International

How the
mighty have fallen! Whatever the truth of the allegations of sexual
assault and rape brought against him in New York, Dominique Strauss-Kahn
is guilty of horrific crimes. As the head of the IMF, he is guilty of
the political rape of the working people and the poorest sections of
society in many underdeveloped countries. He is guilty of the rape of
Greece and Portugal. Before finding himself in prison, he contributed to
locking millions of people into a living hell. His brutal “remedies”
inflict suffering and hardship on the poor in order to protect the
interests of the bankers, the capitalists, the rich.

On 21st May the 2011 National Conference of Hands Off Venezuela in
Britain will be taking place in London. Free to members, or join on the
day, and hear speakers coming from Venezuela as well as debate and wider
discussion in solidarity with the Bolivarian Revolution. After the conference we will be joining a picket against the visit of Alvaro Uribe (the former
Colombian president) who is here to speak at a meeting of "investors" looking to make a quick buck at the expense of working people.

The
political landscape of Canada has changed, potentially in an irrevocable
way. The Liberal Party, formerly Canada’s “natural governing party”,
has been reduced to a rump of 34 seats, having received only 19% of the
vote. The separatist Bloc Quebecois, which has dominated Quebec since
the party’s foundation 20 years ago, has been swept aside by the NDP’s
“orange wave” and has been left with only four seats. The New Democratic
Party, Canada’s labour party, has leapt into second place with a
record-breaking 102 seats, and 31% of the vote.

“A middle-aged nonentity, a
political failure outstripped by history – by the millions of Arabs
demanding freedom and democracy in the Middle East – died in Pakistan
yesterday. And then the world went mad.” (Robert Fisk, 3 May, 2011)

As
advanced capitalist countries embark on austerity programs, cutting
spending on health care, education, increasing tuition fees, etc.
Venezuela’s Bolivarian Revolution has massively increased spending in
health care, created hundreds of thousands of free university places and
stood up to the pressures of imperialism. Come to the HOV conference in London on Sat 21st May.

The catastrophe of March’s earthquake and tsunami in Japan has deepened.