1046

In his latest article 鈥淣ew threats of war and fascism鈥 (GLW #1045), John Pilger gives a distorted account of the wars in the former Yugoslavia. He condemns the 鈥渃riminal record鈥 of the Kosova Liberation Army (KLA), but seems to absolve the Serbian government of any wrongdoing. In reality Serbian chauvinism, promoted by the Slobodan Milosevic's government, was central to the breakup of Yugoslavia in the early 1990s amid the collapse of the Soviet bloc. The formation of the KLA was a response to the chauvinist politics of the Serbian regime.
Thousands of workers from public companies took part in an anti-imperialist march in Caracas on March 18, said that day. They demanded the US government retract its labelling of Venezuela as a 鈥渢hreat鈥. Four days earlier, more than 100,000 Venezuelans mobilised throughout the country for a series of national military exercises in defence of their national sovereignty, Venezuelanalysis said on March 16.
The parliamentary speaker in Greece's Chamber of Deputies Zoe Constantopoulou announced on March 17 the formation of a committee to audit the country鈥檚 public debt, that day. Greek Member of the European Parliament Sofia Sakorafa and Belgian political scientist, public debt expert and spokesperson for the Committee to Abolish Third World Debt (CADTM) Eric Toussaint will be on the new committee.
Venezuela has proposed trade and economic agreements that would make Athens one of Caracas' main trading partners, TeleSUR English said on March 7. The proposal came as Venezuela and Greece solidified their partnership when Venezuelan officials visited the European country to meet the new SYRIZA government. Venezuela's foreign minister Delcy Rodriguez met new Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on March 6. The two parties discussed furthering cooperation agreements, particularly in technology, industry, trade, shipping, energy, commerce and tourism.
GREEK ELECTIONS REPORT BACK GLW correspondent Dick Nichols reported from Athens during the Greek elections and will speak on SYRIZA and the fight against austerity. Brisbane: Thursday March 26, 6pm Electrical Trades Union, 41 Peel St South Brisbane Armidale: Saturday March 28, 6pm. Followed by a Mediterranean feast and the launch of the Socialist Alliance New England statement. Kent House, 142 Faulkner Street, Armidale. Phone: Bea 0458 752 680 MARCH ON PALM SUNDAY MARCH 29 Walk for justice for refugees. Adelaide: 1.30pm @ Parliament House
On March 9, US President Barack Obama issued an excutive order imposing more sanctions of Venezuelan officals and declaring the oil-rich nation a 鈥渘ational security threat鈥. It came after a long period of often violent right-wing protests and economic shortages facing the left-wing Chavista governmetn of President Nicolas Maduro.
Emergency summits of the Organisation of American States (OAS), the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) and the Bolivarian Alliance of Our Americas (ALBA) have rejected US attacks on Venezuela and offered the South American nation support. reported that a large majority of delegates at an emergency OAS meeting expressed concern about US President Barack Obama's March 9 鈥渆xecutive order鈥 declaring Venezuela a threat and 鈥渘ational emergency鈥.
Carlos Sandi, president of Amazon's native communities of the Corrientes basin.

Good news this issue.

The held a protest in Islamabad on March 17 against the Pakistani establishment's response to recent terrorist attacks. The establishment's response has been a mixture of inaction, misdirected repression, collusion with terrorists and promotion of their communalist and religious fundamentalist ideology.
The power to 鈥減lay God鈥 with the lives of asylum seekers was granted to Australia鈥檚 immigration minister by the passage of the most punitive refugee laws ever seen last December. Former immigration minister Scott Morrison, who held refugee children to ransom to pressure recalcitrant senators to concede their votes, pushed through the laws.

Once again the world's poorest people are suffering the effects of climate change caused by greenhouse gas emissions which they played no role in producing. On March 13, Cyclone Pam ripped through the South Pacific nation of Vanuatu, an archipelago of 82 islands, 65 of which are inhabited.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott鈥檚 recent comments on the 鈥渓ifestyle choice鈥 of Aboriginal Australians living in remote areas are troubling, especially given his self-anointed role of 鈥淧rime Minister for Aboriginal Affairs鈥. I have been privileged to work in Aboriginal health, in a rural centre of South Australia, for a number of years. The simplistic notion that people live in remote regions purely due to a lifestyle choice is far from reality.