Global Peace And Justice Auckland Newsletter #92, MAY 14, 2005
Website http://www.gpja.pl.net/ Contact details: Forums - John Minto, (09) 846 3173, jbminto@xtra.co.nz; Newsletter
Editor - Mike Treen 027 525 47440 / 09 845 4027 miket@pl.net Web page - bobo@enzyme.org.nz Donations can be sent to
GPJA, 6a Western Springs Rd, Auckland. All communication regarding the GPJA mailing list (email or snail) should be
addressed to gpja@xtra.co.nz
Dear friends,
WITNESSES TO ARRESTS OF GPJA SUPPORTERS NEEDED: On the March 19 antiwar protest and subsequent appearance at the
Auckland District Court on March 21 a number of GPJA supporters were arrested. Anyone who was a witness to these events
should contact John Minto Ph 8463173 or jbminto@xtra.co.nz
QUOTE OF THE MONTH - ALBERT EINSTEIN "A human being is a part of the whole, called by us, "Universe," a part limited in
time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest -- a kind of
optical delusion of his consciousness. "This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires
and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our
circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty. "Nobody is able to achieve
this completely, but the striving for such achievement is in itself a part of the liberation and a foundation for inner
security." - Albert Einstein - (1879-1955) Physicist and Professor, Nobel Prize 1921
WHAT'S ON IN AUCKLAND
Monday, May 16, 5.45-7pm, Amnesty International office, 145 Nelson Street, central Auckland Auckland Human Rights
Network meeting. (directions for drivers - drive northwards down Nelson Street, between Union Street and Cook Street,
take small drive on left running parallel downhill off Nelson Street, and proceed to parking beside Amnesty
International office). For more information, or to add items to the agenda, contact email beverleyturner@nznet.gen.nz
Thursday, May 12-19, Academy Cinema, City HUMAN RIGHTS FILM FESTIVAL: Our exciting programme includes the 2005 Academy
Award winning documentary, Born into Brothels, the radical, entertaining Resistencia - Hip Hop in Colombia, and some of
the finest documentaries currently touring the globe. Further highlights include high profile British director Ken
Loach's dramatic feature, Bread and Roses starring Adrien Brody (currently in New Zealand filming King Kong); and the
controversial study of the September 11 hijackers, Hamburg Cell, produced by New Zealander Finola Dwyer. The full
programme for each centre is on the website http://www.humanrightsfilmfest.net.nz
RECOMMENDED IN THE FESTIVAL THE FOURTH WORLD WAR (directors Richard Rowley and Jacqueline Soohen) ''...takes viewers
where the mainstream media cannot go. Shot on the frontlines of struggles spanning five continents, The Fourth World War
is the untold human story of men and women who resist being annihilated in the current global conflict. While American
airwaves are crowded with talk of a new world war, narrated by generals and filmed from the noses of bombs, the human
face of war is rarely seen. The Fourth World War weaves together the images and voices of the war on the ground, from
the front lines of struggles in Mexico, Argentina, South Africa, Palestine, Korea, 'the North' from Seattle to Genoa,
and the 'War on Terror' in New York and Iraq. The product of over two years of filming, The Fourth World War is a new
kind of film for a new world. The intensity and immediacy of its images are beyond anything the mainstream media can
shoot and the intimacy and passion of its stories are beyond anything it can feel.
BREAD AND ROSES (director Ken Loach).''Maya, a young Mexican, crosses the border to join her tough elder sister Rosa who
works as a cleaner in a down town block, home to some of LA's most powerful corporate clients. The two sisters have a
deep but fiery relationship which is further stretched by Sam, a talented and anarchistic American activist, who is part
of a dynamic campaign opposed to older methods of trade union organising. They have a simple motto, 'No Justice, No
Peace' and embark on a peaceful but highly imaginative guerrilla campaign for trade union recognition against cleaning
companies and powerful corporate owners of the tower blocks. Ken Loach's first US-set film exposes a side of Los Angeles
that to date has been swept under the corporate carpet.
