Call for Aid to Comrades in the Philippines

Haldane calls on our members to assist Karapatan, a radical grassroots political organisation in the Philippines with which we have fraternal relations.  If you would like to donate to assist Karapatan please contact treasurer@haldane.org.

The Executive and AGM have already agreed to send a donation to assist Karapatan's urgent action appeal, and this was added to by a collection at our recent AGM. 

Any assistance will be gratefully received.

[The image in this article details and gives a pictorial representation of the various items which Karapatan can use to assist victims of the devastation in the Philippines.]

Congratulations to Raji Sourani

The Haldane Society sends its congratulations to our comrade Raji Sourani, Director of the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights, on the Right Livelihood Award, the alternative Nobel Prizes.  This is a major recognition of Raji's and PCHR's tenacity in resisting the crimes of the Israeli state in Palestine.

View the letter sent to PCHR.

Report on the Day of the Endangered Lawyer

The image in this article is a picture of one male and one female lawyer behind bars.  The text reads, "Day of the Endangered Lawyer.  24th January 2013.  Keep your hands off the lawyers".

The Report on 2013's Day of the Endangered Lawyer has been published.  The Haldane Society, alongside our international comrades, participated in the actions on the day and in the creation of the report.

Click here to download the report.

Emergency Protest Over the Current Guantánamo Bay Hunger Strike

The London Guantánamo Campaign invites you to join us at an emergency protest over the current hunger strike at Guantánamo Bay

Sunday 17 March, 2-4pm
US Embassy, Grosvenor Square, London, W1A 1AE
(nearest tube: Bond St/Marble Arch)

We will have speakers and an open mic.

 Hunger strikes: “the weapon of those who have nothing but their bodies with which to protest” ("Borderline Justice", Frances Webber, 2012)

Almost all of the 166 prisoners at Guantánamo Bay have been on hunger strike since early February. This protest which has led to force feeding against the human rights of prisoners and some prisoners losing over 15kg in weight was prompted by the confiscation of personal items from cells and the desecration of copies of the Koran. In a letter sent by lawyers for the prisoners to the prison commander on 4 March, they state that the “situation is potentially life-threatening.” The US military denies the situation, which is clearly getting out of hand.

Over half of the prisoners have been cleared for release and less than a dozen face any charges after more than a decade of arbitrary detention. The desperation shown in the latest episode of this hostage crisis has been ignored by the mainstream media. We invite you to join us as we protest this injustice.

For more details, please call Aisha on 07809 757 176 or e-mail london.gtmo@gmail.com

Mass Arrest of Turkish Lawyers

The Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers expresses its utmost concern about the new mass arrests of Lawyers in Turkey.

The image in this article is the logo of the Progressive Lawyers’ Association (ÇHD).

According to the Turkish media police forces launched raids in seven provinces early this morning against the Revolutionary People's Liberation Party/Front (DHKP/C).  Fifty-five people, including 15 lawyers, were detained in the raids on suspicion of links with the organization. Nine of fifteen lawyers are reportedly members of the Progressive Lawyers’ Association (ÇHD), including an executive board member of the association, Güçlü Sevimli, and Istanbul branch head Taylan Tanay.  An arrest warrant has also been issued for the ÇHD President, Selçuk Kozağaçlı, after police failed to locate him during the raid. 

ÇHD has for many years been a sister organisation to the Haldane Society through the European Lawyers for Democracy and Human Rights. Its President, our colleague Selçuk  Kozağaçlı, was an invited speaker to the Haldane Society's conference on Defending Human Rights Defenders in February 2012.

This is the second wave of arrests carried out by the Turkish authorities: mass arrests were carried out in 2012 against 46 lawyers accused of getting orders from Öcalan, transmitting the orders to the alleged [KCK] organization, leading to actions as a result of such orders and informing Öcalan about the results.

By arresting these lawyers the Turkish State not only prevents them from exercising their professional duties but also denies their clients the right to be represented by a lawyer of their choice. Both acts are a violation of human rights, under the European Convention of Human Rights Art. 6, Para 2, c and the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers, 1, ” All persons are entitled to call upon the assistance of a lawyer of their choice”, and 18, “Lawyers shall not be identified with their clients or their clients' causes as a result of discharging their functions.”

The Haldane Society demands:

1. The immediate release of the arrested lawyers.
2. That lawyers shall not be identified with their clients or their clients' causes as a result of discharging their functions.
3. The Turkish State shall ensure that lawyers (a) are able to perform all of their professional functions without intimidation, hindrance, harassment or improper interference; (b) are able to travel and to consult with their clients freely both within their own country and abroad; and (c) shall not suffer, or be threatened with, prosecution or administrative, economic or other sanctions for any action taken in accordance with recognized professional duties, standards and ethics.
4. The full implementation of all International and all European law ratified by Turkey concerning the right to a fair trial, i.e. Art. 14 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Art. 6 European Convention on Human Rights.
5. The full implementation of the Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers i.e. Art. 7, 8, 16, 182. That all persons arrested or detained, with or without criminal charge, shall have prompt access to a lawyer, and in any case not later than forty-eight hours from the time of arrest or detention.

The Haldane Society within its resources will give the arrested lawyers all possible assistance.

Day of the Endangered Lawyer

International Day of Solidarity with Basque lawyers in Spain

Join the protest by lawyers at the Spanish Embassy

Thursday 24 January 2013, 12-1pm

39 Chesham Place London SW1X 8SB (nearest tube Hyde Park Corner)

CAMPACC in association with Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers are pleased to support this year’s Day of the Endangered Lawyer which is highlighting the intolerable conditions faced by Basque lawyers.

