A-Infos (en) Anarchist Age Weekly Review No.503 17th June ­ 23rd June, 2002

[Phil McCrory <philmcc@melbpc.org.au>]

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      A - I N F O S  N E W S  S E R V I C E
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NO GLOBALISATION WITHOUT DIRECT DEMOCRACY ­ ANARCHIST MEDIA INSTITUTE
"WE SWEAR BY THE SOUTHERN CROSS TO STAND TRULY BY EACH OTHER AND FIGHT TO
DEFEND OUR RIGHTS AND LIBERTIES" ­ EUREKA REBELLION OATH 1854
INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT CAPERS
The debate among Federal government M.Pıs about whether the Howard
government should support the establishment of an International criminal
court that has jurisdiction in cases that concern war crimes, genocide and
crimes against humanity, has taken on the appearances of a Marx brotherıs
comedy routine.

In an attempt to placate a potential ministerial and back bench revolt,
Alexander Downer, the Foreign Minister has proposed that Australianıs
support the establishment of an International Criminal Court only on the
condition that it does not override decisions made in Australian Courts.

Can you imagine the hue and cry that would occur if Saddam Husseinıs regime
in Iraq decided to support the establishment of the I.C.C only if the court
could not supersede decisions made by Saddam Husseinıs Courts. The I.C.C. is
being established because National governments often do not have the will or
the power to prosecute war criminals in their midsts. The unsatisfactory
situation in Cambodia, Argentina, Chile and Yugoslavia, countries where war
criminals who are guilty of crimes against humanity and even genocide are
protected by National governments which are currently in power, is a
salutary reminder that the people who commit these crimes will only be
bought to justice if they are brought before an International court.

The Australian governmentıs reluctance to sign up to the I.C.C. is not just
linked to concerns regarding national sovereignty. itıs also linked to
concerns that both the government and opposition have about the colonisation
process in this country. When a few years ago Mr. Thorpe, a Victorian Koori
attempted to raise questions about the genocide experienced by indigenous
communities during the European settlement of Australia, his case was thrown
out of the Federal Court before it began, because there are no laws on the
Australian statute books that cover the crime of genocide. The Liberal
/National Parties opposition to the establishment of an International
Criminal Court is intimately tied up with the possibility that the
Australian State will be called on to defend the genocidal policies it
pursued in the past, if it agrees to join the proposed International
Criminal Court.

Its opposition has little to do with concerns regarding national sovereignty
and everything to do with the denial of the Australian story.

SEND SIME (SIMON) JURIC
A LETTER/POSTCARD TODAY!!
Sime (Simon) Juric has been involved in a ten year battle with one of
Australiaıs major banks.  He has lost his business and his home as a
consequence of a titanic legal battle with this xxxx bank. He has now lost
his freedom.  Five weeks ago he was jailed for twelve weeks as he was found
to be in contempt of an order by The Victorian Supreme Court regarding
injunctions that were placed against him, regarding his ongoing public
battle with xxxx, one of Australiaıs major banks.

Simon has spent four weeks in protective custody in Melbourneıs Remand
Centre and was transferred to HM Prison Ararat, two hundred kilometres from
Melbourne, on Tuesday the 11th of June.  Mr. Juric a refugee from the former
communist Yugoslavia, made his home in Melbourne over 40 years ago. He is a
devout Catholic and was jailed on the eve of a pilgrimage he and his wife
were taking with a Melbourne based Croatian church to Lourdes.  Mr. Juric is
61, he has lost ten kilograms in prison in the last five weeks and is
waiting to have a major bowel operation.

Why have we chosen to highlight this manıs plight when thousands of business
people and home-owners are shut down by banks and financial institutions
every year in this country? The answer is very simple, on the 11th September
2000, believing that the courts had let him down, Simon took his struggle to
the people and began to protest outside this bankıs offices in Melbourne,
raising his case with anybody who cared to listen and collecting signatures
on a petition he was circulating. His campaign has been an embarrassment and
a thorn in the bankıs side. In an attempt to keep him away from their
offices, the xxxx bank successfully applied for a Victorian Supreme Court
injunction to move his protests away from their branches.

He now finds himself in jail because he broke that injunction believing that
the courts have been used to stop him speaking and protesting about his
predicament. All too often Australiaıs defamation laws and the courts are
being used by trans-national corporations to crush dissent. Mr. Juricıs
jailing for a civil matter has important ramifications for anybody who is
interested in protecting the limited freedoms we have to dissent in his
country.

