NEWS
1. 94 journalists work for the Kurdish media in prison in Turkey, says European Parliamentary
2. The order to fire was allegedly given by Ankara
3. AI said Uludere investigation lacking credibility
4. Two police chiefs overseeing KCK investigation removed
5. MİT says prosecutor not authorized to summon intel chief to testify
6. Turkish troops kill 13 Kurdish rebels in two clashes
7. Kurdish Stêrk TV started broadcast 06 February 2012
8. Three more skulls found in JITEM headquarters 08 February 2012
9. New Wave of Arrests
10. Several people sent to prison
11. Turkey’s BDP Co-Chair Selahattin Demirtas visits London: Report
12. 400 year sentence for thirty students!
13. “Kill All The Lawyers”: Stifling Dissent in Turkey
14. Academic Ersanlı and Writer Zarakolu – 100 Days in Jail
15. Imprisoned Ragip Zarakolu nominated for Nobel Peace Prize
16. “Usual Suspects” Educated About Potential Arrest
17. The Dilemma of National Identity in Turkey
18. Federal Kurdistan Regional Government calls for negotiations
19. Multimedia: ‘Syria, prelude to full scale war on Iran’
20. Syria: NCB invitation to China
21. Iraqi Crisis Ebbs as Sunnis Return to Cabinet
22. Protesters carry 35 coffins to Turkish Embassy in memory of Uludere victims
23. KON-KURD march through Europe
24. Kurdish Freedom March braves freezing weather in name of justice
25. Prolific Young Scholar on Armenian Genocide in Holland
COMMENT, OPINION AND ANALYSIS
26. Kurdish ethnicity as a heresy in Turkey
27. AKP and “Back to the Future” Turkish-Style
28. The new face of Kurdish politics
29. Turkey and Iraqi Kurdistan need each other
30. Kurds endure poverty, grapple with assimilation
31. Noam Chomsky Discusses Turkey with David Barsamian
PRESS RELEASES
32. BDP chair Demirtas denounces the silence of the international community in face of increasingly violent repression of Turkey’s Kurds.
EVENTS
See below for upcoming events.
NEWS
1. 94 journalists work for the Kurdish media in prison in Turkey, says European Parliamentary
5 February 2012 / eKurd.net
European Parliament member Patrick Le Hyaric, Vice-Chair of European United Left/Nordic Green Left (GUE/NGL), wrote a letter to the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Catherine Ashton, in relation to the imprisoned journalists in Turkey, reports ANF. Below is the letter in which Patrick Le Hyaric asks EU to intervene in the case of jailed journalists to enable them practice their job freely and independently.
http://www.ekurd.net/mismas/articles/misc2012/2/turkey3738.htm
2. The order to fire was allegedly given by Ankara
4 February 2012 /eKurd.net
Report by Milliyet Daily claimed that the Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV-Heron) footages had been watched “minute by minute” by six bases before the bombardment in the village of Roboski near the Iraqi Kurdistan border where 34 Kurdish civilians were killed on 28 December 2011. The report with the title “Intelligence came from UAV, the fire order from Ankara” said that the order to open fire on villagers had been given by the government in Ankara, ANF news agency reported. http://www.ekurd.net/mismas/articles/misc2012/2/turkey3736.htm
3. AI said Uludere investigation lacking credibility
9 February 2012 / ANF
Amnesty International has written to the Turkish authorities expressing grave concern regarding the investigation into the bombing of civilian Kurds by a Turkish warplane in the district of Uludere in the south-eastern province of Şırnak. On the night of 28 December 2011 a Turkish warplane carried out a bombing in the district of Uludere resulting in the death of 34 civilians, 18 of whom were children. No military target was hit in the attack which the authorities at first claimed to have struck armed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) members.
