GPJA #404: Why I am Voting Mana by Mike Treen (Editor)

GLOBAL PEACE AND JUSTICE AUCKLAND NEWSLETTER No. 404, November 25, 2011

Why I am Voting Mana by Mike Treen GPJA Newsletter editor.

Dear friends,

I have been editing the GPJA newsletter for 404 issues (and 9 years) and have advertised every meeting or event sent to me without exception. I have tried to give a broad range of opinion on the progressive left world view. Inevitably it reflected my personal bias to a degree but I have tried to give all the news I could find in New Zealand that dealt with issues of peace, justice, equality. I created a special Mana section in the NZ news section which I think was justified for this election as they were the new kids on the bloc so to speak. That will stop after the election. But for the first (and probably last) time I am using my position as editor to explain why I think it is important to give Mana your party vote in this election.

Hone can be expected to win his electorate. Because of that fact Mana does not need to cross the 5% threshold. Every 0.8% of the vote brings in an MP. 1.6% gives us Annette Sykes. 2.4% gives us John Minto. 3.2% gives us Sue Bradford. I can’t think of a trio of better fighters for social justice in this country. I can’t think of a better group of people to have in parliament because I know they will also be with on the streets to resist the attacks that will come.

I accept and respect that many of your will be planning to vote for the Greens or Labour. What I would ask you to consider is that in this election both those parties will have guaranteed representation. The Greens have no danger of dropping below the 5%. But every Mana vote has the chance of putting in the proven fighters from an A+ team of social justice campaigners the likes of which this country has never seen before from any party.

Whatever you do don’t forget to vote on Saturday and whatever the outcome I am sure we will be linking arms and raising our banners in various movements for make Aotearoa New Zealand a place of peace and justice in the world.

Kia Kaha
Mike Treen
GPJA Newsletter Editor

SOLIDARITY WITH LOCKED OUT MARTON WORKERS
http://www.facebook.com/groups/211101752294033/

KIA ORA GAZA – URGENT APPEAL
In December 2011 Kia Ora Gaza will join an international aid convoy to Gaza led by UK charity Viva Palestina. The convoy intends to break Israel’s illegal blockade of Gaza by linking up with Cairo’s democracy movement and entering through Egypt’s land gate. This strategy could well lead towards the permanent opening of Egypt’s gateway to Gaza, thus fatally wounding Israel’s cruel siege. That would be a truly world historic event. How can you reach out to the 1.5 million Palestinians imprisoned in Gaza? By donating towards our $50,000 Gaza Appeal to fund a four-person Kiwi Team and their humanitarian aid. Kia Ora Gaza has a proven track record. Our team was on last year’s Viva Palestina convoy which broke the Gaza blockade and delivered NZ$7 million in medical supplies. Can we do it again? That’s where you come in. Please donate generously to our $50,000 Gaza Appeal – and spread the word! To see how to donate, go to the sidebar of our website: http://kiaoragaza.net/ Or send a cheque to Kia Ora Gaza, PO Box 59007, Auckland.

Email: office

OCCUPY AOTEAROA
Auckland: Occupy Auckland http://www.occupyauckland.org/ Facebook http://www.facebook.com/OccupyAuck
Wellington: Occupy Wellington http://www.facebook.com/OccupyWellingtonNZ
Christchurch: Occupy tautahi Christchurch http://occupychristchurch.org/ Facebook http://www.facebook.com/occupychristchurch
Dunedin: Occupy Dunedin Facebook http://www.facebook.com/pages/Occupy-Dunedin/141220149310691

