Perth Indymedia

The Tamil Refugee Council has condemned an early morning raid in which a refugee family was given just ten minutes to gather belongings before being flown to Melbourne and detained at the Broadmeadows detention centre (MITA – Melbourne Immigration Transit Accommodation). Priya, her husband Nadesalingam and their daughters – 9-month-old Dharuniga and 2-year-old Kopiga, born in Australia – were woken at their home in Biloela, central Queensland, by scores of police, Border Force officers and Serco guards. To find out more about the situation Indymedia's Raymond Grenfell spoke to Ben Hillier from the Tamil Refugee Council.

Venezuela is not a country one often sees in the news. When stories do appear, they tend to present a very one dimensional, often lurid picture. Footage of violent anti-government protests, empty supermarket shelves, hyper-inflation, and a President, Nicolas Madura, apparently intent on claiming absolute power over the state. Rarely do we hear the voices of ordinary Venezuelans. Pacha Guzman is an activist with the Ezequiel Zamora National Campesino Front, currently visiting Australia on a speaking tour. Alex Whisson spoke to her via a translator and began by asking what kind of work her organisation is involved in.

Karun Cowper speaks to CEO of Modest Fashion Project Aisha Novakovich about the booming modest fashion market in a time of Islamophobia. The growing demand for modest clothing is not just limited to people of Islamic faith and is estimated to be worth US $368 billion by 2019. Meanwhile former prime minister of Australia Tony Abbott claims support for the industry by the Department of Foreign ­Affairs and Trade for a modest fashion exhibition ignores ‘mainstream Australian values'.

Bugs placed in foreign government offices, withdrawals from international legal obligations, the suppression of witness statements. Sound like the actions of a rogue state? North Korea perhaps? Iran? In fact it describes just part of Australia’s conduct in its efforts to secure an unjust share of revenue from the Greater Sunrise oil and gas field, much of which sits in East Timorese territorial waters. After a long and twisted tale stretching back many years, the two nations are on the verge of announcing a new maritime border agreement, which might finally deliver some justice to the people of East Timor. Alex Whisson spoke to Tom Clarke from the Timor Sea Justice campaign. He started by asking what a fair share of the Greater Sunrise revenue might mean for the future of East Timor.

Karun Cowper speaks with Amanda Cahill, director and founder of the Centre for Social Change about post-capitalism in the here and now. Amanda has spent nearly two decades working on community development projects in countries as diverse as Brazil, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, India, Timor-Leste and Indigenous Australia.

Australian songwriter and accomplished storyteller Carus Thompson live in studio playing his song "Reza Barati" in commemoration of his tragic murder in detention 4 years ago on Manus Island.

Karun Cowper speaks with farmer and community organiser Frank Ashman of the Oakey Coal Action Alliance Inc (OCAA) on "Dining not Mining" opposing coal mine expansion at the Inner Downs in QLD.

Ray Grenfell and Karun Cowper talk to Melbourne activist and funny man Sean Bedlam about his Fringe comedy gig "Death to America"..... "It is 2017. The United States of America has lost its mind. The world looks on as the American Dream becomes a nightmare. Should we let these idiots take us down with them? Obviously the answer is no, but you’ll be surprised to learn the solution includes nuking New Zealand. Come, let comedian-philosopher Sean Bedlam take you on a joke journey (or ‘jokeney’) to a beautiful land beyond the end of the world (obviously not New Zealand because we nuked it. Sorry about that, New Zealanders are really cool. We should stop making jokes about them). Because dreams can come true."

Karun Cowper speaks with urbanist, activist and "Audacities" initiator Sharon Ede on "cosmo-localisation" in the New Economy in Australia and beyond.

Karun Cowper speaks with Nick Everettt, co-convenor of Friends of Palestine WA on Donald Trump "recognising" Jerusalem as Israel's capital, in reversal of decades of US policy and drawing international condemnation.

Karun Cowper speaks with Johnny Windus, national advocacy coordinator of the Australian Unemployed Workers Union which is starting to get moving in Perth.

Lee Carter is a 30-year-old socialist who recently defeated Jackson Miller - the powerful Republican Whip in Virginia's House of Delegates, the state legislature of Virginia. Lee was born into a military family in North Carolina and spent five years in the Marines before moving Virginia, where a workplace accident and subsequent unjust treatment fired his passion for workers' rights and building a better society. Lee's campaign platform was unashamedly left-wing: promoting universal healthcare, free education, collective bargaining, criminal justice reform, and womens' rights. The Republicans' use of 1950s red-baiting scare tactics against Lee fell flat. More and more Americans are rejecting the establishment politics of both major parties and exploring the ideas of workers' power, organised labour, and social democracy. Giovanni Torre and Alex Whisson interviewed him for Indymedia this week.

Recently the Australian government announced they will provide millions in funding for a cutting edge project in the City of Fremantle featuring the use of blockchain-powered distributed energy and water systems. Karun Cowper speaks with Marc Griffiths blockchain developer with Power Ledger on this innovative project and on how blockchain technology can transform our society

Karun Cowper speaks with Brisbane peace activist Robin Taubenfeld about the #PineGapPeacePilgrims currently on trial for breaking the silence around Pine Gap's role in US drone attacks & nuclear warfare.

Karun Cowper speaks with anti-nuclear campaigner from the Conservation Council of WA KA.

Kurdish journalist and detained refugee Behrouz Boochani on conditions inside the besieged Manus Island detention centre.

This weekend just gone, the Dumbartung Aboriginal Corportation, with the support of the CFMEU, presented a panel discussion and photo exhibition "Kerosene Tins and Love Hearts" on the past policies and legislation of the 1905 Native Welfare Act primarily focused on the Stolen Generations and the ingrained trauma associated with the after effects of these policies. The photographic exhibition was a project that came about when Robert and Selina from Dumbartung took students from Clontarf Aboriginal College on a tour of the missions through the south west, documenting the old sites with photographs and telling them the stories of kids who were taken from their parents under the 1905 Native Welfare Act.

Luke Stobart is an author, academic and activist, who was in Catalonia on the day of the independence referendum, involved amongst other things in a dramatic demonstration to defend a polling station from the Spanish national police. He is currently working on a book for Verso Press, on the multiple crises facing the Spanish state, covering the rise of the Indignados movement, Podemos, and the Catalan independence struggle. He spoke to Alex Whisson yesterday from the UK. Alex began by asking Luke to give his firsthand account of his experiences on the day of the referendum.

Belinda spoke with Dezeray from Mutual Aid Disaster Relief in Florida, where they have been organising and delivering aid in response to Hurricane Irma. She discusses their model of grassroots anarchist organising, the opportunism of the State in times of crisis, and inequality in access to care. She concludes with analysis of what it means to work from a place of solidarity rather than charity. Check out https://mutualaiddisasterrelief.org for more info. Photo credit Mutual Aid Disaster Relief

Karun Cowper speaks to Katie, co-founder of Rainbow Revolt, a project to share positive support for queer & LGBTIQA folks through creative direct action painting the country rainbow in support of equal rights.