The Committee on the Administration of
Justice (CAJ) responded to the government’s consultation on the report of the
Consultative Group on the Past (CGP). CAJ’s submission can be found on its
website. Advice from the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission on a Bill
of Rights for Northern Ireland currently sits with the Northern Ireland Office
(NIO). The NIO will be running a public consultation on their response to this
advice in late Autumn 09. In November, CAJ will deliver 2 training courses on
the process so far and how to get involved in the consultation. For more
information or to register, contact Fiona Murphy, Human Rights Programme
Officer on 028 9096 1122 or e-mail fiona@caj.org.uk
CAJ’s AGM took place on Wednesday 28th
October. Members heard updates on the Bill of Rights, dealing with the past and
criminal just issues. The meeting was also addressed by Chief Commissioner of
the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission, Professor Monica McWilliams. The
annual report is now available for download.
Dealing with the past – Conversational
workshops
Healing Through Remembering (HTR) is
running an outreach programme featuring Conversational Workshops on Dealing
with the Past. Workshops are delivered by trained facilitators and include the
following topics; Commemoration, A Day of Reflection, Storytelling, Truth
Recovery, Acknowledgement and a Living Memorial Museum. The workshops will use
the Healing Through Remembering Conversation Guide which is designed for
facilitators interested in supporting individuals and groups to engage on the
issue of dealing with the past. Those interested in workshops should contact
Healing Through Remembering via the project website http://www.healingthroughremembering.org
Meanwhile HTR’s report “Healing Through Remembering – Momentum and Change”,
which is part of an ongoing review of its work, is available on request to
Claire Smith at claire@healingthroughremembering.com or ph. 028 – 90 238844. The HTR response to the NIO’s consultation on the
Report of the Consultative Group on the Past is available on the website.
Feasta lecture; Have you herd of cattle?
"Keeping Cattle: Cause or cure for
climate crisis?" is the title of this year's Feasta lecture which will be
given by Allan Savory, a Zimbabwean biologist and farmer who was the 2003
winner of the Australian Banksia Environmental Foundation prize. The lecture
will take place at 2.30 pm on Saturday, November 7th, at the JM Synge Lecture
Theatre, Arts Block, Trinity College, Dublin. Admission is €10 , or €5 for
members of Feasta or the Carbon Cycles and Sinks Network and the unwaged.
Please contact at climate@feasta.org or
phone 098 - 25313 or 01 - 661 9572 if you would like more information. FEASTA,
The Foundation for the Economics of Sustainability
14 St. Stephen's Green, Dublin 2, website www.feasta.org
Derry to Gaza
The Derry Anti-War Coalition is taking a
consignment of medical supplies in a convoy to Gaza, setting off on 4th December,
and are asking the public to help. The convoy is organised by Viva Palestina,
which sent 100 vehicles of aid to Gaza last February. The February convoy
included a lorry from Dungannon. The convoy will leave London on 4th December.
The vehicles will then be left in Gaza for local people to use. Vehicles,
supplies and money are needed. Viva Palestina has been told only medical
equipment will be allowed in. We are hoping this will change, so we can bring
toys, computers, construction equipment, etc. but medical and sanitary
equipment are our top priority. The most useful vehicles would be ambulances -
if possible, four-wheel drive, or minibuses for use as light-casualty
ambulances or school buses. The convoy is supported by a wide range of
individuals and organisations Nobel Peace Prize winner Mairead Corrigan, George
Galloway MP, the Stop the War Coalition, the Irish Anti War Movement, the
Muslim Council of Britain, Irish activist Caoimhe Butterly, trades unions, and
religious, community and campaigning groups. You can donate to DAWC, Ulster
Bank, Culmore Road, Derry, a/c No. 10103528, sort code 980980 or via DAWC’s
PayPal. Further info: ph 079 – 73528772 or e-mail resistderry@aol.com
For peat’s sake
The Irish Climate Camp, which took place
this August in the shadow of the West Offaly power station in Shannonbridge,
has argued that money should not be spent on upgrading the dirtiest power
stations we have, and Midlands peat power stations should be shut permanently.
