RALLY AGAINST FASCISM

Solidarity Rally

Saturday 4th February

Buchanan Street/Gordon Street

12 noon assemble

Rally and Speakers around 12.30 pm

Following a number of attacks on labour movement stalls in Glasgow over the last few weeks, Unite Against Fascism is organising this rally in Glasgow.

We believe that these attacks are part of a fascist strategy to widen the targets of their violence in an attempt to indimidate people off the streets. We cannot allow this to happen.

We are inviting organisations to bring banners and provide a speaker to join a short rally near the spots where the attacks took place.

Unite Against Fascism
www.uaf.org.uk

WIN WIN WIN

This website has 2 family tickets to be won for the exhibition   ‘FOUNDATION – ‘Glasgow – Story of a City’ at the Lighthouse in Mitchell Lane off Buchanan Street G1 3NU

Each ticket will enable two adults and two children to experience this unique exhibition.

Recently opened, the exhibition will be a permanent feature at the Lighthouse – Scotland’s centre for architecture and design. As the city changes, so the exhibition will reflect those changes.

FOUNDATION is a unique experience telling the story of Glasgow – the place, the people and its history. When a person steps into ‘The Cube’ they will be transported back in time. From Roman times until today, artistic, multimedia ways of discovering that history and the evolving culture of the city can be enjoyed. A 360° panoramic view of the city and its magnificent buildings and landmarks enables visitors to trace them on an enormous aerial floor map.

Since the Lighthouse is in the heart of the city centre shopping zones it is easy to couple the ‘Foundation’ experience with some retail therapy. Or use the Lighthouse as the starting point in a great family day out before school re-starts. There are plenty of other museums, restaurants and places of entertainment waiting to be explored. Entry charge to the Lighthouse is £5 for adults, £3 concession and under 5s Free. The place is open Monday to Saturday from 10.30am till 5pm and on Sunday from 12 noon till 5pm. See website: www.foundationglasgow.com

For your chance to win one of the family tickets just tell us : How far back does the FOUNDATION Exhibition go in telling the story of Glasgow?

Email answers to: franklinfeatures@gmail.com by deadline midnight Sunday 28 August and remember to include your name and a contact phone number .

Gambia Day of Action

As part of an Amnesty International Day of Action, the Campaign for Human Rights in the Gambia will hold a rally, information day and vigil on Friday 22 July starting at 11am at the Donald Dewar Statue at the top of Buchanan Street, Glasgow.

It co-incides with a Gambian national holiday called Freedom Day which has been celebrated since President Yahya Jammeh took over the running of the West African country in 1994 after a bloodless coup.  Speakers in Glasgow will include Westminster MP for Glasgow Central, Anas Sarwar; National Union of Journalists Past President, Pete Murray and Green Party elected representatives Patrick Harvie MSP and City Councillor Danny Alderslowe.

Said Campaign Chairman, Arthur West: ‘We hope the event will be well supported. The main purpose is to raise awareness of the very worrying human rights situation in the Gambia at present.’

Amnesty International has compiled a dossier on the situation. People who were selling t-shirts with a political slogan for a legitimate political party recently, have been charged with sedition. Politicians,

Gambian exile Alieu Badara Ceesay is expected to speak at the Rally in Glasgow

journalists and other community leaders have disappeared, been  jailed, tortured and murdered. The only common thread seems to be they have said or done something to upset the government which is controlled by the President. ‘This has created a climate of fear in the country,’ said exiled journalist Alieu Badara Ceesay.  He added: ‘Fear, intimidation, torture and killing have no place in a democracy. The Gambian people deserve a free media and to live in a plural society with open debates and freedom of expression. We hope the efforts of Amnesty International, the international community and civil society groups around the world will lead to tangible reform in The Gambia.’

Gambia’s not so sunny

In recent years, claims that enforced disappearances, torture and extra judicial executions are taking place in the West African country, have increased. Amnesty International reported in 2008 that Gambia was ruled by Fear.

President Yahya Jammeh who came to power in a bloodless coup in 1994, will not campaign for his own re-election in November because he is so confident of winning, say local commentators. In a recent six-week voter registration exercise, 869,600 people signed up to ensure they will receive a vote. The country has a population of 1.7 million of whom more than a quarter are under voting age.

Gambia action on human rights

The Scottish/Gambia Human Rights campaign will have a speaker at the Irvine May Day rally on Saturday 7 May. In Glasgow there will be a stall in Buchanan Street on Sunday 22 May at 1pm to mark International Day of Action and a rally in George Square on Friday 22 July.
A video of a debate on the issues of human rights in the Gambia at the STUC’s annual meeting can be viewed on YouTube.

Glasgow plays its part in Gambian human rights campaign

MP Anas Sarwar (left) with journalist Alieu B. Ceesay from the Gambia.

