GPJA#350: Sue Bradford speaks Monday on Welfare “Reform”

GLOBAL PEACE AND JUSTICE AUCKLAND
NEWSLETTER No. 350, OCTOBER , 2010

GPJA October Forum Monday 4th October, 7.30pm, Trades Hall, 147 Great North Road, Grey Lynn.Sue Bradford will speak on welfare reform. She is a former Green Party MP and lifetime activist for the unemployed and beneficiaries. She will speak about the government’s Welfare Working Group which is due to report by the end of the year and which will deliver proposals for wide-ranging attacks on the unemployed and beneficiaries which the government will implement. These attacks on beneficiaries come, as they always do, in conjunction with attacks on workers’ rights. The low-paid and beneficiaries will be caught in a squeeze of high unemployment and beneficiary bashing. Sue will speak about the most likely attacks and strategies to counter the government’s welfare agenda.

NEW ANNOUNCEMENTS

SUPERCITY ELECTION
Matt McCarten has now put online his picks for who to vote for across the entire city – so please forward this to your networks http://supercitypicks.com/

PACIFIC FLIGHT STRIKE, SUNDAY, 3 OCTOBER, CNR PUHINUI RD AND TOM PEARCE DR, AIRPORT Dear comrades, For the last two years a small group of our members have been fighting the most virulently anti-union employer you can ever imagine. Our members work for Pacific Flight Catering in scullery (dishwashing) and as ground stewards. They are sick of the company’s stalling tactics, their outright racism, and their refusal to settle a CEA. Two weeks ago we notified the company under s90 that we were taking industrial action. We have been to mediation and had another couple of hours of “negotiations” and got nowhere. Meantime the company has been calling our members in one by one and offering inducements to leave the union. They even tried to bribe our delegate by offering him $1000 if he got his members to call off the strikes. He told them he can never be bought. Naturally we are challenging all this in the Authority. Those who have resisted the bribes have remained as staunch as ever. They are determined to go ahead with the planned strike on Sunday, 3 October, starting at 6am and going through to the afternoon. They need your support. There is a grassy area out the front where we will have a BBQ, we will be making our own “music”, people are bringing their families, and we will be celebrating union solidarity in the face of a hostile employer. We want you to join us. Tell your members to come by any time during the day, bring food, and drums, biscuit tins, noise makers, etc, to join in. An injury to one is an injury to all! In solidarity, Jill Ovens, Northern Region Secretary.

REBEL PRESS WARMLY INVITES YOU TO A BOOK LAUNCH OCTOBER 15, WELLINGTON
The day the raids came: Stories of survival and resistance to the state terror raids. 6pm, Thistle Hall (upstairs), 293 Cuba Street, Wellington. Music, food and readings. On October 15th, 2007 an estimated 300 police raided houses all over Aotearoa New Zealand and arrested people based on warrants issued under the Terrorism Suppression Act. Lives were turned upside down as the police searched for evidence of ‘terrorism.’ This book is a collection of oral history interviews of people affected by those raids and the aftermath: defendants, friends, family, supporters and other people subject to the state’s coercive powers on that day. The case is the first ever attempted use of the Terrorism Suppression Act, a piece of legislation enacted in response to the 9/11 events in New York and Washington DC. The terrorism charges were not brought, but the people arrested continue to face a long journey to freedom as the state seeks to punish political activists and to reinforce the status quo. For more information, please contact info@rebelpress.org.nz

STAND UP FOR YOUR WORK RIGHTS
On 20 October 2010 thousands of workers all around New Zealand are standing up for fairness at work and protesting at the proposed employment law changes that the Government is pushing through Parliament. While there isn’t a union meeting happening in your town that day, here’s three things you can do to be part of the day of action.
1. Discuss fairness at work on 20 October at smoko break, and why your work rights are important to you
2. Sign some postcards to the Prime Minister: call Member Support Centre on 0800 438 638 to have some sent out to you
3. Send in a photo of your workmates making your lunchroom a Fairness at Work zone on 20 October to www.fairness.org.nz

