Editorial: After 26 March

THE 26 MARCH London march against the austerity policies of the Con-Dem government, called by the TUC six months ago, will undoubtedly be the biggest demonstration since the massive anti-war marches of 2003.

But by itself, a demonstration, however massive, will not stop the cuts or bring down the government. The unavoidable question will be: What action now?

Libya: no to western military intervention

Events are moving with breakneck speed across North Africa and the Middle East as regimes are buffeted by the revolutionary wave. In Libya, however, western powers have embarked on direct military intervention. A no-fly zone, and the implicit escalation of action, is being executed in the name of humanitarian support. In reality, it is to protect imperialist interests in the region. ROBERT BECHERT, of the Committee for a Workers’ International, reports on this dangerous development.

Fukushima disaster

The ever-present nuclear threat

When the scale 9.0 earthquake struck just off the coast of the Japanese city of Sendai on 11 March, the seismic shock was immediately registered by the sensors at the Fukushima One nuclear plant. This shut down the reactors as a precautionary measure. Initially, most pro-nuclear experts said that this showed that ‘everything was under control’. Then came the tsunami. PETE DICKENSON reports on this disaster - unfolding on the 25th anniversary of the world's worst nuclear catastrophe at Chernobyl.