Weekly Action and News 17/06/2022
Manchester Amnesty Weekly Action and News
Please do this action and make a difference
Amnesty International UK have just launched a new campaign on homelessness and the human right to housing. They have released a report which exposes how deeply entrenched homelessness is in England (further reports on Scotland and Northern Ireland will follow), and how people who are homeless face repeated barriers as they try to navigate the housing system. The UK government has a duty to protect everybody from homelessness, and it is failing in this duty. Michael Gove, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, has the power to remove the unfair barriers the UK government have put in place and provide more resources. This is the only way to make the right to housing a reality for everyone.
Call on Michael Gove and sign our petition today to make housing a reality for all and protected in UK law. #HousingIsAHumanRight
Thanks to WAST – donation link
Those of you who were at our June online group meeting on Monday will have heard from the Management Committee of the Manchester based group Women Asylum Seekers Together (WAST). One of their biggest challenges is supporting women asylum seekers who have been made homeless and destitute. This work is funded by charitable donations and small grants but they are always in need of more funds. If you are able to make a donation, you can do so either by bank transfer into their account: WAST Manchester, Co-op Bank, Account Number: 65239560 Sort Code: 08-92-99 or at this link on their website:
https://www.wastmanchester.com/make-a-donation,
Refugee week events in Manchester
This Saturday, June 18th Greater Manchester Immigration Aid Unit is holding a day of action to oppose the hostile environment, jointly with No Borders Manchester, These Walls Must Fall, Women Asylum Seekers Together (WAST) and Safety4Sisters. When: Saturday 18th June, 12-5pm Where: Methodist Church Central Buildings, Oldham St, Manchester M1 1JQ.
If you missed her last time, the 3.5m puppet of a refugee child, Little Amal, is walking again in Manchester! Sunday 19 June, Manchester Day Parade starting at 1pm on Deansgate. More information here. https://manchesterday.co.uk/manchester-day/
Friday 24 June 2022, 11.00am to 12.00pm The People’s History Museum is holding a Refugee Week guided tour to show the stories of those who have sought sanctuary in the UK. Cost: £6 | £4 | FREE.
You can book here. https://phm.org.uk/events_new/refugee-week-guided-tour/friday-24-june-2022-11-00am-12-00pm/
Manchester Pride – 27th August – numbers needed!
The annual Manchester Pride event will take place on August 27th this year. We need to decide by this Sunday whether we want to have a Manchester Amnesty presence at the event – we have to pay for a walking float, so it needs to be well supported. Thanks very much to those members who have already indicated their willingness to attend and help out with the organisation. Before we make the application on Sunday, it would be good to know how many members will attend. Please let Hazel know today or tomorrow if you plan on attending. hazelerrey@gmail.com
Israel’s apartheid against Palestine - event
As previously advertised (see last week’s newsletter), on Friday 29th – Sunday 31st July, there will be a Big Ride for Palestine. This is a bike ride from Derby to Stoke to Manchester, followed by a ride around Manchester (3 rides on 3 days). If you’re not into bike riding, however, you may be interested in the gig on the Saturday night, or the closing event in Platt Fields park, Manchester at 12.15, Sunday 31st July, at which Manchester Amnesty hopes to have a stall. If you would be interested in helping out, please let Mike Reed know mikewreed101@gmail.com More details of the whole event available here.
https://www.thebigride4palestine.com/big-ride-summer-2022
Save the date!
17th July, Liverpool Arab Arts festival, closing event, Sefton Park, Liverpool, 2-5pm. The UAE subgroup are planning to hold a shared stall (involving postcards with images depicting freedom, a petition, and family activities) with the Liverpool and Wirral Amnesty groups. 17th July is the date on which Dr Mohammed Al-Roken is due for release from his ten year sentence in the UAE. Further details of the Amnesty presence will follow, but you can read about the festival, which runs from 7th-17th July, here. https://www.arabartsfestival.com/2022festival/
A free music event by DeRanged Nights, 6th August at Overdraught MCR in Levenshulme from 8pm until late. In support of freedom of speech, free press and whistleblowers’ protection, highlighting the cases of Wikileaks publisher Julian Assange and other persecuted journalists.
With DeRanged Nights’ DJs Citizensimmo ,Murphy, Ben, and Daz offering mixed house, funk, afro, psychedelic disco and melodic techno. There will also be an opportunity to write letters in support of these people and causes. More details available from Lima Al-iskalachi limazakoor@gmail.com
Manchester Amnesty Subgroups and other work
If you would like to join any of our subgroups, please contact the current convenors for joining details.
UAE – Kathryn Fletcher, bussk@btinternet.com. next meeting TBA, Zoom
Anti-racism – Hazel Errey, hazelerrey@gmail.com, next meeting Monday 27th June, 6.30pm, Zoom
Refugees – Alison Wearden, alison.wearden@gmail.com, next meeting Monday 25th July, 7pm, Zoom
HR in UK – Matthew Sherwood, m.j.sherwood@outlook.com, next meeting TBA, Zoom
Craftivism - Kathryn Fletcher bussk@btinternet.com. next meeting TBA
Other areas of work are led by:
Crisis and Tactical Afghanistan, Myanmar, Syria, Ukraine, Yemen Rebecca Shaw, r.h.shaw.7@gmail.com
Europe/ Turkey, Fatih Segmen, fsegmen@yahoo.com
Israel's Apartheid Against Palestinians Mike Reed mikewreed101@gmail.com
Good news
UK On 26th May 2022, the UK government announced they will waive the £1,012 child citizenship fee for children whose parents and guardians cannot afford to meet the fee, and all children looked after by a local authority. This follows a long-running legal battle and campaign led by the Project for the Registration of Children as British Citizens (PRCBC), which was supported by Amnesty International UK. If implemented effectively, this change will remove a significant barrier to claiming citizenship rights for thousands of children growing up in the UK.
Israel / Occupied Palestinian Territories - On 7 June 2022 the Commission of Inquiry formed by the United Nations in May announced the publication of its first report, which states that the "permanent occupation" and "persistent discrimination and repression" of the Palestinians together with impunity for Israel constitute "the root causes" of the conflict.
Malaysia - On 10 June 2022, the government announced its intention to abolish the mandatory use of the death penalty for 11 offences, leaving the discretion of the courts to assess any mitigating circumstances and to issue alternative death sentences.
UK – On 14th June 2022, at the eleventh hour, thanks to an intervention by the European Court of Human Rights, a flight containing seven men who were seeking asylum in the UK and who had been served notices that they would be deported to Rwanda, was stopped. Thank you to all who acted to bring about this victory, but the government will appeal and our fight goes on.
****Stop press****:
You will be aware that there has been an independent inquiry ongoing into racism at Amnesty International UK. Yesterday, 16th June, AIUK published the final report in full. We will provide a summary and a link to the report (which is available on the AIUK website) in a forthcoming newsletter.
Alison Wearden
Communications Secretary
Manchester Group of Amnesty International
Please contact me with items for our Weekly Action and News email, or with ideas for longer articles for the quarterly Manchester Amnesty Group Bulletin.
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