OCCUPY WALL STREET
99% v 1%: the data behind the Occupy movement animation http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/video/2011/nov/16/99-v-1-occupy-data-animation?fb=native
Marcel Cartier: 99 to 1 – First single/video from the Marcel Cartier & Agent of Change album ‘History "Police Officers Had NO Reason To Pepper Spray These Kids!"
David Harvey addresses #OccupyLSX: The best system money can buy http://links.org.au/node/2606
Lessons of #Occupy: Dont agonise, organise! http://links.org.au/node/2605
"One Percent" www.youtube.com/baldchandler#p/a/u/0/ilExjbNj5HY
"Occupy Wall Street (We’re Gonna Stay Right Here)" OFFICIAL VIDEO www.youtube.com/drovics#p/a/f/0/9LESL6naY-s
Solidarity – Occupy 2011: A new music video for Jefferson Airplane’s Solidarity with images of the 2011 Occupy Movement. Let’s bring this into 2012 with strength!
Humour: We are the one percent http://www.newyorker.com/humor/2011/11/28/111128sh_shouts_kenney
Pre-Occupied: The origins and future of Occupy Wall Street http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2011/11/28/111128fa_fact_schwartz#ixzz1eVNfE5Sw
Mike Davis’ advice to the Occupy movement http://socialistworker.org/blog/critical-reading/2011/11/20/mike-davis-advice-occupy-movem

KEEP THE COAL IN THE HOLE SUMMER FESTIVAL – MATAURA, SOUTHLAND, NZ. 20-23 JANUARY 2012
You are warmly invitedto gather for a Summer Festival and camp. We will share ideas, skills, knowledge, enthusiasm and take action now to oppose lignite mining in the Mataura Valley. This event will be fun, friendly and 100% coal-free! Weve got the Festival Kaupapa, detailed Festival Information and our Programme. For more information or to get involved in Festival organising please Email Us.

PLAY: THE PITMEN PAINTERS
Lee Halls play is ablaze with intellectual vigour, political passion and incendiary emotional energy. A beautiful work of art that everybody should see. The Times. The Pitmen Painters is the true story of a group of English miners whose after-work art class reveals a wealth of hidden artistic talent. They are propelled overnight from the humble mines of the North East to a rich, intellectual art world. The pitmens raw, unpretentious paintings of mining life are an unexpected sensation. With a wealthy patron keen to take them under her wing, the miners are forced to choose between their working class roots and the lure of fame and success. (potent pause) PRODUCTIONS present the Auckland premiere of this internationally acclaimed play by Lee Hall, the Tony award-winning writer of Billy Elliot. Projections of the original paintings bring this story to life for art lovers and theatre fans alike. The Pitmen Painters is a humorous and arresting testament to the power of individual expression and collective spirit. Would you leave behind the world you know for a chance at fame? Proudly supported by: Auckland Council Arts Alive http://www.qtheatre.co.nz/the-pitmen-painters

EXPERIENCE THE REAL CUBA! JOIN THE 29TH ANNUAL SOUTHERN CROSS WORK-STUDY TOUR TO CUBA
Organised by the New Zealand – Australia Cuba Friendship Society 28 Dec 2011 to 20 Jan 2012. Be more than just a tourist join the 29th Southern Cross Work-Study Tour and support Cuba in the most direct manner by working alongside Cubans for a few days picking fruit, pruning or planting fruit trees or slashing grass and then visiting schools, hospitals, cultural sites & urban agriculture projects, etc. Youll experience at first hand the cultural, political and social conditions in socialist Cuba. This years program will give participants an opportunity to celebrate the 51st anniversary of ICAP & gain an insight into how the Cuban people have triumphed over adversity to keep the revolution strong. For more information about the 29th Contingent of the Southern Cross Brigade visit the Brigade Webpage , email us or call 027 226 9950.

WHAT’S ON

Thursday, November 24, 7.30pm, Canterbury WEA, 59 Gloucester Street, Christchurch
Election Issues: Starts 27 October, All welcome! 5 Thursdays, gold coin donation. 24 Nov: Youth Health: The communitys wealth? Dr Sue Bagshaw, Korowai Youth Well-being Trust. Canterbury WEA, phone 366 0285, email: cwea Web: www.cwea.org.nz

Thursday, November 24, 4.45pm, Large Meeting Room, CTU Office, Education House, 178 Willis Street, Wellington.
Burma Update – Discussion with Steve Marshall. ILO liaison officer for Burma, Steve Marshall is meeting with the Burmese Young Leaders here in NZ. At the end of their meeting at 4.45 pm, you are invited to join us for an hour or so to discuss the latest situation in Burma.

