Thirty-seven thousand full-time jobs were lost in August, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, while the unemployment rate was unchanged at 8.7%. A 35-hour working week, with no decrease in pay,
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At press conferences in New York and London in September, Greenpeace revealed that it had found significant levels of hazardous chemicals in soft PVC toys and warned parents and consumers to avoid buying them. Greenpeace Australia has called on the
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Profits and sea levels Apart from the continuing support for the occupation of East Timor, almost "part of the furniture" of Australian governments whatever the name of the party in power, there are two things which I find almost too much to
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Action updates Tax Pickets Community and Public Sector Union members in the Tax Office have completed a second round of part-day stoppages in protest at management's plans for compulsory redundancies. The strikes occurred between
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On September 4, the day the Coalition's Wik bill went before parliament, John Howard told the ABC's 7.30 Report that obstruction of the bill would mean Aboriginal people could have a "veto over the further development
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Kerry Packer's Channel Nine has teamed up with arch-rival Rupert Murdoch in an apparent effort to solve Australia's unemployment crisis. The result was "Jobs for Australia", screened nationally on September 17. It was four
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Choice or poverty trap? "Break-ups 'the main cause of poverty'", announced the September 22 Sydney Morning Herald — a remarkable statement at a time of enormous unemployment and underemployment, declining real wages and health and
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From the courtroom By Brandon Astor Jones Out of habit and emotional necessity today, I have been reading some very poignant poetry in an attempt to soothe my soul. I have also been listening to at least one very angry and vindictive
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The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on August 15 ordered a grassroots citizens' group in Missouri to turn over all of its records to the agency within five days or face penalties of $25,000 per day. Steve Taylor,
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The September 3 announcement of a decision to build a new reactor at Lucas Heights, in southern Sydney, was accompanied by a lot of rhetoric about "saving lives with nuclear medicine". However, cracks are beginning to appear in the
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Nuclear power states bend international lawThe wording of a protocol that sets new arrangements on liability and compensation for nuclear accidents was decided at an International Atomic Energy Agency meeting in Vienna on
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The uses of unleaded petrol (ULP) and catalytic converters in post-1986 cars raise many questions. Kirk, McCabe, Hoyer and Bain (Write on, GLW #286) ask why oil companies keep information on the health effects of ULP
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CANBERRA — A public meeting organised by the Greens on September 23 highlighted the Pilgrimage Project to stop uranium mining and nuclear power. The meeting of around 80 was chaired by former senator Jo Vallentine. It heard about
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The federal government has three options to deal with the stockpile of 1600 highly radioactive spent fuel rods currently stored at Lucas Heights and the 300 that will be generated over the remaining life of the HIFAR reactor.
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In mid-July, the timber industry alleged that "anti-logging terrorists" had sabotaged logging machinery belonging to contractor Norm Wilton. Environment groups denied any responsibility for the sabotage and declared their
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Brandon Astor Jones' trial The resentencing trial of 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ Weekly columnist Brandon Astor Jones in Georgia last week ended with Brandon being sentenced to be executed between November 3 and 10. Brandon's attorney, Tony Axam, has
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Contamination at French plutonium factoryOn September 18, the French nuclear reprocessing company Cogema sought an injunction to stop Greenpeace from sampling the sea floor near its discharge pipeline at La Hague. Cogema is
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On October 18, 1967, more than 200,000 people gathered in the Plaza of the Revolution in Havana to hear Fidel Castro read an obituary to Che Guevara, who had been assassinated in Bolivia nine days before. To the crowd gathered in
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Actively Radical TV — Sydney community television's progressive current affairs producers tackle the hard issues from the activist's point of view. CTS Sydney (UHF 31), every Thursday, 10pm and Saturday, 7pm. Access News — Melbourne
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In the mid-1980s, a citizens' organization in New Jersey — Clean Ocean Action, led by Cindy Zipf — launched an aggressive campaign to protect the oceans from the dumping of toxic sewage sludge. They were up against
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On July 19, 72 university student activists began a trip to the site of the proposed Jabiluka uranium mine in Kakadu National Park in the Northern Territory. They had been attending the Students and Sustainability Conference in
News
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Nuclear scoop 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ Weekly contributor Jim Green has brought to light some very interesting facts as part of his research for a PhD at Wollongong University. Quoted in the Sydney Morning Herald of September 24, Green has exposed the
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Labour hire workers on strikeMELBOURNE — After three and a half weeks on strike, a September 24 mass meeting of Australian Manufacturing Workers Union members who work for labour hire companies voted to continue their
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New hope for 'day of mourning' site SYDNEY — The National Aboriginal History and Heritage Council has welcomed announcement by the Heritage Council of a review of the decision to allow the demolition of the old Australian Hall — site of the
