UK Newswire Archive
Ahava and TESCO 4 June report
05-06-2011 17:39
Today, on a very sunny and mild Saturday afternoon, approx thirty human rights campaigners took to the streets and continued their fortnightly presence outside AHAVA, London’s leading purveyor of stolen goods produced in Occupied Palestine.
Sarah Colborne, Director of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, lent her invaluable presence and Mick Napier, Chair of Scottish PSC, travelled all the way down from Scotland to show his solidarity. Activists from Devon also attended.
Ahava’s landlord announced in March that they will not renew the shop’s lease when it comes up for renewal in September as the result of the fortnightly protests and other actions that have been ongoing for the past two years.
John, our saxophonist, also helped draw people’s attention to the BDS campaign, as well as entertained everyone on Monmouth Street.
The Obama surveillance state
05-06-2011 13:10
More Public Subsidy for Peel Holdings
05-06-2011 13:00
At a time of public spending cuts and job losses in the Public Sector Liverpool Post Office have found millions to pay unnecessary rents on Peel Holdings Property.ARK (Absolute Return for Kids) and the Bilderberg Conference
05-06-2011 05:13
Since the ARK charity's fundraiser is on June 9th (Ark has global influence), which will be Prince William's and Kate Middleton's first official engagement since their wedding (receiving global publicity) and the Bilderber Conference also commences on June 9th (and getting marketed by the main stream media), is it the case that the Bildergerber Conference is a distraction from what is going on with ARK?Libya: no signs of 'rebel' successes !
04-06-2011 22:01
http://www.waynemadsenreport.com/ for more information from Wayne Madsen on Libya and other important issues .......
PAUL WATSON Eco-Pirate
04-06-2011 18:56
US Reactors as Dangerous as Fukushima
04-06-2011 18:38
Direct Action Against Ken Clarke
04-06-2011 17:55
Direct action was taken against Ken Clarke's constituency offices on Thursday. While doughnut eating cops were dozing near by, the Tory social club on Rectory Road, West Bridgford had its doors D-locked shut and "Tory Scum" painted on it. The offices of the Rushcliffe Conservative Association across the road were attacked with paint and the messages "Class War" and "Fuck Ken in the Head" were painted.
Why the Tories?
Because they are the political wing of the ruling class of this country.
Because they are ruthlessly exploiting the recession to dismantle public services in order to make more profits for their friends, the captains of industry. This was a small act of defiance against the class that attacks us every day. Our message to them is simple: We are everywhere. We can attack at any time.
Why Ken Clarke?
Because he is a captain of industry himself, a rich parasite who is only too happy to help the Tories in order to help himself.
Because he can make light of rape, upholding patriarchal values, whilst wielding a huge amount of power over how its victims are dealt with.
Because he is the prison governor of UK PLC, the man in charge of injustice and unfreedom. His work over the past year has involved denying legal aid to people who can't afford to pay for a solicitor and putting more prisons into private hands, such as the recent move to privatise Birmingham Prison, to make profit out of misery. This action coincided with the national day of action to defend legal aid.
This action is dedicated to all those experiencing the extreme state repression of the UK prison system for resisting the state and capitalism. In particular we express solidarity with Edward Woolward, jailed for his part in smashing the Tory HQ in Millbank and David and Little Joe Foster, jailed for resisting the corporate state in Stokes Croft.
We also dedicate it to all of the women who have been misbelieved by the patriarchal justice system and have been convicted of making "false" rape claims. This includes Gail Sherwood, accused of lying that she was raped and "Sarah" who was convicted for retracting an accusation of rape (even though she was forced to do this by the rapist's family).
Menzies Campbell consulted on Hollie Greig case as English MP puts Mulholland on the spot
04-06-2011 11:55
Menzies Campbell consulted on Hollie Greig case as English MP puts Mulholland on the spot.
City of Joy - 6th June @ the Cube, 8pm: Join us for a Passionate Film plus Powerful Speakers
04-06-2011 11:55
Bristol Indymedia Film Night presents 'City of Joy' which documents the stories of survivors of rape in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC); showing the progression of the project from its passionate inception, to the building and opening of the centre in Bukavu.
The film, City of Joy, documents the stories of survivors of rape in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC); showing the progression of the project from its passionate inception, to the building and opening of the centre in Bukavu.
For more than a decade, eastern Congo has been known as "the rape capital of the world" and "the worst place on earth to be a woman". THe documentary features women of the Congo talking about the brutal violence they have experienced, and why it is so vital to speak out about it, rather than see it as "the womans shame". Upon the opening of the centre, the survivors, dressed in celebratory clothes, dance, sing and drum to celebrate their accomplishment.
