Australia
New Zealand nurses speak to WSWS opposing sellout deal
By Tom Peters, 7 July 2018
Nurses denounced the union-backed proposed agreement, which keeps wages low and maintains severe under-staffing of hospitals.
Australian business heads warned not to criticise “foreign interference” laws
By Mike Head, 6 July 2018
In a sign of the government’s rush to enforce the new laws, they were given royal assent on June 29, just a day after being passed.
Australian investigation underscores global health dangers of toxic foam exposure
By Patrick Davies, 6 July 2018
The official response to a PFAS-related cancer cluster in the US city of Oakdale mirrors the indifference of Australian authorities to a similar health crisis.
Persecution of WikiLeaks editor Julian Assange continues
By James Cogan, 5 July 2018
The US, British and Australian governments are utilising the Ecuadorian government to try and break Assange by denying him any external communication or visitors.
Australian teenager sentenced to 12 years in prison on trumped-up terror charges
By Oscar Grenfell, 4 July 2018
The case is the latest in a series of high-profile “terror” prosecutions which have not revealed any specific terror attack or plan.
Australia: Prosecutors drop blackmail charges against construction union officials
By Terry Cook, 4 July 2018
The CFMMEU had worked to prevent the eruption of a struggle by construction workers against the laying of the criminal charges.
SEP to hold Brisbane meeting on new “foreign interference” laws: A move towards dictatorship and war
3 July 2018
The new legislation has been imposed amidst xenophobic hysteria in the parliament and the media over “Chinese influence” and “interference.”
Union tries to contain staff anger at Australia’s University of Newcastle
By John Harris, 3 July 2018
The NTEU is isolating the struggles of its members, university by university, against deepening attacks on their conditions and pay.
Australia: Biloela residents continue protests against deportation of Tamil refugee family
By Max Newman, 2 July 2018
A campaign by the people of a small rural Queensland town has brought to light the horrors of Australia’s anti-refugee regime.
Australian farmers testify to royal commission on predatory activities of banks
By Oscar Grenfell, 2 July 2018
Farmers gave evidence that the terms of their bank loans were changed without notice and that they were forced into near-destitution through foreclosures.
Ex-spy and lawyer face jail for exposing Australian bugging operation in East Timor
By Mike Head, 30 June 2018
The ruling establishment regards the exposure of the illegal surveillance as a threat to the US-led “Five Eyes” global spy network.
Thousands of West Bengal textile workers locked out; New Zealand nurses union cancels planned strike
Workers Struggles: Asia, Australia and the Pacific
30 June 2018
The World Socialist Web Site invites workers and other readers to contribute to this regular feature.
Anti-China “foreign interference” bills rammed through Australian parliament
By Mike Head, 29 June 2018
Totalling some 150 pages, the two bills constitute a far-reaching assault on fundamental legal and democratic rights.
Australian government pushes cuts to student loan scheme
By Oscar Grenfell, 29 June 2018
The Liberal-National government is seeking to force increasingly poverty-stricken young people to repay student debts.
New laws tabled in Australia to deploy troops to suppress domestic unrest
By Mike Head, 28 June 2018
The “war on terrorism” is again being exploited to expand powers to call out the military at home.
US Democratic senators demand eviction of Julian Assange from Ecuador’s London embassy
By James Cogan, 28 June 2018
Leading Democratic senators, including Diane Feinstein and Mark Warner, have declared they are “extremely concerned about Ecuador providing asylum for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.”
Another suicide in Australian immigration prison camp
By Max Newman, 27 June 2018
A tragic death shows how desperate and vulnerable people are being deliberately subjected to inhuman conditions to deter others from seeking asylum in Australia.
Bipartisan bid to push through Australian “foreign interference” bills
By Mike Head, 26 June 2018
The bills could be used to outlaw opposition to Australian involvement in any US-led military intervention, particularly a confrontation with China.
Australia: Toys ‘R’ Us closure to destroy 700 jobs
By Terry Cook, 26 June 2018
The chain’s liquidation underscores the parasitic role of private equity firms in collapses throughout the retail sector.
Report finds majority of Australian youth favour socialism
By Oscar Grenfell, 25 June 2018
The poll showed that the growing attraction to socialism is closely related to a rise of anti-capitalist sentiments.
