[PEN-L:12456] Coverage of APEC WLN protest, Sept 13/97, Hull (fwd)

[Sid Shniad]

> -
> 
> Coverage of  "APEC Women Leaders' Meeting" protest, September 13, 1997, 
> Hull
> 
> 1. The Ottawa Sun, Sunday September 14, 1997, Page 21
> 2. The Ottawa Citizen, Sunday September 14, 1997  Page A6
> 3. The Globe and Mail, Monday, September 15, 1997, Page A5
> 
> --
> 
> The Ottawa Sun, Sunday September 14, 1997, Page 21
> 
> Protesters hit free trade meet
> Oppose Asian economic union
> 
> By Stephanie Rubec
> Ottawa Sun
> 
> A women's conference in Hull on economic unity with Asia hadn't even 
> started yesterday when it was crashed by mainly female protesters 
> opposed to more free trade.
> 
> Before the 180 women participating gin an Asia Pacific Economic Co-
> operation (APEC) conference began their seminar, a coalition of anti-
> poverty, church, and anti-free trade groups stormed the Holiday Inn 
> where the meeting was to take place.
> 
> Chanting "APEC, not for us!" about 100 protesters filled the conference 
> room - only to find their intended targets nowhere in sight.
> 
> "This free trade zone will be 100 times worse than NAFTA," said protest 
> organizer Kerry Pither, who claims poverty will increase and employers 
> will move to countries with lower wages, increasing unemployment in 
> Canada.
> 
> "We oppose APEC and we want to expose the effects of APEC on women."
> 
> Pither said the women participating in the APEC conference want to 
> profit from the economic union, regardless of how it will hurt the 
> poor.
> 
> "The process hasn't been based on the grassroot women's voices," said 
> Joan Grant-Cummings, president of the National Action Committee on the 
> Status of Women.  "We want to see an alternative economic system that 
> considers women in the onset."
> 
> But APEC co-chairwoman Andrina Lever said the conference's aim is to 
> help women take full advantage of the future economic union.
> 
> "One thing we're looking for is the difficulties women face," said 
> Lever, who helped organize workshops on topics such as access to 
> finance, markets, technology and training.
> 
> "Access to information will help women grow their businesses."
> 
> [Picture shows Joan Grant-Cummings leading protesters carrying a 
> large postcard reading "Femmes dirigeantes contre l'APEC!  We are women 
> leaders and we oppose APEC!"
> 
> Caption reads "WELCOME: Joan Grant-Cummings of the National Committee 
> on the Status of Women sets up a welcome sign at the conference on 
> economic unity yesterday in Hull."]
> 
> --
> 
> The Ottawa Citizen, Sunday September 14, 1997  Page A6
> 
> Trade group blamed for sex-slave ring
> 
> By Sarah Humphrey
> The Ottawa Citizen
> 
> About 120 feminist leaders protested in a Hull park against an 
> international trade meeting yesterday, saying the trade group must 
> shoulder blame for the exploitation of women.
> 
> APEC, Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation, is "dismantling the things 
> that women have fought so hard for over the years, like health care and 
> education," said Joan Grant-Cummings, president of the National Action 
> Committee on the Status of Women.
> 
> APEC's Women leaders Network conference at a Hull hotel was held to 
> discuss how government trade, education and training and business 
> policies can help women who lead small and medium-sized enterprises.  
> About 200 people were at the meeting to write recommendations to be 
> presented this week in Ottawa to the APEC ministers responsible for 
> small business.
> 
> The trade group is comprised of countries on both sides of the Pacific 
> Rim and has hosted  a number of trade talks with the goal of reducing 
> trade barriers among member countries and ultimately establishing free 
> trade among all by 2020.
> 
> APEC includes the United States, Canada, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, 
> Mexico, Chile, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines and China.
> 
> Representatives of all APEC countries will be in Vancouver this November 
> to discuss the policy recommendations from the various countries.
> 
> "These women are hand-picked by the government to speak for all women," 
> said Ms. Grant-Cummings.
> 
> "How can women's voices be heard when not all women are represented? 
> How can policies involving women be made if not all (women's) 
> organizations are represented?"
> 
> She also said APEC must take the blame for things such as the sex-slave 
> ring uncovered in Toronto.  Last week, 22 people were arrested after an 
> investigation into a sex and people-smuggling ring.
> 
> "We see more and more in the news young girls in these sex rings and it 
> is a direct result of these APEC talks and discussions," she said, adding 
> that she was upset because she was not asked to attend the conference.
> 
> "It is through APEC that people from other countries are allowed to 
> traffic young girls as sex slaves," she said  over the rising volume of 
> the demonstration.
> 
> She

[PEN-L:12454] KPFA Workers Sign Divisive Contract, Lay-Off's Follow (fwd)

[Sid Shniad]

> Subject:  KPFA Workers Sign Divisive Contract, Lay-Off's Follow
> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> 
> [Those unfamiliar with the history of Pacifica radio may want to check out
> . -- Aaron]
> 
> Date: Tue, 16 Sep 97 09:09:50 CDT
> From: "Lyn Gerry" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> 
> KPFA Workers Sign Divisive Contract, Lay-Off's Follow
> by Lyn Gerry
> =
> 
> Samuel Guia, a paid staff member at KPFA-FM, Pacifica's Berkeley
> station said lay-offs of five paid staff members were announced
> today. This follows the signing of a contract between management
> and Communications Workers of America (CWA) last Tuesday by paid
> staff which excluded the unpaid staff. Unpaid staff had been
> represented by union contract since 1987. KPFA workers changed
> their union affiliation to CWA earlier this year. KPFA workers had
> previously been represented by the United Electrical Radio and
> Machine Workers of America (UE) which still represents workers at
> WBAI-FM in New York and KPFK-FM in Los Angeles.
> 
> Samuel had been Chief Steward at KPFA until recently. He resigned
> when the paid staff voted 16-8 to ratify the contract excluding the
> unpaid staff, because he couldn't stomach the lack of solidarity.
> Unpaid staff had been in the process of organizing for CWA
> representation and are scheduled to meet with CWA representatives
> on Wednesday.
> 
> Samuel believes that people of color, particularly Latinos have been
> targeted for removal. He cited  remarks of management's labor lawyer,
> Larry Drapkin regarding the affirmative action clause of the
> contract. Samuel was told by one of the contract negotiators that, in
> a negotiating session, Drapkin asserted that affirmative action
> language, previously part of the contract, must be removed as it will
> conflict with the provisions of Proposition 209.
> 
> Present in the meeting when these remarks were made by Drapkin were
> Chupoo Alifante, union negotiator; Mark Mericle, union negotiator;
> Marci Lockwood, outgoing KPFA General Manager; Phil Osegueda, KPFA
> Assistant Manager, John Dugan, CWA organizer and Larry Drapkin,
> management's attorney.
> 
> Samuel believes this is part of a pattern which has included the
> removal of a significant ratio of Latino-oriented programs at
> several Pacifica stations, as well as discourtesy toward Latino staff
> members such as Mario Murillo at WBAI, recipient of the "screw you
> and the horse you rode up on" memo written about by Alexander
> Cockburn in The Nation.
> 
> The first KPFA worker to be laid off was Patricia Medina, the Women's
> Department Director, a part-time union position. Patricia was told by
> Lynne Chadwick, acting general manager of KPFA, that all part- time
> executive producer  positions were to be eliminated and their duties
> taken over by the Program Director, a management position. KPFA is
> expected to hire a new Program Director soon. Though the identity of
> the new PD has not been announced, it is believed to be someone from
> KQED, the San Francisco NPR station.
> 
> Samuel said management justified the lay-offs due to a budget
> shortfall caused by "large donor contributions drying up." Samuel
> believes that revelations in the Bay Area press regarding the conduct
> of Pacifica management has alienated KPFA's major donors.
> 
> Prior to the announcement, Samuel said, CWA negotiator Bill Harvey
> met with Pacifica and CWA lawyers. Samuel believes CWA was aware of
> management plans to lay-off workers, but said nothing to the
> members.
> 
> Although workers have been threatened with retaliation by management
> for speaking out, Samuel said he can keep silent no longer. He says
> he speaks, "not as a member of the union. nor as a member of the KPFA
> staff but as a human being." He described the behavior of
> KPFA/Pacifica Management as " treacherous," epitomized by the removal
> of International Workers Day, May 1, as a Pacifica holiday. This day,
> said Samuel who comes from Peru, is recognized all over the world as
> one which honors workers. Its loss, he said, illustrates the contempt
> for workers in the New Pacifica.
> 
> http://www.radio4all.org
> http://www.radio4all.org/freepacifica
> 
> --
> mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> http://burn.ucsd.edu/~aaron
> 

[PEN-L:12453] The ITF on the International Day of Action (fwd)

[Sid Shniad]

> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> 
> The ITF reports (part of) the International Day of Actiom in support of the
> Liverpool dockers without even mentioning them !! This is scandalous.
> 
> Chris Bailey
> 
> ---
> 
> >From ITF Info 13
> 
> Dockers' unions take action for global solidarity
> 
> ITF-affiliated dock workers' unions in South Africa and the West Coast of
> the USA have undertaken actions designed to demonstrate their solidarity
> with other dockers' unions. The ITF-affiliated Transport and General
> Workers' Union (TGWU) organised actions throughout South African ports on
> Monday 8 September as an "international day of action".
> 
> A series of stop work meetings were also organised by the ITF-affiliated
> International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) on Monday 8 September
> during the first morning shift.  The meetings discussed privatisation
> issues in Los Angeles and also expressed the union's solidarity with other
> dock workers.
> 

[PEN-L:12423] WSJ on UNCTAD report

[Sid Shniad]

The Wall Street Journal September 16, 1997 
 
International: The Dark Side of Freer Global Markets 

U.N. REPORT FORESEES WORKER BACKLASH 

By Bhushan Bahree Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal 
 
GENEVA -- Western industrialized nations are the leaders so far in  
globalization, but they may face a political backlash from the middle class  
over growing job insecurity, a United Nations report says. 
 