His jailing for contempt on a civil matter is possibly only the second time
in twenty years that this has occurred in Victoria. The mass media silence
about this important case has been deafening. The Anarchist Media Institute
encourages as many of our readers as possible to send Sime (Simon) Juric a
postcard, or letter to bolster his sagging spirits while he is in prison. He
has lost his business and his home and now faces the very real prospect of
having his spirit crushed.

Write To Him Right Now and let him know that he has not been forgotten.
WRITE TO:- MR. SIME (SIMON) JURIC ­ PRISONER, HM PRISON ARARAT, P.O.BOX 431,
ARARAT, VICTORIA 3377, AUSTRALIA, FAX MESSAGES OF SUPPORT DIRECTLY TO THE
PRISON ON 53524404

"HOBBLING FREE SPEECH"
The Australianıs editorial (15/6) touches on the important question of free
speech in this country.  Itıs common knowledge that defamation laws are
being used by a variety of individuals, institutions and corporations in
Australia to inhibit free speech.  Although the case that involved the
Herald Sun columnist Andrew Bolt and Victoriaıs Deputy Chief Magistrate,
Jelena Popovic has cost the Herald Sun half a million dollars in damages and
court costs, The Australian is able to freely discuss the case.

Unfortunately over the past few years, The Australianıs current penchant for
free speech has not been extended to ideas that fall outside the newspaperıs
current editorial groupsı interests.  A national newspapers power lies in
its ability to set the political, cultural and social agenda.  Over the past
two years The Australian has embarked on a policy of only reflecting the
thoughts, ideas, strategies and aspirations of those people who wield power
in this country.  Instead of letting a hundred flowers bloom, The Australian
has decided to only let a few tired old perennials grow in its garden.  The
issues it canvases, the columnists it uses and the bulk of the letters it
prints have the same tired old predictable ring to them.

The shift of emphasis that has become apparent in The Australian, does the
paper and ultimately its owners and shareholders no justice.  Successful
national newspapers reflect the diversity of opinion that exists in the
community they serve.  Newspapers that muzzle and filter opinions that
appear in their pages are as guilty of "hobbling" free speech in this
country as are Australiaıs current defamation laws.

REMEMBER FRANCE 1968
Jacques Chiracıs victory in Franceıs parliamentary elections theoretically
makes him the most powerful French president since Charles De Gaulle.  What
has been hailed as a historic victory for the French right, is an illusion.
The single most important and under reported factor about the French
parliamentary elections was that 40% of registered voters did not cast a
ballot.  The defeat of the left is due to increasing levels of
disillusionment within the French community, with the parliamentary process,
not support for Chiracıs policies.

The French anarchists call for voters to abstain from casting a ballot at
the recent parliamentary elections, has been an unprecedented success.
Although Jacques Chirac may have the levers of power in his hands, his
ability to deliver his program of tax cuts, greater defence spending and a
greater emphasis on law and order will be determined in the streets, not
parliament.

The growth of French extra-parliamentary movement is Chiracıs greatest
challenge.  Itıs important we remember that the height of his power in 1968
De Gaulle faced defeat in the streets, when millions of French students and
workers took matters into their own hands and attempted to create a
self-managed society based on direct democratic principles.

The political and social struggle in France, as in many other European
countries that have become disillusioned with parliamentary rule, will
increasingly occur in the streets.  Chiracıs victory may seem solid on
paper, but when challenged in the streets, he will find that the mandate he
believes he enjoys will evaporate.  Chiracıs win sounds the death knell for
French parliamentary politics and opens the door on a new era where
parliamentary rule will be increasingly challenged by growing
extra-parliamentary movement that wants to replace parliament with a system
of government based on direct democratic principles.

BACK TO THEIR OLD TRICKS
Itıs nice to know that there are some things in life that never change.  All
those people who believed that Uncle Sam had changed his spots, will be
pleased to know that itıs business as usual at the White House.  Donıt, like
your neighbours assassinate them.  Think your neighbours are talking about
you, exterminate them with extreme prejudice.  Some snotty nosed
democratically elected leader wants to interfere with Uncle Samıs God given
right to exploit the people they represent and dominate their economic
system, then organise a coup against the nuisance.

Successive United States governments have a proud history of doing whatever
it takes to protect their economic and political interests.  The history of
the United States is littered with the corpses of leaders and movements that
have challenge United States hegemony.  So itıs good to know itıs business
as usual down at Bushıs Texas ranch.  If somebody tries to muscle in on
Uncle Samıs turf, as sure as the sun rises in the East and sets in the West,
theyıll pay for their misguided attempts to control their lives.