Growing concern in Canberra over PNG links with China
By John Braddock, 25 June 2018
Claims of Chinese influence in Papua New Guinea are being ramped up ahead of November’s Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) summit in Port Moresby.
Australia: Telstra announces another 9,500 job cuts
By Oscar Grenfell, 23 June 2018
The telecommunications company is seeking to impose one of the largest mass sackings in Australian corporate history.
Australian Senate votes for huge tax cuts for wealthy
By Mike Head, 22 June 2018
The tax plans are designed to boost corporate profits and investors’ incomes under conditions of global turmoil and trade war.
“Julian fights for peace and defends democratic rights”
Watch: Workers at SEP rally in Sydney demand freedom for Julian Assange
By our reporters, 22 June 2018
Workers and young people who attended the SEP’s Sydney rally denounced the persecution of WikiLeaks editor Julian Assange and demanded his immediate release.
The working class and the global war on immigrants
By Bill Van Auken, 21 June 2018
The brutality and lawlessness of the Trump administration in ripping children from their parents at the US border is part of a global war by capitalist governments against refugees.
Assange is being punished for exposing state secrecy and the reality of war
By Linda Tenenbaum, 21 June 2018
SEP national committee member Linda Tenenbaum told the Sydney rally that the event was to initiate an international movement in defence of Assange and basic democratic rights.
The persecution of Assange is an attempt to silence mass anti-war sentiment
By Evrim Yazgin, 21 June 2018
Evrim Yazgin, International Youth and Students for Social Equality president at the University of Melbourne, explained how Assange’s struggle for the truth had politicised a generation of young people.
Educators internationally must stand up for Julian Assange
By Sue Phillips, 21 June 2018
Committee For Public Education national convenor Sue Phillips told the Sydney rally that the defence of Assange is intimately connected to the fight for the democratic and social rights of students, educators and the working class.
Workers at SEP rally in Sydney demand freedom for Julian Assange
By our reporters, 21 June 2018
“Julian fights for peace and defends democratic rights.”
Staff at Australia’s Macquarie University vote for unified fight against government cuts
By our correspondent, 20 June 2018
The vote indicates the emergence of highly significant opposition to the decades-long betrayals of the trade unions.
Australian vigils held in defence of Julian Assange
By our reporters, 20 June 2018
Speaking in Melbourne, SEP national secretary James Cogan indicted the Australian political and media establishment for their attacks on Assange and called for a turn to the working class.
Australian government denies palliative care to dying refugee
By Max Newman, 19 June 2018
Successive Australian governments have pioneered many of the brutal measures now being taken in Europe and the US.
The Turnbull government must act to repatriate Australian citizen Julian Assange to Australia
By James Cogan, 19 June 2018
This speech was delivered by James Cogan, the national secretary of the Socialist Equality Party (SEP) in Australia, to a rally organised by the SEP in defence of Julian Assange last Sunday in Sydney.
Bringing Julian Assange Home
By John Pilger, 19 June 2018
Addressing last Sunday's SEP rally in Sydney, well-known filmmaker and documentarian, John Pilger exposed the role of Labor and Coalition governments, along with prominent journalists and editors in the ongoing persecution of Julian Assange.
More voices from the Sydney rally to free Julian Assange
By our reporters, 19 June 2018
“Freedom of thought and expression is what this kind of rally brings. They’re trying to make an example out of Assange to silence all of us.”
Union-management partnership at Australia’s Macquarie University will create “two-tier” workforce
By our correspondent, 18 June 2018
The NTEU is collaborating with management to introduce the “jobs families” plan that will force huge workloads onto 25 percent of teaching staff.
“We’re not asking Malcolm Turnbull to defend Assange, we are telling him!”
Watch: Rally to Free Julian Assange held in Sydney
18 June 2018
Hundreds of people participated in Sunday's demonstration in Sydney Town Hall Square to demand Julian Assange's safe return to Australia. The rally, organised by the Socialist Equality Party, featured speeches from SEP Australia national secretary James Cogan and independent journalist and filmmaker John Pilger.
Workers and young people speak out after Sydney rally to defend Julian Assange
By our reporters, 18 June 2018
“We need heroes like Assange to continue this work and tell us the truth.”
