Forthcoming demo against arbitrary detentions, Woodhill Prison, Milton Keynes

MK Stop the War with the Campaign Against Political Terror plans a demo at HMP
Woodhill (in W. Milton Keynes), provisionally on Sunday 28 November,
12.30-14.30.

You will know that defending civil liberties post-9/11 is one of three main aims
of the Stop the War Coalition: another is to oppose a racist backlash.

The demo was initially intended to be about Babar Ahmed, and has the support of
his family, which is campaigning with CAPT for his release.

Babar Ahmed is a 30 year old British IT Engineer whose father immigrated to
Britain from Pakistan 40 years ago. He was arrested last December and held for
six days before being released without charge. Whilst in custody he sustained
50 injuries, two of them life-threatening.

He was re-arrested in August and held in HMP Woodhill, Milton Keynes, under an
extradition warrant from the US who allege that he used the Internet to raise
funds for terrorist activities. Under a new fast-track extradition agreement
between Blunkett and the US, the latter does not have to produce any evidence in
court to substantiate this allegation. Thus any of us could in theory be
imprisoned and extradited to the US on the flimsiest grounds.

We have since decided to widen the demo to include the other detainees in
Woodhill (as also Belmarsh) under the 2001 Anti-Terrorism, Crime & Security
Act. You perhaps saw press articles last week on the poor mental health of
these detainees.  http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/health_medical/story.jsp?story=
571943



HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE . . . . .