5 April 2020 will be the 60th dayof hunger strikes for 4 Turkish lawyers in prison for defending their clients.
Join us to hear about their case and to find out how we can show internaitonal solidarity in the time of Corona.
Via Zoom:
Meeting ID: 549371600
Password: 004126
Any questions to mmunrokerr@gmail.com
The Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers rejects the claim by the Tory Government that the handling of the Coronavirus crisis is not a time for ideology. The way that the UK, as a society, reacts to this crisis is necessarily determined by ideology. Our members represent the most vulnerable people in society. Through their delay and inaction, the Tories have proven themselves unwilling or unable to deliver health and financial security for the people of the United Kingdom in this acute public health crisis which is occurring within the ongoing crises of capitalism. We will not accept this crisis being another ‘shock doctrine’ power grab in the interests of the wealthy elite but will remain vigilant in our scrutiny of any infringements of the legal rights of those we represent. Indeed, we will fight to extend those rights pursuant to a socialist critique.
The Tory regime has failed to take the steps necessary to protect the vulnerable in this crisis, including refugees, migrants, those in detention, precarious workers (such as the dependent self-employed and zero hours contract workers), the homeless, renters, and all those who are a few days, a week, or a month away from severe financial hardship. £330bn worth of loans, primarily to businesses, is insufficient and not appropriately targeted to address the crisis for ordinary people.
Socialist policies are required to deal with this crisis for the benefit of workers and all of society. ‘Essential’ workers are all the workers in the country, and they deserve substantial material support along with the vital financial injection that is required in the health sector after years of underfunding. We demand nothing less than the emergency measures announced to protect the income of workers in countries such as Finland, Denmark, and France.
Accordingly, an unconditional universal basic income is necessary without delay. This is already an overdue fundamental reform to social security. There should be an accompanying suspension of rents for the millions of renters in the country and a ban on evictions.
We support the demands of the Legal Sector Workers United branch of the United Voices of the World union in their open letter of 16 March 2020 to employers in the legal sector. Legal Aid lawyers and other workers in the sector should receive a guaranteed income in any shutdown along with the rest of the workforce. The Ministry of Justice should use this opportunity of emergency government financial support to reverse its cuts to legal aid and provide a proper platform for the restoration of the administration of justice in this country following years of cuts which have harmed the most vulnerable in society in their pursuit of justice.
We also demand the immediate suspension of all in-person hearings in all courts. Where hearings cannot take place via videolink or telephone, they should be adjourned until the conclusion of the outbreak.
The Lord Chief Justice’s announcement in the evening of 17 March 2020 that jury trials longer than 3 days will be adjourned does not go far enough. COVID-19 can be transmitted in minutes or seconds. It does not take 3 days. No defendant can be confident that 12 jurors locked in a small room together will feel comfortable taking the time required to properly consider a case. Any right-minded and socially conscious juror will wish to minimise their social contact with others. This gives rise to the likelihood that juries will not give cases their deliberations the time and attention they deserve. There is a serious risk of both wrongful convictions and wrongful acquittals.
This is a time to create a real sense of justice in the United Kingdom and it is clearer than ever that socialist policies are the answer to the urgent problems we face. The Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers stands in solidarity with all those fighting to achieve this vision during the Coronavirus crisis and the ongoing crises of capitalism at home and internationally.
The Haldane Society condemns in the strongest possible terms the Metropolitan Police’s conduct in arresting Franck Magennis while he was taking part in lawful industrial action alongside striking workers. A barrister and trade unionist currently seconded to the independent trade union United Voices of the Union (‘UVW’), Mr Magennis also sits on the Society’s Executive Committee. His arrest constitutes a flagrant and unlawful attack on the workers’ movement, the right to strike, and the right to liberty.
Mr Magennis was arrested on a picket line at St. George’s, University of London, during an industrial dispute over the role of outsourcing at the university. UVW, who organised the industrial action, has said that the arrest marks a potential watershed in industrial relations and could set a dangerous precedent for the erosion of civil liberties and workers’ rights if left unchallenged. The incident, which took place shortly after 9am, saw 12 police officers arrive at the university after being called by management to dispel workers and trade union officials from a lawful picket. In a series of highly irregular events that has seen the Metropolitan Police become the subject of legal action, police officers swiftly issued workers and union officials with a letter from the University claiming that the picket needed to take place outside of NHS property. Several police officers then warned all workers and union officials that they would be arrested if they failed to leave the property within five minutes.
When Mr Magennis inquired into the legal basis of the warning, he was swiftly arrested and handcuffed, and subsequently de-arrested and released less than five minutes later on the condition that he immediately leave the site. The incident appears to represent an attempt by the Metropolitan Police to use criminal sanctions to frustrate lawful industrial action. Upon his release, Mr Magennis said:
“If my false imprisonment goes unchallenged, that would allow the Metropolitan Police to criminalise what is lawful civil activity, and would have a chilling effect on workers’ ability to stand up to bosses and exercise their civil liberties. Anyone concerned with a worker’s right to take industrial action, and with a citizen’s right not to be arbitrarily arrested, should be seriously concerned about the way the police have acted today. Workers should be allowed to go on strike without being threatened with arrest. This is an outrage.”