Thursday, May 19, 7.30pm, Parnell Anglican Cathedral, Auckland Friday, May 20, 10am, Auckland University, Auckland Come
and meet Guillermo Vargas Leiton, a coffee farmer from Costa Rica, and find out what Fair Trade means for him and his
community. Guillermo will be speaking at the following public venues together with speakers from Oxfam and Trade Aid:
Thursday, May 19, 7pm, Green Party Office, 308 Great North Road, Grey Lynn Screening of the Movie "Store Wars" with
Green MP Mike Ward. This is the story of the impact of Wal-Mart as well as other discount chain stores and sprawl on
smaller towns and cities, and on our society as a whole. Mike Ward, spokesperson for Buy Local Campaign, Local
Government and Small Business is coming up from Nelson to host this event. For more info: ph. 376-4143.
Thursday, May 20, 7.30-8.45am, Old Government House, Waterloo Quadrant, Auckland City. CHILD POVERTY ACTION GROUP, in
association with University of Auckland - Dept. of Paediatrics and Dept. of General Practice and Primary Health Care
Auckland University of Technology - Institute of Public Policy Public Health Association. invites you to: SURPLUS TO
REQUIREMENTS? WHO GAINS FROM THE 2005 BUDGET?
Our Fifth Annual Post-Budget Breakfast. Last year's budget promised much, and delivered some: but not to the most
vulnerable children in our community. 175,000-plus children were allowed to fall between the gaps, amidst growing
inequality between the haves and have nots in Aotearoa - New Zealand. Special guest speakers will scrutinise the budget
and the Government's latest policy directions. What relief, if any, is there for our poorest children in this budget?
Will 2005 be the year for a credible national child poverty reduction strategy? Prof. Tim Hazledine, Dept of Economics,
University of Auckland; Prof. Innes Asher, Dept of Paediatrics, University of Auckland; Dr. Susan St John, Dept of
Economics, University of Auckland; Assoc. Prof. Love Chile, Institute of Public Policy, (AUT) - MC. (pay for an hour's
parking on Princes St anytime before 8am and you're safe until 9am). Cost: $20 waged, $10 unwaged. All welcome. Write to
P.O. Box 56-150 with your cheque, or email your acceptance with contact details to admin@cpag.org.nz
Friday, May 20, 6pm, Trades Hall, 147 Great North Rd, Grey Lynn "ANOTHER WORLD IS POSSIBLE" - Come and hear CHICO
WHITAKER, a Brazilian thinker and activist and a pioneer in new ways of organising diverse groups interested in creating
a just world. He has worked for many years strategising how Church groups engage with the world in creating civil
society. He has worked with Bishop Helder Camara and Paulo Freire and is now Director of the Catholic Bishops' Justice
and Peace Commission. He is a key founder of the World Social Forum, a strategy for bringing together diverse groups
from around the world who want to make a difference.
Saturday, May 21, 10am-4pm, St Benedict's Crypt, St Benedict's Street, Newton New Pentecost Forum Auckland with CHICO
WHITAKER, hosted by Pax Christi. Topic: "A Church that Won't be Silenced!" Cost: $10 or Koha. Contact: Pax Christi - 09
377 5541, 021 681686 / paxnzxtra.co.nz
Saturday, May 21, 2pm-5.30pm, Aotea Square, Auckland Fair Trade Fiesta: Try delicious free Fairtrade coffee, enjoy great
music and find out more about Fair Trade at our Fair Trade Fiestas.
Sunday, May 22, 12 noon till 3.30 pm, Trades Hall , 147 Great North Rd Grey Lynn. Unite, Waitemata branch , is holding a
teach-in and organising- for -action public meeting about benefit cuts All welcome, including beneficiaries, paid
workers, and union members Refreshments Available. Please bring a plate if possible and a koha for the hall hire.
