The vigils continue


Another strong turn out for the 110th vigil

January 2026

On a cold evening around 35 turned out for the latest vigil. Peace talks seemed to have stalled according to several media outlets. Killings continue albeit at a slower pace. 425 have now been killed since the October ceasefire. Eight were killed in Khan Younis a few days ago including 4 children when an Israeli drone hit a tent. Thirty Canadians, including 6 members of parliament, were denied entry to the West Bank for security reasons it has been reported.

The Chief Rabbi, Sir Ephraim Mirvis, in a Daily Mail article has hit out at critics of Israel for calling their actions in Gaza genocide. He said it reduces humanity’s greatest crime to a ‘political insult’. He repeated the assertion that the current war started with the October 7th massacre. He lashed out, the Mail reports, at ‘so-called ‘human rights‘ organisations who appear to revel in misappropriating the term genocide because it has proven such an effective rallying call for them. The Mail did not seek comments from any of the human rights organisations.

Genocide occurs when occurs where there is specific ‘intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group’. The UN has concluded that is the case.

The local MP, Mr John Glen has never appeared at any of the 110 vigils. He has never referred to them in his weekly column in the Salisbury Journal. He is reported to be a member of the largest parliamentary lobby group, Conservative Friends of Israel [a Declassified report]. A video of the vigil is sent to him after each week.

Picture courtesy of Peter Gloyns

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Florida kicks the year off with an execution


Florida continues its record breaking run

January 2026

Last night (January 10th), Governor DeSantis signed the first execution warrant of 2026. Ronald Palmer Heath is scheduled to be executed at 6 pm on Tuesday, February 10th for the 1989 murder of Michael Sheridan in Alachua County. Last year saw a record number of executions in Florida exceeding all others in the US. Several US papers refer to the killings as a ‘spree’.

If the execution proceeds, it will mark the 28th execution under Gov. Ron DeSantis — part of an unprecedented escalation in Florida’s use of the death penalty. The murder of Michael Sheridan was a tragedy, and his loss is still being grieved to this day. But, killing Ronnie will not bring Michael back.

It seems to be part of the Governor’s desire to show he’s tough on crime and help in his desire to become president.

Amnesty is opposed to the death penalty in all circumstances. It is not a deterrent. Mistakes, and there are many, cannot be rectified. The justice system in the State is less than satisfactory and the jury in this case was split on the subject of execution.

Source: Floridians Against the Death Penalty and AP. On the FADP site there is the opportunity to sign a petition. We are grateful to FADP for some of the text used in this post.

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Group minutes and newsletter


January minutes and newsletter with details of forthcoming events

January 2026

We are pleased to attach our latest minutes and newsletter thanks to group member Lesley for compiling them and for other members Andrew and Fiona for their contributions. We do not produce a newsletter as such so they contain more material than you would ordinarily find in minutes. They contain notice of forthcoming events which you will find at the end. The next meeting is on 12th February at 2pm in Victoria Road.

January minutes and newsletter (Word)Download

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Human Rights Concerns in UK Protest Laws


Concerns about latest bill and affects on right to protest

January 2026

Liberty and other human rights organisations argue that proposals in this bill, currently going through the Lords, will block countless people from exercising their fundamental right to protest, risk criminalising marginalised communities, and prevent meaningful change.

Repeat Protests 

Clause 372 of the Crime and Policing Bill would give police the power ban repeat demonstrations in a designated area. If this is voted into law, senior police officers must consider the “cumulative disruption” caused by previous – or even future – protests in the area as a reason to ban a demonstration, regardless of whether they were organised by the same people or focused on the same issues. They would also decide what area is restricted, with no clear rules on its size. This means there could be borough or city-wide bans on protests, simply because a different demonstration took place the week before. This won’t just impact frequent large-scale marches; it could restrict emergency demonstrations on issues of grave importance, or the right to organise counter protests.

Since change is rarely achieved by a one-off demonstration outside Parliament (votes for women took nearly a century to achieve, as did a two-day weekend) this clause is viewed as inhibiting persistent lawful protest.

Face coverings at protests

Sections 118-120 of the Crime and Policing Bill will make it a criminal offence to wear a face covering at designated protests, and police will have the power to arrest or fine anyone breaching this condition. The lack of adequate safeguards in the Bill will particularly impact anyone who has to wear a face covering for health, religious, or privacy reasons. This could result in Muslim women, disabled people, and political dissidents being criminalised for attending protests with face coverings. Police already have the ability to require people to remove items if they believe they’re being used to hide their identity.

Demos polling shows that 86% of people believe everyone has the right to voice their opinion and raise awareness of issues. The Crime and Policing Bill will strip this right away from those who can only protest safely with a face covering.

Protests outside places of worship 

Section 124 of the Bill also proposes giving the police powers to restrict protests ‘in the vicinity’ of places of worship. Police already have the power to restrict protests based on their intention; this prevents genuine harm or disruption to religious communities. This new clause would instead ban protests based on the fact there is a place of worship nearby, regardless of intention, with the only criteria being that these protests could be considered ‘intimidating’.

This very low threshold could capture almost any protest in towns or cities across the country. Regular demonstrations outside Parliament could now be restricted due to the numerous places of worship nearby, with no requirement to prove they are being targeted by protests.

Other amendments 382 A-D would make it harder to organise processions quickly in response to current events, and remove the vital “reasonable excuse” safeguard that helps prevent the criminalisation of peaceful protest.

CITIZENSHIP RIGHTS

The British Egyptian activist Alaa Abd el-Fattah will not be stripped of his citizenship as, according to the Home Secretary Shabana Mahmoud. His ‘abhorrent’ social media posts of a decade ago do not meet the legal bar for revocation. The necessary criteria would include fraudulent acquiring of citizenship or terrorism charges or links with serious organised crime.

