The Notting Hill Carnival cannot be reduced to corporate slogans about diversity. Its joy has always been political. It says that people who were attacked, excluded, and policed will not...
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‘Independence March’ – The Unholy Alliance of the Polish Right
By Gavin Rae
The annual Independence march (Marsz Niepodległości) took place in Warsaw on 11 November. Over 60,000 people attended, some of them masked and setting off red smoke bombs. Banners were carried with slogans supporting things such as a ‘white’ Poland and Europe and against refugees and Muslims. Some demonstrators wore the Celtic cross or the pre-war fascist symbol (the falanga). Representatives of other far-right parties in Europe attended the march, with the former leader of the English Defence League, Tommy Robinson, boasting that he ‘had an amazing time with polish patriots marching against Islam’.
Trump’s tour of Asia: an emperor with no clothes
By Jude Woodward
Despite the razzamatazz of Trump’s visit to Asia, the verdict of the international news media was unanimous: the trip had simply served to underline the US’s declining influence in Asia; a decline that Trump is blamed for accelerating by ceding leadership to China on the crucial issues of contemporary geopolitics: trade, climate change, development and multilateral agreements.
The further adventures of Trump’s Saudi ally
By Sammy Barker
On 5 November the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, launched an ‘anti-corruption’ campaign involving the arrest of eleven princes, four serving ministers and ‘tens’ of former ministers. Along with these were some major business people, including Prince Al-Waleed Bin Talal, the country’s wealthiest man, reportedly worth $30 billion, Mohammed Hussein Al-Amadi, the second richest man, reportedly worth $10.9 billion. Also arrested was Bakr bin Laden, the head of the biggest construction company in the country. Some Saudi sources put the number of arrests as high as 500, with double that questioned.
Combatting rape, assault and harassment of women
Notes from the front of 9-11-2017
Combatting rape, assault and harassment of women
The case of Harvey Weinstein – who stands accused of rape, assault and harassment of dozens of women in Hollywood over decades – has blown the lid off the rampant level of sexual violence and harassment against women, including in British society. The case has provided the opportunity for women to shine a light on this crisis and provoke a big discussion on how to combat it.
100 Years after the Balfour Declaration
Last Saturday (4 November) supporters of the Palestinians’ struggle demonstrated in London to mark the one hundredth anniversary of the Balfour Declaration. This declaration, by the Foreign Secretary in 1917, stated that Britain would support the establishment of a ‘national home for the Jewish people’ in Palestine. It represented the first expression of public support for Zionism by a major political power. The colonial project it supported developed into the state of Israel, resulting in the displacement of millions and death of countless tens of thousands of Palestinians. That displacement and loss of life continues to this day.
The article below by Dr. Ramzy Baroud, previously published on Counterpunch, explains how the Balfour Declaration helped destroy the Palestinian’s homeland, but has not succeeded in breaking the will of the Palestinian people.