Oppose the De-funding of Massey’s Students’ Association
Romany is a member of the International Socialist Organisation of Aotearoa and student representative with Te Tira Ahu Pae, writing here in a personal capacity. We should all be deeply concerned by Massey University’s announcement that they intend to de-fund Te Tira Ahu Pae, the Massey University student association and take over the running of […]
Ngā Taurahere – a new Māori translation of The Internationale – Part 2
Part One of this interview and translation can be found here: https://iso.org.nz/2024/06/28/nga-taurahere-a-new-maori-translation-of-the-internationale/ ISO members Kaakatarau Te Pou Kohere (Ngāti Porou, Ngāi Tuhoe, Ngāti te ata Waiohua, Kai Tahu) and Tima Thurlow (Ngāi Tuhoe) are developing a new Māori translation of the workers’ anthem The Internationale. Kaakatarau spoke to Shōmi Yoon about the considerations and politics of […]
Processes versus People: The Clocktower Protest for Palestine
On Wednesday 9 October around 200 students, staff, and members of the Dunedin public marched from the Otago Museum Reserve, through the Link (the University of Otago’s primary ‘hub’) and to the University of Otago Clocktower, singing and chanting as they went – calling for Boycott, Divestment and Sanction action against Israel. The action was […]
New Zealand Imperialism in the Pacific in the 21st Century
A public talk based on this article is available on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uiDVbWafgPg “The Pacific is our family, and being here is a great opportunity to reaffirm New Zealand’s position as a close and trusted partner.” Visiting Niue in June 2024, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon trotted out this familiar official story about the New Zealand government’s […]
Interview: Woolworths workers’ strike for living wage and safer staffing
In early August nearly ten thousand FIRST Union members working in Countdown and Woolworths across Aotearoa New Zealand voted in favour of strike action. The 2023 financial statement shows Woolworths made an AUD$3billion pre-tax profit, with Aotearoa New Zealand operations making up around 11% of total revenue. This is a company with money to spare. […]
Residents Fight Back Against Cuts
‘Village in the Park’ is a retirement and aged care complex in Newtown Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington. It is operated by Arvida group which operates 35 such complexes across Aotearoa New Zealand. The company’s 2024 annual report shows an increase in revenue of 11% and a whopping 69% increase in net profit to 139 million dollars […]
Ngā Taurahere – a new Māori translation of The Internationale
ISO members Kaakatarau Te Pou Kohere (Ngāti Porou, Ngāi Tuhoe, Ngāti te ata Waiohua, Kai Tahu) and Tima Thurlow (Ngāi Tuhoe) are developing a new Māori translation of the workers’ anthem The Internationale. Kaakatarau spoke to Shōmi Yoon about the considerations and politics of The Internationale and the connections to Māoritanga and te ao Māori threaded […]
Political perspectives for 2024-25
The ISO recently held our annual Hui-Ā-tau and endorsed the following perspectives for the coming political year.
End Student Poverty
Why is it normal and accepted for students to live in poverty? Cold flats and two-minute noodles are viewed as a rite of passage, and even looked on with nostalgia by those whose student days are past and who are lucky enough to now live comfortably. But this rite of passage and the “character” that […]
Jim Edwards, the Communist Party of New Zealand, and unemployment struggles in the 1930s
James Henry Edwards arrested in Norfolk Street after an Anti-Eviction occupation, 1931. The history of the Communist Party of New Zealand (CPNZ) is worth knowing. Although the Party was never more than small, it was the largest and most influential political formation there had been to the left of the Labour Party until the short-lived […]