The British government helped secure the activist’s release from years in an Egyptian jail but after his arrival in London from Egypt on Boxing Day, opposition parties called for him to be deported and his citizenship revoked, citing tweets in which he called for Zionists to be killed. El-Fattah who was granted British citizenship while in prison in 2021 through his mother’s birth in the UK, has apologised for past social media posts.

Government sources said the bar on removing citizenship was set high to provide the necessary safeguards. There is a right of appeal against the decision to revoke citizenship. Shamima Begum’s appeal was rejected by the former home secretary Sajid Javid in 2019.

PROTESTS ON BEHALF OF HUNGER STRIKERS

A 500-strong protest was held outside Pentonville prison to express urgent concern at the government’s continued inaction in the face of the imminent death of three remaining hunger strikers of the so-called Filton 24. They have now been on strike for over 45, 59 and 66 days respectively (8 January). 800 medical personnel have signed a letter criticising the government’s handling of the hunger strikers.

Campaigners have called their treatment ‘punishment by process’ since none has yet been charged with a terrorist offence, only with burglary, criminal damage and violent disorder, relating to their entry into a factory run by Elbit Systems, the Israeli arms manufacturer.

While the CPS sets a maximum of six months on remand, the hunger strikers have already been imprisoned without trial since November 2024. Their actions took place before the banning of their pro-Gaza protest group, Palestine Action, a banning which is currently being investigated after an appeal supported by Liberty and Amnesty.

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On 21st January, we are hosting a talk by the author and journalist Peter Oborne about his new book ‘Complicit’. For details see the post about Britain’s role above. It is free with a parting collection.

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Asylum Seekers: UK Policy Changes and Impact in 2026


Some positive news on refugees and asylum seekers

January 2026

With the events in Venezuela, threats to occupy Greenland and continuing conflict in Ukraine, news about small boat arrivals and immigrants generally has dropped out of the news recently. Problems remain however.

Firstly, the final figure for irregular arrivals in the UK by small boats in 2025 was 41,000, the second-highest annual total ever.  The Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act is now in force, with new measures allowing Border Force to seize phones and SIM cards from irregular arrivals, ostensibly to help in tracking down smugglers.  Seizures of cash and assets of convicted smugglers are up 33% in year to September, compared to the previous year.

More positively, 5 local councils in England and Wales have declared an interest in a pilot scheme to use new build and refurbished council homes for asylum seekers as a way of removing them from hotels. The homes would be built with government money, leased to the Home Office, and then added to LA stock. The views of other prospective council home tenants have not yet been noted.

In the EU, heads of state met on 8 January to discuss its Common European System for Returns, instituted last March.  The Commission claims that only 20% of those designated for deportation actually are removed.  The effectiveness of the new system is not yet clear.  The UK government claims to have removed 50,000 claimants since it came into office in July 2024.

On the global level, Sherif A Wahab has calculated that the numbers of Displaced Persons is now double what it was in 2012; one-third of them are refugees (i.e. outside their country). Likewise the number of refugees who have been in exile for more than 5 years has doubled over the last decade; reasons for this include conflicts lasting longer; lack of strategy at local and national levels; refusals of permanent residency and other repressive policies. Of the world’s 32 million refugees only 204,000 returned home or settled permanently in 2022 (latest figures).

‘failure of imagination and ambition’

The head of the UNHCR, Filippo Grandi – on retiring last month – expressed his views on what he saw as a failure of imagination and ambition; “the international community should invest in asylum systems to make them faster, more efficient and better able to return people who do not need the help”  In his view, governmental responsibility does not impinge on sovereignty, but is an extension of it.

The link below to an article from The Guardian looks at the working of community sponsorship schemes; it implies that the government is still committed to legal routes to resettlement.  The Home Secretary said last November that she hoped to develop this model further.

“With control [over Britain’s borders] restored, we will open up new, capped routes for refugees for whom this country will be the first, safe haven they encounter.  We will make community sponsorship the norm, so we know that the pace and scale of change does not exceed what a local area is willing to accept,” she said.

‘It takes a town to raise a family’: the community sponsors supporting refugees in the UK | Communities | The Guardian

On the campaigning front, Safe Passage International have produced for the new year a Resolutions Generator, which, when pressed, will offer a small way in which one can help or understand better.

And here’s a petition against deportations from WeMoveEurope:

Say No to Mass Deportations in Europe | WeMove Europe

AH

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Talk by Peter Oborne in Salisbury on 21st about his new book ‘Complicit’

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Latest death penalty report


January 2026

We are pleased to attach the latest death penalty report thanks to group member Lesley for the work in compiling it. Florida is a feature this month with the rapid increase in the number of executions. Saudi has executed a huge number of people – almost one a day. We note as ever that China executes more of its people than the rest of the world combined but details are a state secret.

Mid December to mid January. WordDownload
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Britain’s role in the destruction of Gaza


Talk by author and journalist Peter Oborne on 21st

January 2026

We have posted a number of items on this site about the horrific events in Gaza and the West Bank. 109 vigils have now taken place in Salisbury attended by many concerned at the scale of death and destruction which has taken place. The current phase started with the horrific attack by Hamas on 7th October 2023 in which over 1,200 Israelis were killed and 251 hostages seized. The conflict has deeper roots however going back to the formation of Israel in 1948 and the ensuing killing and displacement of many hundreds of thousands of Arabs and Palestinians: the number is put at between 750,000 and 1 million. Many of those displaced ended up in Gaza. We can go back even further to the Balfour Declaration in 1917.

Gaza is now a wasteland. Over 71,000 have died and around 171,000 injured many with serious wounds. Israel has just revoked the licenses of 37 aid organisations including MSF. There is a peace arrangement of sorts but there does not seem to be any realistic prospect of a permanent end to the hostilities. Israel is the local super power with a considerable armoury of the latest weapons including the F-35 jet. About 15% of the parts for the fighter are made in the UK. Statements from leading Israeli politicians do not show signs of a compromise. The prospects for a Palestinian state look remote.

