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| Theoretical and Discussion Bulletin of the
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The Spark!
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(Contents)
(Home)
1) MINING INTERESTS
DICTATE CANADA'S POLICY
(The following
article is from the October 16-31, 2009, issue of People's Voice,
Canada's
leading communist
newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited.
Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for
U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50
CDN per year. Send to:
People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 133
Herkimer St., Unit 502, Hamilton, ON, L8P 2H3.)
By Johan Boyden
A few months ago, their little office
across from Montreal's Concordia University was an ordinary consulate.
Now it is a busy center organizing solidarity with the people of
Honduras.
"They have
suspended all our
salaries, even the budget for the expenses over here," Justo Alfredo
Crespo Castillo, Consul General, explained to People's Voice in a
special interview in late September. "So this is quite a new
experience."
The
consulate is now getting
support from the Honduran community in Montreal. Unlike the embassy in
Ottawa, the staff have sided with democratically elected President
Manuel Zelaya, and against the Micheletti regime.
"It was the
right thing to do,"
added Roberto Irahetu, media director for the consulate. "You support
the constitution and the president. How can you go with people like
Michelleti? It is like dealing with a drug cartel."
They are far
from satisfied with the Harper government's position on the coup.
"Canada will
not take a firm
position. We have been waiting for Harper to state clearly that what is
happening in Honduras is a coup d'état and Zelaya should go back
to
government," Crespo said. "It doesn't surprise us that the Harper
government is not condemning this coup d'état firmly," he
explained.
The consul
believes Harper has
adopted this stance because of Ottawa's relationship with Washington,
as well as Canadian mining interests. "For example, when Zelaya got to
office he said no to any more open pit mines. He even procured new
rules for mining which are held-up in Congress. No doubt his coup
d'état will benefit the Canadian mining industry who are waiting
for
the opportunity to get back to open pit mines."
"With Obama
also I think it is a
double-standard," Irahetu said. "Obama is a good seller of dreams, but
another side of his agenda is as predictable as Bush. All the
right-wing diplomats from the Bush era - the ambassadors in El
Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala - are still in place."
Crespo has
no doubts that the
United States administration from Bush to Obama were deeply involved in
the preparation of the coup. "What they did not agree with the
putchists on was the way to remove Zelaya from government," he said.
According to
the Consul, the
putchists created within Hondura's judicial system legal preparations
to overthrow the President. "But something fell at the end. Two days
before they decided to carry out the coup d'état, the putchists
were
not agreed about throwing Zelaya into Costa Rica. So that is when the
United States stepped away from them and did not openly support what
they did."
"Zelaya has
been confronting the
businessmen who were [not] paying taxes, or complying to regulations,"
Crespon said. "This originated a confrontation. At the end of the first
six months when he took power, President Zelaya was visited by the
chief of the army of Honduras who said he had been approached by some
members of the business sector to oust him from office. At the time he
said no. But little by little the business men found a way to convince
the military."
The support
of the Honduran
military also comes from their response to Zelaya's reforms, the Consul
said. "They see the coup as an opportunity to get back to business -
like Hondutel, the telecommunications firm, as well as the immigration
office and customs. Now, even in the diplomatic service we expect to
see some new ambassadors who belong to the army."
"There are a
lot of underground
goings on now," Irahetu said, describing mass night-time power
black-outs and arrests over Tegucigalpa, especially of teachers, trade
union leaders, and also some members of the cabinet. "One of the
cabinet belonging to Mr. Zelaya's Presidency recently had her office
vandalized. Unionist, Wendy Elizabeth Avila, was just killed by the
army," Irahetu said.
The
consulate expects to see
more sharply repressive actions by the Micheletti government. "Not many
people may want to say this, but if this kind of repression continues I
think the country may finish in civil war," Irahetu added.
"I believe
very much the popular
organizations will stand and continue fighting, no matter what,"
Crespon said. "They have shown all the way the unity, and solidarity
against the suppression of democracy in Honduras. At the same time they
have stated always that they will keep the protests on the street
peaceful."
"The
teachers union receives a
lot of credit. Traditionally the union of the teachers have been the
strongest against the military dictatorships. The difference is that
[now] it is not just the teachers. There is a combination of all
sectors of life," Irahetu said. Both men talked about unions, the
church (which is on both sides of the conflict), and peasants'
organizations.
"They know
that the fight is not
only to get back President Zelaya, but they are now struggling for
their own - for change. This is a struggle between classes. They are
the ones who have never had access to the system, to the economy, to
the benefits of the system. So now they have the opportunity to be
included," Crespo said.
"It doesn't
matter who comes
back to power, they will have to talk to the national resistance. This
popular coalition with over sixty nine different organizationsà
are the
ones who will define the future of Honduras," Irahetu said. "And of
course the future of Michelletti is already defined as a criminal who
will have to face the music in an international court."
"Probably in
all of Latin
America they thought that the one place where the population would
remain quite was Honduras, Irahetu said. "They were totally wrong."
(The full transcript of Johan
Boyden's interview with the Honduran Consulate staff in Montreal can be
found at the Rebel Youth blog, http://www.rebelyouth-magazine.blogspot.com)
2) CPC RAISES ALARM OVER ANTI-COMMUNIST
MONUMENT
(The following
article is from the October 16-31, 2009, issue of People's Voice,
Canada's
leading communist
newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited.
Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for
U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50
CDN per year. Send to:
People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 133
Herkimer St., Unit 502, Hamilton, ON, L8P 2H3.)
In a letter to the National Capital
Commission, the Communist Party of Canada has voiced strong objections
to plans by far-right forces to erect an anti-communist monument on the
grounds of the National Capital Region in Ottawa.
The letter
from CPC leader
Miguel Figueroa expresses "our strong opposition to the proposal to
erect a `Monument to the Victims of Totalitarian Communism' which was
considered by the Board of Directors of the National Capital Commission
at its September 10, 2009 meeting." He calls on the Board to reconsider
its decision to grant approval for this proposal.
"In our
considered view, the
monument would constitute an unjust attack on the pride Canadian
Communists feel for our pioneering contributions to Canada since 1921,
such as fighting against fascism, organizing industrial workers into
unions, initiating the movements to win Unemployment Insurance, public
healthcare and other social programs, campaigning for peace and
disarmament, fighting for the full national rights of Aboriginal
peoples and Quebec, and in defending Canada's sovereignty.
"This
proposal smacks of the
type of vicious anti-communism which plagued our country (among others)
during much of the latter half of the last century. As you are no doubt
aware, that sordid period of our history was marked by crude,
unsubstantiated and unjust slanders and attacks on progressive-minded
Canadians, and resulted in a wave of mass hysteria and witch-hunts,
social ostracism, and great hardships, including imprisonment, for many
of its victims. Most importantly, it had a ferocious `chilling effect'
on public discourse and sharply curtailed the freedom of expression and
associated democratic rights of all Canadians. McCarthyism was
ultimately relegated to the dustbin of history, and that is where it
should remain.
"The
sponsors of this proposal,
`Tribute to Liberty with Founding Partners the Open Book Group', are
well aware of the highly-charged political nature of said `monument'.
