Global Left Midweek – January 22, 2025
- Ending the Age of Plunder
- UK: Mass Marches for Solidarity of Women
- New Leadership in Vietnam
- Gaza: ‘Should We Grieve, Rejoice or Cry?’
- Africa and Fossil Fuels
- Mesoamerica and Extractivist Capital
- Mozambique’s Political Crisis
- Māori in New Zealand
- Ghana Cold Shoulders Western Sahara
- Serbia Set to Boil Over
__________
Ending the Age of Plunder
Nick Dearden / The Chartist (London)
We have to convince people that their enemy is not over there – it is here at home. It is the power of our own elites. Our fate is genuinely tied up with the liberation of people around the world. We have to end the age of plunder. We can reclaim those things that make life worth living from the clutches of the profiteers.
__________
UK: Mass Marches for Solidarity of Women
Tara Cobham / The Independent (London)
Survivors of sexual violence were among the tens of thousands who took to the streets across the UK to march in solidarity with all oppressed women and girls around the world. Around 5,000 demonstrators walked alongside loved ones and strangers in London on Saturday, shouting chants like “My body, my choice,” while intricate homemade signs reading “And still we rise” were held up.
__________
New Leadership in Vietnam
David Brown / East Asia Forum (Canberra)
Following the death of Vietnam’s long-time leader Nguyen Phu Trong in July 2025, To Lam assumed leadership of the Communist Party. In his brief time in office, Lam has already made clear his intention to implement institutional reforms and streamline the nation’s party-state apparatus.
__________
Gaza: ‘Should We Grieve, Rejoice or Cry?’
Malak A Tantesh and Jason Burke / The Guardian (London)
The last hours in Gaza before the ceasefire between Hamas and Israel came into effect resembled the preceding 15 months of war: full of fear, anxiety and violence. What was new was the hope that an end to the suffering was near.
__________
Africa and Fossil Fuels
Boniface Mwangi / African Arguments (London)
In Africa, oil and gas have destroyed our way of life, turned young people into militias, and brought more misery, tears, and death to our continent. The curse of fossil fuels can only be stopped if we cease the drilling, and transition to clean energy. All African governments should support the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty, which calls for an end to new coal, oil, and gas projects.
__________
Mesoamerica and Extractivist Capital
The Mesoamerican Grassroots Movement looks into the historical resistance of the peoples of the region against imperialism and the exploitation of their territories.
__________
Mozambique’s Political Crisis
Rehad Desai / Global Ecosocialist Network
With Frelimo shorn of its former radicalism and embroiled in one corruption scandal after another, the povo (people) have become increasingly disaffected. A rentier state and class had become openly visible but no party or oppositional movement was willing to organise itself against the imposition of this new form of class power.
__________
Māori in New Zealand
Maea Lenei Buhre and Ali Rogin / PBS News (Washington DC)
New Zealand has long been known for its progressive policies, including efforts to correct and address historical wrongs against its indigenous Māori population. But a new right-wing government has reversed many of those policies and triggered mass protests in the Pacific nation.
__________
Ghana Cold Shoulders Western Sahara
Nicholas Mwangi / Peoples Dispatch (New Delhi)
This month, Ghana’s outgoing administration announced the suspension of diplomatic relations with the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. The SADR asserts its sovereignty over Western Sahara and is recognized by the African Union (AU) and numerous countries globally. Yet Morocco has sought to undermine SADR’s legitimacy, leveraging economic partnerships to sway nations to its side.
__________
Serbia Set to Boil Over
Sanja Kljajic / Deutsche Welle (Berlin)
After three months of protests, demonstrators in Serbia are calling for a general strike. The government is threatening retaliation. Serbia is at a crossroads. Is change possible?