The Victorian Ombudsman, Dr Barry Perry, has produced a disgraceful report, giving police the green light to bash protesters who participate in mass blockades. Nine months to the day after the brutal assault by police on those protesting the World Economic Forum meeting, the Ombudsman presented his initial report in State Parliament. On the fundamental… Read more »
civil liberties & police
Anti-capitalist protesters murdered in PNG: Canberra has blood on its hands!
In 1975 Papua New Guinea gained formal independence from Australia. However at no time since Australia took over control of the former British and German colonies has PNG been free of the domination of Australian Capital, particularly the mining sector. Australia accounts for two thirds of the foreign investment in the country, and successive governments… Read more »
Your Say
An enjoyable radical read I really enjoyed reading Freedom Socialist Bulletin # 24 — some great articles. I particularly enjoyed “I don’t want to let go of my rage” by Maria Mardones and “Loud, Proud and Effective,” the review of Graham Willett’s book, Living Out Loud. I do wish Maria and others the best of… Read more »
Art to Resist the Execution of Mumia Abu-Jamal: “What does it mean?”
What does it mean to me, A Chinese American woman. To have Mumia sitting on Death Row For over 17 years? What does it mean to me, A retired worker, a poet To have “The Voice of the Voiceless” writing us from his prison cell? What does it mean to you and me, Working people,… Read more »
Turn Up the Heat: Demand the Right to Demonstrate Free from Police Violence
“Police fear protest riots,” “Fear of violent protests,” Violence fears close stores,” “Help at hand for protest violence” and “Forum chief lashes wild protesters” were among the sensationalist newspaper headlines in the three months before the mass blockade of the Melbourne meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) from September 11 to 13 (S11). The… Read more »
Drew Ridama: “I’m determined to expose the truth”
Drew Ridama is a queer liberationist and progressive educator who recently returned to Melbourne after living in London. After a number of years of focusing on his work as a teacher, Drew saw the impact of globalisation. Recognising the huge potential of the S11 protests against the WEF spurred Drew to become involved. Drew was… Read more »
Maria Mardones: “I don’t want to let go of the rage”
“When I heard about the Seattle protest against the WTO, I knew it was significant. As the protests began moving from country to country, it became clear that coordination of the Left on a global level was starting to occur. So, I was excited to hear on 3CR about planned protests against the World Economic… Read more »
Zero Tolerance for Police Brutality!
In February 1999, New York City police killed Amadou Diallo in a hailstorm of 41 bullets as he reached for his wallet. Diallo’s murder made the special plainclothes squad these cops belonged to, the Street Crimes Unit, infamous around the world. Diallo died because of racism, and not just that of the four officers who… Read more »
Aborigines, feminists, unionists and socialists unite to demand: No New Women’s Prison!
Within days of the last NSW Budget, the No New Women’s Prison (NNWP) Campaign was born. In the Budget Papers, the State Government announced it had set aside $42 million for a new “Correctional Facility” for women at Windsor. Ray Jackson, one of the campaigners, reports on a feisty grassroots campaign. Ray is a member… Read more »
For a mass international united front to free Mumia Abu-Jamal!
On the day Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge set a new execution date for death row prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal, the radical Black writer resolutely declared: “This is just the next stage of the fight. We will continue the fight and we will win.” Each day counts toward achieving that goal. For now, a temporary stay of… Read more »