Month: September 1980

The article as it appeared in Arena, the student newspaper at Macquarie University.

(1980) What the Looney Left are Saying

On the left fringe of Australian politics exist several madcap political parties which are fiercely competitive. The Spartacist League of Australia (SpL) and the Socialist Labour League (SLL), each produce a regular newspaper, command the support of a handful of supporters and are continually beset with factional disputes, expulsions, splits and resignations.

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The article as it appeared in Labor Leader: 1/2

(1980) Comms. Join Forces

On 7th May, the newspapers of Australia’s most influential communist parties, the Communist Party of Australia (CPA) and the Socialist Party of Australia (SPA) carried a joint statement of historic importance and great significance to the labour movement.

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The article as it appeared in Labor Leader.

(1980) Communists Split After Calls for Unity

Since the publication of a joint Statement between the Communist Party of Australia (CPA) and the pro-Moscow Socialist Party (SPA), which promised closer co-operation between these two parties, bitter divisions have emerged between the various personalities and fractions. This article evaluates the significance, reasons behind, and ramifications of the joint Statement.

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Rupert Lockwood

(1980) Rupert Lockwood Remembers

Nearing retirement, Rupert Lockwood plans several books linking the history of his times with his own experiences, ranging from childhood in a German-origin Wimmera community, exclusive private school life at Wesley College, Melbourne – the same school which turned out Robert Gordon Menzies and Harold Holt – to the joining of the Communist Party in 1939, the Petrov Royal Commission, and a three year stint as Tribune correspondent in Moscow.

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