On Thursday 26 June, which is the UN International Day in Support of the Victimes of Torture, Amnesty International held a global day of action as part of its new global campaign StopTorture. Our group held a lunchtime vigil outside the Avenue Methodist Church in Minehead, and we held up large posters and banners about victims of torture. We were pleased that a lot of people stopped to look and talk to us, and took leaflets.

In this campaign, Amnesty activists from across the world are targeting the same countries, at the same time with the same demands. It is a priority for AIUK. The campaign was launched on 13 May 2014 and will continue until the end of 2015.

At our Minehead group meeting on 27 May, Susan Mew ran an introductory workshop on Stop Torture. We had an interesting discussion about why it is that nearly one in three people in the UK think torture could be ok, and what arguments we would give in response. See our June newsletter for more details about the workshop and the campaign.

Jill Walmsley is coordinating this campaign for our group. Other local members who would like to help with this campaign are very welcome to join the team. You can contact Jill via our group contact (details on front page).