LL:PR:TRIMBLE ANNOUNCES LIBEL SUIT AGAINST AMAZON.COM
Fwd: For Immediate Release from Roberts Rinehart Publishers Contact: Public Relations Officer Shelley Daigh at (303) 652-2685 or Attorney Russell Smith at (516) 668-0818 TRIMBLE ANNOUNCES LIBEL SUIT AGAINST AMAZON.COM Unable to Intimidate Roberts Rinehart Publishers, Ulster Unionist Leader Lashes Out Against the Internet David Trimble is trying again to stop publication of book he wishes was never printed. Having failed in his effort to threaten Roberts Rinehart Publishers into dropping the book, Northern Ireland=92s First Minister-Designate and the leader of the Ulster Unionist Party announced today that he is suing the world=92s largest internet bookseller, Amazon.com. Trimble=92s latest maneuver comes the day before the paperback release of the best-selling book, The Committee: Political Assassination in Northern Ireland, which Amazon.com describes as "a gripping story of terrorist atrocities and political corruption," which "makes clear that [the IRA=92s] opponents have been just as capable of committing evil in the name of their cause." Publishers Weekly calls the book "startling" and "convincing." According to the London-based establishment newspaper The Sunday Times, Trimble is suing for libel in Britain "over allegations that he was associated with a loyalist murder conspiracy," as discusssed in the book. In an editorial today, entitled "The Truth On Trial," The Sunday Times acknowledged that it may turn out that the book=92s author, award-winning journalist Sean McPhilemy, "is possibly one of the most successful investigative journalists in Irish history," and that "he will have exposed a scandal that could see ministers and police officers jailed." Roberts Rinehart Publishers denounced Trimble=92s latest action, saying "if Mr. Trimble truly wanted the facts to come out, he would have joined Sean McPhilemy in calling for a public inquiry. Instead, he devotes his time and energy to trying to stop this book." Russell Smith, the senior U.S. libel defense attorney for the publisher and author, says that "this move by Trimble is an attack not only against the book, but against the internet, and against the freedom of the British and Irish people to read what they want to read." Trimble previously had written an angry cease-and-desist letter to the book=92s publishers, in which he defended all of the alleged members of the Committee, which include two known terrorists and two persons recently convicted of offenses in connection with anti-Catholic riots in Drumcree. In another development, according to The Sunday Times, Trimble today tried to belittle efforts to subpoena him and compel him to testify under oath in the $100 million U.S. libel suit against the book by two Protestant Portadown businessmen. Trimble, the supposed statesman, called this "a stupid stunt," adding that "Roberts Rinehart knows I already have offered to give evidence..." Attorney Smith responded: "While it is not true that Mr. Trimble communicated any such offer to us, we welcome it now, and we have written to Mr. Trimble today to take him up on his offer." In another development this week, Committee witness James Sands, whose supposed "recantation" of his eyewitness account of high-level collusion between British security forces and Loyalist paramilitaries scandalized the media world in Great Britain, has come forward to confess that his abrupt change of story was a complete hoax on the part of the Royal Ulster Constabulary. In a filmed interview, and in a sworn affidavit, both obtained last weekend, this former political associate of David Trimble says he stands by all of the revelations he made to Channel Four Television in 1991, as recounted in the current book. Sands has confessed how the RUC stage-managed his later "recantation," which was then amplified by The Sunday Times. In his affidavit, Sands tells what happened: "After the RUC learned of my identity, I was detained and held against my will in British Army barracks and various police stations for a week. I was told what to say by RUC officers prior to my tape-recorded questioning. The RUC made it clear to me that if I did not cooperate with them and do what they ordered me to do, I would be prosecuted or possibly even killed. I never would have freely given any of the statements which I made to the RUC. By 'made it clear,' in relation to death threats, I mean that RUC officers told me that if I did not 'recant,' I could be assassinated by loyalist paramilitaries. They told me I should cooperate 'for [my] own safety.'" Sands also has provided Sean McPhilemy=92s Box Productions with a new, filmed interview on the subject of the murder conspiracy, and he focuses in particular on the RUC=92s role in organizing the assassination of Belfast human rights lawyer Pat Finucane. Sands, who confirmed what he told Channel Four in 1991, explains how the go-ahead for the murder was given at a well-attended meeting of the Committee at Finaghy Orange Hall in Belfast. In his
LL:ART:Screws tighten for 'job snobs'
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/index.asp?URL=3D/national/4157230.htm Screws tighten for 'job snobs' By NATHAN VASS 23may99 UNEMPLOYED people will no longer be able to stay on the dole forever, Employment Services Minister Tony Abbott said yesterday. The unemployed will receive $3.6 billion in welfare cheques over the next year. But as the Howard Government prepares to expand its work- for-the-dole program, Mr Abbott told The Sunday Telegraph the days of "career" dole bludgers were over. "The kindest thing we can do is not let people live on welfare forever," Mr Abbott said. "People won't be able to build a life on welfare. It will be almost impossible for people to build a career on welfare. "We will expect people to do something for themselves. We are moving to a situation where people who have been on welfare for a long time will have to do things to re-integrate with society." Mr Abbott's comments follow his criticism of Australia's "job snobs" =96unemployed people who refuse to take so-called menial jobs and instead stay on the dole. "You might at some time in your life do jobs which are not particularly fulfilling, but they can be a means to an end," he said. "We talk about menial work, but in the end, a job is a job is a job." The expanded work-for-the-dole measures under the Government's "mutual obligation" drive come into effect on July 1. They will effect dole recipents aged between 18 and 34, who will lose part of their benefits if they refuse to meet their end of the mutual obligation deal. Unemployed people under 