"Growth and development do not automatically bring about a reduction in  
inequality," said Rubens Ricupero, secretary-general of the United Nations  
Conference on Trade and Development, which presented the report. 
 
Mr. Ricupero, once Brazil's finance minister, cited the United Parcel  
Service strike involving issues that included parttime work, French strikes  
in 1995, and electoral changes in western Europe (presumably in the United  
Kingdom and France) as evidence of an impending backlash. "The 1920s and 
the 1930s provide a stark and disturbing reminder of just how quickly faith in  
markets and openness can be overwhelmed by political events," he told a 
news conference. 
 
In an interview, UNCTAD's chief economist, Yilmaz Akyuz, said a backlash  
could take any form, including "xenophobia in Europe and Islamic  
fundamentalism" elsewhere. Mr. Akyuz said UNCTAD's study of income  
distribution globally showed that "certain groups and classes are in  
absolute decline," and there was apprehension, especially among workers,  
about globalization's benefits. 

UNCTAD's report is likely to irk proponents of liberalized markets and  
officials of such institutions as the World Trade Organization, who contend  
that globalization and freer movement of goods, services, technology, and  
capital spread benefits all around. 
 
The report said industrialized countries erroneously favor anti-inflation  
policies instead of job creation and adequate pay; that freer markets in  
many countries entice investors to seek short-term capital gains instead of  
long-term productive investment; and that liberalization so far favors  
industrialized countries and denies trade advantages to developing nations  
in such areas as textiles and agriculture. 
 
The result, UNCTAD said, was a global glut of labor and easy exit routes for  
capital, resulting in a contest between countries. This was made worse in  
some countries that had embraced the Big Bang theory of liberalization,  
opening their doors wide before their economies were able to deal with the  
consequences of footloose funds. The report was written before the recent  
financial crisis that began in Thailand and spread to other countries in  
Asia, an area that otherwise was a main beneficiary of globalization. 
 
UNCTAD found that the income gap between the rich and the poor, between  
nations and within nations, was widening. "Globalization was supposed to  
close the gap, but it hasn't," Mr. Akyuz said. 

[PEN-L:12419] apec-L: Creating Democracy in Vancouver (fwd)

[Sid Shniad]

> 
> >Date: Wed, 17 Sep 1997 07:02:09 -0700 (PDT)
> >From: The Vancouver International of Hope <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> >Subject: apec-L: Creating Democracy in Vancouver
> >To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> >Sender: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> >Precedence: bulk
> >Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> >X-UIDL: 2576647c158dc374e67452ac7e325bc2
> >
> >[Please forward and post widely]
> >Vancouver, Salish Territory
> >
> > -- CREATING DEMOCRACY --
> >  A Community Gathering
> > CARNEGIE CENTER
> >Main and Hastings
> >   VANCOUVER
> >  Saturday, October 4th
> >  10am to 6pm
> >  FREE
> >
> >Creating Democracy is a gathering of members of the Eastside Vancouver
> >community. We intend to hold workshops and discussions on issues of both
> >local and international interest. Our goal is to collectively discuss the
> >effects of the corporate agenda and to creatively build alternatives to
> >it. Everyone is welcome to attend. 
> >
> >WORKSHOPS INCLUDE:
> >  * Housing in the Downtown Eastside
> >* What the Heck is APEC?
> >* Drugs and the Eastside
> >   * Indigenous Struggles in Chiapas
> >   * the Harassment of Latinos in Vancouver
> >   * the Legacy of Che Guevara
> >* the Ecology of the Vancouer Bioregion
> >
> >
> >Free food and childcare.
> >
> >  Facilitated by the 
> >VANCOUVER INTERNATIONAL OF HOPE
> >  "A Zapatista-inspired gathering of local activists resisting
> > neo-liberalism and creatively building alternatives." 
> >
> >  For more information:
> >  251-9914 or [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> >
> > -30-
> >
> >
> >
> 
> PEACEWIRE
> www.peacewire.org/pw
> A project of END the ARMS RACE and the Public Education for Peace Society
> 405-825 Granville Street, Vancouver, B.C. V6Z 1K9  CANADA  
> ph:(604) 687-3223  fax:(604) 687-3277
> 
> 

[PEN-L:12418] Asia Pacific Soilidarity Conference (fwd)

[Sid Shniad]

> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Date: Wed, 17 Sep 1997 14:37:53 +1000
> 
> ASIA PACIFIC SOLIDARITY CONFERENCE:
> SYDNEY AUSTRALIA APRIL 1998
> GLEBE HIGH SCHOOL, GLEBE
> 
> 
> ALL WELCOME
> 
> Organised by the Asia Pacific Institute for Democratisation and Development.
> 
> Contact:
> Dr Helen Jarvis, C/-School of Information, Library and Archive Studies
> (SILAS) University of NewSouth Wales, Sydney NSW 2052 Australia.
> Or Email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Or fax to: 02-96901381
> 
> The conference aims to be a unique gathering of activists, researchers and
> academics. Your support, attendance and participation is what will make
> this conference a success.
> 
> Register early (save up to 20%) and send your suggestions for specific
> themes for discussion under the general framework of supporting
> democratisation, self-determination and social justice and opposing the
> neoliberal austerity offensive.
> 
> Submissions for papers
> 
> The Institute also welcomes applications to present papers at the
> conference. All are welcome to submit such papers. The conference aims and
> the names of special guest speakers are further elaborated below. A contact
> address is noted above.
> 
> A Region Of Struggle and New Thinking
> 
> Governments, corporations, banks and international financial institutions,
> all talk of the Asia Pacific region as the region of miracle growth, of
> accelerated development, of economic boom. For millions of other people,
> the picture is different. It is a picture of political and social struggle
> for basic human rights, for a sustainable economic and social order. The
> massive worker and student struggles in South Korea against new labour
> laws, the sharpening struggle against the dictatorship and cronyism in
> Suharto's Indonesia; the continuing uprising of the East Timorese people
> for self-determination; the labour struggles and renewal in the Philippines
> in the face of Philippines 2000 neoliberal offensive; the ongoing war on
> the island ofBougainville; the conflict in Sri Lanka over national rights
> of the Tamil people and authoritarian government are just some examples of
> struggles in the region.
> 
> ATTACKS ON DEMOCRACY
> 
> The strengthening of authoritarian practices as a means of defending the
> austerity and economic restructuring policies have become major concerns
> throughout the region. Laws to ban trade union organisers from worksites in
> Australia; outright bans on independent trade unions in Indonesia;
> restrictions and harassment of non-government organisations in Malaysia are
> examples of this tendency.
> 
> These restrictions are part of a pattern of general resistance to
> democratisation by governments throughout the region.
> 
> COMMUNITY RESISTANCE
> 
> But at the same time there are innumerable initiatives to fight this trend.
> 
> New political movements have emerged in Indonesia; old movements are
> transforming themselves in the Philippines; an unofficial trade union
> movementcan force the South Korean government to retreat; Malaysian
> democrats rally to the cause of the East Timorese; the Burmese democrats
> still refuse to surrender;anti-neoliberal activists are elected to the New
> Zealand parliament.
> 
> These are just a few of the many examples of democratisation initiatives in
> theregion.
> 
> 1998 ASIA PACIFIC INSTITUTE FOR DEMOCARCY AND DEVELOPMENT CONFERENCE
> 
> The Asia Pacific Institute has called the 1998 Asia Pacific Solidarity
> conference as away to bring as many people as possible together to discuss
> these issues andstruggles and to assess what fighting for democratisation
> and for socially justdevelopment can do. The conference aims to bring
> together political activists,NGO workers, intellectuals and academics from
> different ideological traditions.
> 
> 
> ASIA PACIFIC INSTITUTE for Democratisation and Development
> 
> The Asia Pacific Institute for Democratisation and Development is a new
> initiative in the Asia Pacific region. During February to May 1997 a range
> of individuals involved in political movements, community organisations and
> universities consulted over the need for greater regional co-ordination
> 
> and dialogue regardingthe current struggles against authoritarianism,
> violations io the right to self-determination and the social and economic
> impacts of the world-wide neoliberal offensive. An interim council was
> formed to establish the Institute. The provisional aims of the institute
> were agreed as follows:
> 
> 1. To promote research and disseminate ideas on the issue of how to ensure
> asocially just and environmentally sustainable development as well as
> rounded democratisation.
> 
> 2. To facilitate dialogue and cooperation between the academic community,
> theNGO community and the peoples' movements (parties, trade unions,
> campaign committees, etc)
> 
> The interim council comprises academics, political leaders and
> communityactivists from Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Sri 

[PEN-L:12391] Re: Prisoner to Prisoner

[Sid Shniad]

I missed this item.  Can the original sender send it to me directly?

