NZ soldier killed, ‘Better ties’ with US ‘on cards’

By David

The first New Zealand soldier has been killed in Afghanistan.  

Labour leader Phil Goff (chief champion of this war), is reported to have said it was “not a day for politics”, which simply reflects the fact that on this, as with so many other issues, he has no political differences with the current government.

Green Party Defence Spokesman Keith Locke, once a prominent campaigner against New Zealand participation in this war, now claims to be “proud of the good peacekeeping and reconstruction work that our Provincial Reconstruction Team has done in Bamian Province, and we mourn the loss of one of its members.”

It’s an unfortunate time for Locke and the Greens to jump on the pro-war bandwagon. As UNITYblog posts over the last week have shown, support for the war is collapsing everywhere else. Over the last nine years the anti-war movement has been consistently correct in our predictions about what the results of this war would be.

Thousands of Afghanis have been killed, maimed and made homeless. And what for? They are not “liberated”, but subject to foreign occupation, corrupt central government and local war lords who are just as brutal and intolerant as the old Taliban. Many see the resistance grouped around the “new Taliban” as their only hope regaining national independence.

Osama Bin Laden (remember him?) has never been “bought to justice”, the US are no longer looking for him. Meanwhile, like Bin Laden, the war has crossed over in to Pakistan, killing hundreds and causing tens of thousands to flee their homes.

In the West the war has fed that cancerous growth of Islamophobic racism. Such racism goes hand-in-hand with imperialist war, based as it is on the assumption of the superior value of the life and culture of the “advanced” nations.

The right of the US (along with UK, Australia, New Zealand and the rest of the “coalition of the willing”) to invade other countries and rearrange them to the satisfaction of the corporate lobbyists at the State Department, bestowing the free market and puppet “democracy” is taken for granted.

Murdering 3000 people in the US on September 11, 2001 was a “crime against humanity”, but murdering many, many more people in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Palestine, Lebanon and elsewhere is merely “collateral damage” and hardly worth worrying about.

The death of one soldier (occupying someone elses country) is treated as a “national tragedy”, but how many Afghans have been killed by New Zealand troops in nine years of war?

Of course the role of the NZDF in Afghanistan is not primarily killing Afghans, it’s providing support and cover for those who do. Under the guise of a “UN mandate” and “Provincial Reconstruction”, “our leaders” have deployed their forces to lend credibility to US imperialism, in return for closer trade and military ties to the US, (and a boost for Helen Clark’s career at the UN).

In this, the combined effort of Labour and National (oh, and the soldiers too), appears to be paying off. “Better ties with NZ on US cards”, according to a report on Stuff today, “including a step-up in military training and exercises between the two countries.”

MORE LINKS

Also worth checking out is this post from Socialist Aotearoa, which links to articles by Gordon Campbell and Afghan women’s rights activist Malalai Joya.

And statements from Peace Action Wellington, And Global Peace & Justice Auckland.

Socialist Worker endorses Venezuela solidarity statement

Joint Solidarity Statement:
Stop the Threat Against Venezuela Now!

3 August 2010

Initiated by Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM), Working People’s Association (PRP), Indonesia and Socialist Alliance, Australia. Any organization wishes to endorse this statement, please contact us at int.psm@gmail.com

We, the undersigned organizations, view with serious concern the possibility of military aggression towards the people of Venezuela by the Colombian Government, which could be supported by the United State of America using its seven military bases recently installed in Colombia.

This matter has arisen from the recent events when the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela was accused on 22 July 2010 at the Extraordinary Session of the Organization of American States in Washington by the Colombian Government of promoting, supporting and maintaining a relationship with armed organizations from Colombia, such as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and National Liberation Army (ELN). The accusations were only based on images which have never been substantiated or subjected to verification.

These current moves by the right-wing Colombian government are clearly an attempt backed by the US to justify a pre-emptive attack on Venezuela and its people. There has been a pattern of false allegations against Hugo Chavez’s government in recent years as part of US-backed campaign to dismantle the revolutionary process taking place in Venezuela.