Boycotts, assignations, trade wars, espionage and down right thuggery are
the tools in trade of the worldıs only superpower.  Hiding behind the war on
"terrorism" they will be able to use all the means at their disposal to
increase their sphere of influence.  Itıs good to see dictators of the
calibre of Papa Doc Duvalier, Mobotu, Pol Pot and Suharto the Butcher,
welcomed back into the United States stable.  Itıs been over a decade since
weıve seen the likes of these men on the United Stateıs payroll.  Today just
like the good old days, the United States FBI and the CIA have legal and
economic Carte Blanc to pursue the "war on terror" against anyone, anywhere
in the world.  Itıs nice to know that the natural order of life has turned
full circle and we find ourselves on this earth to fulfill the fantasies of
the United States administration.

ANARCHIST QUESTION AND ANSWER
Q: Are anarchist decisions making processes cumbersome and inefficient?
A.  One of the most important persistent criticisms of anarchism is that its
decision making processes are cumbersome and inefficient.  This criticism is
encapsulated in the joke "How many anarchists does it take to change a light
bulb? ­ Ten, one to change the light bulb and nine to make the decision that
the light bulb needs to be changed."  A good way to approach the criticism
is to examine how decisions are made in a dictatorship.  In a nutshell the
dictator make the decisions, the people the dictator controls implements
these decisions.  What at first may seem a very efficient method of decision
making has some very major limitations.  The greater the consultation
process, the greater the possibility the decision made meets the needs of
the people itıs made for.
Decisions made in a dictatorship are made for the benefit of the dictator
and his ruling elite not the people he rules.  This means that there will be
widespread resistance to the implantation of any decisions he makes.  The
insufficiency that was inherent in the communist state was directly related
to the fact that decisions were made for the people not with them.
Anarchism as a philosophy is diametrically opposed to dictatorship.  This is
reflected in the decision making process.  In an anarchist society the
people effected by a decision make that decision.  Although it can take a
few weeks to arrive at a decision as opposed to the instantaneous nature of
decisions made in a dictatorship, the multiple problems that dictators face
in implementing their decisions are not experienced in an anarchist society.
As the decision is made by the people for their benefit, resistance to
implementing decisions made is minimal.  This occurs because the whole
community works to implement any decisions made.  The question asked at the
beginning of this article is analogous to the story of the hare and the
tortoise, although the hare gets off to a great start, itıs the tortoise
that wins the race.

ACTION BOX - FLEXIBILITY
Flexibility is the key to successful action.  If youıre involved in a group
thatıs pursuing a particular issue, the group needs to be structured in such
a way as to allow it to be flexible in the way it approaches an issue.  One
of the first and most important things that the group needs to do is
determine how it will make decisions and how it will implement those
decisions.  Rigid decision making structures that do not allow flexibility
in the type of strategies that the group is able to pursue can and do
compromise the effectiveness of the group.
One way to overcome the problem of stopping the momentum of a particular
struggle by calling a meeting to determine a change in strategies is to
discuss strategies that the group could follow if a particular situation
arises.  "If ?Aı happens then you follow strategy ?Bı."  If youıve planned
ahead and looked at possible options, you donıt have to break the momentum
of the struggle by calling an unscheduled meeting.  Another option that
could be considered is that the group gives individuals or cells within the
group authority to pursue a number of different strategies on behalf of the
group.  What strategy they choose will be dependent on the situation they
face.
So next time youıre involved in a group thatıs embarked on a specific
campaign, make sure that discussion doesnıt just revolve around the
objectives of the group.  Itıs important that the group examine decision
making processes as well as make decisions about strategy.  While theyıre
discussing strategical options, itıs important that emphasis be placed on
the need for flexibility in the way they tackle the issue.

