Asia

We publish here the first edition of a new Marxist paper in Indonesia. Cahaya, means "shining light" or "bright light" and has been produced by a group of young Marxists active in the Indonesian workers and student movement. It has the ambition to become the socialist voice of workers, poor peasants and young people. We hope that the policies explained in its pages will become the dominant ideas of the Indonesian left.A short presentation in English is also available.

In the middle of August the well-know Indian journalist and publisher Satish Kumar was framed and arrested in Faridabad, just outside Delhi. For more than 20 years he has published a paper called 'Mazdoor Morcha', which is renowned for exposing corruption and cases of abuse of power by the state authorities. Now he has been arrested and the authorities have set the date for his bail hearing in December!

We have received two reports on further anti-Trade Union repression in Pakistan. The regime is adamant on removing militant trade union leaders who are daring to challenge their plans to carry out privatisations and mass sackings. These comrades need your help. Please take up this issue urgently inside your trade union branch. Get messages of protest sent. And raise the funds needed to keep this campaign going! In these reports you will find an update on the situation in the Pakistan Postal Sector and a short report on more anti-trade union measures being taken by the regime against the Karachi steel workers. These reports were sent to us from the Pakistan Trade Union Defence...

We have received two reports on further anti-Trade Union repression in Pakistan. The regime is adamant on removing militant trade union leaders who are daring to challenge their plans to carry out privatisations and mass sackings. These comrades need your help. Please take up this issue urgently inside your trade union branch. Get messages of protest sent. And raise the funds needed to keep this campaign going! In these reports you will find an update on the situation in the Pakistan Postal Sector and a short report on more anti-trade union measures being taken by the regime against the Karachi steel workers. These reports were sent to us from the Pakistan Trade Union Defence Campaign

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The Military regime in Pakistan has completely banned trade union activities in the Postal Sector. All union offices have been closed down. The collection of union funds has been declared illegal. No union can organise any meeting. If any worker dares to participate in any union activity, he can be sacked without any notice or explanation. The Pakistan Trade Union Defence Campaign is organising a fightback. They need your support. For details of what you can do to help read this article now!

The Military regime in Pakistan has completely banned trade union activities in the Postal Sector. All union offices have been closed down. The collection of union funds has been declared illegal. No union can organise any meeting. If any worker dares to participate in any union activity, he can be sacked without any notice or explanation. The Pakistan Trade Union Defence Campaign is organising a fightback. They need your support. For details of what you can do to help read this article now!

The partition of India was one of the greatest crimes of British Imperialism. This was not to an act to defend the Muslims or the Hindus but to split and wreck the national liberation movement which they had failed to defeat by force of arms. The present states of India and Pakistan were created over the bones of the millions who died during the bloodshed unleashed. Lal Khan's book covers the history of the subcontinent from the Raj to the present day and demonstrates that a socialist federation of the subcontinent is the only way forward. Available now at WellRed On-line Bookshop.

An analysis of the historical development of the Communist Party of Bangladesh, sent to us by the Bangladeshi Trotskyist organisation, Democratic Workers Party (Gonotantrik Mazdur Party).

Since the fall of Soeharto a lot has changed for the Indonesian labour movement. During the New Order era one "union" monopolised the organisation of workers, the yellow union FSPSI linked to the ruling clique's Golkar party. Instead of raising the consciousness of workers, the FSPSI was designed to depoliticise them.

We have just received the good news that Ghulam Haider, the PTUDC activist arrested in Peshawar, Pakistan, on May Day has been released on bail. We would like to thank all those who took part in the protest campaign. All letters of protest that were received were taken to the trade union activists while they were in jail and this helped enormously to keep up their morale. All those who were released had to pay bail, and they will also have other costs, as we have mentioned in our earlier publications. Now the campaign should concentrate on collecting funds to help pay for these costs. Below we are publishing further messages we have received from different parts of the world.

We have just received the good news that Ghulam Haider, the PTUDC activist arrested in Peshawar, Pakistan, on May Day has been released on bail. We would like to thank all those who took part in the protest campaign. All letters of protest that were received were taken to the trade union activists while they were in jail and this helped enormously to keep up their morale. All those who were released had to pay bail, and they will also have other costs, as we have mentioned in our earlier publications. Now the campaign should concentrate on collecting funds to help pay for these costs. Below we are publishing further messages we have received from different parts of the world.

The latest news we have from Pakistan about the trade union activists arrested on May Day is that all the comrades with the exception of two in Pashawar have been released on bail. The comrades in Peshawar are still being held, but pressure is being put on the authorities. Our campaign must now continue until ALL the arrested comrades are released. We are publishing a selection of the protest letters we have received.

The latest news we have from Pakistan about the trade union activists arrested on May Day is that all the comrades with the exception of two in Pashawar have been released on bail. The comrades in Peshawar are still being held, but pressure is being put on the authorities. Our campaign must now continue until ALL the arrested comrades are released. We are publishing a selection of the protest letters we have received.