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There is an urgent need for left unity

BY LALITHA CHELLIAH I have followed the Socialist Alliance unity debate. As a member of the Socialist Alliance — but not a member of either the Democratic Socialist Party (DSP) or the International Socialist Organisation (ISO) — it has

Forum discusses Sri Lanka peace process

BY CHRIS SLEE MELBOURNE — About 40 people attended a forum on the peace process in Sri Lanka, held at Monash University on November 24. It was organised by supporters of the Uthayam Tamil newspaper and Radio Shakthi, a Sri Lankan radio program on

PAKISTAN: A feudal lord becomes prime minister

BY FAROOQ TARIQ Mir Zafarulah Jamali, a feudal lord from Baluchistan, was elected as prime minister on November 21 by Pakistan's national assembly. After months of attempts to install a puppet "civilian" government, General Pervez Musharraf's

Peace and diversity in Christmas parade

BY KAMALA EMANUEL LAUNCESTON — Amongst the usual tinsel, angels and reindeers of the annual Christmas parade on November 30, there were a couple of floats that carried a different message. “Peace on Earth, goodwill to all; no war on

Thousands march in Melbourne

BY ANNE O'CASEY MELBOURNE — A crowd of around 10,000-15,000 turned out to oppose war on December 1, the day after the Victorian election. The rally was chaired by Textile, Clothing and Footwear Union of Australia state secretary Michele O'Neil

Was SIEV-X fitted with a tracking device?

BY SARAH STEPHEN Despite claims that the police and navy had no way of surveying, or receiving, a distress call from SIEV-X, the asylum-seeker boat which capsized last October, it appears that Australian authorities may have had far more

'Terrorist' hysteria breeds racism

BY SARAH STEPHEN Racist prejudice is alive and well in Australia. Just cast a glance at the letters in tabloid newspapers, or listen to a few minutes of the shock-jocks' talk-back radio. People judge others according to their national

George Novack: a source of inspiration

Marxist Writings on History and PhilosophyBy George NovackResistance Books, 2002269 pages, $21.95 (pb)Order at <http://www.resistancebooks.com> REVIEW BY JONATHAN STRAUSS When the ideologists of imperialism in the 1950s declared "the

Council ban fails to prevent anti-war rally

BY JOHN GAUCI SYDNEY — Despite a ban on all political activity in the Manly Corso, the beachside suburb's famous pedestrian mall, 200 activists held a "No war on Iraq" rally there on November 23. The rally was initiated by the Northside Socialist

VENEZUELA: Right-wing campaign of sabotage escalates

BY STUART MUNCKTON "Highways are blocked with barricades, creating huge traffic jams. Protests and tear gas fill streets; police patrols are few; residents stick by their radios and TVs, ingesting venomous political rhetoric while seeing if it's

A war 'for the rich' opposed

BY LESLIE RICHMOND & EMMA MURPHY ADELAIDE — Around 2000 people attended a November 30 anti-war protest, representing a broad cross-section of Australians. Contingents had been organised by Quakers, the Greens, the Construction, Forestry, Mining

'You are the democratic opposition in this country'

BY NICK EVERETT SYDNEY — "Newspapers often categorise people into moderates and extremists. You are the moderates, the government are the extremists", declared John Pilger, addressing an anti-war rally in Sydney on November 30.. The Australian