Behind the scenes of the plan to deport Palestinians

 Written by: Fouad Baker DFLP on 31 January 2025

 

(Above: Going home to vorthern Gaza.   Source: #Times of Gaza)

Fouad Baker
Palestinian politician and human rights activist
29/01/2025

The Trump plan to deport the Palestinian people from Gaza and the West Bank cannot be viewed in the same way as his rhetoric about purchasing Greenland from Denmark, merging Canada with the United States, or controlling the Panama Canal and the Gulf of Mexico. The plan to deport Palestinians is presented with high seriousness, and preparations for it are taking place behind the scenes to move the residents of Gaza to Egypt and the West Bank to Jordan.

This plan is based on communications between Donald Trump and his counterparts, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Jordanian King Abdullah, as well as secret communications with other countries such as Albania, Indonesia, and some members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, especially with Saudi Arabia.

Trump Between Two Terms

During Trump's first term, from 2016 to 2021, he altered the equations that Palestinians had established, which emphasized that no regional settlement could occur without resolving the Palestinian issue. Donald Trump undermined this equation when he imposed the "Deal of the Century" in 2020, moved the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, and annexed the Syrian Golan Heights to Israeli sovereignty in 1967. He also signed the Abraham Accords, which are treaties and agreements to normalize relations with Israel, including with Bahrain, the UAE, Morocco, and Sudan, as well as forming a military alliance under the guise of so-called economic peace.

With his new term, since assuming office on January 20, 2025, he has reintroduced the issue of resolving the Palestinian cause, this time with his desire to win the Nobel Peace Prize and end wars in the world. However, this also comes at the expense of the Palestinian people and their inalienable national rights, as outlined in international legal resolutions, including the establishment of a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, the right to self-determination, and the right of return as per Resolution 194.

Secret Diplomatic Moves:

The new U.S. administration, alongside Israeli diplomats, has quietly begun seriously discussing Trump's vision of deporting Palestinians. They are engaging with several Arab capitals to push this plan forward and apply heavy pressure, through the gateway of accepting Palestinians as short-term humanitarian refugees, pending the reconstruction of Gaza. This plan involves a period of receiving Palestinians between six months to a year, with their return to Gaza in 2026 once the reconstruction is complete. The plan subtly includes, though not openly stated, the possibility that Palestinians may not return to their cities and villages, much like in 1948, when their departure was intended to be temporary, but they have not returned despite all international resolutions.

According to diplomatic sources, Israel is communicating with certain countries to accept Palestinians as refugees, specifically with Albania and Indonesia. The discussions are revisiting aspects of the 2020 Deal of the Century, particularly the integration of Palestinians displaced in 1948 into the countries that hosted them, such as Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan. Israel has also opened dialogues with some members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to resettle 5,000 Palestinian refugees annually over a span of ten years, totaling around 50,000 refugees.

Today, the Trump administration is striving to engage with Saudi Arabia to normalize relations with Israel and to abandon its conditions related to the two-state solution and the Arab Peace Initiative. According to sources close to decision-makers in Saudi Arabia, the Kingdom has become more flexible in its approach to the Arab Peace Initiative, under the pretext that it cannot be implemented all at once, but rather gradually, starting with normalization with Israel, to open political dialogues and prospects related to the Palestinian issue.

The Reconstruction Dilemma:

The new Trump administration has returned to its previous tactics from the first term, exerting economic pressure on the Palestinian Authority. It has cut aid and support for American development projects in the West Bank and plans to use the reconstruction of Gaza as leverage against Hamas. The aim is to pressure Hamas not to reclaim authority over Gaza by stalling reconstruction efforts, holding back funds and donations from other countries, and preventing them from being transferred to Gaza. The administration also seeks to control the reconstruction fund, which is currently being organized by some European countries and certain official Arab regimes that oppose Hamas's control over Gaza.

According to technical experts, Gaza will require several years to rebuild, to erase the remnants of Israeli aggression and clear the rubble of destroyed buildings. In this context, the new Trump administration justifies the temporary humanitarian refugee status for Palestinians in Gaza for six months, while being fully aware that reconstruction would take at least eight years if it were to proceed—assuming there are no political obstacles or funding restrictions.

