Each month we prepare notes on the latest situation on the #deathpenalty around the world and these are appended, thanks to Lesley.
Death penalty
Meeting: update
UPDATE: The full minutes are now available here
We held our monthly meeting on 11 September and a number of items were discussed some of which will be separately posted [P].
- the treasurer reported we had around £334 in the bank. The funds promised from one of the school groups have not arrived
Amnesty logo however and he will chase this up
- North Korea. We have a speaker – Bona Shin – for the November meeting so we will hold it in Sarum College [P].
- Lesley presented the death penalty report which will be separately posted. Executions continue apace in Saudi Arabia, Florida and Texas [P].
- Peter gave an update on progress with the Magna Carta celebrations next year and said that we have held our third meeting with Seif at the Cathedral and arrangements were proceeding well. Caroline was hoping to prepare tapestry with all the regional groups contributing a panel each to illustrate an aspect of the Human Rights Act. Fiona is working with S Wilts on the idea of a film.
- Cathedral service. Jonathan will liaise with the Praecentor about dates and a speaker.
- there is to be a coffee morning on Saturday 20 September in St Thomas’s starting at 09:30.
- the second Citizenship day is to be held next month on 23 October run on similar lines to last year. There is to be a repeat of the competition with 3 prizes totalling £100 from a supporter. Peter is to contact the sixth form colleges and schools in the area [P].
- the forthcoming campaign against torture stall was discussed and will take place on 15 October in the Cheese Market [P].
- the film will take place again on 4 December at the Arts Centre and will be on the subject of Palestine. The speaker is Samiha Abdeljebar [P].
Full minutes will be posted soon.
Prisoner voting
After a decade of argument, the European court of human rights #ECHR has decided that the 10 prisoners denied the vote should not be paid compensation for the infringement of their article 3 rights to vote. It did decide that the government is in breach of the convention.
This is a debate which has generated a lot of heat and a great deal of passion. The prime minister David Cameron said that prisoners ‘damn well shouldn’t [get the vote]’ and previously was quoted as saying the idea made him feel ‘physically sick.’ It was a topic which came up with the local group’s meeting with John Glen the MP for Salisbury.
It seems that politicians have difficulty in understanding what prison is for. Someone commits a crime and the court decides that a custodial sentence is appropriate. There are two purposes to this: to deprive the person of their liberty as a mark of disapproval by society for the crime they have committed. Then we want to rehabilitate them into society. Unless we want everyone to go to prison for ever, then with a very few exceptions, they will be back into society.
It therefore makes sense as part of this second purpose that prisoners be allowed the vote. In a small way it would help facilitate their entry into society.
See the South Region site of Amnesty International
Meeting with John Glen MP: update
The Salisbury group invited John Glen MP to speak to the group following his comments in the Salisbury Journal that – in common with other MPs, the Prime Minister and the Home Secretary Teresa May – he would like to scrap the Human Rights Act [HRA] #HRA. The Conservatives in their election manifesto had said they wanted to enact a Bill of Rights [BoR] and appointed a Commission to review the matter. It failed to reach an agreement and there the matter has rested with no current work being done to draft a BoR. Nevertheless, there is still political agitation to abolish the #HRA. A key theme of the evening was trying to determine what would the difference be between a new Bill of Rights and the existing HRA. In other words what would be included and what left out.
Andrew – chair of the local group – welcomed Mr Glen who began by saying he was a keen supporter of human rights. He was a member of The Westminster Foundation for Democracy and had recently visited Iran, Egypt and the Maldives. In the first two countries he discussed the plight of Christians with the authorities. He had recently asked a question* in the House of Commons concerning the Israel/Palestine conflict.
As far as the HRA was concerned the main issue was the question of the interaction with the European Court: Strasbourg [rulings] should be taken into account, not be binding. A proposal for a British BoR will possibly be in the party manifesto. He was concerned about some of the claims made using the act and he mentioned the issue of equipment in Afghanistan. Various points were put to Mr Glen by members:
- The HRA was passed into UK law to enable claims to be made in this country and to reduce the need to go to Strasbourg. JG said this may have been the intention but was not always the case in practice
- If a Bill of Rights is to be introduced, how would it in fact be different from the HRA as it is?
- The HRA was of enormous benefit to ordinary people – some of whom are [your] constituents. For example, art. 8 protects the elderly and vulnerable. The problem is made worse for many by the reductions in legal aid. JG said he saw people every day with these problems and he was not happy with the Justice reforms. But he was concerned at perverse outcomes and it needs the will of Parliament. It was pointed out that the HRA was by will of Parliament.
- He was asked if the point of a BoR was to fetter the judiciary and again, how will it be different from the HRA?
- It was reported that Strasbourg was concerned at the risk of the UK abandoning the HRA. As we (the UK with France) were the countries behind the original convention, it would concern them if we turned our back on it. The convention had had enormous beneficial effects in Russia and Belarus who might be less keen to change if we were not there. It was also pointed out that the FCO web site was a keen supporter. JG said that without knowing what would replace the act this was a hypothetical question.