CAPTAIN OF THE KIA ORA GAZA TEAM: ‘WE NEED A BIT MORE HELP FROM FOLKS AT HOME’ BY ROGER FOWLER
Passing me in the passageway of our ferry to Greece, Viva Palestina project director Nicci Enchmarch speaks two simple sentences which echo in my mind. Pointing towards the stern of the ship, she says: “I can’t go back there. It reminds me of the Mavi.” Smiling without humour, Nicci walks on. For the first time I can see the trauma she has suffered after experiencing the Israeli military assault on the humanitarian ship Mavi Marmara which killed nine of her fellow aid volunteers. I turn and catch up with Nicci. I want to know something. I ask: “Why on earth would you come back again?” “Because every day people in Gaza go through the same and more,” she replies. “We must stay focused, reminding ourselves of the trauma these people suffer every day.”
Countless thousands of Gaza’s civilians have been killed and maimed by the Israeli military. 80,000 homes have been destroyed. Basic infrastructure, like water, sewage and power, is crumbling or collapsed. Devastated hospitals cannot get vital medicines and equipment. Israeli is still blockading all exports from Gaza, stopping the free movement of its people, and restricting or banning imports essential to healthcare and rebuilding. Israel’s bombs and missiles rain down on Gaza so often that the world media hardly notices. A ruinous collective punishment has been imposed on even the babies of Gaza.
Staffing our Gaza aid convoy are volunteers from five continents who represent the best instincts of people the world over. Our Kia Ora Gaza team represent all “fair go” Kiwis. Many of you have already donated to our $100,000 Gaza Appeal. Now our Kiwi volunteers need a little more of your help. We still have $10,000 to go to reach our $100,000 fundraising target. This last $10,000 is vital to cover unbudgeted costs on the road. And to get a little bit in the bank to meet emergencies as we close in on Gaza. The Kiwi Team is playing a major role in making our humanitarian mission a success. But we need a bit more help from folks at home to bankroll our work in the field. Together we can help Gaza. Please donate now.
HOW YOU CAN DONATE: Make a direct payment to our bank account: Kia Ora Gaza, 03-0211-0447718-000, Westpac Bank, Onehunga branch. Or write a cheque for ‘Kia Ora Gaza’ and post to: Kia Ora Gaza, PO Box 59-007, Auckland. Kia Ora Gaza is a Charitable Trust incorporated under the Charitable Trusts Act 1957. The accounts of Kia Ora Gaza are audited by a professional auditor (donating his services free) who is independent of our Board of Trustees.
KEEP UP TO DATE: Every day the Kia Ora Gaza website is updated with reports and photos from our Kiwi Team and other convoy volunteers on their long road to Gaza. Keep up to date – go to kiaoragaza.net each day!

WHAT’S ON IN AUCKLAND

Monday, October 4, 7.30pm, Trades Hall, 147 Great North Road, Grey Lynn.
GPJA October Forum: Sue Bradford will speak on welfare reform. She is a former Green Party MP and lifetime activist for the unemployed and beneficiaries. She will speak about the government’s Welfare Working Group which is due to report by the end of the year and which will deliver proposals for wide-ranging attacks on the unemployed and beneficiaries which the government will implement. These attacks on beneficiaries come, as they always do, in conjunction with attacks on workers’ rights. The low-paid and beneficiaries will be caught in a squeeze of high unemployment and beneficiary bashing. Sue will speak about the most likely attacks and strategies to counter the government’s welfare agenda.

Friday, October 8, 6.30pm, Room LibB15 (Library Basement), Auckland University
SJP Mini Film-Festival – Students for Justice in Palestine hope to create solidarity amongst all struggles against imperialism. A Mini Film-Festival will take place in order to expose some untold and forgotten stories as well as to uncover the similarities between Palestine, Iraq and Afghanistan, countries who are all suffering imperial wars and occupations. Come along and join us for a fun three nights of film screenings, and then followed by some enlightening and interesting discussion and debate.

Friday 08th October at 6.30pm – 8.30pm in LibB15 – Taxi to the dark side (Afghanistan)
Koha/Gold coin donation at the door. Everybody Welcome. We hope to see you all there!

