Lewes Amnesty Group AGM– Thursday 14thNovember 2013
Meeting Report
Present Sara Birch(chair),Ian McClelland, Judy McClelland, Ann Butterfield, Lesley Burgess,Bob Sprocket, Helen Winters, Berta Busby, Adrian Briggs, Linda Calvert, Lorna Stagg,Hazel Fells, Patricia Cockrell, Rosemary Wadsworth.
Apologies : Ruth O'Keefe, Judith Land, Liz Maudsley, Jo Orsotelli, Catherine Smith, Kathy Bor, Geoffrey Whitfield.
Prior to the AGMwe watched a recording of C4 Unreported World "Afghanistan's Hunted Women".
We also watched the video of Sara & Lesley & Lewes Priory School students going to the Houses of Parliamentwith a petition about Shaker Aamer.
Ian then showed some pictures from the school network workshop held at Lewes Priory in October involving Chailey, Ringmer as well asLewes Priory and pictures from the two ‘Ice & Fire’ theatre workshops held at Lewes Priory and Chailey earlier in November.
The work with the3 schools has been extremely effectiveand they are keen toget more involved in human rights work both separately and together.
The ‘Ice & Fire’ team was very good and Sara thanked Adrian, for getting the funding for Ice & Fire, as well as Lesley and Ian forall their work. Thanks are also due to Lesley, Sara and Alison for the work put in over the last two years or so without which the workshops would probably not have been possible.
The AGM
1. Chair’s Report
I wrote at the beginning of this year that 2013 promised to be a very busy time for our group and indeed it has! I also appealed for individuals to come forward to help with our awareness-raising and campaigning work against human rights violations and/or to help fundraise for Amnesty’s vital research and campaigning work. And indeed they have too! Our membership has been steadily increasing and we have been lucky to be able to welcome a number of new members who have been attending our meetings and actively getting involved with our work.
The past year has been an outstanding year for the Lewes Amnesty Group in terms of the breadth and depth of what we have been achieving with regard to the aims that we set ourselves after last year’s AGM. Most notably under the coordination of Lesley (our Education Coordinator) and Ian (our Secretary) we have made huge in-roads into the development of our work with local schools. We shall hear from Lesley and Ian later and also from our new Treasurer Adrian who took over from Catherine earlier this year when she moved to be closer to her daughter and new grand-daughter. It has been very sad to lose Catherine but it is fantastic to have Adrian as our new Treasurer. We shall also hear from our new Media Coordinator Hazel who has been doing an amazing job for us since she took over the role this year and has been turning some rather dry reports (well mine anyway!) into punchy publishable pieces. And of course we will have updates on the valuable work of our Campaign Coordinators,
In order to write this short report I decided to look back on the year’s newsletters to gain an overview or our work and was astounded by how much we had done together. There are so many people to thank individually who, by their input, have been making a huge difference to what weachieved. But rather than leave anyone out I would like to thank everybody who has been involved in the work of the Lewes Amnesty Group over the last year in any way. Whether organising a meeting with a Minister, printing or delivering the newsletter, keeping on top of our finances, providing refreshments, coordinating a campaign, speaking in a school, organising a fundraising event, making sure equipment works when speakers come (!), attending group meetings and letter writing evenings…… whatever you have done over the past year THANK YOU! It is by all contributing where we can that we can make a difference.
It has been a real privilege and pleasure to work so closely with so many committed individuals in Lewes and the surrounding area over the past year who believe, as I do, that it is not enough to do nothing when human rights violations continue to take place on a daily basis throughout the world. It may be that sometimes, often perhaps, our letters and our actions seem to go un-noticed – but for those who are suffering from human rights abuses I am sure that it means a lot for them to know that somewhere on the other side of the world there are people who are prepared to stand up and take action on their behalf.
Highlights from 2013
As I went through the newsletters for the year I noted several highlights – many of which I had forgotten about myself!
Speaker meetings:
January – Meriel Whale on the work of LIFELINES (an organisation that supports and befriends prisoners on Death Rowthroughout the United States).
March – Joint meeting with LGSRA with lawyer Wesley Gryk - ‘A well-founded fear of persecution – gay rights in the asylum process’.
April – JohnGee'Migrant Workers in Singapore: The Uphill Struggle for Human Rights'
May– MarilynJarrett on Amnesty’s current campaign - 'Women and Afghanistan'.
July – Andrew Bartlett on the enforced disappearance of Sombath Somphone (Laos Civil Activist)
Sept – Lewes Amnesty members Adrian and Linda on their participation in the Amos Trust Rebuilding Project in Palestine
Meetings with Ministers: Meeting Alistair Burt (Foreign Office Minister for the Middle East) and Norman Baker MP on 19th December calling on the UK government to press Israel to stop the forced evictions of Palestinian people in the occupied. Members met with Lynne Featherstone – Ministerfor International Development – to discuss Amnesty’s Women’s Rights Campaign when she visited Lewes in the Spring. On 22nd April 2013 27 students from the Lewes Priory School Amnesty Group met with Minister Alistair Burt to raise their grave concerns about the continued detention without charge or trial of Shaker Aamer.