They note that their proposal's `commemorative theme remains not
entirely compatible with the NCC's policy for commemorations that mark
national events or individuals. However, the international significance
of the proposed subject is gaining considerable profile and support
from various foreign governments...'. Indeed, they admit that it has
`significant high-level political support', and this is confirmed by
recent press reports indicating that Mr. Jason Kenney, Minister of
Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, and Prime Minister
Stephen Harper have given their active support and encouragement to
this defamatory initiative.
"Given the
political
implications of this proposal - implications which go far beyond the
National Capital Region, or Canada as a whole, for that matter - we
feel it only proper and necessary to point out the wider international
context of this particular project. In Europe, there is a concerted
campaign to whip up a renewed atmosphere of anti-communism. This past
July, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) adopted a resolution that equated fascism
and communism - a most disgraceful attempt to rewrite the history of
the 20th century.
"In several
European countries,
anti-democratic attacks have recently been launched against Communist
parties and affiliated organizations. In the Czech Republic, there was
an attempt to ban the KSM, the communist youth league, on such spurious
grounds that the Czech Supreme Court ultimately had to overturn the
prohibition. Similar politically-inspired attacks have taken place in
Hungary, Latvia, Ukraine and elsewhere, without any legal or
justifiable basis in any of these instances.
"It is
equally noteworthy in
this regard, that one of the leading conspirators behind the coup in
Honduras (which seized power from the democratically-elected President
Manuel Zelaya), recently tried to `justify' the coup d'état on
the
grounds that it was a `necessary step' to arrest the spread of left and
socialist ideas and movements across Latin America.
"This
nefarious campaign has no
evidentiary basis in any violations of the law, nor on historical truth
or accuracy; rather, it is intended to once again intimidate and
isolate progressive parties and movements and poison the free
contention of ideas in these societies. The authors of the NCC monument
proposal are no less `fast and loose' with historical truth, when they
claim that the monument in question would `honour the 100 million lives
lost under Communist regimes'. This is a monstrous lie, as demonstrated
in numerous objective historical studies. The 20 million Soviet
citizens who perished during World War II, for example, died at the
hands of the Nazi invasion, and in defending their national
sovereignty, not at the hands of `Communist regimes'. This is a crude
attempt to turn history on its head.
"We fully
understand why the
Board of Directors had reservations about the name for this monument.
The monument would also defame the many accomplishments of socialist
and communist parties around the world. The NCC needs to reflect on how
this will be viewed in the People's Republic of China, for instance. Or
in Cuba. Or in South Africa and India, where Communist parties form or
have formed part of the ruling governments.
"In
conclusion, our Party wishes
to restate our fervent opposition to this monument proposal and calls
on the Board of the NCC to reverse its decision and deny approval as
soon as possible, before this process is allowed is permitted to
advance any further."
3) VICTORIES FOR ALL CANADIANS
(The following
article is from the October 16-31, 2009, issue of People's Voice,
Canada's
leading communist
newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited.
Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for
U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50
CDN per year. Send to:
People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 133
Herkimer St., Unit 502, Hamilton, ON, L8P 2H3.)
People's Voice
Editorial, Oct. 16-31, 2009
The courts have finally eased
Canada's draconian "security certificates", thanks to years of
persistent efforts by civil liberties advocates and the families and
supporters of this inhumane law's victims. But the victory is still not
quite complete. Four men remain under security certificates, which
allow the government to jail or detain non-citizens indefinitely,
without knowing the nature of their crimes. One is Mohamed Harkat,
whose security certificate conditions have now been removed.
On Sept. 24,
a Federal Court
decision removed all conditions on a fifth man, Adil Charkaoui. Days
later, the certificate was tossed out completely when the federal spy
agency declined to present any "evidence" that Charkaoui is an "al
Qaeda agent."
To its
shame, the Harper Tory
government continues its grim struggle to preserve security
certificates. They can't say why this appalling violation of civil
rights is necessary; we're just supposed to trust them. But the Federal
Court has found that disclosure of information in Charkaoui's secret
file would not compromise national security. In other words, the only
"evidence" is hearsay, some of it obtained under torture, which would
never stand up in any court. Charkaoui himself is rightly demanding a
full apology from the government.
Police-state
repression does
nothing to protect Canadians. In fact, Canada's enthusiastic
participation in George W. Bush's "war on terror" has only helped to
inflame international tensions. Just as important, the removal of civil
rights for some people in Canada threatens everyone's freedom.
The time has
come to "just say
no" to the racist, undemocratic security certificate laws, and to bring
Canadian troops home from the occupation of Afghanistan. Such actions
would begin to remove a terrible stain on Canadian society.
4) BE AFRAID.... VERY AFRAID
(The following
article is from the October 16-31, 2009, issue of People's Voice,
Canada's
leading communist
newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited.
Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for
U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50
CDN per year. Send to:
People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 133
Herkimer St., Unit 502, Hamilton, ON, L8P 2H3.)
People's Voice
Editorial, Oct. 16-31, 2009
Over the past few months, the
corporate media and right-wing politicians have hailed the "economic
recovery." Slight gains in GDP figures and ballooning stock prices make
these folks absolutely giddy. But no less a source than the Bank for
International Settlements (BIS), "the central bank to the world's
central banks," continues to warn against such silliness. This powerful
institution reported recently that "the global market for derivatives
rebounded to $426 trillion [up 16%] in the second quarter as risk
appetite returned, but the system remains unstable and prone to crises."
Former BIS
Chief Economist
William White warns that "The world has not tackled the problems at the
heart of the economic downturn and is likely to slip back into
recession.... government actions to help the economy in the short run
may be sowing the seeds for future crises." The only thing that would
surprise him, says White, was a rapid and sustainable recovery.
Meanwhile,
the global capitalist
system faces sharp contradictions. Failure to adopt massive government
stimulus packages over the past year would have meant risking an
enormous social explosion and possibly the meltdown of the entire
capitalist economy. But governments have gone even more deeply into
debt to pay for such measures, adding to their structural difficulties.
Even so, the OECD and other capitalist think tanks warn of a "jobless
recovery," with mounting unemployment for at least the next couple of
years.
How much
debt are we talking
about? By 2007, the total of U.S. domestic, commercial and consumer
debt stood at $51 trillion. Over $20 trillion more has since been added
to that figure.
There's no
way out of this
conundrum, short of a complete social and economic restructuring of the
imperialist world. That's a revolutionary concept, but one which is
desperately necessary.
5) COPE ELECTED OFFICIALS HELP KEEP HEAT
ON CAMPBELL
(The following
article is from the October 16-31, 2009, issue of People's Voice,
Canada's
leading communist
newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited.
Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for
U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50
CDN per year. Send to:
People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 133
Herkimer St., Unit 502, Hamilton, ON, L8P 2H3.)
PV Vancouver Bureau
Nearing the first anniversary of last
fall's electoral shift in Vancouver, the unique role of the Coalition
of Progressive Electors is increasingly apparent. At the City Council
level, COPE's Ellen Woodsworth and David Cadman are winning recognition
for their efforts to hold the governing Vision Vancouver majority to
pro-people policies. And at the Vancouver School Board (VSB), the
Vision-COPE majority has played a major part in building province-wide
opposition to education funding cuts imposed by the Campbell Liberal
government.
Several
motions brought or
amended by Cadman and Woodsworth won support at the recent annual
meeting of the Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM).