25 who have received the dole for six months and those between 25 and 34 on the dole for 12 months will be told to choose from a number of options, including work-for-the-dole, voluntary work and training. They will be given two weeks to decide what path they wish to follow. If they don't make a decision, work-for-the-dole will be compulsory and they will lose part of their benefits if they refuse. Work-for-the-dole will also be expanded to take in school leavers who have been unemployed for three months. With the scheme deemed a political success, it is understood some of those within the Government's ranks sympathise with the idea of expanding work-for-the-dole to all unemployed people. The Howard Government believes work-for-the-dole has not only struck a positive chord in the community, but is already helping put Australians back in the workforce. Mr Abbott said more than 40 per cent of work-for-the-dole participantshave been placed in paid employment or further education and training within three months of leaving the program. NSW Liberal MP Charlie Lynn has compiled a submission to the federal Government calling for a modern form of "national service" to be introduced for the long-term unemployed. National service has not been in place since 1972. The scheme would not involve military service. It would use training camps set up in rural areas to boost regional economies. Leftlink - Australia's Broad Left Mailing List mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.alexia.net.au/~www/mhutton/index.html Sponsored by Melbourne's New International Bookshop Subscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=3Dsubscribe%20leftlink Unsubscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=3Dunsubscribe%20leftlink
LL:ACTU SOLIDARITY DAY FOR EAST TIMOR 27 MAY 1999 ADELAIDE SOUTH AUSTRALIA - STOP THE GENOCIDE
Campaign for an Independent East Timor (S.A.) Inc. (Member of the Australian Coalition for a Free East Timor and the East Timor Relief Association/Affiliated to the Australian East Timor Network) first floor, Torrens House 220 Victoria Square, ADELAIDE SOUTH AUSTRALIA 5000 ATTENTION : CHIEF OF STAFF MEDIA STATEMENT FOR IMMEDIATE USE 23 MAY 1999 ACTU DAY OF SOLIDARITY WITH EAST TIMOR - STOP THE GENOCIDE -THURSDAY 27 MAY 1999 The Campaign for an Independent East Timor today praised the Australian Council of Trade Unions for observing Thursday 27 May as a day of solidarity with East Timor. Andrew Alcock, the Campaign's Information Officer, released the following statement: "The call for this day comes at a very crucial time for our East Timorese friends. Their country is still occupied by the brutal Indonesian army and the militias that it has organised to terrorise East Timorese who want to be free from Indonesia. The main aim of the day will be to call for an effective UN peace making mission to be sent to East Timor. The presence of international observers has already demonstrated that the planned UN mission of 600 with 300 police will be insufficient to achieve calm for a violence-free referendum. The observers have been able to clearly identify who is responsible for the ongoing massacres. While investigating the 16 May massacre at Ataro, Mr David Wimhurst, the spokesperson of the UN Mission in East Timor (UNMIET) witnessed Indonesian army officers training militias. On the ABC programme, Background Briefing on 23 May 1999, Dr Dan Murphy, the American who has been working in East Timor said that someone from outside is going to have to take charge because there is no security inside East Timor. He believes that the only hope is for an international peace making effort. The alternative is that there will continue to be ethnic cleansing and genocide. Dr Murphy claims that all the weapons are on one side - the Indonesian military and the militias. He told of the massive brutality occurring in Timor. During the Liquica Massacre, people went to the church for refuge - they were all murdered by the militias. Others sought shelter in a house. The militias tear gassed the house and shot the people as they emerged. Dr Murphy also expressed frustration because he does not have adequate resources to cope with the situation. He is not a surgeon and the Motael Clinic where he works is not geared for large numbers of surgical casualties. Sister Josephine Mitchell, an Australian nun, told of wounded young East Timorese going to Indonesian hospitals and not receiving treatment. These reports support the claims of the East Timorese and their supporters that the Indonesian regime is using the militias in an attempt to terrorise the Timorese into accepting autonomy with Indonesia. They also demonstrate that the change of leadership of Indonesian regime one year ago has not stopped the bloodshed and terror in this tiny nation. It is time for the western world to stop its callous appeasement of the brutal Indonesian regime to bring an end to the terror, bloodshed and suffering in East Timor. The ACTU rally in Adelaide will, therefore, also call for the UN to demand that Indonesia withdraws all its troops from East Timor before the August referendum and organise an international boycott of military cooperation with Indonesia. NO MORE EAST TIMORESE BLOOD FOR OIL". CONTACTS: Andrew (Andy) Alcock Information Officer Campaign for an Independent East Timor (South Australia) Inc Phone: 61 8 83710480 (home)Pager: 61 8 84157467 Facsimile: 61 8 82236509 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Chris White Secretary, United Trades and Labour Council (South Australia) Phone: 61 8 83528585 Mobile: 0418830297 AIMS OF THE ADELAIDE ACTU SOLIDARITY DAY RALLY: The aims of the rally are to stop more killing in East Timor by calling for the following: 1. Call on the Australian Government to work for a UN peace making mission in East Timor that is adequate to: - control the militias the Indonesian army -ensure the integrity of the 8 August 1999 ballot 2. The right of the East Timorese to vote on their future free of terror violence 3. Urgent distribution of food medical supplies in ET free from attack by militias the Indonesian military 4. Pressure to be put on the Indonesian government to: - disarm disband the militias - withdraw the Indonesian army from East Timor 5. Call on UN members to halt all military cooperation with Indonesia 6. Call for wider union, community and government action if Indonesia does not take steps to halt the violence by disarming the militias and withdrawing its army from East Timor Leftlink - Australia's Broad Left Mailing List mailto:[EMAIL
LL:Carpenter's Wildcat Strike Continues -- Solidarity Requested!
