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Union support escalates for anti-intervention walk-off

A recent national speaking tour generated growing support for the Ampilatwatja community walk-off 鈥 an ongoing protest camp against the Northern Territory intervention.

Aboriginal leaders: 'Rudd must change refugee policy'

The following statement by Socialist Alliance Indigenous rights activists was released on November 4.

The popular struggle against the Musharraf dictatorship

Facing the Musharraf Dictatorship: An Activist Narrative By Farooq TariqGood Books, 2009 310pages, $25(hb) Available from

Oil rig disaster inquiry begins

PERTH 鈥 Owners of the West Atlas oil-drilling platform announced a devastating fire on the rig was extinguished on November 3.

Afghan women are desperate for justice

Shiko Zaher is a member of the Tulo Association in Wollongong, which runs assistance and service to Afghan people in the community. She delivered the speech below at the October 30 Reclaim the Night rally in Wollongong.

On the box

Pecan Summer 鈥 Takes us back in time to the events of the 1939 Cummeragunja walk-off in which hundreds of Yorta Yorta chose to leave their homes to protest against harsh conditions and treatment by the mission's manager. ABC1, Sunday, November 15, 1.30pm. The Navigators 鈥 Ken Loach's award-winning film about five Yorkshiremen who try to survive after the British Rail is bought out by a private company in 1995. SBS1, Sunday, November 15, 10.35pm.

ACF responds on population

I was surprised by the letter from Dr Stuart Rosewarne and others (鈥淧opulation is not to blame for climate change鈥 ), accusing the Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) of pandering to racism and urging us to demand government action to reduce carbon [dioxide] emissions.

Venezuela, Colombia and the threat of war in Latin America

The possibility of an imperialist war in the Americas came a step closer on October 30, when Colombia and the United States finalised a 10-year accord. The agreement allows the US to hugely expand its military presence in the Latin American nation.

Venezuela: Socialists prepare for party congress

Activists from the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) are preparing for the party鈥檚 second congress, scheduled to start on November 21.

Write On

Violence against women Jess Moore's article (GLW #815) on poverty and domestic violence misses the point. Increased financial uncertainty is associated with increased levels of domestic violence. Understanding this fact does nothing to help

Peru: Government attacks indigenous organisation

November 4, 2009 --The government of Peru has launched a massive attack on Indigenous peoples through a request to dissolve the Amazon Interethnic Development Association of the Peruvian Rainforest (AIDESEP), Peru's largest and most representative Indigenous organisation. AIDESEP groups numerous regional organisations, representing 65 ethnic groups and has led the struggle against the Garcia governments neoliberal decrees (which are part of the US Free Trade Agreement) aimed at opening up huge swathes of the Amazon to exploitation by transnational logging, mining and oil companies.

Iraq: Occupation continues suffering

Two car bombs exploded in Baghdad on October 25, targeting the justice ministry and the Baghdad Provincial Council building. This was the deadliest attack in Iraq in two years, with 155 people killed. Among the victims were 24 school children.