Thursday, October 14, 7pm, Fale, Samoa House, 283 Karangahape Road, Auckland City
Kia orana, Fakalofa lahi atu, Malo e lelei, Ni sa bula, Aloha, Talofa lava and Warm pacific greetings. Thank you for signing the petition to ‘Protect Our Pacific’ from climate change. Our campaign to make the NZ government take responsibility for the effects NZ emissions are having on the Pacific is going well. You can help us. Thursday, October 14th, we are holding a fundraiser to raise money for the campaign. We are lucky enough to have Te Ariki Vaine Dance Group performing, entry is free and aiga friendly. Details are below.
Protect Our Pacific Fundraiser
Come along and show your support whilst being entertained by Te Ariki Vaine Dance Group. Korero from Barry Coates (Head of Oxfam NZ) and Metiria Turei (Co-leader of the Green Party Aotearoa). Entry is free and donations will be greatly appreciated to the koha bucket. Aiga friendly so bring the whole family! We need one last push to get more signatures before I take the petition to Wellington and present it to Parliament in November. Email me if you can help out gathering signatures. Email Luana.
A big meitaki maata to Oxfam, Project Survival Pacific and the Green Party of Aotearoa and all the voulnteers who have been gathering signatures on this petition and encouraging their own communities to take action on climate change.
Watch Pelenise Alofa speaking on why we as Pacific Peoples need to speak up on climate change.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRtgEJD8PGw

Wednesday, October 27, 6.30pm, Maidment Theatre, University of Auckland
2010 Bruce Jesson Lecture Annette Sykes Ngäti Pikiao Lawyer and Activist. “The Politics of the Brown Table”. A self-annointed Iwi Leaders Group, a Maori Party that supports a National/ACT government, and a group of Crown mandated intermediaries drawn from retired politicians and bureaucrats, are today’s agents for the manufacturing of consent and the management of discontent amongst Maori. The commercial deals on Treelords, the Emissions Trading Scheme, geothermal resources, national parks, private prisons, mining, whanau ora are all harnessing Moari to a global capitalism that impoverishes the mass of working class Maori and making them dependent on its survival. Most whanau and hapu are excluded from decision-making and denied the rights over their resources just as they always have been. Bruce Jesson foresaw these trends back in the 1980s. This lecture challenges this agenda and identifies the basic principles for a politics that genuinely empowers the people. Professor Margaret Mutu, chairperson of Te Runanga-a-Iwi o Ngäti Kahu, will be the discussant on the lecture.

Saturday, October 30, QEII Square 10.30am. March to Albert Park by 12.00 Noon
NZEI Auckland Area Council invites members of all Auckland unions to our Rally and March Saturday 30th October. This is to celebrating the successes of our world class education system. A family fun day with a strong message.

Thursday, November 4, 9am-5pm, Conference Room 1 – Copthorne Hotel Auckland City 196 – 200 Quay Street
Globalisation and Labour in the Pacific: Re-evaluating the 1890 Maritime Strike. Organised by the Auckland Labour History Group and the Labour History Project in association with the Australian Society for the Study of Labour History and NZWALMI. Papers will be presented on the 1890 strike, its broader political and historical impact, the nature of Pacific Rim connections in the labour market and between labour organisations, lessons for contemporary labour relations in the maritime industry in the Pacific, and the impact of globalisation generally in Pacific Rim labour relations. Attendance: All welcome. Fee: $40 includes lunch and refreshments. All registrations to Ann Williamson at nzwalmi@aut.ac.nz Information subject to change

November 9, 7pm, Trades Hall, 147 Great North Rd, Grey Lynn
NZ Speaking Tour By Filipino Progressive Leaders. WHY SHOULD NEW ZEALANDERS BE CONCERNED ABOUT THE PROSPECTS OF PEACE TALKS AND WHAT’S HAPPENING IN THE PHILIPPINES? Two senior international representatives of the NDFP (National Democratic Front of the Philippines) Mr Luis Jalandoni and Ms Coni Ledesma will be in Aotearoa this November hosted by local Solidarity organisations to speak under the theme “Justice and Liberation: The Road to Peace in the Philippines.” Auckland Philippines Solidarity (APS) will hold public meetings to draw the attention of New Zealanders to one of Asia’s most vibrant people’s movements. The speaking tour will be an opportunity for New Zealanders to critically view the ties that bind the Philippines and NZ.