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Saturday, 22 May 1999 01:33 Subject: Carpenter's Wildcat Strike Continues -- Solidarity Requested! PLEASE FORWARD! PLEASE FORWARD! PLEASE FORWARD! Fellow Workers, friends, and comrades: The Carpenters' Wildcat Strike continues and is gaining momentum. However they need our solidarity. I went to their rally at Pacific Bell Park in San Francisco at 2:30 PM this afternoon, where Carpenters (including workers from several parts of this extensive building trade's union) discussed where to take the strike from here. Workers from all around the Bay Area continue to wildcat. The open meeting included discussions about strategy and tactics and it's clear that while some differences exist about how to proceed with the strike itself, an overwhelming majority of those present voted to continue the strike. I'm sorry that I d not have all the details, and admittedly this spontaneous wildcat strike has been spontaneously organized to say the least. Whatever the case, these workers have taken direct action and they've already crossed that magical line between theory and reality. If they lose this battle it will represent a defeat for the working class. If they succeed, it will send a shot in the arm to the labor movement. We need to do our part to make this as successful as the Neptune Jade if we can. What these workers need is solidarity on the picket line and on the front lines. They need folks to spread the word about what's happening. They need financial support. Because this wildcat was the spontaneous efforts of a small group of pissed-off workers, many carpenters do not know about it. The mainstream media is largely ignoring the wildcat (when they're not belittling it). The only thing that's helping spread the word about this strike are the efforts of these rank file workers who've been traveling from job-site to job-site pulling workers off the job. There will be more walkouts on Monday and Tuesday. You can help by joining in the pickets. Call (510) 496-3458, Working Carpenters for a Stronger Union, for further information. That is a voice mail. Listen carefully for instructions. TEXT OF THE FLYER FOLLOWS - CARPENTERS: ONE MEMBER ONE VOTE! Brothers Sisters: throughout (the) San Francisco (Bay Area) carpenters are shutting jobs down. The San Francisco AirPort-the largest construction job in California-is shut down. Carpenters walked off Pacific Bell Park. They walked at Kaiser Hospital in San Francisco. They walked at Microsoft. We are getting support from the ironworkers, the laborers, the cement finishers, and the electricians. If we have left any out, or we have left out any other jobs that have been shut down, we apologize. This first day has succeeded so far beyond our imagination that we are unable to fully keep up with our successes. We all understand what is at stake. We are fighting to take our union back from that tiny handful of unelected, unrepresentative officials who are shoving this contract down our throats. We are the strongest union supporters there are, but we know that the only way the union will be truly strong is if it fights for us. We are told that we are jeopardizing the "Project labor Agreement" at the airport. We, the working members, are the real project labor agreement. We have sworn a blood oath that when we go back to work there, Agreement or no, there will be no non-union construction at the airport. We don't need a "PLA", all we need is our own strength and our own unity. We demand the following: (1) (The sellout) contract (negotiated by the union's bureaucrats and the bosses without the consent of the union's rank file) must be taken off the table. It does not represent our interests and it was voted on illegally at a meeting that was called illegally. It must be removed. (2) No new contract voted on by the Regional Council delegates until it is voted on and passed by the working members at area-wide general membership meetings where we can discuss the pros and cons. No phony "mail-in" ballots, where they control the source of information, they keep the members feeling isolated, and they count the "results". We are united, we are strong, and we will take back our union. JOIN US! Working Carpenters for a Stronger Union For more information and regular updates, call (510) 496-3458. - Posted in Solidarity by a Wobbly For the One Big Union, -FW Steve East Bay IWW / Branch Secretary East Bay IWW http://bari.iww.org/ Phone (510) 845-0540 Timber Workers IU 120 -- http://bari.iww.org/iu120/local/ Marine Transport Workers, Local 9 -- http://www.iww.org/iu510/local9/ Communications Workers, Local 23 -- http://www.iww.org/iu560/local23/ Take Part in the I99 International Solidarity Conference!
