Labour Left Briefing December 1998

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Below you will find links to all the articles from the December 1998 issue of Labour Left Briefing.

Editorial

Blair strategy ups the anti

Tony Blair has made clear his intention to exclude Ken Livingstone from Labour's one member one vote ballot for London Mayor.

Punishing the Iraqi people

The US-British policy of punishing the people of Iraq for the crimes and provocations of Saddam Hussein is illogical and inhumane.

News and views

Right down to the wire

Ken Livingstone MP pledges to fight by (almost) any means necessary to become Labour's candidate for London's Mayor.

London Labour "Board" bumps Ken

London Region officers are just as determined as the national Labour leadership to stop Ken Livingstone becoming London's Mayor. Christine Shawcroft, a member of the London Regional Board, reports.

Support Party members' right to decide their candidates

With the suspicion that the Party leadership is trying to keep London Party members from adopting Ken Livingstone MP as Labour's candidate for Mayor of London, LLB urges its readers to move the following motion supporting the policy agreed by GLLP conference.

Gay days here for New Labour

Peter Purton, a national officer of the Labour Campaign for Lesbian and Gay Rights, sees recent events as further evidence that the Government can and should bring in an anti-discrimination law.

The murder of Matthew Shepard and fighting the politics of hate

Jaime R. Balboa, Event Co-ordinator, International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC), draws an "unforgettable lesson" from the latest homophobic atrocity.

Obituary: Kwame Ture, freedom fighter

Mike Marqusee writes.

Trim those hedge fund speculators

Sean Fitzpatrick continues our debate on alternative economic policy by looking at a taxing question being considered by some of Labour's sister parties.

Lesson is: schools are not for sale

Glyn Rowlands, Haringey UNISON and Tottenham CLP, reports on the battle against privatisation in the London Borough of Haringey.

Surrey moves to privatise school

Council plans: all mod cons?

Christine Shawcroft examines the effects of the new White Paper Modernising Local Government.

Some Brief words of wisdom

The LLB AGM was the start of a serious discussion among activists on the challenges facing the Labour left. Here are highlights of two of the speeches.

New network debates Euro-seats

A new network of socialists may take advantage of the regional list system (if it goes ahead) in next year's Euro-elections, with success in some areas a distinct possibility. Mike Phipps reports.

Leeds comrades say 'enough is enough'

Celia Foote tells LLB of the origins of the Leeds Independent Labour Network.

Off message

NEC member Liz Davies provides a viewpoint from the grass roots.

Labour Party

Wales is mugged by Millbank

Our Cardiff correspondent reports on the angry reaction to attempts to foist Alun Michael on Wales.

Canavan takes UDI road?

Members and activists in Falkirk West were considering their position in the Labour Party this week, following the decision of Dennis Canavan MP to stand as an Independent at next year's Scottish Parliament elections. Our Scottish correspondent reports.

Playing the percentages game

More than 50,000 Party members voted for Christine Shawcroft in the recent NEC elections. Here she looks at the future of the Grassroots Alliance.

Leeds North East left fight back

Councillor Garth Frankland reports.

Labour's socialists meeting opportunity of Alliance

Dorothy Macedo previews the Network of Socialist Campaign Groups' AGM.

You ask a silly question...

If you didn't (or did) laugh, you'd write a resolution.

Coalition politics out of the closet

The Alan Simpson column

Trade unions

National Minimum Wage demo

MSF witch-hunt

First union conference: don't let it be a servant of the right

Mike Loates, Lord Chancellor's Department (PRFD) branch secretary and delegate to the PCS national conference, reports.

Going Underground

Islington cuts

Leading with the left

The Geoff Martin column

International

No hiding place for Chilean dicator

Sergio Requeña-Rueda fought against the Pinochet military junta and was arrested and tortured in 1976. Recently he travelled to Madrid to make a statement before the judges seeking to extradite Pinochet concerning two Spanish "disappeared" whom he saw at the notorious Villa Grimaldi. Here he looks at the implications of Pinochet's arrest for Chilean democracy.