Glasgow is one of 16 centres around the world which will highlight human rights abuse in the Gambia on Thursday 22 July.
Gambian born journalist, Alieu Ceesay, is leading the Glasgow campaign through the National Union of Journalists and Amnesty International.
Said Alieu: ‘We will hold a vigil at the Donald Dewar statue in Buchanan Street and invite passers -by to sign a petition,’
Added Alieu: ‘Currently, there is a harrowing human rights situation for Gambian people. Citizens are arrested daily. People disappear. There are summary executions, detention without trial, curtailment of civil liberties and a compromised judiciary. Ebrima Manneh, a journalist who worked with me on the same daily newspaper was arrested by security agents in July 2006 and has never been seen again. Deyda Hydara, the editor and co-proprietor of another daily paper was shot dead and in July of last year, six of my colleagues were jailed on charges of sedition for simply criticising the President in print ‘
The well-documented facts are listed in reports by Amnesty International and other human rights organisations.
Already, newly elected Westminster MP Anas Sarwar, has taken an interest in Alieu’s campaign. Last year, when the NUJ held a similar vigil, he attended the event and subsequently, when he was campaigning to be elected, he promised to help. Said Mr Sarwar: ‘I will raise this in Westminster and will bring it before the International Development Select Committee.’  Elected by Labour MPs as one of the dozen people on the influential cross-party committee, Mr Sarwar will have a powerful say in its work of scrutinising expenditure, administration and policy of the Department for International Development. That Department has an office in Gambia and recently invested £3million in development projects there.                                                The situation has also been recognised by the Commonwealth of which Gambia is a member. At the last Heads of Commonwealth meeting – in Trinidad earlier this year – a synchronised campaign by its Human Rights committee, successfully embarrassed Gambian President Yaya Jammeh into not attending but sending his Foreign Minister,Ousman Jammeh, instead.

On patrol with British Transport Police

British Transport Police invited LOCAL NEWS to spend an evening with officers at a major event. Reporter Martin Graham met up with Constables Alisdair Burnie and Davy Price on the evening of Rangers’ Champions League match with Stuttgart to get a feel for their city beat and see community policing in action.

Later that evening, they would be policing around 2000 Stuttgart fans on their way to and from Ibrox Park. First on Alisdair and Davy’s agenda was a meeting at the City Chambers with young people and council representatives to discuss services and activities for young people in the city centre.

Davie Price, Arlene Wilson and Alasdair Burnie from British Transport Police

We are joined by Sergeant Arlene Wilson of the Glasgow Central Neighbourhood Policing Team and head to the City Chambers.

The meeting is to discuss how best to look after the groups who congregate in the city centre at weekends. Councillors and members of Visible Fictions theatre group are there to listen. Young people are there to be heard.

Dominique Barclay, 16, described being attacked in George Square by an older man.

She said: ‘There are lots of gangs and intimidation. I got hit in the face with a sharp object and had to go to hospital because I was bleeding. It’s incidents like this which drive young people to seek safe environments to socialise.’

At one time, they hung around the Gallery of Modern Art, but were told they were not welcome. The young people now tend to socialise at Central Station, but this, too, has become untenable, due to the numbers of people involved.

The young people make it clear that they appreciate being consulted on what they want, and Sophie Ochojna from the theatre group recruits several of them to help with marketing and promotion of an arts and music event at the Arches.

As the meeting at the Chambers ends, word comes on Alasdair’s radio that there is bother at Buchanan Street subway station.

Before I know it, the three officers are off and running. I follow and head down the ramp from Dundas Street. It is packed with fans, mostly Rangers, and the general chatter is that there has been a fight in the station.

I push my way to the front and am just in time to see two or three Stuttgart fans being marched out of the station by policemen.

I catch up with Arlene and Alasdair. They tell me that some of the Stuttgart supporters had tried to rush the barriers in an attempt to get to the subway.

The troublemakers were ejected. Just after this, the remaining fans on the platform swarm up the stairs and out of the station – they have refused to follow instructions and were ejected from the station. You can see footage of this at the link below;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_uGc5hbOt2s

These are the Ultras element of the Stuttgart support, similar to UK casuals. This type of fan is intent on causing trouble, has earned himself a long walk to the game and a close police presence for the evening.

Arlene tells me that the policy is to disperse rather than to arrest such fans.

By the end of my four hours with the cops, I have been impressed by their friendliness and openness, and also by their fast reaction when trouble flared.

British Transport Police are keen to hear from people about their experiences of using public transport, and how they can feel safer in doing so.

Transport Police can be contacted directly at their offices in Central Station, Queen Street Station, and in St Enoch Square.

You can call them on 0800 40 50 40 and visit the website at www.btp.police.uk.