Friday, April 10
Thursday, April 9
Milliband's FCO joins Smith's Home Office in denial over pogram of Iraqi LGBT
Pink Paper reports that the Foreign Office says it is looking into the reports which emerged last week of gays in Iraq on deathrow for being gay.
The Iraqi LGBT group has since stated that five of their members in Iraq are on deathrow for being members of their organisation.
In responding to these reports, Bill Rammell, minister of state, said:
“The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has received some reports of violence committed against individuals because of their sexual orientation. But these allegations have so far been uncorroborated and we have consequently been unable to raise them with the government of Iraq.This is absolutely outrageous. There is a thick file of media reports, including one of deaths in Baghdad this week, carried out by death squads, as well as UN, Human Rights Watch and IGLHRC reports of "systemic or institutionalised abuse".
“There does not however appear to be any systemic or institutionalised abuse of the homosexual community in Iraq. FCO officials remain in contact with vulnerable groups and organisations such as the UK-based Iraqi Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans-Gender Group, and are looking into their most recent reports. The UK condemns the persecution of any individual because of their sexual orientation.”
Rammell should be ashamed of himself. Following the State Department denials it looks like the invading alliance is engaged in nothing but "systemic or institutionalised abuse" of Iraqi LGBT.
Bill Rammell MP
Minister of State
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
King Charles Street
London
SW1A 2AH
Tel: 020 7008 2090
Email: psrammellinfo@fco.gov.uk
Tuesday, April 7
G20 death: witness statements
An innocent bystander, Ian Tomlinson, died at the G20 protests and today's release of damming video in The Guardian has the police banged to rights.
Another angle from Channel Four:
These eyewitness statements make the point that the protester who provided the medical aid to Tomlinson which was lacking from his 'protectors' was "very brave" in the face of police charges.
CBE?
Lots more stinks about what happened which deserves a bigger inquiry. The beat-up in the media about 'expected violence' in the period before by police PR, the presence of hundreds of media cameras at the exact spot where a window was broken, why one branch of RBS went without being boarded up despite being in a spot protesters were known to be converging on, how the totally peaceful climate camp was violently broken up after media withdrew. The latter has several videos which show peaceful protesters being battoned and beaten.
We know from the policing of the Kent climate camp that police lie. Ordinary Brits need to know that it's not a fringe group which is being assaulted here but their own freedom to speak out against 'the powers that be'. It is quite powerful to see that in the initial reaction to the release of the Tomkinson video in The Guardian that 'middle England', as represented by Daily Mail readers, seems to be quite aware of just whose side the cops are on: not theirs.
Monday, April 6
Does Hillary know this man?
Last week the Iraqi LGBT group reported that some of an upcoming batch of executions in Iraq, which had been reported by Amnesty International, were of gay men being executed for homosexuality.
The group has suffered severe persecution in Iraq. It runs safe houses for LGBT fleeing death threats and says that many of its members have been murdered by both death squads and police forces.
Iraqi police have been reported as being infiltrated by both insurgents and religious groups.
Iraqi LGBT claims that the government since mid December 2008 has "a mass campaign to [eliminate] homosexuality". They say they have "many eyewitnesses" and that "members of the police and ministry of interior forces is actually involved on the mass arrest and taking suspects of homosexuality off the streets to unknown destination".
Homosexuality was made a crime by Saddam Hussein in 2001 following pressure by clerics. Repeated convictions carries the death penalty.
In response to the report by Iraqi LGBT the Boston gay newspaper EDGE spoke to the US State Department and in an astonishing rebuttal a spokesperson, John Fleming, who has worked at their Iraqi Desk through the Bush presidency, denied that Iraq's government executed any people since 2007 and that homosexuality is a crime.
He told the EDGE that any criminals now awaiting possible execution are there for crimes such as "terrorism, insurgency and kidnapping." Their sexual identity is irrelevant to the charges, he said.
"None were convicted of the ’crime’ of being homosexual," Fleming said. "In fact, it’s immaterial to Iraqis."
This is the same State Department which in 2006, following horrific reports in US media, the issuing of a fatwa calling for the killing of gays by Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, United Nations reports and pressure from the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC), declared itself ‘troubled’ over anti-gay violence in Iraq.
Fleming asserted that "the average Iraqi" had other issues to concern themselves with and that this issue was "a luxury."