Thanks.

Sid Shniad

[PEN-L:12385] Further report on ILWU action for Liverpool (fwd)

[Sid Shniad]

There was absolutely no coverage of this story in the Vancouver
press!

> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]

> ILWU closes down West Coast ports for Liverpool
> 
> by Steve Stallone, Editor, The Dispatcher, the ILWU newspaper
> 
> ILWU longshore workers shut down all ports along the North American West
> Coast from Alaska to the Mexican border for eight hours September 8 in
> solidarity with the Liverpool dockers.
> 
> Members met at their local union halls to discuss the situation in
> Liverpool and how the threats of privatization and casualization are
> looming over dock workers around the world and on our own waterfront in Los
> Angeles, Calif. There the city has leased the operation of a coal export
> facility known as the Los Angeles Export Terminal (LAXT) to a private
> company that is attempting to run it with non-union labor.
> 
> At the Los Angeles-Long Beach Harbor 32 vessels were in port when
> longshoremen walked out. The Port of Oakland had two ships at berth at that
> time. Three ships were held up in Portland, delaying two trains. In Seattle
> six ships in port were delayed during the work stoppage and earlier that
> day longshore workers aboard ships bound for Thamesport used the
> opportunity to discuss the Liverpool situation, which may have impacted
> productivity. At least a dozen ships in Vancouver, British Columbia were
> delayed during the work stoppage.
> 
> ILWU locals have been making regular donations to our brothers and sisters
> in Liverpool and have pledged to continue to do so.
> 
> "Our members should take great pride in having the consciousness to see
> past our own narrow jurisdiction and realize that only through solidarity
> with our brothers and sisters around the globe will we be able to secure
> our future and theirs," said ILWU International President Brian McWilliams.
> 

[PEN-L:12357] UNCTAD REPORT

[Sid Shniad]

11 September 1997   Press Release  TAD/1847

UNCTAD SOUNDS WARNING ON GLOBALIZATION

ADVANCE RELEASE

GENEVA, 11 September (UNCTAD) -- The big story of the world economy 
since the early 1980s has been increasing integration through the unleashing 
of market forces. But there is also another story, one that is attracting 
increasing attention in the 1990s: social and economic divisions among, and 
within, countries are widening.

The conclusion that evidence is mounting that slow growth and rising 
inequalities are becoming more permanent features of the world economy is 
documented by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development 
(UNCTAD) in its Trade and Development Report 1997, and it is a wake-up 
call to policy-makers everywhere.

Rising inequalities pose a serious threat of a political backlash against 
globalization, one that is as likely to come from the North as well as from the 
South. Such a backlash could reverse beneficial reforms achieved in 
developed and developing countries over the past decade. And, it may 
provoke a roll back of some of the more longstanding achievements of 
economic integration. The 1920s and 1930s provide a stark, and disturbing, 
reminder of just how quickly faith in markets and economic openness can be 
overwhelmed by political events. UNCTAD, however, also argues that it is 
possible to design policies to manage integration into the world economy that 
can reconcile rapid growth and distributional objectives.

The TDR 1997 documents, in detail, seven troublesome features of the 
contemporary global economy:

-- Although there are significant exceptions at the country level, overall the 
world economy is still growing too slowly -- whether to generate sufficient 
employment with adequate pay or to alleviate poverty (see later in this press 
release);

-- Gaps between developed and developing countries, as well as within the 
latter, are widening steadily. In 1965, average GNP per capita for the top 20 
per cent of the world's population was 30 times that of the poorest 20 per 
cent; 25 years later, in 1990, the gap had doubled -- to 60 times;

-- The rich have gained everywhere, and not just in comparison to the 
poorest sections of society; "hollowing out" of the middle class has become a 
prominent feature of income distribution in many developing and developed 
countries;

-- Finance has been gaining an upper hand over industry, and rentiers over 
investors. In some developing countries, debt interest payments have reached 
15 per cent of GDP; trading in existing assets is thus often much more 
lucrative than creating wealth through new investment;

-- The share of income accruing to capital has gained over that assigned to 
labour. Profit shares have risen in developed and developing countries alike. 
In four out of five developing countries, the share of wages in manufacturing 
value added today is well below that in the early 1980s;

-- Increased job and income insecurity is spreading. As rising interest charges 
have eaten into business revenues, corporate restructuring, labour shedding 
and wage repression have become the order of the day in much of the North 
as well as parts of the South;

-- The growing wage gap between skilled and unskilled labour is becoming a 
global problem. Already an established trend in many developed countries, 
absolute falls in the real wages of unskilled workers -- 20 to 30 per cent in 
some cases -- have been common in developing countries since the early 
1980s.

There should be no doubt, UNCTAD warns, that the burden of international 
economic disintegration, if it were to take place, would -- as during the Great 
Depression -- be borne by those who can least afford it.

Managing Countries' Entry into World Economy

Contrary to much current economic thinking, UNCTAD says that increased 
global competition does not automatically bring faster growth and 
development. Nor do growth and development automatically bring about a 
reduction in inequality. No economic law exists that will make developing 
economies converge automatically towards the income levels of developed 
countries if they only open up.

Rather than the "big bang" approach widely adopted in recent years in many 
parts of the world, UNCTAD urges a carefully phased liberalization into the 
world economy -- tailoring the process to the strength of the economy 
concerned, as well as that of the country's institutions. Government policies 
devised to manage integration into the world economy can also be put to 
good effect in reconciling rapid growth and distributional objectives, it 
argues.

Managing Profits for Development

The prevailing notion that, faced with globalization forces, policy-makers in 
developing countries may have lost their room to pursue development 
objectives actively is not accepted by UNCTAD. Their role is as important as 
ever, the TDR 1997 says, as "growth and income distribution both depend on 
how pr

[PEN-L:12353] On the other hand ...

[Sid Shniad]

The ONIONNumber One In News * 10 September 1997 
  
_ 
 
News In Brief 
_ 
 
GEOPOLITICAL BALANCE OF POWER SOMEHOW UNAFFECTED 
BY DEATH OF PRINCESS  

LONDON--In a development that has baffled experts, the geopolitical 
balance of power has been strangely unaffected by the death of 
Princess Diana, considered by many to be the world's most important 
person. According to reports, there have been no measurable changes in 
treaty alignments, trade agreements, defense budgets, poverty levels, 
international tariffs, taxation proposals, human-rights measures, 
world fiscal policy, education programs, deficit reduction, literacy 
rates, distribution of power, birth rates, public irrigation, disease 
research, pollution levels, distribution of wealth or any other major 
global trends since her death on Aug. 31. "I don't get it," said 
Oxford University professor Sir Jeremy Eton-Shropshire. "This is 
clearly one of the biggest news events of the century, yet it's almost 
as if the death of Diana is an event of no demonstrable significance." 
 _ 
www.theonion.com   

[PEN-L:12299] Blair chastises British unions (fwd)

[Sid Shniad]