After being instructed by Mr Magennis to pursue legal action against the Metropolitan Police, Susie Labinjoh, of Hodge Jones & Allen solicitors said, “clearly important constitutional issues are raised by Mr Magennis’ arrest. We will be looking at all legal avenues to ensure that the police are held to account, that trade union members are not criminalised for going on strike, and that people are not arbitrarily arrested.”
The Haldane Society calls on all trade unionists, lawyers and concerned activists to support UVW members in their struggle to ensure that this blatant abuse of the law does not become a precedent by which workers are prevented from taking industrial action and exercising their basic human rights.
Members, comrades, and friends from across the movement are once again invited to the Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers' Winter Party.
Save the date of 13 December 2019 from 6.30pm till late. The party will take place at Garden Court Chambers, 57-60 Lincolns Inn Fields, London, WC2A 3LS (nearest tube Holborn).
Food, drink, and entertainment will be included in the ticket price. Discounted student and low-waged tickets will be available. Cheaper early bird tickets are on sale now but tickets will be on sale on the door as well.
On 23 January 2020 we will welcome members of the public and our invited speakers for a lecture on System Change for Climate Change.
Speakers:
Richard Harvey, counsel for Greenpeace International and barrister, Garden Court Chambers.
Farhana Yamin, Track 0 CEO, climate lawyer and activist.
All are welcome to come to join us for the debate.
Latecomers are welcome to enter quietly.
The lecture will be followed by our members-only AGM.
On 7 February 2020 at 18:30 join us for a showing of the film SOLIDARITY.
Blacklisting in the UK construction industry impacted thousands of workers who were labelled ‘troublemakers’ for speaking out and secretively denied employment. Activists uncovered alarming links between workplace blacklisting and undercover policing. SOLIDARITY follows meetings between activists and law students, brought together for the film, revealing the determination of a community working together to find a route to justice. SOLIDARITY was made by visual arts organisation City Projects and filmmaker Lucy Parker, who has been working alongside members of the Blacklist Support Group for over four years.
Find out more about the film at solidarityfilm.com.
Attendees will need to obtain free tickets. Free ticketsa are available at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/solidarity-film-showing-tickets-81068115917
Venue: Birkbeck Cinema, 43 Gordon Square, Bloomsbury, London, WC1H 0PD.
When: 27 November 2019, 18:30-20:30
Where: Room S101, The University of Law, 14 Store Street, London, WC1E 7DE
Speakers:
Franck Magennis (barrister)
United Voices of the World (UVW) union activist
The title for this Haldane lecture does not contain a question mark. Franck Magennis is starting from the premise that there is no real doubt as to the merits of unionisation in the legal sector. Franck is Head of Legal at the United Voices of the World union, which has made the innovative and far-sighted step of setting up the Legal Sector Workers United branch. Franck will outline the history of the struggle to organise and the achievements so far, including the solidarity that legal workers have shown to outsourced cleaners at the Ministry of Justice, who are denied the London Living Wage and key employment rights.
Franck will be joined by one of the Ministry of Justice cleaners who will outline the background to this vital industrial struggle, which has consequences for all in the legal sector.
1. The Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers denounces Turkey’s invasion of North East Syria, which constitutes a gross violation of international law by the Turkish Republic and its officials. The Haldane Society also condemns in the strongest possible terms the facilitation of this invasion by the U.S. and the complicity of E.U. states, including the U.K.
2. On Sunday 6th October 2019, the White House issued a statement announcing its withdrawal of U.S forces from the Turkey-Syria border and effectively giving the green light to Turkey’s “long-planned operation into Northern Syria”, following a phone conversation between U.S President Donald Trump and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey. On Wednesday the 9th of October 2019, Turkey began its assault.
3. Kurdish forces have led the fight to defend the world against the brutal facism of ISIS. 11,000 predominantly Kurdish women and men gave their lives in this struggle against terrorism, as did 10 British citizens, and 24,000 were injured. Kurdish organisations have established one of the most peaceful regions in the middle east – the Autonomous Administration of North East Syria (also known as Rojava); a secular multicultural democracy based on principles of direct democracy, pluralism, women’s liberation, ecological justice and cooperative economy.
The crime of aggression
4. Turkey’s invasion of Rojava is a violation of the prohibition of the use of force set out in Article 2(4) of the Charter of the United Nations, which is not only a treaty obligation but is also a principle of customary international law. There is no exception to the prohibition of the use of force under the right to self-defense in these circumstances.