During the last two decades more than 20 Basque lawyers in Spain have been kept in pre-trial detention, several of them up to almost 2 years. All the arrested lawyers were charged with terrorist crimes connected with ETA, or with insulting the Spanish state. All of them were either defence lawyers or human rights lawyers representing alleged members or supporters of ETA organisations. Arrested lawyers were detained incommunicado and could not even be advised and assisted by a lawyer of their own choice, on the days immediately after their arrest. Later it turned out that most of these arrests were unfounded and unlawful. In almost all of the above mentioned cases the suspected lawyers were acquitted afterwards, or the cases were dismissed. 

By arresting these lawyers the Spanish state not only prevented them from exercising their professional duties but also denied their clients the right to be represented by a lawyer of their choice. Both acts were a violation of human rights, under the European Convention of Human Rights Art. 6, Para 2, c and the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers, 1. “All persons are entitled to call upon the assistance of a lawyer of their choice”, 18. “Lawyers shall not be identified with their clients or their clients' causes as a result of discharging their functions.”

The day of action on 24th January, which will see simultaneous actions by lawyers taking place in major cities across Europe, will be marked in London with a protest outside the Spanish Embassy, when a petition will be handed in by Prof Bill Bowring the President of the European Association of Lawyers for Democracy. Lawyers and human rights defenders are invited to join him in this action.

The Day of the Endangered Lawyer is organized this year by three European lawyers’ associations: the European Democratic Lawyers (AED-EDL, www.aed-edl.net), the European Lawyers for Democracy and Human Rights (ELDH, www.eldh.eu) and the European Bar Human Rights Institute (IDHAE, www.idhae.org). Together they represent lawyers all over Europe. The press release, report and petition of the organisers are attached.

For further information:

CAMPACC (Campaign Against Criminalising Communities)www.campacc.org

E-mail: estella24@tiscali.co.uk  

Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyerswww.haldane.org

E-mail: secretary@haldane.org

[The images in this article are English and Spanish versions of a picture of one male and one female lawyer behind bars.  The text of the first reads, "Day of the Endangered Lawyer.  24th January 2013.  Keep your hands off the lawyers".  The text of the second reads, "Day of the Endangered Lawyer.  24th January 2013.  Por el derecho a la elección del abogado de confianza."]

Update

on 2013-04-07 19:44 by Stephen Knight

The Report on 2013's Day of the Endangered Lawyer has been published.

Click here to download the report.

Update in the case of Vadim Kuramshin

The charges against Vadim Kuramshin, that he allegedly attempted to extort money from Mukhtar Uderbaev from the Kordai regional prosecutor’s office, were clearly fabricated.

Under the lead of judge Nurmukhammat Abidov this latest trial was rushed through and the sentence declared without either Vadim himself or his advocate being present in the courtroom. They were replaced by a court appointed lawyer who sat there as if he was just an extra piece of furniture.

The trial was conducted with many breaches of procedure. From the beginning the judge took the side of the prosecution. Not one objection from the defense was upheld, neither defense or prosecution witnesses were questioned. Some of the prosecution witnesses appeared by Skype in which members of the “security organs” showed no reluctance instructing the witnesses how to give the “right evidence”. Vadim himself was not even allowed to see the documents submitted to him.

At the end of August a jury found Vadim not guilty of this charge and he was freed from the court. However the Kazakhstan authorities are out to seek revenge on this fighter against corruption. He was again arrested and dragged before the court. This has so annoyed the members of the previous jury that they have formed their own action committee in defense of Vadim Kuramshin.

The Haldane Society of socialist Lawyers have sent protest letters to the President of Kazakhstan and its embassy in London.

Appeal to the Prime Minister of Turkey to End the KCK Trials

Leading British lawyers, who recently observed the latest session of the mass trial of lawyers in Istanbul on 6 November 2012, briefed British parliamentarians on their concerns. Hosted by Hywel Williams, MP for Plaid Cymru, and sponsored by Peace in Kurdistan campaign, the meeting took place on 27 November in Westminster. It was addressed by barristers Margaret Owen OBE, Bronwen Jones and Melanie Gingell, who took part the observer delegation along with lawyers Tony Fisher and Ali Has. Barry White, UK representative of the European Federation of Journalists, also addressed the meeting to draw parallels between this trial and ongoing trials of journalists in Turkey.

Attendees of the meeting were so seriously alarmed by the situation that they unanimously agreed to write directly to the Turkish Government with the attached statement (updated 20 December).

Statement of solidarity for David Rabelo

The Haldane Society has written to the Colombian attorney general expressing its concern about the case of David Rabelo. Read our statement of solidarity here.

David Rabelo is a Colombian human rights defender who has been imprisoned for over two years and until recently had been waiting for a verdict in his case for more than six months. On 5th December his verdict was made official and he has been sentenced to more than 18 years in prison.

David has been convicted on the basis of evidence from an imprisoned paramilitary, who was convicted a result of David’s human rights work. The paramilitary was found guilty of committing two massacres, and in exchange for his testimony against David, his prison sentence was reduced from 40 to a maximum of eight years.  

In recent months it was discovered that the state prosecutor leading the case against David’s case had been previously banned from public office, because of his involvement in a forced disappearance of a young man when he worked for the Colombian police in 1991. Even after this was uncovered the prosecutor was allowed to continue this case against David.