Issue 99

News

Perth May Day dinner By Stephen Robson PERTH — Two hundred people celebrated May Day at a dinner here on May 1 organised by the Democratic Socialist Party and Resistance to raise funds for Green Left Weekly. Those delivering toasts
'DAGS' demonstrate MELBOURNE — A new group calling itself the Direct Action Group Survivors (DAGS) organised a demonstration of about 60 people outside the Liberal Party headquarters here on May 7. Speakers condemned the Kennett
Another drug raid bungle By Alex Cooper MELBOURNE — Following the highly publicised drug raid bungle of May 21, in which a van was pulled up outside St Vincent's Hospital and a group of charity collectors for the Muscular Dystrophy
Residents say no to auto fares By Katherine Doyle SYDNEY — One hundred angry Erskineville residents gathered on May 4 at a public meeting to protest the proposed installation of automatic fare machines by the NSW State Rail Authority.
Fred Moore, former president of the Miners Federation, presented $500 to Basilio Gutierrez, representing the Cuban Institute for Friendship with the Peoples, on May 6. The donation, from the South Coast May Day Committee, will support the Ship to
Abattoir axed By Geoff Spencer PERTH — Robb Jetty meat workers walked off the job for 24 hours on May 4 with the announcement of the closure of the abattoir and the loss of 220 jobs. The state Coalition government decision came a
100th Newcastle May Day By Margaret Allan NEWCASTLE — In the largest march the city has seen for years, around 600 people celebrated May Day by marching on May 1. The larger than usual turnout was probably due to the fact that this day
ANC youth leader to tour Australia By Sean Malloy Jeremiah Ndou, head of the ANC Youth League International Affairs Department, will be a guest of the radical youth organisation Resistance at its 22nd national conference in July.
By Geoff Spencer PERTH — Some 1200 people attended a Save the Westrail Midland Workshops march and public meeting on May 6. Loudspeakers were set up outside the Midland Town Hall to cater for the large crowd which could not be accommodated
By Bronwen Beechey and Peter Boyle MELBOURNE — The day after a large May 5 march and rally against the Kennett government's budget cuts and attacks on superannuation benefits of public sector workers, a $2 million "audit" of the state's
By Bronwen Beechey MELBOURNE — Victoria's already beleaguered public transport system is in for a further battering. More cuts to rail services are to take effect in the next two months, despite warnings from environmental and public
ACTUP rally against censorship By Bronwen Beechey MELBOURNE — A noisy protest was held outside the offices of TV Week on May 8, following the magazine's refusal to carry a series of AIDS awareness advertisements aimed at young gay and
Four-week reprieve for Jackeys Marsh Residents of Jackeys Marsh, Tasmania, have succeeded in staving off forestry operations in the dry sclerophyll eucalypt forests of Warners Sugarloaf. Under recently enacted "resource security"
SYDNEY — Seventy people attended a public meeting on the situation in Cuba held here on May 5. The meeting was addressed by a representative of the Cuban Institute for Friendship with the Peoples (ICAP), Basilio Gutierrez. Gutierrez is visiting