Complicit

Peter Oborne’s new book ‘Complicit’ looks at Britain’s role in the conflict and the destruction of Gaza. There are two main threads in his book: the role of the government and secondly, the treatment and reporting by the British press and media including the BBC. Part of the way it is reported concerns the language used. We have noted on this site that Hamas seized 251 ‘hostages’ which is correct, but seizures by IDF soldiers of Palestinians are referred to as ‘prisoners’ implying some kind of legal process has taken place. It hasn’t, and over a thousand have been imprisoned and tortured in a variety of prisons with no charges made and no judicial process taking place.

Oborne (pictured: image New Statesman) refers to what he term ‘two tier reporting’. For example the BBC used the word ‘massacre’ eighteen times more for Israeli victims than Palestinian despite the massive difference in numbers. Israel is always described as responding to violence never to initiating it. ‘BBC’s coverage of Gaza has been a reporting disaster and a moral calamity’ he says. They are not the only ones and the roll call of biased reporting includes much of Fleet St and the media more widely.

Chapters include ‘The Pro-Israel Lobby in Britain’, ‘British Complicity Before October 7th’, ‘Moral Panic at Westminster’.

The Event

The talk will take place on Wednesday 21st January starting at 7pm. It will be held at the Salisbury Methodist Church in St Edmund’s Church Street and is free with a parting collection. There is disabled access and the car park is nearby.

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Israel revokes licences for aid organisations


37 aid organisations had their licences revoked on 1st January

January 2026

As if the suffering in Gaza was not enough, the Israeli government has announced the ending of licences for 37 aid organisations operating in Gaza and the West Bank. Unwra has already been banned. The latest batch include major aid organisations without which, much of the life of the Palestinians will become intolerable. They include Médicins sans Frontières who operate in most of what’s left of the hospitals, Norwegian Refugee Council, Action Aid and many others. These provide vital services and importantly provide logistical and distribution services in what is a wrecked environment.

Haaretz has summed up the situation well. Israel has pushed its responsibility onto aid organisations and then carried out a sustained smear campaign accusing them of collaborating with Hamas and placed endless obstacles in the way of bringing in aid including doctors and medical staff. This is the latest step in a policy which has been both ‘cruel and amateurish’ in its treatment of Gaza’s civilian population.

This latest move comes after what are familiar allegations made by Israeli spokespeople such as Amichai Chikli who is Israeli Diaspora Affairs Minister. His and his government’s allegations have not been supported by evidence. Since journalists are not allowed into Gaza independent verification of the various claims cannot be made.

High death toll of aid and medical staff

Israel has demanded the names of all staff operating for the aid organisations which they have refused to do. Working in the territory is extremely dangerous. 579 aid workers and 1,700 health workers have been killed since October 7th 2023. 256 journalists have also died sometimes by sniper fire. To provide these names would put staff under extreme risk.

The situation in Gaza is unimaginable. Vast numbers are living in tented communities. Sewage systems have been destroyed. Clean water supplies are limited. Food is scarce. Thousands suffer medical conditions for which they cannot get treatment. Some aid is getting in but nowhere near enough. It may seem absurd but one item which Israel will not allow in is tent poles. These are classed as ‘dual-use’ and clearly means even erecting a tent extremely difficult. However there are reports of some dual-use materials being allowed in by commercial actors in a kind of organised black market system.

Vigils continue

The 109th vigil was held in Salisbury and around 30 attended in what seemed a very quiet City. A video of the vigil is available thanks as ever to Peter Gloyns.

109 vigils but still no sign of the local MP John Glen who is reported to be a member of the Conservative Friends of Israel. He has never referred to the vigils attended by many of his constituents, in his weekly Salisbury Journal piece. He has just become a board member of the Christian organisation Alabare.

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Surge in executions in Saudi


Almost one execution a day and a new record

January 2026

No less than 356 people were executed in 2025 exceeding the grizzly total of 338 in the previous year. Large numbers are foreign individuals. Many are executed for drugs crimes sometimes involving trivial amounts. Trials are notoriously unfair and the use of torture is routine. Most executions are thought to be by beheading.

Human Rights Watch refers to the ‘weaponising the penalty’ as a means to curb dissent. The de facto leader of Saudi is Mohammad bin Salman who was said to be keen to modernise the Kingdom. On this showing it would seem he has some way to go.

Sportswashing

A feature of the Kingdom is the vast amount being spent on sport in what has been termed ‘sportswashing’. Aided by leaders such as Boris Johnson and Donald Trump he has purchased the English football club Newcastle United and has secured the rights to the World Cup in 2034. This increase in largesse followed the murder of Khashoggi which sent huge shock waves around the world and was almost certainly ordered by MBS. We have noted before that there is no difficulty in recruiting sportsmen and women to compete in a wide variety of sports including golf, tennis, F1 motor racing, cycling and equestrianism.

He quoted as saying that “he does not care about sportswashing criticism” so long as the long-term diversification away from oil dependency is successful.

He need not worry. Western politicians are falling over themselves to visit and seek to secure trade deals. The British government’s desire for growth means human rights considerations are unlikely to intrude. The massive number of executions are unlikely to form more than a ripple on the UK government’s desire for exports, the sale of arms and investment in the UK itself.

