From Land Wars to Union Battles!
Ka whawhai tonu matou, Ake! Ake! Ake!: Rewi Maniapoto’s words from the Waikato Wars of the 1860s rang through the twentieth century and into our own. Maori resistance to colonisation and land theft has never ended and the Maori struggle for self-determination has continued across the generations. Importantly, this struggle has fed in to the […]
Racism and ‘Real New Zealanders’
In 2011 broadcaster Paul Henry resigned from his job as host of TVNZ’s “Breakfast” after his appallingly racist comments regarding Anand Satyanand. The comment was compared with statements made by Maori Party MP Hone Harawira, including from his 2009 email: “White motherfuckers have been raping our lands and ripping us off for centuries, and all […]
Mana and working class consciousness
On April 30 this year, a new political party was formed by former Maori Party MP Hone Harawira – Te Mana Party. It was formed from a left split, as Harawira was expelled for opposing his party’s support for the National Government. Mana immediately drew support from veteran activist and lawyer Annette Sykes and Unite […]
Socialists and Mana
The general situation was depressing. In the third year of John Key’s administration he and National were massively ahead of Phil Goff and Labour in the opinion polls. More dismally still, action by unionists was at rock bottom. The number of work stoppages for 2010 was the lowest since the Statistics New Zealand series begun […]
Prison Reveals Priorities of Sick System
The incredible cost of imprisonment, which has increased dramatically over the last two decades, reveals the sick priorities of the capitalist system. Unable to find the cash to pay for decent health and education and warm, dry housing for working class people, our rulers are happy to waste hundreds of thousands on imprisoning thousands. The […]
Fiji: The Coup and Colonialism
The coup in Fiji is the latest sign of serious instability in the Pacific. From Timor Leste to Tonga, poverty has gone hand in hand with mounting political crises. New Zealand politicians talk about development and democracy but the bottom line is economic control. There were two coups in Fiji in 1987 and an attempted […]
Maori Party back National?
One of the most striking differences between John Key and the last National Party leader, Don Brash, is Key’s relationship with Maori political leaders. Key could not govern without the support of the Maori Party – a party which was formed supposedly in opposition to Labour’s raupatu (confiscation) of the seabed and foreshore but in […]
History catches up with Tongan King
Tonga, once a sleepy island kingdom sunk in tradition and religion, was rocked by riots on Thursday 16 November 2006, as frustration with the royal government hit boiling point. Almost overnight, Australian and New Zealand troops appeared on the scene patrolling the scarred streets of the capital Nuku’alofa and controlling its airport. “Our presence is […]
The Solomons: Australia & NZ’s new colony
Australian and New Zealand troops and police moved into the Solomons in July, 2003, supposedly to “restore law and order” and “end the conflict.” In reality, our rulers care about helping the Solomon Islanders about as much as George W. Bush and Tony Blair care about helping Iraqis. The Solomons are now effectively an Australian […]
Pigs, Drugs, and Capitalism
Legalise marijuana, heroin, cocaine, speed, LSD, Ecstasy, opium, mushrooms, mescalin, ketamine, peyote and ether! Provide accurate information on drugs to people of all ages! Fund independent scientific and social research into drugs! Supply cheap and safe prescribed drugs through doctors and pharmacies! Send every pig that’s ever made a drug bust, every MP that’s made […]