LL:ART: FPI ++ Volume 3 Number 14
Original Message Subject: FPI ++ Volume 3 Number 14 Date: Fri, 21 May 1999 21:31:14 + From: "Freedom Press" [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] From: F R E E D O M P R E S S I N T E R N A T I O N A L, Volume 3 Number 14 3/ THE MINIMUM WAGE IN BRITAIN SHORT CHANGED: the National Minimum Wage Last month the government introduced the national minimum wage (NMW). Workers aged over 22 were entitled to a minimum =FA3.60 an hour and those aged 18-21 to =FA3.00 an hour. Stephen Byers, the trade and industry minister, described the NMW as 'historic', while TUC boss John Monks said it represented "a land- mark day for Britain's low paid workers". In theory some 1.9 million workers should see an increase in their pay packets this month. The reality, however, is very much different from the government's rhetoric. Trade unions are angry and disappointed at the abysmally low rate the NMW has been set at. =FA3.60 an hour represents an annual wage of just over =FA6,500 a year for someone working 35 hours a week. As Rodney Bickerstaffe, general secretary of the public sector trade union Unison said: "I defy anyone to live on =FA3.60 an hour and be happy and content". Young workers employed by Pizza Hut are certainly not happy and content with the NMW. They actually saw their wages cut on 1st April to bring them in line with the NMW. The restaurant industry is the lowest paid in Britain, closely followed by security services, cleaning and the clothing sector. Unions are already reporting workers telephoning them saying that employers are paying less than the NMW even though their wage slips will show =FA3.60 an hour. Other employers are cutting their wage bill by reducing hours of work but expecting staff to produce the same level of work. One GMB organiser said "we have been inundated with calls from people telling us their hours are being cut but they are expected to do the same amount of work". Some manufacturers are paying the NMW but deducting wages for the cost of worker's overalls. The Financial Times reported the senior tax partner at Grant Thornton as saying "what will happen is that minimum wage fiddles will be added to fiddles for avoiding VAT and income tax". In one survey a massive one in five of employers questioned said they would not pay the NMW. Avoidance is likely to be so high because it will be up to workers to report rogue emplo~ers. The Inland Revenue has just a handful of inspectors to police the new system (in contrast to the number pursuing benefit fraud). Even when caught employers just face a fine of =FA5,000. Next year the NMW is expected to rise to just =FA3.70 an hour. Many unions are calling for a rate of =FA4.79 an hour and the Campaign For a Living Wage has set a target for collective agreements of =FA5.00 an hour. There is though a real danger that =FA3.60 will become a ceiling - the level of poverty pay the government approves of and which it becomes hard for unions to negotiate above. The NMW shows that government intervention can make things worse not better, as those workers experiencing a cut in the wages have found. All governments try to get away with as little as they possibly can. If New Labour was serious about tackling wage poverty the NMW would have been set well above =FA3.60 and it would have been properly enforced. The NMW will actually save the government money in lower in-work benefit payments. As anarchists know, the best defence workers have against low wages is not the government but to organise together in trade unions. Those industries with the lowest wage rates are generally the least unionised. Many unions had already negotiated wage rates for their lowest paid members above =FA3.60 by the time the NMW was introduced. Anarchists abhor poverty pay (as well as the even lower amounts paid to those on benefit). The Independent Labour Research Department reports of a firm in Hampshire who were paying a 53 year old employee who joined them on leaving school =FA62 a week for a full- time job, and of a security guard in Manchester paid =FA1.87 an hour and of a woman in London paid just 92p an hour. Anarchists campaign against poverty incomes. The reality is that the pockets of the low paid are empfied to line those of the bosses. The NMW will not change this. If anything it may institutionalise low pay as has happened in America. Can you imagine the sort of rates a future Tory government would set? At present almost a quarter of employers will ignore it totally. More will fiddle their way around it. Others will find legal loop-holes. As one officer for the clothing workers' union said: "there is no doubt that employers will be trying every trick in the book" to get around the NMW. So much for the historic day. Richard Griffin Leftlink - Australia's Broad Left Mailing List mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.alexia.net.au/~www/mhutton/index.html Sponsored by Melbourne's New
LL:(ET) Dr Dan Murphy on Background Briefing
To all, Dan Murphy on "Background Briefing" repeated on ABC Radio National on Tuesday at 7 pm (check local guides). Listen!!! Bill Fisher Leftlink - Australia's Broad Left Mailing List mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.alexia.net.au/~www/mhutton/index.html Sponsored by Melbourne's New International Bookshop Subscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=subscribe%20leftlink Unsubscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=unsubscribe%20leftlink
LL:DDV:Forum: Human Rights in Chile Argentina
HUMAN RIGHTS FORUM After more than 20 years, why is there still no justice for the people detained and disappeared by Latin America's dictatorships? Speakers: Mariana Guzman Collective for the Familes of the Detained and Disappeared in Chile (A.F.D.D. Chile) Roque Grillo Support Group for the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo (Argentina's Mothers of the Disappeared) Terry McDonald Amnesty International Thursday May 27 7.30pm Building 3C-42 Victoria University St Albans Campus Exhibition presented by the Refugee Mental Health Services Arts and Crafts Refreshments provided South American Music Organised by Taller Alerce Workshop Sponsored by The Department of Communication, Languages and Cultural Studies (Spanish Discipline) of Victoria University. LL.VE Leftlink - Australia's Broad Left Mailing List mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.alexia.net.au/~www/mhutton/index.html Sponsored by Melbourne's New International Bookshop Subscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=subscribe%20leftlink Unsub: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=unsubscribe%20leftlink
LL:ART: Esso fires union members for refusing to work
From ABC on-line news today: *Esso fires union members for refusing to work* Esso has stood down hundreds of workers at its Gippsland gas plant, in another dispute with unions over safety at the site. Union members are refusing to work, demanding sirens and flashing lights be installed to warn of emergencies, after a gas leak and evacuation last week. But Esso says the Workcover Authority has declared the site a fit place to work and says Longford's warning system is adequate. Dean Mighell from the Electrical Trades Union says Esso must take better care of it workers. "The situation last Thursday was the four tradesmen were left working on the site an hour after the leak was detected, and other personnel were evacuated," he said. But Esso spokesman Ron Webb says the leak in a heat exchanger was a minor incident and the response was adequate. "The area around the exchanger was cordoned off and people in other areas kept working as normal," he said. "It was fixed up and it was not an issue. We've had WorkCover in since that time. "They've come in and independently said the site is safe to work, the evacuation procedures are appropriate and as a result we've asked the people to go back to normal work and they've refused. "Now if they call an emergency like that and have an evacuation, they left workers lives at risk...it's unacceptable," he said. Mr Webb says the company had no option but to order a stand-down. "We've got to the point, following lots of discussion, to say that we can't do [that] any more," Mr Webb said. "This is industrial action...you need to work on a site that's been declared safe, and if you don't you're stood aside." Workers will meet at the Longford plant at 7:00am today but will stay off the job if safety concerns at the plant are not met. -- Leftlink - Australia's Broad Left Mailing List mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.alexia.net.au/~www/mhutton/index.html Sponsored by Melbourne's New International Bookshop Subscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=subscribe%20leftlink Unsubscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=unsubscribe%20leftlink
LL:DDV: Workers Strike Back!