There is a small hint of concern in an Early Day Motion 1411 in June last year:

“That this House remains concerned about human rights violations in Saudi Arabia; welcomes the recent release of dozens of political prisoners, including University of Leeds PhD student Salma al-Shehab, human rights defender Mohammed al-Qahtani, and doctor Lina Alsharif; notes, however, that released individuals face continued restrictions, including travel bans; further notes that others remain arbitrarily imprisoned for peaceful dissent, such as Manahel al-Otaibi; is alarmed by the record number of death penalty executions, with 345 in 2024 and over 140 in 2025 so far, with a number of persons who committed their alleged crimes as minors facing execution; is concerned about labour exploitation and potential deaths of workers in connection with the 2034 FIFA World Cup and other mega-projects in the absence of fundamental labour rights reform; calls on the UK Government to urge Saudi Arabia to release all those imprisoned for defending or exercising their rights and to establish a moratorium on use of the death penalty; and further calls on the Government to actively raise such rights issues and cases of concern, including in connection with on-going discussions with Gulf Cooperation Council states on a Free Trade Agreement”. [Source House of Commons accessed 2 January]

There were 15 signatures, none of which were Conservative.

One execution is noteworthy and that is of Turki al-Jasser in June. He was a journalist who worked for the Al Taqreer newspaper which the regime closed down. He wrote articles exposing the corruption within the Royal Family. He was arrested and his home searched. Much of what happened to him was surrounded in secrecy. His family did not know of his execution until after the event.

We seem to have moved to a situation where a high level of gross human rights violations are the norm and the desire for trade effectively trumps any meaningful political concern. Sport is being successfully being used to sanitise the regime’s reputation and millions are happy to spectate with little concern for what takes place behind the scenes.

Sources: HRW, MSN, Guardian, Council on Foreign Relations, Amnesty.

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Death penalty in Florida


Surge in death sentences in the ‘Sunshine State’

January 2026

Florida is carving out for itself an unenviable reputation as the state with the worst record for executions in America. The US is the only country in the Americas to retain the penalty in some states at least and under Governor DeSantis, Florida is rapidly increasing the numbers heading for execution.

There is an organisation Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (FADP) which is seeking to end the use of the penalty in the state and is campaigning for that to happen. They have recently published a report ‘We the People’ – the opening words of the US Constitution – and this post draws largely on that.

It is 10 years ago we drew attention the legal process in the US and the work of the British lawyer, Clive Stafford-Smith who has campaigned for many years on behalf of those on death row. He wrote a book called Injustice and we discussed aspects from it in that post. Essentially the process is profoundly flawed which is of life and death importance to those caught up in it. Evidence favourable to the defendant is not always released to the defence and lawyers are sometimes ill-equipped to carry out trials of such importance.

If anything the situation has got worse. The rule now is that only 8 out of 12 jurors are needed for a conviction which clearly means those who have misgivings are ignored. Sex trafficking has been added to the list of crimes subject to the penalty which will increase the incentive to silence victims thus making the situation worse not better.

Another disturbing feature is that seven of the 19 who were executed were veterans and clearly indicates that these are not people who could be termed ‘the worst of the worst’. They may be disturbed as a result of their service – in Afghanistan for example – and execution is not an answer.

Barbaric and ineffective

With Florida responsible for 40% of the nations executions there is something happening quite outside any increase in criminality. It seems that the Governor, Ron DeSantis is a keen proponent signing orders almost as soon as the jury has left the court. It is suggested that this rise in executions is part of his drive to show he is ‘tough on crime’ and his desire to be the next President. Yet as we have pointed out on many occasions, there has been no evidence of the penalty having a deterrent effect. It is as barbaric as it is ineffective.

FADP reports that the executions take place in remote parts of the state possibly to discourage media reporting which seems curious in view of the Governor’s desire to show toughness.

The group produces a report on the death penalty around the world each month.

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Last vigil of 2025


The 108th vigil held in Salisbury

Around 30 attended the latest vigil the need for which has not diminished. Indeed it could be argued that the need is greater than ever since the topic has slid from news programmes and reporting. The Ukraine situation remains in the news as missiles and drones continue to rain down on the population there. There is talk of a peace deal and there are some optimistic noises but realistically it seems very unlikely. President Putin can see that the US simply wants the problem to go away and that Europe is too feeble and divided to represent any kind of a threat. Any ‘peace’ deal will be temporary.

Another supposed peace deal the Americans have brokered is Gaza where again reality is a long way from the rhetoric coming out of Washington.

“It is one of the most devastated places on earth” Alessandro Mrakic, head of the UN Development Programmes Gaza Office

Sky News reports that Israel will not allow heavy lifting equipment into Gaza. This obviously means the process of clearing the mountains of rubble cannot begin.

Flooding has hit the area and with people living in tents and makeshift accommodation, life is grim for Palestinians. Amnesty reports that ‘devastation from torrential rains was ‘utterly preventable’ and was fuelled by Israel’s ongoing restrictions on the entry of critical supplies to repair infrastructure’.

Israel has already seized a substantial part of the territory and almost all the cultivable parts. There is fresh evidence that the ‘Yellow Line’ is being quietly extended with fortifications being established beyond it. Satellite images show that around 53% of Gaza is now controlled by Israel. Palestinians coming near are shot by snipers or quadcopters. 414 have now been killed since the ceasefire. The death toll is put at 70,937 according to the The Peninsular Qatar and 171,192 injured. Foreign journalists are not allowed into Gaza and the BBC has reported that the Knesset has passed a law to close down yet more foreign broadcasters.

The need for the vigils continue. The next will be on 3rd January at 5pm.

Main photo: UN, tile photos, Salisbury Amnesty

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Review of 2025


… and things do not look much better for 2026

December 2025

We have published 192 posts so far this year on a wide variety of subjects concerned with human rights. A key feature of the year has been the continuation of our vigils. We have held over 190 since the current conflict started and although there is some kind of cessation of hostilities, peaceful reconciliation between Israel and the Palestinians seems a far away dream. Some food aid is getting in but Israel has seized almost all the cultivable land leaving those in Gaza hemmed into an even smaller part of their territory. We have commented on the poor reporting of events there and the unsatisfactory nature of so many interviews.