Saturday, election night, November 26, 6pm-9pm, Metro Theatre (Mangere East Hall), 362 Massey Road, Mangere East, Auckland
Election night food & fun with Kia Ora Gaza. Dinner and entertainment. Tickets $30. Contact Hone: 2756161 or 0212990210 honefowler

Friday, December 2, 5:30 PM at Central Library Mezzanines Room, Wellington.
Embassy of the Republic of Cuba: We would like to invite you to the first evening of a series of film screenings. Will be share snacks and refreshments. Feel free to bring your friends, everyone is welcome. Movie Trailer: Please RSVP before 30th November, just for catering purposes. Regards, Noelia Portela , PA to the Ambassador of Cuba, 35 Hobson Street Thorndon. Wellington – New Zealand. Tel: 04-4723748

Fax: 04-4732958 E-mail: secretaria

Friday, December 2, Victoria University, Wellington.
New Zealand Labour Law Society Inc (In conjunction with Victoria University of Wellington Law School). Invites you to attend its Inaugural Conference. The New Zealand Labour Law Society Inc will hold its inaugural conference at Victoria University of Wellington on Friday 2nd December 2011. This conference which occurs shortly after the election will focus on two main themes: Labour law across the Tasman and future directions in labour law. Labour Law Across the Tasman: Professor Andrew Stewart (University of Adelaide) will give an address on the current state of labour law in Australia and on the impact of the Australian government’s Fair Work reforms. Professor Richard Johnstone (Griffith University) will speak on Australia’s proposed model OHS law. Future Directions for Labour Law?: The conference date is one week after the 2011 General Election – the ideal opportunity for crystal ball gazing. In addition to keynote speakers and commentators the conference will also feature special sessions looking at future directions in selected areas of the law. These (depending on interest and papers received) are likely to include: Legal Challenges in Advancing Pay Equity, Good Faith Bargaining, Workplace Health and Safety, Employment Security, whether New Zealand should adopt a comprehensive National Employment Standards on the Australian Model. Enrol online now at the Early Bird rate of $200 -Places will be limited. Online enrolment is now open at www.victoria.ac.nz/law/about/events/2011/labour-law-conf.aspx

Monday, December 5, 7.30pm, St Marks Catholic Church, 334 Pakuranga Rd, Pakuranga, Auckland
Remembering Fr. Fausto Tentorio: Pontifical Mission Society priest Fr. Fausto Tentorio was recently assassinated in Mindanao, the Philippines. Fr. Fausto was prominent in opposing exploitative practices of mining companies in Mindanao. Thirteen priests have been killed in Mindanao since 1970. The St Marks Catholic Justice & Peace Group will celebrate Fr Tentorios courageous work with the poor and indigenous people. We will pray the Office of the Dead and Amie Dural-Maga of Auckland Philippines Solidarity will speak on Fr Tentorio’s work for social justice.

Saturday, December 17, 7pm, Thistle Hall (upstairs), Upper Cuba Street, Wellington
BOOK LAUNCH: Some Justice: a book of political poems and lyrics Hosted by Rebel Press. Rebel Press would like to warmly invite you to celebrate the launch of Some Justice: a book of political poems and lyrics by Ken Vicious, and to celebrate the end of 2011 and the birth of a new year. The party is on Saturday 17 December at 7pm at Thistle Hall (upstairs), Upper Cuba Street, Wellington and features readings from the book, along with music from Dead Vicious followed by dancing with DJs Frittermix and Snowpony. Some food and refreshments provided, but feel free to BYO, and pass this invite to other friends, comrades and family. Some Justice is a fundraiser for October 15th Solidarity and a proportion of the sale price of each book will go towards the fund. Cheers, the Rebel Press Collective

