March 2025
Past event
It was the tree ceremony on Tuesday, at Victoria Park. Photos and a post later.
Vigil 65
Vigils continue despite the ceasefire
March 2025
The vigil in Salisbury Market Place continue although with the least in attendance we have seen for months. Perhaps other crises are on people’s minds and the ceasefire seemed to be holding – for now at least. The death toll in Gaza now stands at over 48,300 but thousands lie unrecorded under the rubble.
Today, Israel announced the cessation of aid going into Gaza which was part of the agreement. So an end does not seem to be in sight. The role of the Americans is a crucial factor and as we have seen with Ukraine, President Trump’s liking of strong men seems to be the name of the game.
A video prepared by Peter Gloyns can be seen here. We shall be back on 8th March at 5pm.
REMINDER!
To all members and supporters, the tree ceremony takes place at 11:00 on Tuesday 4th in Victoria Park (by the main entrance at the south end of the park). It will only be short and if you can spare the time that would be wonderful. The tree is a recognition of the 50 years of the local Amnesty group.
Latest posts:
63rd Vigil
Vigils continue
February 2025
The 63rd and latest vigil took place again on Saturday 15th with around 30 in attendance. The situation in Gaza remains tense. Three hostages were released last week in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. The condition of those released by Hamas shocked the nation.
The political situation is what might be termed ‘fluid’. The plan announced by Donald Trump to expel all Palestinians from Gaza and to create a Riviera of the Eastern Mediterranean has met with international alarm and would amount to ethnic cleansing. The plan has been warmly received by some in Israel especially members of the hard right. The US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio was in Israel to discuss the President’s idea with the Israelis. Arab states have rejected it and want to see a solution that involves the Palestinians.
While considerable uncertainty exists, the vigils will continue and the next is on Saturday 22nd at 5pm as usual. All are welcome.
Forthcoming group events
List of events planned
February 2025
NOTE CHANGE OF TIME FOR THE TREE CEREMONY
Although our minutes contain a list, it is still useful to highlight them in a specific post. Any of these are a useful opportunity to make yourself known if you would like to join us. Most join because they care about human rights both around the world and here in Britain. Indeed, we have become more concerned about our rights here with a number of pieces of legislation passed to inhibit protests and demonstrations. There seems to be no hurry by the Labour Government to repeal this legislation.
Forthcoming group events
- Vigils continue every Saturday at 5pm in the Market Square by the Library. We had hoped to stop these in view of the ceasefire and exchange of prisoners and hostages, but the future looks uncertain.
- Tree. We have a tree! To commemorate our 50 years since formation, there is a tree in Victoria Park and we are planning a group photo. We hope the last two surviving founder members will be able to attend and it will take place on 4th March at 11:00 am. We’d like as many supporters to be there as possible. The Salisbury group is the last remaining Amnesty group in Wiltshire.
- A conversation with Nazanin Zaghari at the Cathedral on 8th March. The group took place in a number of signings and events to get her freed. It is free and details are on the Cathedral’s site. The group was not invited to have a role.
- South West Conference in Exeter on 22nd March. An enjoyable event with speakers and a chance to meet other groups.
- Evensong at the Cathedral. Date tbc.
- Market Stall, probably in May. If you have any items for the stall please save them up. We can collect if need be. No electricals please.
- People in the Park on 17th May for most of the day.
- Coffee Morning, St Thomas’s on 5th July starting at 10:00 or so until noon.
- Write for Rights on 4th November. Details idc.
These details will be updated in due course. Hope you can make one of them!
February minutes and newsletter
February 2025
We have pleasure in attaching the minutes and newsletter of our last meeting thanks to group member Lesley for the work in preparing them. We say ‘newsletter’ because they are more than just minutes of the meeting as they contain reports on the refugee and immigration system, a report on the death penalty and a list of future activities.
Recent posts:
Talk at Cathedral
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe in conversation at the Cathedral
February 2025
Nazanin will be in conversation with the Bishop of Sherborne on Saturday 8th March in the Cathedral. This is a free event. Details and booking are on the Cathedral site. Members of the Salisbury group and other Amnesty groups around the country campaigned on behalf of Nazanin over a long period of time. We were delighted when she secured her released from prison in Iran. Members of the local group were a little disappointed therefore not to be invited to play a part in the event.
Vigils continue
62nd vigil held on Saturday
February 2025
And the vigils continue with the 62nd taking place in the market place Salisbury on Saturday 8 February. As we said in a previous post, we had hoped with the ceasefire underway, however shaky, and peace talks about to resume, that we might be seeing an end to the violence. And along came President Trump with his talk of ‘clearing out’ Palestinians and rebuilding Gaza to become a new Riviera for that part of the world. ‘Clearing out’ – like so much rubbish or emptying one’s shed. This was music to the ears of the far right in Israel. The problem is that it lowers the impetus for peace and a two state solution now seems dead in the water. The proposals have dismayed America’s allies and even some Republicans were taken by surprise. Arab countries are vehemently against.
