UK Newswire Archive
Emergency picket of the Italian Embassy, Wednesday 22/06/11 20 June, 2011
20-06-2011 20:57
A demonstration is to be held outside the Italian Embassy, London this Wednesday afternoon in response to what the organisers of the protest have labelled ‘an outrageous attack on the human rights of not just so-called legal and illegal immigrants, but all European and non-European citizens’.Public Meeting in Nottingham on Morton Hall IRC
20-06-2011 19:55
Detention Action and Nottingham and Notts Refugee Forum are holding a public meeting on 22nd June 2011, to mark the opening of the new Morton Hall Immigration Removal Centre.
The opening of Morton Hall brings the capacity of the UK detention estate up to 3,248. The decision of the UKBA to press on with its opening, despite budget cuts from the Spending Review, demonstrates the government's determination to continue to detain large numbers of migrants for long periods, despite evidence of the dysfunctional current use of detention.
The meeting will enable people in the area to share ideas and expertise for both for supporting people held in Morton Hall and for campaigning against the expansion of detention. Given the location of Morton Hall, people detained there are likely to be particularly isolated and have difficulty getting essential legal advice and support.
Jerome Phelps of Detention Action will speak about the indefinite detention of migrants who cannot be deported. Migrants are routinely held for periods of years, far in excess of the 28 days allowed for terror suspects.
XX of Nottingham and Notts Refugee Forum will speak about...
Emma Ginn of Medical Justice will speak about the need for local doctors to help detainees to challenge inadequate healthcare and document their health issues.
The meeting will be:
Wednesday 22nd June, 6pm
The Square Centre
Alfred St North
Nottingham
All welcome.
Palestine Today 06 20 2011
20-06-2011 15:34
Sponsored Walk For Palestine
20-06-2011 14:55
Want to meet other supporters of Palestine from around the Peak District and also raise money for a good cause?
Nottingham Palestine Solidarity Campaign/ Nottingham Stop the War announce a Sponsored Walk (or bring a donation) and picnic from Hartington (between Ashbourne and Buxton) on Sunday 26th June at 11am. The distance to be walked is around 8 miles (12 Kilometres) of easy-ish countryside.
We aim to raise funds in support of the Jenin Hospital - Palestine.
Please remember to bring your food and drink for the picnic.
Directions
Meet at 10:45 am at Hartington Market Square. There will be a coffee break before and after the lunchtime picnic.
Please let Chris Fraser know if you need a sponsor form on 07854-053426 or chrisfraser9@hotmail.com
Transport arrangements
Car sharing is possible. Please phone or text Chris if you need a lift.
If you dont have time to raise sponsorship you can just make a donation on the day.
Unwelcome Socialist Party plea for more funds !!
20-06-2011 14:55
Copy of Letter sent to Socialist Party leadership following a plea for members to increase their subs
Comrades,
Question? Am I the only one who finds the recent increase request for our
"subsappeal2011" too much to stomach ?
And in addition, is anyone else considering quitting the party, for seemingly adding to the financial squeeze orchestrated by the current government, I know I am.
The request to increase members subs to enable a monthly target of £4,000, is being explained as a need by the party to "step up" its campaigning for June 30th strikes.
Mention (in the request letter) is made of the 80,000 leaflets and 5,000 placards etc which came to the grand total of £8,000 for the March 26th campaign. And more is needed !!
The letter then gets down to nitty-gritty with, what I consider an ill-advised and crass attempt to "shame" members into increasing their monthly subs, by highlighting (amongst others) the fact that even some unemployed members have been generous enough to increase their subs, and a few "minted" individuals, have agreed to join the farcically named "100 club" thereby paying £100 per month !!
No one is knocking the above mentioned efforts, but given the current "economic climate" with individuals and households being strangled financially, this "appeal" takes some beating !
With frozen wages, rising costs of living, redundancies and the recent hike in domestic fuel prices, (covered and commented upon with such anger by our party and its paper), comrades then see that the leadership have the audacity to ask us to part with even more of our hard earned money.
Does the leadership grasp the fact, that a few months ago there was a similar request ?
I am sure, I speak for the majority of comrades, who, when setting up their membership standing orders, thought long and hard about just how much could they reasonably afford, and having made that decision, welcome this begging letter, with as much enthusiasm as a Nato air-strike on a civilian target.
We all know that we are rapidly approaching the "big one" June 30th and the mass strike.
