WW4 Report

Iraq: unions join Anti-Oil Law Front

From the Iraq Freedom Congress, Sept. 8:

Leaders of Iraqi Federation of South Oil Unions (IFOU) join Anti-Oil Law Front
The Leaders of Iraqi Federation of South Oil Unions (IFOU) and many other unionists warn the Iraqi parliament of passing the draft oil law Many Unionists and political figures join the anti-Oil Law Front.

Emergency fund appeal for devastated Nicaraguan indigenous community

From the University of Arizona Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy Program via the Rainforest Foundation, Sept. 7:

On September 4, 2007, Hurricane Felix hit land on the Northeast Coast of Nicaragua as a level 5 hurricane. Initial reports have told the story of the eye of the hurricane passing directly over Awas Tingni, resulting in complete devastation of all the homes in the community, as well as destruction of all nearby crops and transport routes. Rains have continued since the hurricane hit, causing floods and ongoing dangerous conditions in the entire region.

Iraq: more protests against oil law

From the Iraq Freedom Congress, Sept. 3:

The Anti-Oil Law Front Stages a Mass Demonstration in Baghdad
US Forces Try to Provoke the Demonstrators

The Anti-Oil Law Front staged a demonstration in the center of Baghdad (Liberation Square) under Liberty Monument. The demonstrators raised slogans in English and Arabic denouncing the oil Law and chanted against the US administration and its appointed government. The US forces surrounded the rally for half an hour and took pictures of the demonstrators who carried the banners. They also blocked the traffic to prevent people joining the demonstration in an attempt to spread terror among whoever intends to join the rally. The area was filled with hundreds of police and National Guard of whom dozens sympathized with the demonstrators and the cause.

Minneapolis Critical Mass attacked

From the sarcastically-named RNC Welcoming Committee, Sept. 3:

We Will Not Be Intimidated
On Friday, August 31, nineteen people were arrested after police brutally attacked cyclists with Tasers, pepper spray, and excessive physical force. The cyclists were part of the monthly Critical Mass bike ride.

Colombia: FARC leader killed?

Colombia's Defense Minister Juan Manuel Santos announced Sept. 3 army troops have killed Tomas Medina Caracas AKA "Negro Acacio," a top commander in the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), wanted in the US on drug trafficking charges since 2002. The US accuses Medina of being the top contact for the guerilla organization's globe-spanning drug deals—including receipt of some 10,000 AK-47s, purchased in Jordan by arms traffickers thought to be working with then-Peruvian spymaster Vladimiro Montesinos.

Al-Qaeda leader killed in Lebanon?

Shaker al-Abssi, leader of the al-Qaeda franchise Fatah al-Islam, was reported killed in the Lebanese Army's assault on a the Nahr al-Bared refugee camp Sept. 2. Lebanese officials said they were awaiting the result of a DNA test before officially issuing a statement. Some 35 members of the Islamist group were also reported killed in the assault. More than 300 people are believed to have died since the army's three-month siege on the refugee camp began. (RIA-Novosti, Sept. 3)

Chile: protest "Pinochet" policies

More than 670 people were arrested and some 50 people were injured in Santiago and other Chilean cities on Aug. 29 in massive protests against the economic policies of President Michelle Bachelet. The Unitary Workers Confederation (CUT), which organized the protest, charged that Bachelet was following economic policies inherited from the 1973-1990 military dictatorship of Gen. Augusto Pinochet Ugarte; the protesters also demanded the resignation of Finance Minister Andres Velasco. The police attacked marchers with tear gas and water cannons; the injured included two camera operators, National Literature prize-winning poet Raul Zurita and Senator Alejandro Navarro from Bachelet's own Socialist Party.

Uruguay: victory in squatters struggle

On July 28, thousands of people marched in Montevideo, Uruguay, to demand the repeal of Law 18.116, which modifies the penal code to impose prison sentences of between three months and three years on people who take part in the occupation of a property not their own. The march was called by the Uruguayan Federation of Housing Cooperatives for Mutual Aid (FUCVAM), together with the Union of Sugar Workers of Artigas (UTAA), the September 10, 1815 Movement of Tacuarembo and residents of the Las Laminas neighborhood of Bella Union in Artigas department.

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