Perth Indymedia

In a historically unprecedented development, Tehran launched hundreds of drones and missiles against Israeli targets, in response to the assassination of senior Iranian military officers in Damascus. Alex Whisson discussed the dangers and temptations of viewing this attack as an act of solidarity with anti-imperialist forces.

Nathalie Farah is a writer and advocate from Naarm/Melbourne. She joined Alex Whisson and Joni Boyd to discuss the various mobilisations taking place in response to the call for escalatory, economically disruptive action in solidarity with the people of Palestine.

Lockdowns, travel bans, two-week mandatory quarantines. These draconian measures became all too familiar to Australians during the years of the COVID-19 pandemic. And yet, none of these 'policy levers' were part of the country's long term pandemic response planning. Addressing a collective trauma from which almost none of us have even begun to properly recover, political scientists Tom Chodor and Shahar Hameiri set out to discover just why Australia's response to COVID-19 was so badly bungled at every step, and why the rise and rise of a neoliberal regulatory state came back to haunt us amid the worst public health crisis in a hundred years.

Ahead of Julian Assange's final attempt to appeal his extradition to the United States on 17 charges of espionage and one charge of computer misuse, Alex Whisson spoke to his father John Shipton.

Jarrod McKenna is a Christian pastor, educator, and peace activist currently involved in organising the Gaza Ceasefire Pilgrimage, a project which has expanded to include an astonishing 109 cities in 17 nations. Alex Whisson spoke to Jarrod to discuss the motivations behind the project, and why it is an opportunity to both map the geography of horror unfolding in Gaza, as well as create space for emotional catharsis and spiritual rejuvenation.

One of three Disrupt Burrup Hub campaigners issued a summons to appear in the Supreme Court, in relation to an action last June which led to the evacuation of Woodside's corporate headquarters, Emil Davey joined Alex Whisson to discuss this latest episode of 'lawfare' by the fossil fuel giant hellbent on destroying both ancient Aboriginal rock art and the natural habitat of the Burrup Peninsula.

Alex Whisson: Fieldnotes on the road to global war by Perth Indymedia Collective

Prior to the last election, the Albenese government made a promise for Australia to end live animal exports, divesting itself economically and moving to more humane ways transporting meat internationally, after the industry was found to be was not only declining economically, but as a salient and shameful example of animal cruelty. Brad Pettit, MLC, unpacks why activists are demanding an end now!

Protesters gathered in central Perth yet again on Sunday 28th January to cry out in anguish and anger at the suffering of the Palestinian people. The event was also an opportunity to express solidarity with indigenous people in Australia who themselves continue to battle oppression in a colonial-settler state. Meanwhile, governments throughout the Western world have ignored the International Court of Justice's interim orders relating to Israel's genocidal assault, and instead chosen to cut off funding to the United Nations Relief & Works Agency, one of the few lifelines for a population in Gaza now facing mass starvation.

Argentinian-Australian political commentator, author and analyst, Federico Fuentes, joined Alex Whisson to discuss the recent election of Javier Milei as President of Argentina. Is he a populist? A libertarian? An anarcho-capitalist? Or an out-and-out fascist? And what are the political implications of his election, not only for Argentina, but the Latin Amerian region as a whole?

Joni reports on the 7th January rally for Gaza in the Perth CBD - the 10th march in a row since the IDF's current bombardment of Gaza began.

Indymedia's Joni Boyd chats to newly elected City of Bayswater Councillor Nat Latter about the power of local government, adapting to climate change on a local level and a whole range of other topics like homelessness, accessibility and transparency. Broadcast on 8th Jan 2024 on RTRFM92.1

For the final episode of the year, Alex Whisson surveys the state of the world.

Disrupt Burrup Hub's Gerard Mazza joined Alex Whisson to discuss why an activist with the group, Marek 'Maz' Misiewizc, chose to lock himself on to a barrel in the boot of a 4WD, parked right outside the office of the National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority.

Several campaign groups came together on Friday 8th December outside the Perth convention centre, to give their warm season's greetings to a gathering of defence industry bigwigs, including representatives from Babcock and BAE Systems, and featuring special guest speaker, the UK Minister of State for Indo-Pacific, Anne-Marie Trevelyan. The protest speakers featured are Stop AUKUS - WA campaigner Sam Wainwright, veteran environmentalist & peace campaigner Jo Vallentine, Unionists for Palestine WA's Alex Whisson, Students for Palestine's Ella Marchionda, and Nuclear Free WA activist KA.

Former seafarer, rank-and-file leader of the Great Patrick’s Dispute of 1998, and now National Secretary of the CFMMEU, Christy Cain, set a firestorm through both the Australian trade union movement, and the Palestine solidarity campaign, with an impassioned speech at a mass rally for Palestine in the centre of Melbourne on Sunday 3rd December. He joined Alex Whisson to discuss why he gave that speech, which among other things, directly called on other union leaders, and specifically ACTU Secretary Sally McManus, to do more, much more, for the people of Palestine, and why it was so important to him both personally and politically.

The AUKUS agreement, signed in September 2021, is one step of many designed to reinforce, intensify, and scale up a wider network of Western military alliances, particularly in the Indo-Pacific region. As the US empire continues its geostrategic shift towards confronting its great rival China, the so-called 'pivot to Asia', Australia is set to play potentially a key role, as Washington's loyal lieutenant, in attempting to extend American global domination well into the 21st century. Sam Wainwright, spokesperson for the campaign group Stop AUKUS - WA, joined Alex Whisson to discuss the nature and purpose of AUKUS, its connections with the local weapons industry, and how all of this business of death and destruction ties in with the unfolding genocide in Gaza.

Alex Whisson provides an update on the current situation in Gaza, after the ceasefire talks mediated by Qatar collapsed and the Israeli slaughter of Palestinian civilians recommenced.

Irish Indymedia contributor Saoirse Nash speak to Joni Boyd about the violent race riots in Dublin last Thursday. Saoirse tells us what happened on the night, speaks on the various responses from authorities, political parties and community groups and contextualises the rise of the anti-immigrant movement in Ireland. Broadcast 27/11/2023 Image from Reuters

Continuing our coverage of the campaign against property developer Niche Living, which has left dozens of families in financial distress as their homes face interminable construction delays, Alex Whisson attended a protest near the company's main office in Northbridge and spoke to some of those caught up in the scandal.