Why we stand for Palestine
Solidarity According to the Gaza health ministry, Reuters reported on 16 October, at least 2,750 Palestinians had been killed and 9,700 wounded in Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip since 7 October. By the time of writing, the death toll was much more. Before this latest round of bombs and death most of Gaza’s […]
Israel is the Aggressor
In the midst of a civilian massacre perpetrated by Israel in response to Hamas’ jailbreak out of Gaza, western media responses have focused solely on Israel’s right to defend itself against all those it labels as terrorists. The deeply irresponsible reporting of the imperialist core such as AP News and BBC may present an alternative […]
Five things to remember when Israel ‘defends itself’
Whenever the “international community” starts talking about Israel’s right to self-defence, Palestinian civilians head to the bomb shelters. Or they would, if they had any—the Israeli government prevents the Gaza Strip from importing the necessary construction materials. During Israeli bombardments, Gazans might try sheltering in UN-run schools, but Israel blows them up and kills the […]
Iran’s Feminist Revolution – A conversation with local Iranian organisers
Masha Amini (or Jina Amini, her Kurdish name) was 22 years old when she was arrested in Tehran on 13 September 2022 by the Guidance Patrol (or “morality police”) of Iran for not wearing her hijab “correctly”. Three days later, she died in hospital. Leaked medical scans suggest this was a result of beatings by […]
‘Lets Have This Fight’: Sudan Resisting a Coup
“A sense of relief” is how Sudanese political activist Muzan Alneel, speaking via Zoom from the capital, Khartoum, describes the mood on the streets of Sudan in the first hours of the coup on 25 October. “I remember seeing people come into the street singing, like they’re singing against the coup and they’re singing against […]
Ōtepoti Protest against Myanmar Coup
Mandalay demonstration “Free! Free! Free our leaders! Free! Free! Free all activists!” Around 60 people, including Myanmar nationals, their friends and families, peace activists and socialists, marched from Ōtepoti/Dunedin’s train station to the Octagon, where organisers took to the stage to speak to the crowd. One woman spoke of this as her first protest action […]
Attempted Coup or a Farce?
Here we present an article on the intrusion into the Capitol Building in Washington. It was first published on the Red Flag website. “Today” in the first sentence was 6 January. Far right protesters today entered the Capitol Building in Washington, DC, to support Donald Trump’s failed attempt to cling to a second presidential term […]
Detainees set fire to the Christmas Island Detention Centre
The following article was published on the Australian website Red Flag on 6 January. Among the detainees there are New Zealanders, including Māori and Pacific Islanders. A riot has broken out in the Christmas Island Immigration Detention Centre, much of which, as of early Wednesday morning, was in flames. The rioters are men who want […]
Ten Years after the Arab Spring
Ten years ago today, a young fruit vendor in Tunisia, Mohamed Bouazizi, set himself on fire after being harassed by the police. Shortly thereafter, protests started in Tunisia and quickly spread throughout the Middle East and North Africa. What can socialists learn from the Arab Spring and its aftermath? Ten years ago, in a small […]
Chilean Plebiscite: Significance
Samuel Flewett, a socialist from New Zealand based in Chile, sends this report on the recent victory at the polls there. On Sunday, the 25th of October, 78% of us voted to send the Pinochet-era constitution to the dustbin. The masterpiece of Pinochet’s chief political theoretician Jaime Guzmán, admirer of Francisco Franco, and one-time activist […]