SP Newsletter No.181
Howard’s police-military operation in the Northern Territory against remote Aboriginal communities has been met with growing scepticism. One recent opinion poll, found 58 percent of people thought Howard was only acting because of the federal election, while only 25 percent accepted that the prime minister genuinely cared about the plight of Aboriginal children.

The results suggest ordinary people are drawing the conclusion that Howard’s belated pretence of concern about the abuse of indigenous children is yet another political stunt.

Recent research commissioned by the AMA revealed Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health is currently under-funded to the tune of $450 million annually. Yet Howard wants us to believe that the issues facing indiginous communites are not social and are in fact about law and order!

The “open ended campaign” which includes a costly military-police deployment and the prohibition of alcohol, will do nothing to improve the chronic housing crisis and under provision of basic health amenities.

At the centre of this plan, the federal government will abolish permits to access Aboriginal land and will compulsorily acquire Aboriginal townships, under five year leases. Scrapping the permit system will open the way for the big mining companies to further their interests in the area.

The agenda is to eradicate community title and promote private ownership. The intervention is the latest in a series of aggressive federal government moves to coerce local Aboriginal councils into giving up control of their land in return for promises for funding for housing, and repairs, which is currently in crisis.

The Howard government will override the 1975 Racial Discrimination Act and the 1976 Land Rights Act, which granted land tenure to Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory. The government has claimed that it had to take over Aboriginal lands so it would not “waste time” negotiating with councils to make repairs, and to provide services and infrastructure.

The real motivation for the “national emergency” is a blatant land grab. Communal ownership makes it difficult for the government to give mining companies carte blanche to explore and mine wherever they like. Currently, miners need to enter into negotiations with indigenous communities.

Already, 60 per cent of minerals operations in Australia occur adjacent to indigenous communities. A combination of econmomic conditions and higher uranium prices have increased interest in Australian uranium internationally. It was recently estimated that there was $60 billion worth of uranium in the ground in the north. Australia, holds 40% of all world uranium deposits.

The Labor Party is continuing to back the Howard government’s takeover plan. Labor’s indigenous affairs spokesperson Jenny Macklin has also endorsed the proposal to extend the welfare cut-off measures nationally to all families. Parents whose children miss school or are identified by state child protection agencies as being at risk will have half their welfare and family benefits “quarantined”.

The representatives of capitalism in the two major parties have absolutely no interest in seriously assisting Aboriginal communities.

These interventions are clearly setting precedents against land rights, welfare rights and basic democratic freedoms. The military-police deployment in the Northern Territory is being used as a testing ground and if successful similar plans to wind back rights will be implemented against other oppressed layers of society.

The Socialist Party stands totally opposed to Howard’s latest attacks on indigenous communities. We call for police and army officers to withdraw from Aboriginal communities immediately. What is required is money for health, education and social services. We support full land rights and a democratically-planned strategy based on the interests of the poor and working class to overcome the deep social problems of indigenous Australia. We also fight to take the main pillars of the economy into public ownership, under democratic working class planning and control. Only this will put an end to the abject poverty we currently see in indigenous communities.

Emergency Rally in support of Aboriginal community in Melbourne!

No to racist solutions to Smith St public behaviour issues.
Unity not racism to improve our street.

Aboriginal activists, trade union and Socialist Party supporters will be rallying on Collingwood’s Smith St this Friday. The rally is in response to a push by some traders for a police clampdown on public drinking on the street.

Rally Friday July 27, 5pm outside Safeway, 243 Smith St, Collingwood

Because of the lack of State Government support for the plan by Council and indigenous groups for a cultural centre, dry house, and 24-hour bus for Smith St, the problems there are not going away. Darryn Hinch on 3AW and the Sunday Herald Sun are pushing for Joh Bjelke Petersen-style police action to deal with public behaviour problems.

The speakers at the rally will include: Dean Rioli the ex-Essendon football star (and now Indigenous Apprenticeship officer in ETU), militant Aboriginal activist Gary Foley, the State Secretary of the Maritime Union of Australia Kevin Bracken, the leader of the local Aboriginal organisation ‘Parkies Inc’ Denise Lovett, and local Socialist Party Councillor Stephen Jolly. There will also be live music from Peter Rotuham and a march to the office of the local ALP member Richard Wynne.

Protestors will meet at 5pm outside the controversial Safeway supermarket at 243 Smith Street Collingwood. Safeway’s practise of selling cheap alcohol earlier than any other Safeway outlet in Australia has caused much anger.