Arms sales

A feature of this conflict and other conflicts around the world is the role of the arms trade. It appears that this trade seems to determine British policy: truly the tail wagging the dog. The government frequently trots out that it has a ‘robust policy’ whilst granting licences – and in particular open licenses – to almost all who come. The effects on people at the receiving end of these weapons sales does not seem to worry the Foreign Office or government ministers. Recent government’s policies have focused on growth and if growth means selling arms to Israel and to the UAE so be it. There is considerable evidence that the latter are supplying the RSF in Sudan who are alleged to commit many atrocities.

At the height of the Yemen war we highlighted the role of British arms firms and their weapons sales to the Saudis. RAF personnel were involved just short of being labelled ‘mercenaries’.

Sport

Sport has featured in several of our posts and the ever increasing use by states with abysmal human rights records to use sport to burnish their images. Virtually all sports are involved, but especially football, boxing, motor sport, golf, tennis and cycling. The driver is money. China and the Gulf states are among those with almost unlimited resources to pour into sporting events with seemingly no difficulty in attracting sportsmen and women to compete in their countries with no moral qualms. They also invest in our football clubs again with no concerns about how tainted the money is.

It has become so part of the furniture now that it engenders little comment. Whereas some years ago a nation which executes significant numbers of its citizens – often after confessions extracted under torture – which imprisons or ‘disappears’ human rights defenders and journalists and treats its women as second class citizens denying them many rights, would raise eyebrows when seeking to sponsor or host a sporting event. Not today.

Refugees

And it is not just sport where issues of human rights have seemed to take a back seat. People entering this country by various means have generated a massive amount of political controversy here in the UK. It is probably true to say that immigration in one form or another is one of the dominant political forces at work. It is deciding elections. A number of politicians are using the ‘crisis’ to their political advantage (they hope). Egged on by sections of our media, they have created the impression that there is a crisis particularly around the numbers arriving in small boats across the Channel. Any concern for those in the boats and why they are risking their lives to get here does not seem to feature. The impression is sometimes created that if we could deport the migrants (however defined) our problems would be over. The connection between our arms sales and the instability of the countries they have fled from does not seem to enter their thinking.

The contribution by immigrants (again however defined) is scarcely recognised. That large sections of our economy (horticulture and the food industry for example), the health service, hospitality and transport, would cease to function without them seldom seems to enter the consciousness of our senior politicians. We have commented on the strange fact that many of our senior politicians, including Rishi Sunak, Suella Braverman, Priti Patel, Shabana Mahmood, Kwasi Kwarteng and Danny Kruger are all descended from recent immigrants but are among the most aggressive about deporting those coming after them. We can offer no explanation.

Rights at home

Which brings us to another theme concerning the government and its own attachment to UK human rights. It was once hoped that the arrival of Sir Keir Starmer – an ex human rights lawyer and past Director of Public Prosecutions – would see an improvement in the human rights climate. Sadly, it has not come to pass. Laws against protests introduced by the Conservatives to clamp down on protestors, have not been modified or repealed and have even been added to. A more humane policy towards immigrants and refugees has not happened. Arrests have continued and as this is being written, those arrested on pro-Palestine marches are close to death on hunger strike. His continuing support for Israel has been shaming. He has issued critical comments but they have not been backed up by action, cutting arms supplies for example. No believable explanation for the hundreds of RAF flights over Gaza has been forthcoming. His most disgraceful comment that ‘Israel was right to withhold power and water from Gaza’ was widely condemned.

This year we have introduced a new regular feature reviewing the human right situation in the UK itself. This is probably something we would never have contemplated doing say, twenty years ago but a combination of poor leadership, aggressive home secretaries and many MPs with little interest in protecting human rights, has led to this move. Both Danny Kruger (MP for East Wiltshire) and John Glen (MP for Salisbury) are listed on They Work For You as generally voting against human rights is another factor. Mr Glen, who is listed as a member of the well-funded lobby group Conservative Friends of Israel has never once visited the Saturday peace vigil nor mentioned it in his weekly column in the Salisbury Journal.

Ukraine, Sudan, China, Palestine …

The world situation does not seem to get any better. The situation in Ukraine is critical and not just for the Ukrainians. We have one member of the Security Council, Russia gratuitously attacking an independent nation while another member, the US seems indifferent to their plight. The warm greeting by President Trump of President Putin on the tarmac in Alaska must be one of the more grizzly images of the past year. European nations have become almost powerless, in part because of their collective failure to invest in defence (defense) but also because they have become kind of vassal states to the US.

We must not forget that human rights in Russia are poor. There is no opposition and a leader who was a threat to Putin, Navalny, was probably murdered in Siberia. Others have been arrested or murdered along with many journalists. Children have been abducted from Ukraine. Ukrainian prisoners have been tortured.

We could devote a who page to China. A million Uyghurs are persecuted and are forced to work while their culture is systematically destroyed by the Communist Party. Some call it genocide. Tibet has had a similar treatment and its culture largely eliminated. They are believed to execute more of its citizens than all the rest of the world combined. Freedom has been snuffed out in Hong Kong. Chinese nationals are intimidated overseas.

The future

The future is unpromising. The ‘New World Order’ created after the war is well and truly dead. Powerful interests act at will. Despotic leaders act in their own interests not in the interests of ordinary people. Europe is too feeble to act. It looks as though things will continue as they are. There is no hint that the current conflicts will end equitably but based on the whims of a handful of profoundly flawed men.

A large number of MPs of all parties are members of the Friends of Israel group and many also receive money from them. How can they be expected to act honestly, with integrity and in the best interests of the country (to be clear, the UK whose residents voted them in not a foreign state) if they are members of a powerful and well funded lobby group? Arms companies continue to sell their wares with few controls so desperate is the government for growth. The BBC has been cowed into silence on important topics.

In June of last year, the Institute for Government, recognising the serious loss of trust in the government, published its 7 steps to restore trust. One was the publication of an independent ministerial code. Another was to ensure lobbying was built on a clear coherent and transparent system. It has not happened. There is no rigorous or proper system of controlling the ‘revolving door’ which is a passport for corruption by ministers, ex-civil servants and military people retiring into lucrative appointments with arms companies.

