Statement on Howard victory and what next..
Sunday, October 10 @ 04:43:32 CDT

In the next few hours a Socialist Party National Committee (SP NC) statement on why the Howard government was reelected, what it means for the working class and youth, and perspectives now, will be released on this web page. The SP NC met today and discussed yesterdays election results in detail.
This Tuesday at the SP office at 7pm in Trades Hall Melbourne we host a public meeting to discuss the election and perspectives. Speaker will be Stephen Jolly. All welcome.
Tomorrow (Monday) 7.30am at Flinders St Railway Station in Melbourne, SP members will be participating with radical youth in a special anti-Howard Government mobilisation. Be there if you can! The best response to the rampant Tories is to take to the streets !

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George Orwell on human greed and socialism
Tuesday, October 05 @ 02:17:14 CDT

From an article in the British socialist newspaper, Tribune, 21st July 1944
An argument that Socialists ought to be prepared to meet, since it is brought up constantly both by Christian apologists and by neo-pessimists such as James Burnham, is the alleged immutability of ‘human nature’.

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Analysis of Federal election results + what now for working class
Sunday, October 03 @ 22:35:02 CDT

Socialist Party public meeting
Analysis of Federal election results + what now for working class
Organised by Melbourne City branch SP
Lead-off by Stephen Jolly
Tuesday 12th October 2004, 7pm
Trades Hall, crn Lygon + Victoria Sts, Carlton South


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Germany: Victory for Socialist Alternative!
Wednesday, September 29 @ 05:26:20 CDT

Socialist Alternative, the German section of the CWI, scored a great victory in Sunday’s local elections in North Rhine Westphalia, winning two more councillors.
By Tanja Niemeier, CWI

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Successful action at Chinese Consulate
Monday, September 27 @ 02:20:47 CDT

SP members from three Victorian branches attended last Saturday's action at the Chinese Consulate-General in Toorak, Melbourne (see article below for details). A photo of the action will be posted on this web site soon. The 'Communist' Consul-General, so worried at his Government being exposed over their treatment of genuine trade unionists, organised for police from three separate agencies to attend the protest! They came from the Diplomatic Police, the AFP, and the local Toorak station.

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Rally on Saturday Chinese Consulate, Melbourne
Tuesday, September 21 @ 22:46:31 CDT

This Saturday 25th September at 12:00 noon the Socialist Party is holding an emergency rally out the front of the Chinese Consulate at 75-77 Irving Rd, Toorak in solidarity with Yao Fuxin and Xiao Yunliang.
These two men were jailed and mistreated by the so-called Communist Government for their ideas and their organisation of workers at a factory in Liaoyang. See article below (China: Free the Liaoyang Two) for more information.
Come to this important action, which will finish by 12.45pm in time for the AFL Grand Final

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Federal election – a ''choice'' of Tweedledum or Tweedledee
Tuesday, September 21 @ 22:22:32 CDT

Workers need a socialist alternative
John Gowland, SP in Perth, written for the CWI web page
Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, has called the Australian Federal election for 10th November. But Australians have little to choose from; Howard is the most right-wing Liberal Prime Minister ever, and the leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) is also the most right-wing Labor leader ever.

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China: Free the Liaoyang Two
Friday, September 17 @ 01:09:42 CDT

Yao Fuxin and Xiao Yunliang imprisoned for defending workers’ rights
The condition of two imprisoned workers’ leaders in China is critical. The Commitee for a Workers’ International supports an international campaign for their’ release.

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CWI members launch new China website
Friday, September 17 @ 01:02:58 CDT

Defence campaign for imprisoned metalworkers in Liaoyang
Laurence Coates, Rättvisepartiet Socialisterna, CWI Sweden
Chinaworker.org is a new website started by members and supporters of the CWI. The aim is to publicise and support workers’ struggles against capitalist ”reforms”, privatisation and job losses in China and to raise awareness over the political and economic processes there.