The producer, V Day (www.Vday.org), is a charity set up by Eve Ensler after she wrote the 'Vagina Monologues' to raise awareness and combat violence against women and girls accross the world, and have been helping build hospitals and refugees for women, and helping them rebuild their communities.
The plight of these women does not get the attention it deserves, and is often ignored by the mainstream media, shunned for sugar-coated stores like celebrity weddings; there is, therefore, a heightened sense that these stories need to be told. One of the women interviewed, Jeanne, says "You white people, if you saw this violence happening in your country, would you end it?"
It is advised that some viewers may find scenes upsetting.
We also welcome Katherine Viner (deputy editor of the Guardian) and Doireann from V day to speak at the event.
Monday 6th June, 8pm, the Cube cinema, Dove Street South, Bristol BS2 8JD, and entry s £3, £4 but nobody refused for lack of funds. Click here for map
baby show actions
04-06-2011 06:02
This is a round up of campaigning against the Baby Show / Clarion Events in Birmingham at the end of May.More Disinformation From The Fleshmongering Drugpushers of the World Health Org.
04-06-2011 03:44
Recently the World Health Organization has blamed ecoli on vegetables, in an attempt to shield the animal flesh industry.Notts Uncut: Emergency Operation
04-06-2011 00:55
On Saturday 28th May, Notts Uncut organised an "emergency operation" in Nottingham city centre. They visited banks and tax dodging corporations to campaign in defence of the NHS. The protest was part of a national day of action called by UK Uncut.
People met from 12 noon outside the entrance to the Victoria Centre Boots on Parliament Street. Victoria Centre's security were out and about in force, but they were never on the list of targets and around 40 of us headed off towards Market Square via Clumber Street.
We were a diverse group with people in surgical masks and others in costumes. There were several banners with a range of demands including calls to both "tax the rich" and "eat the rich" (but not at the same time presumably).
The police presence was heavier than it's been at any previous Notts Uncut events. There were a team of around 8, including an evidence gatherer (distinguished by an orange square with the letters EG), who followed us around town throughout. In addition, there was a police guard on almost every likely target (Vodafone, HSBC, Lloyds etc.) in the city centre. At the end of the day, when many of us ensconced ourselves in he pub, the police even appeared to leave a couple of officers outside to make sure we didn't go back for another bite of the cherry.
Despite this over the top level of policing, we were still able to cause a fair amount of disruption. After a brief stop at Lush to deliver a thank you card (I was as bemused by this as the staff seemed to be) we visited Natwest on Market Square. This was shut when we arrived and remained so throughout the performance of a piece of street theatre about the threat to the NHS posed by the Health and Social Care Bill.
There was a pantomime villain Andrew Lansley (complete with devil horns and a tail), while other protesters took the roles of bankers, patients, doctors and nurses.
I'm not a huge fan of street theatre and it is not an ideal medium for conveying complicated messages. For my tastes, the performance focussed to heavily on the (very real) personal failings of the Secretary of State for Health at the expense of the wider ideological and economic forces which have brought us to the current situation. Nevertheless, I wouldn't have done any better and those involved put in their all.
From Natwest we moved onto the Topshop on the junction of Lister Gate and Low Pavement. The street theatre was repeated again, with the shop closed throughout. The performance was then repeated outside the BHS in Broadmarsh Centre (causing disruption to the Boots next door as well) and then outside Barclays on the junction of High Street and Victoria Street. Protesters made no attempt to get into the bank, but their security shut it until they were sure we'd left, leading to a large queue forming outside.
To my mind four performances was too many. It was notable that our numbers dwindled as we went on. Hopefully this is something that the group will take on board for any future actions. No doubt there's a lot to think about. It is clear that Notts Police have decided they aren't going to stand by and let people occupy shops as has happened in the past. How this impacts on future organising remains to be seen.
Save Our NHS Day of Action: Saturday July 9th
04-06-2011 00:55
The campaign against the government's plans for the NHS is at a crossroads. Overwhelming opposition, from ordinary people, the BMA, the NHS Federation, the RCN, the unions and even the Liberal Democrat spring conference has forced them onto the back foot.
The "pause" to allow the government to "listen" has turned into a six month delay for the Bill to be sent back to the committee stage in Parliament. This is by no means the death of the Bill and everything it entails, but it does give us more time to build the campaign against it.
This is an opportunity we cannot afford to miss. We need to press home our advantage and ensure the Bill is killed off and the government told in no uncertain terms that we will not let them - or anybody else - dismantle the NHS.