This appears to contradict Hillary Clinton, who told European Parliament last month that the persecution of gays and lesbians is "something that we take very seriously".
She added condemnation of where persecution was "condoned and protected."
Fleming disputes the reports by organisations like the UN and IGLHRC of a 'deathzone' for Iraqi LGBT. In fact he denied that homosexuality was a crime punishable by death.
Despite this, the issue of 'individual rights' was something US forces "frequently raise with Iraqi leaders and officials," he said.
It is unfortunate that due to language issues and bad reporting (such as of all those on death row being gay) that the urgent calls from Iraqi gays for help have been lost in translation. It's essential that other groups like the UN and IGLRC urgently investigate and substantiate Iraqi LGBT's reports.
What is clear is that Iraq's government has form. Plus that homosexuality is not just a cultural but a legal and political issue there. There are grounds to believe Iraqi LGBT reports that there would be a government organised pogram of LGBT.
What Iraqi LGBT are saying is that in Iraq we currently have the world's worst 'deathzone' for LGBT, far worse than Iran.
It may not suit the interests of western governments who support the Iraqi government to say this so it is up to others to hold Hillary Clinton to her words in Brussels as well as the fine words of David Milliband on LGBT rights.
And when she returns to Washington Hillary might want to look at what her spokespeople are saying in her name.
Postscript: Human Rights Watch (HRW) are reportedly trying to obtain corroboration of gay men on death row for homosexuality. HRW's Scott Long in an email circulated to the gayswithoutborders listserv said "we are trying urgently to determine who they are and what has happened."
Sunday, April 5
Music: Jill Scott - Golden
Loving Jill Scott in The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency. Loving this track the most amongst many of hers.
Friday, April 3
Thursday, April 2
Cute animals: RIP Lucky
This cute kid is saying last words to beloved goldfish Lucky. Dad videotapes and Mom cracks up in the background :(
Fools and bullies
On Mark Lawson's excellent interview series on BBC4 he just spoke with the screenwriter GF Newman. Newman made his name with the 70s series Law and Order, which for the first time showed the massive levels of corruption endemic in the police at that time.
He also spoke of his boyhood experience of a local copper stealing from him and hitting him so hard he became deaf in one ear.
Power corrupts was his thesis and experience and Newman's suggestion was that police uniforms become pink and that they're renamed 'public assistance officers'.
Two scenes from yesterday's protest made me think that nothing's really changed in thirty years. Any chance any of this violent bullying lot will be charged with anything? I think not.
Comment from Dave Hill's LiveBlog from the G20 Protests:
I'm a media photographer employed by a large photographic agency. I carry aHere they are attacking entirely peaceful people at the climate camp on Bishopsgate - the campers have got their hands UP and are chanting "Peaceful Protest" in a show of non-violence:
press card at all times, which states that I'm recognised by the Assoc of Chief Police Officers as a "bona fide newsgatherer".
After a few hours covering the protest, I needed to exit the area in order to go and wire my pictures back to the agency. Met by a wall of unmoving and seemingly mute police officers, who gruffly refused to respond to any questions, I made my way down to one very small point where it seemed people might be being let out.
I showed my card to one officer who stated (and as a newsgatherer, I Quote...) "I don't care who you are, you shouldn't be here". When I pointed out that he was obstructing a member of the free press from doing their job, he said (without seeing the irony) "I'm just doing my job."
Numerous City workers appeared and just by waving their building access cards, were allowed through the cordon (funny kind of proof if you ask me- just cos you work there, you're immediately innocent). Well, not all- at least two were challenged by officers with "You don't look like you work there" (referring to how they were dressed). One quite rightly pointed out that he'd been told by his work to dress down.
One man was allowed through the cordon simply because he waved a foreign passport (Mexican), which I again found odd, as a large number of the masked and dressed-in-black 'anarchists' were French and Spanish (I know because I asked them).
I repeatedly asked a few of the officers why we were being detained, and more specifically, why I was being detained. Of those who even responded (silence seemed to be the order of the day when confronted by this question), most did so in a thoroughly intimidating manner, two even threatening my arrest if i did not move back.
An older journalist appeared beside me- thoroughly middle class and wearing a suit- also producing his card for the police. He too was told that they didnt care if he was a journalist.