> > The London TimesSeptember 10, 1997
> > 
> > JOIN THE REAL WORLD, BLAIR TELLS UNIONS
> > 
> > By Philip Webster and Philip Bassett
> > 
> > The Prime Minister told the trade unions in stark terms yesterday that they
> > must cast aside dogma and join the real world if they were to have a role in
> > creating a modern enterprise Britain.
> > 
> > He made plain that union leaders had no automatic influence over a Labour
> > Government, and he warned them that they risked being left behind unless
> > they came to terms with the challenges of a more competitive world. They
> > must shed old-fashioned attitudes, modernise their political structures and
> > accept new responsibilities.
> > 
> > Tony Blair's uncompromising speech to the TUC conference in Brighton was
> > the first by a Prime Minister since 1978 and, as such, the ovations he
> > received were to be expected. But much of what he said was heard in
> > uncomfortable silence and some union leaders objected strongly to his words.
> > One said: "We don't want threats." The Archbishop of Canterbury, who
> > backed the principle of workers' rights in his speech earlier, won a more
> > enthusiastic reception.
> > 
> > Mr Blair's speech amounted to a general call to all British institutions to
> > modernise, but it was plain that the union movement was at the top of his list
> > of candidates for reform.
> > 
> > Labour would keep its promise of legislating for union recognition where
> > most workers wanted it, he said, but he urged unions to reach voluntary
> > agreement with employers. "We will not go back to the days of industrial
> > warfare, strikes without ballots, mass and flying pickets, secondary action
> > and the rest. You don't want it and I won't let it happen. And I will watch
> > very carefully to see how the culture of modern trade unionism develops."
> > 
> > He then directly slapped down John Edmonds of the GMB, who had
> > attacked his insistence on employment flexibility. Mr Edmonds had said that
> > he "shivered a little" when he heard Mr Blair using "Tory phrases". Mr Blair
> > tackled him head-on: "We will keep the flexibility of the present market. And
> > it may make some shiver, but I tell you, in the end it is warmer in the real
> > world."
> > 
> > The unions should follow the Labour Party in modernising their political
> > structures, he said. "Influence with this Government and with me is not
> > determined by anything other than the persuasiveness of your arguments. The
> > old ways resolutionitis, the committee rooms, the fixing, the small groups
> > trying to run the show  have no future."
> > 
> > Labour and the unions must not repeat the past mistakes of heavy-handed
> > state intervention, nationalisation, industrial conflict, but instead build a true
> > enterprise economy "where we face up to the reality that we must be
> > adaptable, flexible and open to change". If they did not make Britain a
> > country of successful businesses that had the edge over its competitors, they
> > would be betraying those they represented.
> > 
> > The unions should be creative, not conservative: "Let us make it impossible
> > to dismiss trade unions as old-fashioned, defensive, anti-progress and
> > activist-dominated. We have nothing to lose but our dogmas. So let us lose
> > them."
> > 
> > Delegates' response to the speech was mixed. John Monks, the TUC General
> > Secretary, said that the Prime Minister had been well-received, though he
> > accepted that he had a "hard message", while Tony Young, of the
> > communication workers, welcomed the call for the unions to join the
> > Government in its modernisation programme.
> > 
> > The Unison leader Rodney Bickerstaffe said: "With the Archbishop's speech,
> > it was a good day for the unions." But Davie Patton of the Fire Brigades
> > Union objected to being told to join the real world, and said: "We don't want
> > threats. That's not partnership."
> > 
> 
> 

[PEN-L:12297] Bitter Paradise on TV (fwd) -- to folks in BC

[Sid Shniad]

> A doc done by Elaine Briere of Vancouver.  She's one of the co-founders of
> ETAN.  There are some "good" quotes by local businessmen re: Timor
> 
> Date: Tue, 9 Sep 1997 03:14:42 -0700 (PDT)
> From: East Timor Alert Network <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Subject: Bitter Paradise on TV
> 
> "Bitter Paradise: The sell-out of East Timor," an award-winning
> documentary about Canada's role in the East Timor genocide, will be
> showing on the Knowledge Network this week. It will air at 9:30pm on
> WEDNESDAY, September 10th and at 11pm on SUNDAY, September 14th. If you
> haven't seen this compelling film, check it out this week.

[PEN-L:12296] Re: paparazzi Greenspan

[Sid Shniad]

That's papparazzo (singular).
> 
> 
> Last Friday there was a speech by Alan Greenspan at a dinner party for the 
> Center for Economic Policy Research at Stanford.  Surprisingly, the speech
> can be accessed on the web (with other speeches/papers by Greenspan and
> others) at:
> 
> http://woodrow.mpls.frb.fed.us/info/sys/people.html
> 
> dhm
> 
> 
> 

[PEN-L:12294] Re: WWW at UCLA

[Sid Shniad]

> I did not get to see the article to which you refer in the Times either if
> you'd like to forward it to me I'd appreicate it.
> 
> ellen starbird
> 

I'm sending you a copy.

Sid Shniad

[PEN-L:12264] Fwd(2): Protests may make Suharto may jam out on APEC

[Sid Shniad]

> Date: Thu, 11 Sep 1997 13:48:35 -0400
> Subject: Fwd(2): Protests may make Suharto may jam out on APEC
> 
> Source: CP/AP
> 
> Protests might keep Indonesian leader away from Asia-Pacific summit
> 
> JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) -- Indonesia's president might not attend an 
> Asia-Pacific leaders' summin in Canada in November because of possible 
> protests over his country's human rights record in the troubled territory 
> of East Timor, the foreign minister said Wednesday.
> 
> Ali Alatas said President Suharto had yet to decide whether to go to the 
> 18 country Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation meeting in Vancouver -- the 
> region's biggest annual diplomatic event.
> 
> Alatas said Indonesian officials would gauge how serious any protests 
> against Suharto might be in Canada, where there is a vocal netowrk of 
> activists who want independence for East Timor.
> 
> "If our conclusion is that it could get out of hand then why should we 
> subject the president to such indignites?" Alatas told the Jakarta 
> Foreign Correspondents' Club. 
> 
> However he indicated that the president would not be bothered by 
> "demonstrations that are well under control in accordance with the law of 
> the land."
> 
> APEC groups Canada, the United States, Japan, China, Australia and most 
> countries of Southeast Asia.
> 
> Alatas said Suharto, a 76-year-old former army general who has governed 
> Indonesia for 31 years, believed that overseas official visits should 
> produce good will, not friction between nations.
> 
> Alatas said this was one reason Suharto also had no plans to visit 
> neighbouring Australia where protests over the plight of East TImor are 
> common despite close co-operation on other political and economic issues.
> 
> East Timor has been wracked by civil unrest, pro-independence guerilla 
> warfare and human rights abuse since Indonesia invaded the former 
> Portugese colony in 1975. Indonesia annexed East Timor in 1976 and claims 
> it as its 27th province.
> 
> The United Nations, currently host to talks between Indonesia and 
> Portugal over the territory's future, does not recognize Indonesia's 
> sovereignty there.
> 
> 

[PEN-L:12251] WWW at UCLA

[Sid Shniad]

The New York Times  September 3, 1997

AT UCLA, MIXED REACTION 
TO WEB-BASED COURSES

By Steven R. Knowlton

When students at the University of California at Los Angeles call up the 
World Wide Web home page for a class on 20th-century American literature 
this school year, they will have a wealth of choices, including, the professor 
hopes, clicking on an audio button to hear an aria from an opera mentioned 
in a Willa Cather novel. But students taking another professor's course on 
Milton will find a bare-bones Web page, not much more than the course title 
and a reading list. 

Professor Thomas Wortham, the chairman of the English department who is 
planning the more elaborate page, and Jonathan F.S. Post, a former chairman 
of the department whose page is being created without his input, are repre-
sentative of the reactions to UCLA's announcement in mid-July that it will 
make home pages available for every course in the College of Letters and 
Science by Sept. 25, the start of the fall term. 

At the very least, that means the university will provide students with a plain-
text syllabus and an online chat room -- a cyberspace spot where students 
can talk to one another in some 1,000 courses. At its most elaborate, the 
Web pages may use graphics and audio and video snippets to dress up lecture 
notes and provide links to take students to other relevant Web sites. Profes-
sors can choose to participate or not in creating and maintaining their class 
pages. 

Although UCLA is believed to be the first major campus in the country to 
require home pages for so many courses, its action represents a growing 
trend in higher education to integrate the Web and the more encompassing 
Internet into class work. 

But while many faculty members are cruising into cyberspace with enthusi-
asm, confident that they can make learning more rewarding, others are more 
reluctant to trade in conventional teaching tools for what they and other 
critics fear is just the latest fad in higher education. 

Wortham said he was looking forward to offering an enhanced Web page. He 
could round up the tape players, slide projectors and other academic hard-
ware "and lug them into class," he said, but he acknowledged that "too often 
that does not happen." 

Post, on the other hand, said he did not mind that the university was putting 
his syllabus on the Web because "my syllabus is not my course." But he 
added, "The greater concern that most of us would feel is that technology 
will be driving the teaching." 

He also said he feared that "funding will be going in that direction and away 
from the classroom." 

Much of the impetus for Web-based learning is financial. Many college ad-
ministrators regard Web pages as effective marketing and recruiting tools. 

In May, a new college guide ranking the 100 most-wired campuses was pub-
lished by Yahoo, a popular Internet search service. In that survey, UCLA did 
not fare well against many other California campuses because it had relatively 
few courses with Web pages. 

Wortham said UCLA's decision to build Web pages for all its courses had 
been made before the Yahoo ranking and had been driven, in part, by the 
need to justify a new computer fee that students are paying this fall.

"The idea was if students could see that the money was being utilized in the 
classroom, maybe they would go for it," the professor said. 

The fee -- $10 for each humanities course and $14 for each science course -- 
was discussed in the last academic year, but many students objected, saying 
that their courses did not have Web pages and that they should not have to 
pay for services they were not receiving. 

Web pages are also regarded as weapons with which departments can defend 
their own domain and budgets by attracting students to fill courses. 

"Departments are increasingly required to pay for themselves," Post said. 
"Web pages seem to be a way of making a department appear to be sort of 
with it instead of in the dark ages." 

Perhaps the most controversial aspect of the push toward more Web-based 
learning, some educators say, is that computer technology is beginning to 
replace, rather than merely enhance, some of what professors do in the class-
room. 