The first
resolution, brought by
COPE Councillor Woodsworth to Vancouver City Council in June, asked for
arts investment to be reinstated by the provincial and federal
governments as part of an economic stimulus plan. It passed with
unanimous consent at the UBCM on Sept. 30.
The second
COPE-supported
motion, calling for a national housing strategy, was passed with an
overwhelming majority. Initially collapsed into another motion about
using pine beetle to build new houses, Councillor Woodsworth worked
with housing advocates to get it back on the floor as a stand-alone
motion.
Another
motion, amended by
Councillor Cadman at Vancouver City Council, which calls on the
provincial government to get rid of the HST, was passed by the UBCM.
"Vancouver
has said abandon the
HST and now the UBCM has called on the provincial government to abandon
the HST," said Cadman. "It is time for the provincial government to
listen to the people of British Columbia and abandon this tax grab that
will cost the average British Columbian an additional $800 and stall
BC's recession recovery."
On Sept. 30,
COPE school trustee
Jane Bouey, who is also vice-chairperson of the VSB, took part in a
news conference with other progressive trustees Chak Au (Richmond),
Susan Skinner (North Vancouver) and Diana Mumford (Burnaby) to call
attention to the dire situation faced by school boards. The trustees
were joined by NDP MLAs Robin Austin, Diane Thorne, and Jenny Kwan.
While
Vancouver and other
districts are attempting to protect classroom learning, Bouey warned
that next year will be even worse. According to Bouey, "arguments by
the provincial government that they are, in fact, increasing funding to
education are incredibly misleading. It's like telling your child that
you're raising their allowance, but that now, they have to pay rent."
Additional
costs downloaded onto
school boards include cancellation of the annual facilities grant, the
HST (which could mean an addition million dollar cut in Vancouver
alone), rising MSP premiums which must be paid by school boards, the
cost of supplies to combat a potential outbreak of the H1N1 virus, and
cuts to Parent Advisory Councils.
According to
Trustee Bouey,
"unlike the provincial government itself, school boards aren't allowed
to run deficits. Next year, we may find that we aren't able to make the
devastating cuts that are being asked of us. Investing in the education
sector is a great economic stimulus, and instead, we have a government
massacring public education."
6) THE CONTINUING ALLURE OF "NON-LETHAL"
WEAPONS
(The following
article is from the October 16-31, 2009, issue of People's Voice,
Canada's
leading communist
newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited.
Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for
U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50
CDN per year. Send to:
People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 133
Herkimer St., Unit 502, Hamilton, ON, L8P 2H3.)
From the Antifascist
Calling blog, http://antifascist-calling.blogspot.com,
Sept. 19, 2009
Although so-called non-lethal weapons
(NLWs) have been around for decades and range from CS gas to pepper
spray and from the low-tech water cannon to the Taser, their use by
military and police agencies world-wide are designed to ensure
compliance from hostile "natives." It's a safe bet that migration from
the military to civilian law enforcement agencies will continue at its
current break-neck pace.
In this
context, San Diego's
East County Magazine and progressive Liberty One Radio reported,
ironically enough on September 11, that the San Diego Sheriff's
Department stationed a Long-Range Acoustic Device (LRAD) during recent
town hall forums.
Manufactured
by American
Technology Corporation (ATC), the firm's LRAD 500-x is a dual-purpose
device: a powerful hailer and a non-lethal weapon capable of producing
ear-shattering sounds highly-damaging to their human targets.
ATC's
technology has been
deployed in Iraq as an "anti-insurgent weapon" and off the coast of
Somalia to fight off desperate "pirates," that is, former Somali
fishermen whose livelihood has been destroyed by over-fishing by
foreign factory fleets and toxic dumping, including nuclear waste, by
Western polluters.
Developed
for the U.S. Navy in
the wake of the 2000 attack on the USS Cole, cruise ship Captain
Michael Groves "successfully repelled pirates off the Somali coast
using non-lethal weapons including an LRAD. Groves has since filed suit
against Carnival Cruise Line, claiming he suffered permanent hearing
loss as a result," East County Magazine reports.
The BBC
noted in 2005 that the
"shrill sound of an LRAD at its loudest sounds something like a
domestic smoke alarm, ATC says, but at 150 decibels, it is the aural
equivalent to standing 30m away from a roaring jet engine and can cause
major hearing damage if misused."
According to
ATC's web site,
"LRAD resolves uncertain situations and potentially saves lives on both
sides of the device by combining powerful voice commands and deterrent
tones with focused acoustic output to clearly transmit highly
intelligible instructions and warnings well beyond 500 meters."
... Far from
being employed as a
means to "reduce casualties," its actual use lends itself to the
opposite effect. In Iraq, for example the U.S. Army's 361st
Psychological Operations Company noted that "The LRAD has proven useful
for clearing streets and rooftops during cordon and search, for
disseminating command information, and for drawing out enemy snipers
who are subsequently destroyed by our own snipers."
In a
civilian setting, one can
easily envisage "rioters" being sonically blasted prior to street
clearing operations by heavily-armed SWAT teams. Kevin Keenan, the
executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union told East
County Magazine:
"It's very
concerning. It is
fine for the Sheriff's Department to have new less-than-lethal weapons,
but for their interactions with individuals these still-dangerous
weapons need to be used only as substitutes for firearms. They can't be
used as just another tool on the tool belt. As we've seen with tasers
and pepper spray, these types of weapons are being used to subdue
people even though they pose the risk of serious physical harm."
... As Neil
Davison, the author
of the recently published "Non-Lethal" Weapons points out, military and
police moves towards "effects-based" NLWs are consistent with
requirements "for weapons with greater range, more precise delivery,
and rheostatic effects from `non-lethal' to `lethal'."
Davison
cites the LRAD and other
acoustic devices as "the only new technologies that have emerged" in
the last several years and pointedly notes that "all these weapons have
emerged from the private sector."
That they
have should hardly come as a surprise.
After all as
Homeland Security
Weekly reported in 2007, "homeland security spending is a massive and
highly lucrative new market." With an expected growth rate between
"eight and ten percent annually over the next five years" the
publication claims that "the addressable U.S. market over the next five
years will be in the range of approximately $140 billion, a 21 percent
increase over our five-year estimate made in 2004."
... While
schools go unfunded,
infrastructure collapses and affordable health care for all is an
unattainable pipe dream, police and intelligence agencies are having a
field day - at our expense. Call it part of the "counterterrorism
stimulus" package that our corporate security masters are hell-bent on
shoving down our throats.
However you
slice it, there's a
lot of boodle to be had by enterprising defense and security grifters.
Alongside current multibillion dollar outlays for "biodefense" and
counterterrorism initiatives by a multitude of state and federal
agencies, the development of ever more dubious "non-lethal" weapons,
implements for compliance and control during the capitalist meltdown,
will enjoy a steady growth curve long into the future.
7) PEOPLE'S CO-OP: NOT READY
FOR RETIREMENT
(The following
article is from the October 16-31, 2009, issue of People's Voice,
Canada's
leading communist
newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited.
Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for
U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50
CDN per year. Send to:
People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 133
Herkimer St., Unit 502, Hamilton, ON, L8P 2H3.)
Special to PV
One of Canada's oldest bookstores
faces a serious threat to its future. But manager Ray Viaud promises
that "we won't close our doors without a fight to survive."