AUSTRALIAN RADICAL HISTORY
THE EUREKA SERIES No.20 - THE "FUN" BEGINS
Lalor wrote a few months after December 3rd 1854, "the unusual proportion of
the killed (22) to the wounded (12) is owing to the butchery of the military
and troopers after the surrender."  Eureka was pure and simple a massacre.
The killing went on for up to an hour after the diggers had surrendered and
they occurred up to a kilometre from the stockade.  People were killed who
had not been involved in the protest, let alone had taken up arms against
the colonial authorities.
Bodies were mutilated, one diggers corpse had 16 bayonet wounds in it.  In
one case Henry Powell a digger from Creswick who had his tent up 300 metres
outside the stockade was surrounded by around 20 mounted police.  He was
struck on the head with a sword by "wait for it" Arthur Akehurst the clerk
of the peace, he was then shot several times by Victoriaıs finest, who then
amused themselves by riding their horses over his lifeless body.  Somehow
Henry Powell survived long enough to make a statement before he died.
One of the more memorable eyewitness reports about the ensuing massacre
described how 3 soldiers jumped a digger after he had been shot through the
legs, one knelt on his chest, one tried to choke him while the third went
through his pockets looking for gold.  "Foreigners" bore the brunt of the
attack.   Two Italian miners who had not taken part in the Eureka Stockade,
one who had his tent more than 300 metres from the stockade was killed by
mounted police and troopers.  One was shot as he attempted to get back to
his tent.  The other who had his tent in the stockade but had not
participated in the rebellion was shot through the thigh, as he lay wounded
he told the troopers that he would give them his gold if they left him
alone.  After taking his gold they bayoneted him through the chest putting
him out of his misery.
One of the most unlikely targets that met his maker in the early hours of
Sunday morning was Frank Hasleham.  Frank was a reporter for the Melbourne
Morning Herald, a newspaper that had consistently supported the government
in its fight against the diggers.  Three hundred metres from the stockade he
was met by mounted police who welcomed him by shooting him through the
chest.  As he lay dying, he hoped the "diggers would desist from their
madness"
NEXT WEEK: More "fun" times

 BOOK REVIEW
"THE NEW TERRORISM"
Fanaticism and the Arms of Mass Destruction
by Walter Laquer - Oxford University Press
New York 1999 - ISBN 0 19 511816 2
The New Terrorism offers a flawed analysis of terrorism.  Although it
provides an interesting and extensive analysis of the history of terrorism,
it accepts the underlying thesis that although you may have terrorist
states, the State itself is not a terrorist organisation.  This 300 page
odyssey into terrorism probes and pushes defining and redefining terrorism.
The book is divided into 11 distinct chapters, each deals with the terrorist
phenomenon in a different way.  Subjects range from my favourite ?Terrorism
and Historyı to ?Terror on the Far Rightı and ?Religion and Terrorismı.  The
author makes the important point that although terrorist acts can seem
speculator at the time, terrorismıs role in the course of human history has
been minimal.  That is until the 21st century.  Today the spectre of weapons
of mass destruction falling into the hands of religious fundamentalists
tends to send shivers down most peopleıs spines.  Dealing with people who
believe that Armageddon is the pathway to heaven is a very sobering thought.
The book, ends with a chapter titled ?Terrorism of the Futureı.  In this
chapter Walter Laquer canvasses the possibility of nuclear terrorism,
biological and chemical warfare and their targets, cyber-terrorism and the
future and the earthquake machine and the death ray, exotic tools for mass
destruction.
The world now possess weapons of mass destruction which could potentially be
used by unbalanced individuals, religious fanatics and nationalist and
racist bigots to further their aims and objectives.  Historically terrorism
has been viewed as just, when itıs directed at individuals and States that
are guilty of crimes against humanity.  Today all gloves are off, terrorist
acts can maim tens if not hundreds of thousands of people.
The New Terrorism poses questions but provides few solutions.  Why terrorism
flourishes as a political tool needs to be analysed and tackled.  If not
itıs only a matter of time before we see States, religious and nationalist
fanatics open their door to Armageddon.
The New Terrorism should be available from your local library.  It may be
able to be ordered through your local bookshop.

PERSONAL OBSERVATION
When you do as much driving as I do, one of the first things you learn is
how unpredictable small children can be on the roads.  Whenever I see a two
or three year old on the footpath I automatically slow down and look for the
adult or older sibling who is accompanying them.  As we all know all it
takes is a second for a carefree moment to turn into a disaster.  Driving
down an inner suburban street one afternoon a few days ago I noticed a
youngster not yet two, running down the footpath.  I looked for an adult but
couldnıt see one.  I looked again, still no adult.  The child was obviously
too little to be on the street by himself.  I was suddenly faced with one of
those moral dilemmas that we are all occasionally faced with.
Do I drive on pretending that nothing is happening?  Do I pull over and stop
the child?  If I stop him what do I do with him?  Itıs likely heıll start
screaming and crying.  Both options didnıt seem very appealing at the time.
If I drive on, I have to live with uncertainty of knowing that something
could happen to the child as heıs obviously slipped out from one of the
houses in the street.  If I stop and try to do something, itıs possible that
considering the hysteria surrounding crime and paedophiles in Melbourne at
the moment, that I easily could be accused of being a paedophile or
kidnapper.
Two possibly three seconds have elapsed, the little boy has run another
metre or two.  He looks furtively behind him and keeps running.  In another
20 or 30 metres, heıll either turn left down the footpath or cross an
intersection.  Times ticking away, I notice a pram in a carport and an open
door.  I pull the car into the driveway, jump out and knock once, twice,
nothing.  I shout hello!! Hello!!  After what seems an eternity a little
elderly woman dressed in black comes running to the front door with that
look of fear and trepidation, that somebody faced with a sudden catastrophe
has.  She canıt speak English.  I point to the ground and to the gate and
run to the gate, she follows me crying and running at the same time.
Heıs gone!!  I run the 20 to 30 metres to the intersection.  There he is,
heıs turned left and is running down the hill as fast as his little legs can
carry him.  He stops, turns and smiles.  I call out to him to come back, he
looks at me, I keep talking, he starts running away then stops and turns
back and walks towards me.  I wait, waving to granny to slow down.  She
stops, sits down on the ground huffing and puffing.  Heıs drawn level with
me, sees a familiar face and runs towards her.  They embrace on the ground,
sheıs crying, heıs laughing, she waits till I draw level, blowing kisses at
me.  The look of fear and trepidation has been replaced with one of utter
relief.
I walk back to the car, everything had happened so quickly Iıd left the
front door wide open.  The whole episode from first sighting to satisfactory
closure would have taken less than a minute.