Hope

The weekly vigils and the many hundreds of protests around the country for an end to the killing and genocide in Gaza is a heartening sign. It shows a significant number of people who care about what is happening, care that is not reflected by the government nor by chunks of the media. Despite their numbers, reporting is thin with a media all too keen gleefully to report flag waving disturbances outside hotels or army camps. If hope is to be found it lies with ordinary people who simply say ‘this isn’t right, this is not what I believe in’. Rutger Bregman in his Reith Lectures (2025) argues just this: that small committed groups can make a difference. However, whether they can achieve this at the international level is debatable. We can cite climate which will be having harmful effects on more and more of the world’s population and where progress if anything is going backwards.

We shall continue to campaign and we always welcome new members to the team.

Best wishes for the New Year to our small band of readers!

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Group carol singing


Annual carols around the streets of Salisbury a success

December 2025

Each year, for at least a decade now, the group has run a carol service around half a dozen streets in Salisbury. The carols are actually sung by members of the Farrant Singers to whom we are grateful for contributing each year for this event. Members of the group do the collecting. What adds to the occasion is when families turn out to listen to the carols. A high point was one family who said the ‘really looked forward to the evening and for them, Christmas didn’t start until it had happened’.

A (not very good) photo of two families stood in their doorways listening to the carols.

Seasons Greetings to our readers and supporters.

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Vigil No. 107


Latest vigil – the last before Christmas – attracts strong attendance

December 2025

Over 40 attended this latest peace vigil in Salisbury. That we should feel it necessary to continue is an indication that genuine peace in the area does not seem to be on the horizon. The BBC programme World at One during the week has transmitted from the West Bank and Jerusalem and has witnessed some of the violence against Palestinians. The presenter was surprised at young boys going out morning and evening to attack homes and property. Because they are under age they cannot be stopped, touched or in any way prevented without dire consequences it was explained.

The aftermath of the horrific attack on Jews who were killed or injured on Bondi Beach, Australia continues. An uplifting story from the tragedy was the actions of a local man Ahmed al Ahmed who wrestled the gun of one of the attackers. Some of the hardliners interviewed by the BBC seem to imply that all Arabs are motivated by a desire to kill Jews. That there are some cannot be denied in the same way that some Jews want to see all Palestinians killed or removed. But are these the majority? Reports today are of members of a Jewish pro-Palestine group who have been arrested as part of the crackdown on protests by the Labour government. An irony indeed. There are Jewish groups who are in favour of fair treatment of Palestinians one such is Jewish Network for Palestine.

It is noteworthy that this group has called out the support of the BBC for Israel and its genocide. The claim by some Israelis (on one of the BBC interviews mentioned above) that support for a Palestinian state is a ‘reward for terrorism’ is weakened by these Jewish groups. They claim – which is never challenged by the BBC and other media interviewers – that the violence started on the October 7th two years ago, conveniently forgets the horrific violence on Arabs and Palestinians in 1948/49.

The photo of a key is a symbol of when people lost their homes in 1948/49, and latterly in Gaza, kept their keys in the hope of return.

A video of the vigil can be seen here. Video and photo by courtesy of Peter Gloyns.

107 vigils attended mostly by local people but no sign of the local MP, Mr John Glen. Neither is there a mention of any of the vigils in his weekly piece in the Salisbury Journal. He is reported to be a member of the Conservatives Friends of Israel group. The link explains the range and power of this underreported organisation. A large number of MPs are members and the question is: why are MPs like Mr Glen members of a lobbying organisation for a single country? Are they not there to a) support their constituents and b) to take impartial decisions in the interests of the UK? What is their attitude to genocide and apartheid?

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Good attendance at vigil


December 2025

UPDATED

A good attendance at the 106th vigil in Salisbury with around 40 of us there. We were joined by some by some passers-by which is always encouraging.

News about Gaza has been eclipsed by the continuing war in Ukraine and the appalling attack on Jews on Bondi Beach killing 15 people on Sunday 14th. The Australians say this is not a terrorist attack but the motives remain unclear.

Current Gaza situation

The Catholic Standard reports that ‘blanket bombing has ceased’ although there are still skirmishes and attacks. There is still insufficient aid reaching the strip they report. The UN reports that there is now a risk of flooding with the problem of large numbers living in tents and inadequate accommodation. Al Jazeera has warned of the problems of building collapse. Since many structures are badly damaged if not demolished completely, people are sheltering in dangerous conditions. There is a combination of rain and instability.

The latest death toll is 70,117. More medical facilities are becoming partly functional again the UN reports but nowhere near adequate for the needs of the people living there.

CBS say the talks are at ‘a critical moment’ with only one deceased hostage yet to be handed over to the Israelis. Around 500 have been killed in the last month or so seeking food and a report in Haaretz that IDF soldiers have been told by their commanders to shoot at unarmed [Palestinians] seeking food has been strongly denied by Benjamin Netanyahu and the Defense Secretary Israel Katz as a ‘blood libel’.

A statement by the IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamin saying that the “Yellow Line is a new border line” is a matter of concern. The line with reports of it being fortified, swallows around half of Gaza and cordons off nearly all the arable and cultivable land leaving only sand and the coast for the Palestinians. Any chance of a viable state of Palestine seems remote if this becomes a permanent situation and will only act as a source of future conflict.

There is still no sign of the local MP, Mr John Glen, at any of the 106 vigils nor any mention of them in his weekly column in the Salisbury Journal. He is reported to be a member of the Conservative Friends of Israel lobbying organisation.

Picture from the vigil courtesy of Peter Gloyns

Video of the vigil

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Minutes and Newsletter, December


Minutes of our December meeting

December 2025

We are pleased to attach our minutes and newsletter for the December group meeting thanks to group member Lesley for compiling them. They include several reports some of which appear elsewhere on this site with links to other sites of interest.