Fundraising events: Starting with the Christmas Auction last year under the hammer of Irving, and leading on to the Spring Street Collection and the fantasticSummer All Saints Event followed by a pop-up dinner and fundraising walk!
Stalls/campaigning actions – Dec 2012 Greetings Card Campaign, April – Street Collection Stall, July – Societies Fair, May – Close Guantanamo, Oct – Women’s Rights in Afghanistan
Regional/National meetings: January – Attending the Amnesty South East Regional Meeting in Canterbury, attending the EGM in London on behalf of the group. Ian and Lesley attended the AI AGM in April on our behalf.
Letter writing evenings – Three this year! January, July and October at Lorna and Helen’s houses.
Lewes Amnesty Group Goals for2013:
General– increase contact list, continue to liaise with other local campaign groups, delegate more tasks, make sure new members welcomed and involved, have good balance of speakers, workshops, attend SERegmeeting and AGM, Maintain planning calendar, new members leaflet,and make sure balance of work area.
Campaigning/Awareness raising:In addition to carrying on campaign work have two specific stalls in town precinct,organiseIce& Fireworkshops in local schools, stall at Societies Fair, distribute newsletter bi-monthly and group leaflet, continue and expand press work,All Saints GigJuly 13th,plan Greeting Cards Event in Dec.
Fundraising:organiseStreet collection & reviewsponsored walk. Considerother events includingBBQ? quiz night? Send£1,000 to head office by Nov AGM.
I am pleased to report that we achieved all the goals we set for 2013 except for two items. We did not 1) add new fund raising events to our calendar and 2) we only sent £500 to AIUK.
Sara Birch
2. Secretary’s Report
Digital media
Web site
Kept calendar entries up-to-date
Require more regular news items
Facebook page
Launched Sept 2012 with help of Helen Richards
Facebook Group page
Launched Nov 2013
Email contact list
Maintained list, which now stands at +/-330
Monthly communications report
Distribution ceased from February 2013 as most communications are now issued electronically.
Group Calendar
Maintained on monthly basis and synchronised with web calendar
Introductory leaflet for new members
Third version issued July 2013
Group leaflet
To be revised in New Year 2014
Meetings
Attended the AI SE Regional conference in Canterbury, February 2013.
Attended the AIUK AGM in Warwick University, April 2013.
Co-organised, with help from various group members, the Schools network workshop at Lewes Priory, October 2013. Ringmer and Chailey also participated.
Co-organised Ice and Fire workshops at Priory and Chailey November 2013.
Ian McClelland
3. Treasurers Report
A printout was distributed which showed thatour finances for the yearlook very healthy. In summary, as of Nov 1st 2013, the figures are:
Income£3,098.15
Expenditure £3,458.27
Balance -£360.12
Balance brought forward from 2012£3637.37
Nett balance in current Account£3277.25
There was some discussion as to whether the LGSRAS should contribute financially towardsthe Ice & Fire workshops but on balance the meeting thought not since the grant gratefully received from the Chalk Cliffe Trust towards this initiative covered the expenses incurred.
AIUK & The Amos Trust had written to thank us for our donation of £500 & £50 respectively.
Catherine Rennie Nash, last year’s Treasurer,wishes to be remembered to everyone and is enjoying her new life in The Lakes.
Adrian Briggs
4. Media Report
- Media Coordination transferred from Catherine Smith to Hazel Fell in Spring 2013. Catherine had built up a wide range of media contacts and experience over the years, and very helpfully handed on her extensive and informative media file.
- There has been a focus on integrating media work with the focal activities and campaigns for the group.
- General profile- and awareness-raising(around specific campaigns and the group's activities) has tended to focus onMedia Releases sent to the Sussex Express. Examples have beenthe thumb-print petition forthe Women's Rights in Afghanistan, Adrian & Linda'svisit to Palestine and the recent Interschool Event.
- Publicising/"advertising" of particular events witheither afundraising or public involvement element has tended to target a wider range of media; e.g. theEvening of African Music and Dance was publicised through listings in Viva Lewes and Magnet as well as the Sussex Express. This approach is being repeated with the Write for Rights event in December.
- There is potential also tofocus mediawork on campaigns and events where stakeholders stand to benefit from publicity (e.g. Chalk Cliffe Trust if Ice & Fireworkshops are publicised).
- While there have been manysuccesses, not all Media Releases have resulted in coverage (e.g. Interschool event was notincluded, possibly due to coincidingwith the storm and Queen's visit to Lewes).Itcan be helpful to"chase up" media releases (e.g. Sara's very effective intervention on the thumbprint petition story, which got aspiked story published). However, there is not always time to do this. May be particularly helpful if campaign/event coordinators can possiblychase up media releases that havenot led to publication (if they have time!). It can also be helpful to have several "hooks" on a story e.g. Adrian and Linda's trip was publicised in advance, but the follow-up report was not used until their talk, when it appears the media release was picked back up by the Sussex Express, possibly following event listing in Viva Lewes.
