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NEW PRESS RELEASE 11th Nov 2005
BRIEFING MEETING AND PRESS CONFERENCE
“The Prime Minister’s claim that the war was legal was false and deceived Parliament and the nation into waging an illegal war with Iraq in violation of international treaties.”
“War is essentially an evil thing. Its consequences are not confined to the belligerent states alone, but affect the whole world. To initiate a war of aggression therefore, is not only an international crime, it is the supreme internation
7.00.pm Tuesday 15th November, Grand Committee Room, Parliament.
Hosted by John McDonnell MP, Legal Action Against War invites you to a briefing meeting for MPs, Peers and the media on
‘How the Prime Minister and the Attorney General deceived Parliament over the legality of the war with Iraq’
with
Michael Mansfield QC and Chris Coverdale
al crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole.”
Justice Robert Jackson, Nuremburg War Crimes Tribunal
Legal Action Against War
Woodside House London SW197QN
Tel 0208 944 7731
Contact Chris Coverdale 0208 944 7731
www.actionagainstwar.org
www.laaw.org
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8TH AUGUST 2005
Human Rights group condemns illegal ‘shoot to kill’ policy and asks MPA to suspend Ian Blair
In a letter to Len Duvall, Chairman of the Metropolitan Police Authority, Chris Coverdale of Action Against War today asked the MPA to:
- Direct the Metropolitan Police to withdraw the illegal ‘shoot to kill’ policy and to revert to legal procedures of arrest and detention for terrorist suspects.
- Suspend Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair and other officers involved in the planning and employment of the criminal ‘shoot to kill’ policy from duty.
- Set up an independent criminal investigation of the offences involved in the ‘shoot to kill’ policy and to lay charges of ‘conspiracy to murder’ against Government Ministers and Metropolitan Police commanders involved in its introduction.
- Warn police officers and the general public of the criminal nature of the ‘shoot to kill’ policy and their criminal liability as an accessory should they support the policy.
Chris Coverdale claims that “Shooting an innocent visitor to London eight times in the back of the head, when he was already pinned to the ground, is the type of execution tactic used by the Mafia, and Chicago gangsters. Assassinations such as this are used by political tyrannies to impose control over a population and terrify those who dare to oppose, disobey or disagree. That a British Government or police force should employ such tactics and so brazenly break the law and abuse the fundamental human right to life, is a national disgrace, and should be of immense disquiet to law-abiding Londoners and anyone concerned to uphold the rule of law.”
“When the Birmingham police used a stun gun to arrest a man suspected of the London bombings, they demonstrated that it is perfectly possible to arrest a suspected terrorist in a legal manner. If a dangerous arrest can be made legally in Birmingham, why can’t a similar approach be used in London? Why is the MPA supporting a Commissioner of Police who openly promotes the use of illegal, criminal policing methods? Why are the MPA allowing plain-clothed armed police officers to roam freely around London using assassination techniques favoured by military dictators such as Augusto Pinochet? Why won’t the police arrest their own commanders when they so conspicuously break the law? The public needs answers to these questions and they need the police to uphold the rule of law.”
For more information, the letter to the MPA, details of the crimes and relevant criminal law: www.actionagainstwar.org
Contact Email: Chris Coverdale
Tel: 020 8944 7731
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LAAW
Delegation at Scotland Yard
12
noon Friday 21st November
 On
Friday 21st November at 12 noon a delegation from LAAW will
be handing in to Scotland Yard a petition calling on the police
to investigate Tony Blair for War crimes. LAAW believes that
the Prime Minister committed a number of offences under the
International Criminal Court Act of 2001.
The
act introduced three new offences into British Law, those
of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. Every
citizen has a duty to report crimes to the police, and that
is what LAAW will be doing. When a crime is reported it is
the duty of the Police and the Crown Prosecution Service to
investigate the reported crime and arrest, charge and prosecute
the offenders if there is a case to answer.
The
petition focuses on a number of issues, such as the use of
indiscriminate weapons like cluster bombs and depleted uranium.
It argues that the use of such weapons was itself a war crime.
Cluster bombs are designed as indiscriminate anti-personnel
bombs to kill or injure people and they are not effective
against military installations. The wilful killing of civilians
in this manner is a War crime and is a criminal offence under
British Law (ICC Act 2001 Sections 51 and 52 and Schedule
8 Article 8).
Similarly
the British use of depleted uranium shells, causing toxic
uranium dust particles to disperse and contaminate wide areas
of southern Iraq , is a war crime. This horrific act will
lead to increases in cancers, premature deaths and miscarriages
in pregnant women in Iraq for years to come. Wilfully killing
and injuring civilians in this manner is both a crime against
humanity (ICC Act Sch. 8 Article 7) and a War crime (ICC Act
2001 Sch. 8 Article 8 sections 2(a) (i) and 2(b) (iv) (xvii)
(xviii).
For
Tony Blair to give the orders to engage in such acts was ancillary
conduct to the offences.
The
LAAW delegation are meeting at 11.45am Scotland Yard where
it will hand the petitions in, at 12 noon.
For
more information please contact: LAAW
Office
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