Founded in
1945, the People's
Cooperative Bookstore has been a fixture in Vancouver's cultural and
political life for decades, especially among progressive activists. In
the early 1980s, the store moved to its present location, 1391
Commercial Drive, in the heart of the city's most radical neighbourhood.
The store
has always been a
member-controlled cooperative, electing a Board to oversee operations.
Board members and other volunteers put in countless hours at book
launches and other events. In recent years, the paid staff has included
Viaud, assistant manager Jane Bouey, and Kathy Williams.
This year's
annual general
meeting, held on Sept. 25, was presented with a detailed picture of the
impact of the current economic crisis. Sales dropped significantly
during the fiscal year ending in May 2009, and remained lower over the
summer, cutting into the store's limited reserves. In response, the
members voted to set up a committee to focus on immediate fundraising
and ways to boost sales.
Virtually
every small retail
store faces a similar problem these days: the decline in purchasing
power of customers, many of whom have lost jobs or had their hours
reduced.
Independent
booksellers face
increasing pressures from giant chains such as Chapters/Indigo and the
Amazon Books website. People's Co-op counters by providing excellent
service, thanks to staff with a far wider knowledge of books than most
clerks at the big chain stores. But the combination of lower prices and
quick mail delivery has helped the chains drive hundreds of small
booksellers out of business in recent years.
The
independents have also been
hit hard by changes in the publishing industry, which itself has felt
the sting of capitalist marketing pressures. Most publishers sell at
lower costs to major purchasers like Chapters, making it even more
difficult for small retailers to compete. Skyrocketing postal rates are
another factor making it tougher for independents.
People's
Co-op has had a few
unexpected tough breaks. Last December, a massive blizzard hit the
entire Vancouver region just before Christmas - the highest-volume
sales period of the year. Streets and sidewalks were blocked for days,
and Ray Viaud estimates that the store missed out on perhaps $15,000 in
sales. In the space of a week, the outlook went from tough to critical.
Several
members at the Sept. 25
meeting pointed to problems of location. Many Vancouverites who avoid
big chains and malls have shifted their sights to the trendy Main
Street neighbourhood. The progressive working class neighbourhood
around Commercial Drive, once a lively shopping area, has seen a
general decline in retail sales in the past few years, a pattern the
bookstore had resisted until recently. But last year's closure of
Magpie Magazines just a few doors down the block, far from helping
People's Co-op, actually hurt sales from customers who had enjoyed
visiting both stores.
Then there's
the physical
structure of the store itself, located at street level but set back
about three meters from the main sidewalk. That distance has been a
long-standing frustration, making it difficult to attract the attention
of potential customers.
With all
these problems, why were members at the AGM optimistic that the store
has a chance to survive?
Perhaps most
important is the
wide range of potential support from Vancouver's literary community and
progressive movements.
For many
years, People's Co-op
relied heavily on sales of books and magazines from the Soviet Union
and other socialist countries. That changed dramatically at the
beginning of the 1990s. While the staff and the Board have maintained a
solid selection of books on Marxist theory and the labour movement,
they were also able to expand into other areas, especially the works of
local authors.
With a few
big-name exceptions,
Vancouver-area writers and poets have always found it difficult to get
shelf space in major stores. Instead, they rely on independent
booksellers, and People's Co-op gradually became recognized for its
outstanding efforts to promote local writers. When other stores turn
down outside events, People's Co-op has always been ready to help
organize book launches and other activities, large or small. This
persistent effort has built up a huge and loyal base of supporters,
many of whom are coming forward to offer assistance.
The same
applies to the StopWar
peace coalition, which for years has used the store as a distribution
point for posters and leaflets, and a welcoming place to meet
like-minded friends. One of the upcoming fundraisers for the store is
being put together by long-time StopWar members.
Another
event is being planned
by Conrad Schmidt, well-known empresario of huge dance parties to
support environmental causes. Schmidt is also a leading figure in the
Work Less Party, a fun-oriented movement which has helped mobilize
against war and the U.S. drive for control of fossil fuels.
Then there's
the public
education movement, which has a powerful ally in assistant manager Jane
Bouey, currently serving a second term as a COPE School Board trustee
in Vancouver. Bouey's years of leadership in campaigns to support
public schools have helped to strengthen the store's customer base
among teachers, staff and students.
Bouey has
also been a driving
force in expanding the store's diverse stock of titles on women's
issues and LGBT rights. Area residents who formerly had to travel to
downtown or the west side for such books have been delighted to find a
wide selection right on Commercial Drive.
Among these
and other sections
of the population, People's Co-op Books would be deeply missed. Viaud
and Bouey reported on dozens of offers to help. The committee
established at the AGM includes New Star Books publisher Rolf Maurer,
women's activist and author Nadine Chambers, former StopWar
spokesperson Derrick O'Keefe (who is now the editor of the Rabble.ca
website), comedian/activist Charlie Demers, anti-poverty activist Elwyn
Patterson, and several more.
Some efforts
are already paying
off. As the official bookseller at the Word on the Street Festival,
held at the main Vancouver Library on Sept. 27, People's Co-op staff
and volunteers racked up much higher sales than last year.
While
fundraising can help halt
the recent losses, the key to long-term viability has to be a major
increase in annual sales. Big efforts will begin during the weeks ahead
to encourage Commercial Drive residents and activists in progressive
movements to shop at People's Co-op and other independent retail
outlets in the neighbourhood.
The store's
online presence is
also expanding, which should help bring in much larger mail-order sales
through the popular Book Manager website. (See sidebar for details.)
The results
of this campaign
will be discussed at a special meeting of People's Co-op members in
late January. That meeting should have enough information to make
crucial decisions about the store's future. In the meantime, readers
who want to help the campaign or become People's Co-op members can drop
by the store (open 10-6 Monday to Saturday, and 1-5 pm on Sunday), or
call 604-253-6442.
How to shop at People's Co-op - from
anywhere!
Shopping for a good read at People's
Co-op Books is just a few mouse-clicks away, no matter where you live.
The Co-op is
one of many
Canadian bookstores serviced by the Book Manager website. Just go to http://www.bookmanager.com,
then click on the box that says "BookManager's
webstores." That takes you to a list of bookstores in every province,
presented in alphabetical order.
Find
People's Co-op Books in the
BC section, and one more click takes you directly to the store's own
website. The front page features new releases and forthcoming titles.
Click on "title browser" to find comprehensive, well-organized listings
of thousands of titles in every major category. For complete details,
click on any title to see prices, author, even a picture of the cover.
Setting up
an account through
this system is easy. Anyone who has ever ordered books online through
Amazon will find the Book Manager process equally simple.
That's all
there is to it.
People's Voice readers can say
goodbye to corporate mega-book
profiteers, and get an astonishing range of progressive books delivered
to your home from the oldest cooperative bookstore in Canada. Give it a
try!
Readers can
also contact the
store by email, at coopbks@telus.net, or by
phoning toll-free
during business hours, 1-888-511-5556.
8) DOCUMENTARY SHINES
LIGHT IN DARK CORNERS
(The following
article is from the October 16-31, 2009, issue of People's Voice,
Canada's
leading communist
newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited.
Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for
U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50
CDN per year. Send to:
People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 133
Herkimer St., Unit 502, Hamilton, ON, L8P 2H3.)
