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RUSSIA: Chechen war comes to Moscow

BY BORIS KAGARLITSKY MOSCOW — On the evening of October 23, all of Russia's television channels interrupted their broadcasts to report that a group of Chechen fighters had seized the Moscow theatre centre where the musical Nord-Ost was playing.

Tax staff vote on agreement

BY CHRIS SLEE On October 30, Australian Taxation Office (ATO) staff began to vote on a new agency agreement. Voting will close on November 7. Opponents of the agreement, including supporters of the Members First group within the Community and

March to target WTO hypocrisy

BY SIMON BUTLER SYDNEY — Federal trade minister Mark Vaile's confirmation on October 30 that the November 14-15 ministerial meeting of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) has been moved to the site of the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games in Homebush

Loose cannons

Whatever happened to user-pays? "A German intelligence-gathering operation went spectacularly wrong after bills for phone tapping services were sent to the people being bugged. About 50 people received the demands in mobile phone invoices." —

Are Aussies heartless bastards?

BY JAMES CRAFTI MELBOURNE — Are all Aussies heartless bastards? This was the question that was thrashed out at the third annual Green Left Weekly comedy debate. Almost 200 people crowded into the Brunswick Town Hall on October 25 to find

'Axis of greed' condemned at forestry protest

BY KAMALA EMANUEL LAUNCESTON — One hundred people attended a demonstration against the Gunns woodchip company's forestry practices at its annual general meeting on October 31. One banner read "People don't kill forests — Gunns kill

Greens victory: 'a win for the local community'

BY CHRIS WILLIAMS WOLLONGONG - The Greens' Michael Organ was officially declared the new member for the federal lower house seat of Cunningham by the Australian Electoral Commission on October 30. Responding to the announcement, Organ stated the

WA Muslims in fear of further ASIO raids

BY FEDERICO FUENTES & KIRAZ JANICKE PERTH — Seventy people, mostly Muslims, attended a meeting at the Australian Islamic College on November 2 to discuss the recent ASIO raids on Muslim families. The meeting heard accounts of the

BRITAIN: Lesley McCulloch case debated in parliament

BY IGGY KIM On October 24, a debate was held in Britain's House of Commons over the Foreign Office's handling of the detention of Lesley McCulloch in Indonesia. The debate was initiated by Alan Reid, the Scottish Liberal Democrats member for Argyll

BRAZIL: A challenge to Washington?

BY ROGER BURBACH Elected in a landslide victory with over 61% of the vote, Luis Inacio da Silva will become president on January 1 of Latin America's largest country with 175 million inhabitants. Lula, as he is commonly known, received three

INDONESIA: Right exploits anger at 'war on terror' campaign

BY MAX LANE JAKARTA — The "war on terror" propaganda campaign being conducted by the Australian and US governments is providing ammunition for xenophobic right-wing political forces in Indonesia. Australian government support for the

and ain't i a woman?: Amina's crime: to be a poor women

Amina Lawal has been sentenced to death by stoning for the "crime" of bearing a child by a man she divorced two years previously. Under sharia laws in effect in many of Nigeria's northern states, which are based on a strict interpretation of Islam,