QUOTES OF THE WEEK
"The state can’t give you freedom, and the state can’t take it away. You’re born with it, like your eyes, like your ears. Freedom is something you assume, then you wait for someone to try to take it away. The degree to which you resist is the degree to which you are free." – Utah Phillips
"The most potent weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed." – Steve Biko
"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime." — Mark Twain
"We live in a system that espouses merit, equality, and a level playing field, but exalts those with wealth, power, and celebrity, however gained." – Derrick Bell, Ethical Ambition: Living a Life of Meaning and Worth
"I want to live in a world where people become famous because of their work for peace and justice and care. I want the famous to be inspiring; their lives an example of what every human being has it in them to do – act from love!" – – Patch Adams

We see that the demand put forward by the Social-Democratsthe complete abolition of all indirect taxes and their replacement by a real progressive income tax and not one that merely plays at itis fully realisable. Such a measure would, without affecting the foundations of capitalism, give tremendous immediate relief to nine-tenths of the population; and, secondly, it would serve as a gigantic impetus to the development of the productive forces of society by expanding the home market and liberating the state from the nonsensical hindrances to economic life that have been introduced for the purpose of levying indirect taxes. The capitalists advocates usually point to the difficulty of assessing big incomes. Actually, with banks, savings societies, etc., at their present level of development, this is a purely imaginary difficulty. The one difficulty is the class-avarice of the capitalists and the existence of undemocratic institutions in the political structure of bourgeois states. Lenin full: http://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1913/jun/07b.htm
"If you tremble with indignation at every injustice then you are a comrade of mine." – Ernesto Che Guevara

BEST ON THE WEB

NEW ZEALAND
Matt McCarten: Progressive tactics for a fairer Parliament http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=10767277
Insight on Poverty in NZ http://www.pslweb.org/liberationnews/news/santa-clara-hyatt-hotel.html?fb_ref=.TsvBkeF3A6Y.like&fb_source=profile_multiline
Omar hamed: Beyond the beginning…As the economic crisis deepens globally the ruling class continues to push its austerity agenda. On every continent the class struggle grinds on but it is clear that this is just the beginning of a major depression and a major shift in global politics. http://socialistaotearoa.blogspot.com/2011/11/beyond-beginning.html
On why even financial analysts are jumping ship on the asset sales plan http://gordoncampbell.scoop.co.nz/2011/11/24/gordon-campbell-financial-analysts-jump-ship-on-asset-sales/
Helen Kelly recorded a short piece on what it is about this government that shes opposed to and why – the narrative of deference to employers using the 3 examples of The Hobbit, Pike River and minimum wages. Take a look and feel free to share.
NZ’s future leaders asked to help massacre victims http://nz.news.yahoo.com/a/-/top-stories/11907466/nzs-future-leaders-asked-to-help-massacre-victims/?mid=534
Wilkinsons claims on pay equity investigations proven farcical http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1111/S00601/wilkinsons-claims-on-pay-equity-investigations-farcical.htm
VOTE to keep us RICH and you POOR!
NZs future leaders asked to support human rights protection, peace-building in Philippines http://www.mindanaoexaminer.com/news.php?news_id=20111122013316
Schools wont want students dragging down National Standards results http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1111/S00675/schools-wont-want-students-dragging-down-results.htm
Global backers support library in Koha trademark battle http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/91940/global-backers-support-library-in-koha-trademark-battle
Strong reaction to damning TV child poverty doco http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10768107
On child poverty http://gordoncampbell.scoop.co.nz/2011/11/23/gordon-campbell-on-child-poverty/
NZ CHILD WELFARE A DISGRACE http://www.eastonbh.ac.nz/?p=1562
Child poverty doco ‘apolitical’ filmmaker http://www.3news.co.nz/Child-poverty-doco-apolitical—filmmaker/tabid/419/articleID/233777/Default.aspx
Why is Health and Safety being squeezed when funds are available? http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1111/S00653/why-is-health-and-safety-squeezed-when-funds-are-available.htm
$15.8m sitting unspent while Health and Safety suffers $15.8m sitting unspent while Health and Safety suffers http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1111/S00628/158m-sitting-unspent-while-health-and-safety-suffers.htm
Property divide creating second-class citizens http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/comment/6009550/Property-divide-creating-second-class-citizens
The return of the Clown http://nzagainstthecurrent.blogspot.com/2011/11/return-of-clown.html
Exodus to Australia Worsens http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1111/S00598/exodus-to-australia-worsens.htm
National needs to be open and transparent about plans for ECE http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/ED1111/S00135/national-needs-to-be-open-and-transparent-about-ece-plans.htm
Tapu Misa: Differing values widen the chasm http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=10767482
Shock look at NZ’s child poverty http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/6002311/Shock-look-at-NZs-child-poverty
Growing wealth gap alarms charities http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/5996449/Growing-wealth-gap-alarms-charities
RNZ: Minor leaders debate (audio) http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/mnr/mnr-election2011-20111124-0809-minor_leaders_debate-048.mp3
NZ election could turn on Pacific votes a Samoan perspective http://pacific.scoop.co.nz/2011/11/election-could-turn-on-pacific-votes/?mid=537

