SRI LANKA: CIVIL WAR END BUT UNSETTLED SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC PROBLEMS FOR WORKING CLASS AND POOR

EXPERIENCE OF VISIT TO SRI LANKA...

Since the end of the civil war in Sri Lanka in 2009, the ruling party had claimed that the country is now heading towards a new era of sustainable political stability and economic growth. The victory of the Sri Lankan army over the LTTE has provided a venue for President Rajapakshe to regain control by winning the 2010 election for second term. While some claim Rajapakshe to be a Singhala hero who defeated the Tamil Tigers, others have accused the regime of brutal war crimes and violation of human rights against the Tamil people. However, the ruling party is constantly trying to shift the attention away from socio/economic issues. The government's claim is that the country had been torn apart by a long civil war and since now it is over, the focus should be in economic growth. They also further address that all humanitarian efforts are being undertaken to ensure the safe keeping of the thousands of injured, traumatised, displaced, starving victims of war who are in need of immediate help. Whatever the claims from the government, the truth is much harder to find out due to its abnormal secrecy and overwhelmingly conflicting evidence. Although Sri Lanka has emerged as one of the fastest growing nation in the world in 2010, it does not necessarily translate as better living condition for its citizens. Mega projects with China and India only shows the interest of alien power in gaining control over Sri Lanka's vastly untapped natural resources. My trip to Sri Lanka on the September last year had given me a chance to witness in person the actual living conditions of the people. I also had the chance to visit different communities in different regions of Sri Lanka and gained much awareness about many issues, including the civil war.

KRISIS KAPITALISME DUNIA YANG SEMAKIN TENAT

 

2011 merupakan tahun bersejarah bagi perjuangan kelas pekerja dan anak muda. Ianya telah menyaksikan revolusi dan pergerakan massa di Timur Tengah dan Afrika Utara; krisis di dalam Kesatuan Eropah dan matawang Euro yang semakin meruncing; kebangkitan kelas pekerja di seluruh Eropah akibat serangan kerajaan pro-kapitalisme terhadap hak, demokrasi dan keperluan kelas pekerja dan anak muda; dan perkembangan gerakan ‘Occupy’ yang telah merebak ke seluruh dunia.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT SOCIALISM

Answering Common Questions about Socialism

With the rise of the Occupy movement, opposition to the existing political and economic order has gone mainstream. It’s hard to imagine that the bandana-clad woman on the cover of Time magazine – representing “The Protestor,” Time’s “Person of the Year” – has many nice things to say about capitalism, and the ubiquity of the Guy Fawkes mask – popularized by “V for Vendetta” – further underscores how widespread the idea of revolution has become.

However, this growing support for system change has not yet been matched by a serious public dialogue about what an alternative might look like. A new Pew poll published 28/12/2011 in United States indicated that people who are under 30 or black are more likely to favor socialism than capitalism, but this does not correspond to clear ideas of what socialism is or how a socialist economic and political system would work. We offer up this FAQ as a contribution to the discussion.

SENIMAN DAN PERJUANGAN KELAS: MENGUPAS PENGALAMAN WIJI TUKUL

Di Malaysia akhir-akhir ini kita sering melihat tekanan politik yang semakin kuat daripada pemerintah terhadap segala macam bentuk penentangan terhadap kekuasaan Barisan Nasional. Situasi ini sebenarnya bukan merupakan perkara yang luar biasa bagi sebuah negara yang dipimpin oleh sebuah kuasa yang telah terlalu lama di tampuk pemerintahan dan semakin takut akan kehilangan kuasanya. Apalagi kalau melihat penentangan itu tidak hanya muncul daripada parti politik pembangkang sahaja, tetapi juga melibatkan unsur yang lain, seperti aktivis politik, peguam, penulis blog, seniman, dan anak muda. Masing-masing kumpulan ini memainkan peranan tersendiri di dalam lanskap politik terkini. Namun, tulisan singakt ini hendak memberikan penekanan khusus kepada peranan seniman di dalam proses perubahan politik tersebut.

ULASAN TAHUN 2011...MENEMPUH 2012 !

2011 TAHUN KEBANGKITAN RAKYAT …2012 KRISIS KAPITALISMA DIJANGKA TENAT …PILIHANRAYA UMUM MALAYSIA KE-13 ‘IBU’ SEGALA PILIHANRAYA.

Tahun 2011 bermula dengan revolusi di negara-negara Asia Barat dan Afrika Utara. Satu demi satu regim diktator yang telah bermaharajalela berpuluh-puluh tahun runtuh akibat keteguhan kebangkitan rakyat yang dipelopori oleh anak muda dan kelas pekerja yang menuntut hak demokrasi dan keperluan sosial. Bermula dengan Tunisia, kebangkitan rakyat seterusnya menular ke Mesir, Libya, Yemen dan negara-negara lain. Manakala di Syria ketika kita mencecah tahun 2012 perjuangan rakyat di negara tersebut terhadap regim autokratik Bashar semakin sengit.