http://en.firatnews.eu/index.php?rupel=article&nuceID=4088
4. Two police chiefs overseeing KCK investigation removed
8 February 2012 / Today’s Zaman
Two police chiefs from the İstanbul Police Department who had been overseeing an ongoing investigation into the Kurdish Communities Union (KCK), an umbrella group that allegedly encompasses the terrorist Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), have been removed from their posts. İstanbul Police Department Counterterrorism Unit head Yurt Atayün and İstanbul Police Department Intelligence Unit head Erol Demirhan were removed from their posts and replaced by Ömer Köse and Serdar Güldalı, respectively, on Wednesday. The Anatolia news agency reported that the two police chiefs were removed upon the request of İstanbul Police Chief Hüseyin Çapkın and with the approval of İstanbul Governor Hüseyin Ayni Mutlu.
http://www.todayszaman.com/news-270808-two-police-chiefs-overseeing-kck-investigation-removed-from-posts.html
5. MİT says prosecutor not authorized to summon intel chief to testify
9 February 2012 / Today’s Zaman
The National Intelligence Organization (MİT) has appealed a recent move by an İstanbul prosecutor to summon MİT Undersecretary Hakan Fidan to testify in an ongoing probe into a Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) affiliated organization, saying the prosecutor needs the permission of the Prime Ministry to do so. İstanbul Deputy Chief Public Prosecutor Fikret Seçen on Wednesday said MİT Undersecretary Fidan, his predecessor Emre Taner and MİT Deputy Undersecretary Afet Güneş were summoned to testify in the ongoing investigation into the Kurdish Communities Union (KCK), which Turkish prosecutors say is a group that controls the PKK and other affiliated groups. Reports said the three became suspects following recently disclosed talks they had with members of the PKK in Oslo.
http://www.todayszaman.com/news-270910-mit-head-meets-with-president-amidst-testimony-controversy.html
6. Turkish troops kill 13 Kurdish rebels in two clashes
9 February 2012 / CTV
Turkish troops have killed 13 Kurdish rebels in two separate clashes in Turkey’s southeast on Thursday, authorities and state-run television said. The troops killed nine rebels near the town of Bingol, state-run TRT television reported. Four other rebels were killed in a hot pursuit following a rebel attack on a military outpost on the Iraqi border, said Gov. Muammer Turker of Hakkari province. One soldier was killed and six others were wounded in that rebel attack near the town of Cukurca, he said.
http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/World/20120209/turkey-kurds-killing-rebels-20120209/
7. Kurdish Stêrk TV started broadcast 06 February 2012
9 February 2012 / Kurdish Institute
Kurdish satellite channel Stêrk TV which has been on test broadcast since 2009 has started broadcast as of February 6. In a statement by channel authorities, it was said that “Stêrk TV, “on the way to reality” will be broadcasting different programs in reflecting the differences, colors and cultural richnesses in Kurdistan as well as current affairs in Turkey and the world.” The channel will provide broadcast in Kurmanci and Sorani dialects of Kurdish as well as programs in Turkish. Besides “different news events, current events, special interviews”, the channel-said the statement- will also discuss and analyze the political developments in Kurdistan, the Middle East and the world with different guests and on different subjects.
http://www.kurdishinstitute.be/english/human_rights/2268.html
8. Three more skulls found in JITEM headquarters 08 February 2012
9 February 2012 / Kurdish Institute
Excavations in Diyarbakir’s former headquarters of JITEM continued despite the heavy snow. On Monday three more skulls were recovered bringing the total number of human skulls found to 29. The former JITEM (a clandestine intelligence organization within the gendarmerie) is in the historic Içkale neighborhood of the city. A large number of bone fragments and skulls were discovered in the past weeks by laborers laying pipes close to the former JITEM building. Içkale was known to be one of JITEM’s execution sites, no excavations in search of human remains were permitted in the area before the discovery because it had been designated an historic site.
http://www.kurdishinstitute.be/english/human_rights/2268.html
9. New Wave of Arrests
4 February 2012 / ANF
More than 40 people have been taken into custody today as a result of house raids carried out within the scope of so-called KCK operations. The fascist AKP regime has today targeted BDP members, civil society organizations, Kurdish media and leftist opponents. Batman centered operations were carried out at many addresses in seven cities within the scope of Batman Public Prosecutor’s investigation and the authority given by Diyarbakır Special Authorized Public Prosecutor.
