Global Left Midweek – July 26, 2023
- India Opposition Unites for Democracy
- Spain: It’s Center/Left vs Right/Far Right
- Crackdown on Peru Protests
- Palestine and Israel: The Fierce Urgency of Now
- Cost of Living Protests in Kenya
- UK Labour Party Purges Its Left
- Dossier: Living and Surviving in Cuba
- Ukraine War Perspectives
- Congolese Students Fight Big Oil
- People’s Summit in Brussels
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India Opposition Unites for Democracy
Nagesh Prabhu / The Hindu (Mumbai)
The leaders of 26 Opposition political parties from across India have joined hands to form the INDIA coalition — the Indian National Developmental, Inclusive Alliance — to take on the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) led by the BJP, in the 2024 Lok Sabha election.
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Spain: It’s Center/Left vs Right/Far Right
Carlos E. Cué / EL PAÍS (Madrid)
Just a week ago, Spain’s Popular Party dreamed of a landslide victory that would allow it to govern the country alone. But a much greater resistance from the left than expected, with the Socialist Party surpassing its 2019 results, has left PP leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo with such a narrow victory that he will not be able to achieve a sufficient majority with the far-right Vox.
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Crackdown on Peru Protests
Ana Zorita / Green Left (Sydney)
Tens of thousands of Peruvians took to the streets across the country on July 19 to protest the Dina Boluarte coup government. Thousands marched to the capital — the third Toma de Lima (Takeover of Lima) since President Patrick Castillo was ousted — marking the first of 10 days of national action called for by unions and grassroots organisations until Peru’s Independence Day on July 28.
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Palestine and Israel: The Fierce Urgency of Now
- Mass Politics Will Win Palestinian Freedom James Hutt and Issam Aruri / Jacobin (New York)
- Israel’s Crisis Is Just Beginning Noga Tarnopolsky / Politico (Arlington VA)
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Cost of Living Protests in Kenya
Capital News (Nairobi)
Since March, Raila Odinga’s Azimio coalition has staged nine days of street protests against tax hikes by President William Ruto, with the rallies sometimes degenerating into looting and deadly clashes between security forces and demonstrators. At least 50 people have been killed in the skirmishes since March, according to Azimio. Official figures put the toll at 20.
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UK Labour Party Purging Its Left
- John McDonnell Sounds the Alarm Nicholas Watt / BBC News (London)
- Can Labour’s Hard and Soft Left Reunite? Alfie Steer / Labour Hub (London)
- A Mayor Leaves the Party Tom Belger and Morgan Jones / LabourList (London)
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Dossier: Living and Surviving in Cuba
Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung (Berlin)
The Republic of Cuba is going through an extremely complex situation, perhaps the most difficult since the victory of the revolution in 1959 and subsequent implementation of a profound transformation aimed at establishing social justice and equality. Just days before leaving office, Trump put the country on the US list of state sponsors of terrorism. This brought devastating effects on the economy.
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Perspectives on Russia’s War
- Russia’s War Divides the European Left Murray Smith / Links (Sydney)
- A Feminist Lens for the Russian Opposition Alexandra Talaver / The Moscow Times (Amsterdam)
- Internationalism and Hypocrisy Dale T McKinley / Daily Maverick (Johannesburg)
- Russia After Prigozhin’s Rebellion Lutz Brangsch / Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung (Berlin)
- Cluster Bombs and Human Rights Murtaza Hussain / The Intercept (Washington DC)
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Congolese Students Fight Big Oil
Alexandria Shaner and Pascal Mirindi / Common Dreams (Portland ME)
Student activists are traveling thousands of miles across the Democratic Republic of Congo to mobilize communities against the expansion of Big Oil. Pétrole Non Merci, or Petrol No Thanks, is a national campaign to oppose the proposed sale of 27 oil blocks and three gas blocks, most of which overlap protected areas.
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People’s Summit in Brussels