e-News bulletin 14 December 2018

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E-NEWS BULLETIN 14 December 2018 Links to present possibilities

This is the final edition of Workers’ World weekly for the year. Happy holidays to all working people but worry that by the time you resurface in the New Year, it will be amidst the wreckage that capital has in the mean time wrought. Brace yourself because 2019 will be full of opportunity.

SOUTH AFRICA

amadiba crissi committeeMinister Gwede Mantashe appeals against Xolobeni Right To Say No to mining

The Amadiba Crisis Committee argues that Minister Mantashe tries to appeal by arguing that granting mining rights is not a deprivation of land rights. “Every mining affected community know that this is ridiculous. Try ploughing your field and graze your cattle with a giant hole in your land. Try to use the contaminated water.” facebook.com/amadibacrisiscommittee/

zapiroSAFTU plans mass action for change in 2019

All workers, irrespective of which union or federation they belong, are saying “Enough is Enough”. Workers are trapped in increasingly precarious jobs that pay them peanuts and subject them to worse working conditions. Poor communities too are saying enough is enough! saftu.org.za/

csaawu saftu[radio] Outcomes for the labour movement in 2018 and the prospects for 2019

This year has seen the consolidation of the division of the trade union movement, the repeated attempt by established trade unions to persuade government and big companies to create jobs, and the passing of new labour laws that include a national minimum wage and greater controls over unions’ right to strike. In the final Workers on Wednesday show for 2018, we assess the experiences of the past year for labour and what 2019 holds in store for workers and their trade unions. wwmp.org.za/

 

FRANCE

yellow vestsYellow Vests, Act Four: where is France going?

On Saturday 8 December, the Gilets Jaunes mobilisation across France defied Macron’s Project Fear, as high school students facing state repression join a movement that continues to rise. counterfire.org/

jauneYellow vest uprising exposes urgent need for rapid energy transition that stiffs elites, lifts the working class

“There will be no justice unless those who are responsible for emissions—namely multinationals and the better off in society who consume the most, are those who bear the brunt of the cost of transition.” commondreams.org/

jaunesBlacking Out the Yellow Vests on Cable News: Corporate Media Doing its Job

The deletion of events that don’t fit with the reigning ideology is part of how ruling class-owned media works to manufacture mass consent to unjust hierarchy. counterpunch.org/

Yellow Vests United In Music At Square Republic

The wonderful atmosphere with all kinds of people united arriving at the Place de la Bastille and singing “du mouvement, du mouvement, du mouvement social.” facebook.com/

France’s yellow vest protesters just scored a huge victory against Macron

The French government announced a moratorium on a hike in fuel prices Tuesday following a weekend of protests authorities say were the worst the country’s seen in 50 years

 

INTERNATIONAL

eleanorrooseveltThe Universal Declaration of Human Rights at 70: Time to De-Colonize Human Rights!

The historic record is clear. Instead of recognizing the inherent dignity and worth of individuals and collectives, the post-war period has been an era of human depravity. counterpunch.org/

PM SanchezSpain’s minimum wage to jump 22% in new year

The increase will be the biggest since 1977, the year of Spain’s first free elections following the death of dictator Francisco Franco. It means millions of low-paid workers could see a pay rise from €736 to €900, effective from January. bbc.com/

africomAFRICOM: A Neocolonial Occupation Force?

If counter-terrorism is really what the US is interested in in the Sahel and West Africa, then the AFRICOM mission is an abject failure. Of course, seen as a neocolonial occupying force utilizing both hard and soft power to entrench US hegemony and guarantee the free flow of resources from Africa, it is a rousing success. counterpunch.org/

obradorPrivatization Is Theft

Leftist president-elect Andrés Manuel López Obrador takes office today in Mexico. Here, he explains how privatization has pillaged the public — and calls for a break with the neoliberal order. jacobinmag.com/

indian farmersA long march of the dispossessed to Delhi

Imagine a democratic protest where a million farmers, labourers and others march to the capital and compel discussion of the exploding crisis of the countryside in a special three-week session of Parliament. ruralindiaonline.org/

 

ISRAEL-PALESTINE

lamont hill supportStudents march in support of embattled Temple professor Marc Lamont Hill

In a speech delivered Nov. 28, Hill demanded a boycott of Israel and accused the Jewish state of rampant discrimination against Palestinians. He also voiced support for “a free Palestine from the river to the sea.” philly.com/

roger watersPink Floyd tribute band pulls out of Israel shows

Cover band cancels gigs in Tel Aviv, Haifa and Beersheba after Roger Waters urged them to pull out. aljazeera.com/

Local news from Khayelitsha, East London, Port Elizabeth, Alexandra and Orange Farm in English and isiXhosa

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NEW TECHNOLOGIES / NEW FORMS OF LABOUR

gigaTech is an opportunity for labor, if we’re creative enough to seize it

New technologies contain within themselves strong cooperative tendencies, which give an impulse toward the establishment of production systems capable of self-design and self-regulation, opening exceptional “windows of opportunity” which, instead of being left prey to a capitalism animated by the desire to strengthen the traditional power relations, can instead be used by workers who want to “co-design” alternative projects together. global.ilmanifesto.it/

platform cooperativismPlatform co-op movement gathers in Hong Kong for its global conference

The Platform Cooperativism Consortium’s annual global conference brought forward cooperatives that are establishing their own Uber-like, digital platforms. thenews.coop/

 

ENVIRONMENT

pembrianAs Study Ties ‘Great Dying’ of 252 Million Years Ago to Current Climate Crisis, Experts Say Still Time for ‘Different Path’

“Voluminous emissions of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, rapid global warming, and a decline in biodiversity—the storyline is modern, but the setting is ancient.” commondreams.org/

 

FILM

sorry-to-bother-youBlack America seen through the prism of seven films released this year

Likely a combination of pressure applied on the Hollywood film industry to be more racially inclusive and the street protests led by Black Lives Matter, 2018 was marked by a bumper crop of films about Black America. louisproyect.org/

 

 

Disclaimer:

This newsletter is intended as a special and alternative news, information and knowledge source for all who are interested in issues relevant to promoting political, social and economic equality and the eradication of poverty. The articles contained herein are obtained from various electronic media platforms and do not necessarily reflect the views of WWMP.