News from around the world

On 10th of October, at least 106 activists were killed and hundreds were injured in a demonstration for peace, labor and democracy in Ankara. Several people are still missing.

Speaking to reporters in Istanbul before leaving for Ankara in the wake of today’s massacre of demonstrators who had gathered for peace, Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Co-President Selahattin Demirtaş said the bomb attack came during a period of debates for an imminent ceasefire.

Renowned scholar, rationalist and epigraphist M.M. Kalburgi, formerly the Vice Chancellor of Kannada University in Hampi, was murdered by two assailants on August 30, 2015, in a continuation of vicious attacks on rationalists and intellectuals by the Sangh Parivar and BJP. Dr. Kalburgi, a key organiser of the Dharwad Sahitya Sambramha (Dharward Lit. Fest.), openly spoke up against idol worship and had recently questioned the Lingayat orthodoxy claiming that they were not Hindus. This invited resentment and hostility from RSS and the Hindu right, because the Lingayats are an important voting block for the BJP and have been instrumental in the election of the first BJP government in Karnataka in 2004, with chief minister BS Yeddyurappa being a Lingayat.

Turkey is increasingly drifting into a civil war. Politics of violence have escalated after the general elections of June 7 led by the AKP provisional government. Today, the peace and negotiation process between PKK and the Turkish state has come to a halt and war has started again.

This statement was issued by OKDE-Spartakos on 29 August 2015, and published in English on their website 3 September.

This press statement was issued on Fraiday 21 August 2015 after the joint meeting of delegations from Popular Unity and Antarsya.

This statement was made by the Left Platform on the announcement of the calling of snap elections in Greece and the resignation of Tsipras as prime minister on 19 August 2015.

This brief report from our correspondent in Istanbul concludes our article Trouble in paradise: A cautionary tale for big capital in Turkey published in May.

Today at the SSP National Council, members voted in favour of the party becoming an affiliate of a new electoral alliance for the Scottish elections next year.

This statement was adopted at the closing rally of the 32nd youth camp in solidarity with the Fourth International on 1st August at Hoge Rielen in Belgium, by the delegations present from Belgium, Britain, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Spanish state, Switzerland as well as the guests from Brazil, Mexico and the USA.]