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Britain: Behind New Labour’s power struggle
Wednesday, September 15 @ 05:06:26 CDT

Economic storms and class battles on the agenda
By Peter Taaffe, Socialist Party, England and Wales
While the world and the British people were preoccupied with the terrorist outrage in North Ossetia, with a worsening economic situation, price rises and the daily struggle to make ends meet, what were the priorities of Tony Blair and his New Labour government?

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US: The war on Nader
Monday, September 13 @ 02:01:36 CDT

The Democrats’ dirty tricks
By Ted Virdone, US CWI Section - Socialist Alternative (no relation to Australian group!!)

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The politics behind the Jakarta Embassy bombing
Sunday, September 12 @ 02:09:44 CDT

The horrific bomb blast in Jakarta highlights important political issues for the working class in Australia and Indonesia.

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Russia: Bloodbath in Beslan
Monday, September 06 @ 16:19:16 CDT

The bloody end to the school hostage crisis in Beslan, North Ossetia, angered, sickened and shocked people around the world.

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SP position on the upcoming Victorian CFMEU (construction) election
Monday, September 06 @ 07:49:39 CDT

Comrades,
An ex-member of the Socialist Party, Dave O'Brien, has nominated for the position of Assistant State Secretary of the Victorian branch of the CFMEU (construction division) against the incumbent, Billy Oliver. All other positions are expected to be elected unopposed.
The Socialist Party does not support in any way Dave O'Brien's actions in standing in this election.

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Germany: Majority support for socialism
Friday, September 03 @ 23:58:19 CDT

Today 79% of east Germans and 51% of west Germans think that Socialism is a “good idea” that was “only badly implemented” in the former Soviet Union and eastern Europe. That is the judgement after 15 years of capitalist unification. Clearly in the midst of the current determined campaign by the German ruling class to cut living standards the opposition and alienation from capitalism is growing.

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High Court decision a sign of new era
Friday, September 03 @ 23:54:40 CDT

Last week the High Court of Australia voted 6-1 to ban trade unions from any industrial action on issues outside immediate wages and conditions when negotiating an Enterprise Bargaining Agreement. This anti-democratic decision is an attempt to shakle the organised working class from any input on the political arena.

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Iraq: US imperialism weakened further
Friday, September 03 @ 23:42:11 CDT

The dreams of the US right-wing 'neo-cons' lie in tatters on the battlefields of Iraq. One of the only certainties in the turmoil of Iraq is that imperialism's occupation is doomed to failure.

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North Ossetia: School siege is latest horror of Chechen conflict
Thursday, September 02 @ 17:10:49 CDT

By Niall Mulholland, CWI
Socialist background feature on the crisis in North Ossetia and the Chechen war.

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USA: Protesting the Republicans in New York
Thursday, September 02 @ 02:07:26 CDT

By Bryan Koulouris, Socialist Alternative (CWI in USA), New York City
The Republican National Convention has invaded New York City.
Bush and company are meeting just four miles from the site of the 9/11 terror attacks just two weeks before the third year anniversary of the attacks.

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Siege in Najaf, Iraqi resistance grows
Tuesday, August 31 @ 18:37:35 CDT

By Stephen Boyd
The siege of Najaf is the latest episode that underlines the fact that neither US Imperialism nor their puppet "Iraqi government" led by Iyad Allawi control Iraq.

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Shane Maloney speech to Scotch College students
Monday, August 30 @ 00:17:45 CDT

This speech was given by Victorian crime writer (and outspoken public education activist) Shane Maloney to an assembly of boys at Melbourne's exclusive Scotch College. He had been invited to conduct some workshops on writing (which he did) and then to speak to the larger gathering (he was given no guidance on what to speak on). Needless to say his speech caused quite a stir, with some of the teachers and boys being very indignant.