Six-person Kiwi Team to join Gaza aid convoy

Kia Ora Gaza media release
3 August 2010

The UN inquiry into Israel’s military seizure of a Gaza-bound aid flotilla has been greeted cautiously by Kia Ora Gaza, the New Zealand coalition now fund-raising for a Kiwi Team that will join an international aid convoy setting off for Gaza in several months time.

“We cannot know in advance exactly what might come out of the UN inquiry being headed by former NZ prime minister Geoffrey Palmer,” said Grant Morgan, co-organiser of Kia Ora Gaza.

“There are, however, two things that we do know for sure. First, Israel has reluctantly agreed to cooperate with the UN inquiry only because of a tipping point in world public opinion following the killing of nine civilians on a humanitarian aid ship.”

“And second, land and sea convoys will soon set off in a coordinated campaign to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza and break the Israeli siege which continues to this day.”

Kia Ora Gaza has selected a six-person Kiwi Team to join the land convoy leaving London on 18 September and joining two other convoys from Casablanca and Doha in a 500-vehicle column.

“Kia Ora Gaza will announce the names of our six courageous Kiwis in a few days time, along with our team song and logo,” said Grant Morgan.

“Our fund-raising drive has got off to a good start. Counting cash and pledges, we’re over one-third of the way towards our target of $100,000 since our public launch on 7 July. Yet we still need a lot of donations over the next month so we can finance our full Kiwi Team on their gutsy mission.”

People wanting to know how to donate towards Kiwi aid to Gaza are being directed towards the website kiaoragaza.net.

For more information, contact:

Grant Morgan

Co-organiser of Kia Ora Gaza
021 2544 515
grantmorgan@paradise.net.nz
kiaoragaza.net

Video: Raj Patel on the battle for the world food system

Raj Patel, author of The Value of Nothing and Stuffed and Starved, interviewed by Jill Hickson and Simon Cunich for Green Left Weekly and Links International Journal of Socialist Renewal. 

The battle for the world food system: an interview with Raj Patel from Jill Hickson on Vimeo.

The battle for the world food system: an interview with Raj Patel from Jill Hickson on Vimeo.

West Papua: Huge protests for independence

By Jacques Friedman

Intercontinental Cry

A unprecedented mass demonstration took place on July 8 in Jayapura, the capital of Indonesian-occupied West Papua, Straighttimes.com said that day.

Thousands of people joined a long march, walking 17 kilometres from the Papua People’s Assembly (MRP) to the Papuan Provincial Legislature (DPRP) to reject the “special autonomy” granted by Indonesia in 2001. Protesters demanded a referendum on West Papuan independence and an internationally-mediated dialogue with Jakarta.

As protesters joined the rally from several points in the city, the crowd — claimed by media to number just a few thousand — swelled to nearly 20,000. They occupied the grounds of the provincial legislature under the watchful eye of Indonesian police and army units.

The Indonesian government was caught completely off-guard by the effort. Nevertheless, authorities initially showed remarkable restraint in dealing with the protesters, especially given the long history of repression against anyone that speaks up for independence or dares to raise the Papuan Morning Star flag.

Latest UNITY leaflet - MPs copy their masters

The latest UNITY leaflet out now. Click here to download.

Perks & big bucks
MPs copy their masters

“A 10% pay increase for greedy politicians – you’ve got to be kidding!” That would be a common reaction to the proposed pay rise for MPs.

The expenses scandal and abuse of perks has exposed the high-flying lifestyle of many MPs.

Most of them plainly aren’t in parliament to serve grassroots people, or they wouldn’t behave like that – would they?

No, these politicians are aping the people they truly serve: the rich.

Over the last three decades Labour and National politicians have served their masters well.

They’ve put in place economic policies that have impoverished the majority and benefited a rich minority. What’s happened in NZ has happened around the world.

To keep profits flowing to the wealthy today’s capitalist economy is driven by financial speculation and credit creation by banks.

A small elite has grown rich and powerful, but only at the expense of destabilising the world economic system. Crisis follows crisis.