You, Me and the
SPP: Trading Democracy for Corporate Rule, from Manly Media
Productions, director Paul Manly, 2009, 91 minutes
DVD review by Tim
Pelzer
Nanaimo-based filmmaker Paul Manly
never set out to make a documentary on the Security and Prosperity
Partnership. He first learned about the SPP while fundraising to make a
film on local water use. The SPP, signed by the US, Canada and Mexico
in March 2005, aims to harmonize regulations between the three
countries. The more he delved into the agreement, which allegedly
removes barriers to trade and economic growth, the more it disturbed
him.
In his
penetrating documentary
You, Me and the SPP: Trading Democracy for Corporate Rule, Manly shows
that the deal is really an agreement modeled on NAFTA that threatens to
further erode democracy, environmental and living standards across
North America.
The SPP is
about big
corporations wanting to lower and harmonize a broad range regulations
and practices. "Whichever province or state [that] has the lowest
standards, that's the standards these companies are allowed to use as
their benchmark", according to Maude Barlow, the Council of Canadian's
Chairperson.
According to
NDP Member of
Parliament Peter Julian, the Canadian, US and Mexican governments want
to lower standards in 300 areas of regulation that involve every
government ministry. Nineteen commissions are working on revising
regulations. Julian cites the Harper government's decision to allow the
import of more pesticide-laden fruits and vegetables, disadvantaging
Canadian farmers who have higher standards, and harming human health.
The SPP is
also about North
American economic integration and ensuring the US a secure supply of
natural resources. Academic Gordon Laxer says that the SPP will lower
our environmental regulations to allow more oil and gas exports to the
US. It will also allow Canada to bring in more temporary Mexican
workers with few labour rights. Export of Canadian water to the US is
also being discussed under the SPP.
Barlow said
that when she asked
US Embassy officials in Ottawa why the SPP was never brought to elected
bodies for discussion and approval, she was told that they wanted "to
avoid another losing NAFTA debate".
The
documentary also sheds light
on the Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement (TILMA), the
supposed free trade agreement between provinces. Journalist Murray
Dobbin asserts that TILMA is an essential part of the SPP. Since many
existing regulations are controlled by provinces and municipalities,
the Canadian government cannot negotiate deregulation and harmonization
with the US and Mexico until this obstacle is dealt with.
TILMA is
really an investors'
rights agreement, under the guise of dismantling trade barriers, few of
which exist. Like NAFTA, it allows corporations to sue provincial,
municipal governments and even school boards that raise standards.
Dispute panels will meet behind closed doors to make rulings, not the
courts. Even if panels do not rule against elected bodies, critics say
TILMA will create a chilling effect by discouraging democratic bodies
from improving standards.
Dobbin
remarks that the SPP is
really "a parallel government where important decisions are made
outside elected legislatures or parliament or they make it make it
impossible for these types of decisions to be made in these elected
bodies."
How do
proponents of the deal
respond to these accusations? Each federal or provincial government
minister Manly contacted was "too busy" to answer questions.
According to
constitutional
lawyer Joel Bakan, trade agreements like the SPP "are very powerful,
secretive and very difficult for us as citizens to penetrate and have
any say over."
In one of
the most disturbing
segments of You, Me and the SPP, Manly films a peaceful group of
protesters at a joint Canada-US-Mexico summit in Quebec in 2007.
Suddenly, three masked men, dressed in black clothing, begin throwing
rocks at the police. The demonstrators confront the men, still
clenching large rocks in their hands, accusing them of being agents
provocateurs intent on starting a riot. Later a Quebec police
spokesperson admits that the masked men were indeed police officers.
You, Me and
the SPP deserves to
be widely seen. It sheds light on how the SPP will further undermine
democracy and weaken the ability of elected bodies to adopt laws and
regulations to protect the public and the environment.
9) COLOMBIAN PRISONER DRIVEN TO SUICIDE
(The following
article is from the October 16-31, 2009, issue of People's Voice,
Canada's
leading communist
newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited.
Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for
U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50
CDN per year. Send to:
People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 133
Herkimer St., Unit 502, Hamilton, ON, L8P 2H3.)
The following statement was issued on
Sept. 21 by the Colombian political prisoners of the Ninth Tower,
Penitentiary of Valledupar-Cesar "La Tramacua"
The political prisoners of the Ninth
Tower call on the national and international community to turn their
eyes toward the penitentiary of Valledupar, better known as LA
TRAMACUA. In this penitentiary we are some 103 women (political and
social prisoners) who are "deposited" arbitrarily, confronted with high
temperatures and a shortage of potable water, privations and
punishments that worsen our incarceration.
This past
September 2nd, 2009,
psychiatric ward inmate Alexandra Correa, who was for 19 months
punished with solitary confinement, receiving, in handcuffs, one hour
of sunlight daily, did not resist the pressure and outrage and ended
her life by hanging herself in her cell.
In order to
prevent her
companion and partner, Tatiana Pinzon, from also committing suicide,
since she was facing the same punishment as Alexandra, our human rights
representative, Esmeralda Echeverry, cited on the radio station W-FM
the response of the Director for the National Institute of
Penitentiaries and Jails (INPEC, by the Spanish initials), Dr. Teresa
Moya Suta, on learning of the imminent possibility of the suicide: "let
her kill herself, I assume the responsibility." To see this discovered
publicly, the director of INPEC retracted [her statement] and ordered
the transfer of the inmate, Tatiana Pinzon, but also took unjust
retaliation against our human rights representative who was removed
from said representation.
As political
prisoners, we
denounce the abuses and the outrages that INPEC commits against the
inmates, to such point that in the towers for the men, the guards wear
hoods in order to beat them with complete impunity.
WE DEMAND:
1. That guarantees are offered to the
human rights representatives for the inmates so that they can fulfill
their functions without the possibility of retaliatory measures taken
against them.
2. The closure of the women's tower,
since it is truthfully a repository for persons for whom their most
elemental rights as women and other fundamental rights are not
recognized. The Ninth Tower designated for women was opened on the
pretext of being able to remove Sonia, a guerrillera of the FARC-EP
(Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia-People's Army) who was later
extradited to the United States, to internal exile.
3. An end to the continued violations
of human rights against the persons deprived of liberty in the
penitentiary of Valledupar-LA TRAMACUA.
4. That the Colombian state's organs
of control in the matter of human rights verify such condition of
things and take the corresponding measures in order that so many
outrages to our human dignity cease.
We make a
call to the families
of the prisoners [male and female], to national and international human
rights organizations, and to the academic and university community in
order that:
1) They join us in denouncing the
alarming situation of human rights violations of the prisoners of the
penitentiary of Valledupar-LA TRAMACUA.
2) They become permanent observers of
the conditions of the prisoners in different Colombian jails,
especially the penitentiary of Valledupar that has become a true centre
of punishment.
3) They join us in the revision and
elaboration of a Colombian penitentiary and jail policy that offers a
just exit to our problem through conditions of clear respect for our
dignity and human rights.