Maybe some comrades will be asking, that given the large amount of wonga spent on March 26th materials, Could some of these be re-used/re-cycled for the 30th ? One would sincerely hope that the materials in question were not tailored solely for that action, as this would constitute a brand of short-sightedness of epic proportions, "I mean, eight grand for materials that can only be used in one event" I did not realise Socialists were a "one gig a year" party?
Is our shortfall from a specific source? maybe a drop in the number of papers being sold ?
If that is the case, then our hard working comrades are, technically not really to blame, I mean, you can't force a member of Joe Public to buy a paper, they are probably thinking about making savings like the rest of us should be.
If this is true, then the leadership is asking the members to stump-up dosh to cover a shortfall that was not of their making in the first place ..... ?!!??
Hang on a minute, doesn't this sound all a bit too familiar ??
One must also remember, That dissent does not constitute disloyalty, and in such spirit of freedom of speech, The Socialist, I hope, will put a copy of this letter in its paper.
Comradely, but Disillusioned, (Chairman) Wrexham Socialist Branch, N. Wales.
Brian Haw (1949-2011)
20-06-2011 14:20
SpanishRevolution: After 19J. Videos and text
20-06-2011 14:15
SpanishRevolution: After 19J. Videos and textPC Harwood in court for first hearing - Monday 20 June
20-06-2011 12:33
PC Simon Harwood, the officer charged with manslaughter for Ian's death, appeared in City of Westminster Magistrates Court for the first time today.It was primarily administrative to refer the case to a Crown Court. Defendant's are not expected to enter a plea at this stage. No date is set for a trial yet.
Emergency picket of Italian Embassy and meeting
20-06-2011 10:06
The Italian government is passing the most repressive and racist 'emergency decrees' in the name of an 'emergency' that does not exist, regarding migration from the Middle Ease in uprising.Roma and irregular migrants are being round up and taken to deportation centres where all right have been suspended.
Over 1800 recorded deaths since the beginning of the year in attempts to cross the Mediterranean.
Protest, protest, protest!
Notts SOS calls for action to save our NHS
20-06-2011 09:55
Nottinghamshire Save Our Services (Notts SOS) are calling for a "day of action to save our NHS" on Saturday July 9th.
In Nottingham there will be a rally at Speakers' Corner, but campaigners are hoping for activity across the country, building on widespread opposition to the government's Health and Social Care Bill.
Among the groups already signed up to support the day of action are Youth Fight for Jobs, Save Hayward House Daycare, Disabled People Against Cuts, the local branches of the Socialist Party and Anarchist Federation and anti-cuts groups from Lewisham and Nuneaton. Notts SOS are still keen to get as many people involved as possible.
Campaigners believe the Bill will open the door towards widespread privatisation of the NHS, undermining the universal, free at the point of need, service.
Rosemary Muge from Notts SOS said, "They are now desperately spinning to get people on board. But make no mistake, the fact that Andrew Lansley says his main intentions are still intact means that even with these alterations they are leaving the way open for private companies to take over and make profits from sickness."
Harry Powell from the campaign said, "The 'pause' to allow the government to listen' has been followed by some changes and an extensive PR campaign. But we should not be fooled. The 'reforms' are still a very real threat to the NHS and there remains a pressing need to kill the Bill."
Notes for editors
- A statement about the event with a full list of supporters can be found on the Notts SOS website: http://wp.me/p15Eeo-y5
- In Notttingham protesters will be assembling at Speakers' Corner (the Clough Statue) for a rally from 12 noon. This will be followed by various activities around the city.
- Notts SOS was launched on 29th September 2010. They oppose cuts to services, job losses and cuts in benefits and aim to support workers organisations, service users, community groups in fighting cuts in Nottingham City and Nottinghamshire. They hope to inspire confidence to think, meet and act. And to be inspired.
ENDS
A Tribute to Anti-War Campaigner Brian Haw, Driven by Revulsion at the Murder of Innocents
20-06-2011 09:24
When I was a child, I read the Guinness Book of Records, and marvelled at the stories of the people who, in ancient times, removed themselves from everyday reality, like Saint Simeon Stylites, a Christian ascetic who lived on a tiny platform on top of a pillar in Aleppo, Syria for 37 years in the 5th century AD.
** J30 Strike Website now live **
20-06-2011 08:55
News, updates, calls of action, interactive action maps, downloads -- its got it all!
Please forward and help plug the site. If you want to add an event for J30 then pleaseemail june30action@gmail.com with the following:
Time: Short Description:Location ( with postcode if possible! ):Facebook Event link:Type ( Action, Rally, March, Picket )
We really need more picket locations for the early morning. The site covers the whole UK so please spread far and wide!!
http://www.j30strike.org
J30 strike
p.s. Facebook has associated the website link with spam - due to the number of invites sent out for the J30 strike event - a pop up window will appear informing you that the content is blocked with link to complain - please complain to get facebook to unblock it. Thanks!