History has shown that when an elite sucks up all the wealth of a society, then that society is close to its doom.

Because they serve the rich our corporate politicians are blind to the dangers facing humanity. 

The solutions must come from us. We need to unite around popular campaigns which help us find a way towards a more equitable and sustainable society.

Tax rich speculators

John Key made his millions in the world of banking and financial speculation.

Governments globally have given people like Key a free license to make their fortunes from wheeling and dealing.

As prime minister, John Key is extending that license to the speculators.

Financial speculation goes untaxed, while we get hit with a GST hike.

We must challenge this injustice. Join the campaign to remove GST from food and tax financial speculation.

Our UNITY leaflets are being printed with the Tax Justice petition printed on the back. To be sent copies of the latest leaflet with the petition on the reverse email Vaughan Gunson svpl(at)xtra.co.nz or ph/txt 021-0415 082

Chavez: ‘Alarm bells’ raised by Colombia threats

By Federico Fuentes

Green Left Weekly

Alarm bells should be ringing as the threat of war looms on the horizon, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez warned in his July 18 weekly column.

The warning came after tensions again flared with neighbouring Colombia, and the Central American nation of Costa Rica agreed to 6000 US troops being deployed on its soil.

Chavez placed Venezuela on high alert and broke diplomatic relations with Colombia after a July 22 meeting of the Organisation of American States (OAS).

The Colombian administration of President Alvaro Uribe alleged at the meeting that the Chavez government was harbouring camps of armed groups waging a guerrilla struggle in Colombia.

Colombia called for “international intervention” in Venezuela.

Shooting the messenger

By Mark Steel

Why are the British and US governments saying the leak of military documents about Afghanistan has “put our soldiers at risk?”

It’s us who’s been kept hidden from this information, not the Taliban. For example, many of the revelations are previously hidden details of civilian casualties, but Afghans in those areas probably already knew about those deaths.

I don’t suppose local insurgents have said “Well well, I’ve read the leaked documents, and you know that family whose house was bombed to rubble by an American plane, and the rest of the village arrived and wailed for three days and swore revenge and then there was a funeral that we all went to. Well it turns out they’re dead.”

Afghanistan: Thousands rally against occupation

By Tom Mellen

Protest in Mazar-i-Sharif, July 10. 

Citizens rallied in two Afghan cities on July 10 and 11, chanting slogans against the occupying powers and the unpopular regime of President Hamid Karzai for failing to protect civilians.

On July 10, hundreds took to the streets of Mazar-i-Sharif to demand that all occupation forces leave.

The protest was organised after an artillery barrage from occupying NATO forces killed six civilians in Paktia province on July 8 and US troops killed two civilians in a pre-dawn raid in the city on July 7.

Protesters chanted slogans against occupation forces and Karzai.

Maritime Union urges workers to support the Tax Justice campaign

The following article appeared in the Winter 2010 issue of The Maritimes, magazine of the Maritime Union of New Zealand:

Get GST off food

The Maritime Union of New Zealand has endorsed a new campaign remove GST from food and tax financial speculation.

The Maritimes magazine is urging all workers to support the Tax Justice campaign.

Organizers say GST hits workers on low to middle incomes hard and that is why they want GST taken off food.

Maritime Union of New Zealand General Secretary Joe Fleetwood says the campaign is “an important cause for the working class to get behind.”

Mr Fleetwood says the Maritime Union is the first union to endorse the campaign and would be promoting it to the rest of the Union movement in New Zealand.

The petition kicked off with a national day of action on Saturday 22 May, with nearly 900 signatures collected at the seven petition stalls organised around the country.

Since that time hundreds more signatures have been collected.

The tax justice campaign was launched shortly after the budget was announced in May 2010.

Campaign spokesperson (and Maritimes’ magazine editor) Victor Billot says National’s game plan is to increase GST and give tax breaks to the rich, while attacking government spending on public services.

Mr Billot says rising food prices is hurting people suffering stagnant incomes and job losses.

“Removing GST from food would provide an immediate and lasting benefit.”