- It would be good toplan an event/"stunt"foreach campaign area and use thisfor integrated campaigning andmedia profile-raising. HF keen to meet with Campaign Coordinators to think through development of media profile on each. Equally helpful to have media in mind when planning any campaign or event to allow planning for publicity.
- Main issue is limited time available. When compiling media releases, it is very helpful if information could be provided by campaign coordinators or others involved in the specific event, to reduce time spent researching. Also very helpful if others write or draftpress releases, as Sara and Ian have both done.
- Future aim to include media releases on Facebook site.
- Is there any way to develop photography so visual images are more frequently included and with greater variety? Amnesty website has some creativeexamples e.g.depictions of Greetings Card Campaign.
Hazel Fells
5. Death Penalty Report
Amnesty International opposes the death penalty as being the ultimate denial of human rights.
Last year 21 countries alone executed over 680 people (not including China where it is thought that thousands of people were executed, more than all other countries put together) for crimes ranging from drug trafficking to sorcery to murder. 82% of reported cases of the death penalty were in just 4 countries – Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and USA.
Although every year there are countries that remove the death penalty from their statute books, Amnesty’s most recent report (on death penalty in 2012) records that 5 countries – Gambia, Japan, Botswana, India and Pakistan – have actually re-instated it.
Two letter-writing sessions, largely centred on death penalty issues have taken place in Lewes over the last year in support of cases in countries including Japan, Iran, India, US, Iraq and Belarus (the only country in Europe in which the death penalty is still lawful).
The appeal in support of the case of Hakamada Iwao, aged 77, convicted in 1968 and thought to be the longest serving death row prisoner in the world, is ongoing. Recently, new DNA evidence said to prove his innocence has emerged and Amnesty is asking for appeals to the Japanese Government for a retrial. The case of Linda Carty (supported principally by Reprieve) a British woman, held in Texas, has also featured and is ongoing.
Lorna will be standing down as Abolition of Death Penalty Co-ordinator at this AGM and is looking for someone to co-ordinate our work in this area.
Lorna Stagg
6. Counter Terror with Justice Campaign/Shaker Aamer
Throughout the year wrote letters to Shaker Aamer in detention and to government officials in US and UK, including MPs in UK (Ann and Sara wrote to all Conservative and Labour MPs). Sara and Emma (Chair of Brighton and Hove Group) wrote to AIUK with concerns about the lack of action by AIUK. Members took part in Vigil outside Parliament in the summer.
Accompanied students to a meeting with Alistair Burt in April, organised filming of the visit by professional production company.
Ann Butterfield and Sara Birch
7. IPOT Group Report
There are3 main ongoing actions apart from writing to and on behalf of individual detainees such as Ahmad Qatamash andcommunities such as the Bedouin people.
1)Raising awareness at Steamer Trading Cookshop thatselling Sodastream products effectively supports the illegal occupationof Palestinian land because Sodastream has factories to produce their products in the Occupied Territories.Sara has replied to the company’s initial response in whichessentially they said they weren't breaking any laws. We are waiting to see how they respondto Sara's letter and we hope to keep some sort of dialogue open with the company and asking them to put pressure on Sodastream to move their factories out of the Occupied Territories.
2)Children in Israelimilitary custody– ongoing talks and actions highlighting the appalling treatment of Palestinian children taken into custody. Actions taken asking Israel to ensure human rights are respected for all citizens.
3)UPR–Although, after international pressure, Israel attended the Universal Periodic Reviewin Octoberso that their record on human rights could be scrutinised. The Israeli government maintains that they are not obliged to monitor human rights in the Occupied Territories. The UN continues to raise concerns about the lackof human rightsafforded to many individuals andcommunities in IPOT.
In April, Adrian & Lindawentwith the Amos Trustto Palestine to help rebuilda home.They gave a really good presentation of this work to our group in September. The meeting was very well attended. I think Adrian and Linda’s talk really helped to enlighten people on the dreadful position the Palestinian people are in.
Rosemary Wadsworth
8. Educational Coordinator
Getting any sort of slot in secondary schools has been such hard work, however we have made significant progress. In the last 12 months I have run several 20 minute basic human rights assemblies at Downlands secondary school [Hassocks], and done some very large PowerPoint'HR and Guantanamo'presentations to assemblies at Lewes Priory, Chailey school,Ringer Community College and also at Uckfield College's sixth form.I have also done an assembly at Lewes Priory on 'Women and Afghanistan' for most of their students.I have also recently separatelyrun a Death Penalty lesson foryear 10 students in a school in Brighton. I have also run two ' We are born free' assemblies for 9 and 10 year olds in Albourne primary school in West Sussex, and for Windmill primary in Hassocks.Alison Lesley and I have jointly also run similar assemblies in Holycross [Uckfield] and St Pancras Catholic primary in Lewes.