http://en.firatnews.eu/index.php?rupel=article&nuceID=4060
10. Several people sent to prison
9 February 2012 / ANF
Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) council member Hayri Ateş, BDP Manisa branch chair Kerem Taylan and BDP Gölmarmara branch chair Naci Kalkan have been sentenced to a total of 4 and a half years imprisonment by the 10th İzmir High Criminal Court. The defendants were being accused of making propaganda of the illegal organisation. BDP Manisa branch chair Taylan said the verdict did not have any legal basis and aimed to intimidate the BDP.
http://en.firatnews.eu/index.php?rupel=article&nuceID=4091
11. Turkey’s BDP Co-Chair Selahattin Demirtas visits London: Report
5 February 2012 / ekurd.net
Last Tuesday, 31st January 2012 we have the honor to attend the meeting with Kurdish MP of BDP party from North Kurdistan [southeastern Turkey] – Selahattin Demirtas. The meeting took place in London in Portcullis House, in Westminster and its theme was “Reversing the spiral of repression in Turkey: the Kurdish view”.
http://www.ekurd.net/mismas/articles/misc2012/2/turkey3739.htm
12. 400 year sentence for thirty students!
5 February 2012 / GIT-North America
The bill of indictment was finalized regarding the case of 30 students detained in the police operation against the youth organization called Patriotic Democrat Youth, 19 of whom were being tried while under arrest. Actions such as commemorating Serzan Kurt, a student who was shot dead by a police projectile in 2010, and attending the May Day were considered as evidence against the students, who were charged with over 400 years in sum.
http://gitamerica.blogspot.com/2012/02/400-year-sentence-for-30-students.html
13. “Kill All The Lawyers”: Stifling Dissent in Turkey
4 February 2012 / Amnesty International blog
Turkey’s jailing of writers has received increasing attention in both the Turkish and the international press, enough to force Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan to defend the fact that Turkey has more journalists in prison, describing them as “so-called journalists” who “ are actually “police murderers, sexual molesters and supporters of a coup”. In 2011 Turkey imprisoned 104 journalists, causing Reporters Without Borders to drop Turkey’s press freedom ranking to 148th in the world. http://blog.amnestyusa.org/justice/kill-all-the-lawyers-stifling-dissent-in-turkey/
14. Academic Ersanlı and Writer Zarakolu – 100 Days in Jail
9 February 2012 / Bianet
The Education and Science Workers Union (Eğitim-Sen) Istanbul Universities Branch issued a press release in front of the Beşiktaş (Istanbul) Courthouse at 12.30 pm on Wednesday (8 February) to mark the 100th day in detention for academic Büşra Ersanlı and writer Ragıp Zarakolu. Both Ersanlı and Zarakolu were arrested on 31 October 2011 in the scope of an operation against the Union of Kurdish Communities (KCK)
http://www.bianet.org/english/freedom-of-expression/136030-academic-ersanli-and-writer-zarakolu—100-days-in-jail
15. Imprisoned Ragip Zarakolu nominated for Nobel Peace Prize
3 February 2012 / Info-Turk
Several Swedish MPs have applied to the Nobel Peace Committee with the proposal to give the 2012 Nobel Peace Prize to famous Turkish human rights defender Ragip Zarakolu. As the Turkish Evrensel website informs, the Swedish MPs mentioned in their proposal that Zarakolu published materials on the Armenian Genocide and the Kurdish issue which are taboos in Turkey. He has been sentenced for that publications several times. One month ago Zarakolu has sent a letter to the Turkish parliament calling them to acknowledge the Armenian Genocide.
http://www.info-turk.be/402.htm#Nobel
16. “Usual Suspects” Educated About Potential Arrest
5 February 2012 / GIT-North America
Members of the Progressive Lawyers Association [PLA] declared that they would be starting a new seminar aimed at educating all dissident citizens, starting with students, journalists, academics, and writers on the terminology of arrest and what that legally entails, such as “evidence” or “take under custody.” The “Usual Suspects Education” will thus provide important strategic information involved in the processes of arrest, detention and sentence.