 

APA PERBEZAAN BELANJAWAN BN DAN PAKATAN?

ANAK MUDA DAN KELAS PEKERJA PERLU MEMBINA ALTERNATIF KEPADA POLITIK PRO-KAPITALISME

Hampir setiap hari akbar tempatan mahupun antarabangsa berkisar tentang ekonomi global yang semakin hari semakin tenat. Terbukti juga bahawa teori Marx tentang ekonomi dan kapitalisme masih releven untuk memahami mengapa krisis tersebut yang bermula pada 2008 masih tidak mendapat penyelesaian.  Malah runtuhnya tembok Berlin pada tahun 1989 tidak bererti Marxisme turut jatuh menyembah bumi sekali walaupun diuar-uarkan ideologinya  tidak relevan lagi. Yang jatuhnya hanyalah pemerintahan kukubesi birokrasi Stalinisme yang telah menghancurkan demokrasi pekerja dan rakyat biasa yang amat diperlukan untuk pembinaan ekonomi terancang sosialisme untuk mengorganisasi keperluan masyarakat. Malahan rakyat biasa di negara-negara di bawah Stalinisme atau Maoisme tersebut yang telah kembali ke tampuk kapitalisme selepas kejatuhan rejim-rejim di negara mereka, sekarang menghadapi eksploitasi yang lebih ganas akibat krisis di dalam sistem kapitalisme itu sendiri. 

MALAYSIA: EFFECTS OF GLOBAL CRISIS FELT IN ASIA

MALAYSIAN ECONOMY ENTERS DIFFICULT PERIOD

Since the ruling BN (National Front) government suffered the unprecedented loss of its two- thirds majority, due to the successes of the opposition Pakatan Rakyat in the 2008 general election. it has been going all out to regain the lost ground by introducing government and economic transformation programmes. Recently, also to try and gain some popularity, it  announced plans to abolish the extremely unpopular and draconian Internal Security Act (while still retaining broad powers to try and suppress social movements that threaten its hold on power). 

THAILAND: ‘CLONE’ OF THAKSIN ELECTED, BUT SOCIAL CONFLICTS COULD PERSIST

The business-woman, Yingluck Shinawatra, sister of the controversial former prime minister, the tycoon Thaksin Shinawatra, was chosen by Thailand’s parliament as the country’s 28th prime minister on 5 August.

She is the first female prime minister of the country. At the age of 44, she is also the youngest female prime minister in the world. This comes after the Pheu Thai Party led by Thaksin supporters won the 3 July general elections by an absolute majority. Winning 265 out of 500 parliamentary seats, they have built alliances with smaller parties to form a 300-seat coalition. 

On paper, Yingluk’s government seems stable. It has 60 per cent support in parliament, a weakened anti-Thaksin movement and a lack of support for the military at this stage. But much of the unresolved social and economic dissatisfaction in society could trigger new conflicts. Thailand has gone through many military coups, interventions by the monarchy and the removal of prime ministers through uprisings and protests. All these changes of government have safeguarded the interests of the capitalist class while neglecting the needs of the working class and rural poor. 

CAPITALIST LEADERS DESPERATE TO CALM TURMOIL

Trying to control an anarchic and blind system, none of the measures taken stem the downward spiral

As their system continues to slide into its worst crisis since the 1930s, the frantic efforts of world capitalist leaders to reverse the process are farcical, contradictory and ineffective. “Is anyone in control? Is this a runaway train?” asked a presenter on a British news programme on Monday evening - the day Wall Street crashed by 6% and markets everywhere plummeted.

In a matter of weeks, more than $5 trillion has been wiped from equity market values worldwide – half of that total in the past week. The creditworthiness of the most powerful economy in the world has been questioned. Eurozone leaders are stumbling from one summit to another without being able to solve the crisis.

Capitalism uncovered

BOOK REVIEW : 23 Things They Don’t Tell You About Capitalism By Ha-Joon Chang

Ha-Joon Chang exposes today’s rapacious capitalism, dominated by finance and driven by short-term profit maximisation. He provides a devastating critique of the ideology of ‘free-market’ economics. But while pointing to fundamental contradictions of the system, Chang draws back from a real alternative. LYNN WALSH reviews 23 Things They Don’t Tell You About Capitalism.

 

SINCE 1980, ULTRA-free market (or neoliberal) policies have been implemented in Britain, the US and other major capitalist economies basing themselves on the Anglo-American model. More recently, other countries, such as Germany, Sweden, etc, have turned down the same path. The basic ingredients of neoliberal policies are clear: the deregulation of markets, especially the finance sector. Cutting back the state, through privatisation of state enterprises and the public sector. Massive tax concessions to big business and the super-rich. An assault on organised labour and trade union rights. The justification for these measures is that they lead to a more efficient use of resources, with higher growth rates and, ultimately, greater prosperity for all. The reality, as Chang shows, is completely different.