Although UCLA is not planning major changes in its teaching strategies, 
other colleges and universities are. 

The president of Northwestern University, Henry S. Bienen, said he expected 
teaching on the Web to soon replace at least some of the lecture components 
of basic introductory courses. That would, theoretically at least, free up pro-
fessors to conduct more small-group sessions, he said. 

At the University of Oregon, the provost, John T. Moseley, said he was 
looking forward to turning the conventional format of three lectures a week 
into perhaps a single lecture plus Web lectures and discussions, as well as 
other teaching sessions in informal settings. Such changes could come in the 

[PEN-L:12250] People's Summit on APEC '97 (fwd)

[Sid Shniad]

> Date: Tue, 9 Sep 1997 21:50:48 -0700
> Sender: Forum on Labor in the Global Economy <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> From: Larry Kuehn <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> Subject:  People's Summit on APEC '97
> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> 
> The People's Summit on APEC '97 has a web site at www.vcn.bc.ca/summit
> which has on it the program for the week of events and information about
> registering.
> 
> The People's Summit can be reached by email at [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> 
> Full information about the summit will be posted to this and other
> listservs later this week.
> 
> 
> 
> Larry Kuehn, Director   [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Research and Technology [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> B.C. Teachers' Federation   Fax: (604) 871-2294
> 
> http://www.bctf.bc.ca
> 

[PEN-L:12249] marcha_virtual_12_de_Septiembre (fwd)

[Sid Shniad]

> From [EMAIL PROTECTED] Tue Sep  9 23:35 PDT 1997
> From: juan manuel gomez gonzalez <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> Subject: marcha_virtual_12_de_Septiembre
> Date: Wed, 10 Sep 1997 01:37:27 -0500 (CDT)
> 
> English version below
> 
> Marcha Virtual...
> 
> Como es de conocimiento de la opinion publica, una comitiva del EZLN
> marcha a la ciudad de Mexico, desde San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas.
> 
> El arribo de los Zapatistas al Distrito Federal sera el dia 12 de
> Septiembre, por lo que convocamos a la sociedad civil internacional a
> sumarse a la marcha virtual para el dia 12 de septiembre para apoyar los
> siguientes puntos:
> 
> - Cumplimiento de los acuerdos de San Andres sobre la mesa de derechos y
> cultuda indigena y
> 
> - Desmilitarizacion de mexico
> 
> 
> Para el dia 12 de septiembre, dia en que entra la marcha zapatista a la
> ciudad de mexico, la secretaria de seguridad publica esta planeando un
> aparatoso dispositivo de seguridad en conjunto con inteligencia militar,
> por lo que se convoca tambien a los manifestantes virtuales a rechazar el
> uso de sistemas represivos que provocan un ambiente hostil que no ayuda a
> la busqueda de la paz.
> 
> Alertamos a la sociedad civil internacional a que se mantenga espectante
> sobre los dospositivos de seguridad, pues por informaciones de buena
> fuente, sabemos que habra agentes vestidos de civil y armados,
> representando una amenaza a la seguridad de todos los participantes en
> esta marcha por las provocaciones que ellos pueden articular.
> 
> La marcha virtual pretende ser parte de las actividades que la sociedad
> civil realiza a favor de la apertura de espacios civiles y pacificos en
> los que los mexicanos solucionen sus problemas.
> 
> A todos los que se quieran sumar a esta concentracion virtual a favor de
> la paz lo pueden hacer enviando un correo electronico el dia 12 de
> septiembre durante el dia a: 
> 
> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> 
> o bien en la pagina de web
> 
> http://planet.com.mx/~chiapas/marcha.html
> 
> comite de bienvenida a la marcha zapatista
> 
> **
> 
> MARCH IN CYBERSPACE...
> 
> It is public knowledge that representatives of the EZLN are marching from
> San Cristobal de las Casas, Chiapas to Me'xico City.
> 
> The Zapatistas will arrive in the capital on September 12, for that
> reason, we call on "civil society" at international level, to join the
> march through cyberspace on the 12th supporting the following demands: 
> 
> _fulfillment of the San Andre's Accords on indigenous rights and culture.
> 
> and
> _ The demilitarization of Mexico.
> 
> On september 12, date that the Zapatistas will arrive in Mexico City, the
> Ministry of Public Security is planning to launch into action security
> mechanisms combined with military intelligence, and for that reason, we
> call on those who will support the cyberspace march, to also condemn the
> repressive systems that provoke a hostile environment that does not help
> in the establishment of peace. 
> 
> We request international "civil society"  to remain alert about repressive
> mechanisms, since through very reliable sources, we know there will be
> agents dressed in civilian clothing yet armed, presenting a real danger to
> all the participants in this march due to the provocations they might
> cause. 
> 
> The cyberspace march hopes to be part of the activities the "civil
> society" will take on as part of opening civilian peaceful spaces where
> Mexicans can resolve their own problems. 
> 
> To all who wish to join us on this march through cyberspace for peace, we
> invite to send an e-mail message on September 12th,to the following
> addresses: 
> 
> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> 
> or to the web page:
> 
> http://planet.com.mx/~chiapas/marcha.html
> 
> Zapatista March Welcoming Committee
> 
> 
> 
> translated by: NAP
> 

[PEN-L:12217] Drake International document (fwd)

[Sid Shniad]

> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> 
> The following document - quaint spelling mistakes faithfully preserved -
> was recovered from the wall of Drake International's offices in Charles
> House, Regent St., London during the occupation by Reclaim the Streets in
> support of the Liverpool dockers on 8 Sept. Drake International is the
> Canadian company that provides the scabs at Liverpool docks.
> 
> "After hearing the plight of the poor down troden Liverpool dockers the
> World Wildlife Fund have decided to declare the dockers an endangered
> species.
> 
> "After an extensive survey It has been discovered that there are only 350
> breeding pair left world wide. The World Wildlife Fund are going to set up
> a captive breeding program in Knowsley safari park where they can breed
> succesfuly without hinderance from the public and the prying media.
> 
> "These poor unfortunate creatures of very low inteligence are beleived to
> be decendants from a branch of dinosaur called Dickheadasaurus. They are
> now under the protection of the 1984 Wildlife Act. Any person caught
> physicaly abusing or extracting urine out of them will be subject to the
> full force of the law.
> 
> "Any donations will be gratefuly recieved as the breeding and education
> program is going to be very expensive.
> 
> yours sincerely
> 
> Willy Eckerslike"
> 

[PEN-L:12214] Re: Piece on Mike Davis in _Lingua Franca_

[Sid Shniad]

As a refugee from my native Los Angeles, I strongly recommend City of
Quartz to any Penners who want a very insightful analysis of the history
and politics of L.A.  I learned more from reading the book than I knew
from having been raised there.

Sid Shniad
> 
> Following coffee-sipping Louis P's suggestion, I checkout out _Lingua
> Franca_.  The latest issue (September 1997) has a longish piece on
> Mike Davis, author of _City of Quartz_, by Adam Shatz.  Shatz
> concludes a bit sadly, along with Tariq Ali, that Davis has started an
> unfortunate slide toward "millennial catastrophism"---anomic partner
> to the healthy "grassroots reporting" in _City of Quartz_.  I have yet
> to read through _City of Quartz_, but I've now had my appetite
> re-whetted.
> 
> There's also a blurb on Foucault that Doug (and others) might find
> interesting.  I'm too busy at the moment to summarize it, so you'll
> have to steal a read at the nearest coffee shop/bookstore.
> 
> 
> Bill
> 

[PEN-L:12212] Striking workers occupy PC World! (fwd)

[Sid Shniad]