Possible Scenarios:

The scene of Palestinians returning to their homes in Gaza through the Netzarim checkpoint—now destroyed—illustrates the deep connection of the Palestinian people to their land, despite the widespread devastation. This shattered the illusion of absolute victory that Netanyahu spoke of. Hamas, with a tactical move involving the release of the Israeli prisoner Arbel Yehud, achieved a strategic success by securing the return of residents from northern Gaza. It has become increasingly difficult for Israel to resume the war, even if the ceasefire agreement from the past six weeks were to collapse, especially with the unsearched civilians walking through the Netzarim crossing.

Furthermore, the renewal of the war is no longer in the hands of Netanyahu or Smotrich, who oppose the ceasefire agreement. The decision now lies solely with Trump, who seeks to rescue Israel from military defeat and turn it into a political victory by deporting Palestinians from Gaza and the West Bank. This plan would continue the annexation of Palestinian territories, normalize relations with Arab countries—specifically Saudi Arabia—and undermine the two-state solution. The true deal this time will be American-Saudi-Israeli.

The Missing Palestinian Role:

Trump is attempting to replace the genocide that was inflicted on the Palestinian people with a political genocide. This time, it is not only aimed at the authority in Gaza but also at the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah. By besieging the Jenin camp and confronting armed groups in the West Bank, the Palestinian Authority seeks to present credentials to the new U.S. administration in an effort to maintain its political position and prevent its collapse.

In the absence of a unified Palestinian national strategy, Donald Trump’s plan remains intact, and it is difficult to counter it. This first and foremost falls on the responsibility of the Palestinian Authority, which refrains from implementing the Beijing Declaration, calling for a meeting of the unified Palestinian leadership, and its failure to form a national unity government that includes everyone, thus avoiding collective responsibility in confronting the American-Israeli plans.

This calls for international efforts to confront the looming danger to the Palestinian cause, with the goal of pressuring the Palestinian Authority to implement the Beijing Declaration, form a national unity government that includes competent national figures, hold comprehensive Palestinian elections, rebuild Gaza, and

Conclusion:

The Palestinian people have affirmed to the entire world, through the powerful scene of their return to northern Gaza, their unwavering attachment to their land and their rejection of the forced displacement plan, despite all the destruction and massacres committed against them. No matter how much Israel tries to impose racist and colonial policies against them, the Palestinian people will resist until their last breath. As Israeli historian Ilan Pappe states in his book Ethnic Cleansing, "the olive tree has pierced the trees imported by Israel from outside Palestine and planted in Palestinian land to reinforce their narrative that they are the rightful owners of the land." Similarly, the Palestinian people will defy all these plans with their will and rejection of colonial projects and policies of fait accompli. They will invent new forms of resistance, as they have done in previous stages, and they will amaze the world with their diverse strategies.

 

For the defeat of the Burmese junta and a free and independent Burma!

Written by: Nick G. on 30 January 2025

 

(Above: BurmesePLA celebrate their arrival in a liberated township)

Very little coverage is given to events in Burma (Myanmar) by the Australian mainstream media.

However, recent developments show the military regime is increasingly besieged by a coalition of anti-regime armed forces, and has to rely on Chinese interference to maintain itself in power.

The various ethnic rebel forces and the Communist Party of Burma’s People’s Liberation Army are increasingly developing a united front and providing each other with mutual support and training.

The regime is losing large swathes of territory outside the three main cities of the Burmese capital, Naypyidaw, and Rangoon and Mandalay.

Its ability to move its army by land corridors is restricted, and it is relying on airstrikes and long-range artillery bombardment of towns under rebel control. Air-dropped troop reinforcements often fall into the hands of anti-junta forces.

Superpowers and their rivalry over Burma

Both superpowers are keen to direct the outcome of struggles within Burma.

The US imperialists have applied sanctions to the military junta since its takeover, have few direct investments to protect, but are trying to win over the democratic bourgeoisie and landlord forces through an encouragement of a return to a “democracy” within which they can meddle. The 2022 US Burma Unified through Rigorous Military Accountability Act, known as the BURMA Act, mandates sanctions against the junta, and authorises substantial humanitarian aid to support the rival, US-backed National Unity Government (NUG), but not the ethnic armed organisations (EAOs) or the People’s Defence Forces (PDFs).

