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RUSSIA: Disasters reveal regime's crisis

MOSCOW — August was a fateful month for the Russian authorities. There was a terrorist explosion in Pushkin Square, then the sinking of the nuclear submarine Kursk, and, on August 27, the Ostankino television tower caught fire. What happened to the

Write on: letters to the editor

S11 protests I am a long-time Labor voter and a delegate of the Community and Public Sector Union at my workplace. Last weekend I travelled to Melbourne to visit my family, and to attend the non-violent protest against the World Economic Forum.

S11: 'This is what democracy looks like'

BY SEAN HEALY MELBOURNE — At the end, those blockading the World Economic Forum were exhausted and euphoric, in equal measure, but with only a taste for the magnitude of what they'd achieved. At S11, the veil which separates the people from the

Remanded Iraqis denied rights

BY SIMON BUTLER & BRONWEN BEECHEY Ten Iraqi asylum seekers, charged with inciting the desperate riots at the Woomera detention centre in August, are now being systematically denied even their most basic rights as prisoners, according to lawyers

Alternative opening ceremony targets Nike

BY JOHN GAUCI SYDNEY — Pressure on Nike has been stepped up by an "Alternative Opening Ceremony" organised by NikeWatch, which challenged the sportswear giant to live up to the "Olympic ideal of human dignity". The September 11 ceremony, in

Olympics caterer cashing in on incarceration

Sodexho Alliance, a multinational based in France, and its Australian division, Sodexho Australia, won the contract to cater for several Olympic venues — Stadium Australia, the Olympic village (for sponsors and the media) and the Sydney Opera

Howard at UN tries to dodge human rights

BY ALLEN MYERS "John Howard sounded nervous when he rose to speak", Michelle Grattan began her Sydney Morning Herald commentary on the prime minister's speech to the United Nations Millennium Summit on September 7. She went on to point out that the

Correction

The article "A song for an apology" in last week's Green Left Weekly contains an editing error in stating that Triple J radio had excluded the previous Simon Hunt (Pauline Pantsdown) song "I Don't Like It" from its play list. It is only Simon's new

Web site records S11 protests

For a complete record of the three-day S11 protests against the World Economic Forum in Melbourne, check out Green Left Weekly's Global Action web site,http://www.greenleft.org.au/globalaction/s11. The site contains not only a comprehensive daily

UNITED STATES: A voice crying in the wilderness

The Republican and Democratic conventions are now over with absolutely no surprises or revelations to record. George W. Bush and Albert Gore received their party's endorsement, as predicted months ago. The two are now touring the country with their

Inside the CIA

REVIEW BY SIMON BUTLER Deadly Deceits: My 25 years in the CIABy Ralph McGeheeOcean Press, Melbourne.231pp. $26.95 (pb) "My view, backed by 25 years of experience is, quite simply, that the CIA is the covert action arm of the Presidency. Most of

Life of Riley: G'day

G'day Straight off I need to apologise. Regular visitors and the occasional tourist to this column have come to expect a certain sarcasm emanating from this printed space. I am what is often referred to locally as a professional knocker. That