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Cuba fights neuritis outbreak

Cuba fights neuritis outbreak HAVANA — The Cuban daily Granma on April 27 lashed out at a foreign media disinformation campaign around the outbreak of optic neuritis on the island. Optic neuritis is a vision-impairing disease. It was

Refugee family denied asylum

Refugee family denied asylum By Catherine Brown A Romany refugee family, denied asylum by the Cologne city council (led by the Social Democrats), is now in hiding to avoid forced deportation to Macedonia. Asylum was denied on the basis

Timorese prepared to continue struggle

MARI ALKATIRI is a senior member of the Fretilin Central Committee in exile. He was interviewed in Sydney for Green Left Weekly by Max Lane. Could you tell us why you are visiting Australia? I have received a mandate from the leadership

Life in the past lane

In a country town, ANN MATHESON finds that little changes — especially the things that should change. After a lifetime of city newsrooms, vying for premium parking spaces, fighting deadlines and jostling for service, I was sure that if I

Victorian law on indefinite imprisonment

Victorian law on indefinite imprisonment By Alex Cooper MELBOURNE — Harsh new sentencing legislation was passed by Victoria's parliament on April 29, a week after its introduction by state attorney general Jan Wade. The law provides for

NSW doctors take on state government

By Anne Casey SYDNEY — The latest talks between the NSW minister for health, Ronald Phillips, and the Australian Medical Association, held on April 27, failed to resolve the dispute which threatens to leave the public health system without

The Kennett-Keating connection

By Peter Boyle MELBOURNE — In the last days of the Kirner Labor government of Victoria, the report of an independent review of the state public sector's finances (the Nicholls Review) was released. While the media made much of its finding

Vote gives Yeltsin little comfort

By Renfrey Clarke MOSCOW — Sixteen months after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the sense that Russia had slipped back into the era of "plebiscite" elections was uncanny. There was only one name on the ballot paper. Voters were

British toxic waste down the sewer

British toxic waste down the sewer Friends of the Earth in Britain on April 28 named 23 companies in the north-east that have been pouring toxic waste down the drain. The companies include household names such as Ever Ready, Sterling Winthrop

General strike threat in Fiji

General strike threat in Fiji The Fiji Trade Union Congress has threatened a national strike if the government fails to abolish controversial labour laws. The Fiji Daily Post reported on April 15 that FTUC general secretary James Raman

MP's death confirmed

MP's death confirmed By Norm Dixon The death of Ken Savia, the minister of health in the Bougainville Interim Government and former minister for health in the North Solomons Provincial Government, has been confirmed by the Papua New

A million march on Washington

By Ann McNally WASHINGTON — Media reports of the March on Washington for Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Rights and Liberation quoted a Park Service estimate of 300,000 participants. This would be a disappointment if true, since 1 million persons