Chinese interests are more substantial. Among the most important is Kyaukpyu Deep-Sea Port, a crucial part of the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC), which gives China direct access to the Indian Ocean, reducing reliance on the Malacca Strait from which it could be denied access in the event of war with the US. 

There are also the China-Myanmar oil and gas pipelines that run from the Bay of Bengal to China’s Yunnan province, providing Beijing with a shorter and strategically secure energy route, again bypassing the Straits of Malacca. China is financing and constructing key railway and road links to connect Myanmar with Yunnan province.

China has also invested in multiple hydroelectric dams, and built and operated several coal and gas power plants. It has a dominant presence in telecommunications and technology though Huawei and ZTE, and Alibaba and other Chinese platforms have expanded financial technology services in Burma. 

Chinese real estate companies are active in real estate projects, particularly in the junta-controlled cities of Yangon and Mandalay. China has developed industrial parks like the Kyaukpyu SEZ to attract Chinese and foreign businesses.

Imperialism, not proletarian internationalism

(Above: Villagers welcome the BPLA)

China claims that it is supporting Burmese sovereignty against threats of foreign (US) interference. A genuinely socialist country should support any state that is standing up to “outside pressure”, but it should not support a state that is oppressing its own people. 

In 2017, China supported Aung San Suu Kyi’s military offensive against the Rohingya. When she was overthrown by the junta in 2021, it flirted with support for the various anti-junta ethnic armies and allowed the return to Burma of members of the Burmese Communist Party’s People’s Liberation Army.

It has vacillated between maintaining relations with some of the ethnic anti-Junta armies and the regime, according to where it perceives its investments in Burma can be best protected.

For example, last September, fighters of the Kachin Independence Army, or KIA, seized control of a key military base from the junta at Chipwe township in Kachin State, close to a Chinese hydro-electric power station and a Chinese rare earth mine, prompting China to pressure insurgent forces along the countries' shared border to agree to halt their offensives against the junta, and closing border crossings through which medicines and food had flowed.

China’s Customs Department said that China imported more than US$1.4 billion worth of rare-earth minerals from Burma in 2023, underscoring the importance of “stability” in regions close to its investments.

On November 6, the head of Burma’s military junta, Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, travelled to China, meeting with Chinese Premier Li Qiang in Kunming.  China signalled that it desires the bare minimum stability to protect its interests and it felt the junta is the horse to back to achieve this. China has said that it will support the junta’s electoral process later this year, a clear indication that it will work to keep the junta in power.

Meanwhile, ethnic armies and the BPLA continue to take territory from the regime. The Kachin and Ta’ang, as well as the Arakan Army in Rakhine, continue to resist China’s pressure. 

Hostilities between the junta regime forces and the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) have recommenced as of January 9, 2025, following the initiation of a new military operation by the junta in Naungcho township. 

The Arakan Army (AA) stated on Monday January 26 that it had seized control of the Moehti hilltop outpost in Bago Region on the previous day - five days after it launched its attack. The military outpost is located in the Arakan Mountains, known as the Rakhine Yoma. 

Of passing interest to Australians is the role of Julie Bishop as the United Nations’ Special Envoy on Myanmar. The former Australian Foreign Minister will no doubt pursue US strategic interests in Burma. It should not be overlooked that in March 2017, the government of PM Malcolm Turnbull rejected a Senate vote calling for a United Nations commission of enquiry into the persecution of the Rohingya.  

Several weeks later, it reversed its position and co-sponsored a resolution at the UN human rights forum for the UN to send a fact-finding mission to Myanmar.  The change was partly fuelled by an upsurge of reported atrocities against the Rohingya on one hand, and Australia’s hypocritical push for membership of the UN Human Rights Council from 2018.

Bishop can be expected to try to do deals to facilitate China’s acceptance of the pro-US National Unity Government should the regime fall to the united resistance front.

For now, we can only support the fight of the combined Burmese resistance for national liberation, independence and democracy, and oppose all outside superpower interference that runs counter to the aspirations of the Burmese peoples.

 

 

Interoperability under US direction and control

Written by: (Contributed) on 29 January 2025

 

(Above: US commanders are trained in managing those they control.  Source: www.army.mil/ )

The US has an obsession with the interoperability of its military equipment and that used by its allies. It is regarded as an important factor linking the Pentagon with far-flung countries in the Indo-Pacific region. Moves by Canberra, therefore, to assess the ability of various countries across the region to challenge China, if the situation arises, carry all the hallmarks of US-led fears about the threat to their traditional hegemonic position and the significance of Australia as a hub for 'US interests'.