> Strikers occupy PC World plant
> CAW members vow to stay until contract is signed and 8-month walkout ends
> 
> By Susan Bourette
> The Globe and Mail
> 
> TORONTO - Nearly 100 striking workers barricaded themselves in PC World's 
> main plant in Toronto yesterday, hoping to force an end to an eight-month 
> strike in which the computer parts maker has been found to be bargaining 
> in bad faith. 
>   Members of the Canadian Auto Workers union, who have been on 
> strike since early January, stormed the plant early yesterday and vowed 
> to continue the occupation until a collective agreement has been signed.
>   "They've been using every trick in the book to make sure that we 
> don't get an agreement here," said Bob Cernicki, a union spokesman.  
> "What they're trying to do is bust the union, and damn it, we're not 
> going to let them do it."
>   Hundreds of unionists from surrounding communities picketed the 
> plant in support of the striking PC World workers.  The company, which 
> makes circuit boards for companies such as Honeywell Inc., Northern 
> Telecom Ltd. And Celestica Inc., has hired 140 replacement workers.
>   PC World, a division of Toronto-based Circuit World Corp., said 
> in a press release that the plant's occupation contravenes a court order 
> that limits the number of pickets at the plant to 24.  The company said 
> it has been granted an emergency hearing before the Ontario Court of 
> Appeal to try to have the order enforced.
>   The company declined to comment further.  A recorded message at 
> PC World's headquarters said its telephone lines are temporarily out of 
> service.
>   Wage rollbacks and concessions sought by the company have been 
> the major stumbling blocks between union and employer.  Workers, who have 
> been without a contract since December, initially asked for wage 
> increases of about 40 cents an hour, but recently told the company they 
> would agree to wage freezes over the life of a three-year deal.
>   The CAW said the average wage for PC World's production workers 
> was $12 an hour before the strike.  It said the company wants to roll 
> back 43 employee's wages by between 10 cents and $4.78 an hour.
>   The Ontarion Labour Relations Board ruled in July that PC World 
> had "breached its duty to bargain in good faith by failing to meet with 
> the union to bargain for a new collective agreement" and by tabling an 
> inadequate proposal in April.
>   The union agreed to wage freezes when the company sought 
> bankruptcy protection in 1995.  In its ruling, the labour board said the 
> company is now "doing well [and] it is therefore difficult to see how the 
> employer can maintain that it must, for financial reasons, seek the 
> concessions it is seeking."
>   Some union members charged that the company is pushing to 
> decertify the CAW at the plant under new labour legislation.  Under 
> Ontario's new laws, a union can be decertified if a walkout stretches 
> beyond 12 months.
>   Eduaardo Luna, a striking worker employed by the company for the 
> past 10 years, said his family has been having difficulty making ends 
> meet on the $175 he receives in strike pay each week.  He was last making 
> $14 an hour.  His wife, a nurse, was laid off in April.
>   "We work like an animal inside there," Mr. Luna said, gesturing 
> toward the brown brick building.  "We're tightening our belts, but it's 
> really hard for my wife and kids to live like this."
>   Mr. Luna said many of the striking workers have failed to find 
> jobs elsewhere because employers are concerned that they might try to 
> form a union in their shops.
>   By late yesterday, there had been no violence at the plant and no 
> arrests.  Police monitored the occupation throughout the day.
> 
> 

[PEN-L:12211] Re: Real social change

[Sid Shniad]

> I'm not on any crusade against do-gooders
> about whose projects I have skepticism.
> But sooner or later we all have to consider
> the best use of scarce political resources.
> Don't we?

The implication is that resources generated by Diana's
campaign against land mines would otherwise be used for
better purposes if she wasn't distracting people.  I
wish that were the case, but I don't believe it is.
> 
> I am struck by the contrast between your
> indulgence of the Diana cult and your hard-
> headedness with respect to the extensive
> labors of trade union and social-democratic
> forces to move the EU to the left.

I think that Diana's efforts have had positive
effects. If that constitutes "indulgence of the
Diana cult," so be it.

On the other hand, I think that union and social
democratic efforts to move the EU to the left is
a classic instance of efforts that would be more
likely to bear fruit if they were expended on
different tactics and strategies.

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree once more,
Max.

Sid

[PEN-L:12193] Real social change

[Sid Shniad]

Max:  
  
"Abbie Hoffman had more influence than Diana. I defy anyone to specify   
concrete, noteworthy social changes resulting from her existence."  
  
In the spirit of hard-headed science, Max, how about quantifying the   
respective influences of Abbie and Diana? While we're at it, why not throw in   
some multiple regression analysis? 
 
Wouldn't it make more sense simply to say "I like Abbie Hoffman and his  
views/values better than those of Diana?  
  
"Nor do I  think you can say any change in the disposition of land-mines will   
have any effect on the conduct of war, repression, or counter-insurgency in   
the next century." 

I heard a local representative of an organization fighting to have an anti-land 
mine treaty put in place this morning on CBC radio.  Given your statement, I 
guess there's nothing his contention and that of other folks fighting against 
the use of anti-personnel mines in places like Angola and Cambodia that the 
deployment of these armaments changed drastically in the 1980s, that the 
new deployment was designed to inflict damage and terror on local 
populations instead of targeting armed combatants. Nothing to their thanks 
to Diana's efforts for helping to publicize this fact via things like 
documentaries filmed in Angola with the civilian victims of these mines.

Since you have declared that any change in the disposition of land mines 
won't have any effect on the conduct of war, etc. I guess that settles it. No 
point in trying to raise public awareness or to change public opinion on the 
subject. In any event, that wouldn't be _real_ social change, would it? 
  
Sid Shniad

[PEN-L:12192] ALERT: Congress near a vote on Net privacy legislation; call now! (fwd)

[Sid Shniad]

> Date: Mon, 08 Sep 1997 12:12:45 -0400
> From: "Shabbir J. Safdar" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> Subject: ALERT: Congress near a vote on Net privacy legislation; call now!
> 
> ==
>   ___  _ _  _ _
>  / _ \| |   | |  _ \_   _| | Congress is about to vote on privacy and
> | |_| | |   |  _| | |_) || | | | security on the Net.  Call your member of
> |  _  | |___| |___|  _ < | | |_| Congress before September 17, 1997
> |_| |_|_|_|_| \_\|_| (_)Posted September 8, 1997
> 
>Please forward where appropriate until September 17, 1997
> 
> This alert brought to you by
> the Voters Telecommunications Watch, the Center for Democracy & Technology,
>and the Electronic Frontier Foundation
> _
> Table of Contents
>   What's Happening Right Now
>   What You Can Do To Help Privacy And Security On The Internet
>   Background On SAFE (HR. 695)
>   About This Alert
> 
> _
> WHAT'S HAPPENING RIGHT NOW
> 
> During the next two weeks two Congressional committees (the House
> Intelligence and National Security committees) will vote on the
> "Security and Freedom Through Encryption Act" (SAFE, HR 695) --
> important legislation designed to protect privacy and security on the
> Internet by encouraging the widespread availability of strong,
> easy-to-use encryption technologies.
> 
> Opponents of the bill include the FBI, NSA and members of the Clinton
> Administration. They seek to force all Americans to provide guaranteed
> law enforcement access to private online communications by imposing
> "key recovery" systems inside the U.S., have a great deal of support in
> Congress.  It is possible that Congress could amend SAFE in a way that
> undermines privacy and allows the government broad new surveillance
> power.
> 
> This is a critical moment in the fight for privacy and security on the
> Internet.
> 
> Your member of Congress needs to know that you care about privacy and
> security on the Internet.  Please take a moment to read the
> instructions below or details on how you can help protect privacy and
> security online.  A summary of the bill and pointers to additional
> information are also included below.
> 
> Five minutes of your time will go a long way.
> 
> 
> WHAT YOU CAN DO NOW
> 
> Please call your Representative. THIS WEEK to express your support for
> the SAFE and urge them to oppose any amendments to impose key recovery
> or modify the export relief provisions.
> 
> INSTRUCTIONS:
> 
> 
> IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHO YOUR MEMBER OF CONGRESS IS
> 
> 1. Go to http://www.crypto.com/member/ and enter your zip code to find your
>member of Congress and all the information needed for contacting them.
> 
>or
> 
> IF YOU KNOW WHO YOUR MEMBER OF CONGRESS IS
> 
> 1. Pick up the phone and call 202-225-3121, ask for you Representative.
> 
> 2. Ask for the staffer that handles the encryption issue.
> 
> 3. Urge your Rep. to support SAFE (HR695) and to oppose Administration
>efforts to modify the bill.
> 
>Feel free to use your own words but be sure to stress the points below:
> 
>- Encryption is critical National Security by protecting sensitive data and
>  critical points on the National Information Infrastructure like the Air
>  Traffic Control System and the power grid from attacks.
> 
>- SAFE will encourage the widespread availability of strong, easy to use
>  encryption.
> 
>- SAFE will help foil hackers, terrorists, and foreign spies from obtaining
>  unauthorized access to personal, business, and government communications
>  and data.
> 
>- Key escrow or key recovery systems will hurt national security by
>  creating new points of vulnerability and new targets for hackers and
>  terrorists to seek to exploit, and will not work to prevent crime.
> 
>- Key recovery comes at a grave cost to privacy and security. Why would
>  a criminal use an encryption product that they know the US government
>  holds the keys to?
> 
> 4. IMPORTANT! -- PLEASE LET US KNOW HOW IT WENT!
> 
>Visit our feedback page at:
> 
>   http://www.crypto.com/member/
>   or
>   http://www.crypto.com/member/">Crypto.Com feedback
> 
>...and let us know how it went!
> 
> 5. Please forward this alert to your friends and colleagues
>who live in your congressional district.
> 
> 6. Finally, relax! You have done more to help fight for privacy and
>security on the Internet in 5 minutes than most people do in a year!
>We appreciate your support!
> 
> 
> BACKGROUND ON SAFE (HR 695)
> 
> The Secur

[PEN-L:12191] International Dockers Day of Action world round-up (fwd)

[Sid Shniad]