MANA
Mana Leader Calls for a War on Poverty http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA1111/S00478/mana-leader-calls-for-a-war-on-poverty.htm
Harawira’s blessing from ‘scary’ supporter http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10768240
Mana Party does tiki tour to show up poor ‘parasites’ http://www.nzherald.co.nz/election-2011/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503012&objectid=10768549
State of the Nation: Hone Harawira’s address
Hone Harawira State of the Nation speech [full-text] http://mana.net.nz/press-releases/hone-harawira-state-of-the-nation-speech-full-text/
Hone Harawira’s state of the nation address http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/policies/6019637/Hone-Harawiras-state-of-the-nation-address
Mana Party slams NZs Pacific discrimination, child poverty http://pacific.scoop.co.nz/2011/11/mana-party-slams-nzs-pacific-discrimination-child-poverty/
Hone proposes Hone Heke tax http://www.3news.co.nz/Hone-proposes-Hone-Heke-tax/tabid/419/articleID/233822/Default.aspx
Mana leads Glen Innes state housing protest http://tvnz.co.nz/election-2011/mana-leads-glen-innes-state-housing-protest-4547655
Mana: Child poverty is not a game http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1111/S00667/mana-child-poverty-is-not-a-game.htm
Harawira Calls For Return to 1930’s policies http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1111/S00651/harawira-calls-for-return-to-1930s-policies.htm
National’s Education Policy A Recipe For Failure For The Kids That Need The Best http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1111/S00575/nationals-education-policy-a-recipe-for-failure.htm
Mana pledge free education for all http://www.odt.co.nz/election-2011/latest-news/187810/mana-pledge-free-education-all
Mana: Unemployed Are Being Ignored http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1111/S00574/mana-unemployed-are-being-ignored.htm
Election 2011: Mana fills void as rivals drift to centre http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10767990
Mana Party policies at a glance http://www.3news.co.nz/Mana-Party-policies-at-a-glance/tabid/419/articleID/233612/Default.aspx
Housing women stops child poverty Mana Womens Policy released http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1111/S00615/housing-women-stops-child-poverty-mana.htm
Election 2011: Mana party says Island workers ‘used and abused’ by NZ http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10767529
DRIVING OUT POVERTY MANAS PRIORITY http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA1111/S00457/driving-out-poverty-manas-priority.htm
MANA EDUCATION POLICY RELEASE NOTES http://mana.net.nz/press-releases/mana-%E2%80%93-education-policy-release-notes/