It follows similar intelligence assessments of the Pacific region, which found the US would struggle and have serious difficulties challenging China.

Early in the New Year, a major statement issued by Canberra about regional defence and security was timed to coincide with the establishment of the Trump administration; it contained many points of interest. Australia, as a major regional hub for 'US interests', was clearly following directives from the Pentagon; compliance is the name of the game.

It followed concerns arising about 'Australia's strategic outlook', toward the vast region, with an emphasis that 'efforts should begin immediately behind the scenes to extend the solidarity proposal to a range of nations'. (1) The whole exercise would appear an additional element and component of the already operational US-led Indo-Pacific Strategy (IPS).

Central importance in the statement was placed upon Australia providing assistance 'in the form of diplomatic, economic, technical, intelligence and material support and – subject to there being in place a military alliance between nations – could also involve defence assistance'. (2) A long list of regional countries was then provided as being regarded of interest, stretching from the Maldives in the east, to Taiwan in the north, and the Pacific Islands Forum in the west, with Australia linked to New Zealand in the south, both members of the elite Five Eyes intelligence-sharing organisation. (3)

The timing of the statement remains a matter of curiosity; the horse would already appear to have bolted. Last year, for example, an official military statement concerning Australia's regional role included reference to already existing 'co-operation agreements recently signed with India, Indonesia, Japan and South Korea'. (4) The same statement also drew attention to 'under existing alliances with Singapore and the US, training ranges and defence bases are being expanded and upgraded in Queensland and the Northern Territory'. (5)

The statement, however, stressed that Australia had no intention of attempting to establish an 'anti-China coalition', but to establish communiques with individual countries in order to 'make Beijing's calculations vastly more complicated'. (6) Beijing, when assessing its own regional position, will be faced with having to study individual countries and the wording of diplomatic agreements.

The moves follow decisions taken by the US over a decade ago to improve their regional intelligence, following the rise of China as a competitor. Early in the last decade the US military expanded their Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) to include as many as 1,600 new intelligence-gatherers working in the convergence of military and intelligence agencies. (7) Emphasis was placed upon intelligence assessments 'focused on emerging threats and more closely aligned with the CIA and elite military commando units'. (8)  

Inter-operability would appear an important factor when assessing the expansion of the DIA; the US have made greater use of allies for basing their agents in sensitive areas.

The developments have coincided with an official announcement that the ADF has already laid the basis for military personnel from other Five Eyes countries to join Australian counterparts as serving military officials, it would appear interoperability is a fact already in working practice. (9)

The development would appear reciprocal: more than a hundred Australian military personnel, for example, have also graduated from US nuclear submarine schools and an announcement that the USS Hawaii (SSN 776) arrived in Perth, West Australia, with an Australian officer at the helm, leaves little to the imagination. (10) Future US strategy will include provision of military equipment for forthcoming hostilities, military personnel from allies will, however, be in the firing line following Pentagon directives.

The moves follow revelations that the US was no longer the dominant power in the Pacific;
a commission, established by US Congress, issued its findings several years ago. (11) Recommendations from the final US government report also included the US 'further relying on traditional allies, including Japan and Australia … and the … US military superiority is no longer assured and the implications for American interests and American security are severe'. (12) Fears have now arisen that closer diplomatic relations between China with its allies, Russia, North Korea and Iran, have contributed toward an increasingly serious challenge to US hegemonic positions across the wider Indo-Pacific region. (13)

These developments, however, have been given minimal publicity and have been conducted through stealth; they have, nevertheless, far-reaching implications for Australia, which has been placed in a pivotal regional position for defending 'US interests' in the wider region. Australia has been drawn even closer to US diplomatic positions, with all the hallmarks of real-war scenarios becoming increasingly visible and looming on the horizon:

                                          We need an independent foreign policy!

