The world is looking the other way as Turkey plans to build on its successful occupation of Afr卯n to expand its power with a new round of ethnic cleansing, John Tully writes.
John Tully
The title of Adam Hochschild鈥檚 marvellous book on the 1936-39 Spanish Civil War is taken from French author Albert Camus鈥檚 requiem for that doomed struggle: 鈥淢en of my generation have had Spain in our hearts 鈥 It was there that they learned 鈥 that one can be right and yet be beaten, that force can vanquish spirit, and there are times when courage is not rewarded鈥.
Martin Pieter Zandvliet鈥檚 multiple award-winning 2016 film Land of Mine is harrowing viewing. But it is not to be missed by anyone interested in issues of war and peace 鈥 or in fine films.
Solidarity with the Kurdish freedom struggle was stepped up at an inspiring conference held in Melbourne over the June 30鈥揓uly 1 weekend.
The conference, held at Victoria University (VU), discussed the bold experiment in radical democracy, feminism and ecology that is taking place in the Democratic Federation of Northern Syria (DFNS). Most importantly, the conference resolved: 鈥淚t is a duty of supporters of the liberation struggle in northern Syria to make determined efforts to publicise its inspiring achievements and build practical solidarity with it鈥.
By Jeff Sparrow
, 2017
Paperback, 292 pp
Melbourne writer Jeff Sparrow鈥檚 new book, No Way But This is a thoughtful, sensitive and respectful examination of the life and work of Paul Robeson, the great African-American baritone, Shakespearian actor, and left-wing political activist.
In January last year, many thousands of academics around the world signed the statement 鈥淲e will not be a party to this crime鈥, which called for peace in Turkey.
The statement was issued in solidarity with courageous academics in Turkey who had formed the Academics for Peace group and were working for an end to state terror in Turkish Kurdistan. The group pushed for the resumption of peace talks between the Turkish government and the Kurdish liberation movement, the Kurdistan Workers鈥 Party (PKK).
Members of Melbourne鈥檚 Kurdish community rallied outside the city鈥檚 Turkish consulate on October 28 to protest the arrests of the co-mayors of the city of Diyarbakir in south-east Turkey.
The two mayors, G眉ltan Ki艧anek and Firat Ali, were arrested on October 25 and accused of links to the banned Kurdish Workers鈥 Party (PKK). Ki艧anek is also an elected member of the Turkish Parliament for the pro-Kurdish Democratic Regions Party. She is also the city鈥檚 first female mayor.
Residents of Yarraville in Melbourne鈥檚 inner western suburbs have campaigned for years to ban heavy truck traffic through the suburb.
Despite some victories such as truck curfews at night and during school hours, and the promise of eventual diversion of traffic through a planned bypass, residents now face the prospect of B Double trucks being diverted through the suburb.
On October 6 NSW Supreme Court Judge Natalie Adams reserved her decision on Kurdish journalist Renas Lelikan鈥檚 bail appeal until 14 October. Lelikan, who is charged with membership of the Kurdistan Workers鈥 Party (PKK), has been remanded in custody since July 20.
Originally held in Sydney鈥檚 Silverwater Prison, he was transferred to isolation in the Goulburn 鈥淪upermax鈥 jail following death threats against him by ISIS sympathisers.
On January 26, 1988 - the bicentenary of the invasion of Australia - Burnum Burnum planted the Aboriginal flag under the white cliffs of Dover and took possession of England on behalf of the Aboriginal people.
Fifty years ago this week, 200 Aboriginal stockmen and domestic servants walked off the job at Lord Vestey's Wave Hill cattle station, 600 kilometres south of Darwin. Most of them were members of the Gurindji people, with small numbers of Walpiri and other indigenous people. They were to stay out on strike for ten years.
About 80 people rallied outside the Turkish consulate in Melbourne on May 25 to condemn the massacre of Kurds and support the People's Democratic Party (HDP) MPs now facing prosecution by the Recep Tayyip Erdogan government.
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