The climate camp took direct action against the plant. "ESB should not be
investing in upgrading these dirty power stations, instead they should be
investing in upskilling their workers. There is only going to be enough peat
left to run these power stations for another 10 or 15 years.” said spokesperson
for the group Molly Walsh. See http://www.climatecamp.ie
Matrix-ulation
The Irish economy is in a mess. Many have
called for a government of national unity, or GNU. But few have suggested how
such a body might be formed. So, on Wednesday 7th October, the de Borda
Institute hosted an experiment in Dublin, an open public meeting in which
participants were divided into groups, each to act as if it was a party in the
Dáil. And then they were given matrix vote ballot papers, in proportion to
current party strengths. The matrix vote is PR, so a party with 40% of the
seats in the Dáil will probably get 40% of the cabinet; the vote is based on
the preferendum (Modified Borda Count), so it is to your advantage to submit a
full ballot; so you might as well cast your top preferences for your own party
colleagues, and your lower preferences for TDs of other parties. The role play
was animated, as groups sought to do deals with others. And the result was FF
6, FG 5, Lab 2, Ind. 0, GP 1, SF 1. In other words, if but on this evidence, is
that the matrix vote is a robust methodology. A full report is on the website
at http://www.deborda.org and should be
of interest to anyone concerned about the imperfections of Stormont’s d’Hondt
process.
Global justice on debt - Debt and
Development Coalition Ireland
It is a crucial time for Global Justice
activists campaigning for debt cancellation. Following on from the ‘Dáil lobby’
which DDCI (Debt and Development Coalition Ireland) organised in October 2008,
the Irish government agreed to write a new debt policy. DDCI have produced an
information pack on this issue and some ideas for taking action. Debt and
Development Coalition Ireland works closely with activists in the Global South
and the aims of this campaign are those that have been highlighted by them as
the important issues affecting the everyday lives, and the future, of people
living with the burden of debt in countries of the global South. Contact campaign@debtireland.org ph 01
6174835, website http://www.debtireland.org
DDCI, Unit F5 Spade Enterprise Centre, North King Street, Dublin 7.
The Wave, Belfast, Saturday 5th December
As part of an international day of action
for climate justice, Stop Climate Chaos Northern Ireland are organising an
action in Belfast City Centre. The event is scheduled to coincide with the
climate change talks in Copenhagen and will involve getting as many activists
as possible to group together to form a blue wave. At time of going to press
the venue has not yet been confirmed, but will almost certainly be in the city
centre. For more information and to find out how you can help to promote the
event, please call Niall Bakewell on 028 9089 7592 or email niall.bakewell@foe.co.uk or people
can go to http://www.stopclimatechaosni.org
to get updates.
Sign support for Shell to Sea-ce
“We the undersigned call on the Irish
Government to immediately suspend work on the Corrib Gas project pending a full
investigation by an independent body qualified to assess the economic,
environmental, safety and human rights impacts of the project.” You can sign
the petition
online Check out http://www.rossportsolidaritycamp.110mb.com
and http://www.shelltosea.com as well
as http://www.indymedia.ie/mayo for
current details of the struggle.
ARAN animal rights march and rally
This takes place on Sunday 6th December at
1.30pm sharp meeting at the Garden of Remembrance, Dublin (Parnell Square East,
at the top of O’Connell Street.) The rally will highlight “exploitive greyhound
racing, cruel fur farming, animal experiments for cosmetics testing etc,
barbaric blood sports, live animal exports, dog & cat mistreatment, dog
pound killings, puppy farms and dog fighting” and more. Contact: John Carmody
or Siobhan Higgins 087-2391646. See also the website at http://www.aran.ie
Hammer in the morning
Celebrated Irish artist Jim Fitzpatrick
recently produced a painting of the Pitstop Ploughshares hammers employed to
disable a U.S. Navy War plane refuelling at Shannon Airport en route to the
2003 invasion of Iraq. The damaged war plane did not make it to the invasion of
Iraq, being returned to the U.S. for maintenance. The hammers portrayed were
originally employed by the ANZUS Plowshares in disarmament of a B52 Bomber in New York on the eve of Gulf War 1 putting the bomber out of action for the length of the
1991 Gulf Massacre over Iraq. The hammer as the crosspiece has since been
employed in 5 plowshares action in the U.S., England and Ireland racking up $U.S.7 million of disarmament. A short Youtube video hammers out
the message – see Contact ciaronx@yahoo.com
New director for Nonviolent Peaceforce
Tim Wallis is the new executive director of
Nonviolent Peaceforce from the start of 2010, based in Brussels. Tim has a long
record of involvement with peace and nonviolence organisations and is currently
Programme Director for Nonviolent Peaceforce. See http://www.nonviolentpeaceforce.org
including the news section.