 

1.     Regional security pact in our hands, The Weekend Australian, 11-12 January 2025.
2.     Ibid.
3.     Ibid.
4.     Alliances enhance domestic training, Land Forces Supplement, Australian, 11 September 2024.
5.     Ibid.
6.     Weekend Australian, op.cit., 11-12 January 2025.
7.     Pentagon plays the spy game, Guardian Weekly (U.K.), 7 December 2012.
8.     Ibid.
9.     ADF to welcome Five Eyes recruits, Australian, 30 December 2024.
10.   Bipartisan support in US helping fuel AUKUS impetus, Australian, 10 January 2025.
11.   Study: US no longer dominant power in the Pacific, Information Clearing House, 22 August 2019.
12.   Ibid.
13.   See: Afghan war exist 'was right thing to do', Australian, 15 January 2025.

 

Adelaide Survival Day: with the masses and against the masses.

 Written by: Nick G. on 28 January 2025

 

The Adelaide Survival Day march was a resounding success.

This was despite an attempt by SA Labor Premier to dismiss discussion of the appropriateness of January 26 as “Australia Day” as “becoming ‘tired’, and that Australians should have a chance ‘to reflect on how lucky we are to live here’”.

Prominent Survival Day organsier Natasha Wanganeen said on Facebook that the Premier “has now targeted our event. He didn't have to talk on survival day, he gave the trolls a target & its us. Putrid behaviour from a so called leader.”

Several thousand people rallied to commemorate Survival Day and marched through the city.

In contrast, a tiny group of Nazis marched to the War Memorial on North Terrace, chanting “Australia for the white man!”

Between thirty to forty of the fascists desecrated the steps of the Memorial which includes commemoration of Australians who died during the War Against Fascism.

Their organisation, the National Socialist Network, only has a handful of members in SA. To try and disguise this, Nazis were flown in from other states. Perhaps the Australian Federal Police might be interested in who the group is funded by, including US and European fascist organisations.

Police told the group to disperse and then arrested 16, including notorious Victorian Nazi Brad Sewell.

The arrested included a 16-year old Melbourne boy who has been bailed to appear at the Adelaide Youth Court on March 21.

Of the other 15, only one was from SA, 3 were from NSW, 4 were from Victoria, 3 were from WA, with one each from Tasmania and Queensland.  A further two from interstate were yet to provide addresses.

Eight of those arrested were charged with fail to cease loitering, and seven with possession of an article of disguise. Two were charged with possession of Nazi symbols.

The loitering charge carries a maximum penalty of $1 250 or imprisonment for 3 months; the disguise charge a maximum of $2 500 or imprisonment for 6 months; and the Nazi symbols charge a maximum of $20,000 or imprisonment for 12 months.

Of these three charges, only one is overtly political and directed at Nazis.  The other two reflect the inadequacies of bourgeois law in protecting the community against fascists. They are civil charges under the Summary Offences Act. Loitering is an excuse for punishing the poor and marginalised; disguise is in a section dealing with house-breaking. Both can be applied against progressive political action.

It was a marked contrast: a handful of racists completely divorced from popular support, and thousands of people determined to oppose racism and the ideology that excuses and supports colonial aggression and genocide.

In the final analysis, the people must rely on their own strength to keep Nazis off the streets. 

Melbourne rallies around Invasion Day solidarity

Written by: Bill F. on 27 January 2025

 

A militant rally in the heart of Melbourne brought together a huge crowd of First Peoples and their allies in the on-going struggle against imperialist domination with all its colonial laws and other relics, and its racist oppression.

It was led and organised by the Warriors of the Aboriginal Resistance (WAR) with the theme “End colonialism – Smash imperialism”.

While the media conceded 25,000 in attendance, a more realistic estimate would be at least 45,000 and predominately young people. Many brought their own placards and banners, carried the Aboriginal Flag and frequently chanted, “Always was, always will be – Aboriginal Land!” and “No pride in Genocide!”

Very prominent at throughout the crowd were the supporters of the Palestinian people, with their Palestinian flags and proudly wearing the Keffiyeh scarf. The usual Sunday rally in solidarity with the Palestinian people’s struggle was merged with the annual Invasion Day rally, with the strong support of each.

This was reflected in the speeches outside Parliament House where both Indigenous speakers and Palestinian speakers recognised the commonality of their situation – dispossession and land theft, genocide, racism, on-going oppression and discrimination, attacks on children and indiscriminate jailing of the youth.

Also recognised and given great respect was the vast history of heroic struggles against this oppression and the sacrifices made by First Peoples and Palestinians in defence of their land, their culture and their people.

