Members of the Peasant Organization of the Southern Sierra stormed the main government building in Guerrero June 29, chased away officials, and set it ablaze. They pledged to occupy the building until the cops involved were brought to justice.

Oil workers strike in Ecuador
Energy workers in Ecuador began an indefinite strike July 13 that could halt electricity and petroleum production. The unions want a repeal of laws that restrict the right of public workers to strike.

A spokesperson for the Union of Petroleum Workers said administration buildings of the state petroleum and electricity companies was occupied by workers, who threatened to close production sites and oil refineries.

Court ruling favors miners
The Supreme Court in early July rejected an appeal by Kerr-McGee Coal against rules that allow United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) representatives into nonunion operations during government safety inspections. Kerr-McGee was cited for a violation when it refused to allow UMWA organizers into a strip mine for safety inspections in 1990.

The case involved the federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 that requires "frequent inspections" by the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration. Kerr-McGee said the rule "runs roughshod over the property rights of mine owners and produces bizarre results."

Sri Lanka gov't crackdown
Some 10,000 Sri Lanka troops launched a military campaign July 9 to crush the guerrillas of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, who are fighting for a homeland for ethnic Tamils in the north and east of the island. Up to 300,000 people fled to the east of the Jaffna peninsula as the death count rose to 121.

The Liberation Tigers have been fighting for more than a decade for a separate Tamil homeland in a struggle that has cost about 50,000 lives. About 18 percent of Sri Lanka's 17.8 million people are Tamil.

Mercedes gets big China deal
The Chinese government granted a $1 billion contract to Mercedes-Benz of Germany to build up to 60,000 minivans and 100,000 engines a year in the southern city of Nanfeng. The July 12 deal also included a $50 million joint-venture contract to make buses in China. Mercedes beat out Ford Motor Co. and the Chrysler Corp. for the project. Capitalist automakers are scrambling over each other to get in on China's car and truck market. Some 1.5 million vehicles were sold in China last year.

Burma opposition leader freed
Burma's military regime released opposition leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest July 10 after nearly six years of imprisonment. Aung San Suu Kyi, leader of the National League for Democracy, was arrested July 20, 1989. Her party won the 1990 national elections. The military nullified the vote, launched a crackdown that left thousands dead, and attempted to crush dissent in the country of 45 million people.

Jail demanded for S. Korea execs
Family representatives of those missing in a South Korean department store that collapsed June 29 met with South Korean prime minister Lee Hong-Koo and Seoul mayor Cho Sun demanding that four executives be charged with murder. The businessmen allegedly knew the shopping mall was unsafe hours before it collapsed, but did not warn anyone.

The government of South Korea announced July 13 that twice as many people were missing in the collapse as previously stated, bringing the total killed to almost 700. The announcement caused an uproar as relatives of the victims accused the government of trying to cover up the extent of the disaster.

Japan automaker to lay off 1,000
Japanese carmaker Mitsubishi Motors Corp. announced it would slash 1,000 of 3,300 seasonal jobs at its domestic plants by September - 10 percent of the company's assembly line workforce. Mitsubishi plans to increase production 4 percent to 1.4 million vehicles in the year ending March 30, 1996.

Car sales dropped in Japan because of an economic slump and shift of car manufacturing out of Japan as the yen has risen sharply against the dollar.

Rightists hit Israel-PLO pact
Hundreds of right-wing Israeli settlers blocked roads in the West Bank July 12 protesting plans for Israeli troop withdrawal under a tentative agreement between Tel Aviv and the Palestine Liberation Organization. Israeli and Palestinian officials set July 25 as the target date for signing a pact over a gradual withdrawal of Israeli soldiers from six West Bank towns and other populated areas.

The Union of Rabbis for the Land of Israel issued a ruling July 12 calling for Israeli troops to refuse orders to leave the army bases in the West Bank, heightening fractures among right-wing forces.

"This is a political act that can destroy the army," said Rabbi Yehuda Amital, who heads a large religious school in the West Bank and opposes the ruling.

New abortion law in Germany
The German Parliament passed a new abortion law July 14 that declares most abortions illegal, but provides no punishment for women who have them or doctors who perform the procedure.

Abortion will be legal in cases of rape or to protect the life of the woman. In other cases, doctors are instructed to provide counseling stressing "the protection of unborn life," but neither they nor the woman will be prosecuted for terminating the pregnancy. Under the regulation, health insurance will cover abortions for low- income women.

Abortion laws in the former West Germany were among the most restrictive in Europe, while in East Germany abortion was available on demand during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy. Abortion rights have been a hotly debated issue since the reunification of Germany five years ago.

Life expectancy drops in Russia
Alexander Tkachenko, head of the Russian labor ministry's population department, told the ITAR-Tass news agency July 11 that the average life expectancy of Russian men dropped to 57 in 1994, down from 59 the year before.

The ministry's forecasts also stated that 46 percent of Russian youth would not live past retirement age, which is 60 for men and 55 for women.Russia's death rate climbed to a record high of 1.7 times the birth rate. The mortality rate, which rose 8 percent in 1994, is 15.6 deaths per 1,000 people. The birth rate plummeted to a record low of 9.4 per 1,000 people or 1.4 million.  
 
 
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