AI book; poverty greatest human rights
violation
Amnesty International’s Secretary General,
Irene Khan (originally from Bangladesh, she was educated in Kilkeel, Co Down)
has published a book entitled “The Unheard Truth: Poverty and Human Rights”,
ISBN: 978-0-393-33700-6, 192 pages, price €16.50. A billion people around the
world live in slums. Two and a half billion have no access to adequate
sanitation and every single minute a woman dies in pregnancy and childbirth. Irene
Khan’s book identifies these problems, and the many others that drive global
inequality, as human rights violations and argues that protecting and
fulfilling human rights must be at the centre of any strategy to end poverty. Mary
Robinson has stated “Poverty is the world’s worst human rights crisis and
this book makes a powerful statement about not only why but how we can turn the
tide.”
Karen National Union says 2010 elections
represent no progress
The Karen National Union has stated that
elections due in 2010 do not represent any kind of progress towards
democratization in Burma. The referendum in 2008 exposed that no political
campaigning is allowed unless approved and in line with SPDC policy, they say,
so no genuine political space will be created by the process of the elections;
this referendum also showed that results will be rigged, and with the many
other restrictions on freedom, they will ensure there is no way the elections
will be free and fair. Furthermore, The Constitution not only enshrines
military rule, it also grants no ethnic rights or protection. They state “We
have repeatedly warned that elections in 2010 will not result in any
improvement of the human rights and humanitarian situation in Burma, and that
repression and instability will continue.” and conclude that “We are
working for a peaceful, stable, federal Burma. We stand ready to enter into
genuine tripartite dialogue, as facilitated by the United Nations, at any
time.” Information via Burma Action Ireland, ph 087 1261857, e-mail info@burmaactionireland.org and
website http://www.burmaactionireland.org
International Day for the Elimination of
Violence against Women
Pax Christi International has invited its
members to be engaged in the United Nations International Day for the
Elimination of Violence against Women on 25th of November. “Pax Christi
International identifies poverty, oppression, and inequality as a form of
violence. The economic crisis has only exacerbated the already present divide,
leaving the women, already on average earning less, poorer, and experiencing
greater difficulties than men, even further behind.” See here and
there is a petition at http://www.unifem.org/campaigns/vaw
Human Cost of War; MAW exhibition,
programme in London
The Movement for the Abolition of War (MAW)
is hosting an exhibition in London called “The Human Cost of War”. It features
22 quilts and arpilleras (South American textile pictures), curated by Roberta
Bacic. The preview is at the Imperial War Museum (London) on Remembrance
Sunday, 8th November, and the exhibition will be at the St Ethelburga’s Centre
for Reconciliation and Peace, Bishopsgate, from 18th - 21st November, see http://www.stethelburgas.org There is
other associated programme including talks and seminars; see http://www.abolishwar.org.uk for
details.
Brandeis Coexistence and Conflict
Brandeis University in the USA offers both a Master’s Program in Coexistence and Conflict (requirements,
two semesters in residence, a three month field project and a Master's research
report) and a Dual Master of Arts in Sustainable International Development and
Coexistence and Conflict. For more information see here and for
what students say about the course see here
Slifka Program in Intercommunal Coexistence,
INNATE networking group meets next on
Wednesday 18th November at 7pm in Corrymeela House, 8 Upper Crescent, Belfast.
Nonviolent
News is usually produced 10 times a year (on
paper) and extended e-mail and web editions
Subscriptions for the printed edition
are; UK£5 or €8 minimum
(£3 or €5 unwaged or you
can have Nonviolent News e-mailed (suggested donation
£2 or €3 minimum).
Additional donations welcome and vital
to keep INNATE afloat. Submissions are welcome - the
deadline for the next issue is noted on the left.
You can browse through previous issues
from the menu on the left.