First peoples’ speakers strongly promoted unity among their people in the growing campaign against deaths in custody. They also objected to “Australia Day” celebrations being held on January 26 as this was the day the British invaders arrived and proclaimed the land as a British territory. For First Peoples, this is a day of sorrow.

With the distraction of the ‘Voice to Parliament’ referendum now buried; speakers called for more focus on the long-standing demand for Treaty. Even though there has been some progress with consultation about Treaty at the State level and here in Victoria, no treaty under capitalism will overturn private property ownership rights or empower First Peoples to control their own communities. Only socialism can guarantee viable land rights and respect for traditional customs.

As the rally marched from Parliament House through the city to Flinders St station, it was joined by many along the way, including even some tourists. Others waved or clapped when they realised the reason for the huge crowd.

Not waving or clapping were the hundreds of police (on overtime rates?) on duty, called out by the right-wing media in case of “violence” or “anti-semitic behaviour”. Media and State Labor government claims that such rallies were disrupting normal Sunday business were exposed as beat-up crap by the numbers of people in the take-away shops and cafes, and by rally participants dropping in to buy a cold drink on a hot day.

At Flinders St the rally was met by another crowd of supporters, some elderly but keen to welcome and show their solidarity. The efforts of all on the day were greatly appreciated and the speakers at Parliament House and at Flinders St paid tribute to the fine organisation and spirit of the day.

If one thing stood out, it was the powerful speech of Indigenous veteran Gary Foley who pointed to the future and the task ahead – “to educate, educate family, friends, neighbours, workmates – the history, the resistance, the stolen children, the sorry business …” – an inspiring call for engaging and winning even wider support.

Sydney Invasion Day march against genocide

 Written by: (Contributed) on 27 January 2025

 

Voices quiet and roaring, young and old, female and male, marked the January 26 Invasion Day speeches in Sydney. 

The younger generations are rising and organising They began threads echoed by others, that struggle must be every day of the year, not just one, that genocide continues. They spoke of intergenerational trauma, but say, ‘We’re still here!’

One young woman’s tiny daughter, spoke in language to the crowd. Unlike her mother, English is her second language. That cultural rebirth, that underpinning strength, was also a thread.

Wangan and Jagalingou have been fighting the Adani mine for a decade. Their representative, Adrian Burragubba, spoke of his and other First Peoples arising ‘from our rivers, from our water’. 

‘Don’t worry about Dutton,’ he said. ‘He’s a nobody. He’s not a patriot.’ The real patriots are those who’ve fought for their lands since British invaders came ashore. 

Corporations came under attack as inheritors and beneficiaries of invasion. 

Dunghutti man Paul Silva grew up in the struggle for justice, after his uncle David Dungay Jr, was crushed and suffocated to death at Long Bay Jail Hospital.

Paul Silva spoke of ‘fallen heroes.’

‘People said it happened 237 years ago. But it happened yesterday.’

‘We are still exposed, by this government, by this system. We are under attack.’

‘Whatever happens, we’ll still rise up. It’s what we do.’

!0,000 plus people marched in Sydney. Though it was smaller than last year, Yabun festival near Redfern, where the march finished, was booming with people and cultural strength.

 

Survival Day demands decolonisation

Written by: (Contributed) on 26 January 2025

 

(Above:  Survival Day march, Brisbane) 

Today on the 26th January 2025, in Butchulla country as well as across all of Australia, Survival day celebrations and ceremonies were held by Indigenous Australians and their allies. 

The particular one I attended had a sunrise memorial service paying tribute to the survival of the First Peoples against Colonialism and continued occupation. 

There were reflections on previous struggles like the Waterloo Creek Massacre and the Aboriginal Tent Embassy. 

There was also music and dance richly steeped in culture and tradition. 

The ceremony was not only a solemn reflection on the past suffering and resistance to colonialism by the Indigenous, but an energetic show of resistance to the ongoing settler-colonial oppression and subjugation of Indigenous Australians. 

As the genocidal nationalism of Australia day, its date and the settler-colonial, genocidal nature of Australia are entered into more and more people’s consciousness, the struggle for First Peoples self-determination and resistance against settler-colonialism will grow and is growing. 

