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BY TIM STEWART BRISBANE — To a packed Kurilpa Hall of 90 people, Craig Johnston, Victorian state secretary of the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU), gave a gripping account of union struggle Workers First-style. Organised by the
BY ROBERT COX SYDNEY — On August 24-25, just before the anniversary of the Tampa incident on August 26, a conference was held in Sydney titled, "The Tampa: one year on". Pax Christi Australia (NSW) and the Buddhist Peace Fellowship organised an
JerusalemSteve EarleArtemis RecordsAvailable form <http://www.artemisrecords.com> REVIEW BY BILL NEVINS Steve Earle is unrepentant, as one of his toughest songs declares. He makes no apologies for his past dissent and rebellion, and he
BY NORM DIXON The democracy movement in the tiny southern African country of Swaziland is celebrating the August 22 High Court acquittal of opposition leader Mario Masuku on a charge of sedition. The charge against Masuku, leader of the
BY BILL MASON BRISBANE — Queensland nurses are seeking an interim wage rise of 10%, backdated to June 1, while they wait for an Australian Industrial Relations Commission hearing on their claim for an 18% rise. The AIRC hearing is set for
BY SAM WAINWRIGHT SYDNEY — On August 28, 5000 workers, chanting "Stop the bias, stop the lies, hands off the union!", marched down George Street before rallying outside the Family Court in Goulburn Street. High above the spirited rally, on the
WOLLONGONG — A refugee solidarity quilt was started earlier this year by the Illawarra Refugee Action Collective. Detained refugees and members of the community continue to contribute 30-centimetre square patches to be added to the quilt, which is
BY NORM DIXON JOHANNESBURG — The South African government has repeatedly resorted to police repression to stifle protests by critics of the African National Congress' anti-poor, anti-worker, pro-corporate policies during the August 26-September 3
and aint i a woman: Repeal, don't reform, abortion laws The August 21 decision by the ACT Legislative Assembly to remove abortion from the Crimes Act has re-drawn attention to the difficulties that Australian women face in accessing abortion.
Indian court upholds Bhopal charges On August 28, an Indian court rejected the United States government's push to reduce culpable homicide charges against former Union Carbide chairperson, Warren Anderson. In 1984, a gas leak at the US company's
BY ROBERT FISK KABUL — In Afghanistan, it is possible to go from hell to hell. The first circle of hell is the "waiting area", the faeces-encrusted dustbowl in which 60,000 Afghans rot along their frontier with Pakistan at Chaman — a
BY JODY BETZEIN MELBOURNE — Three thousand people turned out on August 30 for a rally outside the State Library organised by the Melbourne Refugee Action Collective (RAC) to demand freedom for refugees. The very youthful crowd marched