- The point was made several times that the positive effects of the act and the cases which fail in the courts, rarely receive publicity. JG agreed with this point. For the most part, there was an anti-attitude fostered by the tabloid press. JG said he was not following a tabloid agenda. He had to read them to know what would be in his post from constituents. He felt had demonstrated his commitment to human rights through his overseas work.
- Prisoner voting rights were a topic that caused a lot of anxiety. Would it not be appropriate to allow prisoners the vote towards the end of their sentences to help prepare them for re-entry into society? JG talked about the importance of education in prisons. He was reminded that funding had been cut for this.
In conclusion, he said he would reflect on the problem of a lack of balance in the public dialogue. He will also consider how refinements to the HRA might obviate the need for a Bill of Rights.
Group members were no clearer on what would be the difference between a Bill of Rights and the HRA but welcomed Mr Glen’s statement that his comments on the latter would be more balanced in future.
UPDATE
Reported on 17 July that the Conservatives are planning to introduce a British Bill of Rights in their manifesto.
View the South region site of Amnesty International
*John Glen’s question in the House:
Meeting: update
We held our monthly meeting this evening Thursday, 10th July. Among the matters discussed were the following:
- Market stall. This took just over a £100 and is well below the results of previous years. The usual crowd of people waiting for us to open and almost climbing into our cars, was absent this year. The main reason was lack of stock.
- Death penalty #deathpenalty. Lesley reported it was relatively quiet this month. The ‘World Day Against the Death Penalty‘ is coming soon and a meeting will be held in the Black Horse at Great Durnford to plan actions. [The DP report will be a separate post here in a few days]
- North Korea. Karen said there were plans to invite a speaker and October 9th or November 13th were likely dates.
- John Glen. #HRA The meeting with him [was] on Friday 11th July (details in the previous blog) and he had noted this in his ‘View from the Commons’ piece in the Journal. Open to Amnesty members and supporters – at the Methodist Church, 7:30. Lesley circulated a leader in the Guardian commenting on the relevance of the Human Rights Act
- Conference. The planned conference in September was not gaining a head of steam Peter reported. The City Council had given their funds to the Cathedral and were unable to help in other ways such as free use of the Guildhall.
- Magna Carta #magnacarta. Peter had held a meeting with Seif el Rashidi and this had been very positive. They were keen for our involvement and various ideas were discussed. A group was set up to take these forward. Once we have a draft plan then we can approach AIUK for help and assistance. The Cathedral is willing to help with graphics and has offered us a stall. The involvement of Kate Allen and the discussion between her and Rob Key who is the chair of the Cathedral group was discussed. Caroline, the regional rep. said that it had been a brief conversation only and that Kate Allen was delighted that the Salisbury group were involved and that they were best placed to take things forward.
- Strategic issues. There was a long discussion on strategic issues with Caroline and group members voiced various concerns about lack of response from AI. Lack of materials was an issue; finding out what was available was difficult; and lack of response another problem. Caroline responded by saying that the restructuring had had major effects with many staff leaving or being made redundant. It had also consumed a lot of senior management time. She will raise these issues nationally and she said they were similar to concerns raised by other groups. Southern region news can be found here.
- Web site. 217 views of the site since launch. Most from the UK as expected with 12 from USA and 11, Brazil. People from 19 countries were now shown as viewing it. There 18 blog followers; 8 twitter followers and 3 from Facebook.
- Stop Torture. A possible date for a stall on 15 November was discussed.
- Citizenship. This to be taken forward with Bishop Wordsworth. The competition will be repeated this year with more schools involved.
Minutes will be posted soon.
View the South region site of Amnesty
Human Rights Act
Next week we hope to hear John Glen MP (member of Parliament for Salisbury) explain his wish to see the Human Rights Act #HRA repealed. The original idea was the act to be repealed in favour of a bill of rights which the UK has never had. This died the death in 2012 yet many on the government’s front bench and many back benchers – including Mr Glen – want to see the HRA got rid of without being that clear on what would replace it.
In a leader in the Guardian on July 4, the European convention on human rights is described thus:
‘… it distilled the protections that the English common law had evolved over the centuries, as a gift to a broken continent. […] after two-thirds of a century, by now it might have been edging towards sacred status. Instead it is widely derided. The Conservative party is gripped by a decidedly unconservative urge to chuck this product of experience out of the British courts by repealing the Human rights Act, which incorporates it into British law. The Home Secretary floats the idea of walking away from the convention entirely, a suggestion that the Tory right is bent on getting into the next manifesto.’