Contact : Keith 8369104. or email: janetbogle@hotmail.com
Sunday, May 22, Hato Petera Cultural mass with CHICO WHITAKER
Saturday, May 28, 12.30pm, Jack Dickey Hall, 174 Greenlane West, (near Gt South Rd corner) Greenlane PALESTINE HUMAN
RIGHTS AND INDONESIAN HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGNS are holding a joint fund raising lunch to celebrate and support our ongoing
work. Our invited guest is AHMED ZAOUI. Attendance ONLY by booking Tickets. $20. Children Free. Only 50 tickets
available to each group so please book early. David Wakim 5200201.
Monday, June 6, 7.30pm, Trades Hall, 147 Great North Rd, Grey Lynn GPJA FORUM: Parasites of Poverty Campaign - This
campaign aims for significant changes in the law which will make life easier for people living in low income
communities, those in financial difficulty and those with gambling addictions. More broadly it aims for much healthier
communities based on "empowering local communities" to decide important issues in the face of poor regulation and
unsympathetic governments. HEAR JOHN STANSFIELD, Chief Exec Officer for the Problem Gambling Foundation of NZ, John
Minto and others speak.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
IN MEMORY OF OWEN WILKES: Kia ora, this message is to let you know, in case you have not already heard, that Owen Wilkes
passed away yesterday. Apologies if you are receiving this news first by email, we have been trying to telephone the
people we know who worked with Owen but have not been able to reach everyone. This is a deeply sad occasion for everyone
here at Peace Movement Aotearoa, and for everyone who knew Owen. He was a dedicated peace researcher for many years,
former Editor of Peacelink, and former Peace Movement Aotearoa worker. Owen was always happy to share his extensive
knowledge about disarmament to progress new and ongoing education and campaign work. We will miss him very much.
CHICO WHITAKER IN AUCKLAND MAY 20-22. Francisco Whitaker Ferreira, Brazil, is a leading international social activist
and one of the founding figures of the World Social Forum (WSF). He has also been active in the Workers Party (Partido
dos Trabalhadores or PT) in Brazil and has even held elected office as Councillor. Currently, he is a member of the
Executive Secretariat of the Brazilian Justice and Peace Commission (CBJP), which is an organisation working on human
rights issues. This is his first tour of Australia and New Zealand. More information at http://www.newpentecost.com/regional_about_chico.html This tour is organised independently by many groups. This website is hosted by the tour initiator, New Pentecost Forum,
and provides information about Chico Whitaker and his tour schedule. Chico Whitaker media pack (contains biography, tour
schedule Chico Whitaker's articles, an interview and the WSF charter)
MAKE POVERTY HISTORY - FEEDBACK FROM CONSULTATIONS AND NEXT STEPS The three national platform meetings in April
establishing the Make Poverty History coalition (in Christchurch, Auckland and Wellington) were attended by over 100
people, representing a wide range of organizations. There was enthusiasm for establishing a Make Poverty History
campaign in New Zealand and a number of people and organizations have come forward to contribute time and/or money to
make it happen. Agreed coalition platform: Aid: There was broad support for building on the Point Seven campaign, but
also including the wider demand for "better Aid". Debt: It was agreed that the demands should build on the Jubilee
Aotearoa Debt campaign. Trade: There is currently no broad-based common platform on trade justice issues in NZ, so it
will be important to ensure that the manifesto includes the points of agreement that do exist, particularly the
international demands that have been subject to extensive consultation. The policy platform will need to be developed by
a Policy Working Group. NZ poverty: there was general agreement that the demand’ should focus on child poverty and that
this should be based on an existing NZ campaign. CPAG and the Every Child Counts coalition will be approached. Suggested
additional demand: Some participants felt that the demands did not reflect the impact of military spending as a cause of
poverty. There was discussion about the inclusion of a demand for the redirection of military spending towards social
spending as an additional demand. Others suggested that the issue of military spending be included within the four other
demands. This will be discussed by the Policy Working Group and the interim Steering Committee. Please fill in an
application form to become a member. Forms will be available from the newly created website in the next few days: http://www.makepovertyhistory.org.nz. The names of member organisations will be published on the website and included in a list of coalition members. If you
are able to contribute resources (eg money or time) to make this campaign a reality, please email
resources@makepovertyhistory.org.nz If you wish to become a member of a working group, send your name to
