Cicero Lounge

Matthew Croucher, The Solider recently awarded the George Cross, one of the highest Military medals awarded to service men and women spoke to the MOD's Defence News about the award and his bravery.

For the full story in his words click on the icon below:

Provocation defence to be abolished - Men no longer to get away with murder

Minister for Women Harriet Harman today published a new report "Women's Changing Lives" which charts progress made on the Government's priorities for women.

The report coincides with Government announcement of new laws on homicide which will end the provocation defence for example in cases of domestic homicide where the husband escapes murder charge by blaming his wife for 'provoking' him by her infidelity.

In line with the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, the Government has produced a report on the use of animals used in experiments and other scientific procedures.

The Act limits such use to where there is a clear potential benefit to people, animals or the environment and when there is no means of obtaining these benefits without animal use, or at a lesser animal welfare cost. The 2007 report found :

* the number of procedures carried out in 2007 was just over 3.2 million, a rise of approximately 6 per cent (189,500) on 2006; this was largely due to the increased breeding use of genetically altered animals;

* the majority of procedures - 83 per cent - involved mice, rats and other rodents. The remainder primarily involved fish (10%) and birds (4 per cent);

* dogs, cats, horses and non-human primates (types of animal which receive special protection under the 1986 Act), were used in less than 0.5 per cent of the procedures and;

* the number of procedures on non-human primates decreased by 240 procedures (6 per cent) compared with 2006; the number of procedures on dogs rose by 600 procedures (9 per cent) the number of procedures on cats fell by 240 procedures (41 per cent).

The ASPI Annual Report can be found at:

http://scienceandresearch.homeoffice.gov.uk/animal-research/publications-and-reference/publications/reports-and-reviews/.

Fresh ideas for encouraging people to become involved in democracy will be rewarded with grants under a £150,000 government scheme aimed at charities, community groups and non-government organisations.

The Innovation Fund, launched by the Ministry of Justice today, will support projects developing new ways to help people participate in public discussions and influence government policy.

Anger no longer an excuse for murder - government launches consultation on reforms to the murder law

New reforms to the law on homicide will make it much harder for those who kill out of anger to avoid a murder conviction by claiming that they were provoked, Justice Minister Maria Eagle said today.

A Government consultation paper, 'Murder and Manslaughter: Proposals for Reform of the Law', launched today, proposes the abolition of the existing partial defence of provocation and its replacement with two new partial defences:

Blank passports and visas have been stolen from a van travelling from Manchester to London.
The Foreign Office has confirmed 24 parcels were taken and that could mean thousands of individual documents.

A spokeswoman described the incident as a serious breach of security.

She the blank documents were destined for British embassies and were being transported from a factory in Oldham to RAF Northolt in northwest London.

The Foreign Office spokeswoman said: "The van was hijacked en route from the production site."

"I condemn in the strongest terms the bombings that occurred in Istanbul yesterday evening.  These appalling terrorist attacks targeted innocent civilians in a deliberate and brutal way.  On behalf of the Allies, I express my condolences to the families of those who lost their lives, and my sympathies to those injured in the blasts.  NATO will continue to stand firmly in solidarity with the Turkish people in the fight against terrorism."

A total of 136 members of the Armed Forces and one MOD civilian have received honours and awards in the Operational Honours List dated today, 25 July 2008.

The full list, which recognises service on operations in Afghanistan, Iraq, former Yugoslavia and national operations for the period 31 October 2007 to 31 March 2008, is below:

http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/DefenceNews/HistoryAndHonour/OperationalHonoursAndAwardsList25July2008.htm

In a response to the announcement by the UN Secretary General today that he has appointed Navanethem Pillay as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Foreign Office Minister Lord Malloch-Brown said:

"I very much welcome this appointment. The High Commissioner for Human Rights plays a vital role in helping the UN and its member states deliver their human rights obligations and in drawing attention to important human rights issues across the globe. The choice of Ms Pillay is an excellent one."

The Army has become the 400th member of Stonewall's Diversity Champions programme for employers it was announced today, Monday 14 July 2008. The Army will now work with Stonewall to promote good working conditions for all existing and potential employees and to ensure equal treatment for those who are lesbian, gay and bisexual.

General Sir Richard Dannatt, Chief of the General Staff, said:

"I am delighted that the Army has become a member of Stonewall's Workplace Programme. One of the Army's six Core Values is 'Respect for Others' and it is therefore our absolute duty to treat our fellow soldiers as we would wish to be treated ourselves.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Alistair Darling MP, today announced that he is postponing the 2 pence per litre increase in fuel duty that was expected to take place on 1 October 2008. As a result of this decision, main road fuel duty rates will remain at 50.35 pence per litre after 1 October this year. This is 17 per cent lower in real terms than in 1999. Consequential, planned increases in road fuel gases, biofuel duty rates and rebated oils rates will also be postponed.