Wednesday, November 10, 9am-12pm, Maori Strudies, Auckland University
Women’s Forum with Connie Ledesma (RSVP to Maori Studies)

Friday, November 12, 7pm, Civic Building, Strata 17, Civic Building, Mayoral Drive
Solidarity Dinner for Justice and Peace in the Philippines: Tickets $30 (Dinner, entertainment cash bar)
Contact: Luke Coxon (09) 8276059, 028 25803203 luke_coxon@yahoo.com

Sunday, November 21, 9.30am – 4pm, AUT Wellesley Street Conference Centre
Refugee Stories Symposium: This Symposium will consist of a day of testimonies about various aspects of the refugee experience, presented by former refugees who are now resident in New Zealand. REGISTRATION: Early bird Registration (by 1 October 2010) $75.00. Standard registration (after 1 October) $90.00. How to register and further information at www.aut.ac.nz/cre The day will also include a keynote speaker and cultural items. For all enquiries contact AUT Centre for Refugee Education Ph administration 921 9367 | refugeecentre@aut.ac.nz

QUOTES OF THE WEEK

“You know, the very powerful and the very stupid have one thing in common, they don’t alter their views to fit the facts, they alter the facts to fit their views, which can be uncomfortable, if you happen to be one of the facts that needs altering.” — Doctor Who – Source: The Face of Evil

“People sometimes rationalize their greed by saying that it is all for the good of their children but this is nothing but an excuse they use to make their despicable actions appear respectable and praiseworthy.” — Democritus -(460-370 BC) Greek philosopher

BEST ON THE WEB

NEW ZEALAND
Matt McCarten: Yes minister, even Kiwis from Struggle St can count http://www.nzherald.co.nz/government/news/article.cfm?c_id=49&objectid=10677749
Ananish Chaudhuri: Throw three ‘strikes’ out of the ballpark http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10676975
Mission impossible? Few politicians polarise New Zealanders as much as Maori Party MP Hone Harawira. http://www.stuff.co.nz/sunday-star-times/features/4165600/Mission-impossible
‘I bring a warm message from the people of New Zealand’ http://kiaoragaza.wordpress.com/2010/09/30/%E2%80%98i-bring-a-warm-message-from-the-people-of-new-zealand%E2%80%99/
Model for ACC changes proves it is a recipe for disaster – A Canadian experience rating scheme for accident compensation similar to the Government’s plans for ACC published today in its consultation paper, was proven to encourage the concealment and the playing down of accidents including thousands of amputations, fractures, dislocations and bad burns, revealed the CTU today. http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1010/S00008/model-for-acc-changes-proves-recipe-for-disaster.htm

NZ WORK RIGHTS
Battling actors have a hobbit onside http://www.nzherald.co.nz/workplace/news/article.cfm?c_id=74&objectid=10677637
Hobbit battle’s Outrageous start http://www.stuff.co.nz/sunday-star-times/news/4192149/Hobbit-battles-Outrageous-start
LEGAL ADVICE TO ACTORS SAYS LAW IS NO PROBLEM http://www.actorsequity.org.nz/
NZEI elects new president http://www.voxy.co.nz/national/bay-plenty-principal-lead-largest-education-sector-union/5/65608
$15 a hour not 15% GST http://socialistaotearoa.blogspot.com/2010/09/15ph-not-15-gst-strike.html
Industry led inspections risk quality of NZ meat http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1010/S00014/industry-led-inspections-risk-quality-of-nz-meat.htm
Tax Cuts a Bitter Pill for Low Paid Education Workers http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/ED1010/S00004/tax-cuts-a-bitter-pill-for-low-paid-education-work.htm
Job cuts at Auckland council are too drastic http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/AK1009/S00722/job-cuts-at-auckland-council-are-too-drastic.htm
Staff At Ministry Of Education Kick Off Industrial Action Campaign http://www.voxy.co.nz/national/staff-ministry-education-kick-industrial-action-campaign/5/65478
Independent government meat inspection at risk http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU1009/S00920/independent-government-meat-inspection-at-risk.htm
Employment law changes to increase discrimination http://scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1009/S00384.htm
Union not celebrating tax reforms http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/union-not-celebrating-tax-reforms-3812753
Rosters at heart of hospital argument http://www.nzherald.co.nz/health/news/article.cfm?c_id=204&objectid=10676280
CTU draws battle lines, backs teachers http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10677078
Employment law changes to increase discrimination http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1009/S00384/employment-law-changes-to-increase-discrimination.htm
National comes clean on phantom vacancies http://www.voxy.co.nz/national/national-comes-clean-phantom-vacancies/5/65624