Vigil Attendance in Salisbury: Marking a Significant Moment
Sixty first vigil took place yesterday
February 2025
The 61st vigil took place in Salisbury on Saturday 1st February and around 25 attended. With ceasefire still holding and hostages being released, it was hoped that the previous week’s was going to be the last at least for a while. But as we said in a previous post, the seemingly unqualified support for Israel coming from the US, the possible appointment of Mike Huckabee as ambassador and Israel’s decision to cancel the arrangements with Unwra are all bad omens for the future. Unwra are the largest agency by far operating in Gaza and no other agency has the scope or facilities to step into their shoes. There has been a mass return to the north following the ceasefire with thousands returning to rubble where once their homes were. The latest death toll in the territory stands at 46,707 with around 18,000 children having been killed. These figures are underestimates.
We are grateful to Peter Gloyns for the pictures.
Angry response to vigil article
January 2025
There has been an angry series of responses to the article published in the Salisbury Journal
Our last post was to draw attention to a piece in this week’s Salisbury Journal (30 January) reporting on the vigils which have taken place in Salisbury for over a year now. They are silent, last half an hour and the main theme is peace in Gaza. It is worth noting that the death toll is around 46,000 but the Lancet suggests it is higher because many bodies lie undiscovered in the rubble.
The article has prompted a large number of almost exclusively critical ‘below the line’ comments some of which have attracted 70, 80 or more ‘likes’ [accessed 31.01.25, 21:38]. Two drew attention to the fact it was published on Holocaust Memorial Day and said that whoever on the Journal decided to publish it ‘should be fired’, that it was ‘not appropriate’ and they ‘should hang their heads in shame’. This is to misunderstand the themes behind the day which the Holocaust Memorial Trust points out is about empathising with people today and helping to build a better future. Of course it is about the terrible events during the war and the millions of Jews and others murdered by the Nazis. But is also reminding us that violence on the scale we have seen in Gaza and its indiscriminate nature is also a cause of great concern. [UPDATE: 2 February. The adverse comments attracted over 700 ‘likes’]
Another called it ‘unbelievably crass’ to pass on unfiltered pro-Hamas views. It is difficult to see where a description of a peaceful vigil can be described as ‘pro-Hamas’. It was also described as a ‘demonstration’. It was not. One wrote: ‘on Holocaust Memorial Day 2025, Isabella Holliday [the journalist who’s by-line was at the top of the article] has failed in her professional duty as a journalist, to write an accurate unbiased article on the Israel/Hamas conflict’. It was not such a piece.
Other wild comments include the assertion that ‘Hamas is responsible for all the civilian deaths in Gaza and that most of the casualties are Hamas terrorists’. Since around 15,000 of the deaths are children this is a bold claim and demonstrably untrue. The hostility of the comments might come as a surprise since the vigil is just that: between 30 or 40 people typically, who come together each week to express their concern for the violence that is taking place. There is no visible or overt support for Hamas. It might be worth remembering that it was Benjamin Netanyahu who did support Hamas according to the Times of Israel and others.
Last week was meant to be the last, and we welcomed the cease fire and the release of some of the hostages with more to come out. But the increase in violence on the West Bank, the ending of aid provided by Unwra, and the possible appointment of Mike Huckabee as the US ambassador, led to the decision to continue.
Hamas has not been destroyed. Gaza has been reduced to rubble. At least 46,000 Palestinians have died and many thousands injured. Channel 4 News featured some distressing images of injured children unable to get proper medical help (31 January). Almost nothing has been achieved and certainly not the long term security of Israel. It is disappointing to see so many hostile comments and the large numbers of people who appear to like them i.e. approve of them.
The next vigil will take place tomorrow, 1st February as usual.
Salisbury Journal piece
Journal acknowledges Vigils held in Salisbury
January 2025
The Salisbury Journal published a short piece describing the Vigils we have been holding each week in this week’s edition (30 January 2025). It said:
“A silent vigil took place outside the library to express a hope for the of violence in the Middle East. On Saturday the 60th silent vigil took place outside Salisbury Library with around 50 people attending. The weekly vigils are an expression of hope for an end to violence and a peaceful future in the Middle East and in the most recent [event] people carried flowers and candles and displayed heartfelt messages.
The messages emphasised the message for a permanent ceasefire. A spokesperson from vigil said “we call on the UK government to take immediate action to ensure accountability and justice for Palestinians. All arms sales to Israel muse be suspended. This is a moment of truth for the UK. To continue shielding Israel from accountability is to abandon the principles of justice and human rights that the UK claims to uphold.”
These vigils are supported by local groups of Amnesty International, Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, Christian Aid, Quakers, Sarum Concern for Israel Palestine and many others.”
The vigils will continue and the next is this Saturday 1st February at 5pm as usual for half an hour. All welcome.
Also in the Journal, the local MP Mr Glen, spoke of his presence at the Holocaust memorial which took place in the city. He has not acknowledged in his weekly columns any of the 60 vigils so far held.
Amnesty in Salisbury & South Wiltshire 