Mr Billot says that taking GST off food was affordable if the government was to tax financial speculation.

A modest financial transactions tax that targets large financial institutions is gaining support around the world following the global financial crisis.

He says the Robin Hood Tax‚ campaign in the UK, which is calling for a financial transactions tax to be implemented, is gaining mass support.

The tax justice campaign is a joint campaign by the Alliance Party and Socialist Worker.

More information on the campaign is at the website www.nogstonfood.org

How can you help?

Over the next few weeks and months what’s going to matter most is numbers of signatures, says campaign spokesperson Victor Billot.

“The more signatures we collect the more support we’ll attract from individuals and groups. And if we start to record really good numbers of signatures, we’ll be more likely to get local and national media attention, essential for growing the campaign.”

Everyone can help by collecting signatures from friends, family and workmates. Every little effort will count.
You can download copies of the tax petition from the respective websites of the Alliance Party and Socialist Worker.

Or if you want to be sent print copies of the petition directly, contact Victor Billot at email victor.billot@munz.org.nz or mobile/txt 021 482 219.

If you would like to help out at tax petition stalls in any centre where we have organisers, get in touch with us.

If we don’t have a local organiser in your centre, you can become the organiser. We can give you some advice and other assistance.

Contact campaign coordinator Vaughan Gunson email svpl@xtra.co.nz or ph/txt 021 0415 082.

Guardian: Afghanistan war logs: Massive leak of secret files exposes truth of occupation

Nick Davies and David Leigh 
guardian.co.uk, Sunday 25 July 2010 22.03 BST

The war logs reveal civilian killings by coalition forces, secret efforts to eliminate Taliban and al-Qaida leaders, and discuss the involvement of Iran and Pakistan in supporting insurgents. Photograph: Max Whittaker/Corbis

A huge cache of secret US military files today provides a devastating portrait of the failing war in Afghanistan, revealing how coalition forces have killed hundreds of civilians in unreported incidents, Taliban attacks have soared and Nato commanders fear neighbouring Pakistan and Iran are fuelling the insurgency.

The disclosures come from more than 90,000 records of incidents and intelligence reports about the conflict obtained by the whistleblowers' website Wikileaks in one of the biggest leaks in US military history. The files, which were made available to the Guardian, the New York Times and the German weekly Der Spiegel, give a blow-by-blow account of the fighting over the last six years, which has so far cost the lives of more than 320 British and more than 1,000 US troops.

Their publication comes amid mounting concern that Barack Obama's "surge" strategy is failing and as coalition troops hunt for two US naval personnel captured by the Taliban south of Kabul on Friday.

The war logs also detail:

• How a secret "black" unit of special forces hunts down Taliban leaders for "kill or capture" without trial.

• How the US covered up evidence that the Taliban have acquired deadly surface-to-air missiles.

• How the coalition is increasingly using deadly Reaper drones to hunt and kill Taliban targets by remote control from a base in Nevada.

• How the Taliban have caused growing carnage with a massive escalation of their roadside bombing campaign, which has killed more than 2,000 civilians to date.

Staunch, but relaxed, Tax Justice campaigner on K-Road

Pat O'Dea collecting signatures for the Tax Justice petition on Karangahape Rd, Auckland, on Saturday 24 July 2010.

The Tax Justice petition calls on parliament to: 1. Remove GST from food; and 2. Tax financial speculation. Over 5,000 signatures have been collected since the campaign launch on 22 May.

Fancy spending a relaxing time talking to people about a popular campaign and collecting signatures for the petition?

If so, contact Vaughan Gunson, Tax Justice campaign coordinator, email svpl@xtra.co.nz or ph/txt 021-0415 082.

Anything you can do in your city or region will greatly help build momentum for the campaign in its early stages.
 
1,600+ people like our 'No GST on Food' Facebook page. To promote the campaign on Facebook go to http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/No-GST-on-food/119541161411953?ref=ts

Workers rights: what will it take to win?

