Members of the group took part in the London Refugee march last year
Minutes of the February meeting are now available thanks to group member Lesley for compiling them. It was a full agenda and we have a lot going on and planned at present. If you live in the Salisbury area and would like to help that would be appreciated. If you go to the end of the minutes you will see the list of events and activities. If you are interested in becoming involved, then come along to one of those and make yourself known. Follow this site or twitter or Facebook if you prefer those.
We are pleased to attach the monthly minutes for the October meeting thanks to Lesley for preparing them. We discussed the Refugee, North Korean and Death Penalty campaigns, forthcoming films, Evensong at the Cathedral and Citizenship days at some of our schools.
In partnership with Salisbury Arts Centre, we shall be showing the film Mustang on 15 December 2016. This award winning film by a Turkish director concerns five girls growing up in a northern Turkish town. On their way home from school they meet some boys and start some harmless frolics in the sea. This is reported to their parents and thus begins a life of confinement, forced marriage and control.
We are delighted to say that there will be a short presentation at the start by Prof. Lucy Mazdom who is Head of the Film Department at Southampton University. Her research interests include French and American film; contemporary French and British television; transnational film studies; remakes; film history in a global context and issues of cinematic distribution, exhibition and reception.
After the showing, the local group will asking people to sign a petition (to be decided nearer the time).
Tickets are available at the Arts Centre.
Follow us on Twitter and Facebook. If you are interested in joining local group, make yourself known at the film to one of us at the signing table. It is free to join the local group. Details on the ‘Joining’ tab on the home page.
The World Day Against the Death Penalty was created in Rome on 13th May 2002, with 10th October established as the date for its annual commemoration in 2003. The World Coalition against the Death Penalty has 158 member organisations, made up of NGO’s, Bar Associations, local bodies and Unions.
Amnesty International is a member of the Coalition. It has been working to end executions since 1977, when only 15 countries had abolished the death penalty in law or in practice. That number has now risen to 140.
Since that date –
By the end of 2015, 102 Countries had completely abolished the death penalty.
1,634 executions were carried out in 2015 (excluding China – figures unknown) – an increase of 54% over 2014
89% of executions in the course of the year took place in three countries – China, Iran and Iraq – often after unfair trial
The United Nations Moratorium on the Death Penalty calls for States maintaining the death penalty to establish a moratorium on its use, with a view to abolition, and in the meantime to restrict the number of offences punishable by execution, and to respects the rights of those on death row. It also calls on States that have abolished the death penalty not to reinstate it. (Note: UN resolutions are not binding).
Amnesty International is calling for:
Countries that still use the death penalty to halt all executions immediately
Countries that have stopped executing prisoners to remove the death penalty from their legal books, for all crimes, permanently
All death sentences to be commuted to terms of imprisonment
The Salisbury Group have included the abolition of the death penalty in its campaigns from the
Members of the group at the NWR conference
beginning. It is currently focusing on the sentencing to death and execution of juveniles, in particular in Iran and Saudi Arabia.
For this year’s World Day, Amnesty are highlighting the case of the Japanese prisoner, Matsumoto Kenji. The Salisbury Group manned a stall at the NWR Conference on Saturday, (see photo) in the course of which they collected 50 signatures on cards calling on the Minister of Justice to halt the execution, to end the use of solitary confinement for death row prisoners and to end the use of the death penalty in Japan.
The march in aid of refugees was attended by at least 15,000 yesterday and was good natured and uplifting. It started in Pall Mall, London, and wove its way along Piccadilly ending up in Parliament square. It is encouraging in the current climate to see so many people travel from as far afield as the Wirral and Penzance to show their solidarity for a better treatment of refugees. Britain’s role has been exceptionally poor largely because of hostility towards them egged on by a xenophobic press.
The Southampton group of Amnesty is organising a walk starting in Whiteparish on Saturday 25 June starting at 10am. Then meeting for lunch at the Parish Lantern [SP5 2LA] followed by a further walk starting at 13.30. Total distance around 9 miles but you are free to do the morning or afternoon half if you wish. Some parts are muddy so come with suitable footwear. Food menu is at menu
If you would like to take part then contact Stephen on stephenedwards12@gmail.com to reserve a place. Please order your food ahead.
The minutes of the June meeting are now available thanks to group member Lesley for typing them up. We discussed the stall on Saturday; the film at the Arts Centre; the video based on North Korea and the death penalty among other things. The full minutes can be read below:
At its meeting on Thursday evening, the group decided that the profits from the stall which will take place in the market square in Salisbury tomorrow – Saturday – will go to this month’s Amnesty Urgent Action. In the event we took £234 so over £460 will go the the African state. Thanks to all those who helped on the stall and who bought things from us.
Picture of the stall in Blue Boar Row, Salisbury
This action concerns the treatment of women in Burkina Faso and in neighbouring Sierra Leone. They are subject to forced marriages often to men who are up to 50 years older than them. Some can be married as young as 10. They have no choice over these marriages nor when nor whether to get pregnant. Some have babies at such a young age that their lives can be threatened or they experience lasting medical complications including incontinence. Female Genital Mutilation is also common.
Report sent to the Salisbury Journal and was published 23 June can be read here:
The funds raised by the Salisbury group of Amnesty International at their stall last Saturday are to be sent to Burkina Faso in Africa as part of a programme to help girls and women in those countries.
The group managed to raise over £234 and this will be doubled by the Department for International Development to make £468. In Burkina Faso, whether you are a girl or a woman, you are prevented from making crucial decisions about marriage and whether or when to get pregnant. Some girls as young as 10 are married and their partners can be as much as fifty years their senior. Physical and sexual violence against women and girls is common and a particular concern is the large number of pregnancy complications and death among girls who bodies are not yet ready to bear children.
Amnesty in Burkina Faso is working with 5 of the shelters which house girls who have been subject to early forced marriage or female genital mutilation.
Andrew Hemming, the chair of the local group said “we are delighted to have contributed to this scheme and for the funds to go to such a good purpose. The doubling of the monies raised by DfID makes it extremely worthwhile.” Further details can be found on the group website
Members of the Salisbury; Mid Glos and Ringwood groups met on Sunday 17 April to view the tapestry in the Cathedral and to take part in a video being put together by the Salisbury group, further details of which can be found in the minutes. The group is grateful for the two groups taking the time to come all the way to Salisbury for this.
Amnesty in Salisbury & South Wiltshire 