An invitation to all Melbourne Leftlinkers: Radical Women Meeting -- "Workers Strike Back! Teachers, hospital and garment workers are on the move" Wednesday, 26 May, 7.00 pm Solidarity Salon, 1 Appleby Crescent, West Brunswick Come along to hear about the battles and victories that you won't find highlighted in the Packer and Murdoch press. The bad news is: * nearly 1 in 5 workers in Australia is a casual * they are just part of an expanding pool of low-paid and discardable labour that also includes wage earners forced onto individual contracts and unregistered outworkers * bosses need them all as a bulwark against waning profits * unions are under attack The GOOD news is: these workers -- most of them women and migrants -- are fighting back! Come and hear Pamela Curr tell us about the FairWear Campaign to unionise outworkers in the garment industry. She will introduce the video, "20 Pieces: outworkers tell the real fashion story." Hear about the recent landmark victory of Mario Kobza in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal! He was sacked for joining the Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Workers Union. VCAT ruled that it is unlawful for employers to disciminate on the basis of industrial activity. And there's more. Everyone is welcome. Dinner will be served at 6.15 pm for a $5 donation. -- Leftlink - Australia's Broad Left Mailing List mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.alexia.net.au/~www/mhutton/index.html Sponsored by Melbourne's New International Bookshop Subscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=subscribe%20leftlink Unsubscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=unsubscribe%20leftlink
LL:DDA: JABILUKA
PUBLIC MEETING - WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY ACT JABILUKA ACTION GROUP (JAG) Invites all interested persons to a World Environment Day Public Meeting. Speakers include: Senator Dee Margetts - West Australian Greens Dr Jim Green - People Against the New Nuclear Reactor Senator Margetts is a long term campaigner for the environment will discuss the eleven new proposed mines for Western Australia and the impact that they will have on the environment. Dr Jim Green is a well known anti nuclear campaigner who writes regularly for Green Left Weekly and has been long term campaigner against the new nuclear reactor for Lucas Heights which has been recently approved by the Federal government. Dr Green will speak on the Howard government's nuclear agenda for Australia, as well as the campaign to stop the new reactor. Time has been allocated to allow questions and comments from the public once guests have concluded speaking. MEETING DETAILS: WHEN: 7 pm - Friday, 4 June 1999 WHERE: Hayden Allen Tank -ANU COST: Entry by gold coin donation Refreshments will be available FILM NIGHT ACT Jabiluka Action Group presents a film night fundraiser. FILMS: Pangea Promotional Film -See the promotional video used by Pangea to sell Australia as the nuclear waste dump of the world. E.R.A. of Destruction - The latest News Unlimited Film on the Jabiluka Campaign. Currently there is legal action being taken to stop this film being shown around Australia. See it while you can WHEN: 6. 00 pm Wednesday, 26 May 1999 (National Sorry Day) WHERE: Hayden Allen Tank - ANU COST: $5 waged/ $3 unwaged or concession. Tickets at the door. Refreshments will be available -- Leftlink - Australia's Broad Left Mailing List mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.alexia.net.au/~www/mhutton/index.html Sponsored by Melbourne's New International Bookshop Subscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=subscribe%20leftlink Unsubscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=unsubscribe%20leftlink
LL:DDN: Stop the GST picket
Friends, A SNAP PICKET against the GST has been called by the ANTI-GST alliance and the Greens: 12.30-2pm Tuesday, 25 MAY 70 Phillips Street, Sydney If you can get along that would be good. Michael Thomson LL.NE -- Leftlink - Australia's Broad Left Mailing List mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.alexia.net.au/~www/mhutton/index.html Sponsored by Melbourne's New International Bookshop Subscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=subscribe%20leftlink Unsubscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=unsubscribe%20leftlink
LL:DDV: Politics in the Pub: Indonesia and East Timor
Green Left Weekly is presenting Politics in the Pub each month at Comrade's Bar (next to ETU office, 520 Swanston St, Melbourne) Date: Wednesday 26 May Time: 7pm Topic/speakers: Resistance activist, Bronwyn Jennings and Action in Solidarity with Indonesia and East Timor (ASIET) activist Jo Williams returned from a Student Solidarity Tour of Indonesia share their impressions of the Indonesian democracy movement. Ph 9329 1277 for info. LL.VE -- Leftlink - Australia's Broad Left Mailing List mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.alexia.net.au/~www/mhutton/index.html Sponsored by Melbourne's New International Bookshop Subscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=subscribe%20leftlink Unsubscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=unsubscribe%20leftlink
LL:PR: LETTER TO UNESCO D/G, FEDERICO MAJOR, WHC CHAIR MATSUURA
