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FREE OMAR WALK: BRIGHTON TO LONDON SATURDAY 16 DECEMBER TO TUESDAY 19 DECEMBER

Ann | 01.12.2006 22:20 | London | South Coast

FREE OMAR WALK: BRIGHTON TO LONDON SATURDAY 16 DECEMBER TO TUESDAY 19 DECEMBER

Glenn Williams and Sally Griffiths, Brighton anti-war and human rights activists, will be walking from Brighton to London to demand that Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett allows Omar Deghayes, in his fourth year of detention without trial at Guantanamo Bay, home to Brighton. The United States authorities have agreed, albeit conditionally, to release him but the British government have refused to allow him home. Over the last few months Brighton people have written hundreds of letters and sent a thousand postcards to Ms Beckett and received only one reply, a letter to Brighton and Hove City Councillor Francis Tonks refusing a meeting between Omar's family, his supporters and representatives of the Foreign Office. We cannot just accept these undemocratic dismissals and must now make our demands to bring an immediate end to the torture of Omar Deghayes are heard by as many people as possible so they cannot be just shelved and filed by civil servants.

The walk will begin on Saturday 16th December from Brighton Pier to arrive at the Foreign Office on Tuesday 21st December.

We are planning to give Glenn and Sally, and all the walkers that will be joining them for part or the entire route, a good send off by walking the first two miles with them. Supporters of the Save Omar campaign will gather at Brighton Pier at 8.30am Saturday 16th December and walk north towards the Level and then along the Ditchling Road. Please join us then and again in London on Tuesday 19th December when we greet all the walkers at Brixton tube to walk the last three and half miles with them to Westminster Bridge or all the way to the Foreign Office. This very final destination of the 60 mile trek to get a reply to all our letters lies within the quarter mile radius around Parliament Square, the "no protest without prior police permission zone," but the Brighton walkers are adamant that they should not have to make any request just to complete a journey undertaken to uphold the most basic human and democratic rights. The Brighton walkers are NOT seeking police permission and for those that walk with them from Westminster Bridge to King Charles Street, where the Foreign Office is located, there is a small risk of arrest under the recently introduced SOCPA legislation. It is important to point out that very few people have actually been arrested under a law that has brought nothing but embarrassment to the Blair administration.

Details of time walkers will arrive at Brixton tube ready for the last leg of the walk to be confirmed London and will be sent out as soon as possible.

As well as supporting Free Omar Brighton to London walk at its beginning and at its end, there are other ways to help. If you have a car or van that can
be used for transporting overnight bags, leaflets and banners that would be an enormous help. You might feel able to make a donation towards costs
(publicity, bed and board, petrol or train fares).

If you want to get involved in the walk to London call Glenn on 07973 228 335 or Louise on 07799 362 884 or email  rollacoast@yahoo.co.uk.
Any donations can be posted to Save Omar, 39 Beaconsfield Road, Brighton, BN1 4QH.

Ann
- e-mail: info@save-omar.org.uk
- Homepage: http://www.save-omar.org.uk

Additions

Global action against Guantánamo

18.12.2006 00:05

On 11 January 2007, the Guantánamo detention centre will be five years old. Outraged by this symbol of US abuse and injustice, human rights activists worldwide are joining together in solidarity with the detainees and their families, to demand once more that the US government close Guantánamo. The Free Omar walk is just one of many events happening in a series of protests across the world.

Read about the range of actions on a new Amnesty International blog
 http://blogs.amnesty.org/blogs/closeguantanamo

Amnesty International
- Homepage: http://blogs.amnesty.org/blogs/closeguantanamo