For the government and the media controlled by the regime and the big groups, this day was to be a non-event, the symbolic gesture of an exhausted movement. And yet a huge cortege marched in the streets of Paris on June 14, 2016 crossing the southwest neighbourhoods of Paris from the Place d’Italie to Invalides. Four hours after the departure of the first demonstrators, groups were still waiting to start. While the CGT announced 1.2 million demonstrators, the government saw only 120,000 people on the streets, making a point of honour of claiming that this figure is the lowest announced since March 31. But above all the only message from media and government about this event will concern “the violence of the rioters”, a dozen broken windows and some walls tagged at a large paediatric hospital in Paris, which was on the route. Concerning the merits of the case, the Prime Minister has the position that the file is closed, the law is sealed, there will be no change and social mobilization must immediately disappear from the media screens. Moreover, he even threatens to ban the next demonstrations planned for the coming week.
Soweto anniversary : is our 1976 moment still to come?
17 June 2016, byIn June 1976, exactly 40 years ago, thousands of high school students took to the streets. They were resisting the apartheid state’s insistence that Afrikaans be a compulsory medium of instruction in schools along with English. In October 2015 thousands of university students across the country acted in unison against the annual fee increase. Some have argued that this was our “76 moment” in the new dispensation. I will suggest a different interpretation. I think that #FeesMustFall is more like the 1968/69 moment of university student resistance than the 1976 high school student uprising. The late 60s 1968/69 was a key moment in the world when students pushed the civil rights and anti-war politics of the time into a global movement of cultural resistance.
Soweto: the black students’ rebellion of 1976
16 June 2016, byIts forty years today since a peaceful demonstration by black students in Soweto was met by brutal police violence. resulting in the death of twenty three people.
A rape survivor’s voice made the world listen
16 June 2016, byThe US justice system let a rape survivor down, but she found support from millions when she took a stand.
South African student activists scapegoated
15 June 2016, byThe University of Cape Town, under pressure from unnamed stakeholders, is undertaking completely over-the-top disciplinary processes against our children.
South African campus updates
15 June 2016, by#FeesMustFall has been likened to the student uprisings of 1976. In the year of the 40th Anniversary of 1976, it was hoped that the energy would carry over into 2016. But what we have seen is mass demobilisation and demoralisation.
A new trade union federation: way forward or cul de sac?
14 June 2016, byA workers summit of April 30 brought together 51 unions, including the 22 affiliates of Nactu. On its own that is an achievement and a gain.
The popular struggle against the Sissi regime intensifies
13 June 2016, byIn Egypt, recent months have seen a continuation and even a rise of popular protests against the dictatorship of the Sissi regime. On April 25, a demonstration called especially by democratic and progressive forces in Egypt was severely repressed by the security services of the Egyptian military regime. This followed the sale of the islands of Tiran and Sanafir to Saudi Arabia, in violation of the Egyptian constitution, an act which mobilized thousands of protesters in the streets that day under the slogan "Egypt is not for sale."In Egypt, recent months have seen a continuation and even a rise of popular protests against the dictatorship of the Sissi regime. On April 25, a demonstration called especially by democratic and progressive forces in Egypt was severely repressed by the security services of the Egyptian military regime. This followed the sale of the islands of Tiran and Sanafir to Saudi Arabia, in violation of the Egyptian constitution, an act which mobilized thousands of protesters in the streets that day under the slogan "Egypt is not for sale."
Politics dictates justice in Gilgit Baltistan
12 June 2016, byOn 9th June 2016, the Supreme Appellate Court of GilgitBaltistan sentenced Baba Jan and 11 other political activists to 40-year prison terms in a case based on trumped up charges of terrorism, rioting and assault.
The Settlement industry
12 June 2016, byFor Israeli settlements in the West Bank, exploiting Palestinian life is a billion dollar industry. Israel’s settlements in the occupied West Bank are becoming a liability. Even officials in the United States have started to question Israeli settlement activity, inviting backlash from Zionists in Israel and the United States.
Earlier this year, US ambassador to Israel Daniel Shapiro, hardly an anti-Zionist, touched a nerve when he pointed out the obvious — Israeli settlements in illegally occupied Palestine have expanded; Israeli vigilantes murder Palestinians without fear of investigation or reprisal; and, in the occupied areas, Israelis enjoy civilian legal protections while Palestinians live under military rule.