The defendants will be arguing that they were attempting to prevent crimes being committed under the International Criminal Court Act 2000. The ICCA allows for the prosecution of war crimes committed in Britain or by British Nationals.

Steven Barnes 30, Nick Gill, 28, Ewa Jasiewicz, 27, and Yasmin Khan, 24 will appear at Bow Magistrates Court on September 14th, 16th, and 19th 2005.

The four were originally arrested for ‘Aggravated Trespass’ – disrupting a lawful activity - when they besieged the offices of Windrush Communications in December 2004.

Windrush Communications is responsible for organising ‘Iraq Procurement’ and ‘Iraq Development Program’ conferences. These are corporate and government gatherings where ‘deals are done and contracts signed’ regarding privatisation of Iraq’s assets, services and resources. These conferences operate on the basis of Coalition Provisional Authority passed orders – de-facto laws – passed by former administrator Paul Bremer which radically re-structure Iraq’s economy.

On the 15th December 2004, the defendants brought legal briefings on The Hague Regulations and Geneva Conventions plus copies of the Occupation Authority’s Order 39 on ‘Foreign Investment’ to the offices of Windrush Communications. The briefings outlined clearly why the economic reforms passed by Paul Bremer in 2003 violated international law and were intended to show the Director and employees of Windrush that they were aiding and abetting war crimes including pillage.

All four repeatedly tried to dialogue with employees, attempted to gain entry to Windrush’s office, and refused to move from in front of it for over three hours before finally being physically removed by Police officers.

The four were eventually charged three months after the action with ‘failing to leave land when directed by a police officer’. The defendants believe this is a politically motivated charge which places the burden of proof on the presumptions of the officer and the reasonable belief of the defendants, rather than on Windrush to prove that its’ business activities are not unlawful.

In November 2004 activists Ewa Jasiewicz and Pennie Quinton forced Windrush into exactly this position when they were charged with ‘disrupting the lawful activity’ of the Iraq Procurement Conference in April 2004. In what was believed to be a politically motivated decision, the CPS dropped all charges against them despite clear evidence of their disruption to the conference.

Defendant Ewa Jasiewicz who spent nine months living in occupied Iraq and works closely with the Iraqi trade union the General Union of Oil Employees, which is resisting the privatisation of Iraq’s oil says:

‘Modern day pillage looks like this. ‘Iraq Procurement’ or ‘Iraq Development Program’ - the language of business or NGOs, profit or ‘progress’ –Occupiers do not have the right to restructure a country’s economy. What was illegal in September 2003 is still illegal now. This case will finally see the economic occupation of Iraq on trial’

In a leaked memo dated March 26th 2003, UK Attorney General, Lord Peter
Goldsmith advised Prime Minister Blair that in his view, 'the imposition
of major structural economic reforms would not be authorised under
international law'. (Source: Guardian, 7 November 2003, ‘Pillage is
forbidden: Why the privatisation of Iraq is illegal’ Aaron Mate).

Forthcoming Press conference and solidarity protests tba

Contacts

Ewa Jasiewicz 07749 421 576  stopthepillage@yahoo.co.uk for more information including copies of the legal briefings given to Windrush employees

The defendant’s solicitor, Martin Rackstraw, Bindman and Partners
0207 833 4433 Mobile 07802 604 115 email:  M.Rackstraw@bindmans.com

www.radicalactivist.net/corporateiraq

www.basraoilunion.org