INCLUDES LETTER TO UNESCO D/G FEDERICO MAJOR, LETTER TO US INTERIOR SECRETARY BRUCE BABBITT Dear People, After the events of last week at Jabiluka, which resulted in a number of letters to Unesco Director-General Federico Major and World Heritage Committee Chair His Excellency Ambassador Koichoro Matsuura of Japan, we'd like people to concentrate on faxing Federico Major and Matsuura with something like the below. People in the US should however, keep faxing their interior secretary Bruce Babbitt. If you are in the US and you've already faxed Babbitt, and want to do more, then do this one, but fax Babbitt first. If you are in Japan we'd like you to fax this letter or something a bit like it to Matsuura *IN JAPANESE* with a copy to the Japanese WHC rep, in Paris and Japan. Federico Major's fax number is: + 33 1 45 68 55 54 Matsuura is faxable on +33-1-42-27-50-81 Japan's WHC rep in Paris is on +33-1-47-34-46-70, in Japan 81-3-3591-3228. Bruce Babbitt's number is 202-208-5048. The US WHC rep, John Reynolds is on 202-208-7889. If you've alredy sent other letters that's just fine no problem. If you have not yet sent anything, use the texts below for Major/Matsuura and Babbitt. It is also important if you are in a country that is on the WHC, to fax your Ministers for the environment and/or foreign affairs, to ask them to instruct your WHC rep to not only vote for Kakadu to be put on the 'in Danger' list, but to actively lobby for that. The WHC includes the US, Japan, France, Finland, Italy, Canada, Benin, Brasil, Ecuador, Greece, Morocco and Cuba. MODEL LETTERS FOLLOW MODEL LETTER TO MAJOR (UNESCO) AND WHC CHAIR AMBASSADOR MATSUURA. FEDERICO MAJOR, DIRECTOR-GENERAL OF UNESCO, +33-1-45-68-55-54 HIS EXCELLENCY, AMBASSADOR KOICHIRO MATSUURA, CHAIRMAN, WORLD HERITAGE COMMITTEE, +33-1-42-27-50-81 cc M. Bouchenaki, Director, World Heritage Centre Paris, +33-1-456-85570. Dear Director-General Fedrico Major and Ambassador Matsuura, I am writing to express our concern over the fate of the World Heritage Kakadu National Park in the Northern Territory of Australia, and to convey to you the extreme urgency of this matter. Last year in December, the IUCN and ICOMOS strongly recommended that Kakadu National Park be immediately listed as 'in danger' on account of the threat to World Heritage values posed by the construction of a large uranium mine at Jabiluka, in the heart of the National Park. In a joint statement, both bodies said that failure to list Kakadu as 'In Danger' immediately would compromise the integrity and standing of the World Heritage Convention. However, in deference to the extreme opposition to an 'In Danger' listing expressed by the Australian delegation (but emphatically not by Australian NGOs), Australia was allowed a further six months to prepare a case against an 'in Danger' listing. Australia was asked to cease construction operations at Jabiluka. It did not do so. This means that for the past six months, construction, and therefore damage to the World Heritage values of Kakadu has been proceeding on a 24 hour a day basis. IUCN and ICOMOS (as well as the NGO community) have now dismissed the Australian government case as not credible, and IUCN and ICOMOS have re-emphasised the necessity of listing Kakadu as 'In Danger'. The extreme urgency of taking action on this matter is underlined by the fact that as I write, Energy Resources of Australia is resuming construction activities on a tunnel which will desecrate the Boyweg-Almudj sacred site, thereby severely compromising World Heritage values. It is also emphasised by the refusal of the Australian government to listen to any of the warnings on this matter that have been sounded by the European Parliament, by our own Senate, and now by the World Heritage Committee.. Any further delay in placing Kakadu on the list of sites that are in danger, and any ambiguity in its being placed in that list, will lead to further damage to the site and the further destruction of World Heritage values. We call on you to act immediately to ensure positively that Kakadu will be listed as 'in Danger' when the World Heritage Committee meets in Paris on July 12, and to convey to the Australian government the extreme gravity of its actions in failing to cease construction as demanded by the World Heritage Committee last December in Kyoto. Yours respectfully, (SIGNED). LETTER TO US SECRETARY FOR THE INTERIOR BRUCE BABBITT ATTN US SECRETARY FOR THE INTERIOR BRUCE BABBITT +1-202-208-5048 cc John Reynolds, US WHC Delegate, 202-208-7889. Dear Bruce Babbitt, I am writing to you to urge the US delegation to the World Heritage Committee to adopt a clear and unequivocal position in defence of the World Heritage Convention, when it meets in Paris on July 12 1999, to discuss the question of whether to place Kakadu National Park on the list of properties that are 'World Heritage in Danger'. We would like the US delegation not only to vote for
LL:ART: Mandatory jailing 'masks black genocide'
Mandatory jailing 'masks black genocide' By MATTHEW ABRAHAM 19may99 MANDATORY sentencing laws could be masking a "hidden genocidal intent" given new research showing rising Aboriginal imprisonment rates across Australia, NSW magistrate Pat O'Shane has warned. Ms O'Shane, an outspoken advocate of Aboriginal rights, said despite evidence Aborigines were no more "criminal" than the rest of the population, the latest figures showed Aboriginal imprisonment had continued to increase since the 1991 royal commission findings into Aboriginal deaths in custody. Delivering the Elliott Johnston tribute address at Adelaide's Flinders University last night, Ms O'Shane said that as research showed harsher penalties had little if any effect on crime rates, it was difficult to avoid the view the Northern Territory's mandatory sentencing laws were "targetted specifically at Aborigines". "If we accept the findings of the royal commission that the major cause of Aboriginal deaths in custody is the fact that they are in custody too often, we might permit ourselves to wonder aloud whether there might even be a hidden genocidal intent in the Northern Territory's mandatory sentencing laws," Ms O'Shane said. Ms O'Shane said while the royal commission found Aborigines were 10 times more likely than non-Aboriginal people to be in prison, an examination of the types of offences of conviction