5. When Turkey invaded Afrin in March 2018, the Turkish presidential spokesman maintained Turkey was exercising its right to self-defense pursuant to Article 51 of the Charter of the United Nations, claiming there had been 700 attacks against Turkish cities. This claim was later reported to be unfounded.
6. Likewise, there is no evidence to support Turkey’s assessment of the present situation. Erdogan says Turkey is acting to prevent the creation of a ‘terror corridor’, claiming the people’s protection units – the YPG and YPJ – are a terrorist organisation. On the contrary, these are the forces that have sacrificed the most to both ideologically and militarily defeat terrorism in the region. Moreover, far from launching any attacks against Turkey, in August 2019 the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), implemented a demilitarised ‘peace corridor’ along the Turkish-Syrian border in response to Turkey’s supposed security concerns – pulling back their weapons and forces by 5 to 14 kilometers along the border area and allowing U. S and Turkish patrols in good faith.
7. In the absence of an armed attack against Turkey, Turkey’s military offensive constitutes a violation of Article 2(4) of the Charter. The pretext of preventing the creation of a ‘terror corridor’ does not legitimise Turkey’s military offensive under Article 51 of the Charter, as customary international law only recognises anticipatory self-defence as lawful when an attack is imminent.
8. Turkey’s use of force in invading Rojava in a manner inconsistent with the Charter of the United Nations therefore constitutes an act of Aggression as defined in Article 1 and 3(1) of UN General Assembly resolution 3314 (XXIX) and within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC). Even though Turkey is not a state party to the Rome Statute of the ICC, the ICC’s jurisdiction over the crime of Aggression allows the UN Security Council to refer a situation for investigation by the prosecutor under Article 13 of the Rome Statute of the ICC.
War Crimes, Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity
9. Erdogan has declared that his intention in invading Rojava is to establish a “safe zone” stretching 50 miles from the Turkish border, as far as Raqqa and Deir al-Zour (the full extent of the Kurdish-controlled region), in order to resettle millions of Arab-Syrian refugees. This would constitute a dramatic demographic change in the historically Kurdish and multi-ethnic region. There is substantial evidence to suggest that Erdogan’s real intention is to carry out ethnic cleansing and genocide against Kurdish, Yezidi and Christian populations, as Genocide Watch has recently warned. Such actions would constitute as crimes under Articles 6 and 7 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.
10. The invasion of the Afrin canton in 2018 and its subsequent occupation by Turkish forces and Turkish controlled, armed and funded jihadist groups has forcibly displaced thousands and led to atrocities such as kidnapping, extortion, murder, torture, rape, gender-based violence, which Amnesty International has denounced as war crimes, per the definition in Article 8 of the Rome Statute. There is no reason to suggest that Turkey has different plans for the rest of Rojava.
Erga Omnes Obligation
11. Turkey’s invasion is unquestionably an act of aggression and runs a grave risk of causing genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. The invasion as such constitutes the violation of erga omnes obligations under international law. This means that the legal interests of all states are engaged. It also places a legal obligation on all states not to recognise illegal situations such as invasion and occupation stemming from breaches of erga omnes obligations or to render aid or assistance in maintaining the situation created by the breach.
12. The Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers therefore calls upon the UK government to fulfil its obligations under international law not to recognise or render aid or assistance in Turkey’s invasion of Rojava by immediately:
i. Ending all weapons sales and exports from the UK to Turkey
ii. Ending all UK provision of security and intelligence to Turkey
iii. Using its position at the UN Security Council to achieve a no-fly zone over Rojava as well as sanctions, particularly an arms embargo, against Turkey.
iv. Ending the EU-Turkey deal, which provides billions of euros to the Turkish state and enables Erdogan to weaponise the suffering of millions of displaced people in attempts to blackmail the EU into complicity with its invasion.
Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 ('no fault' evictions, and the consequent total lack of security of tenure in the the private rented sector) was a key plank of the Thatcher government's housing settlement. Its existence has been unquestioned by successive governments for for more than 30 years.
But in the last few months both main political parties announced their intention to abolish section 21.
The Haldane Society welcomes you to a discussion about the importance, necessity and consequences of re-regulating the private rented sector.
David Watkinson is a leading expert on housing law, having been a barrister at Garden Court Chambers for many years. In practice he was particularly committed to representing squatters and residential occupiers. David will speak about the importance of this proposal, and draw on the Rent Acts as an example of what a protected private rented sector looks like.
Housing Action Southwark & Lambeth (HASL) is a direct action casework and campaigning group based in south London. Izzy Koksal and others will speak about the reality facing HASL members - do they really need stronger rights to stay in terrible privately rented accommodation, or is a more ambitious programme of restoring council housing the only effective approach?
This is a particularly timely event as the government is currently consulting on its section 21 proposals.
Latecomers are welcome to enter quietly.
