CAIRNS 鈥 State and federal ALP parliamentarians were sent to the rear of the Labour Day march and rally in Cairns, trailing behind about 1000 unionists and their supporters. The theme of the march was opposition to the Queensland government's privatisation plans.
Far North Queensland region Electrical Trades Union organiser Stuart Traill called for the abolition of the Australian Building and Construction Commission, with its special interrogation powers, and other laws directed against workers in the construction industry.
836
Dukens Raphael, secretary-general of the Confederation of Public and Private Sector Workers of Haiti (CTSP) told the April 24 convention of the Canadian Union Public Employees (CUPE), British Columbia division of the dire situation facing Haiti鈥檚 people after the January 12 earthquake: 鈥淚f you arrived in Port au Prince today, you would ask, 鈥楧id it happen yesterday?鈥欌
It took the Rudd government some time to work out how best to exploit the final report of Australia鈥檚 Future Tax System Review, led by Treasury Secretary Ken Henry. Which of its 138 recommendations to implement straight away, which to reject, which to stick in the too-hard basket?
The conspicuous presence of barbed wire in Australian immigration detention centres, such as Rudd鈥檚 newly re-opened Curtin detention centre, is a reminder of the inhuman pedigree of these grim despair factories.
It is no accident that barbed wire 鈥 or the 鈥渄evil鈥檚 rope鈥 as the First Nations people of North America called it 鈥 has accompanied and facilitated many of the worst crimes against humanity of the modern era.
MELBOURNE 鈥 At a mass meeting and protest rally outside Telstra鈥檚 main shop in Melbourne on May 5, Telstra workers voted unanimously to continue their campaign of strikes, bans and other disruptions, aimed at winning a new enterprise agreement and defeating Telstra鈥檚 attempts to discriminate against its unionised workers.
Marching through the Melbourne CBD, the workers, who are members of the Communications, Electrical and Plumbing Union (CEPU) communications division, demanded equal pay with the non-union workers in Telstra.
On May 1, Nepal was entirely shut down by huge demonstrations called by the Unified Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (UCPN-M) to call for the resignation of the unpopular government. In Kathmandu, at least 500,000 marched 鈥 the streets a sea of red flags.
The Henry Review aims to develop the best possible tax-and-transfer policy for Australian big capital. But there are other proposals that would make up a tax-and-transfer policy for the working-class majority.
The Rudd government has already ruled out action on 27 of the Henry review鈥檚 138 recommendations.
May 17 is International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHO). The day of protest began in 2004, and has been held every year since. This year, IDAHO events will be held in more than 60 countries.
On May 4, 1970, Ohio State National Guard military reservists murdered four students at Kent State University. The students were peacefully protesting against President Richard Nixon鈥檚 expansion of the Vietnam War into Cambodia.
The killings stunned American youth into a convulsive protest movement that shook Nixon鈥檚 government and contributed to forcing the US ruling class to reverse its South East Asia war plans.
The upsurge even found an expression on the pop music charts.
During April, 11 Palestinians, including two children, were killed by Israeli soldiers or settlers.
For the world鈥檚 corporate media this was a quiet month. The deaths received little coverage in the Western media, unlike the two Israeli soldiers killed attacking the Gaza Strip on March 26.
In Turkey鈥檚 capital of Istanbul, more than 200,000 people gathered at Taksim Square on May 1 in the first May Day demonstration allowed in the square in 33 years.
May Day marches had been banned there since 37 people were murdered a 1977 May Day demonstration there. The government had violently repressed past attempts to celebrate May Day in Taksim Square. Marches carried banners reading: 鈥淪ecure job and a humane life鈥 and 鈥淛obs, Bread, Freedom鈥.
- Previous page
- Page 5
- Next page