[JNV] 9 Nov Lobby Parliament over Terrorism Bill

[JNV]

Dear friends

Next Wednesday there is going to be a lobby of Parliament on the Terrorism Bill, an event supported by CND, Liberty, Campaign against Criminalising Communities, the Stop The War Coalition, The National Union of Students, Greenpeace, the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), the Muslim Association of Britain (MAB), The Federation of Student Islamic Societies (FOSIS), Pax Christi, the Movement for the Abolition of War and Amnesty. JNV supports it too!

To get a Lobby Pack, you can email CND <press@cnduk.org> or you can look at the Lobby page on the STWC website:

<http://www.stopwar.org.uk/new/lobby.htm>

You can either take part physically by visiting Parliament on that day to speak to your MP (after arranging it beforehand) or you can write in with the model letter suggested.

As you will see from the STWC page, the lobby is focusing on three specific issues:

'We want the Government to amend the Terrorism Bill to remove the sections that would:

· outlaw the ‘glorification’ of terrorism

· ban non-violent organizations

· extend the period of pre-charge detention of suspects from 14 days to three months'

JNV says: The Terrorism Bill is a threat to freedom, and it will also further deepen support for terrorism.

Here is a quote you may like to use in your lobbying:

On Sunday 9 October, Panorama ran a programme about some of the new 'anti-terror' laws ('Blair vs Blair'). The key interview was with David Bickford, legal adviser to MI5 (internal security service) and MI6 (external security service) for the period 1987 - 1995. (22 minutes into the programme.)

Mr Bickford has strong views on the new offence of 'glorifying' terrorism:

Bickford: 'They [the Muslim community] will be less willing to assist the intelligence agencies. Within terrorism, you have the terrorists themselves, you have their immediate supporters, you have their sympathisers, and you have those on the outside who are politically sympathetic but don't want to get involved.' 

'When you have an offence of "glorification", in my view, that will extend the rings. So sympathisers become more than sympathisers, political sympathisers become more than political sympathisers, you lose their trust if you like.'

Panorama: 'So, to that extent, is it your view that this aspect of the Government's Terrorism Bill may make us less safe?'

Bickford: 'Yes. Certainly.'

Panorama: 'Well, that's quite a severe charge.'

Bickford: 'Yes, it is, and I think they should have thought about it properly before they introduced it, and they haven't.'

This is taken from one of our last Media Reviews, which contains more about the Terror Laws:
<http://tinyurl.com/7dg76>

Best wishes

Milan Rai
JNV