If the last federal election promised the beginnings of a break from the two-parties-for-capitalism electoral system that has plagued Australian politics for the past century, the March 29, 2011 NSW election seems to be a lurch in the other direction.
The Liberal-National Coalition won dominance of the Legislative Assembly and (with small right-wing parties) control of the Legislative Council because a large number of working class voters punished the Labor party with a -13.5% swing.
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鈥淎s rain poured down last night, I thought I can鈥檛 possibly go this morning, but then I got on this morning and Daniel Ellsberg has been arrested in his 80s outside the White House, so we can brave a little rain!鈥澛
This poem, by Afrodity Giannakis, is translated from Greek, It was published in a book also entitled Stowaway.
* * *
A stowaway in your life,
a refugee in your land,
an exile in your country,
a foreigner in your homeland,
of your history 鈥 you鈥檇 think 鈥
an invisible viewer.
Forever inside
waiting rooms.
A patience test.
An endurance test
in the age of abstention.
The only power they have left you:
Gossiping life.
Talking about life
behind her back.
The federal ALP government is pushing ahead with the punitive system of 鈥渋ncome management鈥 despite the fact that it is racist, unfair and expensive.
In June 2010, the federal government passed legislation allowing the extension of welfare quarantining beyond the 73 Northern Territory remote communities that were its first target.
Campaigners won a stunning victory on March 21 when the WA Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) announced that there is 鈥渁dequate information to demonstrate that Vasse Coal Management鈥檚 coalmining proposal is environmentally unacceptable鈥.
EPA Chairperson Paul Vogel said: 鈥淚n effect, this is an EPA 鈥榥o鈥 to the proposal.鈥
The proposed Vasse coalmine was to have been 15 kilometres from the popular tourist destination, Margaret River.
Internationally renowned as a wine-growing region, Margaret River is in the south-west of Western Australia.
What's the best mix of electricity supply sources for Australia in the context of growing scientific and public concern about climate change? Energy efficiency and conservation provide the first part of the answer 鈥 they can provide large, quick, cheap greenhouse emissions reductions.
There has been intense activity in 2011 around the social and community services pay equity wage case pursued by the Australian Services Union (ASU) and four other unions.
The claim, which was lodged in March 2010, is rapidly approaching its conclusion.
Since late January 2011, there has been:
鈥 A new round of site visits, during which members of the Fair Work Australia tribunal hearing the case visited public sector workplaces to see how the work compared to that in the non-government sector.
Coal seam gas exploration is becoming a key political issue in NSW. The Labor and Liberal parties are pushing for a huge expansion in gas mining, including coal seam gas.
But farmers, regional communities and city-dwellers are becoming increasingly worried about the health and environmental consequences of the gas rush.
The NSW government recently approved energy company AGL鈥檚 bid to drill 90 coal seam gas wells and build a pipeline and processing centre near Gloucester, north of Sydney.
Melbourne activists protested outside Zimbabwe Airlines office on Monday 21 March to call for the release of six Zimbabwe activists who are facing charges of treason with threat of a death penalty.
The activists were arrested while watching a film about the uprising in Egypt and have been tortured in prison.
Forty-five people were arrested but 39 have since been released. The remaining six are still in serious danger.
The statement below was published by the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions Working Group (South Africa) on March 23. It鈥檚 abridged from www.pacbi.org .
* * *
Today, setting a worldwide precedent in the academic boycott of Israel, the University of Johannesburg (UJ) has effectively severed ties with Israel鈥檚 Ben-Gurion University (BGU).
This was after UJ鈥檚 Senate rejected a last ditch motion by pro-Israeli lobbyists to have two separate bilateral agreements 鈥 one with a Palestinian University and another with an Israeli University.
United States President Barack Obama鈥檚 visit to El Salvador on March 22 became a focal point for protests.
Protests were organised that day by Central American social movement organisations and their North American allies outraged by US trade policy and military meddling in the region.
Local environmental and community organisations joined with allies such as US-El Salvador Sister Cities and Committees in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador to mobilise students and workers for rallies in the US and El Salvador on March 22.
Migrant Trade Union (MTU) president Michel Catuira is facing visa cancellation and possible deportation from South Korea.
On February 10, the Korean Immigration Service issued a number of measures against Catuira. These included the cancellation of his visa and a departure order to leave the country by March 7. It also threatened him with forcible deportation to his home country of the Philippines.
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