STOP PRESS - HAS IT COME TO THIS ?
Sometimes you have to wonder what type of society we have become.  Asylum
seekers in Australia who have been granted permanent residence on
humanitarian grounds are been charged for the time they have spent in
detention.  In some cases, asylum seekers who have been granted permanent
asylum are been billed up to $250,000 for the time spent in detention.  The
fees have two purposes, they prevent asylum seekers who are deported from
reapplying for permanent residence.  Their cases will not be heard until
they repay all money currently owed to the Commonwealth.  More ominously
these fees are used to keep asylum seekers, who nave been given permanent
residence, in line.
The Commonwealth can at any time ask that the fees be repaid in full.  Any
asylum seekers who dares oppose government policy and takes advantage of
political rights that permanent residence brings, knows that they can be
silenced by the government calling in the "debt" the owe.  Fees range from
$60 a day at Villawood to $197 a day at the detention centre in Perth.  When
you consider that some asylum seekers have been held up for up to 5 years in
detention, you realise how detainees can be released from detention centres
with a quarter of million dollars "accommodation" fees.
Although a number of legal challenges are currently in the courts regarding
these obscene fees, the fact that they exist, especially for people who have
been granted permanent residence (because of fears of persecution back home)
is an indictment on Australian society.  Over the years Australians have
erroneously considered themselves to be fair minded people.  Unfortunately
the gap between the rhetoric and reality is growing rapidly.  When it comes
to criticism, Australians are very slow to take note.  Anybody who examines
the way Australian society and successive governments have treated
indigenous Australians knows that there is a dark underbelly to Australian
history that is repeatedly denied.  A classical example of how historical
reality is denied is how the current government under the leadership of John
Howard, has denied and continues to deny the knowledge and liability about
the deplorable way Australian society has treated and continues to treat
indigenous Australians calls for reconciliation and compensation.
The treatment currently dished out by the government and the opposition to
asylum seekers is just the latest example in a long list of examples at the
way Australian governments and a significant number of Australians continue
to treat the most vulnerable and disadvantaged in Australian society.
Joseph Toscano / Libertarian Workers
for a Self-Managed Society