NZ ECONOMY
Opinion by Bernard Hickey: Why we must abandon the economic orthodoxy and embrace capital, trade and exchange rate controls http://www.interest.co.nz/opinion/opinion-why-we-must-abandon-economic-orthodoxy-and-embrace-capital-trade-and-exchange-rate-controls
Gareth Morgan: Reserve Bank lives to lose another day http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=10676501
Failing to keep up with the neighbours http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/opinion/4192051/Failing-to-keep-up-with-the-neighbours
Tax changes mix give and take http://www.nzherald.co.nz/taxation/news/article.cfm?c_id=335&objectid=10675902
Ominous sign for stricken homeowners http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=10676083
Labour wants GST on fruit and veges ditched http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10676355
‘Frontline jobs’ also casualties of big cuts http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10677321
Tax changes – not fair, won’t help the economy http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1009/S00317/tax-changes-not-fair-wont-help-the-economy.htm
Opinion: Why NZ can’t step aside and wait to be slaughtered in the currency wars to come http://www.interest.co.nz/opinion/opinion-why-nz-cant-step-aside-and-wait-be-slaughtered-currency-wars-come

CULTURAL DISSENT
Trailer for equal pay tale Made in Dagenham, UK release announced http://blogs.coventrytelegraph.net/thegeekfiles/2010/06/trailer-and-synopsis-for-equal.html

LAND, LABOUR AND THE ENVIRONMENT
George Monbiot: The Process Is Dead – It’s already clear that the climate talks in December will go nowhere – so what do we do? http://www.monbiot.com/archives/2010/09/20/the-process-is-dead/
The Food Crisis Is Not About A Shortage Of Food By Jim Goodman
http://www.countercurrents.org/goodman290910.htm

FEATURES
Anti-austerity protests hit Europe: Wave of strikes and protests held in major cities and outside EU headquarters as anger over spending cuts escalates.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/europe/2010/09/2010929114043842969.html
Massive Strikes Against Spending Cuts Rock Europe http://tinyurl.com/2buwcoz

WORLD ECONOMIC CRISIS
Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz calls for second federal stimulus: “We will see in the next two years the real cost of there not being a second round of stimulus,” he said. “We will see the economy slow down at a very high economic cost.” http://bit.ly/8Xr4ct
How Much Do Monopolies Control? Staring down the aisle of a Wal-Mart or a Target, it doesn’t seem that American consumers lack for choice. But Barry Lynn, author of Cornered: The New Monopoly Capitalism and the Economics of Destruction , demonstrates that for all the variety at the local branch of any chain retailer, the products come from the same handful of giants, monopolies that determine much of what we eat, drink, wear, and use. Lynn, who visits Zócalo on September 21 to explain how monopolies have destroyed the American economy, outlines below the impact of one such company, and why not even Standard Oil dreamt of such control. http://zocalopublicsquare.org/thepublicsquare/2010/09/06/how-much-do-monopolies-control/

BOLIVIA
A letter from Evo Morales to the indigenous peoples of the world: Nature, forests and indigenous peoples are not for sale http://boliviarising.blogspot.com/2010/09/letter-from-evo-morales-to-indigenous.html

BRAZIL
Lula’s legacy: On 3 October, Brazil will go to the polls to elect a successor to Luis Inácio ‘Lula’ da Silva, its first working-class president. The global left placed huge expectations on Lula. Sue Branford asks what he has delivered in the eight years of his government http://www.redpepper.org.uk/Lula-s-legacy

CHINA
China labour strikes gain momentum: Labour union movements seeking better wages and working conditions have stepped up strikes and protests across China at an unprecedented rate. It has been described as nothing short of a revolution. http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia-pacific/2010/10/2010101101538473547.html

