Following the pro-democracy riots in Tonga in 2006, troops from New Zealand and Australia were sent to quell the rebellion and restore Monarchical order. This documentary was filmed in the week after the troops arrived detailing the riots, the pro-democracy movement, the abuse of people by Tongan forces and the operations of the New Zealand [...]
Author Archives: James Torrance
Wellington ANZAC Day Protest
25th April 2007 – 8:36 pm
A few rambling points in my tired state…
I suppose today’s morning action could be considered generally successful: the issue of the New Zealand military’s role in Afghanistan, the Solomon Islands and Timor Leste has finally been raised, and even Phil Goff was forced to acknowledge (and rebuke) the protests from as far away as Afghanistan [...]
Dear Brothers in Anarchy…
9th April 2007 – 6:48 pm
Somehow a pair of right-wing libertarians, calling themselves “Brothers in Anarchy”, managed to get themselves a column in Victoria University’s student newspaper Salient. My response:
Dear “Brothers in Anarchy”,
By some feat of luck it appears you have managed to gain a regular column in Salient – I only wish you would make better use of it.
I [...]
Revelation Vertigo
9th April 2007 – 11:28 am
From Fifth Estate… worth a read:
Revelation Vertigo
Stevphen Shukaitis
Autonomy is both the goal sought after and that whose presence–virtual–let us say, has to be supposed at the outset of an analysis or a political movement. This virtual presence is the will to autonomy, the will to be free. – Cornelius Castoriadis
There exists a tendency, shared across [...]
The Myth of Democratic Consensus
I am confused as to what theorists of the State (liberals, social-democrats, your sundry right-wingers, etc.) think when they see scenes such as those presently occurring in East Timor. In particular, how do they justify the use of police and heavy militarisation with their notions of the consensual democratic State?
Currently, there are 1,100+ ANZAC troops [...]