4) They send communications of
support and demands to the following authorities of the Colombian state:
President
of the Republic, Alvaro
Uribe Velez, Palacio de Narito, Carrera 8 No.7-2, Bogota, Fax:
+57.1.337.5890 / 342.0592, e-mail: auribe@presidencia.gov.co
Presidential Program of International
and Human Rights, director Carlos Franco, e-mail: cefranco@presidencia.gov.co
Asesor Fernando Ibarra, tel:
+57.1.336.03.11, fax: +57.1.337.46.67, e-mail: fibarra@presidencia.gov.co
National Ministry of Courts, Diagonal
22B (Av. Luis Carlos Galan No. 52-01) Bloque C, Piso 4, Bogota,
Colombia. fax: +57.1.570.2000 (extension 2017), e-mail:
denuncias@fiscalia.gov.co or contacto@fiscalia.gov.co
Attorney General Alejandro Ordonez
Maldonado, Carrera 5 #15-80, Bogota. Fax +57.1.342.97.23; e-mail:
cap@procuraduria.gov.co, quejas@procuraduria.gov.co; y
webmaster@procuraduria.gov.co
Nacional Public Defender, Volmar
Antonion Perez Ortiz, Calle 55 #10-32, Bogota, Fax +57.1.640.04.91,
e-mail: secretaria_privada@hotmail.com;
agenda@agenda.gov.co.
10) JAILS NOTORIOUS FOR
BRUTALITY
(The following
article is from the October 16-31, 2009, issue of People's Voice,
Canada's
leading communist
newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited.
Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for
U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50
CDN per year. Send to:
People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 133
Herkimer St., Unit 502, Hamilton, ON, L8P 2H3.)
By Kimball Cariou
The urgent appeal for solidarity
issued on Sept. 21 by women political prisoners at the Valledupar-La
Tramacua penitentiary is the latest expression of many years of
resistance against the Colombian state's inhumane prison system.
Back in
1997, prisons across
Colombia were the scene of violent riots against overcrowding and the
unfair judicial system. Some of the most serious incidents, involving
killings and hostage-takings, occurred at the Valledupar district
prison in the department of Cesar and at Popayan prison.
The
situation deteriorated as
the so-called "war on drugs" and the US-driven "Plan Colombia" were
extended. These strategies were intended to stifle popular discontent
against the Colombian regime, and in particular to defeat the FARC-EP
and ELN insurgencies in the country. When the regime found it necessary
to expand the prison system, an agreement on "cooperation regarding
prison improvement" was signed in March 2000 by the US ambassador to
Colombia and the Colombian Minister for Justice. The regime turned to
the U.S.-based National Institute of Corrections for technical
assistance to tighten security.
For example,
the NIC was hired
to help "upgrade" the Valledupar penitentiary. Modeled on a U.S.
federal jail in Coleman, Florida, it can house up to 1,600 inmates. By
2002, Valledupar had achieved "ISO-9000 certification", making it a
supposed model for the rest of the country's jails.
But in
reality, the new
high-security units at Valledupar, Acacias and Girardot, costing over
$4.5 million, were designed to increase repression and intimidation.
These prisons were turned into "theatres of military operation", where
civil authority is subordinate to military and police authority, and
where constitutional human rights are persistently violated.
Around the
same period, the
former government of Andres Pastrana and the Revolutionary Armed Forces
of Colombia (FARC) began a peace process in which both parties would
release some of their prisoners of war. The FARC kept their promise by
releasing an initial 50 prisoners, and then some 200 more as a gesture
of commitment to the peace process.
But the
government released only
14 of the 50 sick prisoners initially agreed. Others were sent instead
to the new high-security prisons, where they were shackled and put in
almost permanent solitary confinement, without medical care. These
prisons also had the highest concentrations of right-wing paramilitary
inmates. As an article in CounterPunch magazine reported on Nov. 24,
2002, "The National Police, military Rapid Response Forces and the
US-trained INPEC Prison Guard frequently parade through the corridors
and cells where political prisoners are being held, making intimidating
references to their murderous paramilitary house guests."
The
political prisoners in
Valledupar faced regular torture and mistreatment, and denial of their
right to contact with the outside world. Visiting family and friends
were warned that they would be killed if they came back. Getting
medical treatment required extreme measures such as slashing their
wrists to attract attention.
The worst
sections of Valledupar
included the cells of Tower One, 5th Floor, and Tower Five, Isolation
and Special Treatment Wing, where humanitarian organizations were
barred from conducting inspections.
Prison
guards at Valledupar have
attacked journalists. On September 10, 2009, Luisa Alario Solano, a
journalist for the daily Q'hubo,
and Hernando Vergara, a photographer
for the El Heraldo newspaper,
were assaulted by INPEC guards in the
emergency ward of the Rosario Pumerejo de Lopez hospital, where medical
personnel were treating a Valledupar prisoner who had attempted to
commit suicide.
11) PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF
CHINA MARKS 60TH ANNIVERSARY
(The following
article is from the October 16-31, 2009, issue of People's Voice,
Canada's
leading communist
newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited.
Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for
U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50
CDN per year. Send to:
People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 133
Herkimer St., Unit 502, Hamilton, ON, L8P 2H3.)
Reports from Xinhua
News Agency
China staged a grand celebration in
Beijing on October 1, showcasing the country's achievements over the
past 60 years. President Hu Jintao and other leaders viewed the
two-hour pageant, which involved nearly 200,000 soldiers and civilians,
from atop the Tian'anmen Rostrum, where Chairman Mao Zedong proclaimed
the birth of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1949.
The national
anthem played by a
1,300-member military band and a solemn flag-raising ceremony ushered
in the festivities. Wearing a Mao suit, Hu stood in an open-top black
Red Flag limousine to review the military formations.
"We must
unswervingly follow the
road of socialism with Chinese characteristics...and the reform and
opening-up policy," Hu said after reviewing the troops. "The
development and progress of New China over the past 60 years fully
proved that only socialism can save China and only reform and opening
up can ensure the development of China, socialism and Marxism."
The
anniversary was marked in
Havana by Cuban President Raul Castro, during an official ceremony in
the Universal Hall of the Revolutionary Armed Forces.
Zhao
Rongxian, China's
ambassador in Cuba, stated that the constitution of the New China
brought to an end the history of humiliation in the old semi-colonial
and semi-feudal society, and marked the final victory in the struggle
against imperialism and feudalism by the Chinese people in the modern
age.
Cuban Vice
President Esteban
Lazo said that progressives around the world are celebrating the six
decades of the PRC's existence. He recalled that the homeland of
José
Marti was the first nation in the Western hemisphere to recognize the
PRC.
Here
are some facts and figures of China's economic development during past
60 years.
- China's gross domestic product
(GDP) surpassed 30 trillion yuan (3.86 trillion U.S. dollars) in 2008,
77 times more than in 1952 after inflation. It accounts for 27.2% of
the U.S. GDP, ranking third in the world.
- China's per capita GDP amounted to
$2,770, turning from a low-income country to a lower-middle-income one
by World Bank standards.
- The proportion of primary industry
dropped from 51% of the economy to 11.3%, while secondary industry
climbed from 20.8% to 48.6%, and tertiary industry from 28.2% to 40.1%.
- China's urban residents have grown
for 10.6% of the total population in 1949, to 45.7% in 2008, and urban
and rural areas have become more integrated in the country's economic
and social development.
- China's total grain output was 113
million tonnes in 1949, or 209 kilograms a head per year. In 2008, the
grain output increased to 529 million tonnes, the highest in the world.
China's cereal, meat and cotton output are all the largest in the world.
- China became the world's second
largest oil refiner in 2007. In 2008,the country's oil production
totalled 189 million tonnes, 1581 times than that in 1949.