CULTURAL DISSENT
Books: The Rise of the Tea Party: Political Discontent and Corporate Media in the Age of Obama by Anthony DiMaggio http://monthlyreview.org/press/books/pb2471/
Jia Zhangke and the Realist Imperative: Jia Zhangke’s films document the economic and socio-political changes that have affected ordinary people in China in recent decades. The interview below contains an informative and well-illustrated introduction to the industrial and biographical context, political themes and distinctive visual style of Jia’s output. Enjoy – and if you haven’t already done so, watch this man’s films! http://www.whatwouldmatticksay.com/3/post/2011/09/jia-zhangke-and-the-realist-imperative.html

LAND, LABOUR & THE ENVIRONMENT
Carbon markets: No threat to fossil fuel: The genius of carbon markets is to create a new asset class that performs alongside, and reinforces, continued fossil fuel use, rather than interfering with it. http://climateandcapitalism.com/?p=5953
Review: Requiem for a Species – Blaming individuals breeds climate pessimism http://climateandcapitalism.com/?p=5941
Farmers Mobilise to Find Solutions Against Land Grabbing http://tinyurl.com/6tt86f3
UK Firms Failed Biofuel Dream Wrecks Lives of Tanzania Villagers http://tinyurl.com/7hgkqcu

WORLD ECONOMIC CRISIS
The Banker 2
TEDxHampshireCollege – Chuck Collins — Taxing the Wealthy
We Need a Third Way, Now – Globalization has often been accused of handing over power to the financial markets, depriving democracy of all substance and bringing about the current global economic instabilities. http://tinyurl.com/6wg444u
Boring Cruel Romantics: In this op-ed, Paul Krugman argues that the policymakers who pushed Europe into adopting the Euro and bullied both Europe and the US into austerity, should be toppled from their pedestals. http://tinyurl.com/bp796qc

FEATURES
Europe: Old racist poison in new bottles http://links.org.au/node/2608
Where Did the Left Go? In this article, le Monde Diplomatiques editor Serge Halimi argues that the distinction between a reform minded left and a conservative centre has become an empty election ritual. http://tinyurl.com/6pj7ets

BOLIVIA
Solidarity activists need to support process http://www.greenleft.org.au/node/49516
Rumble over jungle far from over http://www.greenleft.org.au/node/49515

CAMBODIA
One of the Darkest Chapters of the 20th Century up for Trial http://tinyurl.com/85eznn5

CANADA
How police infiltrated groups planning G20 protests http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/how-police-infiltrated-groups-planning-g20-protests/article2244253/

CHINA
China Cannot Save the World from Crisis http://www.europe-solidaire.org/spip.php?article23493

CUBA
A bureaucrat? Me? http://tinyurl.com/8xjh26c
Awakened dreams http://cubasocialistrenewal.blogspot.com/2011/11/translation-awakened-dreams.html
EGYPT
Egypt has halted the drive to derail the Arab revolution http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/nov/23/egypt-arab-revolution?mid=5381913
The revolution that will not stop http://www.europe-solidaire.org/spip.php?article23514
Independent Union Federation joins Tahrir sit-in http://www.europe-solidaire.org/spip.php?article23504
Tahrir Square Under Attack: 32 Egyptians Killed, 1,750 Injured in Protests Against Military Rule http://www.democracynow.org/2011/11/21/tahrir_square_under_attack_32_egyptians?mid=535
Egypts Cabinet Offers to Resign as Protests Rage http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/22/world/middleeast/facing-calls-to-give-up-power-egypts-military-battles-crowds.html?partner=rssemc=rss
Occupy Tahrir Square http://leninology.blogspot.com/2011/11/occupy-tahrir-square.html

GERMANY
Die Linke’s road to an anti-capitalist program http://links.org.au/node/2604

IRAN
Labor Protest on the New Draft Proposals to the Labor Law http://iranlaborreport.com/?p=1698

LEBANON
Hezbollah unravels CIA spy network in Lebanon as agency contains damage http://tinyurl.com/6m9rpqd

