'Towards a Socialist Australia' draft for debate

    Towards a Socialist Australia was adopted as a draft by the 8th National Conference of the Socialist Alliance, held in Sydney, over January 20-22, 2012. Socialist Alliance also voted to consult with members, supporters and allies in the social movements over the coming months to improve this draft and deepen our collective understanding of the current political climate and the nature of the economic and environmental crises.