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Welcome to the Socialist Campaigner homepage Socialist Campaigner is the Alliance's monthly newsletter, reporting on its activities and initiatives around the country. Socialist Campaigner is one of many outcomes of the Socialist Alliance’s very successful Second National Conference in Melbourne on May 10-11. Full report here. Click here to submit an article for the next edition of Socialist Campaigner. All issues of Socialist Campaigner are available to read on the web or as a downloadable PDF — just click on the appropriate link on the right of the page -------------------------------------------------------------------------- NOVEMBER 2003 LEAD STORY Re-building the anti-war movement By Luke Deer and Pip Hinman, National anti-war steering committee Between October 22 and 25, more than 10,000 people demonstrated across the country against the visit to Australia by President George Bush. In Sydney, 5000 people protested; in Canberra 4000; in Melbourne 1200; in Perth 400; in Adelaide 300; in Brisbane 200; in Hobart 200; in Darwin 50; in Geelong 50; and in Lismore 60. Socialist Alliance played a critical role in making sure that these protests went ahead. While the Greens did well inside parliament on October 23, credit should go to Socialist Alliance and those it worked with from local peace groups, Palestinian and other migrant communities, and some left trade unions for taking on the lion's share of organisation for the extra-parliamentary protests. Socialist Alliance's approach was to use the opportunity provided by the US President's visit to kick-start the anti-war movement after its relative lull since March. The main demands at the protests were for the occupying troops get out of Iraq, and for justice for Palestine. In some cities, they also included opposition to the Free Trade Agreement and an end to the Bush-Howard alliance. The protests everywhere - but particularly in Canberra, Sydney and Melbourne - were lively, colourful and broad. They were marked by a mix of generations and many new faces. Protesters included secondary students, office workers in their suits (some of whom eagerly helped out as “peace monitors” in Sydney), older peace activists and families with children. In all cities, Socialist Alliance's profile at the rallies was arguably the best it’s been throughout this extraordinary year of anti-war protests. This, and a new Socialist Alliance leaflet, made it much easier to join new members, and the SA merchandise, including the new "Medicare not Warfare" T-shirts and anti-war stickers, were easy to sell. Alliance members around the country report that many people made a point of thanking SA for organising the rallies. Socialist Alliance was either represented directly on many of the rally platforms (Perth, Adelaide, Darwin, Lismore and Geelong), or SA activists represented other organisations (in Sydney, Rihab Charida spoke for Sawiyan: Coalition for Palestine, Kylie Moon for Books not Bombs and Jim Casey for the Fire Brigades Employees Union, and in Perth Sam Wainwright spoke for the Maritime Union of Australia). In many cities, Socialist Alliance members chaired the protests. Everywhere, the rally platforms were broad, reflecting the spectrum of public opinion which still opposes the war on Iraq and wants the troops out. The platforms included Green, Democrat and ALP MPs, religious leaders, refugee and anti-war activists, academics, unionists and international guests. In Sydney, the lively and militant 5000-strong protest was the first event to be organised by the new Stop the War Coalition, formed by Socialist Alliance, local peace group activists, some veteran peace activists, left Greens and Friends of the Earth members after the conservatives split from the Sydney Walk Against War coalition in August. If not for Socialist Alliance and its allies, Bush's visit would have gone unchallenged in the streets. The protests have helped kick-start the movement again after its high point before the war, and have also re-ignited the important discussion about building the movement. This is a key lesson from the Bush protest. Revitalising, sustaining and building broadly based anti-war networks and groupings is a primary task for the left. The role of Socialist Alliance is not to substitute for the movement locally, but to project a bigger, broad, common socialist profile within the movement as a whole. This is what we did with considerable success during the Bush visit. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- --> http://www.socialist-alliance.org/newsletter/2003_november.pdf [ or click on the headlines in the right column for wwwebpages ] [ also get all the back issues from the right column ] -- -- Leftlink - Australia's Broad Left Mailing List mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Archived at http://www.cat.org.au/lists/leftlink/ Sponsored by Melbourne's New International Bookshop Sub: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsub: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