or charge showed "Aborigines are no more criminal than are non-Aboriginal Australians". She said research by the University of Sydney and the Australian National University for a new book indicated imprisonment rates for all Australians had risen, but those for Aborigines had outstripped non-Aboriginal rates. The 1995 National Prison Census showed 17.1 per cent of all prisoners were Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders, when they made up only 1.3 per cent of the population. In 1986, Aborigines made up 14.6 per cent of all prisoners and 1.46 per cent of the total population. "Increased imprisonment rates, far from being signifiers that Aborigines have become more criminal in the recent past, rather indicate abject failure by governments," she said. Ms O'Shane also criticised cases of "passive pin-pricking racism", such as mandatory sentencing and the common practice of serving released Aboriginal prisoners with warrants for previous offences. * This posting is provided to the individual members of this group without permission from the copyright owner for purposes of criticism, comment, scholarship and research under the "fair use" provisions of the Federal copyright laws and it may not be distributed further without permission of the copyright owner, except for "fair use." -- Leftlink - Australia's Broad Left Mailing List mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.alexia.net.au/~www/mhutton/index.html Sponsored by Melbourne's New International Bookshop Subscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=subscribe%20leftlink Unsubscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=unsubscribe%20leftlink
LL:ART: MAI Mark 2 needs watching
LE MONDE DIPLOMATIQUE May 1999 Transatlantic wheeling and dealing WATCH OUT FOR MAI MARK TWO Sheltered from the hubbub of war and crisis, Europe, the United States and the World Trade Organisation (WTO) are devising agreements that will remove the final obstacles to the free play of "market forces" and require countries to submit to the unfettered expansion of the multinationals. Learning from the failure of the Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI), big business and technocrats are trying to force through a decision before the end of 1999. by Christian De Brie * The corpse of the Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI) hardly had time to get cold in the vaults of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) (1) before the ultra-liberal Dr Jekylls led by Sir Leon Brittan, the outgoing European Commission vice-president and Thatcherite die-hard, have tried to clone it, excitedly hoping to see new Draculas emerge from their test tubes by the year 2000. This urgent work is being carried out in two secret laboratories with "keep out" signs to deter anyone not wearing a lab coat: the Transatlantic Economic Partnership (TEP) and the Millennium Round of the World Trade Organisation. The first of these, which opened on 16 September 1998, is dedicated (though it will not admit it) to that favourite project of the British and the Americans - seeing the European Union dissolved in a free trade area with the United States. Following the failure of the first attempt in 1994, a rehashed version presented by the European Commission on 11 March 1998 under the name NTM (New Transatlantic Marketplace) was thrown out by the foreign ministers of the Fifteen on 27 April. As he had done before, Brittan went back to his drawing board (without seeking a mandate) to come up with a disguised version of his pet scheme. If the 27 pages of the Commission recommendation on the negotiation of agreements in the field of technical barriers to trade between the EU and the US (2) are anything to go by, the outcome promises to be instructive. (An abbreviated version was approved by the Council, empowering it to negotiate on behalf of the member states, then by the European parliament in September and November 1998). On the pretext of removing "technical barriers to trade", which include health, social and environmental protection regulations, the ultimate aim is to "reach a general commitment to unconditional access to the market in all sectors and for all methods of supply" of products and services, including health, education and public contracts. In the inimitable jargon of the Commission, states and local authorities are required to make all derogations explicit in the form of "a negative freedom" given that the agreements negotiated apply to all the territory of the parties, regardless of their constitutional structures, at all levels of authority. This is very restrictive for the local authorities of the European countries, but of little risk to the US, where the federal states are not bound by Washington's signature in the matter. The aim is gradually to draw up common minimum regulations "based on the recommendations of enterprises" in order to "create new outlets" for them - all this in "a spirit of conviviality". Involved in the TEP talks from the outset, the multinationals have greatly influenced the content thanks to a powerful lobby that has been institutionalised for four years: the Transatlantic Business Dialogue (TABD) bringing together the upper crust of big business on both sides of the North Atlantic. Its last two-yearly meeting took place in Charlotte (North Carolina) in November 1998. Big business to call the tune In order to allay suspicion, they are trying to rush through the establishment of a Transatlantic Consumer Dialogue, a Transatlantic Labour Dialogue and a Transatlantic Environment Dialogue for consumers, trade unions and ecologists respectively, who will have to stay firmly within the bounds set by big business in the TABD. The latter has no intention of giving anything more than a half-hearted commitment to optional codes of conduct with no sanctions attached. Thus "hemmed in", talks proceed behind closed doors, using salami tactics to avoid alerting public opinion, so that everything can be sewn up by December 1999. Industrial goods, services, public contracts, intellectual property, etc. - in a dozen fields, slice by slice, "mutual recognition agreements" (MRA), apparently technical but in fact political, seek to reduce standards and regulations to the lowest common denominator. The outcome is that the safeguards that Europe has built up, in food, the environment and health in particular, are being dismantled. Once agreement has been reached, governments will be obliged to abolish any laws that conflict with the MRAs. And it is no surprise to find that the procedures will consist of meetings "at cabinet level in order to maintain political impetus" and