> Reported and expected action as of 6 p.m., 8 Sept.
> 
> Sweden
> all ports organised by Swedish Dockworkers Union to stop and all ACL and
> CAST containers to be halted. All trade with Liverpool and Sheerness to be
> hit.
> Gothenburg: ACL vessel diverted until Wednesday. Dockers refusing to handle
> any feeder ship cargo.
> 
> Denmark
> Arhus and Copenhagen out. 60-23 secret ballot in Arhus led to 24 hour
> stoppage. "Sea-Land Nordic" stopped in Arhus. All incoming and outgoing
> cargo and railfreight stopped at Maersk terminal in Arhus. Copenhagen
> walked out after canteen meeting addressed by Micky and Sylvia Tighe and a
> 46-4 vote to leave work in solidarity with Liverpool until Tuesday 6:30 am.
> 3 boats affected: Panevezys, a ro-ro owned by DFDS Baltic Line, and 2
> smaller container feeder ships run by a local feeder service, Uniship.
> 
> Holland
> Amsterdam holding all-day stop-work meeting re international issues
> including Liverpool and their own dispute. Going to Rotterdam to meet
> action committee tonight.
> 
> Belgium
> no news
> 
> Germany
> no news
> 
> France
> awaiting news
> 
> Spain
> stop work meetings planned for today. Organising Southern European
> dockworkers conference to be held with CGT in Paris in near future.
> 
> Portugal
> stop work meetings this morning pre-announced in press for Lisbon, Setubal,
> and Sines, where Antonio Mariano is quoted as saying Lisbon and Setubal
> will be paralysed for several hours.
> 
> Italy
> letter to Monks
> 
> South Africa
> implementing total boycott of Liverpool and Sheerness trade. 9 Sept is
> National Port Action day, with stoppages and demonstrations where Liverpool
> issues will be linked to the problems faced in South African ports and the
> demand for a national dock labour scheme. In Cape Town, senior government
> ministers will attend demo.
> 
> India
> Instructions have gone out from Centre for Indian Trade Unions to stop work
> in all ports. Lloyds List reports impending dispute to improve working
> conditions and practices.
> 
> Japan
> Zenkoku Kowan (All Japan Dockworkers Federation) passed strong resolution
> last week pledging action against major shipping lines. This will take time
> to implement. Today, visited the British Embassy in Tokyo, got sympathetic
> reception but told that "you must understand that it would be difficult for
> the Government to solve the problem of Liverpool". Visited to O.O.C.L. and
> Sanko shipping, demanding  shipping companies world wide boycott Liverpool
> and Sheerness. This also includes Slot Sharing Schemes that are in
> operation with CAST, CanMar, and ACL. Failure to do so will result in
> ongoing direct actions against shipping companies and vessels using
> M.D.H.C. controlled ports.
> OOCL denied any connection with Port of Liverpool. Terry Southers pointed
> out links with Liverpool shipping companies CAST, ACL, CanMar. Entire
> delegation made it clear to OOCL that unless they instructed CAST, ACL, and
> CanMar to stop using Liverpool and Sheerness and Thamesport, they would be
> hit by solidarity actions in the Japanese ports.
> Faxes to Furlong, Beckett, and Blair. Calling on British Government to
> intervene.
> 
> New Zealand
> no news since previous action 18 August
> 
> Australia
> All major ports to be hit in 5 hour stoppage on day and night shifts in
> Brisbane, Newcastle, Sydney, Port Kembla, Melbourne, Burnie, Adelaide and
> Fremantle. Stop work meetings. Ken Loach documentary screened
> Australia-wide on 7 Sept.
> 
> Canada
> St. Johns shut full day. Showing Ken Loach film and debating struggles of
> Liverpool and other ports. Vancouver to shut in line with West Coast ILWU
> action, with solidarity demo by outside supporters. Halifax shut for 4
> hours on the morning shift after pickets ("Supporters of Liverpool")
> appeared at the gates of the port. All longshoremen respected the picket
> line. ACL and ZIM vessels affected immediately. Twinning ceremony for
> Halifax-Gothenburg hosted by Halifax Mayor and shipping dignitaries,
> disrupted by action. Port employers have accused longshoremen of being part
> of a conspiracy, and threatened 90 day suspensions with sackings to follow
> any further action. Press coverage building up. Lloyds List spoke to ACL in
> New York who acknowledged disruption is affecting the company.
> 
> Quebec
> no news.
> 
> West Coast US
> 8 hour shutdown on 2nd shift beginning 6pm - 2am in all ports Mexico to
> Alaska. The Pacific Maritime Association (employers) refused request in Los
> Angeles and Long Beach for the monthly stop-work meeting to be rescheduled
> to tonight. Action will go ahead regardless. Delays to Hapag Lloyd vessels
> ongoing. "Koeln Express" said to have left 2 days late from LA to
> Thamesport following various delays. "Cape Charles" due in Oakland 3 p.m.
> 
> Mexico
> ILWU to implement stoppage in line with West Coast
> 
> East Coast US
> no news
> 
> Ireland
> Derry go slow and overtime ban implemented today.
> 
> Liverpo

[PEN-L:12190] Fw: International solidarity (fwd)

[Sid Shniad]

> Date: Mon, 08 Sep 1997 15:54:18 -0700
  From: ntlab <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> Subject: International solidarity
> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> 
> 
> 
> Turin September 8, 1997
> 
> Dear comrades:
> 
>  17 delegates from ICEM affiliated trade unions in Africa and Asia are
> participating in a seminar on Globalization and how it will impact on
> our societies. We are today studying and evaluating the use of internet
> by the labour movement to build international solidarity. From the
> International Training Centre of the ILO in Turin we are online to your
> pages, describing the mass international support and solidarity for your
> struggle. We are looking at your cyber-picket pages detailing the real
> pickets that are bringing ports around the world to a standstill in
> support of the Liverpool Dockers.
> 
> Your Struggle is Our Struggle!
> Victory to the Dockers!
> 
> Comrades from
> *National Union of Mineworkers  South Africa
> *Swaziland Electricity Workers UnionSwaziland
> *Industrial and Commercial Workers UnionGhana
> *National Union of EmployeesMalaysia
>  (In companies manufacturing rubber products)
> *ICEM-FNV Project OfficeMalaysia
> *ICEM - Africa Office
> *ICEM officials
> *Indian National Mine Workers FederationIndia
> *Paper and Printing Federation of Thailand  Thailand
> *Chemical Worker Union Alliance Thailand
> *National Union of Metal WorkersSouth Africa
>  of South Africa
> *Korean Labour and Society InstituteSouth Korea
> *Self Employed Womens Union South Africa
> *Zimbabwe Electricity and EnergyZimbabwe
>  Workers Union
> *Botswana Mining Workers Union  Botswana
> *Electricity Supply Commission of   Malawi
>  Malawi Workers Union
> *Southern Africa Miners Federation
> *ICEM

[PEN-L:12189] Major Canadian Boycott Test Case Begins (fwd)

[Sid Shniad]

> Subject: Major Canadian Boycott Test Case Begins 
> Date: Sept 5, 1997
> From: Peter Abramowicz <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>  
> --
> From:  SCHWARZBAUER PETER[SMTP:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] 
> Sent:  August 29, 1997 1:25 AM
> To:  [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Subject:  Lubicon Mailout
>  
>  
> Friends of the Lubicon (Toronto)
> 485 Ridelle Ave
> Toronto, ON
> M6B 1K6
> T: 416-763-7500
> F: 416-603-2715
> fol e-mail:  [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>  
>  For immediate Release : Aug 28, 1997
>  
>  DAISHOWA BOYCOTT ON TRIAL
>  Month-long Trial to Decide Legality of Consumer Boycotts
>  
>  Trial starts September 2, 1997, 10:00 am
>  Opening day rally Tuesday Sep. 2, 8:30 - 9:45 am 
>  Nathan Phillips Square, Toronto
>  
> (TORONTO) An Ontario Court will be deciding on the limits of consumer 
> boycott campaigns and freedom of expression in a landmark trial beginning 
> September 2. 
>  
> Friends of the Lubicon, a small Toronto group supporting the Lubicon Cree 
> Nation of northern Alberta, are being taken to court by Daishowa Inc. The 
> company is seeking a permanent injunction which would prevent the Friends 
> from telling customers of stores, which use Daishowa bags, where their 
> money is going. 
>  
> The court action is in response to a six-year boycott campaign against 
> Daishowa products. Daishowa Inc. is part of the Daishowa group of 
> companies led by the giant Daishowa Paper Manufacturing Company Co. Ltd. 
> of Japan. The focus of the campaign is to pre vent the Daishowa group from 
> acting on the licence they bought to clear-cut contested Native lands in 
> northern Alberta. Since the boycott began, Daishowa has been held back 
> from clear-cutting Lubicon lands. 
>  
> Daishowa claims the boycott has cost them over $11 million. With the 
> boycott in effect, 47 companies representing over 4,300 retail outlets in 
> Canada chose alternative suppliers for their paper products. Daishowa 
> obtained a temporary injunction against t he boycott in January, 1996. 
> They are now trying to permanently outlaw the boycott and squeeze damages 
> out of boycott volunteers. Defendant Kevin Thomas says "the trial will be 
> a pitched battle between freedom of expression and Aboriginal land rights 
> on the one hand and the right of corporations to do whatever the hell they 
> want to whoever they want on the other."
>  
> The trial will span fifteen days during the month of September starting on 
> Tuesday the 2nd. 
>  
> The Friends will be holding a support rally and opening prayer at Nathan 
> Phillips Square at 8:30 am on Tuesday Sep 2. Recently-elected United 
> Church Moderator Bill Phipps will give an opening address and a 
> representative of the Lubicon Lake Cree will be present. 
> --
>  
> Subject:  A brief chronology of the court case
>  
>  
> August 29, 1997
>  
> The following is a brief chronology of the Daishowa v Friends of the 
> Lubicon court action. For those who are interested in how the courts have 
> shut down this successful boycott campaign -- and for a taste of what's in 
> store for Friends of the Lubicon at trial next week -- this chronology 
> should fill in the important details.
>  
>  
> Chronology of a SLAPP Suit
>  
> *   January 12. 1995: Friends of the Lubicon are served with papers 
> indicating that Daishowa Inc. is seeking an injunction against certain 
> boycott activities and claiming an unspecified amount in damages. The 
> papers call for the first hearing to start February 6, 1995.
>  
> *   February 6.1995; Friends of the Lubicon appear in court represented 
> by Clayton Ruby and Dan Brodsky, and argue for an adjournment until April to 
> give them time to prepare their defence. The court agrees, only on the 
> provision that in the meantime (until the April hearing), FOL will not 
> contact any Daishowa customers, will not picket any Daishowa customers, and 
> will not encourage the public not to shop at stores who are customers.of 
> Daishowa. These provisions effectively give Daishowa the injunction before 
> the case is even heard.
>  
> *   April 26-28. 1995: Interim Injunction Hearing. Daishowa's case is a 
> big one, and will take approximately a month to be heard fully in court. 
> Until the court can schedule such a trial, Daishowa asks for an Interim 
> Injunction which would stop FOL from pursuing the boycott in the meantime, 
> arguing that they have suffered over $5 million in damages so far and 
> shouldn't be subjected to more potential damage while waiting for trial. 
> Madame Justice Frances Kiteley dismisses most of their claims in a decision 
> delivered May 19, 1995. FOL are allowed to continue their activities until 
> a full trial can decide on the future of the boycott.
>  
> *   June 30. 1995: Justice Steele, author of the Temagami decision 
> (recently descr

