Chinese authorities increase crackdown on workers and students In recent months, a protracted struggle has been underway in China, with workers and students standing in solidarity against the pro-capitalist regime. This is highlighted by the recent, brutal clampdown on student activists involved in worker solidarity.
The ideological roots of the Indonesian Communist Party’s defeat in 1965 Ted Sprague explains how the mighty Indonesian Communist Party was defeated and destroyed in 1965 by Suharto's forces of reaction, resulting in the murder of millions of communists and their sympathisers. This historical tragedy, the consequence of the political and theoretical errors of the Communist Party's Stalinist leadership, is rich with lessons for Marxists today.
The real stakes in the Trump-China trade war Two weeks ago, Trump announced tariffs on another $200bn worth of imports from China. The announcement was met with protests from the Chinese, as well as big business in the US. China responded with tariffs on another $60bn of imports from the US. This trade war reveals the frictions that have been developing for some time between the imperialist powers, and threatens to plunge the world into a new recession.
Update on Peking University Marxist Society Zhan Dou Zhe, the author of our previous article, "China: Marxist Society faces closure for supporting striking workers," has obtained news that as of 25 September, the Peking University Marxist Society finally found a faculty advisor and were able to complete their registration.
China: Marxist Society faces closure for supporting striking workers On 20 September, an open letter from a representative of the Peking University (PKU) Marxist Society (MS) in Beijing, China began circulating on Chinese social media. The letter detailed the significant difficulty that the society faced this month in finding a faculty advisor required to re-register as a recognised student club on the campus.
China: JASIC workers’ struggle reveals rising class tensions In early June of this year, the workers of the Chinese welding equipment manufacturer Jasic Technologies in Shenzhen attempted to legally unionise to protect themselves from chronically poor working conditions and brutal treatment by the management.
Pakistan: Marxist School (summer) a big success A two-day Marxist School was held in Rawalakot, Kashmir in which over one-hundred comrades participated from across Pakistan and Kashmir. Despite difficult economic conditions, long distances and sweltering heat, comrades arrived with great enthusiasm to take part in these discussions demonstrating their commitment to the ideas of Marxism. Preparatory schools were also held in various cities in which all the suggested topics were discussed in detail.
Pakistan: 14 Coal Miners die as new Parliament takes oath On Monday 13 August, just as Pakistan’s new parliament were taking oath after the recent elections, fourteen workers died in a coal mine near Quetta. The miners were trapped by a gas explosion inside the mine on Sunday.
Bangladesh: road safety protests expose rotten establishment Massive student protests have been ongoing in Dhaka, Bangladesh related to road safety demands. On 29 July, two buses, with unlicensed drivers, crossed a footpath and collided, killing two students and injuring dozens of people. Since then, various neighbourhoods in Dhaka and neighbouring highways to other towns, such as Tangail and Narayanganj, have seen protests by students demanding justice and safer roads.
中国全国罢工趋势凸显基层压力 随着中国共产党在国际舞台上表现越发得自信,中国的工人阶级也开始对资本主义残酷的现实表现不满。从五月开始,卡车司机、送餐工人和吊车司机举行了三起高曝光率的全国范围的罢工行动。这些罢工的规模,虽然跟整个工人阶级相比较还算是小的,但是工人在多个重点城市联合组织的能力展示了阶级的一层正被推向更深的抗争。
China: a trade war the bourgeois can get behind World politics is a never-ending drama with Trump as President of the United States. From the G7 bust-upto the North Korea negotiations, he never fails to create waves. Now Trump is preparing a full-scale trade war with China, with potentially devastating consequences for the world economy.
Cross-country strikes in China reveal pressure from below As the Chinese Communist Party acts more confidently on the international stage than ever before, the Chinese working class is starting to chafe against the harsh realities of capitalism. Since May, there have been three high-profile, cross-country strikes started by crane operators, fast food delivery workers, and most recently truckers. Although the strikes were small in relation to the general working class, the workers’ ability to organize across several major cities indicates that a layer of the Chinese working class is being pushed into struggle.
Indonesia: where do we go 20 years after the Reformasi 98? 20 years ago, a regime that seemed unmoveable, that had ruled for decades, while standing on the bones of millions of people massacred between 1965-66 and with its police and soldiers present at every corner, collapsed in the blink of an eye. On 21 May 1998, all over Indonesia, on TV and radio, a voice familiar to the ears of 200 million people proclaimed: “I have decided to declare that I have ceased to be the president of the Republic of Indonesia.” The people cheered and a new chapter in the modern history of Indonesia opened.
North Korea: Kim and Trump hold talks to agree more talks The meeting in Singapore between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un went off without any major bust-ups. In fact, it was all smiles. They even managed to agree to a joint statement, which was more than one could say of the G7. In reality, of course, they agreed hardly anything.