Union Members

I have just read the online petition about “Community and Public Sector Union Affiliation” at: http://www.PetitionOnline.com/cpsu/

The petition says,

To:  Stephen Jones, National Secretary, CPSU

As members of the CPSU, we request that the National Secretary obtain the opinion of members by plebiscite on the following question:

“Do you support the CPSU having a policy of no formal affiliations with any political party?”… Go to Article

A recent petition to G8 Summit stated:

‘HURRY, only 72 hours to help fight for the end of world poverty’.

In 1980 when Howard was Treasurer, the Fraser Government tried to tax mining workers on the benefit they received from subsidised housing in remote Central Queensland.… Go to Article

Academics, Hookham and MacLennan, threatened with the sack!

I have just received a paper from the National Tertiary Education Union [NTEU] about closure of the Humanities and Human Services School at Queensland University of Technology.… Go to Article

Publisher’s Note: The following is a summary of the Industrial Relations (IR) Policy accepted at the National Labor Party Conference in April 2007.… Go to Article

In the lead up to the ALP national conference it is claimed that “The ALP is strongly defending workers RIGHTS at WORK”

This is not true in any sense.… Go to Article

“The Day of the Political Street March is over, don’t apply for a permit you won’t get one” — Premier of Queensland, Johannes Bjelke-Petersen on 4 September 1977.… Go to Article

In 1976 a group of 31 Chilean families were taken to the Wacol Hostel in Brisbane. This was to be the basis of a story written by one of the refugees, Marcial Parada, in “Vuelo Lan Chile 1131” [Flight from Chile in 1976].… Go to Article

Phil Perrier’s send off was held on Friday, the 2nd of February, 2007.

Phil was a worker, political activist, artist, brother, partner, father and friend.… Go to Article

Land, Justice, Worker Control

The Queensland Labor Government is mired in secrecy and guilt over its treatment of Aboriginal people on Palm Island.… Go to Article

In a cynical move before Christmas, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) released a media statement on 14 December 2006 to say the death of Mulrunji was an accident.… Go to Article

Mulrunji’s killing by Queensland police officer Chris Hurley rates only a footnote in the annals of justice.

Footnote number seven (7) in the twenty (20) page judgement of the Court of Appeal reads:

Inquest into the death of Mulrunji, Coroner’s Court, Cor 2857/04(9), 27 September 2006, Clements M (Acting State Coroner).

Union Membership 1911 – 2005.

The graph above shows the rise and fall of union membership in Australia over the past 100 years.… Go to Article

As Australia and US prepare to increase troop numbers in Iraq…the Lebanese Industry Minister, Pierre Gemayel, was assassinated this morning (22nd November 2006).… Go to Article

This is the view from Mistake Mountains of Aboriginal land… Go to Article

If you are worried about a new US government starting to bomb Iran or Korea perhaps you may wish to see Antonioni’s “The Eclipse” which is the final film of the trilogy, “The Adventure” and “The Night” set in Italy in the 1960s when industrialisation, alienation and the threat of nuclear war were on many people’s minds.… Go to Article

I met Wendy Lowenstein a few times and corresponded with her occasionally about publishing workers literature.

Wendy displayed the qualities of old communists in Australia whose roots lay in the depression in the 1930s— committment to workers struggle and organisation.… Go to Article

A Meeting was held on Friday 6 October 2006 AT THE JAGARA HALL MUSGRAVE PARK to organise the ongoing campaign for Justice for Aboriginees in Brisbane and Queensland

Murrinyi Doomadgee, 36, died in the Palm Island watchhouse on November 19, 2004, just hours after his arrest after he had said words critical of police (see sidebar for article: Black Deaths in custody — what has the Beattie Government ever done?