World

No progress in talks on Timor By Max Lane The Indonesian and Portuguese foreign ministers and the UN secretary-general met in Rome on April 27 to discuss East Timor. The first round of these talks, held in New York in December,
Illegal British trade in endangered rainforest species Investigations by Friends of the Earth have revealed that, despite international obligations for the British government to control imports of endangered species, wood from one of the
Khmer Rouge steps up armed attacks In the last week, the Khmer Rouge has escalated its attacks on UN and Cambodian government installations as it seeks to prevent the May 23 elections. On May 3 Khmer Rouge guerillas attacked Siem Reap,
South Korea celebrates May Day By Michael Chong South Korean workers and students celebrated May Day this year for the first time in 35 years. Until now, any ceremonies relating to May Day were legally banned. In the Seoul region, a
Declaration of the Party of Labour The brutal assault on the May Day demonstration showed that the Yeltsin regime is interpreting the results of the referendum in its own distinctive fashion: as a mandate to use clubs and water-cannons
France to renew N-tests? There are indications French nuclear testing may resume in the South Pacific. The head of France's Atomic Energy Commission is urging the government to end its moratorium on nuclear weapons testing, saying the arsenal's
By Poul Funder Larsen MOSCOW — A rather uneventful campaign, dominated by heavy pro-Yeltsin propaganda in the electronic media but virtually no popular manifestations in his support, preceded the referendum on April 25. In spite of a
By Max Lane The assembly of Serb chauvinists operating in conquered sections of Bosnia and Croatia rejected the Vance-Owens "peace" plan on May 5 because they believe they can gain even more than the increased concessions apparently agreed
By Max Lane Indonesian minister of defence Edi Sudrajat announced on May 5 that he would be relinquishing his position of armed forces (ABRI) commander in chief. General Feisal Tanjung, deputy chief of staff of the army, would be appointed
Trade unionists against US blockade HAVANA — Trade unionists from 40 countries have agreed to spearhead a worldwide drive against the 30-year US blockade of Cuba. The resolution, adopted at a meeting of visiting trade unionists who attended
Xanana testimony According to ABC Jakarta correspondent Ian MacIntosh, reports have reached the Indonesian capital saying that Fretilin leader Xanana Gusmao announced during his trial that he would give evidence only in Portuguese because he
By Max Lane Thousands of Indonesian young people rioted in Jakarta last month after they were excluded from a major stadium where the heavy metal band, Metallica, was playing. Metallica and heavy metal have developed a strong following
By Poul Funder Larsen MOSCOW — When participants in the communist May Day demonstration here — including this correspondent — neared Gagarin Square on Lenin Prospect south of the city centre, they found the entrance to the square
By Renfrey Clarke MOSCOW — In Russian warships based in the port of Kaliningrad, the English-language Moscow Tribune reported on April 26, the vote in the April 25 referendum went heavily against President Boris Yeltsin. This was not just a
Sustainable agriculture in CubaIn November, 1992, an interdisciplinary group went to Cuba to investigate the government's claims of recent large-scale adoption of sustainable agriculture. The multi-country delegation included scientists,

Culture

Medea Composed by Gordon Kerry Libretto by Justin MacDonnell (adapted from Seneca) Arias Written and composed by Caroline Wilkins Together at the Athenaeum Theatre, Melbourne, until May 16 Reviewed by Peter Boyle The
Farewell to breakfast? The Cutting Edge: Fast Food in the Food Chain Screening on SBS Television, Tuesday May 18, 8.30 p.m. (8 p.m. in Adelaide) With press reports just a few weeks ago announcing Australia's first patent granted for a
Pilger on SBS SBS Television this week will be screening John Pilger's new film on Cambodia, Return to Year Zero. Pilger, who portrayed for the world the horrors Cambodia had experienced in his 1979 film Year Zero, warns that the Khmer
A magical portrait of Frida Kahlo Viva la vida — Frida Kahlo Written by Karen CorbettDirected by Angela Chaplin Performed by Melita Jurisic, Carmelina de Guglielmo, and Handspan Theatre At the Gasworks, Melbourne, until May 22
To the Eyes of Creation Courtney Pine Island through Phonogram Available on CD and cassette Hush and Listen London Community Gospel Choir Permanent Records through Festival Available on CD and cassette Reviewed by Norm Dixon
Army of Darkness Directed by Sam Raimi Starring Bruce Campbell, Embeth Davidtz and Marcus Gilbert Showing at Hoyts, Greater Union, Village Roadshow and independent cinemas Reviewed by Max Lane Without realising it, I went the other

Editorial

Cambodian emergency This week's issue of the Bulletin magazine has a cover feature on Cambodia by Australian journalist and film maker John Pilger. It is must reading. Pilger describes the growing threat of the genocidal Khmer Rouge, who