Everyone around me was getting very agitated, some people shouting at the police and hurling insults. Apparently, the police tactics were to PREVENT A BREACH OF THE PEACE... which is funny, because it seemed to be pissing people off rather a lot. A hell of a lot in fact. To the point where you might think it was being done deliberately to provoke... call me cynical....
After 45 minutes of waiting at this point, I began to become a little worried by the piles of riot helmets that were being stacked against one wall, while more police vans arrived and the lines were joined by more cops.
For the N'th time I waved my card in the (apparently) senior cop's direction, pointed out I was a member of the Press, and why was I being held? This prompted a great response - "The more times you ask me that, the more I'm going to ignore you."
1.5 hours of waiting, and suddenly the cop goes "OK, you can go through now. See, I told you someone would deal with you in due course," and they parted and off I went. Sadly, the same cannot be said for the hundreds of others stood around me.
While I realise that they're attempting to contain some troublesome elements in a certain place, the police's attitude was thoroughly confrontational, suggesting they WANTED an excuse for violence. Their attitude toward the press was also very dubious- but then we kinda know that anyway.
Frankly, the whole experience just left me with a rather bitter taste in my mouth- why should anyone respect these fools and bullies when their attitude is that a uniform gives them the right to do as they please?
Beforehand I'd have disagreed with the many of the protestors' view of the police.
Now, I kinda agree with many of them- Facists and BullyBoys.
I'm glad my taxes are well spent....
Despite assurances made on Tuesday morning by Commander Broadhurst to climate campers in the office of David Howarth MP, at 7pm riot police violently attacked the camp, injuring many peaceful campers and bystanders who were not allowed to leave the area.A LibDem blogs here about what happened at the Camp:
Despite this incursion, the atmosphere at the Camp remained calm and happy until around midnight, when riot police again moved in and aggressively dispersed the Camp.
This country is founded upon the peaceful right to protest – as I said to one of the riot police who would not let me leave. We are not a police state. Whoever was responsible for the police operation here deserves to be condemned, but then I suppose encouraging violence justifies their ever spiralling security budgets.Of course all police aren't fools and bullies but the ones who aren't end up covering up for the ones who are.
The hard and long fought for right to protest publicly in this country is, bit-by-bit, slipping away.
- More footage of the violent police break-up of peaceful climate camp
Expectations of online government
Attribution: Diane Cline
US government web professionals just held a 500 strong 'govcamp' in Washington DC.
The blogged reaction from attendees has been positive and some stuff sounded amazing. Matthew Burton wrote about one session:
Managing Sensitive Data in a Web 2.0 World. Half of the attendees were from the Intelligence Community. The other half were from transparency advocacy groups that fight government secrecy. These groups' interests are seldom aligned, yet it was one of the most lively sessions of the whole weekend: the intelligence geeks were giving the transparency wonks ideas for platforms that can effectively manage the tangle of overclassified (and illegally classified) data that has arisen in recent years.
Lots is online, n'est ce pas, and there's some fascinating stuff.
Here's video of some of the fantastic murals created out of sessions (by a professional artist):
Something which leapt out at me (perhaps because it was at the top!) was the results of a January survey of 385 people done by the American equivalent of directgov, usa.gov.
Although the context was supposed to be 'social media', some results somewhat throw that descriptive term around.
The survey results included:
- People are interested in interacting with govet through social media
- Credibility of gov information is critical for respondents
- Facebook is the preferred social media tool among respondents
- People interested in having conversations with the government
- People use search engines to find information more than any other tool
Actually, in the UK that would be search engine as one dominates. But if others drive specialist traffic then they're worth paying attention to.
Top ways citizens want to interact:
- Emergency alerts
- Voting and election information
- Way to contact elected officials
- Government forms
- My rights as a citizen
- 60% interested in government information on non-government sites (e.g. wikipedia)
- People expressed interest in rating government publications and information
These last two rang bells with me about a couple of ideas I've had.
Interaction with services can (could) take place elsewhere on the web. Things like free content and information pipes as well as widgets can (could) help.
Instead of putting the comment form several clicks away, why not have it on the bottom of every page?
No presentation up on their site about this or much detail on other sessions yet up but good to hear some echo on those ideas!
There's also Picasa tagged photos here and Flickr here (and video here) and I must say that one thing I noticed was just how many men were wearing suits, on a weekend. Quite a contrast with our barcamp ...
~~~
A Uk localgovcamp is being organised for Birmingham in June.
@PubSecBloggers
