Britain - The birth of a new political movement: mass rallies show huge support for Corbyn Yesterday evening 2,500 people descended on central London to hear Jeremy Corbyn put forward a bold alternative to austerity at the latest in a series of mass meetings taking place up a down the country. The rally was so oversubscribed that despite the main hall of the cavernous Camden Centre being packed to bursting point, two other ‘overflow’ halls were filled with Corbyn supporters, while hundreds more waited outside, unable to squeeze into the building.
Ukraine: Not so quiet on the Western front In the Western Ukrainian region of Zakarpattia, Far-right Right Sector have clashed violently with police, resulting in two militants dead and several bystanders injured. What does this mean for the stability of post-Euromaidan alliance?
Britain: Labour's welfare betrayal - kick out the Blairites! Fight the cuts with socialist policies! The vote on the Tories’ welfare reform bill, which would see £12 billion cut from the welfare budget, has revealed the depths of servility to which the Blairite leaders of the Labour Party like Harriet Harman are prepared to stoop. This issue has burst open the abscess at the heart of the Labour Party leadership, exposing the depth of rottenness that has set in: 184 members shamefully abstained on the Tory proposals. Meanwhile a fifth of the parliamentary party, 48 MPs, including many of the 2015 intake, rejected the leadership’s stance in one of the biggest Labour rebellions in recent years.
Britain: War criminal Blair intervenes as right wing gets desperate Desperate times call for desperate measures. And so it is that after a week of frothing at the mouth and spewing forth a torrent of bile and vitriol, the New Labour acolytes have finally called forward their Messiah to try and push back the surging Corbyn tide. Unfortunately for these Tories in disguise, the intervention of their Dear Leader will not have the intended effect. So hated is the war criminal Blair, and so patronising and condescending is his “advice” to Labour members, that his contribution in the debate will only push further layers into supporting Jeremy in his leadership bid.
Blairites rattled as Corbyn campaign gathers pace – victory is possible! To the shock and surprise of the Blairites, Jeremy Corbyn has emerged as the frontrunner in the race to become the next leader of the Labour Party. At the time of writing Jeremy has secured the nominations of 70 constituency Labour parties, ahead of the ‘favourite’ Andy Burnham at 67, with Yvette Cooper on 58 and the arch Blairite Liz Kendall trailing at 12. At the same time a leaked private poll of party members has shown Jeremy to have a commanding lead of 15 points over his three right-wing opponents.
No to the dictatorship of the bankers! Revolutionary mood sweeps across Europe The bankers and capitalists of Europe have stamped their iron heel down on the people of Greece. Despite the democratic decision of the Greek people to oppose the nightmare of austerity – overwhelmingly in both the January general election and the recent referendum - the dictatorship of big business has said “No!” The Greek people must endure a new Versailles Treaty, where chunks of the country will be sold off to the highest bidder. Faced with decades of penury, they are being systematically turned into a semi-colony.
Britain: Fight the Tory Trade Union Bill with militant action! A new Tory Government was never going to mean a new era of peace and harmony, especially under the social and economic conditions prevailing today.
Greek parliament votes Troika-imposed “prior actions”, government loses majority, rebellion in Syriza ranks It was after midnight on July 15 when the Greek parliament finally approved an omnibus law containing all of the “prior actions” demanded by the institutions. The vote was met with strike action, demonstrations, a rebellion by 38 Syriza MPs and the opposition of the majority of the party’s Central Committee members. Tsipras survived but he had to rely on the votes of those parties which passed the previous two Memoranda which Syriza was elected to oppose.
Britain: Energy and enthusiasm on display at REVOLUTION 2015 An extremely successful academic year for the Marxist societies at British Universities was brought to a close with an equally successful weekend of inspiring discussions at REVOLUTION 2015, organised by Socialist Appealand the Marxist Student Federation between 26-28th June. Over 80 students and youth participated over the weekend, contributing enthusiastically in the debates and discussions about the revolutionary ideas of Marxism.
Majority of Syriza's central committee members reject Brussel's deal - Tsipras has lost control of the party. A statement by 109 out of the 201 members of Syriza CC rejects the Brussels deal which it describes as a coup and says it cannot be accepted by Syriza. Tsipras has lost control of the party. Below we bring the statement:
Greece: a humiliating capitulation which will not work The deal imposed on Greece in the early hours of July 13 after an all-night Euro Summit can only be described as a humiliating capitulation. Greece has basically given up sovereignty to the Troika in exchange for a new strings-attached bailout and some vague promises that debt restructuring (but not debt forgiveness) will be studied, at a later date, perhaps. This deal will not work. It will politically destroy Tsipras and Syriza and economically will plunge Greece even further into recession. It has also exposed deep rifts within the European Union.
Greece: The new agreement - sellout and punishment for the people's 'NO' vote Organise mass resistance against the the junta – consisting of the Troika, the oligarchy and the capitulating government - to stop the passing the agreement by parliament!
Greece: government's proposals to the Troika turning OXI into YES The next few hours are, again, crucial in Greece. The victory of the OXI in the referendum is being quickly turned into its opposite. The government has sent a proposal to the Troika which in essence represents accepting what people rejected in the referendum on Sunday. This in exchange for a new, third, bailout it has requested from the European Stability Mechanism, which is thought to be worth 70bn euro. It remains to be seen if this will be enough for the Troika Minotaur. Opposition is also growing in the ranks of Syriza and beyond, among the Greek working masses aroused by their victory in the referendum, but the government has worked to secure the support of bourgeois opposition...
The adoption of a new memorandum after the popular "No" will be a parliamentary coup - organise mass mobilisations to prevent it! The Syriza government has proposed a new deal with the Troika, which in effect is the same memorandum which was voted down by the referendum. Here we bring a resolution, commenting on this new development, by the .
Britain: Unite the Union backs Corbyn as support for anti-austerity campaign grows The news that the national executive of Unite, Britain’s largest union, has come out in support of Jeremy Corbyn’s campaign to become Labour leader will be welcomed by both Labour members and trade unionists. Corbyn has also received the backing of ASLEF, RMT, FBU, and BFAWA trade unions, and from the Socialist Education Association. Other unions and organisations - particularly the other big unions of Unison and GMB - must now also act to reflect the will of their members and follow suit.