Sir Ian Magee, Chair of the Commission for the Protection of Information published his review of Criminality Information which looks at the way in which criminality information is shared between agencies both here and abroad. The Review focuses on the problems in information sharing and what needs to be done to better protect the public from harm.

The report can be read in full at  :

http://www.police.homeoffice.gov.uk/operational-policing/review-criminality-information/

Demolition has begun at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire signalling the end of the road for some of the worst military family homes in the UK.

The demolition work is paving the way for the construction of brand new homes for the officers and airmen who will operate and support the next generation of RAF transport and air-to-air refuelling aircraft.

Ministry of Defence  contractors began work yesterday, Monday 14 July 2008, pulling down flats on Upwood Drive; over the next six months they will also be demolishing blocks in and around Northwood Crescent and Stanmore Crescent. In all around 70 flats will be demolished in 2008. The flats were built in the mid-1960s, and are now assessed to have reached the end of their useful life.

Support for the Seawolf air defence missile system, which equips Royal Navy Type 22 and Type 23 frigates, is to be radically revamped under contracts worth around £300M, Minister for Defence Equipment Support Baroness Ann Taylor announced today.

The Home Secretary today laid an order that will proscribe Hizballah's entire military wing. If approved by Parliament, this will substitute the existing entry of subscription "Hizballah External Security Organisation".
Article:
http://nds.coi.gov.uk/content/Detail.asp?ReleaseID=372628&NewsAreaID=2

The MoD today signed contracts with industry to build the two future aircraft carriers. The contracts, worth in the region of £3 billion, were signed with the newly-formed UK maritime Joint Venture, BVT Surface Fleet, and the Aircraft Carrier Alliance onboard HMS Ark Royal, one of the Royal Navy's existing aircraft carriers and currently the Fleet Flagship.

Singer Amy Winehouse has been added to the bill for the concert marking Nelson Mandela's 90th birthday in June.

The Back to Black star will join Leona Lewis, Queen and Dame Shirley Bassey at the London event, which will raise funds for Mandela's 46664 Aids charity.

"We are delighted Amy will be appearing at Hyde Park," said Tim Massey, 46664's international director.

The British government has adopted an official programme to support the human rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual and trans people in other countries.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has issued an 'LGBT Toolkit' to its 261 embassies, high commissions and other diplomatic posts.

The document lists PinkNews.co.uk as an online information resource about gay rights, the only news organisation on the list.

"The FCO fully supports equality in the enjoyment of human rights and the inadmissibility of discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation," the document states.

"This provides the focus of FCO work on this issue."

The kit contains information on the official British policy on gay rights and instructions in how to "provide added value to equality and non-discrimination work."

"Governments have an obligation to promote equality in the enjoyment of human rights, as well as not to discriminate in their application," the document states.

"Frequently there is discrimination in the enjoyment of key rights, even in countries where the criminal laws are neutral.

"Tackling this would require the building up of local coalitions of non-state actors to elaborate action plans for each country, as well as working locally with like-minded states.

"This would not just apply to issues like the state of the criminal law, but also to freedom of association and assembly, freedom of expression and privacy.

"The FCO should identify, with the support of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and international LGBT groups like the International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA), countries where support from Posts and The British Council would provide added value to equality and non-discrimination work."

The British Council is a government department, independent of the FCO, that promotes British culture and educational relationships worldwide.

The 'toolkit' covers a wide range of issues, from decriminalisation, sexual health, reproductive rights and health education to bilateral work with other countries.

The document states that LGBT activists are often targets for persecution and that the FCO should ensure these people are "included among human rights defenders concerning whom the UK will lobby and will engage the support of other governments, especially EU members."

It says that initial discussions with the TUC suggest that countries of particular concern include Colombia, Egypt, Ghana, Iran, Iraq, Jamaica, Nigeria, Uzbekistan and some of the new democracies of Eastern Europe.

Of particular interest to gay rights activists is this statement from the FCO:

"The nine countries that have a maximum penalty of death for consensual same sex relations are Iran, Iraq, Mauritania, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, UAE and Yemen.

"The ten countries that have a maximum sentence of life imprisonment for consensual same sex relations are Bangladesh, Barbados, Bhutan, Burma, Guyana, India, Maldives, Nepal, Singapore, and Uganda.

Town hall snoopers used controversial anti-terror powers to delve into the phone and email records of thousands of people last year.