Join the June 17 demonstration in Sydney and June 19 rallies to defend WikiLeaks editor Julian Assange
the Socialist Equality Party (Australia), 16 June 2018
The rallies and vigils will be important contributions to the development of an ongoing campaign to secure Assange’s freedom.
SEP Australia national secretary demands Australian government act to free Julian Assange
14 June 2018
In the wake of the Vault 7 leaks, the US state apparatus is even more determined to silence WikiLeaks and silence Assange.
Austria closes mosques and deports imams
By Markus Salzmann, 14 June 2018
The measure is a fundamental attack on the freedom of religion and expression and serves to stir up anti-Islamic and xenophobic sentiments.
Australian government demands fast-track passage of anti-democratic “foreign interference” bills
By Mike Head, 14 June 2018
The anti-China offensive sees a bipartisan front to ram through powers to crack down on political dissent.
A welcome development:
Actor Geoffrey Rush to return to stage with Melbourne Theatre Company
By Richard Phillips, 14 June 2018
Rush, the target of unsubstantiated allegations by Sydney’s Daily Telegraph, will play Malvolio in Twelfth Night.
New report reveals Assange under 24/7 surveillance in Ecuadoran embassy
By Eric London, 13 June 2018
The Spanish El Diario writes: “The government of Ecuador spied on every movement of Julian Assange in its embassy in London.”
Artists Tony Garnett, Davide Dormino and Costantino Ciervo demand freedom for Julian Assange
13 June 2018
Film and TV producer Tony Garnett said defending Julian Assange “is part of the fight for freedom, for the rights of the individual against state oppression.”
Committee For Public Education urges participation in June 17 Assange rally
13 June 2018
The governments attempting to silence Assange are attacking the right of students and educators to a fully-resourced public education.
Demands grow that Australian government act to free Julian Assange
By Mike Head, 12 June 2018
Assange’s lawyer Jennifer Robinson insisted that the Turnbull government can and must intervene on behalf of the WikiLeaks editor.
Australian public high school teachers support campaign to free Julian Assange
By our reporters, 12 June 2018
Socialist Equality Party member Will Marshall moved a resolution in defence of Assange at Footscray City College.
New evidence of more Australian special forces’ war crimes in Afghanistan
By Mike Head, 11 June 2018
After years of official cover-up, a third closed-door inquiry is being conducted in an attempt to whitewash the abuses.
More than half of Australian workers in part-time insecure employment
By Terry Cook, 11 June 2018
Decades of job destruction have produced a “gig economy,” with many young workers unlikely to ever hold a full-time job.
Press conference to be held in Sydney ahead of rallies in defence of Assange
By our reporters, 11 June 2018
Canberra must meet its obligations to protect Julian Assange, as it did for Al Jazeera journalist Peter Greste.
Australian government has obligation to protect Julian Assange
By Richard Hoffman, 11 June 2018
The Turnbull government must exercise its discretion to request from Britain the safe passage of Julian Assange to Australia.
Australian officials visit Julian Assange as campaign to free him expands
By James Cogan, 9 June 2018
The meeting occurred within the context of a growing international campaign to defend the WikiLeaks’ editor.
Julian Assange named as threat
Australian “foreign interference” bills seek to protect “US secrets”
By Mike Head, 9 June 2018
Andrew Hastie’s comments underscore the intense pressure being applied to the Turnbull government by the US military-intelligence establishment.
Professor Stuart Rees, former director of the Sydney Peace Foundation, calls for Assange’s liberty
9 June 2018
“Julian Assange has worked tirelessly to support free speech and to expose abuses of power by governments.”
US demands swift passage of Australian “foreign interference” bills
By Mike Head, 8 June 2018
US officials “sought assurances” of parliamentary support for the laws directed against China and free speech.
Australia’s disability scheme prepares to restrict access for people with autism
By Max Newman, 7 June 2018
The move to reduce autism services underscores the cost-cutting character of the NDIS.
US activist Kevin Zeese calls for demonstrations against the persecution of Julian Assange
6 June 2018
“Freedom of speech and freedom of the press is being defined by the treatment of Julian Assange.”
Fear of working-class unrest triggers Australian minimum pay increase
By Mike Head, 6 June 2018
The industrial judges voiced concerns that record poor wages growth has generated dangerous discontent.
Free Julian Assange! Support the June 19 vigil in London
the Socialist Equality Party (UK), 6 June 2018
Workers and young people must demand that the Conservative government of Theresa May end its persecution of Assange, drop the bail-related issues against him and allow him to leave the embassy and, if he chooses, the UK, without fear of arrest.
Journalist Antony Loewenstein: “Heavy pressure” needed to win freedom and justice for Assange
6 June 2018
The following statement was sent by journalist and filmmaker Antony Loewenstein, a consistent defender of WikiLeaks.
Ecuadorian foreign minister asserts treatment of Assange is “not censorship”
By James Cogan, 5 June 2018
Assange is not only being censored, but faces imminent danger of being forced into the hands of his persecutors.
John Pilger and Courage Foundation announce “urgent campaign” to free Assange
5 June 2018
The Courage Foundation, which raises funds for the legal defence of persecuted whistleblowers and journalists, has endorsed protests and vigils in defence of Julian Assange later this month.
Australian unions shut down state Labor conference to suppress discussion of anti-refugee policy
By Oscar Grenfell, 5 June 2018
The CFMMEU, presented as a “left-wing” and “militant” union, blocked a motion that questioned the brutal repression of asylum seekers.
Australia: Private health giant Healthscope axes 400 jobs
By Margaret Rees, 5 June 2018
The company is shutting down two hospitals in order to help secure a more favourable takeover bid.
Terry Hicks, father of former Guantánamo Bay prisoner David Hicks, supports Julian Assange
5 June 2018
“We pulled apart all the government and media lies and character assassination against David and we never gave up. This is what we have to do for Assange.”
Lift the ban on communications! Free Julian Assange!
By James Cogan, 4 June 2018
The American state and its allies are seeking to destroy WikiLeaks and Julian Assange in order to intimidate every critical and independent media organisation.
Lawyer Julian Burnside endorses June 17 Sydney demonstration for Assange’s freedom
4 June 2018
“The Turnbull government must help Julian Assange now. He must be helped to leave the Ecuadorean Embassy without being arrested.”
Australian government vows to pass “foreign interference” bills
By Mike Head, 2 June 2018
Thousands of people could be forced to list themselves on a register because they communicate with “foreign” individuals or groups.
Australian “terrorist weapon” was a modified fly swatter
By Mike Head, 1 June 2018
The belated police admission raises further questions about the supposed bomb plot and the “war on terror.”
Australian students support June 17 Sydney rally demanding freedom for Julian Assange
By our reporters, 1 June 2018
“The governments know that by attacking Assange, it will have a ripple effect. They want every single student who is against war to be intimidated.”
Two workers killed at Australian paper mill
By Paul Bartizan, 31 May 2018
The cause of the gas exposure is still unclear.
Break the silence on the danger facing Julian Assange
By James Cogan, 31 May 2018
A profound shift has taken place among a layer that previously postured as “liberal,” “left” and even “socialist.”
The working class must mobilize to free Julian Assange!
By Andre Damon, 30 May 2018
The demand for the freedom of Julian Assange must be connected to the developing international movement of workers against inequality, oppression and exploitation.
Rich list shows more Australian billionaires than ever
By Oscar Grenfell, 30 May 2018
The wealthiest six individuals alone control almost as much wealth as the poorest 20 percent of the population.
Australian government reports whitewash responsibility for toxic foam crisis
By Patrick Davies, 29 May 2018
Official cover-ups are scrapping any notion of potential buybacks or compensation.
Official report “just a fob off”
Australia: Residents denounce government response to PFAS health disaster
By our correspondents, 29 May 2018
The WSWS spoke to Terry and Jenny Robinson, who live on a contaminated property near a military base.
Gonski 2.0: A new business blueprint for Australian school education
By Linda Tenenbaum and Susan Allan, 29 May 2018
The most revealing aspect of the new Review is that it fails to provide any assessment of the role of the current education models in the school education crisis.
Demand freedom for Julian Assange! Join the demonstration in Sydney on June 17!
By James Cogan, 29 May 2018
Assange’s situation stems directly from the Australian government’s refusal to protect one of its citizens.
John Pilger endorses June 17 Sydney demonstration in defence of Julian Assange
29 May 2018
“Julian is a courageous editor persecuted for exercising a right enshrined in the United States Constitution.”