We are calling for coordinated action in defence of the NHS on July 9th, the Saturday after the anniversary of the NHS' founding on July 5th 1948. Be creative: visit your local MP, protest against profiteering healthcare companies, have a picnic outside a pro-Bill GP's surgery, march from or to a local hospital, shutdown a tax dodging company for the day.
If you want to add your group as a supporter of this day of action, please email nottssos+doa@gmail.com
Supported by:
Notts Save Our Services
Nottingham Socialist Party
Notts Uncut
Save Hayward House Daycare
Sneinton Against the Cuts
Reform Riot Walk: Take 2
04-06-2011 00:55
On Sunday 29th May, Nottingham Radical History Group (People's Histreh) organised a second Reform Riots walk, retracing the riots which followed the defeat of the Second Reform Bill in the House of Lords in October 1831.
espite the threat of rain (which forunately never materialised), more than thirty people came along for the walk, with a handful drifting in and out along the way.
The walk followed the same route as the previous walk in October, beginning at St Peter's Square, near the site of the well-known incident where the mayor was knocked (or bowled) over by a cheese during the 1766 "Cheese Riots".
From here the walk made its way into one of the nearby alleys to convey some sense of what life might have been like in Nottingham during the early industrial revolution.
The walk then went onto High Street and then down to Market Square, the site of many political confrontations over the years and then up to the castle. This landmark was infamously burned down in an expression of the anger against the hated Duke of Newcastle.
The route then went down to and along Castle Gate, crossing Maid Marian Way, and up to Low Pavement for a discussion of the motivations of the rioters. It is here that People's Histreh deviate from many conservative or liberal interpretations of the riots.
Where liberal or conservatives tend to view the participants as either misguided dupes of the Whigs or self-interested, petty thieves, rioting for bounty. By contrast People's Histreh argue (at length in the pamphlet on the matter, soon to be reissued in an expanded form *shameless plug*) that they were instead waging class war, supporting a Bill which offered them nothing, but which would clearly hurt those they hated most like Newcastle.
The final stop on the tour was outside the old courthouse and gaol (or goal, as one unfortunate mason thought), now the Galleries of Justice, on High Pavement. Here alleged rioters were tried at a Special Assize in January 1832. Ultimately three were hung and six transported.
As is so often the case in the history of the real world, there is no happy ending, but it should be noted that when the third Reform Bill went before Parliament in 1832, the Lords took the hint following the violence the year before (which had taken place in many other cities) and passed it into law.
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For more radical history related goodness, join People's Histreh on Friday for a wine and cheese evening (vegan options available) to celebrate the launch of our new pamphlet "Damn your charity..." about the 1766 Great Cheese Riot.
The sports club at the heart of NCH scandal
04-06-2011 00:55
Today the Nottingham Post has claimed it has new evidence relating to the Nottingham City Homes scandal. The article suggests that members of a sports club whose name they refuse to reveal may have benefitted from preferential treatment in the allocation of houses. I'm not so coy as the Post and I'd suggest that the sports club in question is the West Indian Cavaliers Cricket Club whose Honorary Secretary is the disgraced former director of operations of NCH, Tyron Browne.
Comments are no longer allowed on the Post article, because they were being used to identify the sports club in question.
The comments on this article reveal some interesting business dealings of the cricket club, including providing an unspecified company 'services worth £15,500 which was determined on an arms length basis'!
The Post story also reminded me of this story about squatters in the Arboretum who inadvertently found themselves squatting in a dodgy NCH property frequented by professional cricketers. They ended up being chased out by cricket bat wielding men, aided and abetted by the local constabulary.
Lets hope the Post get it together enough to actually reveal what they are so far only hinting at. The local police seem to be so in bed with the corrupt clique at the centre of the scandal that they are refusing to investigate.