resources@makepovertyhistory.org.nz, specifying which group and giving details of your expertise. Please pass on
information about the campaign to other organisations who you think should be involved. I have been pleased to initiate
activities for the establishment of the coalition and the campaign in New Zealand and have tried to reach out to involve
a wide range of organisations. Now that the interim Steering Committee has been formed, I will now step back and pass
over responsibility to the Steering Committee and to all those of you who want to be involved. I think the international
Make Poverty History campaign represents a fantastic opportunity for us in NZ and hope that you will support it. Thank,
Barry Coates, Executive Director, Oxfam New Zealand, PO Box 68 357, 62 Aitken Terrace, Kingsland, Auckland. Tel: +64 9
355 6500 FAX: +64 9 355 6505.
TELECOM WINNER OF ROGER AWARD FOR THE WORST TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATION IN NZ GOVERNMENT - SPECIAL AWARD FOR PROTECTION OF
PROFIT & PRIVILEGE: The full 18 page Judges' Report, including a Financial Analysis, can be read online at http://canterbury.cyberplace.co.nz/community/CAFCA/publications/Roger/Roger2 004.pdf If, for any reason that Link doesn't work, go to http://www.cafca.org.nz and follow the Roger Award Links. The seven 2004 finalists were: Ernslaw One, McDonalds, Telecom, Westpac, Toll,
Mitsubishi, and Contact Energy. The criteria for judging are by assessing the transnational that has the most negative
impact in New Zealand in each or all of the following fields: unemployment, monopoly, profiteering, abuse of
workers/conditions, political interference, environmental damage, cultural imperialism, impact on tangata whenua,
running an ideological crusade, tax dodging, impact on women, impact on health and safety of workers, and the public.
The judges were: John Minto, veteran Auckland activist and National Chairperson of the Quality Public Education
Coalition; Alister Barry, documentary maker, of Wellington; Maire Leadbeater, a veteran peace and social justice
activist, from Auckland; and Edwina Hughes, the coordinator of Peace Movement Aotearoa, in Wellington. For full details
of the Roger Award, go to http://www.cafca.org.nz and follow the Links. The Roger Award is organised by the Christchurch-based groups, Campaign Against Foreign Control of
Aotearoa and GATT Watchdog and is supported by Christian World Service. Previous winners: Tranz Rail (three times),
Juken Nissho, Carter Holt Harvey, Monsanto and TransAlta. To quote the Judges’ Report, Telecom won because: "The massive
profit figures which this company posts year by year are a national scandal... This is a company whose name is a byword
for the failure of privatisation. It is the largest community parasite in New Zealand and its stifling, negative impact
cannot be underestimated… Telecom has betrayed the trust and hopes placed in it to run our telephone and
telecommunications systems…This is a friendless, rapacious company with well established and unmediated parasitical
practices". Contact was the runner-up primarily because it "has run an ideological campaign against Kyoto (Treaty) and
the use of renewable energy sources… running a crusade to convince the public that coal-fired power stations are the
only option for a secure future energy supply… responsible for environmental damage and wilful negligence regarding
health and safety of the community" (in Waikato and Taranaki). Ernslaw One came third because it "is having a big impact
on workers - Maori on the East Coast especially - with thousands of job losses projected… impact on health and safety of
the public - based on their proposal for a sawmilling complex near Whangapoua Harbour (Coromandel)". The judges awarded
the Government a Special Roger Award for Protection of Profit and Privilege: "It seemed clear that if we were to have a
government focussed on the protection of people and the environment, rather than on protecting corporate profit making
then there may be no need for the Roger Award". Murray Horton, for the organisers, CAFCA & GATT Watchdog, Campaign Against Foreign Control of Aotearoa, Box 2258, Christchurch, New Zealand
cafca@chch.planet.org.nz http://www.cafca.org.nz Steven Wallace: five years on
STEVEN WALLACE: It is now five years since the death of Steven Wallace, shot and killed by a police officer in Waitara
on 30 April 2000; and the search for justice by his family and friends continues. On 8 May 2000, in the first Peace
Movement Aotearoa article on Steven's death, we asked a series of immediate questions: why did police officers decide to
arm themselves with guns when Steven was obviously not carrying a firearm himself? Why didn't they choose another option
to stop him? Why was he shot four times? Why were local people who tried to offer him comfort and assistance as he lay
bleeding and dying in the street for 20 minutes prevented by the police from going near him? Why is this young man dead?
