International

The new Sri Lankan government under Ranil Wickremesinghe have unleashed crackdown on student activists of the Inter University Students Federation (IUSF) and other organisations who were agitating against the deteriorating democratic situation in the country. The protest, which was organised on 25th August, witnessed thousands of students and activists marching in the streets of Colombo.

On August 5th, 2022, the Israeli Occupation Forces launched a brutal military aggression in besieged Gaza leading to the massacre of 49 Palestinians, including 17 children. More than 200 people were injured and hundreds of homes were destroyed in the attack. Gaza, which faces a decade-long land-sea-air blockade, is at the verge of a severe humanitarian catastrophe. The 11-day long Israeli massacre campaign in Gaza in May 2021 had further exacerbated the already dilapidated humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Thousands of railway workers in the United Kingdom embarked on a historic national strike on June 21, 23 and 25 against the attempts by Network Rail (that operates and develops most of Britain’s railway infrastructure) and train operating companies to cut thousands of jobs. The strike, which was organized under the banner of National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) was the biggest rail strike in last 30 years.

Former US President George Bush, speaking at an event at the George W Bush Presidential Center that examined the future of American elections, made a Freudian slip of the tongue. He said, “[The] decision of one man to launch a wholly unjustified and brutal invasion of Iraq… I mean, of Ukraine.” What followed this gaffe, however, was even more significant.

The people of Honduras have unitedly defeated the conservative and neoliberal forces backed by the United States and elected the first female president Xiomara Castro of the left-wing Liberty and Refoundation (Libre) Party. According to reports, Castro of the Libre Party has obtained over 53% of the votes, and is leading the presidential race by a 20% margin.

New York taxi drivers, most of whom are immigrants from the Asian and African continents, went on a hunger strike for two weeks to protest a system of predatory lending that had left drivers crippled by debt.

The US navy has openly stated that it has violated India’s (and Maldives’) maritime sovereignty, declaring in a statement “On April 7, 2021 (local time) USS John Paul Jones (DDG 53) asserted navigational rights and freedoms approximately 130 nautical miles west of the Lakshadweep Islands, inside India’s exclusive economic zone, without requesting India’s prior consent, consistent with international law. India requires prior consent for military exercises or maneuvers in its exclusive economic zone or continental shelf…”

The military rulers of Myanmar, having ousted the civilian government in a coup, have unleashed a brutal crackdown against the people of Myanmar who are on the streets protesting the coup. The Myanmarese military have shot dead more than 500 civilian protestors.

CPIML condemns the February 1 military coup in Myanmar, the detention of Aung San Suu Kyi and other leaders of the NLD which swept the elections last year, and the fatal firings on protesting people.

In 2015, openly contested elections were first held in Myanmar after 25 years of military rule. Between 2015 and 2021, the military never relinquished control to the civilian government headed by Suu Kyi.

A meeting organized by Ambedkar International Mission (UK) and the South Asia Solidarity Group in the UK Parliament (House of Commons) on 20 January, on the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, National Register of Citizens and National Population Register and the protests against them across India, saw several British MPs express their concern about the legislation, its implications for human rights and potential for mass disenfranchisement of Muslims, and the situation in India more generally.