Item 12 refers to upcoming events which if you are interested in joining us are a good opportunity to make contact.

December minutes (Word)Download

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UK Human Rights Report: Current Threats and Government Actions


Monthly report on human rights in the UK

December 2025

Amnesty has for many years, focused its efforts on human rights issues overseas. Recent actions by governments of both persuasions have meant a greater focus on the threats to rights here in the UK. Only this very week, the prime minister and other ministers are in Europe trying to seek agreement to a ‘modernisation’ of the ECHR arguing it is necessary to tackle the immigration ‘crisis’. In this post, we review aspects of our rights which are current or under threat.

Freedom of Expression

The outcome of November’s High Court hearing of the legal challenge mounted by Liberty and Amnesty to the ban on Palestine Action is still pending.  Amnesty’s Director of Communications claims that ‘the Government’s ban is a disproportionate misuse of the UK’s terrorism powers and breaches articles 10 and 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights – which protect freedom of expression and freedom of assembly and association.

“We have seen the chilling consequences of this decision across the country – with thousands of arrests in recent months.  These mass arrests, and the silencing that organisations and individuals have felt, is a clear and frightening example of how the UK is misusing overly-broad terrorism laws to suppress free speech. Terrorism powers have never been used against what was previously direct-action protest and if this precedent is allowed to stand, it opens up a bleak future for protest rights in the UK.” 

Amnesty is seriously concerned at reports of the worsening condition of members of the Filton 24 who are on hunger strike after the damage to two aircraft at Brize Norton last year as protest against the Israeli Elbit Systems’ involvement in Gaza. None of the prisoners have been charged under the Terrorism Act but prosecutors have said both offences had a “terrorism connection”.  Amnesty has consistently opposed the use of anti-terrorism powers in these cases claiming they have been used to justify excessively lengthy pre-trial detention and draconian prison conditions.   

Arrest of Britons overseas

Amnesty International is urging the UK Government to develop a clear and consistent approach to the unjust imprisonment of British people overseas, including a new strategy that should include as a minimum:

  • the Government calling for an arbitrarily-detained person’s immediate release (including publicity where requested by the family)
  • pressing for access to a lawyer, a fair trial and medical care where relevant
  • demanding consular access insisting that UK officials be able to attend trials
  • regularly meeting with family members to outline the Government’s overall approach in the case.

The UK Government’s failures on this issue, highlighted in a recent BBC drama and documentary on the case of Nazanin Zaghari Ratcliffe, continue today.  British nationals, including Ahmed al-Doush, are not receiving the level of diplomatic support required to secure their release.  Ahmed was arrested while on a family holiday in Saudi Arabia in 2024 for social media posts.  The Manchester-based father of four was convicted under terrorism legislation and sentenced to 10 years in prison, later reduced to eight.

The UK Government has failed to advocate for Ahmed, not taking a position on his case, despite being provided by information indicating that his detention is a freedom of expression case.  Amnesty International continue to campaign so that Ahmed can be reunited with his family and urges the UK Government to advocate for his release if he is being held solely for exercising his right to freedom of expression.

Use of Facial Recognition by police

A Government consultation into police use of facial recognition is set to launch imminently.

Liberty has been calling on the Government to follow the example of other countries which have introduced laws around police use of facial recognition technology – and has urged Ministers and police forces to stop expanding its use until those laws are in place.  Alarm has been raised at the finding that faces of children are included on the records of some police forces.

Liberty wants the inclusion of the following safeguards:

  • The independent sign off before facial recognition is used
  • Police to only use facial recognition technology to search for missing persons or victims of abduction, human trafficking and sexual exploitation; to prevent an imminent threat to life or people’s safety; to search for people suspected of committing a serious criminal offence;
  • Watchlists to contain only images strictly relevant to the purposes above;
  • However, Amnesty International wants a global ban on this technology on the grounds that it violates the human right to privacy, it inaccurately targets minorities, especially people of colour and women; it intimidates people from free expression of views;
  • It cites racist bias in examples of the use of mass surveillance technology by US policing of black communities, and also Israeli policing of Palestinians.

Change declared to European Convention on Human Rights

After the UK recently joined Denmark and Italy in pressing for a rethink of aspects of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), especially in relation to migration law, the Council have now taken the first steps to reshape how European courts interpret human rights.  Amid fierce debate over the balance between ECHR and national migration controls, ministers made a joint declaration which will now task 46 foreign ministers with drafting a political declaration to be adopted at the next meeting in May 2026.

The Council oversees the ECHR while its court enforces those rights across 46 member states including all 27 EC countries.  Greater national flexibility is demanded in response to human smuggling, border security and the expulsion of offenders.

Sir Keir Starmer and other heads of state have restated that, while wishing to see some ‘modernisation’ of the Convention, there is no intention of abolishing it.  The move is seen as a response to protest from far-right groups across Europe and ‘uncontrolled’ immigration and the perception that the right to family life inhibits states from deporting convicted foreign criminals.

Human rights groups are raising concerns at the dilution of the original Declaration of Human Rights as non-negotiable, universal and inclusive of all minorities. 

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Analysing the Shift in UK Migration Figures: What It Means


Net migration figures halved

December 2025

In a week where the focus has been on European discussions about the European Convention on Human Rights, actual migration has taken a back seat behind probable ever-tougher measures against those arriving here (the expected next French president Jordan Bardella is talking of letting UK Border Force push small boats back to France). At the same time, the National Audit Office has surveyed the workings of the existing UK asylum processing system and found it failing in a number of areas – not to mention its view that current government proposals will have unintended consequences.

On the legislative front, the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act has received the Royal Assent. During its passage through Parliament, some changes were made, including a partial lifting of the ban on anyone arriving “illegally” being allowed to stay and some reduction in the power to keep electronic data of applicants.