Australia’s spy chief demands passage of “foreign interference” bills
By Mike Head, 28 May 2018
ASIO's Director-General Duncan Lewis is a key figure in the security apparatus, which operates as a “deep state” within ruling circles.
Australian government delays by-elections for nine weeks
By Mike Head, 26 May 2018
Four of the five by-elections result from the latest “dual citizenship” disqualifications—a witch-hunt that is ousting from parliament anyone deemed to lack sole loyalty to the nation.
Australian feminists deny mental health crisis behind Margaret River murder-suicide
By Cheryl Crisp, 26 May 2018
The proponents of feminist identity politics provide a cover for the social conditions that led to the tragedy.
Indian port workers to walk out, 30,000 municipal workers remain on strike in Haryana state
Workers Struggles: Asia, Australia and the Pacific
26 May 2018
The World Socialist Web Site invites workers and other readers to contribute to this regular feature.
US-China tensions expose rifts in Australian ruling circles
By Mike Head, 25 May 2018
A parliamentary committee chairman threw a “grenade” into government efforts to overcome a chill in relations with China.
Joint email signals union-management partnership at Australia’s Macquarie University
By our correspondent, 24 May 2018
The NTEU is proceeding with the “strategic” measures in order to impose savage cost-cutting and restructuring
Scientists reveal global warming’s impact on Great Barrier Reef
By Frank Gaglioti, 23 May 2018
Warming events are becoming more frequent, giving coral insufficient time to recover.
Report highlights growing child hunger in Australia
By John Harris, 23 May 2018
Increases to the cost of living, including housing and utility costs, are fuelling a social crisis.
Australian workers and youth defend Julian Assange
By our reporters, 21 May 2018
The support for Assange stands in stark contrast to the venomous hostility to the WikiLeaks editor from governments and the corporate media.
Australian apartment owners to join legal action over flammable cladding
By Paul Bartizan, 21 May 2018
Despite last year’s Grenfell Tower disaster in Britain, Australian governments refuse to take any serious action to remove flammable cladding or stop its widespread use.
Australian government rules out referendum as dual citizenship crisis escalates
By Mike Head and James Cogan, 19 May 2018
The Coalition government has moved to make it even more difficult to prove “unqualified allegiance” to Australia
Australian government “review” prepares deeper public sector cuts
By Terry Cook, 18 May 2018
The review will be a mechanism to justify further privatisations, outsourcing and cuts to jobs and conditions.
Australia: Why is the New South Wales Teachers Federation promoting a new NAPLAN?
By Erika Zimmer, 18 May 2018
Australian teachers have been almost universally hostile to NAPLAN testing which was introduced by the former Rudd Labor government a decade ago.
US State Department accuses China of “economic blackmail”
By Mike Head, 16 May 2018
The Australian media highlighted the provocative report, which alleges that China is using “debtbook diplomacy” to take over Asian and Pacific countries.
Australian pseudo-left backs union campaign to elect a big business Labor government
By Oscar Grenfell, 15 May 2018
Socialist Alternative is attempting to cover up the fact that Labor and the unions have become the central political instruments of the corporate elite.
Hillary Clinton demands Australia and New Zealand act against “Chinese interference”
By Mike Head, 14 May 2018
Clinton’s whipping up of anti-Chinese sentiment in Australia and New Zealand was accompanied by her appeals to affluent feminist layers.
Seven killed in South Africa gold mine collapse
By Eddie Haywood, 14 May 2018
The May 3 incident comes amid an overall rise in fatal mining accidents across the country in recent years.
Delivery drivers strike in China, Korean Airline pilots and workers demand dismissal of company chairman
Workers Struggles: Asia, Australia and the Pacific
12 May 2018
The World Socialist Web Site invites workers and other readers to contribute to this regular feature.
Australian Labor leader replies to budget with empty populism
By Mike Head, 11 May 2018
Bill Shorten postured as a champion of “Australians doing it tough,” while denouncing the government for not cutting the budget deficit enough to prepare for “global bad news.”
Australian unions promote Labor Party at “Change the Rules” rally in Melbourne
By our reporters, 11 May 2018
Between 60,000 and 100,000 workers marched in central Melbourne.
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