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John Pat was found dead in a police cell in the west Pilbara town of Roebourne, WA on the night of September 28, 1983. Locked up after helping friends who were being attacked by off-duty police officers, he
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Australia dumps toxic waste on Hong Kong On September 23, the Hong Kong environmental protection department impounded a shipment of computer scrap until authorities can arrange for its return to Australia. The export of computer scrap, which
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BRISBANE — Community and Public Sector Union members in Centrelink, the federal government's new service delivery agency, struck for two hours on September 24. In response, the agency's new chief executive officer, Sue Vardon,
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The federal government's decision about whether or not to allow uranium mining at Jabiluka in the NT will be made very soon. If the go-ahead is given, Energy Resources Australia (ERA) will open the new mine and push a
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Royalty "The royal visits were nothing compared to this." — A senior police officer in Hong Kong, on security arrangements for the visit of Chinese Premier Li Peng and Vice-Premier Zhu Rongji. Benefits of competition "One has to go
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Cairns wharfies win 'for all unions'BRISBANE — The victory of the waterside workers in Cairns in the week ending September 19 was a win "for the Maritime Union of Australia and for all unions", MUA spokesperson Col Davies
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CFMEU strike and rally on October 1 A half-day building industry stoppage will take place on October 1 in Sydney. Thousands of building workers will stop work and attend a rally at 11.30am at Town Hall Square. Several hundred miners will join
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We're taking a break 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ Weekly is taking a one-week break with this issue. The next issue will be dated October 15.
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Labor exposed at native title rallyCANBERRA — Around 100 people attended a rally and march on September 21 protesting against the Liberal government's attacks on native title. The rally, organised by the Campaign Against
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Dispute in Victorian hospitals escalatesMELBOURNE — Health professionals in Victoria are turning to militant action in response to the refusal of hospital managements and the state government to enter into any real
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Around 150 activists and supporters of the anti-racism campaign attended the Fight Racism National Conference at the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS) on September 27-28. The conference was supported by a range of campaign groups and socialist
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PERTH — For the first time in six years, student guild elections are taking place on Edith Cowan University. The guild has been run by the left of the Labor Party (NOLS) since its inception, and the elections have never been
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Thousands rally against BadgerysSYDNEY — On September 21, more than 2000 people packed the Blacktown Civic Centre in Sydney's west to protest against the proposed second airport at Badgerys Creek. The rally
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HUNTER VALLEY — Last week the dispute at the Hunter Valley No 1 coal mine near Singleton escalated. Unable to defeat the miners, Rio Tinto has applied to the Australian Industrial Relations Commission (IRC) to be allowed to
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East Timor activist fined heavily By Tim E. Stewart DARWIN — Well-known Darwin activist Shell 63 has been fined $1000 for jumping into a parliamentary limousine during a demonstration for freedom for East Timor. The incident occurred
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Protest at BHP shareholders' meetingADELAIDE — A protest against BHP's theft of East Timorese oil from the Timor Gap took place outside a BHP shareholders' meeting on September 23. Two of the main oilfields discovered by BHP
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Youth rights under attack in the NTOver the last 12 months the Country Liberal Party (CLP) government in the Northern Territory has taken or proposed a range of repressive and unreasonable actions in relation to perceived
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HEMP picket of newspaper BRISBANE — On September 19, HEMP (Help End Marijuana Prohibition) held a picket outside the offices of the Courier-Mail. In early August, the Murdoch press was campaigning nationally against the proposed heroin trial
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Nothing new at ANUCANBERRA — Less than 800 students voted in the students' association elections at the Australian National University last week. This was due in part to a strike and teaching bans imposed by the
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Greens challenge in SA electionsADELAIDE — The Greens SA will contest both the Legislative Assembly and lower house in the state elections on October 11. Paul Petit and Rita Helling will stand for the Legislative
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MELBOURNE — Student union elections were held recently at Melbourne University. Around 20% of the student population voted. Left Focus, a broad coalition of left-wing activists, won all office bearer positions for the third year
Analysis
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In power to plunder PM John Howard's removal of John Sharp, David Jull and Peter McGauran from his front bench was widely applauded by the big business media on the grounds that we can't have a government tainted by any suggestion that its
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A warning against complacency Sarwono Kusumaatmadja, Indonesia's environment minister, last week spoke with honesty unusual in the Indonesian government, regarding the catastrophic fires spreading through the country. "We were operating on
World
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MOSCOW — Anyone who follows western media reports on Russia will know the formula: the country's chances of economic recovery rest on the "young reformers", brought into top government posts early this year to battle
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Indonesian students and workers arrestedOn September 23, at least nine students and workers were arrested during a protest outside the Indonesian national parliament building against new, repressive labour laws.
