On March 9th Liberty and Amnesty are joining forces to protest at the Government’s proposed anti-terror legislation.
Commenting on the growth of opposition to the Government’s plans Shami Chakrabarti, Director of Liberty, said:
"The fact that Amnesty International has joined forces with Liberty highlights the gross affront to human rights constituted by this odious Bill. Punishment without trial is normally associated with far away hell holes. We cannot allow it to take root in Britain."
Tomorrow at 10.30 supporters of Liberty and Amnesty International will be joining up to highlight the fundamentally flawed nature of the anti-terror legislation making its way through Parliament. The centrepiece of the demonstration will be a cage containing a sofa and home decorations. A participant in the demonstration will sit in the cage, representing the experience of house arrest.
Supporters dressed in black will carry placards and banners outlining the point of the action. The themes will be:
Liberty and Amnesty International call for the withdrawal of the Prevention of Terrorism Bill because of the grave threat it poses to human rights and the rule of law in the UK.
“House arrest” without charge or trial is no different from institutional deprivation of liberty.
Liberty and Amnesty International consider that nothing short of charging people with an offence and fully granting them their right to be tried by an independent court could remedy the profound injustice and affront to human rights contained in the Bill.
Those arrested under “terrorism” powers should have access to the full case against them and the right to mount a full and effective defence.
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