- China's foreign exports and imports
registered 1.14 billion U.S. dollars in 1950, less than one percent of
the global total trade volume. In 2008, this reached 2.56 trillion U.S.
dollars, making up 8.86% of global trade.
- Maintaining the country's
agricultural land is one of China's critical challenges. The area of
cultivated land decreased by last year by 8.27 million hectares, to
121.8 million hectares.
- In 2009, China raised its poverty
line to 1,196 yuan (175 U.S. dollars) per capita income. China's
impoverished population totals 40.07 million people.
- Despite efforts to narrow the
urban/rural development gap, urban residents earned 1.86 times more
than farmers in 1988, but 3.33 times more than farmers in 2007.
12) MIXED RESULTS IN
EUROPEAN VOTING
(The following
article is from the October 16-31, 2009, issue of People's Voice,
Canada's
leading communist
newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited.
Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for
U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50
CDN per year. Send to:
People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 133
Herkimer St., Unit 502, Hamilton, ON, L8P 2H3.)
PV Vancouver Bureau
Despite some media headlines about
"defeats for the left," the latest round of elections during late
September-early October in Europe revealed setbacks for social
democrats but some gains for more radical left forces.
The largest
country to go to the
polls was Germany, where the Social Democratic party (SPD) suffered its
worst defeat in history. The SPD's "grand coalition" partner over the
last four years, the right-wing Christian Democratic Union/Christian
Social Union led by Angela Merkel, also lost votes. The CDU/CSU's share
in proportional representation voting fell from 35.2% in 2005 to 33.8%
in 2009, but it gained 13 seats by electing more members in direct
constituency voting. The CDU/CSU will now govern by majority with its
neoliberal ally, the Free Democratic Party, which made significant
gains.
The SPD paid
a heavy price for
supporting Merkel's conservative policies and Germany's participation
in the US-led war in Afghanistan. The Social Democrats lost over 6.2
million votes, down to 9.9 million, or just 23.0% of the total. That
cost the SPD 76 seats, dropping from 225 seats in the last Bundestag to
just 149.
Many of
those votes went to Die
Linke, the left-wing party which received 5.1 million proportional
representation votes, rising from 8.7% in 2005 to 11.9% this time. Die
Linke, the only party to campaign for withdrawal from the occupation of
Afghanistan, saw its representation in the Bundestag rise from 54 to
76. In another advance, 12 Die Linke MPs were elected directly from
constituencies outside its Berlin stronghold.
The Greens
also picked up
support, growing from 8.1% up to 10.7% of proportional representation
votes, and from 51 to 68 Bundestag members.
The picture
was different in
Greece, where the Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) led by George
Papandreou won the Oct. 3 general elections by a wide margin.
The social
democratic PASOK,
which followed neoliberal policies during earlier periods in office,
took about 44 percent of the votes and 160 of the 300 seats in
Parliament.
The
conservative New Democracy
party (ND), led by Costas Karamanlis, had governed Greece since 2004.
The ND won about 33.8% of vote, and 92 seats, a historic low since its
founding three decades ago.
The
Communist Party of Greece
(KKE) remains the third party in parliament, winning 7.6% and 21 seats.
The far right People's Orthodox Rally (LAOS) made gains, with 5.6% of
votes, winning 15 seats. The Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA),
won 4.5%, for 12 seats in parliament. The Greens won 2.5%, below the 3
percent threshold to elect MPs.
KKE leader
Aleka Papariga termed
the results a "heavy defeat for New Democracy and a victory for PASOK
without, however, the positive developments that have taken place in
the conscience of the people during the years of governance by New
Democracy."
Papariga
added that "there was a
change of captain, but the direction is on the same course" and
predicted that a storm of anti-popular measures are coming. She said
the KKE is ready to assume its responsibilities "on the front line of
the struggle to thwart the worst and to seek solutions to relieve the
people."
In Portugal,
the Socialist Party
(PS) led by Prime Minister Jose Socrates won the Sept. 27 parliamentary
elections. The Socialists, a centrist party, won 36.6 percent of the
votes, down from 45% in 2005. While Socrates called the outcome a "huge
victory," his party lost its majority in the 230-seat parliament.
The main
right-wing opposition,
the Social Democratic Party, got 29.1 percent, and lost three seats.
The conservative Popular Party became the third largest group in
Portugal's parliament, winning 10.5% of votes and 21 seats, up from 12
seats in the last campaign.
The Left
Bloc doubled its seats
to 16, while the Democratic Unity coalition of the Portuguese
Communists and Greens took 15 seats, rising to 7.9% of the votes, up
from 7.6% in 2005.
Some PS
supporters turned to
other parties in protest against neoliberal policies implemented by the
Socrates government, such as the move to raise the retirement age from
60 to 65 for public sector workers.
In another
key result, Irish
voters gave nearly two-thirds support to the Lisbon Treaty, reversing
the anti-Lisbon vote of June 2008. The Workers' Party of Ireland called
the outcome "a victory of the powerful over the people".
"In this
referendum campaign the
Yes side had three huge advantages," said Padraig Mannion of the
Workers' Party. "They had 90% of the money; 95% of the media; and 100%
of the establishment. This combination proved an impossible combination
to overcome."
13) A SPECIES IN
DANGER OF EXTINCTION
(The following
article is from the October 16-31, 2009, issue of People's Voice,
Canada's
leading communist
newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited.
Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for
U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50
CDN per year. Send to:
People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 133
Herkimer St., Unit 502, Hamilton, ON, L8P 2H3.)
Reflections by Comrade
Fidel, Sept. 21, 2009
Today I would have liked to speak
about the extraordinary "Paz sin Fronteras" (Peace without Borders)
Concert held at the José Marti Revolution Square 24 hours ago,
but the
stubborn reality forces me to write about a danger that threatens not
just peace but the survival of our species.
The United
Nations Organization,
whose task is to safeguard the peace, security and rights of almost 200
states that represent more than 6.5 billion inhabitants on our planet,
is about to begin the General Assembly debates, with the participation
of heads of states. This time, it will dedicate a senior-level session
on climate change as preparation for the Copenhagen Conference to be
held between December 7-18 of this year.
At the
International Conference
on the Environment called by the UN in Rio de Janeiro, I stated as the
then head of state of the Cuban state: "A species is in danger of
extinction: man". When I uttered and backed up those words, received
and applauded by the heads of state in attendance - including the
president of the United States, a Bush less dismal than his son George
W. - they still believed that they had several centuries to confront
the problem. I myself did not envision a date any closer than 60 or 80
years.
Today we are
dealing with a
truly imminent danger and its effects are already visible... Average
temperatures have increased 0.8 degrees Centigrade since 1980 according
to the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies. The last two decades
of the twentieth century were the warmest in hundreds of years. The
temperatures in Alaska, the Canadian West and eastern Russia have gone
up at a pace that doubles the world average. Arctic ice has been
quickly disappearing and the region can experience its first completely
ice-free summer as soon as the year 2040. The effects are visible in
the 2 kilometre high masses of ice melting in Greenland, the South
American glaciers, from Ecuador all the way to Cape Horn, fundamental
sources of water, and the gigantic ice cap covering the extensive area
of Antarctica.