More than just tea with Thatcher

Sue Lukes reports.

The French lessons on the third way

Andrew Coates, Ipswich CLP, writes about opposition in France to neo-liberalism as preached by Tony Blair.

Palestine: understanding Wye

Bob Deed, member of the Executive of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign 1995-98 (personal capacity) explains that the new agreement means more of the same.

South Africa: part of the truth is out there, but where is the justice?

Andy George, writing from Cape Town, calls for not just words, but action, after some of crimes of apartheid are exposed.

An armed wing of unionism

Brian Campbell, editor of Sinn Fein's An Phoblacht/Republican News reports from Patten's Policing Commission meeting in South Armagh.

Fighting a duel with the free marketeers

Caroline Dumonteil reports on the actions in Paris against the MAI and warns that global deregulators will now seek to push through their agenda on the sly.

US Labor Party draws up first constitution

David Walters, delegate from San Francisco Golden Gate Chapter, reports on the First Constitutional Convention of the US Labor Party.

Iran Aid victimised

Nicaragua relief effort hampered

Hurricane Mitch killed nearly 4,000 people in Nicaragua and caused $1 billion in damage. Now the Government is playing political games with the relief effort. Mike Phipps reports.

Indonesia ignites

Max Lane and Don Rocinante report.

Left MPs are being played for suckers

The Michael Hindley column

Fighting racism

No justice, no peace

Calling for a new civil rights movement, Suresh Grover, co-ordinator of the Stephen Lawrence Campaign, urges Labour Party activists to see their struggles in a wider context.

Labour halts funds to anti- racist Monitoring Group

The Monitoring Group, the leading anti-racist community-based organisation in West London, has now been stripped of funding by Labour councils in Ealing, Hillingdon and Hounslow.

Reviews

This is the modern world!

Mike Phipps reviews The Moderniser's Dilemma, edited by Anne Coddington and Mark Perryman.

Blood, sweat and cheers

Mike Phipps reviews Crossing Borders by Rigoberta Menchu, Women and Social Movements in Latin America by Lynn Stephen and Red Hot by Hall Greenland.

Labour's first black MP

Eddie Tucker reviews Comrade Sak by Marc Wadsworth.

Red South West

Eddie Tucker reviews the new magazine available from, among others, Exeter Left Group..

Show racism the red card

Eddie Tucker examines a working class report against racism in football.

Burchill cashes in

Paul Wellings, Romford CLP, reviews Julie Burchill's Diana.

Periscope

AOB

Correspondence

LLB is an independent voice and forum for socialist ideas in the Labour Party and trade unions. It is managed by an editorial board elected at its AGM. Both EBs and the AGM are open to all supporters. We are happy to offer a right of reply to all members of the labour movement and we welcome criticisms and contributions. All the articles in LLB reflect solely the opinions of the authors, writing in a personal capacity, unless otherwise stated.

To survive and thrive we need the support of our readers. Why not take copies of LLB to sell at your Labour Party, trade union or campaign meetings?

Copy deadline: for the February issue is Monday 18th January. If you wish to contribute please phone us first. We reserve the right to edit all articles.

Editorial Board: Editorial Board: Graham Bash, Tony Dale, Liz Davies, Mark Donoghue, Jenny Fisher, Jon Green, Simon Hewitt, Simon Kennedy, Des Kirkland, Liz Knight, John Leonida, Leonora Lloyd (Co-Chair), Sue Lukes, Dorothy Macedo (Co-Chair), Mike Marqusee (Political Correspondent), Fiona Monkman, Mike Phipps, David Pope, Jon Rogers, Christine Shawcroft, John Stewart, Alistair Ward (Editor).

Production Team: Graham Bash, Gary Drostle, Sean Fitzpatrick, Louise Kawakami, Dave Lewney, Leonora Lloyd, Dorothy Macedo, Mike Marqusee, Mike Phipps, David Pope, Eddie Tucker, Alistair Ward. Web site editor: Chris Croome (chris@atomism.demon.co.uk).

Front cover Design: Dros

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