http://gitamerica.blogspot.com/2012/02/usual-suspects-educated-about-potential.html
17. The Dilemma of National Identity in Turkey
5 February 2012 / International Affairs Review
In late December 2011, the Turkish military’s air strikes targeting militants from the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a Kurdish separatist group, accidentally killed 35 young cigarette smugglers. Immediately, tensions between Ankara and much of Turkey’s Kurdish population escalated, with Kurdish citizens protesting in Turkish cities such as Istanbul and Diyarbakır. Although the Turkish government has intermittently combated PKK militants over the last two decades, the December air strikes near the Turkey-Iraq border are part of the Turkish government’s renewed campaign to suppress PKK activity in rural and urban areas. The reignited conflict has led to civilian deaths and discord between the government and Turkey’s Kurds.
http://www.iar-gwu.org/node/381
18. Federal Kurdistan Regional Government calls for negotiations
8 February 2012 / ANF
President of Federal Kurdistan Regional Government, Massoud Barzani’s representative Felakettin Kakeyi called on the PKK and the Turkish state to lay down arms and to declare indefinite ceasefire. Kurdistan Women’s Union and other associations held a commemoration ceremony in Hewler on the 40th day of Roboski massacre where 34 Kurds were bombed by warplanes on 28 December 2011.
http://en.firatnews.com/index.php?rupel=article&nuceID=4084
19. Multimedia: ‘Syria, prelude to full scale war on Iran’
8 February 2012 / Press TV
US Republican Senator John McCain says Washington should consider arming Syrian opposition groups. McCain says diplomacy with regards to Syria has failed and that all options should be discussed, including arming the opposition and imposing a no-movement zone. He made the remarks during a meeting with visiting Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman in Washington. This comes a day after the United States closed its embassy in Syria.
http://presstv.com/detail/225643.html
20. Syria: NCB invitation to China
8 February 2012 / Mesop
Following an official invitation from the Chinese government to the National Coordination Body for Democratic Change in Syria [NCB], a delegation arrived in China two days ago to convey to Chinese officials the true picture of the need to develop a political program that paves the way to the transitional stage, so as to avert the dangers of a spiral of violence, civil war and foreign military intervention.
http://www.mesop.de/2012/02/08/syria-ncb-invitation-to-china/
21. Iraqi Crisis Ebbs as Sunnis Return to Cabinet
8 February 2012 / Wall Street Journal
The main Sunni partner in Iraq’s Shiite-led coalition government ended an almost eight-week boycott of cabinet meetings, dialing down tensions in a crisis that erupted hours after the departure of the last U.S. soldier in December. The decision by the Iraqiya political faction on Tuesday followed its move last week to suspend a boycott of parliament, and comes after pressure and lobbying by U.S. diplomats in Baghdad and senior officials in Washington, including Vice President Joe Biden.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203315804577209380861174426.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
22. Protesters carry 35 coffins to Turkish Embassy in memory of Uludere victims
8 February 2012 / Peace in Kurdistan
Yesterday, 8 February 2012, the Kurdish Community in London held a march to commemorate the 40th day of mourning for the 35 Kurdish civilians killed in a bombardment by Turkish fighter jets on 28 December 2011. The marchers carried 35 symbolic coffins from Amnesty International to the Turkish Embassy, where officials secretly filmed the protesters from inside the building. The peaceful demonstration was organised by several Kurdish community centres in London and attended by around 100 people. http://peaceinkurdistancampaign.wordpress.com/2012/02/08/protesters-carry-35-coffins-to-turkish-embassy-in-memory-of-uludere-victims/
23. KON-KURD march through Europe
9 February 2012 / Peace in Kurdistan
On 31st January 2012 the Confederation of Kurdish Associations in Europe (KON-KURD) begun a general march in Europe with the slogan “We are on the Road for Our Existence and Freedom!” The Long March protests the prison conditions of the Kurdish Leader Mr. Abdullah Ocalan, who is a key person to the solution of the Kurdish question. The Long March for Freedom started at the United Nations headquarters in Geneva and will end in Strasbourg on the 18 of February. You can follow updates on the march at the Kurdish Freedom March blog.