At a time when the settler-colonial occupation and Genocide of the Palestinians has become more mechanised and devastating and is also rising in the people’s consciousness, the link can clearly be drawn and seen between Palestinian self-determination and Indigenous Australian Self-Determination. 

Australia can only be truly independent and on the road to socialism when Australian settler-colonialism against its Indigenous population is smashed. 

Without decolonisation Australia can never be Socialist. 

First Peoples will never give up, nor will their allies

Written by: Louisa L. on 25 January 2025

 

2025 marks 25 years since a secretly developed Business Council of Australia (BCA) agenda was put into action. Noel Pearson – who rightly saw corporations as key drivers of Australia, but wrongly saw them as allies for First Peoples – was its spokesperson. 

Beyond capitalism’s state apparatus for suppression (its jails, police, military, courts) and deception (its parliaments, media, cultural and education systems) the BCA embodied ruling class organisation. 

Why was it jolted into action? 

On January 26, 1988 the magnificent unity, organisation and power of First Peoples, built in 200 years of struggle across this continent and its islands, told those who had systematically attempted genocide three simple words, “We have survived.” You have not destroyed us. Whatever you do, we will rise again.

Promises and lies

The unstated BCA agenda aimed to do three things to enable capitalism’s continued exploitation of First Peoples’ precious lands – divide and conquer them; crush their powerful resistance; and create Aboriginal collaborators.

Constitutional recognition was one weapon. Yolngu leader and NT parliamentarian Yingiya Mark Guyula rightly dismissed Australia’s constitution as “just a piece of paper”. Constitutional change had been raised by First Peoples long before, but was swept aside by the Treaty movement, with its potential for deeper and more fundamental change.  The BCA promised its allies immediate change with other gains flowing on.  

Corporations demanding tougher tactics on every front were represented by PM John Howard. After his destruction of ATSIC, his term ended with the old brutality and land grabs of the NT Intervention, disguised as “saving the children”. Key BCA Aboriginal supporters helped divide opposition at its inception. Its child victims are still criminalised.

Jump forward to 2023. No matter how hard-working, sincere and honest most supporters were, the battle over constitutional change, was initiated and overwhelmingly organised and actioned by BCA corporations and operatives. By giving decision-making power to descendants of settlers, instead of First Peoples themselves, and by a Yes/No mechanism, the referendum itself was divisive. Whether it passed or failed, it did the job. Both before and after the vote, corporate profits boomed. 

Meanwhile, other landgrabs escalated, until today. In NSW BCA member Westpac trained Local Aboriginal Lands Councils to claim land to sell or develop often excluding Traditional Custodians. 
 

Truth telling

Fascism is rising worldwide. Australia will not be spared. First Peoples already feel its genocidal fire. 10-year-olds in jail? Of course, because the young are the most dangerous rebels. Their spirits must be crushed. 

Resistance is inevitable. Witness Lidia Thorpe’s thunderous truth telling, “You are not my king!” Australia is still managed through a system of colonial relics, including in the divided former colonies renamed as states.

Parliamentary Labor ‘leaders’ are increasingly discredited puppets of US imperialism, while Dutton still leads the highly organised, resurgent far right. 

Real rule is underpinned by US imperialist control of the commanding heights of our economy, by AUKUS, multiplying US military bases, deceit and more. 

Imperialism, and all those who deliberately implement its policies, are the enemy. 

Everyone else is a potential ally to be won over.

Relying on legalities or what’s ‘reasonable’ in the face of brutality and unquenchable, systemic theft, violence and suppression, is like snow in a furnace. We can’t succeed unless we unite the vast majority of the inhabitants of these lands. Unless we fight!

The working class is overwhelmingly the biggest class and most important ally. Without it nothing is made, transported or sold. Our schools, hospitals and other services cease. Workers have been systematically dis-organised, and demoralised. We must reverse that. 

But we rise

Ours is a Marxist-Leninist-Maoist party. We stand openly for the overthrow of imperialism, for the right of First Peoples to secede if they choose, for reparations, for culture, for land.

Reflect a moment on ruling class lies about First Peoples and Palestinians. Imagine then, the enormity of the venomous propaganda, once masses of everyday people defeated capitalism and imperialism and created socialism. 

Another simple three-word slogan, ‘Peace, bread, land’ forged unity to create the first socialist state. 