CUBA
Economic changes and the future of socialism — interview with Cuban professor José Bell Lara http://links.org.au/node/1916
“The Cuban Five” and The US Sponsored Terrorist Campaign Directed Against Cuba http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=20982
Pamphlet: The continuation of US terrorist plans against Cuba and Venezuela http://links.org.au/node/1920
The self-employment sector in Cuba http://links.org.au/node/1913 Cuba by the Numbers By Moshe Adler – Fidel Castro recently told The Atlantic that the Cuban model does not work anymore, not even for Cuba. But according to statistics collected by none other than the CIA, the Cuban model has actually worked very well. http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/cuba_by_the_numbers_20100929/#

ECUADOR
Ecuador’s Correa haunted by Honduras – This was a coup attempt – encouraged by Washington’s shameful support for the overthrow of Manuel Zelaya last year http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2010/oct/01/rafael-correa-ecuador-coup
Behind the Coup in Ecuador – The Attack on ALBA http://www.chavezcode.com/2010/10/behind-coup-in-ecuador-rightwing-attack.html

HAITI
Clinton Global Initiative Puts Haiti Center-Stage By Kim Ives – Under capitalism, the bourgeoisie often organizes strategizing conclaves for itself and circuses for the masses. The annual Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), held from Sep. 20-23 at the towering Sheraton Hotel in New York City, was a little of both. http://www.haiti-liberte.com/front%20cover%20news%20of%20the%20week%20english.asp
Nigel Fisher can’t seem to get the facts straight by roger Annis http://haitianalysis.com/2010/9/30/nigel-fisher-can-t-seem-to-get-the-facts-right

ICELAND
Iceland’s politicians forced to flee from angry protesters – Thousands take to the streets of Reykjavik as anger erupts over the impact of the financial crisis http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/oct/01/iceland-politicians-flee-protesters

IRELAND
Ireland reveals full horror of banking crisis: The Central Bank warned that the state rescue of Anglo Irish could cost as much as 34.3 billion euros (46.6 billion US dollars) and will help push the public deficit to a record 32 percent of gross domestic product this year.
http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-news-world/ireland-reveals-full-horror-of-banking-crisis-20100930-15zhl.html

PAKISTAN
US-Led NATO Forces In Afghanistan Extend War Into Pakistan By Abdus Sattar Ghazali
http://www.countercurrents.org/ghazali290910.htm
18 US Drone Attacks Launched This Month: North Waziristan Residents Live In Constant Fear By Abdus Sattar Ghazali http://www.countercurrents.org/ghazali270910.htm

PALESTINE
Hunger and poverty worsen in Gaza http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article11546.shtml
Viva Palestina aid convoy leaves Ankara. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aztg9uJ2ygE&feature=player_embedded
The Impending Collapse Of Israel In Palestine By Francis A. Boyle http://www.countercurrents.org/boyle011010.htm
A Lie At The Heart Of Israel’s Settlement Project By Richard Irvine http://www.countercurrents.org/irvine290910.htm
Miliband’s maiden speech welcomed across the Middle East http://www.middleeastmonitor.org.uk/resources/commentary-and-analysis/1565-milibands-maiden-speech-welcomed-across-the-middle-east
Reaping terror’s reward: get in there first – that’s the secret By Stuart Littlewood – Here’s the roll-call on who introduced terrorism (along with biological, chemical and nuclear weapons) to the Middle East: * Bombs in cafés: first used by Zionists in Palestine on 17 March 1937 in Jaffa. (actually grenades).* Bombs on buses: first used by Zionists in Palestine on 20 August-26 September 1937
http://www.uruknet.de/?s1=1&p=70211&s2=28 Our Man in Palestine Nathan Thrall New York Review of Books http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2010/oct/14/our-man-palestine/
IDF women describe atrocities in Gaza http://www.linktv.org/programs/to-see-if-i-am-smiling

SOMALIA
The Real Pirates in Somalia: Washington, Paris and Oslo By Abdulkadir Salad Elmi: Even when we are down on our knees and have to sometimes beg for help, the so-called international community has to first and foremost respect Somalia’s sovereignty and laws before they can be accepted as friends.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article26482.htm