VIDEO REVIEW - ANARCHISTS IN FILM
USA, 1991. B&W and Colour, 100 mins.
 Cast: Jeremy Irons, Theresa Russell, Joel Grey, Ian Holm, Jeroen Krabbé,
Armin Müller-Stahl and Alec Guinness.   Script by Lem Dobbs. Photography by
Walt Lloyd. Editing by Steven Soderbergh. Music by Cliff Martinez.
Paramount-Miramax.
It's no secret that the early 20th century writer Franz Kafka frequented
anarchist meetings during his youth in Prague.  We already knew this through
information provided by his friends and biographers. In addition, some
scholars, such as Mijal Levi*, have looked at Kafka's body of literary work
as an interpretation of the anarchist vision.
 When working on Kafka, Steven Soderbergh took into account the components
of both Kafka's life and his work. This attention to accuracy created a film
as close to a masterpiece as possible, even if that was not the current
opinion of the American critics, or for that matter, the public at large.
Despite excellent performances by Jeremy Irons and Sir Alec Guinness, the
story unfolds in a foreign context, is partly filmed in black and white, and
is quite literary and philosophical - all strikes against it in the
mainstream American public's eye. In other words, Soderbergh created a film
d'auteur, which is almost a sin for Hollywood and its fans.
Soderbergh claims no faithful adherence to historical reality, but the
details of the film are remarkably on target: The two German language
newspapers that Kafka carries throughout the film were actually circulating
in anarchist circles between 1910 and 1912, when Kafka was a diligent
militant (although inadvertently a poster in the film declares that we are
in 1919).
 The real Kafka was arrested at least once by the police in 1912 - not for
bomb-related events but for collective demonstrations and union organizing
campaign activities. In the annals of Czech anarchism, it does not appear
that anarchists were bomb throwers (even though the "propaganda by the deed"
had been practiced in some European countries during the 1880s), but perhaps
Soderbergh wanted to be faithful to what we could call "the anarchist
folklore."
Soderbergh succeeded in his effort to interpret Kafka's political and
philosophical dimensions by creating a web of intrigue, corruption,
repression and thought control - something that even the great Orson Welles
was unable to render in his otherwise excellent "The Trial."
Pietro Ferrua * See Levi's series of articles in the New York
Yiddish-language newspaper Freie Arbeiter Stimme (issues 2922-2924,
published in 1967-1968), translated into Spanish as Kafka y el Anarquismo
(Reconstruir, Buenos Aires), and finally, into English as Kafka and
Anarchism (New York: The Revisionist Press, 1972).


ANARCHIST PUBLICATIONS RECEIVED THIS WEEK
? A. BATALHA, Vol.27 No.6 Nos.192 March/April 2002, Jornal de Expressao
Anarquista, R. Marques de Ponte de Lima, 37-2-D, 1100-337 LISBOA, PORTUGAL
? ASK ­ Anarcho-Syndicalist Review No.34 Spring 2002, P.O. Box 2824,
CHAMPAIGNIL, 61825, UNITED STATES, asr@labourstart.zzn.com
? CNT, No.280 June 2002, Orgando de la Confederacion Nacional del Trabajo,
Avda Constitucion 219, 18014, GRANADA, SPAIN Tel:958289009, Fax:958288992,
jlgrua@urg.es ,  redaccion@periodicocnt.org
? LE MONDE LIBERTAIRE No.1282,83,84 23rdMay-12th June 2002, Hebdomadaire de
la Federation Anarchiste, 145 Rue Amelot, 75011 PARIS FRANCE,
Tel:0148053408, Fax: 0149299859
? SICILIA LIBERTARIA Vol26 No.29 May 2002, Giornale Anarchico per la
Libertarion Sociale e Lıinternazionalismo, Via Galileo Galilei 45, 97100,
RAGUSA SICILY ITALY, email:si_lib@hotmail.com
? UMANITA NOVA, Vol.82 No.19, Enrol 26th May 2002, C.50 Palermo 46, 10152
TORINO ITALY, Tel/Fax:(011) 857850, Mobile:338-6594361, email:fat@inrete.it

DEBT ELIMINATION APPEAL ­ Our debt stands at $1396.45
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RECLAIMING THE RADICAL SPIRIT OF THE EUREKA REBELLION

The Anarchist Media Institute is inviting everyone who is interested in
reclaiming The Radical Spirit of the Eureka Rebellion, to join us on Tuesday
3RD of December at the Eureka Stockade site in Ballarat, in Victoria, to
celebrate the 148th Anniversary of the Eureka Rebellion.  Itıs time we
reclaimed our history.  Over the next 9 months we will keep you informed
about developments.  We want to bring a banner 4 meters long x 1.2 meters
high, to the celebrations with a representation of the original Eureka Flag,
not the stylised flag we have in the graphic.  We need to raise 750 dollars
to have a magnificent banner made.  We would like to have the banner
manufactured by July 2002, so it can be used to raise awareness of the
celebrations on the 3rd of December.  Yes youıve guessed it, weıre asking
long suffering readers to donate the 750 dollars to make the banner.
Everybody who donates money towards the banner will receive an A4 Reclaiming
The Radical Spirit of the Eureka Rebellion certificate, to acknowledge their
contribution.  Make out cheques and money orders to Libertarian Workers and
send them to P.O. Box 20, PARKVILLE 3052, Melbourne, VICTORIA.  Donations
$100.00 - $650.00 to go
ITıS OVER TO YOU!! ­ ALL DONATIONS WILL BE LISTED WEEKLY.

