Against the repression by the Spanish state

5th October 2017 Socialist Action 0

By Ian Richardson

The attempt of the Catalan independence movement to hold a referendum has been met with brutal state repression. The Madrid government used Guardia Civil forces from outside the region to block voters and attack them, seize ballot boxes and smash up polling stations. TV footage of unarmed protesters and voters being brutally assaulted have now been seen worldwide, despite the ludicrous denials of ministers in Madrid and their spokespersons.

German election again confirms increasing Western political turbulence

3rd October 2017 Socialist Action 0

By John Ross

The outcome of the 24 September German elections was dramatic itself. The Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union’s (CDU/CSU’s) 33 per cent was its lowest per centage of the vote since the first election in West Germany in 1949. The German Social Democratic Party (SPD) result was even worse – at 20.5 per cent it was the lowest vote ever recorded by the SPD in any election in West Germany or the reunited Germany. The extreme rightest Alliance for Germany (AfD) received 13.5 per cent of the vote – the highest for an extreme rightest party in Germany since World War II. The radical left Left Party received 9.2 per cent of the vote.