They wanted to check for evidence of dog smuggling and storing petrol without permission  -  and even to trace a suspected bogus faith healer.

In one case they were inquiring into unburied animal carcasses.

Some councils are allowing middle-ranking staff to authorise covert operations under the controversial Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act, which is intended for use 'in the interests of national security'.

Many of those spied upon will have no idea they have been subjected to surveillance, as those who are innocent have no right to know.

Last night Shadow Home Secretary David Davis said: 'This is a stark demonstration of how the surveillance society has got out of control with the improper use of very broad powers  -  powers that the public would expect to be used only for serious crime and security threats.'

Using Freedom of Information laws, 152 local councils were asked if they were using the power to intercept details of who a person phoned or emailed plus when and where the call took place.

The answers revealed that town halls looked into the private data of 936 individuals and only 31 councils did not use these powers at all.

If the same pattern were repeated across the remaining 322 councils, it would make a totalof around 3,000 people having their phone and email records accessed by bureaucrats.

The Freedom of Information requests also revealed the range of offences councils have used the anti-terror law to probe.

Kent County Council carried out 23 telephone subscriber checks as part of probes into storing petrol without a licence and bringing a dog into the UK without putting it into quarantine.

Six of the 16 checks carried out by Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council were intended to identify and locate a bogus faith healer.

Lewisham Borough Council's 18 checks included six on a rogue removal firm and one on a rogue pharmacist.

Bolton Council requested subscriber details for a mobile phone number in connection with a probe into unburied animal carcasses.

Councils insist they are using the powers properly to investigate or prevent a crime. But opponents said it proves RIPA, passed in 2000 by Labour to regulate spying and surveillance by police and the security services, is far too widely drawn.

Civil rights group Liberty said: 'You can care about serious crime and terrorism without throwing away our personal privacy with a snoopers' charter. 'The law must be reformed to require sign-off by judges, not self authorisation by over-zealous bureaucrats.'

RIPA also allows undercover council staff to watch individuals.

Operations can be justified on the grounds of anything from national security to 'protecting public health or public safety', 'preventing a crime' and 'protecting the economic well-being of the UK'.

This can cover dog fouling and even putting out a sack of rubbish on the wrong day.

The latest findings follow a string of alarming examples of how the anti-terror power is being used.

Poole council in Dorset spied on a family because it wrongly suspected the parents of abusing rules on school catchment areas.

In March 2008 some 50 representatives of the Bhopal survivors, including children, began the long walk - mo re than 800km - to New Delhi to seek a meeting with the Prime Minister.

They are now in New Delhi hoping for an opportunity to discuss a resolution of their major and long-standing concerns over the clean-up and remediation of the Bhopal site, and ongoing problems in relation to health, lack of clean water and lack of information. (Source : Amnesty)

The Indian Government refuses to acknowledge the problem by helping with the required measurements for providing adequately treated water. (Source: Cicero)

Dow Chemical Company (the company who took over from Union Carbide) has refused to help clean up the Bhopal site. Dow has said the following "What we cannot and will not do... is accept responsibility for the Bhopal accident." - CEO Michael Parker, 2002.) On it's website Dow Company said "the Dow position has not changed, despite public pressure." (Source: Cicero)

You can show your concern by writing to the following :

Dr. Manmohan Singh - Prime Minister
Office of the Prime Minister
Room No. 152
South Block New Delhi
110 001
India

Andrew N. Liveris
Dow Chemical Company
2030 Dow Center Midland,
MI 48674.
USA
Phone:989-636-1000.
Fax: 989-832-1556

The recent apparently rigged election results in Zimbabwe have once again served to highlight the grave humanitarian and security issues in that nation. Inflation stands at an astounding 1, 063 572% and shows no signs of stabilizing. There are shortages of basic foodstuffs, unemployment is now 80% and the World Food Program has once again had to launch a relief effort to ward of starvation among the population, who are also being ravaged by an AIDS epidemic which has infected up to 20% of the population. Since 2002 the population has decreased by four million people, through a combination of immigration and the AIDS crisis.
Many of these problems have been self inflicted by Robert Mugabe’s regime, whose disastrous land reform policies, economic mismanagement and brutal suppression of human rights have turned Zimbabwe from the breadbasket of Africa into a Country close to total economic collapse.

There have been repeated calls for direct International intervention to alleviate the suffering of the Zimbabwean people and even to forcefully remove the 84 year old Mugabe, despite the recent debacle of the Iraqi invasion and disastrous occupation.