3CR ­ RADIOTHON
3CR is the only radio station in Australia that has had anarchists
broadcasting for over 25 years.  This year the ANARCHIST WORLD THIS WEEK has
been asked to raise $4000 between 10-11am on Wednesday 12th June 2002.  We
encourage our readers and listeners to call up between 10am ­ 11am Wednesday
12th June 2002 and pledge money towards the radiothon.  All pledges are TAX
DEDUCTIBLE and for every $2 you donate you receive a complimentary copy of
the Anarchist Age Weekly Review.  Ring 03 9419 8377 on the day or if you
canıt ring on the day send cheques and money orders c/- Jan BARTLETT 3CR PO
BOX 1277 COLLINGWOOD 3066 MELBOURNE before the 12th of June.
Make out cheques and money orders to 3CR.

STAMP APPEAL  - We normally spend over $400.00 per month on postage stamps.
If you have any spare stamps floating about or are about to write to us.

EMAIL MADNESS - Have access to cyberspace?  Want to help us save on printing
stuff a few stamps in the envelope.  Every little bit helps. and postage
costs?  Then why donıt you receive the Anarchist Age Weekly Review by email?
INTERESTED??  Then email us at anarchistage@yahoo.com and arrange to have
the weekly emailed to you.

A DOLLAR A DAY
Increasing financial problems have forced us to review how The Anarhist
Media Instituteıs finances are raised.  Currently subscriptions and
donations only account for about 40% of the income necessary to cover our
costs.  To overcome this problem weıve launched a:-
SAVE THE ANARCHIST MEDIA INSTITUTE
"A DOLLAR A DAY" CAMPAIGN
We are looking for THIRTY People, interested in our activities, to pledge to
donate
?A Dollar A Dayı for twelve months.
You can donate monthly or yearly.  Make out cheques and money orders to:-
Libertarian Workers and send to PO Box 20, Parkville. 3052. Melbourne.
Australia.
Those who pledge will receive a "I Saved The Anarchist Media Institute" A3
poster which you can frame and put up at work or home - A great talking
point if nothing else.
Weıve got the ideas and energy but we need your financial assistance to keep
going.
Go on, become one of the Magnificent Thirty that saved the Anarchist Media
Institute.
SIX  READERS HAVE JOINED THE "DOLLAR A DAY" CLUB ­ 24 TO GO JOIN TODAY!!
EMPTY YOUR POCKETS OF LOOSE CHANGE AND SAVE THE ANARCHIST MEDIA INSTITUTE

ANARCHIST MEDIA INSTITUTE OBSCENITY OF THE WEEK
Has been awarded to Australiaıs beloved Prime Minister John ?I love Dubbyaı
Howard for his toady performance in the U.S. of A. last week.

ALL THE NEWS THAT FITS
This week's stories: Police Engaged in Racist HarassmentS.Framed Three
MenS..and Killed AnotherS..One In Seven Child Abuse Cases IgnoredS..Casino
Authority Took $200,000S..Terror At HomeS..Politicians To Get Further
BenefitsS..Catholic Church Gives Money But No ApologySSAnglicans Give
Lecture But No Money or ApologyS...Government Paid $700 Million For
NothingS...McDonalds Says Beef Is Vegetarian and Urine is Nutritious.