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Delegates attending the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) sixth national congress, on September 16-19, have sharply criticised the economic policies of the African National Congress government and its failure to
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From Los Angeles to Fremantle, Copenhagen to Durban, actions in solidarity with sacked Liverpool dockers were held on September 8. September is the second anniversary of the dockers' struggle to keep their jobs. The action
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Representatives of the people of Bougainville are involved in a vigorous debate over the merits of the process that began with peace talks in New Zealand in July. Another round of talks is scheduled for early October. After two
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BILBAO — Members of the Spanish paramilitary civil guard shot and killed two young Basques on September 24 in what authorities described as a "shoot-out" with police in a narrow downtown street. The police operation is continuing. According to
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Following is an abridged version of a leaflet handed out by the Loxicha People's Union Against Repression (LPUAR) at a demonstration in Oaxaca City Square in August against the arbitrary arrest of 68 people. Oaxaca is the capital of Oaxaca State in
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September marks one year since the most significant clashes, in which more than 80 Palestinians died and 1200 were injured, since the Oslo Accords. 'ALA JARADAT, a Birzeit University student from Jenin, spoke to 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ Weekly's ADAM HANIEH about
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Jiang Zemin appears to be the most powerful man in China today. He heads the state, the ruling Communist Party and the army. At the 15th CP congress, he managed to remove from power political rivals Qiao Shi (from the Politburo
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Historian BENJAMIN STORA is well known for his writings on Algeria and colonialism, including History of the Algerian War (1954-1962), History of Algeria After Independence (1962-1994), and The Sources of Algerian Nationalism. He has just published
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At least six people have been killed, scores wounded and hundreds arrested during three days of rioting in the Indonesian provincial capital of South Sulawesi, Ujung Padang. The riots were sparked by the killing of a
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One hundred representatives of native peoples from Brazil, Venezuela and Guyana held their first ever summit in Boa Vista, capital of Brazil's northernmost state of Roraima, for four days at the end of August. Leaders from the
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Mining companies should 'fund famine relief' The Australian non-government organisation AID/WATCH is calling on Australian companies and multinationals operating in Papua New Guinea to commit a percentage of their profits to drought-ravaged
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Urgent appeal The New Socialist Party of Sri Lanka is appealing for donations from supporters and friends to replace a computer that recently broke down . The comrades need $1200. The computer is essential to producing their newspaper Hareya.
Culture
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auth = By Mark Cronin The ACTU Congress in Brisbane earlier this month achieved little of political importance but it did have an interesting cultural offshoot. On the eve of the congress, 400 people packed the Culture Bank in West End to hear
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The Sorrow of WarSBSMonday, October 13, 8.30pm (8pm in SA) Review by Brendan Doyle "Long ago, at the gates of Hanoi, there was a large drum. Any citizen was allowed to beat the drum and voice his opinion. If the speech pleased the Emperor, he
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Kakadu If they're mining KakaduThen they're surely killing youCause they're killing all the thingsYou care about.We will see the wild ducks flyAcross a lemon coloured sky,When everything goes wrong in Kakadu.We'll see the mushroom cloudAnd
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The one day of the year for us types It is right and fitting that some testimony of the passions and adventures of our times be provided for those who may succeed us. I am therefore taking this extraordinary step of addressing you because the
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As It Happened: Ernesto Che Guevara: Bolivian Diary — SBS, Thursday, October 9 — 8.30pm (8pm in SA) Review by Neville Spencer October 9 is the 30th anniversary of the capture and execution in the jungles of Bolivia of Argentine-Cuban
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Indonesia Alert!Edited by Kurt Biddle and Malik MiahPrinted by Inkworks, USA Review by Nick Everett Indonesia Alert! is a new publication produced by supporters of Indonesia's democracy movement in the United States. It reports on developments
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MELBOURNE — It is now three years since free-to-air community television Channel 31 hit the airwaves. Stephen Baras-Miller and Jeff Riley are involved in the weekly activist program, Access News, produced by Channel 31's Ska TV
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Sunrise BlvdRod Quantock at The Comedy (Harold Park) Hotel115 Wigram Road, Glebe, Sydney.September 23 to October 5, 8pm. $7. Review by Chris Spindler Rod Quantock is a rarity. He is not only funny, he uses real politics as the drawcard and
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Rage for Indonesian political prisoners PERTH — Spank and Humbug are just two of the major bands which will be donating their time and talents for a Freedom Rage to be held at the Ozone Bar on November 7. The band night aims to raise
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Kabila: The Revolutionary RevealedSBSTuesday October 7, 8.30pm (8pm in SA) Review by Norm Dixon In spite of its title, don't expect this BBC report to shed new light on new Congo leader Laurent Kabila's background. Anybody who has followed the