alanjjohnstone
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When Indonesia became independent in 1949, West Papua did not join the country. West Papua is geographically, ethnically and culturally very different to Indonesia.
The facts are – Sukarno initiated the invasion of West Papua with Operation Trikora, long before the coup against him. West Papua was eventually incorporated into Indonesia in 1969 with both US and USSR support after a rigged referendum.
Today there exists a Free Papua Movement.
Sukarno was a dictator. When he was overthrown by Suharto, his power-base, the Communist Party was destroyed with perhaps half a million of its members murdered and millions more jailed.
Over-simplification of the political situation doesn’t bring clariffication.
Truck drivers who support Brazil’s outgoing President Jair Bolsonaro blocked roads in 230 protests in 20 states on Monday as Bolsonaro himself remained silent on losing the election.His silence has led to speculation as to whether Bolsonaro will concede defeat, or whether he will claim electoral fraud. Some truckers are calling for a military coup to prevent Lula becoming president,
https://www.dw.com/en/brazil-truckers-block-roads-as-bolsonaro-remains-silent/a-63611771
Labour Together – a network of MPs, staffers, members and thinktanks – has been appointed to build a more “coherent narrative”.
It is all to be about the message from now on.
“What matters isn’t that Labour has a huge long list of policies that covers every area. It’s that people understand what Labour’s priorities are. That’s the most important thing. And what it needs to communicate that effectively is a few very focused policies…”
Moderator Notice
They may appear off-topic but the messages you complain about relate as I see it to the issue of nationalism, sovereignty, national liberation, imperialism and anti-imperialism, which are all subjects connected to the causes of the Ukrainian war and some are aspects that you yourself have raised in past posts (if I recollect correctly)
However, what concerns me about the moderation is the possible breaching of Rule 6
“Do not make repeated postings of the same or similar messages to the same thread, or to multiple threads or forums (‘cross-posting’). Do not make multiple postings within a thread that could be consolidated into a single post (‘serial posting’)…”Some posters (perhaps even myself) may be guilty of transgressing that rule. So try and restrain one’s enthusiasm and exercise a bit more self-control. It is a long enough thread as it is. Let’s not add too many extraneous posts if we can.
From RT
Blame it all on LeninBD, from 1979–1989 Russia, (I should say at the time, the USSR) fought the Mujahideen. Was Russia imperialist? Was the Mujahideen anti-imperialist despite being backed by not only the usual suspects, the US and the UK but also Iran, China, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, such an odd coalition of bed-fellows?
What about Indonesia? It does not remotely correspond to any pre-colonial entity, possessing an enormous variety of peoples, cultures, languages and religions. The people at one end have far more in common with their neighbours across the national frontier than with their fellow “Indonesians”. Its shape was determined by the last Dutch conquests. What did national liberation independence bring? The immediate invasion of its neighbours. The oppressed very quickly transform into the oppressor. And now it has friendly relations with Australia to share mutual self-interest.
Regimes that may now present themselves as anti-imperialist have a history of collaborating with imperialism.
The terms used are as slippery as eels. When discussing imperialism and anti-imperialism it is a rabbit-hole we go into and a warren of contradictions. The problem is that every war is justified by a massive propaganda effort which is based on demonizing the enemy. Countries decides whether or not to support wars according to their own assessment of their strategic, political and economic interests.
There is no reason why socialists should allow themselves to be used as tools of some capitalist state.
We reject any nationalism as anti-worker because it always ties them to their class enemy. A key feature of capitalism is that the world is organised into a system of states in which a few – the imperialist powers – are arranged in a pecking order to dominate others economically, politically, and militarily. The question is what stance Marxists should take when states fight one another. Our answer is class solidarity needs to take precedence over any national allegiance.
Once again thanks for the replies.
I agree with YMS, it should always be a return to class struggle.
The politicians and media too often control and steer the public conversation, overlooking why unions take action and receive their members support. Budget policies do determine bread and butter issues.
I’ll let you continue the discourse without any more interruptions from myself.
Somalia, Somaliland, Puntland, Jubaland
Some may see the multitude of states as the problem.
The Brexiteer campaign was to reclaim national sovereignty and abrogate international agreements.
Does it matter if Scotland or Catalonia declares independence? A new Passport? A new currency?
The Irish fought a bloody war for “freedom” from a United Kingdom and are now content with European Union.
YMS, I appreciate you taking the time to respond.
It is because I am finding the exchanges on this topic difficult to directly relate to the important points you mention that posted my message.
It seemed to me the working-class pain and why it is being exacerbated is what is missing in the discussion.
I look for answers to offer the people I work and live alongside that both they and myself can comprehend.
You may think it is simplifying things to talk in theory about Bob and Alice but it is not succeeding because I still cannot link it to the real economy and its impact on my daily life through price rises, wage cuts and imposition of austerity on social and welfare services.
Possessing only a superficial understanding of political economy, the significance of any difference in analysis is lost by me.
I agree we must look behind the curtain and not accept the media’s stereotypical villains such as the banksters or the Gnomes of Zurich as they were called in the days of my youth. And we should be cautious about simplistic populist answers.
However, I am pleased it is a comradely debate and both sides seeking clarification and hopefully can reach a reconciliation of differences.
Global Financial Leaders’ Investment Summit in Hong Kong
200 financiers representing top financial institutions, including Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase, UBS and BlackRock, are expected to attend the summit, which takes place November 1-3.
US-funded upgrade of Tindal airbase in Northern Territory will allow it to house up to six B-52s.
The new aircraft parking apron was one of many capital infrastructure works aiming to support US force posture initiatives, alongside upgrades to airfields, fuel storage facilities, accommodation and training areas.
Maria Caulfield, the Tory MP for Lewes, was previously an officer of the all-party parliamentary “pro-life” group and voted against legalising abortion in Northern Ireland, appointed minister for women.
Harriet Wistrich, the director of the Centre for Women’s Justice, said: “We are horrified that a clear opponent of abortion rights has been appointed minister for women.”
