Lula’s manifesto to the people of Brazil

Lula is carried on the shoulders of supporters in São Bernardo do Campo before turning himself in to the Federal Police / Photo Credit: Francisco Proner

On Wednesday, April 4, the Supreme Court of Brazil (STF), rejected the habeas corpus presented by the defense of ex-president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. A few days later on April 7th, Lula turned himself in to the Federal Police of Curitiba and has remained behind bars in the headquarters of said police force. Last week Lula’s presidential campaign for the elections in October was launched and the Workers’ Party has reported that despite attempts by the judiciary and the mass media to criminalize and demonize Lula and eliminate him as a candidate, his popularity as presidential candidate has grown since he was arrested. Below is a manifesto from Lula to the people of Brazil about his two months behind bars and his hopes for the future:

Lula’s presidential campaign launched

by Rafaella Dotta

Brasil de Fato  | June 8, 2018

Lula’s fellow party members and supporters will hold campaign launch event while Brazil’s ex-president is in prison / Ricardo Stuckert

Contagem, in the Great Belo Horizonte Area, southeastern Brazil, will be the first city where fellow party members and supporters will host an event to officially launch ex-president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s presidential campaign for the upcoming elections in October. Lula has said he will run, despite being held at the Federal Police headquarters in Curitiba. The former president has been in prison for two months.

“We Won’t be Silent Anymore”: Poor People’s Campaign (U.S)

The Dawn News |  June 19, 2018

Demanding a better and dignified life for all, the Poor People’s Campaign in United States is on a 40 day historic action for a national moral revival against systemic racism, poverty and inequality, ecological devastation and militarisation.

West accused of supporting jihadist forces in Syrian conflict

Morning Star | June 11, 2018

SYRIAN President Bashar al-Assad accused the US, UK and France of supporting terrorism as he scotched claims he had attacked his own people.

Mr Assad said the Western narrative “doesn’t hold together,” pointing to the support of his people in the seven-year war against “terrorists” in Syria which would not be possible if he was carrying out chemical attacks against his own civilians.

World’s energy needs ‘must not destroy civilisation,’ Pope warns oil executives

Morning Star | June 10, 2018

Pope Francis meets a group of children who traveled on a special train from Milan and arrived at St Peter’s station at the Vatican, yesterday, as part of an initiative to give children living in disadvantaged areas of the country a day of joy

POPE FRANCIS warned global oil executives at the weekend that human-caused climate change “is a challenge of epochal proportions,” pointing out that satisfying the world’s energy needs “must not destroy civilisation.”

The Pope held a two-day conference with oil chiefs as a follow-up to his encyclical three years ago that called on people to save the planet from climate change, which the world’s oil companies have played a major role in causing.

Marx and Feminism

by Nancy Fraser

 Rosa Luxemburg StiftungNYC | April 25, 2018

Noted scholar Nancy Fraser joined us for a wide-ranging interview covering Marx’ and Engels’ view of social reproduction, the tension between class, gender, and race, and the need for a “Feminism for the 99%”

Marx’s birthday and the dismal science

A few observations

by Carolina Alves and Ingrid H. Kvangraven

Developing Economics | May 29, 2018

 

With 2017 marking the 150th anniversary of Capital and 2018 marking the bicentennial of the birth of Karl Marx, it is not a surprise that the number of events and exhibitions celebrating Marx’s work and exploring the significance of Marxism in the world today have gone through the roof. A little sample can be found here, here, here, here and here (see also The Guardian’ssum up of exhibitions, books – and pub crawls)! And it would be unfair to not mention the British Library’s PhD placement on Karl Marx offered last summer, which aimed to develop ideas for events and activities that would engage the public and research communities with Marx’s life and his wider legacy (with a brilliant emphasis on Marx’s daughter Eleanor – a writer and political activist in her own right). Some of the results can be seen here, here, hereand here.

Marx at 200: “The best hated and most calumniated man of his time”

by Prakash Kona

Pambazuka News | May 31, 2018

As the world commemorates the 200th anniversary of Karl Marx, the author reminds us of how this great German political philosopher was and still is a divisive figure on all sides of the political divide.

The destiny

of iron

coal

and sugar

and red copper and textiles

and love and cruelty and life

Confusion in finding Marx in Bangladesh

by Farooque Chowdhury

Countercurrents.org | June 06, 2018

Misrepresentation creates confusion, and confusion misleads many. Misrepresentation is unfair also as it carries seeds of injustice.

A recent two-parts-article in a Dhaka English daily (“Karl Marx in Bangladesh”, The Daily Star, Dhaka, May 5 and 6, 2018, https://www.thedailystar.net/opinion/perspective/karl-marx-bangladesh-1571515and   https://www.thedailystar.net/opinion/perspective/karl-marx-bangladesh-part-2-1571884) is an example of this practice.