Like all laws, it has its absurdities and some questionable decisions are arrived at using it. Nevertheless, it embodies fundamental rights of the citizen and enables them to challenge decisions made by the state or its agencies. It is probably this ability which so narks those in positions of power. We learned this week how a collection of mega-wealthy individuals paid £12,000 (about $18,000) each to have a meal with David Cameron and some of his ministers. Huge efforts were made to keep this secret but the Bureau of Investigative Journalists secured the guest list. Such people are unlikely to be that sympathetic to those at the bottom of the heap or who struggle to have their voices heard. Nor can we rely on the Labour party who are organising their own dinner and are busy courting the corporate community.
As the political class drifts away from the concerns and problems of ordinary people it is acts like the HRA which gives them – occasionally – some kind of chance to even the balance.
Monthly meeting – update
The monthly meeting took place on Thursday, 12 June.
The following were discussed:
- there was an update on the death penalty from Lesley and her report will be a separate post in a few days. It was noted that the Devizes group were active with Hakamada Iwao who was probably the longest serving prisoner on death row but is now on release. We are waiting advice from AIUK on the campaign in Belarus
- an email has been received from Kenny Latunda Dada concerning North Korea and he has a speaker on that country. This will be investigated
- John Glen MP. 11 July has been confirmed for him to speak to the group which will be in the Methodist Church at 7:30. It is restricted to members and supporters. We are to let AIUK know of this event
- Unfortunately the regional rep could not come to this meeting but is coming to the next
- Peter said he had received no copy from anyone and was reluctant to write an entire newsletter. It was agreed that it would wait until after 11 July
- Magna Carta. The group were very disappointed not to have heard from AI HQ following the contact Kate Allen had made with Robert Key. Fiona is to write to the regional rep to complain. Peter is to contact the manager of the MC event being organised by the cathedral. It was unlikely that there would be any money coming from the City Council as they had awarded money to the Cathedral project
- Cathedral service in November: Tony is to follow up
- Film. Omar has been agreed on as this years film. More details in future. To be shown on 4 December
- The stall is on Saturday 21st!
Meeting with John Glen MP: update
The MP for Salisbury, #JohnGlen, has agreed to come and speak to the Salisbury group on Friday 11 July starting at 7:30 pm. It will be in the Methodist Church in St Edmund’s Church Street, Salisbury. Parking is in Salt Lane car park.
We invited Mr Glen to speak to the group following his various statements saying he wished to see the Human Rights Act abolished #HRA. It is about this subject that we want to hear his views and for members to ask questions if they wish.
Open to members and supporters.
UPDATE
Mr Glen came on 11th and members had the opportunity to put points in favour of the HRA to him. A fuller report will be placed here soon.
Ursula Milner-White
On Monday 21 April 2014, Easter Monday, there was a Service of Thanksgiving at Salisbury Cathedral for the life of Ursula Milner-White who died on 12 February. Ursula was one of the longest serving members of the local group and became a member soon after the group was founded. She rarely missed a meeting or a campaign action 
and she will be sadly missed.
It is always surprising that when someone dies, you often learn more about them than when they were alive. We discovered that Ursula had lived in India and for a long period in New Zealand where she had helped bring up two girls after their mother died. She was a war time evacuee and spent the war years in Canada where she stayed and got her degree from McGill University. She had a deep interest in natural life and gardens and was a keen walker. She loved opera and music and used to attend meetings of the Recorded Music Society in Salisbury. She was a member of the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust.
She was a committed Christian and her faith led her to long time involvement in Amnesty and prisoners of conscience.
One of our longest serving members, Michael Stokely, has written:
The monthly meeting of the local group — held on the second Thursday of the month — will no longer be quite the same without Ursula Milner-White. Whatever the weather, and if she wasn’t on her travels, she would be present. Bending forward, hand raised, ‘Mr Chairman …’ and some sharp, pertinent point would be made. We shall miss her enormously.
Ursula wrote a short piece for the October newsletter last year on why she joined Amnesty and this is included here:
“I had been rather vaguely interested [in Amnesty] and then heard the story of a particular man Raoul Wallenberg. He was a Swedish diplomat who was sent to the Nazi run government of Hungary during the war with the brief to do what he could to help the Jews there. He did so with vigour and considerable success, so that he was thought to have saved twenty thousand lives. Then the Russians captured Budapest and sent for him. He went off cheerfully, saying that he wasn’t sure whether the Russians were inviting him as a guest or a prisoner, but he was never seen in freedom again.
Some people who were later released from Russian prisons witnessed seeing him there and after two years the Russians reported he had died of a heart attack which of course may or may not have been true.
His family in Sweden thought he’d been taken for his possible exchange value and were bitter about the Swedish government which apparently released Russian prisoners in Sweden without making sure that Wallenberg would be freed. Perhaps they believed that he was already dead?
I was greatly distressed and impressed by this story. I thought that if people had – disastrously – not protested soon enough, or hard enough, about Wallenberg, the least I could do was to try and help other people unjustly imprisoned.
So I joined Amnesty.
It is open to others to make a contribution to this page.
Amnesty in Salisbury & South Wiltshire 