USA
How Occupy stopped the supercommittee – Since the supercommittee’s real agenda was to bypass Congress and cut social security, let’s give thanks for the 99% http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2011/nov/23/how-occupy-stopped-supercommittee
The Supercommittee Should Go Really Big and Turn Against the 1 Percent http://www.truth-out.org/supercommittee-should-go-really-big-and-turn-against-one-percent/1321899939
Santa Clara Hyatt hotel humiliates, then fires women workers http://www.pslweb.org/liberationnews/news/santa-clara-hyatt-hotel.html?fb_ref=.TsvBkeF3A6Y.like&fb_source=profile_multiline
45% Of People in US Struggle to Make Ends Meet http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article29803.htm

VENEZUELA
Venezuela leads on UN human development goals http://links.org.au/node/2609

ZAMBIA
Patriotic Front victory unleashes wave of strikes http://www.marxist.com/zambia-patriotic-front-victory-unleashes-strikes.htm

OLDER ANNOUNCEMENTS

WAIHOPAI SPYBASE PROTEST JANUARY 20-22, 2012
The Waihopai spybase was subjected to unprecedented public attention by the March 2010 trial and acquittal of the three Ploughshares peace activists who penetrated its high security in 2008 and deflated one of the two domes concealing its satellite dishes from the NZ public. This legal saga has continued into 2011 with the Government changing the law to prevent their grounds of defence being used again and then suing the three activists personally for the $1.2 million damage to the dome. The Anti-Bases Campaign was happy to support this non-violent direct action anti-war activity, from start to finish. The public face of New Zealands role as an American ally is the NZ military presence in Afghanistan. But New Zealands most significant contribution to that, and other American wars, including the one in Iraq, is the Waihopai electronic intelligence gathering base, located in the Waihopai Valley, near Blenheim. It is controlled by the US, with New Zealand (including Parliament and the Prime Minister) having little or no idea what goes on there, let alone any control. First announced in 1987, Waihopai is operated by New Zealands Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) in the interests of the foreign Powers grouped together in the super-secret UKUSA Agreement (which shares global electronic and signals intelligence among the intelligence agencies of the US, UK, Canada, Australia and NZ). Its two satellite interception dishes intercept a huge volume of civilian telephone calls, telexes, faxes, e-mail and computer data communications. It spies on our Asia/Pacific neighbours, and forwards the material on to the major partners in the UKUSA Agreement, specifically the US National Security Agency (NSA). Its targets are international civilian communications involving New Zealanders, including the interception of international phone calls. Post- 9/11 the GCSB and Waihopai now spy further afield, to those regions where the US is waging wars. The codename for this Echelon has become notorious worldwide as the vast scope of its spying has become public. New Zealand is an integral, albeit junior part of a global spying network, a network that is ultimately accountable only to its own constituent agencies, not governments, not citizens. Join us for the weekend of anti-war protest at this spybase. Come prepared for roughing it and camping out. We provide the food (we cater for vegetarians but vegans will have to bring their own). Bring sleeping bag, groundsheet, a tent, torch, water bottle, eating utensils, clothing for all weather, and $40 (or $20 unwaged) to cover costs. No open fires. How to find our camp at Whites Bay: turn off SH1 at Tuamarina (9km north of Blenheim or 20 km south of Picton) and drive to Rarangi on the coast. Follow the steep Port Underwood Road over the hilltop before descending to the Whites Bay turnoff. There is a DoC public camp at the bay with basic facilities. ABC has to pay a fixed charge per head. Waihopai does not operate in the interests of New Zealanders or our neighbours. Basically it is a foreign spybase on NZ soil and directly involves us in Americas wars. Waihopai must be closed. Organised by the Anti-Bases Campaign, P.O. Box 2258, Christchurch. E-mail cafca www.converge.org.nz/abc $40 Registration ($20 unwaged). Make all cheques to ABC