LL:PR: Activists of Color Speak Out in New Anthology
Dear Leftlinkers As fighters for justice and human rights, you will undoubtedly be as thrilled as I am by "Voices of Color," a new offering from Red Letter Press. This powerful anthology, edited by Yolanda Alaniz and Nellie Wong, is an essential tool for anyone who wants to hear what grassroots activists of colour have to say about the forces impacting their lives. In 35 articles, writers of different racts, genders, and sexual orientations offer insightful reports on little-known union and community organising campaigns, news on Native struggles, frank discussions on how to combat racism within progressive organisations, film and book reviews and much, much more. All articles tie together the issues of sex, sexuality and race in a way that is seldom seen. The book conveys great optimism about race relations and social progress, because it presents the actual experiences of people who are out there every day in the struggle. As Ria Roncales-Goodwin writes in The Asian Reporter, "Their writings urge us to realise that we are powerful as individuals, that people will listen to us, and that we can make a difference." Another appreciative review by Aboriginal activist Ray Jackson is reprinted at the end of this letter. I urge you to purchase "Voices of Color" for your library, or perhaps as a special gift for a friend. By responding immediately, you will not only gain an inspiring new book but you will also help Melbourne Radical Women and the Freedom Socialist Party, make our collective goal of selling 85 books by 14 June. If you email your order form (below) to us by 14 June, you will get a free copy of the current issue of the Freedom Socialist newspaper, featuring the Voices of Color column: "Energy and optimism of young people needed to win back affirmative action." I will contact you directly to make arrangements for payment. I look forward to hearing from you soon. In solidarity, Debbie Brennan Freedom Socialist Party (Melbourne) Clip here__ ORDER FORM Yes, I want a copy of "Voices of Color" Red Letter Press, 160 pp, paperback, ISBN 0-932323-05-7 $18.85 (AUD) + $2.50 for shipping Name: Address: City: State: Area Code: Tel: Fax: Email: RED LETTER PRESS PO Box 266 West Brunswick Vic 3055 Tel: (03) 9386 3230 FAX (03) 9386 5065 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Find out more about Red Letter Press at: http://www.socialism.com/bookstore/bookstor.html (Email bookstore and review requests to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]) ___ Book Review by Ray Jackson In 35 exciting articles, "Voices of Color" encompasses the whole rainbow of struggle and empowerment for people of colour in the United States and Canada. We hear the strong, vibrant voices of African Americans, Chicanas/os, Asian pacific Americans and Native Americans detailing their fights for social justice over the past 15 years. These are the voices of the Comrades of Colour Caucus of the Freedom Socialist Party and Radical Women. In their writings is the recognition that struggles for the equality of all races, sexes, sexualities and working people are linked -- each finding strength and purpose by being mutually inclusive. The 20 authors are all leading activists with attitude -- and proper attitude at that! Though the writers are in the United States, their struggles for justice mirror ours in Australia. In "NAFTA: tri-country genocide against indigenous people," Chippewa writer, Ann Rogers, explains most clearly how the North American Free Trade Agreement is being used to sweep aside all remaining rights of the original peoples of Mexico, Canada and the United States and give corporate capital open slather. She calls NAFTA "a cannon aimed by big business." NAFTA is precursor to even more ambitious boardroom plans, like the Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI), to turn the world into one big "free trade" zone. For Aboriginal people everywhere, this would be the ultimate genocide. But Ann Rogers doesn't mourn. She talks about resistance -- Native peoples, trade unions and environmentalists unifying as a counterforce that can beat our common enemy: international big business. The authors cover so many more shared struggles -- against bans on bilingual education, racism in sport and entertainment, racist police crackdowns and racist bosses. They are activists in the trade unions and the movements of gay/lesbian/transgender rights, Native American cultural and land rights, among others. This is but a taste of the banquet served up in "Voices of Color." It is not a book to just read and then put back on the shelf. "Voices" is a resource for day-to-day struggles -- struggles that are worldwide and as fresh today as they were in 1982. It is a call for urgent, united action. "Voices of Color" is a very strong, rich palette of politics and showpiece of community action. Read, savour and enjoy. Then organise! -- Ray Jackson is a