By David

What will it take to defeat the government? Big, big protests for one thing. So the Fairness at Work protests called by the CTU for Augsut 21 are good next step. The 40,000-strong anti-mining march has shown that a big mobilisation can force National to back down.

However, there is more at stake for the government and the employers on this issue, so it is likely they will be more willing to endure protests. Their side knows that the long-term gains from beating the unions will out way short-term damage to National’s popularity. So it’s going to take more than one big rally.

We need a campaign of escalating mass protests until these plans are dropped. The starting point has to be educating and then mobilising the existing union membership, some 350,000 people. But the campaign must look to go beyond them and reach out and win over the unorganised majority.

If the ruling class fear this campaign is drawing in, politicising and organising previously unorganised workers, they will back down.

I’ve heard (and read) various people on the Marxist and anarchist left talk about the likely inadequacy of the response from the Council of Trade Unions (CTU) and big unions, and the need for the socialist / anti-capitalist left to offer some sort of alternative. As Wellington unionist and Workers Party activist Don Franks put it in a comment here on my previous post on this issue, “Workers who really want this legislation stopped in its tracks will have to go beyond the politics of the CTU.”

I don’t see any point in counter-posing the two. Even if we all pull together, the socialist left is in no position to organise the mass mobilisation of union members that must be at the heart of this campaign. So we have to work with the CTU-led campaign, even as we seek to go beyond it.

What can the radical left achieve?

The question is what can we do to make this campaign more successful, to increase the chances, not only of beating the government, but of building a workers’ movement that is politically and organisationally stronger?

One way is for socialists who are union members or organisers to work together to push for a stronger response from their union.

Another is to work to involve those outside the union movement. Officials, necessarily, will be focussed on their own members, but I don’t believe we will win this campaign if it’s seen simply as a struggle between unions and the government. We need to convince the majority of the working class that this is a battle for their rights (and for their pay and conditions) against a government and an employing class that profits from grinding them down.

If currently non-unionised workers see the union movement successfully defending their rights, it could open the doors for a surge of union recruitment. So the more forward-looking union leaders should support this strategic approach.

What can socialists do to involve more non-union workers and to provide a more radical political and organisational lead for union and non-union members alike?

Here in Christchurch the Workers Rights Campaign was established as a coalition of radical left activists when the first Fire at Will law was passed last year. Now an enlarged group of leftists is organising against the new attacks. Following from the first protest the Sunday before last, a second protest has been called for August 8.

It sounds like similar radical coalitions are forming in other parts of the country.

Many within this group share the general desire to link this struggle with an anti-capitalist analysis of why these attacks are happening and what workers can do about it.

So a joint leaflet (and or posters and billboards) is one possibility. Let’s say we agreed on a leaflet combining an a notice about the upcoming actions with arguments against the attacks and an anti-capitalist analysis. We’d need to distribute a fair number to have any real impact on the political consciousness of the Christchurch working class. How many could we afford to print? How many could we distribute? Could we do 30,000? 30 people letter-boxing 1000 each? What would that cost $1000?

It seems to me that’s the sort of scale (on the upper limits of what’s possible) that we need to be looking at, if we’re serious both about reaching out to the working class and pushing the political boundaries of this campaign.

CTU calls Fairness at Work Rallies for 21st August

Please note that the CTU is holding Fairness at Work Rallies in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin on Saturday 21^st August from 1 pm to 3 pm.

 

Exact venues for the march and rallies are to be confirmed.

 

These rallies are aimed at:

 

(a)   Demonstrating our concern about employment law changes proposed by the Government.

(b)   Reaching out to the wider community to get support for Fairness at Work.

 

At a planning meeting today, we have discussed advertising for the rallies, a leaflet aimed at the general public to be distributed prior to the rallies, placards, flags and banners for the rallies, on-the-ground organisation for each rally including marshals, speakers, sound system, and so forth.

Climate Action Now! Australian Socialists Adopt Climate Charter

July 20, 2010

“Change the system, not the climate: A safe climate is not possible unless an informed and mobilised community fights for it.”

