Global Left Midweek – Winter of Discontent
- France General Strike
- Italy: Signs of Life
- UK: Defending National Health
- Swaziland Communist Escapes Captivity
- Australia: Greens, Labor Party for a Four-Day Work Week
- Voices of Left Leaders in South America
- Anti-Netanyahu Upsurge in Israel
- Czech Workers vs South Korean Capital
- Unified Left Slates for Labour Party Elections
- Can the World Save the World?
__________
France: General Strike Continues
- Photos Tom Nagorski and Mariana Labbate / Grid (Washington DC)
- 72% Oppose Pension Reform Anna Maria Merlo / il manifesto Global (Rome)
- Small Towns in Revolt Juliette Gache and Léontine Gallois / Jacobin (New York)
- Signs of Life Norma Rangeri / il manifesto Global
- Creative Strikes Roberto Ciccarelli / il manifesto Global
__________
UK: Defending National Health
- NHS Strikers Speak Andy Gill and Lynette Horsburgh / BBC News (London)
- Workers Up Against It Nik Martin / Deutsche Welle (Berlin)
__________
Swaziland Communist Escapes Captivity
Pavan Kulkarni / Peoples Dispatch (New Delhi)
Mvuselelo Mkhabela narrated how he escaped from the police and made it to safety with the help of his comrades, following hours of torture, after being shot by the King’s police while leading a pro-democracy protest.
__________
Australia: Greens, Labor Party Support Four-Day Work Week
Paul Karp / The Guardian (London)
Australia should try out a four-day work week at full pay and more than double paid parental leave to 52 weeks, according to recommendations backed by Labor and Greens senators. The Senate work and care committee called for a suite of policies that would radically adjust work-life balance, to make more time for caring responsibilities and boost quality of life.
__________
Voices of Left Leaders in South America
- Francia Márquez, Vice President of Colombia Liz Oliva Fernández / Belly of the Beast (Havana)
- Ana Cha, Brazilian Landless Workers Leader Yungmi Blank and Mike Cannon / International Strategy Center (Seoul)
- Aureliano Carbonell, Colombian Guerrilla and Peace Negotiator Jenaro Abraham / NACLA Report (New York)
- Venezuelan Communards Cira Pascual Marquina and Chris Gilbert / Venezuelanalysis (Caracas)
__________
Anti-Netanyahu Upsurge While IDF and Settlers Spread Terror
- Protesters Fill the Streets WION (New Delhi)
- Palestinians Reckon With Chaos and Bloodshed Samah Salaime / +972 (Tel Aviv)
__________
Czech Workers vs South Korean Capital
Veronika Sušová-Salminen / Cross-Border Talks (Warsaw)
After a week-long strike, the Czech KOVO trade union and the management of the South Korean company Nexen Tire, with mediation from the Czech ministry of social affairs and labour and the South Korean embassy in Prague, came to terms on an 8% increase in wages for local workers. However, the agreement is a compromise, and the end of the strike is conditional.
__________
UK: Unified Left Slates for Labour Party Elections
Labour Hub (London)
Momentum and other organisations in the Centre-Left Grassroots Alliance have today announced unified slates for internal elections in the Labour Party this year. Following a Starmer-backed rule change to move away from one-member one-vote (OMOV) elections as part of a wider attack on member democracy, Labour Conference 2023 will be the body to decide on crucial elections.
__________
Can the World Save the World?
John Feffer / Foreign Policy in Focus (Washington DC)
Transforming the current system of global governance around climate, energy, and economic development is like trying to repairing an ocean liner that has sprung multiple leaks in the middle of its voyage with no land in sight. But there’s an additional twist: all the crew members have to agree on the proposed fixes.