NATO`s Global War Experience
19-06-2011 22:49
Un Imigrato a Verona
19-06-2011 22:29
On June 17th, 2011, a group of about 25 immigrants that had been protesting for ten days decided to end their protest by climbing up the scaffolding attached to Verona's arena and demanding their long promised residency permits.Real Democracy Manchester Protest
19-06-2011 20:55
Around 100 members of Spanish, Greek, English and other European citizens living in Manchester, demonstrated in the city today as part of a Europe wide series of protests.
Demonstrators assembled in the city's Piccadilly Gardens as part of a spontaneous collective movement which, inspired by the Egyptian and Tunisian uprisings, started in Spain on the 15th May 2011 and soon spread to many cities both in Spain and abroad.
The group states: "We are seeking to try and gather people living in Manchester, and who, like us are "outraged" at the cuts and at the ideological agenda underpinning them, here and in the rest of Europe, and at the way in which the outcomes of two centuries of social, cultural and political struggle are being given away through policies targeting all sectors of welfare, education and culture, one after the other."
All Images © Stillshooter - 2011
Undying spirit - the words of Brian Haw from March 2008
19-06-2011 19:36
Facebook and Google strut with top bankers and royalty - Bilderberg 2011 debrief
19-06-2011 18:39
EDL Opened Up Up North.
19-06-2011 15:38
A gob-shite, spotty, no-mark rabble claiming 'EDL Bradford' colours came unstuck yesterday after confusing a serious anti-fascist with the UAF.brian haw r.i.p.
19-06-2011 14:55
brian haw, the parliament square peace campaigner, passed away in the early hours yesterday morning after a long struggle with lung cancer.
click on image for larger version. all images are 'some rights reserved' - free for credited non-commercial use, otherwise contact author for permission
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brian haw died peacefully in germany where he had been receiving treatment for lung cancer for the past six months. his parliament square peace campaign marked an extraordinary ten-year milestone just two weeks earlier.
brian originally set up camp in the square opposite the gates of parliament on june 2nd 2001. his protest was against the sanctions on iraq that were directly responsible for hundreds of thousands of children's deaths.
the authorities mounted various legal challenges to evict brian over the years, but each time he saw them off, and fought not only against the sanctions, and later the iraq and afghanistan wars, but also for the right to protest.
over the years, his display of banners spread along the edge of the square, and activists, campaigners and artists (including banksy) contributed banners and artworks to the site.
in 2005, the government brought in new legislation as part of the 'serious organised crime and police act' (socpa), that introduced a system of authorisation and conditions on protest near parliament. the legal challenges from that time were still rumbling on, but the police were instructed to illegally swoop in the middle of the night in may 2006 to remove most of the display, unceremoniously breaking it up and shoving the pieces into a large container.
artist mark wallinger was so incensed by this attack on freedom of expression that he spent months recreating every detail of brian's whole display, and showed the life-size copy in the tate's duveen gallery, winning the turner prize for his work entitled 'state britain'.
support for brian was such that he won the channel 4 'most politically inspiring figure of the year' in 2007, as voted for by viewers. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKvhsJJBF-0
as new people joined brian's campaign, an unfortunate rift and personality clash occured, remaining an issue in the square to this day. many of his long-term supporters left or were ostracised, but the campaign carried on, and brian's main focus was the legacy of depleted uranium munitions on the people of iraq and afghanistan - his display included distressing photographs of some of the deformities caused by the radioactive dust released when these missiles strike.
pledges by gordon brown to repeal the socpa laws were never honoured, and the new administration is currently ramping up the pressure with new laws and injunctions to rid parliament square of any permanent protests, possibly ahead of greater illegal military intervention in libya and the middle east. it is a sign of how effective brian's protest has been that government feels the need to draft, debate, and push through legislation which is clearly specifically directed at this one man, first with the socpa clauses, and most recently with the police and social responsibility bill.
i hope that the protest groups in parliament square will find a way to honour brian's memory, put aside differences, and work together to fight the government assault on freedom, and to continue to highlight the illegality of our wars and ammunitions.
i will remember brian most of all for his disarming and radiant smile, for his lethal humour, for his incisive words, and for his enormous personal sacrifice in the cause of peace.
brian haw 1949-2011, rest in peace.