
Issue No 105		03 August 2001

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Activist Notebook

The annual Hiroshima Day march and action for Burma are both on this week's activist agenda.

Hiroshima Day 2001 March & Rally Sat August 4

At 8.15am on August 6, 1945, the United States dropped an atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima, incinerating 140,000 men, women and children.

Three days later at 11.02am, at least 74,000 men, women and children were killed in Nagasaki by a second atomic blast.

For many years, the Hiroshima Day Committee in Sydney has organised a commemoration of these events, under the slogan of 'Hiroshima Never Again'.

Over the years, the march has focussed on different issues. But the central theme has always been: the only answer to nuclear threat is to abolish all nuclear weapons.

Protest against the US National Missile Defence plan

The 2001 Hiroshima Day commemoration takes place against the background of the US National Missile Defence plan. Australia is involved in this plan through the US military facility at Pine Gap, near Alice Springs.

The US National Missile Defence will destroy the existing international arms control and disarmament regime, provoke a new nuclear arms race and trigger a wave of destabilising events around the world.

NMD is, in fact, an offensive program which would allow the US to attack other countries without fear of retaliation.

With NMD, the US Government is using its economic and technological strengths to launch a new arms race. The aim is to reinforce US dominance in the Asia Pacific region - as Asian countries, especially China, are provoked into exhausting economic and social resources in their attempt to match the US military might.

NMD is the armed wing of globalisation.

Australia's involvement

The use of the US base at Pine Gap near Alice Springs for NMD will involve Australia and make us a nuclear target. The Australian Government's support for NMD makes us complicit in a program that will significantly destabilise global security.

92% of Australians called on the government to take a leading role in the elimination of nuclear weapons, according to a Morgan poll. The Federal Government has chosen to ignore those views and the Senate resolution calling on the US not to deploy NMD.

Hiroshima Day 2001 provides an opportunity for all thinking Australians, trade union members and the wide community, to demonstrate your opposition to the US Government's missile plans.

Commemorations will also refer to local issues, such as the threats from the planned new nuclear reactor at Lucas Heights and plans for a nuclear waste repository in Australia.

Hiroshima Never Again:

Hiroshima Day Committee: PO Box K257 Haymarket NSW 1240: Chairpersons: Bronwyn Marks, Brian Miller, CFMEU Construction, NSW Branch.

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BURMA - 13th Anniversary of 8.8.88

13 years ago in August 1988, a massive and peaceful "people power" movement demanded an end to 26 years of dictatorship and the restoration of democracy. The army reacted fiercely to preserve its rule. Crowds of peaceful protesters were machine-gunned by troops; thousands died. Thousands of people were imprisoned and forced to flee to the border after a new military junta seized direct power in September to quell the democracy movement. People of Burma still struggle for their freedom and human rights.

To commemorate the 13th anniversary of "people power" movement and to demand the restoration of democracy and human rights in Burma, the Burmese community in Sydney, Melbourne, and Canberra will be holding a peaceful demonstration in a park opposite to the Burmese embassy in Canberra on 8 August 2001.

Date: Wednesday 8 August 2001

Place: Burmese embassy,

Arkana Drive

Yarralumla, Canberra

Time: 1:00 pm

(Buses will depart from AYBL centre, 21 Kerrs Road, Lidcombe at 7:00 am.)

Organized by Joint Action Committee for Democracy in Burma (Sydney) and CCDB (Melbourne)

Contact: Aye Kyaw (Mobile: 0403335500)

Aung Naing (Mobile: 041333 5629, Tel: 02 97381241)

View entire issue - print all of the articles!

Issue 105 contents

Interview: Whose Advocate?
Employment Advocate Jonathon Hamberger argues the case for his organisation's survival and reveals his secret union past.

Politics: CHOGM: What Should Unions Do?
Activists Peter Murphy and Vince Caughley kick off the debate about what is the appropriate action ot take when CHOGM leaders meet in Brisbane

E-Change: 2.1 - The Changing Corporate Landscape
In the second part of their series on the impact of new technology, Peter Lewis and Michael Gadiel try to understand the new corporate playing field.

Unions: Hamburgled
Jim Marr reports that the Employment Advocate has been handed a chance to salvage some credibility by cleaning up anti-union practices in the call centre industry.

Economics: Privatisation: The Dangerous Road
Frank Stilwell argues that the corporate collapses of HIH and One Tel are potent reminders of the downside of ‘people’s capitalism’.

History: Hard-Earned Lessons
Art Shostack looks at the legacy of the landmark strike by PATCO air traffic controllers 20 years ago.

International: Political Prisoner
Greenpeace campaigner Nic Clyde, facing up to six years gaol in the United States for taking part in a non-violent protest, speaks exclusively with workers Online.

Review: Seven Pubs and Seven Nights
Labor Council's newest recruit, Susan Sheather, shows she respects tradition by going in search of the perfect bar

Satire: Obituary: Mr Rob Cartwright - Captain of Industry
In all fields of endeavour, there are those who command our respect through their sheer commitment to excellence. One such titan was Rob Cartwright, whose chosen field, the obscure HR discipline of "moving people onto individual contracts" lost its greatest practitioner and champion late last night, following a tragic self-inflicted accident.

» Paradise Lost – Insurers Kill Workers' Camp

» Entitlements Betrayal at Centre of Car Crisis

» Piggins Pledges Support for Building Workers

» Legal Win for Wharfie Widows

» Unions Call for Dropping of Greenpeace Charges

» Jubilee Marches On Despite G8 Debt Fatigue

» Cleaner Sacked For Visiting Aging Parents Overseas

» Bracks Plans Curbs on Assembly Rights

» Big Gain for Weight Loss Workers

» Qld Wage Increases Welcomed

» Protecting Children, Protecting Jobs

» Child Labour Fine on McDonald's

» Call for Colombian Inquiry Into Murders

» Activist Notebook