Archives
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Locked-Up for Reading: Young Leftists in China Speak Out
On November 15, 2017, police stormed into a student reading group at the Guangdong University of Technology (GDUT) and seized six participants, including four current students at the university and two recent graduates from other schools. The former were released the next day, but the latter two were placed under detention as suspects for the crime of “gathering crowds to disrupt social order” – a charge we have seen increasingly leveled against multiple feminists, labour activists, striking workers and bloggers over the past five years. Keep reading »
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P3 Corporate Collapse Highlights Risks of Privatization
The collapse of Carillion, a global privatization corporation, illustrates the risky nature of public-private partnerships (P3s) and contracting out. Carillion is involved in 10 P3s across Canada, primarily in hospitals in Ontario, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories. Two hospitals are still in development. Keep reading »
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The Iran Protests: A Third Path to Political Change?
An Alternative to the Politics of “National Security” Emerges Days of protests in Iran have caught statesmen, analysts and observers by surprise, even though the anti-austerity and anti-establishment sentiments behind this … Keep reading »
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Carillion and the Latest Privatisation Scandal
This week 20,000 Carillion workers and many more in the supply chain have had their livelihoods put at risk. The responsibility lies with this shambolic Tory government and mismanagement by … Keep reading »
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Justice for Hassan Diab and the Unbearable Banality of Evil
Great joy and relief came with the news this January 12th that French investigative judges issued an “order of final release” for Dr. Hassan Diab from a French maximum security prison. Dr. Hassan Diab is a Canadian citizen and sociology professor who lived in Ottawa. He was extradited from Canada to France in November 2014 even though the Canadian extradition judge Robert Maranger described the evidence presented against Dr. Hassan Diab as “very problematic,” “convoluted,” “illogical,” and “suspect. Keep reading »
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Homelessness Doesn’t End in April
Toronto City Council Must Start Building Shelters Now Homeless people in Toronto are in crisis. In the first nine months of 2017, the city has recorded an average of 8 homeless … Keep reading »
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Another Europe is Needed
Since the end of World War II, tribal rivalries and xenophobic sentiment in Europe have never been as strong as they are today. And this is but one of the … Keep reading »
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The Rage of the Poor in Iran
The protests against the high cost of living in the cities of Khorasan province on December 28th soon spread to many cities of Iran incredibly quick and almost turned into a revolt within a week. The protests primarily targeted the high cost of living, financial difficulties and corruption. However, they quickly became politicized and began to target the foundations of the Islamic Republic (IR), namely the religious autocracy. The slogans quickly turned from “death to high cost of living” to “death to the dictator.” Keep reading »
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Heyday for Nepali Communists
Communists have won a landslide victory in the elections for House of Representatives of Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal held in two phases on 26th November and 7th December 2017. In a parliament of 275, the elections were held for 165 seats under the first past the post system (FPTP) and the rest, 110 seats, were by proportional system. Farooq Tariq visited Nepal for four days after the election results were announced from 13/17 December 2017 and reports. Keep reading »
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Whither Left Electoral Politics in Toronto?
Analysis of municipal elections and prospects for electing independent left candidates. Keep reading »
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Anti-Regime Protests in Iran
Three statements on the latest anti-regime protests in Iran. Mass protests in over 50 cities across Iran have been taking place since December 28th amid heavy security to raise people’s voices against massive poverty, skyrocketing cost of living, vast corruption and embezzlement by officials on all levels as well as brutal political repression. Keep reading »
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COP23: From the Gap to the Precipice
The Twenty-Third Conference of the Parties Signatory to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate has just concluded in Bonn, Germany. It was an intermediate meeting between COP21 in Paris in 2015 and COP24 in Katowice (Poland) in 2018. Keep reading »