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Howard calls election for October 9th - How should workers vote?
Sunday, August 29 @ 04:05:53 CDT

HOWARD MUST GO ON OCTOBER 9
The Socialist Party welcomes the Federal election in that it gives the working class an opportunity to vote out the most reactionary government since Federation.
The Howard government has carried on the neo-liberal policies begin in the last years of the Whitlam government, the Fraser years, and the 13 years of Hawke-Keating - and added a vicious socially-reactionary twist.
We call on workers to vote for Socialist candidates. The Socialist Alliance, Progressive Labour Party, Communist Party of Australia and others do not offer a way forward for the working class but do partially challenge the neoliberal politics of the Howard government.
Should there be no socialist candidates standing workers should vote for the Greens Party. Although they are not based on the working class, we welcome their stand on the Iraq war, refugees and their industrial relations policy.
The Socialist Party is not standing in this Federal election; our entire party will be concentrating on making an electoral breakthrough for socialism in the Yarra City Council election in inner city Melbourne on November 27th.
In this municipality the Labor-Green leadership have been a disappointment to many locals and we believe SP policies and candidates offer a real alternative in this election.
The way forward for the workers movement in the aftermath of the October 9 poll is the creation of a new workers party based on trade unions, community organisations and social groups. We believe this call will increasingly be heard especially if a Latham Labor government is elected.
Above all Howard must be turfed out on October 9!

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2nd report from CWI Summer School 2004
Saturday, August 28 @ 04:03:10 CDT

The Socialist Party in Australia is affiliated to the Committee for a Workers' International. Here is the second report on its recent Summer School held in Belgium. Australia was represented by Denise Dudley.
This second report follows another article covering the main discussion on Latin America from the CWI Summer School that appeared a few days ago on our web page (see below). This report concentrates on Europe, Asia, Latin America and Africa.

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What are the lessons of the Craig Johnston jailing?
Saturday, August 28 @ 02:26:59 CDT

Yesterday the Victorian Court of Appeal sentenced ex-AMWU State Secretary Craig Johnston to two years and nine months jail. Nine months is to be served immediately with the remainder suspended for 2 and 1/2 years. The Court ruled the original sentence in the County Court (a wholly suspended sentence) was "manifestly inadequate".

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Venezuela: After the referendum, contradictions in Venezuela more apparent
Friday, August 27 @ 02:02:30 CDT

By Celso Calfulan, in Caracas
The Venezuelan right wing went to great lengths to impose a recall referendum. This included open fraud, such as the inclusion of the signatures of 11,000 who were already dead. There were 10,500 signatures which appeared either 3 times or more and those individuals are now being prosecuted. Yet, all of this was in vain given that for the eighth time the right-wing were defeated by the workers and those who live in the poor districts.

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Who are invited to the SP Council Election launch
Thursday, August 26 @ 21:17:06 CDT

Next Tuesday 7th September from 7pm the Socialist Party is launching its campaign for the Yarra City Council elections on November 27th. African food from our Nigerian comrade Wale will provide the backdrop. Come and hear our three candidates, Stephen Jolly, Erinn Sales and Zac Wright, explain our policies and hear how you can help the campaign.
The event is in Clifton Hill, Melbourne and is child friendly


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Global Warning: Profits threaten our future
Tuesday, August 24 @ 20:45:53 CDT

A NEW secret report warns that climate change could kill millions of people worldwide through violent storms, searing heat, flooding, famine and drought
Click here

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Inspiring and massive German workers' rebellion against the cuts
Monday, August 23 @ 22:45:38 CDT

100,000 people take part in Monday demonstrations
Eye witness accounts from Rostock and Leipzig

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Political Resolution passed at 2004 SP National Conference
Monday, August 23 @ 22:33:28 CDT

1996 marked a victory for a section of the ruling class, politically represented by the Howard Government, wanting to hitch their class interests at the US, the sole superpower since the collapse of the USSR.

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Joe Higgins successful visit to Australia
Monday, August 23 @ 21:52:01 CDT

Joe spoke directly to almost 2000 workers and shop stewards during his brief tour, plus four SP public meetings in three States, did media, met with union executives, and had an official welcome by Melbourne City Council. The Celtic Club in Melbourne organised two separate functions for him. The highlights for Joe were the SP National Conference (see separate report), the 350-strong delegates meeting of the NSW National Union of Workers, the site meeting at the massive Eureka job of 500 workers, and the Southern Cross job of 350 workers.

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