Victoria Police's first Vietnamese-born police officer has given up his two
year battle to rejoin the police force, saying he was forced out for
complaining about racism.  Huan Nguyen was commended for his undercover work
during his 11 year career, but went on stress leave in 1998 after regularly
suffering racist abuse from police.  Mr Nguyen says that while he was on
stress leave, he received a letter accepting his resignation from the
police.  He had not resigned.  The police were directed by the Human Rights
and Equal Opportunity Commission to meet with Mr Nguyen, but he says they
have not done so.  His only option now would be to take them to the Federal
Court, which he can't afford to do. - (The Age).
A former detective has admitted that he framed three brothers for a robbery
in 1982.  Anthony Lewandowski admitted that he and former CIB chief Don
Hancock faked confessions and lied during the original trial and appeals,
and that one of the brothers was stripped naked and punched while being
'questioned' by two police officers. - (Herald Sun).
Police killed a man who was "unarmed and seated in a chair in his
room...presenting no immediate threat".  A coroner's report has found that
Gregory Couper had died from a heart attack caused by Senior Constable Scott
Cheasley.  In December 1998, Senior Constable Cheasley and three other
police officers were called to the residential care facility where Mr
Couper, who suffered from schizophrenia, was living.  When the facility's
owner went to check on Mr Couper, he found him lying face down in a pool of
blood.  Senior Constable Cheasley was pinning him down with a knee to the
back of his neck. Mr Couper suffered asphyxia, brain damage, and four days
later a fatal heart attack.  The "three point hold" used by Senior Constable
Cheasley is part of police training. - (The Age).
Shirley Watters from the Queensland Council of Social Services says that
onein seven cases of child abuse reported are ignored because of staff
shortages.  It is compulsory to report suspected child abuse under the
Children and Young Persons Act.  However many commentators say that the laws
areinadequate if there aren't enough staff to investigate. - (The
Australian).
The Victorian Casino and Gaming Authority accepted a US$200,000 payment from
an American poker machine manufacturer.  The Authority was investigating
thecompany at the time. - (The Age).
One of Melb's largest welfare agencies has been forced to refuse help to
women who are victims of domestic violence.  Jo Cavanagh from the Southern
Family Life Foundation says that the agency would review its decision at the
end of the month, but there was no guarantee that they would take new cases
even then.  The Agency has asked for all cases to be referred on, but Ms
Cavanagh says she knows of other agencies struggling to keep up.  She said
that one agency had a three month waiting list for family violence cases,
and that people in that position "usually can't wait that long".  In the
last budget, the government cut spending on welfare and other services to
fund the 'war on terror'. - (The Age).
Members of Parliament are likely to be paid public money to cover their
university fees when they go on overseas study tours.  The
RemunerationTribunal is also considering new funds to pay for Opposition
shadow minister's overseas travel. - (Herald Sun).
The Catholic Church will pay a total of more than $3.6 million to victims of
sexual abuse at boys' homes in Victoria.  Each of the 24 victims had
somekind of communication or intellectual disability.  The sister of one of
the victims, who had been abused by the church for 30 years, said that "what
we really wanted was a public apology from the order". - (The Age, MX).
Governor General Dr Peter Hollingworth has delivered a speech about child
abuse, titled "These Are Our Children".  Dr Hollingworth has been accused,
by parents of children who were abused at an Anglican school, of doing
little or nothing to help them and of trying to keep other parents from
learning of the abuse.  Dr Hollingworth's speech said that "a great deal of
focus of attention in relation to children and the rights of the child has
been directed at institutions; public, private and ecclesiastical and to
those individuals working profesionally in these institutional settings,
such as schools".  - (The Age).
The government signed a $700 million deal to buy helicopters for the Navy
even though the Defence Department knew that the patrol boats which were
supposed to carry the helicopters actually couldn't.  The project has gone
$1 billion over budget so far and is more than three years late. - (The
Age).
McDonald's will pay $US10 million ($A17.56 million) to settle lawsuits over
the mislabelling of french fries and hash browns as vegetarian.  The chain
also posted an apology on its web site, acknowledging that 'mistakes' were
made in communicating to customers and the public about the ingredients in
the fries and hash browns.  In 1990 the company announced it would no longer
use beef fat to cook fries and that only pure vegetable oil would be used.
In fact the oil used 'essence of beef'.  This is not McDonald's first
unusual claim about food.  During another court case McDonald's was asked
why they described their food as nutritious.  They replied that they did
this because it 'contained nutrients'.  By this definition, urine is
nutritious. - (Sydney Morning Herald).

anarchist news service write to James, PO Box 503, Newtown NSW 2042
or email james.hutchings@ato.gov.au

All the News That Fits appears in the Anarchist Age Weekly Review
(www.vicnet.net.au/~anarchist )
PO Box 20 Parkville VIC 3052) and Organise (www.asf.anarki.net - PO Box 98,
Brunswick VIC 3057).

Some other Australian anarchist websites:
www.angry.at/racists - All People Equal.  With free mp3s, Real Audio, Real
Video, band interviews etc.
www.dolearmy.org - information for unemployed people.
www.activate.8m.com - anarchist magazine aimed at teenagers.
 If You Like What You Have Read, Photocopy This Publication and Leave It In
Doctors, Dentists,
Vets Waiting Rooms and In Railway Stations, Bus Stops, Libraries and
Restaurants Etc.

The articles in the Anarchist Age Weekly Review reflect the personal
opinions of the authors, they do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the
publishers, the Libertarian Workers for a Self-Managed Society/Anarchist
Media Institute.

All material in the Anarchist Age Weekly Review can be used by anarchists,
anarchist collectives and non-profit organisations as long as the source of
the material is mentioned in the article.  The Anarchist Age Weekly Review
reserves all rights as far as commercial publications are concerned.

ANARCHISM ­ ADVANCING IN DIVERSITY STRIKING IN UNISON ­ YAMAGUCHI KENJI
WELCOME TO THE 21ST CENTURY ­ THE ANARCHIST CENTURY


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