http://peaceinkurdistancampaign.wordpress.com/2012/02/09/kon-kurd-march-through-europe/
24. Kurdish Freedom March braves freezing weather in name of justice
9 February 2012 / Peace in Kurdistan
The Kurdish Freedom March, which began outside the UN High Commission for Refugees in Geneva last week, has reached Basel on Day 9 of the long journey to the EU Parliament in Strasbourg. Here you can see photos of the march and read an update of the last few days, and the messages of support that have been received from European members of Parliament.
http://peaceinkurdistancampaign.wordpress.com/2012/02/09/kurdish-freedom-march-braves-freezing-weather-in-name-of-justice/
25. Prolific Young Scholar on Armenian Genocide in Holland
7 February 2012 / The Armenian Mirror Spectator
Ugur Ümit Üngör is one of a new generation of scholars emerging from Turkey who deal forthrightly with the Armenian Genocide. Assistant professor at the Department of History at Utrecht University in the Netherlands and researcher at the Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies in Amsterdam, his main interest is the historical sociology of mass violence and nationalism. He has recently published three books dealing with the Armenian Genocide and related issues.
http://www.mirrorspectator.com/2012/02/07/prolific-young-scholar-on-armenian-genocide-in-holland/
COMMENT, OPINION AND ANALYSIS
26. Kurdish ethnicity as a heresy in Turkey
5 February 2012 / Rudaw
Although a decade has passed since the Justice and Development Party (AKP), rose to power in Turkey, the prospects for the future of democracy in Turkey as whole and Kurdish fundamental rights, in particular remain at best ambiguous and at worst elusive. What appeared to be the end of a bloody period during which over 40,000 people were killed, disappeared, or imprisoned, is once again haunting the country.
http://www.rudaw.net/english/science/op-ed-contributors/4388.html
27. AKP and “Back to the Future” Turkish-Style
2 February 2012 / barinkayaoglu.com
The NGO Reporters Without Borders has demoted Turkey by 10 places in its World Press Freedom Index rankings for 2011-2012. The report’s statement that “the judicial system launched a wave of arrests of journalists that was without precedent since the military dictatorship [of the early 1980s]” reminded me of the “Back to the Future” movie series.
http://www.barinkayaoglu.com/
28. The new face of Kurdish politics
4 February 2012 / The Kurdish Globe
Last week, Syrian Kurdish political and opposition leaders held a 3-day conference, addressing the basic demands of the Syrian Kurds under the title of “The Right to Self-determination for the Kurds and a Democratic Syria.” Held in Erbil, the conference was attended by President of Kurdistan Region Massoud Barzani and Prime Minister Barham Salih. The messages of Barzani encouraged the Syrian Kurds to prepare themselves for all kinds of changes; the Kurdish parties in Syria should become a single [united] voice; the Kurds must stay away from armed struggle and violence; and the duty of actualizing the change in Syria belongs to the Syrian Kurdish parties, not the KRG.
http://www.kurdishglobe.net/display-article.html?id=DE5FCB8A77DF630B02B9BB465C9D748E
29. Turkey and Iraqi Kurdistan need each other
3 February 2012 / Hurriyet
The division of Iraq and the emergence of an independent Kurdish sate on its borders was once a nightmare scenario for Turkey. Ankara warned on many occasions that it would not watch idly as the U.S. or Europe acted as midwife to such a state. The idea by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, when he was still Chairman of the Senate’s Foreign Relations Committee, that Iraq should be divided into Kurdish, Sunni and Shiite regions was not only met with derision, but was also taken by anti-Kurdish Turkish nationalists as proof about what the U.S. really planned for the region.