We also raised longer term issues which would need to be addressed to ensure this did not happen again, including:
reviewing police officers access to, and use of, guns; making sure that existing police procedures about firearms are
actually followed; establishing an independent Police Complaints Authority; and improving the way the criminal justice
system relates to Maori. Last year on the fourth anniversary of Steven's death, we published a chronology of what had
happened up until then which indicated that most of the immediate questions remained unanswered and the longer term
issues still had not been addressed. That chronology is available online at http://www.converge.org.nz/pma/waitara29.htm Since then, there are two changes to report. The first relates to the Independent Police Complaints Authority Amendment
Bill, designed to give "enhanced independence" to the Police Complaints Authority, which was first tabled in parliament
in December 2002. The Bill was put on hold last year pending the outcome of the Commission of Inquiry into Police
Conduct which was set up following allegations of rape and cover-ups by police officers. That inquiry was itself stalled
when criminal charges were laid against some of the officers. Earlier this month the government announced that the
inquiry would restart, but that its scope would be limited so the Commission (now comprising only one Commissioner, Dame
Margaret Bazley) could complete its work without prejudicing any criminal prosecutions. The inquiry will run in parallel
with investigations by the Police Commissioner into police behaviour, and the Commissioner's report is to be given to
the Governor General by 3 March 2006. Where this leaves the Independent Police Complaints Authority Amendment Bill is
not clear at this point in time. The second change is the ruling by Justice Anthony Randerson, Chief High Court Judge,
on the 21st of this month upholding the decision of Coroner Gordon Matenga to restart the much delayed inquest into
Steven's death. While this is a positive step in that the inquest will now proceed, Justice Randerson also upheld the
Coroner's decision to limit the scope of the inquest's scope to two issues: "police policy and procedure as it applied
to general staff in dealing with violent offenders, and first-aid care, including the actual care given in the Wallace
case." (NZPA, 21 April 2004) It is not readily apparent how an inquest with such a limited scope will fulfill the
purpose of an Inquest which is defined in the Coroners Act (1988), Section 15 as: "1) - the coroner holds an Inquest for
the purpose of - a) Establishing, as far as is possible - i) that a person has died; and ii) the person's identity; and
iii) when and where the person died; and iv) the causes of the death; and v) the circumstances of the death; and b)
making any recommendations or comments on the avoidance of circumstances similar to those in which the death occurred,
or on the manner in which any persons should act in such circumstances, that, in the opinion of the coroner, may if
drawn to public attention reduce the chances of the occurrence of other deaths in such circumstances." No date has been
set for the release of the Police Complaints Authority inquiry into Steven's death. And so the search for justice goes
on ... Where you can get more information: Commentary and analysis published over the five years since Steven's death is
available on-line at http://www.converge.org.nz/pma/steven.htm What you can do - If you wish to support the Steven Wallace Trust Fund for Justice - established to help with legal
costs and expenses incurred by Steven's family, and to campaign for possible changes to the law and to police procedures
- you can post a cheque to the Steven Wallace Trust Fund for Justice, PO Box 22, Waitara. Cheques should be made payable
to 'Steven Wallace Trust Fund'. Receipts for donations made by post will be forwarded if you request one, please enclose
your name and address, all donor details will be kept totally confidential. "This is not just a Waitara tragedy, it was
a national tragedy and one we must never allow to occur again" (from the Wallace Whanau Committee statement, June 2000)
FOREIGN CONTROL WATCHDOG 108, April 2005, now available http://www.converge.org.nz/watchdog/08/index08.htm Contents:Former OIC insider strongly critical of foreign investment regime, by Murray Horton; CAFCA submission on the
