Mass rallies in Aceh call for independence from Indonesia

Hundreds of thousands of people mobilized in Banda Aceh, the capital city of Aceh province in Indonesia, November 8, to demand self-determination and a referendum on independence. It was the second such demonstration within five days. The Indonesian military kept a low profile at the demonstration. On November 2, security forces had opened fire on pro-independence protesters in the province, sparking larger mobilizations. The sentiment for change has grown in the wake of the referendum held on East Timor in August, where the pro-independence vote won a big majority.

On November 5 Indonesia's newly elected president Abdurrahman Wahid said "I support a referendum as their right … The question is .… when?" On his orders, the Indonesian military said it would start withdrawing some troops from Aceh this month. At least 2,000 people have died during the decade-long struggle for independence and against occupation by thousands of security forces. Aceh, a region with its own distinct history, including in the struggle against Dutch colonialism, is in the north of the island of Sumatra and contains rich oil and gas deposits.  
 

IMF releases loan to Jakarta

The International Monetary Fund announced November 2 that it would resume its dripfeed payment of a $43 billion loan to the Indonesian government. The loan was negotiated in October 1998, and to date less than one-quarter has been paid out. The IMF's announcement followed the decision by President Wahid that a parliamentary report into the "Bank Bali" scandal would be released. The report deals with allegations that funds held by the bank were paid into the coffers of the former ruling party Golkar, and that Golkar used them in its election campaign this year.

The $80 million involved came from the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency, the government body that was set up under IMF instructions to restructure the banking industry. The agency has taken control of 200 companies and almost 50 banks, giving it book assets of $84 billion, 40 percent of which are "nonperforming loans."  
 

Deal looms for pipeline via Turkey

A pact pushed by the Clinton administration to construct a 1,240-mile pipeline to extract oil from the energy-rich Caspian Sea could be signed in late November, the Washington Post reported November 6. The pipeline would run from Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, via Georgia to the Turkish Mediterranean port of Ceyhan, allowing capitalist oil investors to bypass existing pipelines, which all run through the Russian workers state.

The $2.4 billion oil deal is aimed at undermining Moscow's influence in the area, while sinking U.S. imperialist roots deeper in the region. Thus far, Washington has not offered any financial commitments for the project.  
 

Venezuela: Chavez boosts term

The Venezuelan constitutional assembly enacted constitutional amendments proposed by President Hugo Chávez in early November that increase executive power. The assembly extended the period of presidential rule from five years to six and allowed the president to stand for immediate reelection. Previously 10 years had to elapse between terms.

Seeking support for his stated desire to rule until 2013, Chávez added demagogically that by then "Venezuela must be totally changed, without corruption and without poverty." He announced the founding of a "People's Bank" that, he claims, will extend credit to the poor. Chávez was elected president in December 1998.

The Constituent Assembly was elected in July of this year, charged with rewriting the country's constitution. Chávez has cultivated a popular following by posing as a "man of the people" who, in response to a deep social crisis, is capable of taking firm action against corruption and bureaucracy through the use of presidential power and the bypassing of traditional political institutions, even at the cost of civil liberties.  
 

Cuban doctors complete mission

One hundred Cuban medical personnel returned from Honduras in October, having spent 10 months in voluntary service there. The doctors, nurses, and health technicians responded to a call by the Cuban government after a request from Honduras for assistance in dealing with the impact of Hurricane Mitch, which devastated the country in November of last year.

The volunteers' return date was brought forward under pressure from the Honduran Medical Association. The Cubans dispensed medicine to Indian tribes living in mountainous, inaccessible regions. Most of their patients had never seen a doctor. Their duties included surgery, and the treatment of malnutrition and parasitic diseases. Greeting the medical personnel on their return, President Fidel Castro said that there are more than 1,600 Cuban doctors offering services in almost 60 nations. Cuba has established a new program of medical assistance for sub-Saharan Africa, he said, involving the establishment of medical schools at which Cuban doctors serving in the various countries will teach.  
 

Students march in Mexico City

Student protesters demonstrated in the capital of Mexico November 5, shutting down an eight-lane highway as they marched along it for four hours. The 6,000 students were among those who have been on strike since April at the National Autonomous University, the country's largest with an enrollment of 270,000 students. The strike began in reaction to the university's proposal to increase tuition fees. In line with their demand of education for all, the strikers are also demanding open admissions for students who have completed studies at university-affiliated high schools, regardless of their test scores or grades.

The students marched to the presidential palace, in spite of the presence of hundreds of cops. The Mexican government "says it respects the university but … in reality is cruel and corrupt," said one marcher.  
 

U.S. wages rise 1 cent

The official jobless rate in the United States has dropped to its lowest level in 30 years, according to the Labor Department. The rate stands at 4.1 percent of the workforce, or 5.8 million people. October job growth was strongest among temporary workers. But the high demand for labor has had little impact on wages, which for the average worker below the rank of supervisor rose just one cent an hour in October. Overall, average pay has risen a low 3.6 percent in the last year. The Labor Department's figures also indicate that the rate of creation of new jobs, averaged out on a monthly basis, has slowed somewhat in the last quarter.

— PATRICK O'NEILL  
 
 
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