Nottingham Animal Rights events
04-06-2011 00:55
Two more weeks of campaigning, including Greyhound action, Proctor&Gamble Boycott, Circus Demo, McDemo, Animal Sanctuary Workday and more
Friday 3rd June 2011
Nottingham Greyhound Stadium Demo
Starts 18:30 - Approx fortnightly
Details from http://www.veggies.org.uk/event.php?ref=1535
Saturday 4th June 2011
Boycott Procter & Gamble - Nottingham
Meet at Wilkinson, 20 Lower Parliament St from 2pm to promote a cruelty-free lifestyle and to highlight campaigns such as Boycott P&G. Details from http://www.veggies.org.uk/event.php?ref=1291
Sunday 5th June 2011
Jolly's Circus in Rainworth, nr Mansfield
Starts 13:00
Peter Jolly's Animal Circus will be at Rainworth Miners Welfare, Kirklington Road, Rainworth, nr Mansfield, Notts NG21 0JY from 2nd to 5th June. Join us for a demo 1pm on Sunday 5th June. Details from http://www.veggies.org.uk/event.php?ref=1888
Thursday 9th June 2011
Brinsley Animal Rescue Workday
Starts 18:30 - Alternate Thurs/Tuesdays
Details from http://www.veggies.org.uk/event.php?ref=1562
Friday 10th June 2011
Sound on the Downs
13:00 to 21:00
Sounds on the Downs is a free music and arts festival on the Downs at the University of Nottingham (near Derby and Lincoln Halls), billed as 'Nottingham's Free renewably-powered greenfields festival', with live music, djs, comedy, spoken word, drumming, face painting, art workshops, music workshops, campaigns. Food by Veggies. Details from http://www.veggies.org.uk/event.php?ref=1881
Wednesday 15th June 2011
McDemo & Vegan Free Food Giveaway
The next event will be held on Wednesday 15th June, 5pm-7pm at Clumber Street to mark the anniversary of 1997 McLibel High Court Victory. Details from http://www.veggies.org.uk/event.php?ref=1400
Thursday 16th June 2011
Nottingham Animal Rights Networking
At 19:30 at the far end of the Mezzanine bar upstairs at Broadway Cinema, Broad St, Nottm, NG1 3AL. Details from http://www.veggies.org.uk/event.php?ref=112
Save the Harlan Beagles - National Demo
Saturday 18th June 2011
12 noon.
Details from http://www.veggies.org.uk/event.php?ref=1899
Morton Hall Demo
04-06-2011 00:55
This morning at Morton Hall Immigration Removal Centre in Swinderby, Lincolnshire a demonstration was held in disgust at the opening of yet another detention centre.
Our intention was to create enough noise from the inside to be heard on the inside by those imprisoned by the State. This was thought to be particularly important today, as Damien Green the minister for immigration was being shown around the prison in it's new guise as an I.R.C, he was accompanied by the usual snivelling, narcissistic and self deluded members of the press who were also treated to a grand tour.
The press members, no doubt viewing the inmates as they would animals in a zoo, were no doubt shown how modern, enlightened and friendly the prison was. The quantity and quality of relaxation, stimulation and general homeliness was undoubtedly underlined as the hacks jumped like rats for scraps.
Outside, banners and signs were raised and held expressing our unwavering solidarity with the prisoners inside (indeed with all those who have been kidnapped by state power), the damage caused by the detention and deportations industry and highlighting the UK government's insidious role in that industry.
Various absurd and circular conversations were had with both security, prison officials and police. Some conversations attempting to persuading us that it was all very nice behind the cages, that people had TV's and phones as if these things are the barometers of human freedom. Other conversations were based around deluded threats of removing or arresting us, deluded to think that we would move because they threaten. Many of us there today know full well that the police, prison, and border systems are arbitrarily enforced and will always be served in the name of the state and capitalism against all others. This enforcement is most often against the most marginalised groups who in order to survive the effects of capitalism are forced to go beyond it's legal system. In the case of Morton Hall this is presently Non UK nationals who have been arrested and will be deported because they are not perceived to play a role in the maintenance of capitalism in this country. Knowing this means that expressions of solidarity to all those imprisoned in Morton Hall, as well as all UK prisons and "immigration removal centres" such as this demonstration must continue.
Which means we will be back, not to engage in "debate" with prison authorities or the police, but to let those inside know that they have not been forgotten.
If you want to participate in future demonstrations, or have ideas of other ways in which to show solidarity to those inside Morton Hall please email NSN[at]riseup[dot]net.
There's also a vistors group currently being set up, who are planning on arranging visits to those imprisoned. Who we can put you in touch with unless they add their contacts in the comment section.
200th Anniversary of the Luddite Uprisings: Technology Politics Then and Now
03-06-2011 23:12
Celebrating the 200th Anniversary of the Luddite Uprisings: Technology Politics Then and NowDate: Wednesday June 8th, 7pm
Venue: Feminist Library meeting room, 5a Westminster Bridge Road, London SE1 7XW, Nearest tube Lambeth North,
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=154817494584557 Organised by:
Luddites200 Organising Forum
luddites200@yahoo.co.uk http://www.luddites200.org.uk/ No admission charge, donations welcome. Please contact organisers about disabled access.