Overseas Investment Bill, by Bill Rosenberg; Supplementary submission to the finance and expenditure select committee,
by Bill Rosenberg; Presentation to the finance and expenditure select committee, by Bill Rosenberg; How the Cape was
saved!, by Liz Remmerswaal; Electricity reforms and Contact Energy Ltd, by Sue Newberry and Bill Rosenberg; Retraction,
by Sue Newberry; Book & Film Reviews by Jeremy Agar: "Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's war on journalism" a film by Robert Greenwald; "On the
rampage: corporate predators and the destruction of democracy", by Russell Mokhiber and Robert Weissman; "An
uncooperative commodity: privatising water in England and Wales" by Karen Bakker; Obituaries: Bill Andersen, by Paul
Watson; Death In The Family: Don Horton, by Murray Horton http://www.converge.org.nz/watchdog/index.htm BEST ON THE WEB
JOHN PILGER Let's face it - the state has lost its mind - The media coverage of this past election was a pastiche. Our
right to know what our rulers are doing to people the world over is being lost in the new propaganda consensus. Dr Les
Roberts study found that "at least" 100,000 civilians had died violently, the great majority of them at the hands of the
"coalition": women, children, the elderly. He also described how American military doctors had found that 14 per cent of
soldiers and 28 per cent of marines had killed a civilian: a huge, unreported massacre. http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8821.htm
UK ELECTION Galloway back as MP http://www.guardian.co.uk/guardianpolitics/story/0,,1478536,00.html http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/story.jsp?story=636338 Paxman v Galloway: For anyone who missed it overnight, the tussle between George Galloway and Jeremy Paxman was one of
the highlights, which came shortly after his victory over Labour's Oona King. Real Video. http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8763.htm George Galloway: These are Blair's last days: Iraq is our greatest foreign policy calamity in modern history and the
reckoning has only just begun http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8736.htm
THE FAMILY For better or worse, marriage has changed http://www.theunionleader.com/articles_showa.html?article=54361
ENVIRONMENT Environmental laws lined up for removal by new trade talks http://www.foei.org/media/2005/0418.html
WAR ON FREEDOM FISK: America's shame, two years on from "Mission Accomplished" - How did this culture of filth start in
America's "war on terror". A vast quantity of evidence has now been built up on the system which the Americans have
created for mistreating and torturing prisoners. I have interviewed a Palestinian who gave me compelling evidence of
anal rape with wooden poles at Bagram - by Americans, not by Afghans. http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8787.htm
HAITI Diplomacy By Death Squad: How Bolton Armed Haiti's Thugs and Killers: U.N. troops can usually be found providing
support for the Haitian National Police as they execute peaceful demonstrators demanding the return of their
democratically elected president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide. http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8737.htm
PALESTINE This is a MUST view! An informative and factual video film (9-minutes) on the separation wall: http://www.thewallofhate.org/film/thewall.wmv Hebron Palestinian Families in Crisis http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0505/S00202.htm
IRAQ WAR MAKING A KILLING: Corporations in Iraq - While nearly 100,000 Iraqis and 1600 US troops have died as a result
of the Iraq war and tens of thousands have been severely wounded, the war has proven to be extremely lucrative for the
Houston-based oil services company Halliburton and the San Francisco-based construction company Bechtel. These are the
two largest private contractors to the US occupation forces in Iraq. http://www.greenleft.org.au/back/2005/625/625p20.htm Memo: Bush made intel fit Iraq policy - The memo said "the intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy." A
highly classified British memo, leaked in the midst of Britain's just-concluded election campaign, indicates that
President Bush decided to overthrow Iraqi President Saddam Hussein by summer 2002 and was determined to ensure that U.S.