2010 Climate Charter adopted by Australia’s Socialist Alliance and supported by SA candidates in the country’s current General Election.

For years, climate scientists have warned us that we need to act on climate change. Now, science is saying that climate change is taking place more rapidly than everyone previously thought.

The warning signs are obvious. April and May were the world’s hottest months since records began. This year’s Arctic ice sheet melt is taking place at a pace never seen before.

Scientists say carbon pollution has made the world’s oceans more acidic than they have been for at least 20 million years.

There is already too much carbon in the atmosphere. The warming already in the system risks the crossing of various natural “tipping points” that would raise temperatures further and faster.

If these points are crossed, it would bring average temperatures to levels that have not existed for millions of years, and to which today’s nature is simply not adapted.

In a warmer world, most existing species would die out. Large-scale agriculture would be difficult or impossible.

John Minto: Back to the future for National

By John Minto
from Frontline

The changes to employment law outlined by Prime Minister John Key yesterday are the most significant attack on workers’ rights since National’s last big assault via the 1991 Employment Contracts Act.

From a softly-softly approach to industrial relations John Key has taken off the gloves to deliver a barrage of bare-knuckled blows against workers on the job and their rights to organise together.

CTU leaflet: ‘Demand fairness at work’ 20,000 leaflets to be printed

So this is what the CTU’s come up with so far…
This is the text from a leaflet. They will be printing 20,000 copies. Comment from the EPMU delegate who forwarded it to me: “Not what I was looking for, but worth a look.”

SIDE ONE:

DEMAND FAIRNESS

AT WORK

Your rights are under attack

The National Party promised change – but change should be for the better

They have attacked workers’ rights from the start and it’s serious

Contact your union

Go to www.fairness.org.nz

for more info

SIDE TWO:

We didn’t ask for:

X the 90 Day Fire-at-Will Law

The Government is going to remove everyone’s right to appeal against unfair dismissal in the first 90 days of a new job, not just those in small companies

John Key government spins untruth about GST

Tax Justice media release
23 July 2010

Peter Dunne, Revenue Minister in the National-led government has said “it’s not New Zealand's policy to have a non-universal GST.”

“This is not true,” says Vaughan Gunson, Tax Justice campaign coordinator. “GST is not applied universally today. The major exemption is for financial services.”

Inland Revenue lists the following financial services as exempted from GST: dealings with money; certain dealings with securities; provision of credit and loans; provision of life insurance; provision of non-deliverable futures contracts and financial options; the payment and collection of interest, principal and dividends; and issuing securities such as stocks and shares.

“The main users of these financial services are rich investors, speculators, banks and other wealthy corporates,” says Gunson.

“Why is it okay for them to get off paying GST, when grassroots people struggling to make ends meet have to pay tax on food?” asks Gunson. “John Key needs to fess up to the people of New Zealand and admit that our tax system has a rotten core.”

Workers rights: Christchurch protest, Sunday August 8

12 noon

corner Colombo and High Streets

This area is home to McDonalds, KFC and Burger King, where the staff are some of the most at risk from the newly announced bills. We hope to bring a lot of colour and enthusiasm to the event!

Next planning meeting

Monday 26th July, 7pm

Canterbury WEA, 59 Gloucester St

Workers rights: Auckland university meeting July 28

Time: July 28, 7:00pm – 9:00pm
Location: Lecture Theatre B28, Library Basement, University of Auckland

The National Party government has announced major attacks on workers rights and on Unions ability to represent them.

This coming Wednesday, there will be a major rally in Auckland University to launch a campaign of resistance against these attacks. Matt McCarten, General Secretary of Unite, will be joined by Sue Bradford, fighter for the rights of the unemployed, Karl Andersen, Assistant General Secretary of the NDU, and Chris Trotter, political commentator and author of No Left Turn.

The rally will bring together union delegates and members, Left wing activists and students, and will plan a series of direct action responses to the bosses and the Government.

This is the Employment Contracts Act of our Generation.
We won't be defeated.

hosted by Unite on Campus (Auckland)
http://www.unite.org.nz/nat_conf_protest