Net migration figure halved

From a UK point of view the most dramatic news has been the more than halving of the net migration figures year-on-year. This has mostly been achieved by reducing visas for prospective workers, but the ending of help for refugees from Ukraine, Afghanistan and Hong Kong has made a substantial difference. To June 2025, the yearly excess of immigration over emigration was 204,000 (down from 649,000).

The new Home Secretary has declared her policy, including making intending settlers take more stringent tests and wait 20 years to get residency. “Earned settlement” is to be subjected to consultation up until February, with new rules  expected around April. It has been observed that Mahmood’s ideas were tried in Australia in the 90s, with little success ; they were abandoned in 2023.

Some useful reports have come out in the last month. Probably the most interesting is from the Mixed Migration Centre of the Danish Refugee Council on people smugglers. Interviews with migrants and smugglers have revealed that stricter law enforcement has tended to fuel demand and increase fees. Only 6% of interviewed migrants said they had been recruited by smugglers, most taking the decision to move on their own or with family members. Alarmingly, almost half the smugglers admitted being in contact with border officers or police.

The PCS union and Together With Refugees have a new report entitled “Welcoming Growth,” looking at the economic consequences of a possible change to the current system. If the immigration rules were to:

  • Make all asylum claims proceed within 6 months
  • legal assistance at all stages
  • Give English language support from day 1
  • Give employment support from day one.

They calculate that a total contribution from refugees could amount to £260,000 per refugee over 12 ½ years, giving a net benefit to the public purse of £53,000 per person, after costs. 16 MPs have signed a motion welcoming the report.

Other notes:

Following the pause, the UK is now accepting asylum claims from Syrians again.

European organisations (notably Eurodac) are concerned that AI usage is resulting in misreadings of migrants’ personal data.

Thousands of Ukrainians have been ejected from Israel as the offer of asylum has ended. Their future is unclear.

Total number displaced in Sudan is now 13 million.

200,000 have fled homes in Eastern Congo amid ongoing fighting.

Finally, the Refugee Week people are moving ahead. They have updated what they call their Theory of Change (by which they mean their mission statement, essentially), which is a good summary of an arts-led campaign. They are offering to make available the film The Light That Remains (a documentary of life in Gaza under stress).

AH

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25th Anniversary of HRA


Today marks the 25th Anniversary of the Human Rights Act

October 2025

Twenty five years ago this act was signed and ended the need to go to Strasbourg to get justice. It fundamentally changed the law by giving fundamental rights to citizens. It is currently under threat and it, and the European Convention which predates it, are disliked by many of the political and media class. In the next post we shall discuss this in more detail.

But today (2nd) we celebrate.

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We are 50!


The Salisbury group is 50 this year

September 2024

NOTE FOR YOUR DIARY

And we want to celebrate it with a photo. We were formed not too long after Amnesty International itself was created and we are, sadly, the last group left in Wiltshire.

We shall be assembling at 2:30 near the Guildhall in the market square tomorrow, October 3rd for a group photo. It should only take 30 minutes or so and we are inviting all members and supporters who can make it, to come and join in.

In some ways it is sad that we still need to exist. The hope after the Second World War and the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 was high. People believed human rights would become the norm in societies around the world. It hasn’t turned out that way. Atrocities still continue in Africa, the Uyghurs are still persecuted in China, war rages in Ukraine, bombing continues in Gaza and human rights violations continue around the world in Syria, Iran, Burma and Saudi Arabia.

One of our continuing campaigns is the ending of the death penalty around the world (see our reports on this site). You will also see from our site and elsewhere that the UK is a major supplier of arms to states which are engaged in abusing their citizens. This has been a vexed issue at present concerning arms to Israel. It is an irony of the post war world that the UN Security Council is comprised of the world’s major arms suppliers. So there is still a need for human rights work.

Come and join us on 3rd!

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Salisbury Group at 50!


Group is 50 this year!

February 2024

The Salisbury group was established in 1974 and has been going strong for 50 years. It took us a bit by surprise today when we realised this so we haven’t thought of any celebrations yet. But as the last active group in Wiltshire we can allow ourselves a bit of pride that we are still here and still trying to promote the human rights cause in the county.

It probably seems a little different today from 50 years ago. Human rights then were regarded as a good thing and support was largely unquestioning. The war was a living memory for many and a desire never to see a repeat of the death and destruction of the war and the horrors of the Holocaust was deeply felt. 

A long time has passed however and today, we see successive Conservative governments seeking to end or curtail the Human Rights Act. Laws have been passed making protest more difficult and the police have been given more powers to arrest those protesting. Much of the media keeps up a steady campaign denigrating human rights and suggesting they are a means for terrorists and serious criminals to escape justice because their ‘rights’ have been infringed. We are made less safe they claim because of the act rather than the precise opposite. The benefits the act has brought is seldom mentioned. The success of the Hillsborough families in overturning the various coroner and court decisions and the false narrative put out by the police was a major example. 

Some sections of the media do not like the act since it provides some protection from press intrusion and this has led them to carry on a relentless campaign often supported by exaggerated stories.

In the past few years the issue of immigration has come to the fore and immigrants crossing the Channel by boat has become a political hot potato. The government is seeking to send some immigrants to Rwanda in an attempt to discourage smugglers from sending them over from France. There has always been hostility to immigrants as each wave has come over, the Jews from Russia for example at the beginning of the last century. But the notion that we would become more sympathetic and welcoming has not worked out. The question therefore is how embedded are human rights norms and beliefs in our society? The occasional desire for a return of the death penalty, hostility to refugees as just mentioned and evidence of the UK government’s involvement in torture, clampdowns on protest suggest that human rights and human dignity is only shakily rooted in our society.

So although the group is 50 this year, our work is not done!

If you live in the South Wilshire area, we would welcome you joining us. Follow this site for details of what we are doing.

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