intelligence data supported his policy. http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8757.htm Unravelling Iraq's Secret Militias: Ruthless U.S. tactics are propelling the country toward civil war http://zmagsite.zmag.org/Images/gupta0505.html Lifting the Censor's Veil on the Shame of Iraq: "Nobody wants to come forward about this," said Aidan Delgado. "I didn't
want to come forward about this." http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8755.htm Flash presentation. Marking the second year of the U.S. occupation of Iraq. Photos from March/April 2005 http://www.bushflash.com/y2.html U.S. Officials Suspected of Embezzlement in Iraq: The U.S. government has opened a criminal inquiry into suspected
embezzlement by officials who failed to account for almost $100 million they disbursed for Iraqi reconstruction
projects, federal investigators said Wednesday. http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8753.htm Soldier lifts lid on Camp Delta: Erik Saar, an Arabic speaker who was a translator in interrogation sessions, has
produced a searing first-hand account of working at Guantánamo. It will prove a damaging blow to a White House still
struggling to recover from the abuse scandal at Abu Ghraib jail in Iraq. http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article8778.htm ASIA U.S. beefs up military units in the Pacific: 2 bombers, F-15E fighters in Guam, Aegis ships in Japan. The U.S.
military is beefing up its military capabilities in the Pacific by deploying high-tech aircraft and Navy vessels amid
worsening assessments of the prospects of an early solution of the North Korean nuclear standoff. http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/SITE/data/html_dir/2005/05/06/200505060007.asp VIETNAM: 30 years after victory: Towards capitalism or socialism? http://www.greenleft.org.au/back/2005/625/625p14.htm
NAOMI KLIEIN How to end the war http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0505-23.htm The true purpose of torture: Guantánamo is there to terrorise - both inmates and the wider world http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,3604,1483801,00.html OUTFOXED In case you missed it; OUTFOXED: This film provides an in-depth look at Fox News and the dangers of
ever-enlarging corporations taking control of the public's right to know. Real Video. http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article7798.htm
ARMS RACE US defence budget will equal ROW combined "within 12 months" http://www.janes.com/defence/news/jdi/jdi050504_1_n.shtml Nuclear double standards: States wishing to retain their enrichment and reprocessing capacity while denying facilities
to others must ask themselves how serious they are about the need to prevent proliferation. http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldbriefing/story/0,15205,1475981,00.html NICARAGUA Nicaragua: Sitting on a powder keg .... Again! http://www.axisoflogic.com/artman/publish/article_17172.shtml
CUBA PROMOTES ORGANICS The Cuba Diet: What will you be eating when the revolution comes? http://www.energybulletin.net/5225.html
VENEZUELA Workers co-management in Venezuela http://www.venezuelasolidarity.org BOLIVIA Natural Gas and Popular Struggle - Back to the Streets in Bolivia? http://www.counterpunch.org/webber05092005.html
BOLIVIA: A nation holds its breath http://www.greenleft.org.au/back/2005/620/620p19.htm
HOUSING UN: Privatization of Property Driving Homelessness http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0505/S00220.htm
FORCED LABOUR More Than 12 Million People in Forced Labour http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0505/S00209.htm
AUSTRALIA A Detention System Out Of Control http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0505/S00150.htm
CENTRAL AMERICA CAFTA'S Vision - Privatization At Gunpoint http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0505/S00168.htm
Mike