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkey-and-iraqi-kurdistan-need-each-other-.aspx?pageID=449&nID=12890&NewsCatID=416
30. Kurds endure poverty, grapple with assimilation
9 February 2012 / The Daily Star
As a teenager in a rural area of predominantly Kurdish southeast Turkey, Bahaeddin Hassan heard of a far-off, beautiful place called Lebanon. He was starstruck. At 15, he traveled overland through Syria to Beirut. Lebanon was not quite the paradise he had hoped for. Life was harsh, and for many years Hassan took whatever odd jobs came his way. Today, at 57, having become a Lebanese citizen who has found fulfilling and lucrative work as a clothing exporter, he says he has stayed in his adopted land because it is indeed beautiful. But he laments the hardships many of his fellow Lebanese Kurds continue to endure.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Local-News/2012/Feb-09/162690-kurds-endure-poverty-grapple-with-assimilation.ashx#axzz1lsbEtI7o
31. Noam Chomsky Discusses Turkey with David Barsamian
9 February 2012 / The Armenian Weekly
Chomsky is the internationally renowned Institute Professor Emeritus at MIT. In addition to his pioneering work in linguistics, he has been a leading voice for peace and social justice for many decades. “The New Statesman” calls him “the conscience of the American people.” Howard Zinn described him as “the nation’s most distinguished intellectual rebel.” He’s the author of scores of books including Failed States, What We Say Goes, and Hopes and Prospects. Chomsky and David Barsamian have collaborated on a series of best-selling books. Their latest is How the World Works. This interview will be part of Demand the Impossible, to be published later this year.The Armenian Weekly thanks David Barsamian for providing a transcript of the interview.
http://www.armenianweekly.com/2012/02/09/chomsky/
PRESS RELEASES
32. BDP chair Demirtas denounces the silence of the international community in face of increasingly violent repression of Turkey’s Kurds. Press release, Peace in Kurdistan Campaign, 6 February 2012
EVENTS
Saturday 11 February, 7pm
A Kurdish Info and Solidarity Night
A night of eating, films and dancing in solidarity with the Kurdish refugee community of Hackney and north London. Enjoy Kurdish food, the renown Kurdish film, Min Dit (The Children of Diyarbakir), a short intro and discussion about the political situation in Turkish Kurdistan today and what non-Turks/Kurds can do to support the Kurdish community in London and Turkey and all topped off with Kurdish dancing with Kurdish dance band Wenge Dur!
Venue: Halkevi Community Centre, 31-33 Dalston Lane, London E8 3DF
Organised by Virginia and Hicran of Rojwomen, and Glyn of Hackney Unites! A £5 charge will help the organisers cover the food and music costs, but if it is too much, please still come along and pay what you can.
Monday 13 – Saturday 18 February
No Borders Convergence, with Goldsmiths University students
A week long convergence to share knowledge and experiences in relation to freedom of movement. The 16th -18th will also include demonstrations and actions against migration controls.
Venue: Goldsmiths University, New Cross, London SE14 6NW
For further information, visit http://london.noborders.org.uk/convergence2012 or email noborderslondon@riseup.net.
Wednesday 15 February, 6.30-8pm
The Struggle for Democratic Change in Syria
A public meeting in parliament, featuring speakers: Dr Khalid Issa, European representative of the National Coordinating Body for Democratic Change, speaking on the struggle for democratic, peaceful change in Syria; The Democratic Union Party (PYD) representative, speaking on democratic self-government for the Kurds and a secular, pluralistic and democratic Syria for all Syrian people; Sher Sherani, MPhil International Relations, Oxford University, speaking on the Trajectory of the Syrian Revolution: democratic change or civil war; Munzer Eid Alzamalkani, PhD Candidate at St. Andrews University, discussing future perspectives for Syria: reconciliation, democratization and political participation
Venue: Committee Room 3A, House of Lords, Westminster, SW1
This event is free and open to the public. Please make sure to allow 30 minutes to go through security
Thursday 16 February 2012, 6.30-8pm
Dispatches from the Dark Side: on torture and the death of justice: A public lecture with Gareth Peirce
Evidence suggests that the British government has colluded in a range of extrajudicial activities – rendition, internment without trial, torture – and has gone to extraordinary lengths to conceal its actions. Gareth Peirce is a solicitor whose battles against miscarriages of justice have changed legal history.
