International Viewpoint

The outcome of the November 2012 election is clear: It will be the most vicious and racist in modern U.S. history, and by far the most expensive of all time. Are critical issues at stake in this political year? Absolutely, yes — but not the questions we'll get to vote on. - IV448 - May 2012 / USA

We print the speech made by Dharmasiri Lankapeli, member of the Politbureau of the Nava Sama Samaja Party (NSSP – Sri Lanka section of the Fourth International) at the joint opposition demonstration and rally on International Workers Day in Jaffna. - IV448 - May 2012

Six months after the formation of the Monti government, the popularity the professor-ministers had enjoyed through the discredit which had accompanied the end of the Berlusconi era has begun to wane, even if the horizon does not present any credible political alternative. - IV448 - May 2012 / Italy

Despite an unprecedented campaign calling for a massive turnout in the Algerian parliamentary elections of May 10, 2012, the official results only show a rate of participation of 42%, or 6% more than the 2007 elections. Presented as a rerun of November 1, 1954 or as another July 5, 1962, the election of May 10 was not credible for more than 57% of the voters and thus does not constitute a means of exit from the crisis. - IV448 - May 2012 / Algeria

From the Egyptian Federation of Independent Trade Unions website. - News from around the world / Egypt, Arab Revolutions

Following the Greek election results on the 6th of May, the left internationally has been following with great interest what happens now. Here we publish an article by Andreas Kloke of the Fourth International's Greek section OKDE-Spartakos, member of the Antarsya coalition, analysing the results, an article by Eric Toussaint drawing the comparison with Argentina in 2001, and an editorial statement by Socialist Resistance, British section of the FI. - IV448 - May 2012 / Greece, Debt

The war on women's reproductive rights is being fought in the U.S. Congress, in state legislatures and in the courts, and played out in the media. This war seeks to restrict women's ability to control their reproductive lives — with each law more outrageous than the last — under the excuse that they are “protecting the unborn.” - IV448 - May 2012 / USA, Women

Quebec college and university students are now in the 13th week of their militant province-wide strike while voting by overwhelming majorities to reject a government offer that met none of their key demands. - IV448 - May 2012 / Québec, Youth and student movements

La Via Campesina calls on all the peasant organizations of the world and their allies to organize actions in the month of June - News from around the world / Brazil, Ecology and the Environment, Global Justice

The 30th anniversary of Britain's invasion of the Falklands to remove an occupation force sent by Argentinian military dictator General Galtieri, comes at a time of renewed controversy over the British presence in the region writes Alan Thornett . The islands are adjacent to Argentina but 8,000 miles from Britain. The new controversy has been triggered by the escalating rush for oil and gas drilling, which is now around the Falklands—or the Malvinas as they are known in Argentina, - IV448 - May 2012 / Britain, Argentina, National question

First of all, a premise. The Malvinas (called the Falkland Islands by the British) are Argentine because they were occupied by force, populated by foreign settlers and maintained under British occupation from the beginning of the 19th century, in 1833. Since then, Argentine governments have regularly denounced this theft. However, the demand for the return of the Malvinas has only been at the forefront of national politics in two periods: in 1982 at the beginning of the death agony of the military dictatorship, when it was being unsettled by strikes, demonstrations and mass movements, and now, under the second presidential term of Cristina Fernandez Kirchner. In fact, she said and did nothing important about this subject during her first term, or when she was a Senator under the presidency of Menem. All the dictatorships from 1955 to 1976, like the governments of Perón and Peronism showed no concern with the Malvinas. - IV448 - May 2012 / Argentina, National question

This article, written obviously before the latest elections, give a picture of the effects of the austerity plans, against which the Greek people protested in their votes on May 6. - IV448 - May 2012 / Greece

In number of votes, the far right is growing. It is one of the dangers of the time. To counter it, moral pieties are not enough, when the concrete policy of the left in power is to put itself at the service of the power of money and capital. That is why we need an anti-capitalist party, and a workers' movement capable of opposing austerity wherever it comes from. - IV448 - May 2012 / France, Far Right

While protests in different cities of Pakistan is going on, we received a bad news from Hunza valley. Six activists of Labour Party led by comrade Nasir are arrested in Karim Abad, the main city of Hunza, while flyposting the posters for the release of Baba Jan. - News from around the world / Pakistan

Untimely and unexpected. That's what the emergence of this movement of collective outrage at the Spanish state was. If we had been told on M14 (May 14th, 2011) the next day thousands of people would start taking to the streets week by week and occupy squares, organized meetings, challenge the power with massive civil disobedience while staying in the streets... we would never have imagined it possible. But that's what happened. People, two and a half years after the outbreak of the "great crisis," said "Enough." - IV448 - May 2012 / Spanish state, Global Justice

The OWS movement took place after several years of absence of cohesive nationwide movements, and amidst an extreme fragmentation of struggles. The economic crisis and the evident iniquity of the austerity policies implemented by the government created the conditions for a new social explosion. The first great achievement of the OWS movement is that it provided a response to the risk of the rise of a racist and libertarian right. - IV448 - May 2012 / USA, Women, Global Justice, LGBT

The Supreme Court symbolic sentence to prime minister Gilani in the contempt court case is a win win situation for both sides. The Supreme Court wanted a decision that should not be easily explained by any one and the masses should be confused and divided on the issue. It gave a decision that gave time to PPP to react in an organised manner. - IV448 - May 2012 / Pakistan

Sarkozy has been beaten. This is an inspiring result and we rejoice. We should analyse the relationship of forces that it reflects and the situation that it opens. - IV448 - May 2012 / France, Far Right

Carl Finamore returned to Egypt for ten days in 2012, on the one-year anniversary of the 18-day revolt that began on January 25, 2011. This followed a reporting trip of ten days in 2011. On that occasion he arrived on February 11, 2011, the day President Hosni Mubarak was deposed. On both occasions, he travelled to Egypt with letters of introduction from his union and the San Francisco Labor Council. He is former president (retired), Air Transport Employees, Local Lodge 1781, IAMAW and current delegate to the San Francisco Labor Council. He can be reached at local1781@yahoo.com. - IV448 - May 2012

One of the striking events of the 2012 French presidential election was the campaign of the Front de Gauche and Jean-Luc Mélenchon: tens of thousands of participants at its meetings, a significant place in the political debate and 11.01% of the vote in the first round, a notable score. - IV448 - May 2012