SPAIN
The Mondragon diaries: `If labour has the power, then capital … becomes our tool’ – Carl Davidson, recently spent five days learning about the renowned Mondragon workers’ cooperatives in the Basque Country. Here is his diary of the tour http://links.org.au/node/1918
Basque Country: Armed struggle ends, mass struggle continues http://links.org.au/node/1910

SWEDEN
Far-right election gains met with spontaneous mass protests http://links.org.au/node/1905

UK
Ed Miliband MP, leader of the Labour party, speaking to Labour party conference http://m.guardian.co.uk/?id=102202&story=http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2010/sep/28/ed-miliband-labour-conference-speech
What’s the Point of the Unions? (49 mins) : As Britain braces itself for the severest cuts in public spending in more than 60 years, Dispatches examines the response of the trade unions and what their threats of potential mass… http://www.channel4.com/programmes/dispatches/4od#3125574
The resistible rise of corporate power http://www.redpepper.org.uk/The-resistible-rise-of-corporate
Our favourite Miliband Hilary Wainwright reveals which Miliband caught her fancy http://www.redpepper.org.uk/Our-favourite-Miliband
‘We don’t have a blueprint’ As the extent of the coalition government’s attack on public services becomes more evident, thousands have signed up for a ‘Coalition of Resistance’ (CoR). http://www.redpepper.org.uk/We-don-t-have-a-blueprint
John Pilger: Why Murdoch And The BBC Are On The Same Side – Britain is said to be approaching its Berlusconi Moment. That is to say, if Rupert Murdoch wins control of Sky he will command half the television and newspaper market and threaten what is known as public service broadcasting.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article26476.htm

USA
Patriot ACT Nightmare Sees the Light of Day as FBI Raids Activists: The government is attempting to criminalize the organizing of antiwar protests. http://www.alternet.org/story/148315/patriot_act_nightmare_sees_the_light_of_day_as_fbi_raids_activists
Anti-war activists say FBI sought to intimidate, silence them with search of Chicago home http://www.startribune.com/nation/103799754.html?elr=KArksUUUoDEy3LGDiO7aiU
FBI raids target antiwar activists in Minneapolis, Chicago, and Michigan http://solidarity-us.org/current/node/3046
Can Labor Out-Organize the Tea Party? http://labornotes.org/2010/09/can-labor-out-organize-tea-party
20 Signs that the Economic Collapse Is Already Upon Us: This year, millions of Americans are discovering that the music has stopped playing and they are left without a seat at the table. http://www.alternet.org/story/148295/20_signs_that_the_economic_collapse_is_already_upon_us
Modest Tax on Billionaires Could Erase Budget Shortfalls of Every Single US State: The ten richest Americans on the new Forbes list carry, all by themselves, more than the inflation-adjusted net worth of the entire initial Forbes 400 list back in 1982. http://www.alternet.org/story/148323/modest_tax_on_billionaires_could_erase_budget_shortfalls_of_every_single_us_state
Obama Edges To The Dark Side By Mark LeVine – President Obama has essentially continued almost every major Bush security policy, either by default or design. State secrets, targeted killings, renditions and indefinite detention, opposing the right of habeas corpus, preventing victims of admitted torture from seeking judicial redress, expanding the Afghan war. http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article26469.htm
Obama, Bush, and the Judicious Use of Hellfire Missiles: Much has changed since the Bush administration left office. Two years ago, the CIA was worrying about legal issues surrounding the killing of Americans at an alleged terrorist training camp in Pakistan. Now the Obama administration has apparently put American citizens on a “targeted killing” list.
http://motherjones.com/mojo/2010/09/anwar-al-awlaki-and-dead-americans-pakistan

VENEZUELA
Venezuelan elections: affirming the Bolivarian revolution http://www.venezuelasolidarity.org/?q=node/472
A New Opportunity for Venezuela’s Socialists by Gregory Wilpert http://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/5683

YEMEN
Thousands of Yemeni children killed or injured, says Unicef : Thousands of children have been killed or injured in fighting between government forces and rebels in Yemen, and many are suffering from water shortages and malnutrition, the United Nations Childrens Fund (Unicef) said on Friday.
http://gulftoday.ae/portal/86d35513-07ed-4cce-bc2f-e4d1792d6881.aspx