The rally is seeking Steve Bracks’ support for a Council and Aboriginal-supported 24-hr bus run by Aboriginal people to take anyone drunk from the street to a sobering-up facility or a cultural centre. This model already exists in other cities such as Adelaide.

The rally will oppose the alternative ‘strategy’ to deal with the public behaviour issues on Smith St, which is to send the police in empowered by a local law banning drinking.
For more information contact the SP National Office on 0396399111.

Socialist Party National Conference

SP will be holding its National Conference at Trades Hall in Melbourne on August 3 & 4. It will open on the Friday night with a public meeting titled ‘Where is Australia going?’ It will feature a range of speakers including SP members and labour movement leaders. On the Saturday morning we will also have a session open to the public on World Relations. This will also feature SP members including Denise Dudley who will be recently returned from Venezuela! On the Saturday afternoon we will discuss business and building the party.

On the Saturday evening we will be organising a trivia night fundraiser featuring Australia’s most famous (and funniest) left wing comedian, Corrine Grant. All proceeds will go to the campaign to save St Andrews Kindergarten and the Atherton Gardens public housing estate.

We encourage all SP supporters to attend both the public events at the conference and the fundraiser. SP members should ensure they book the weekend in now as it will be the most important meeting we have all year. Members from interstate travelling to Melbourne should contact the National Office soon to discuss assistance with transport costs.

Get on the ‘Red Buses’ to APEC

SP will be organising a fleet of ‘Red Buses to APEC’ from Melbourne to Sydney on September 7-9. We are taking expressions of interest for seats now. If you support the APEC protests against the neo-liberal heavy weights, and can’t make it in person to the protests, you can sponsor a place by donation. In the lead up to the event we will also be holding regular organising meetings. For more information or to put your name down for a seat call our National Office on 03 9639 9111

Join the Socialist Party

If you agree with what you have read in our newsletter or on our website you should consider joining SP. The Socialist Party has branches in Melbourne, Sydney, Newcastle and Perth as well as members and supporters in all other states. We are involved in trade union work and student work. We also run community, anti-war and environmental campaigns. But most of all we want to build a party that will fight to overthrow the capitalist system. We fight for socialism - a system that will bring an end to wars, poverty and environmental destruction. For more information about joining in your area contact the SP National Office. 0396399111

SP subscriber List

Become a supporter of SP today! Join our subscribers list - only $20 per year or $10 concession. You will receive our newspaper ‘The Socialist’, delivered to your door every month, and our email newsletter every week. You will also know that you are supporting a party that is at the fore of the fight back against Howard and against capitalism. Contact the SP National Office now on 0396399111 to join the list.

The Socialist

Issue 35 of SP’s monthly newspaper ‘The Socialist’ is out now! Readers can pick up a copy at our regular street stalls, from our National Office or by joining the SP subscriber’s list. This month’s paper features articles on Howard’s emergency plan for Aboriginal communities in NT, Labor and the federal election, tidal power, Tamil arrests, eyewitness accounts from the G8 protests in Germany, a report from our councillor in Yarra, and a centre page spread on the world economy.

SP now on My Space!

My Space is an online forum for networking. You can use it to chat, share photos, videos and journals. SP is using it to promote our party and meet people interested in socialist politics. Check out our site here

Regional Activity

Victoria

The SP Melbourne Branch meets every Wednesday 7pm at Trades Hall in Carlton South. 1st Floor Corner of Lygon & Victoria Streets. This week the Melbourne branch will be discussing the current situation in Scotland. SP member Tony Mason, who has just returned from Dundee, will lead off the discussion. All welcome.

New South Wales

To find out more info or to join SP in Sydney contact Gary - 02 9728 7727

To find out more info or to join SP in Newcastle contact Samantha - 02 4968 1545

Western Australia

To find out more info or to join SP in Perth contact John on – 08 9402 0728

Please note childcare is available at all SP meetings but only by prior arrangement please call ahead first.

News links just a click away –

Germany: The Left in Germany - new party, old mistakes
Click here

Britain: New Labour ignored flood warnings
Click here

China: Chinese regime suppresses green protests
Click here

Get Active - Join the fight back, Get Militant - Join the Socialist Party
The Socialist Party is the Australian section of the Committee for a Workers’ International (CWI).
To contact or join the SP or CWI anywhere in Australia or the world call our National Office
++61 3 9639 9111

‘Workers of the world unite – you’ve got nothing to lose but your chains’