During the aftermath of the cyclone in Myanmar, the French Foreign Minister, Bernard Kouchner, argued for direct humanitarian intervention, bypassing and defying the heads of the Burmese Military junta. Kouchner’s motion failed for precisely the same reasons as campaigns for intervention in Zimbabwe are ultimately doomed to failure, the refusal of neighbouring States to entertain the notion of Western troops near their borders. South Africa and other African States have refused to condemn Mugabe, often providing support at African summits and revelling in his firm opposition and derision of Britain and the West.

Although since the elections many have distanced themselves from Mugabe, they are unlikely to ever allow Western troops to use their Countries as a base for any kind of direct intervention against the Mugabe regime. In the Security Council China continues to support Zimbabwe, recently providing her with small arms and continued financial aid. With the discrediting of liberal intervention in Iraq any form of Military action from the West is highly unlikely. The best hope for Zimbabwe remains the MDC, who can still hope to win in the new poll on June 27th. Those in the West who wish to help the Zimbabwean people should do all they can to support movements for peaceful, democratic change within the Country, rather than demanding outside armed intervention that is both unrealistic and undesirable for the Zimbabwean people.

(Robert Dean, a freelance academic researcher who has a Master's degree in International Relations from Manchester University has written the following guest article. Rob looks at why the hopes for intervention in Zimbabwe have been killed off)

Posted by Greater Manchester Fabians at 21:37

Thousands of Manchester United fans are celebrating after their team clinched European glory in Moscow. In a tight, but thrilling, all-English Champions League Final, the Reds ran out winners after a nail-biting penalty shoot-out.

As United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar saved the final penalty at 1.35am local time there were scenes of joy and despair in the stands - but so far there have been no reports of trouble either inside or outside the stadium.

Portuguese winger Cristiano Ronaldo opened the scoring for United only for England international Frank Lampard to equalise on the stroke of half-time.

Chelsea's 21,000 travelling fans endured seeing their side hit the woodwork twice and striker Didier Drogba sent off. Seconds after United became the champions of Europe for the third time in their history Sir Alex Ferguson said: "That is the first penalty shoot-out I have ever won."

In lashing rain triumphant captain Rio Ferdinand held aloft the biggest prize in European club football at the Luzhniki Stadium. The team were led up to collect the trophy by Manchester United legend and England World Cup winner Sir Bobby Charlton.

The 42,000 fans now face a long journey home - many of them will leave the stadium and be taken directly to the airport for either a joyous or subdued flight.

'It is now essential that we receive a timetable for Guantánamo's closure' - Ming Campbell

Sir Menzies Campbell has this evening spoken of the 'essential' need to close the notorious military prison at Guantánamo Bay in Cuba after meeting members of the US government in Washington today as part of an Amnesty International delegation to the US capital.

The comments came on the first day of his three-day trip to discuss ways of closing the prison and allow fair trials or safe releases for the roughly 270 Guantánamo detainees still held.

The former Liberal Democrat leader, who is Vice Chair of the All Party Group on Rendition as well as a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, has also been raising the issue of 'extraordinary rendition' flights and secret 'war on terror' detentions with the US government.

After meetings today with US government officials, Sir Menzies said:

'Today I was told that the US government intends to close the camp 'as soon as possible', but this is not good enough.

'We've heard these promises on numerous occasions from both Republican and Democrat leaders, yet we are now well into the seventh year of Guantánamo's shameful existence.

'The time for talking is over and the time for action is long overdue. It is now essential that we receive a timetable for Guantánamo's closure.'

Holographic quantum technology and acoustic sniper sensors may sound like the stuff of science fiction films - but they are actually new defence technologies which could soon be destined for the battlefield.

They were just a few of the gadgets and technologies on show at the Future Soldier event, held today at London's National Army Museum to coincide with National Science and Engineering Week (7-16 March).

The event demonstrated how UK defence firms and the Ministry of Defence are drawing on science and engineering to develop cutting edge equipment for the Armed Forces. Some technologies are already providing troops with a battle-winning edge on operations; others will need further development and some may be overtaken by new technologies before they make it to the field.

The event was opened by Baroness Ann Taylor, Minister for Defence Equipment and Support, who said:

"All around us we can see how advances in science, engineering and technology affect our everyday lives. Defence is no exception. Members of the Armed Forces are increasingly interacting with ever more sophisticated technology as part of their job.

"There is already a huge difference between the personal equipment a British infantryman used in Kosovo back in 1999 and what they are using now in Afghanistan. We have come a long way - largely because we are working closely with the defence industry to exploit new technologies to protect and empower our people on the frontline. The threats they face are continually evolving and we have to continue to meet the challenge of keeping one step ahead."

The Future Soldier event is one of a number of events being held by the UK defence sector to mark National Science and Engineering Week.