OLDER ANNOUNCEMENTS

JUSTICE AND LIBERATION: THE ROAD TO PEACE – FILIPINO PROGRESSIVELEADERS TO TOUR NZ OCTOBER/NOVEMBER
Luis Jalandoni is the International Representative of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDF, http://www.ndfp.net), a post that he has held since 1977, and since 1994 he has been the Chairperson of the NDF’s Negotiating Panel for peace talks with the Government of the Philippines. The NDF is the coalition of several underground groups, including the Communist Party of the Philippines and its New People’s Army, which has been waging a war of liberation throughout the Philippines for more than 40 years, making it one of the longest running armed struggles in the world. The country desperately needs peace with justice and security, so resolving this people’s war is central to that. Luis will be accompanied by his wife Coni Ledesma, who will also be speaking. She is a member of the NDF Negotiating Panel for peace talks; and is the International Spokesperson of MAKIBAKA, a revolutionary women’s group which belongs to the NDF. Luis and Coni are both veteran leading figures in the Philippine revolutionary Left. He was a Catholic priest in the 1960s and she was a nun. Both were founders of Christians for National Liberation, a member group of the NDF. When Ferdinand Marcos declared martial law in 1972, both went underground. They were both arrested and spent time as political prisoners. They left the clergy, and got married in 1974. They have lived in The Netherlands since 1976; they were the first Filipinos to apply for and receive political asylum there. They hold Dutch passports and travel extensively as NDF representatives. We are appealing for funds. PSNA will underwrite the tour, but we definitely need financial help because we are hosting two people. The amount needed is $10,000. The two international fares from Europe is the biggest cost, at $6,000. We will keep their domestic travel costs as cheap as possible. Please make cheques to PSNA, Box 2450, Christchurch, with a note saying that it is for the Jalandoni tour. Or, we will supply our bank account details upon request.
ITINERARY
Tuesday October 26 – Christchurch: Public Meeting – 7.30p.m. Knox Presbyterian Church Lounge, 28 Bealey Avenue. Contact: Murray Horton,0274 307742 cafca@chch.planet.org.nz
Wednesday October 27 – Blenheim: Public Meeting, 7.30pm,Nativity Centre Lounge, cnr Alfred and Henry Sts. Contact: Steffan Browning,021 725655 greeny25@xtra.co.nz
Thursday October 28 & Friday 29 – Wellington: PublicMeeting – 7.30 p.m. Thursday 28, St John’s Hall, corner Willis& Dixon Streets. Contact: Rod Prosser 021 0744992 communitymedia@paradise.net.nz
Monday November 1 – Palmerston North: Public Meeting – 7.30 p.m., Catholic Diocesan Centre (Te Rau Aroha), 33 Amesbury Street Contact: Dion Martin(06) 3569658 (w), 021 776029 Dion.Martin@ndu.org.nz
Tuesday November 2 & Wednesday 3 – New Plymouth: Public Meeting – 6p.m. Wednesday 3rd, Govett Brewster Art Gallery, 42Queen Street. Contact: Fiona Clark (06) 7547014; fionaclark@clear.net.nz
Thursday November 4 – Hamilton: Public Meeting –7.30 p.m., Waikato Trade Union Centre, 34 Harwood Street. Contact: BobAnderson, (07) 8297882, 021 776023; ban@xtra.co.nz
Friday November 5 – Whangarei: Public Meeting Manaia PHO Rooms, Rust Ave,central Whangarei. Contact: Tim Howard 027 3089216 the-farm@ihug.co.nz
Tuesday 9 November – Auckland: Public Meeting, Trades Hall, 147 Great North Rd, Grey Lynn, 7pm
Wednesday 10 November – Auckland: Women’s Forum with Connie Ledesma, Auckland University, Maori Studies 9am – 12pm (RSVP to Maori Studies)
Friday 12 November – Auckland: 7 p.m. Solidarity Dinner for Justice and Peace in the Philippines, Civic Building, Strata 17, Civic Building, Mayoral Drive: Tickets $30 (Dinner, entertainment cash bar)
Contact: Luke Coxon (09) 8276059, 028 25803203 luke_coxon@yahoo.com