Venue: Hong Kong Theatre, Clement House, LSE
This event is free and open to all with no ticket required. Entry is on a first come, first served basis. For any queries email events@lse.ac.uk or call 020 7955 6043.
Saturday 18 February, 8pm-2am
Stop criminalising Hackney’s youth Benefit Night
A Benefit night for Stop Criminalising Hackney’s Youth! A spoken word/rap/hip hop/poetry benefit night put on by Hackney Benefits Collective to support Stop Criminalising Hackney’s Youth! With Brotherman Ed Greenz www.edgreens.bandcamp.com, The Ruby Kid and many more to come.
Venue: The Victoria, Dalston, Queensbridge Road, London E8 3AS. The event is £5/£3 concession, or whatever you can afford.
Friday 24 February
Defending Human Rights Defenders
An international conference with delegates from Colombia, Turkey, Palestine, Philippines, and Swaziland, which will focus on protecting social justice activists and human rights defenders whose own work is being threatened. Organised by the Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers, Amnesty International UK, and European Association of Lawyers for Democracy
Venue: Amnesty Human Rights Action Centre, London, EC2A 3EA
Price: £30 UK waged/£20 non-UK/£25 students. Registration necessary.
For further information, contact: dhrd@haldane.org
Saturday 25 February, 10am–4.30pm
Unite Against Fascism National Conference – Get active against the fascist threat in 2012
Initial speakers: Claude Moraes MEP; Billy Hayes Communication Workers Union General Secretary; Hugh Lanning Public and Commercial Services Union Deputy General Secretary; Kevin Courtney National Union of Teachers Deputy General Secretary; Farooq Murad Secretary General, Muslim Council of Britain; Dr. Richard Stone Advisor, the Lawrence Inquiry; Dr. Edie Friedman Jewish Council for Racial Equality; Sabby Dhalu & Weyman Bennett Joint Secretaries Unite Against Fascism
Venue: Conway Hall, 25 Red Lion Square, London WC1R 4RL (nearest tube Holborn). To register, visit: http://uaf.org.uk/2011/12/uaf-conference-saturday-25-february-central-london (£12 delegates / £6 students and concessions)
Monday 5 March, 7-9pm
Venezuela 2012: How Social Progress & Democracy are Transforming a Nation
With special guests from Venezuela and other leading speakers including: Sandra Angeleri, writer, ‘Women Weaving the Dream of the Revolution in the American Continent’ & Professor, Universidad Central de Venezuela; Samuel Moncada, Venezuelan Ambassador, former Minister of Higher Education in President Chávez’s government; Jeremy Corbyn MP, Vice-Chair, APPG on Latin America;Colin Burgon, Labour Friends of Venezuela; Dr Francisco Dominguez, Centre for Latin American Studies, Middlesex University.
Venue: Portcullis House, Parliament, SW1A 2LW (Westminster Tube.)
RSVP to info@venezuelasolidarity.co.uk essential for room details and to confirm your place. Organised by the Venezuela Solidarity Campaign – www.venezuelasolidarity.co.uk
Tuesday 6 March, 9am-5.30pm
People Power 2012
Dame Vivienne Westwood, Salil Shetty, John Sauven and many more top speakers inspire charity campaigners and activists at this one-day conference. People Power presents leading figures from the government, media and corporate sector to share views and ideas, looking at lessons learned from the recent and not so recent past. How can the experiences of seasoned campaigners and activists inform your thinking, help you avoid pitfalls and achieve success? Learn from the past and together we’ll shape the future of campaigning.
Venue: 15 Hatfields, London SE1 8DJ
Individual ticket price: £124. Group ticket price: £80. For more information visit http://www.peoplepower2012.org/