Tens of millions of their peoples died fighting imperialism, before and after victory, for over 30 years in the Soviet Union, and before the over 20 years of socialism in China. Each became lone beacons to the world. But surrounded by older, richer, better-armed capitalism, with its poisonous ideas regenerating and settling in a few “leaders” who utterly betrayed their people. Familiar?

Primitive, literally ‘the first’, communism – communism of first peoples everywhere – is rich in lessons about living collectively. How much more dignity and good health ‘savages’ (literally, people “of the forest”) had than the criminalised oppressed of Britain or their guards dumped here 237 years ago. No wonder, in what’s now called Australia, First Peoples fought an armed struggle so bravely and so effectively it held back settlement for 140 years. ‘How They Fought’ by Ray Kerkhove deserves to be read by all of us.

Right now, here, most First Peoples’ lives are also rich in lessons about how to survive on almost nothing. Many others face that same situation. Allies too.

Worldwide, armed anti-imperialist struggle is rising among oppressed peoples. France is evicted from Africa after 400 years! We are not alone.  Others are winning. Others have done it before. So can we. 

 

Canberra airport guards fight for job security while overseas owned security contractors compete in "race to the bottom" at privatized airports

 Written by: Ned K. on 25 January 2025

 

(Source: www.moneycontrol.com) 

The Canberra Times reported in their 24 January newspaper that Canberra Airport aviation security guards were fighting for job security due to a change in airport security contract services from Certis Group to MSS.

The new aviation security contract at Canberra Airport starts on 1 March 2025. The new contractor MSS plans to pick and choose who it employs from 1 March and also plans to employ security guards on less pay and conditions than the current guards won during their employment with Certis Group. The Canberra Times interviewed one guard with more than 10 years' service at the airport. She said that many of the over 100 Certis employed guards had not been offered work by the in-coming contractor MSS.

The Canberra Times also reported that the guards' union representative, United Workers Union Director Lyndal Ryan said that MSS's track record should have excluded them from the contract bidding process and that "ultimately, it's on Canberra Airport decision-makers to properly scrutinize the contractors they allow to operate in high-security risk areas of the airport, and MSS does not pass the pub test in regards to this".

Just who are the "Canberra Airport decision-makers" and who are Certis and MSS?

The Canberra Airport, like all major city airports, is a privatized airport.  The airport was built on land leased to the federal government Department of Defence in 1926. In 1930 it was handed over to the federal government's Civil Aviation Control. Between 1926 and the 1990s there were several upgrades and extensions to the airport terminal and runways.

In 1998 the airport was privatized on a 99-year lease to a company called Capital Airport Group whose front man was a local "rags to riches" Canberra businessman Terry Snow who died in August 2024. The privatization of the Canberra Airport was one of many privatized in the same decade under the Howard Government's Airport Act 1996 which enabled 49% ownership of any airport privatized under the Act. 

The Hawke- Keating governments facilitated the privatization of airports in 1988 when they set up a federal government business enterprise, Australian Pacific Airports Corporation (APAL).

Government business enterprises in aviation, like in other industries, remove ownership and direct control by the relevant government departments and their Ministers.

In the case of the Canberra Airport, the privatized owner, who appeared to be the local businessman Terry Snow is actually the Capital Airport Group whose overseas interests are Chinese aviation corporate interests based in Beijing, China!

The outgoing and incoming security services contractors at the Canberra Airport are also both overseas owned corporations. 

Certis Group is a Singapore based security company. 

MSS is wholly owned by Indian based SIS Limited, one of the Asia-Pacific's largest security personnel contractors.

Guards Taking Action

Canberra Airport security guards are taking various actions to fight for their jobs with a focus on federal politicians returning from holidays in the first week of February. 

This situation of a group of workers in Australia employed by contractors in insecure jobs owned by multinational corporations whose client in turn is a government privatized entity is all too familiar. 

The Canberra Airport guards will fight to defend their jobs, pay and conditions and are already receiving strong support in Canberra and beyond.

In a federal election year, their struggle is a microcosm of the general struggle for Australian independence and socialism. They hear the politicians talk about the "national interest". In the case of airports and airport security, is it in the "national interest" to have airports and airport security owned and operated by multinational corporations whose reason for existence is maximize profits?

To support Canberra Airport security guards, go to www.uwu.org.au/noplceformss