[PEN-L:12166] Slagging Di

[Sid Shniad]

I guess I'm getting old(er) and soft(er), but I have to admit more than a
bit of admiration for someone from the bosom of the establishment who uses
her (unearned, unjustified) celebrity to tackle the international arms
industry and the British Tories on issues like land mines.

Given all of the phoniness and media hype attached to this woman and her
demise, how many leftists can be said to have had a comparable influence?

The Old Softy,

Sid Shniad

[PEN-L:12143] Request for help for Zapatistas

[Sid Shniad]

THE ZAPATISTAS NEED YOU. PLEASE HELP THEM IN THEIR 
STRUGGLE FOR JUSTICE IN MEXICO.

A representative group from the Zapatista Army of National Liberation has 
begun a journey to Mexico City. Leaving from Chiapas, it will arrive on 
September 12th in Mexico City.

The march to Mexico City has two purposes: to pressure the Government to 
present the accords on indigenous autonomy in Mexico, which have been 
negotiated with the EZLN, to the Mexican Congress so that they can be 
enacted into law; and second, to participate in rallies and meetings in Mexico 
City with indigenous organizations and other groups representing civil 
society. 

The cost of transportation and other expenses is the equivalent of $150 US 
dollars for each of the Zapatista marchers because the mobilization is using 
40 buses to transport the committee of  members of the Zapatista Army 
of National Liberation from San Cristobal de las Casas to Mexico City. In 
addition, the money is needed to defray the costs of their stay in Mexico City 
and to pay for the return trip to their communities. 

At this time, we are reaching out to international civil society in the profound 
hope that it will extend its solidarity for this effort. Your support is 
indispensable for the success of this march. 

If you are or your organization are able to support their trip, please send 
deposits to the following account:

0091267203
Matiana Medina Mejia
Wells Fargo Bank
San Francisco, California

In addition, please send a note to [EMAIL PROTECTED] if you make a 
contribution.

Thank you for your solidarity.

For the Red Ciudadana de Apoyo a la Causa Zapatista

Alfredo Lopez Austin
Carlos Salas
Luis Villoro

[PEN-L:12142] ACTU backs Maritime Union of Australia against government

[Sid Shniad]

> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Content-Type: text/plain;charset="us-ascii"
> 
> Australian Congress of Trade Unions backs Maritime Union of Australia
> against Howard Government
> 
> Press reports from Australia quote Bill Kelty, secretary of the Australian
> Congress of Trade Unions (ACTU), as promising to organise "the biggest
> picket that's ever been seen in this country" if a dispute begins on the
> waterfront.
> 
> The ACTU statement follows federal government plans to allow troops and
> non-union workers to break strikes by the Maritime Union of Australia, a
> plan reminiscent of Margaret Thatcher's approach to UK industrial relations
> in the 1980's.
> 
> "The only promise I make to John Howard is this: 'that if you seek to
> destroy the MUA we will be there and... you'll have the biggest picket
> that's ever been seen in this country'," Kelty told the ACTU Congress in
> Brisbane on 3 Sept.
> 
> Meanwhile, transport operators in Sydney are seeking further government
> intervention to end bans on container movement to and from the waterfront
> by the Transport Workers Union, who seek a 10 per cent wage rise. On 2
> Sept, the State Industrial Commission recommended lifting all action but
> the bans were not lifted. The companies are now seeking orders which would
> leave the union open to legal action.
> 
> LabourNet Report
> http://www.labournet.org.uk
> 

[PEN-L:12127] BC Premier talks about APEC

[Sid Shniad]

The Vancouver Sun   Thursday 4 September 1997

B.C. sees APEC as springboard

Premier likens economic summit to Expo 86 
when it comes to business effects. 

Daphne Bramham, Sun Asia-Pacific Reporter 

The provincial government will use its role as host of the Asia Pacific 
Economic Cooperation forum to pitch the investment potential of British 
Columbia to a huge international audience, Premier Glen Clark said 
Wednesday.

"I don't think there will be any specific deals [from the November 
meetings], but I don't think it is too much of a stretch to compare Expo 86 
to this," the premier said in an interview.

While Expo was a "people's fair," Clark said APEC will draw several 
thousand of the world's most powerful and influential people.

"It will have the same kind of effect on business as Expo had on the 
tourism and world exposure side."

An estimated 10,000 government officials, business people and media 
will make APEC the largest international event to be held in Vancouver, 
with direct benefits of about $23 million.

It will be bigger than both the Commonwealth conference in 1987 and the 
Clinton-Yeltsin economic summit in 1993.

Clark noted there will be an estimated 500 million TV viewers who will 
see coverage of the meeting between 18 leaders of Asia-Pacific 
economies.

"You can't buy that kind of publicity for any amount of money," he said.
B.C. already exports more than $22-billion worth of goods to Asia each 
year and is the primary beneficiary of Canada's expanded trade links with 
the region.

"Vancouver already has a high profile in Asia,'' he said. "Everybody 
knows Vancouver, but not everybody knows B.C. The challenge is how 
to get more investment and more jobs for all of the province."

Clark said the government will spend $5 million to sponsor B.C. Business 
Crossroads, a week-long showcase at Robson Square highlighting 
biotechnology, engineering, value-added wood and building products, 
subsea technology, tele-medicine and distance education.

It will be the only opportunity for B.C. companies to meet with potential 
buyers in Asia.

Clark said he also expects the first B.C.-built, high-speed catamaran will 
also be completed in time to be displayed for the business and 
government officials.

B.C. will sponsor a reception for APEC leaders and the estimated 6,000 
officials, delegates and business people who are also coming for the 
meeting. The province will also play host to a reception for the estimated 
3,000 reporters, photographers and media people expected to register for 
the event.

The premier said the B.C. Business Crossroads will be one of the only 
public events during the summit from Nov. 19 to 25. The leaders of the 
18 economies will arrive Nov. 23 for meetings that end Nov. 25.

APEC aims to liberalize trade and investment. Among its most powerful 
and influential members are the United States, China and Japan.

Clark said that starting next week, the province, along with B.C. Hydro 
and Westcoast Energy, will sponsor an interactive, multimedia mall 
display that will travel through 10 communities to give young people 
more information about Asia Pacific culture, trade and career 
opportunities.

"The Asia-Pacific connection to B.C. and its benefits are obvious if you 
live in Vancouver. It is not so obvious if you live in Prince George or 
Kamloops."

The provincial government will also provide the Plaza of Nations site 
rent-free for the alternate People's Summit on APEC, which will provide 
alternative views, particularly on human rights, the benefits of trade, the 
plight of indigenous people, labor standards, the environment and other 
issues in the region.

The People's Summit will be officially opened Nov. 19 by 1996 Nobel 
Peace Prize winner Jose Ramos-Horta.

Horta has been in exile in Australia for 22 years for his opposition to the 
Indonesian government's illegal invasion of East Timor.