Current
carbon dioxide
concentrations have reached the equivalent of 380 parts per million, a
figure surpassing the natural range of the last 650,000 years. The
warming is already affecting the natural systems throughout the world.
If this should occur it would be devastating for all peoples.
Scientists
have discovered that
no less than 3 billion years ago the first basic life forms on planet
Earth appeared. Since then, these same life forms have evolved non-stop
towards higher and more complex forms by virtue of the inexorable laws
of biology. Our current species, Homo sapiens, has existed for barely
150 thousand years, an insignificant fraction of time from the
beginning of life. Even though the Greeks, hundreds of years before our
era, were already in possession of certain astronomical knowledge,
barely more than 500 years ago, after a long period of medieval
darkness, Man discovered that the Earth was round and not flat. An
audacious Genovese admiral with solid understanding proposed to sail
eastward in search of India instead of circumnavigating southern
Africa. European colonization of this hemisphere and the rest of the
planet would commence.
The human
species could measure
with sufficient precision the rotation of the Earth every 24 hours and
its movement around the enormous incandescent mass of the Sun
approximately every 365 days. These and other singular circumstances
were associated with the existence and life for all species in
existence at that time.
Since
antiquity, the most
advanced philosophers and thinkers have sought social justice. In spite
of this, physical slavery legally lasted until 129 years ago at which
time slavery was abolished in the Spanish colony of Cuba.
From my
point of view, the
Theory of Evolution as presented by Darwin in his book Origin of the
Species has been one of the two most important scientific discoveries.
Some people saw in this an antagonistic element for religious beliefs;
however, no scientist today refutes it and many of them who profess
sincere religious beliefs see in evolution the expression of Divine
Will.
The other
decisive contribution
was Albert Einstein's General Theory of Relativity, presented in 1915.
Few persons have so much influenced the future of the world as he did.
Einstein persuaded Roosevelt to start research to produce the atomic
bomb fearing that it would be developed by the Nazis. When Truman
dropped them over the defenceless civilian cities of Hiroshima and
Nagasaki, the event had such an impact on him that he became a
confirmed pacifist. Today, the US possesses thousands of nuclear
weapons much more powerful than those; they could exterminate the
population of the world several times over. At the same time, they are
the greatest producers and exporters of all kinds of weapons.
The
accelerated pace of
scientific research in all fields of material production and services,
under the economic order imposed on the world following World War II,
has led humanity towards an unsustainable situation.
It is our
duty to demand the
truth. The populations of all countries have the right to know the
factors causing climate change and the current scientific possibilities
to reverse the tendency, if indeed we still really have any.
The Cuban
people, especially its
magnificent youth, demonstrated yesterday that even in the midst of a
brutal economic blockade, it is possible to overcome unimaginable
obstacles.
(The following
article is from the October 16-31, 2009, issue of
People's Voice,
Canada's
leading communist
newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited.
Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for
U.S. readers and overseas readers - $50 per year. Send to:
People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 133
Herkimer St., Unit 502, Hamilton, ON, L8P 2H3.)
VANCOUVER, BC
Yard
Sale at the Russian Hall, 600 Campbell Ave. - Sat., Oct. 17, 11
am-3 pm, call 604-254-9932 for info.
In
Our Own Voices, join Downtown
Eastside Power of Women Group for storytelling, poetry, and resistance -
Sat., Oct. 24, 7 pm, Rhizome Cafe, 317 E. Broadway, donation $0-20.
Left
Film Nights, at the Centre for
Socialist Education, 706 Clark Drive.
- Cocalero and Freedom Fighters
(Las Libertarias), Sat., Oct. 17, 7 pm.
- Frozen River, Sunday, Oct. 25, 7 pm.
Free admission, donations welcome,
info: 604-255-2041.
COPE-
Education Committee fundraiser
with Paul Shaker (“Your Education Matters”) and COPE school trustees -
Wed., Oct. 28, 7:30 pm, Maritime Museum (in Vanier Park). Light food
and refreshments, cash bar, tickets $40, call 604-255-0400 or email
cope@cope.bc.ca.
Resistance
without Reservation! No
One Is Illegal - event for Indigenous Sovereignty Week, Thur., Oct. 29,
doors open 6 pm, Centre for Socialist Education, 706 Clark Drive.
You,
Me and the SPP - Thursday, Nov.
5, 7 pm at Fifth Avenue Cinema, followed by Q & A with filmmaker
Paul Manly. The film’s full tour schedule is online at http://www.youmespp.com.
1929-1939,
From Crash to Catastrophe,
World Peace Forum teach-in - Nov. 7-8-11, Maritime Labour
Centre, 1880
Triumph St. For full details, visit http://www.worldpeaceforumbc.ca.
In Our Own Voices - join the
Downtown
Eastside Power of Women Group for
storytelling, poetry, reflection, and resistance, Sat., Oct.
24, 7 pm,
Rhizome Cafe, 317 E. Broadway, by donation $0-20.
WINNIPEG, MN
Four
Directions Walk - Sat., Oct.
17, International Day for the
Eradication of Poverty. Rally at
the Legislature 3 pm to greet four
marches from the perimeter. Information
FDW committee, 792-3371.
TORONTO, ON
Cine Cuba, Cuban film festival
sponsored by CCFA-Toronto, at Revue Cinema, 400 Roncesvalles Ave., Spanish with English subtitles. For complete details check http://www.revuecinema.ca and http://www.ccfatoronto.ca.
- Thurs. Oct. 22: 7 pm, Roble de Olor (Scent of Oak), 2003, director Rigoberto Lopez, the love affair of two new immigrants to 19th century Cuba.
- Thurs. Oct. 22: 9:30 pm, Memorias de Subdesarollo (Memories of Underdevelopment, director Tomas Gutierrez Alez, classic film of a wealthy Cuban who chose to stay following the 1959 Revolution. Followed by panel on “Culture, Politics and Film in Cuba”, with Alexandra Anderson (Ryerson Film studies) and Yuleyvis Valdes Alvarez (Cuban Film Institute).
- Fri. Oct. 23: 7 pm, La Edad de le Peseta (The Silly Age), 2005, director Pavel Giroud, the relationship between a boy
and his grandmother set in
pre- and
post-revolutionary Cuba.
- Fri. Oct. 23: 9 pm,
Kangamba, 2008, dir.
Rogelio Paris, the story of Cuban
and Angolan fighters pinned
down in a small town by UNITA
troops and their South
African/US overlords.Followed
by panel on “Africa and Cuba,
Culture and Politics Today,”
with Yuleyvis Valdes Alverez
(Cuban Film Institute)
Stars
of Ballet, featuring dancers
from Ballet Nacional de Cuba,
with Artistic Director Alicia
Alonso, Tue., Dec. 8, 7 pm,
Living Arts Centre, 4141
Living Arts Drive, Mississauga.
Tickets $25-90, contact
1-905-306-6000 or
1-888-805-8888.
SASKATOON,
SK
Political discussion & beer, all welcome to join Saskatoon CPC
members - third Monday of
every month, in the tv room at Amigo’s, 632-10 St. East.
HAMILTON,
ON
Solidarity House classes - at 779 Barton St. East (parking at rear). Wednesdays 7-9, Introduction to Spoken Spanish, $10 suggested donation - bring your dictionary! Saturdays 12-2 - Das Kapital,
video & discussion.
