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Venezuela: Maduro calls constituent assembly amid crisis

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro officially called for a national Constituent Assembly to be convened during a May Day march in Caracas on May 1. The call is a bid to bring an end to the political crisis between the national government and the opposition-held parliament.

Speaking to the hundreds of thousands of government supporters who took to the streets for International Workers鈥 Day, Maduro said he would invoke article 347 of the constitution to trigger the assembly, which will be responsible for re-drafting the 1999 Constitution.聽

Britain: The media wants to demoralise Corbyn鈥檚 supporters 鈥 they mustn't succeed

I鈥檓 not one of nature鈥檚 optimists at the best of times, and a rash of media headlines predicting a doomsday scenario for Labour on June 8 aren鈥檛 exactly good for the spirits. But how far are their gloomy predictions born out by the facts of the May 4 local election results|聽鈥 in which the governing Tories won 38% (up eight points from last year's vote) and Labour just 27% (down 4 points)?

TrumpWatch: Women convicted for laughing at Jeff Sessions; Congress urged to block Trump's nuke powers; resistance growing, not slowing

Women convicted for laughing at Jeff Sessions

Fairfax staff on week-long strike after job cuts announced

Staff at the Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and Brisbane Times started an 鈥渦nprecedented鈥 week-long strike on May 3, and staff at the Newcastle Herald and Perth website WA Today stopped work overnight, following Fairfax Media's announcement that it will cut 125 editorial jobs 鈥攁 quarter of its journalists.

Council to close streets to limit impact of WestConnex

Lord Mayor Clover Moore has announced the Sydney City Council will permanently close council-owned roads to restrict the impact of traffic from the controversial WestConnex tollway on local residents.

Palestine: What鈥檚 behind Hamas鈥 new charter?

Leaders of聽Palestinian political party Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip,聽released a document outlining their guiding principles at a press conference in the Qatari capital Doha on May 1.

Much coverage focused on the document鈥檚 acceptance of Israel鈥檚 1967 boundary as the basis for establishing a Palestinian state alongside Israel. The document also includes pronouncements on how Hamas views the roots of the conflict, the role of Palestinian resistance and its position towards Jewish people.

Liberals鈥 budget reveals looming attacks on students and universities

Federal Minister for Education and Training Simon Birmingham has outraged students with his announcement of cuts affecting higher education that will come in the federal budget on May 9. Speculation is rife about the impact the cuts could have on students.

The cuts revolve around a 7.5% increase in university fees. But the reality of the fee hike could be much worse.

In conjunction with the budget鈥檚 $2.8 billion in cuts to university funding, universities could be forced to raise student fees by a minimum of 25%.

Palestinian hunger strikers risk all for 鈥榝reedom & dignity鈥

The demands of the hunger strikers are for basic civil rights. There are 6500 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, including 300 children. About 500 are being held under 鈥渁dministrative detention鈥 鈥 meaning they are held without trial by court orders that can be renewed indefinitely.

Despite the scale of the hunger strike and huge popular support enjoyed by the prisoners and their campaign for 鈥渇reedom and dignity鈥, Israel shows no signs of acceding to any of the prisoners鈥 demands to end their ill-treatment.

Malalai Joya: Disaster in Afghanistan the result of US-NATO 'war on terror'

Afghan anti-war activist and feminist Malalai Joya sent the solidarity message below to a protest organised by Sydney Stop the War Coalition against the visit of US Vice President Mike Pence to Australia on April 29.

Joya was elected to Afghanistan鈥檚 from 2005 until early 2007. She was dismissed from her seat for denouncing the presence of and in the .

Mexico: Governing party exploits refugees and migrants in T-shirt factory

At the same time as President Enrique Pena Nieto deports undocumented migrants trying to enter or pass through Mexico, his own party, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), is under-paying migrants and refugees in its T-shirt factory.

First Native Title determination in NT south

Yangkunytjatjara and Matutjara language speakers celebrated the first Native Title determination in the south of the Northern Territory on May 4.

At a special sitting of the Federal Court, Justice Reeves handed down a consent determination over an area of about 12,500 square kilometres near the South Australian border.

The area, comprises the pastoral leases of Victory Downs, Mt Cavenagh, Mulga Park and Umbeara, which will continue to operate as cattle stations.

Honduras: Campesinos occupy farms in struggle for better conditions

More than 2000 Honduran campesinos have taken over 10 farms in La Lima belonging to the Tela Railroad Company, a successor to the dissolved United Fruit Company, La Prensa reported on May 3.

The campesinos, demanding better working conditions and health care from the company, vowed to indefinitely occupy the space until they take action.