military and law enforcement
News and articles about work, policy and mutinies in armed forces and police services around the world.
War on the streets in Armenia
February and March in Armenia saw a disputed presidential election (19/2/2008) followed by eleven days of demonstrations in the capital Yerevan, broken up by tanks, police attacks and the imposition of a State of Emergency (1/3/2008).
Eight people, including a child, were killed by police and around 100 were injured including 33 police. An apparently unrelated border fire-fight on 4/3/08 in the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, disputed with neighbouring state of Azerbaijan with whom Armenia is still technically at war, broke a ceasefire agreed in 1994, killing 12 Armenian conscripts.
France: Carrefour strikers issued with summonses
Seven of the striking workers at the Grand Littoral hypermarket have been issued with summonses for "restriction of the right to work"
Workers at the hypermarket have been on strike since February the first.
Prisoner riot reverses smoking ban
A smoking ban at 18 prisons in Quebec was reversed this week after a riot by prisoners.
On Tuesday, smoking was banned both inside and outside of Quebec's 18 prisons. Just before midnight on Thursday, 30-50 prisoners rioted and set fire to a wing at the Orsainville detention centre near Quebec City. This was met by a statement from Public Security Minister Jacques Dupuis the morning after, stating that prisoners would be allowed to smoke outside.
France: first suicide in new youth prison
A sixteen year old boy hung himself in his cell on Saturday.
The youth was being held in an établissement pénitentiaire pour mineurs (EPM penitentiary establishment for minors.) in Meyzieu. This EPM was the first in the country and since its opening it has been plagued with problems. The prison authorities kept the news from other inmates until Monday "to avoid an explosion". So far five of the planned seven EPMs have been opened.
Bangladeshi garment workers out again and escalating
There have been more clashes in the Mirpur industrial area of Dhaka (see previous report); on Saturday 12th thousands of garment workers again demonstrated for improvements in conditions.
The Ninety-third Division - Black US soldiers' struggles in World War II - Nelson Peery
Extracts from Nelson Peery's Black Fire - The Making Of A Black Revolutionary. Peery describes here the racism and segregation encountered by black soldiers and their militancy in opposing it during WWII.
Matiushenko, Afanasy Nikolaevich 1879-1907
A biography of Afanasy Matiushenko, who was one of the key mutineers on the Battleship Potemkin, immortalised by Eisenstein's film, which helped kick-start the 1905 Revolution.
Afanasy Nikolaevich Matiushenko
Also spelled Afanasiy Matyushenko, born 1879 - Kharkov, Russia, died 20 October 1907 - Sevastopol, Russia
The Potemkin mutineer
Afanasy Matiushenko was the son of peasants from Kharkov province in the Ukraine. He was born in 1879, in the village of Dergachi. His father had to give up the unrewarding work of farming to become a shoemaker.
France: immigrants demonstrate against repression
Demonstrations and protests against police tactics and government policies are becoming more frequent.
With the openly anti-immigration policies of the government immigrants have found themselves targetted by police. This is part of a worrying racist trend in contemporary French politics.
Anti-war statement from Antithesis (NYC-NEFAC)
Leaflet against the Iraq war written by the Antithesis collective (NYC-NEFAC) and distributed at an anti-war rally in New York City on October 27th.
Workers, not politicians, will end this war
Build Our Solidarity, Not Their Elections
Argentina: Teachers strike in memory of colleague
On October 5th there were mass walkouts nationwide by teachers in state and private schools in memory of a colleague who had been killed by police.
Carlos Fuentealba died in April after being struck by a tear gas grenade fired from almost point blank range. The attack took place after Jorge Sobisch, the then Governor of Neuquen and current presidential candidate, ordered police to crack down on a protest march by striking teachers.
