PUBLIC MEETING
To discuss the government’s response to the London bombings and its impact on our civil liberties
THURSDAY 29 SEPTEMBER 05 at 7.30 PM
CARRS LANE CHURCH CENTRE
CARRS LANE
BIRMINGHAM B4 7SX
Speakers invited:
Nusrat Chagtai, a human rights lawyer who will talk about the implications of current and proposed anti-terror measures.
Dr Muhammad Abdul Bari, Deputy Secretary General Muslim Council of Britain and member of Tony Blair’s ‘taskforce’.
Dr M Naseem Chairman Birmingham Central Mosque
Mr Raza Kazim Islamic Human Rights Commission
Representatives from:
Muslim Association of Britain
Respect
Birmingham Members of Parliament (Khalid Mahmood)
We extend our deepest sympathy to the friends and families of those who died, and all those affected in the bomb attacks in London on
7 July 2005. We do not support the killing of innocent people anywhere in the world and do not regard it as a legitimate way of carrying forward the struggle against oppression. We also remember the tens of thousands of Iraqi civilians killed as a result of Bush and Blair’s ‘War on Terror’. These innocent victims are not honoured with names and faces, we know nothing of their hopes and aspirations – they are the ‘collateral damage’ of the occupation.
Terrorism has political and social roots and is not related to any particular religion, but since the London bombings the government and the media have pointed fingers at the whole Muslim community, as if they were responsible for the criminal acts of a few individuals. This demonisation plus the new and proposed anti-terror measures poses a great threat to the Muslim community and to the community at large.
We are calling this meeting so that we can understand what the new legislation means in practice and to discuss ways in which we can come together and make our voices heard in defence of our civil and human rights.
Detainees in Guantanamo Bay on Hunger Strike
At least 210 detainees have been on hunger strike since 11 August in protest at their conditions. An earlier hunger strike was stopped when the US authorities promised some changes. They reneged on these promises and the detainees have resumed their protest. Anyone familiar with the Irish hunger strikes of the 1980s will realise that these detainees are at a critical stage – it’s a matter of life and death. Please contact your MP and urge him/her to press the British government to raise the matter with the American authorities as a matter of urgency. Sign an online petition by entering the web address below in your internet explorer http://www.gopetition.co.uk/online/7156.html
Birmingham Guantanamo Campaign PO Box 12514, Birmingham B16 6AT
