Eileen Kersey writing out of Yorkshire, England

President Obama frees Chelsea Manning over to you Julian Assange

18/1/2017

Op-ed: Tuesday President Obama commuted the sentence of Chelsea, formerly Bradley, Manning meaning she will be released from prison in May 2017.

Bradley Manning case background

Manning was and maybe still is viewed by some as an arch enemy of the USA and a traitor but for others he or rather now she is a hero who deserves thanks rather than imprisonment or death.

The allegations against Manning date back to 2009 and 2010 when he was working as an intelligence analyst in Iraq. The data available to him was arguably top-secret but rather than jeopardising troops as claimed by some in the USA his revelations showed that some in the US military were abusing their power. [see footage at the end of this report]

A careless disregard for life was shown in one video as US military personnel in a chopper let lose a barrage of bullets on civilians in Iraq, after wrongly identifying a target.

The public outcry that followed had to have some positive effects on operations in foreign lands.

It also led to questions about the radicalisation of Muslims by western military through such destructive acts of violence.

The Baltimore Sun reporting on Manning's time in court in 2013 said:

"An Army prosecutor told a military judge Monday that Pfc. Bradley Manning drew on his military training to harvest hundreds of thousands of classified documents from military computers and dump them on the Internet, where he knew their release would endanger fellow U.S. soldiers. An attorney for Manning described the 25-year-old soldier as naive but well-intentioned, and said he released the materials because "he was hoping to make the world a better place. The long-awaited court-martial of the one time Marylander, who is at the center of the largest security breach in U.S. history, began at Fort Meade on Monday with opening statements from both sides."

According to a report in the Guardian in 2013 terrorists were using downloaded information from Manning to wage their terrible war on the west:

"In the course of pre-trial hearings, military prosecutors have outlined the basic skeleton of their case against Manning. They will seek to show that Osama bin Laden personally instructed an aide to download elements of WikiLeaks, including the Afghan war logs, on to digital storage devices so that he could read them. The court will hear – either in person at a secret session of the trial, or in an affidavit – from an anonymous witness called only "John Doe", who is believed to be one of the 22 US Navy Seals who killed Bin Laden in a raid on his compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan in May 2011."

However the above proves little unless you believe that all members of the military always act honestly at all times and are never corrupt.

As we all know they are not.

Nonetheless if Bin Laden did use such information he will have also used reports and information gleaned from the Internet via sources such as Fox News, BBC News and CNN. Are the prosecutors suggesting a clampdown on Internet freedoms and the freedom of the press we wondered.

Manning was abused and humiliated during his incarceration leading up to and during the trial.

In August 2013 the long awaited verdict and sentence in the military trial of Manning was over.

Manning was handed a 35-year jail term. Whilst some in the media, and probably Bradley's family, appeared thankful that the sentence was no longer who could know if it would turn into a life sentence.

This young man in theory could have been in jail until he was in his sixties.

But the prosecution in the case had wanted a 60-year sentence.

Call me Chelsea

The day after he was sentenced there were reports that Manning had issued a letter thanking his supporters and stating that he wanted to begin hormone therapy and live out the rest of his life as a woman.

Much was made of Bradley's personality and sexuality issues during his military trial, especially during the trials latter stages. His "dirty washing" was aired in public for all to chew over and take a sneaky giggle at.

Supporters of Manning began petitioning President Barack Obama in the hope of a pardon for the young former soldier and finally this week the outgoing President has come through for Chelsea.

Outgoing Presidents in the USA have the power to free some prisoners and Tuesday President Obama commuted Manning's sentence. But Manning and Julian Assange are linked by WikiLeaks.

Assange, holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy in London since June 2012, had pledged he would allow himself to be extradited if Obama freed Manning and Wednesday it looks like he will keep his word.

"The anti-secrecy website tweeted: "If Obama grants Manning clemency Assange will agree to US extradition despite clear unconstitutionality of DoJ (Department of Justice) case." Mr Assange's lawyer, Melinda Taylor, went further last night, suggesting the 45-year-old Australian intends to make good on his pledge. WikiLeaks tweeted: "Assange lawyer @themtchair on Assange-Manning extradition 'deal': "Everything that he has said he's standing by."

However when Donald Trump becomes President of the USA Friday it will put a new spin on Assange and Wikileaks.

Perhaps Assange thinks he will be home free now?

We are living in strange and uncertain times.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/nov/04/chelsea-manning-second-suicide-attempt-attorneys-prison-sentence
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/assange-says-he-ll-go-u-s-still-faces-sweden-n708286

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Libyan man wins right to sue Jack Straw ex British Foreign Secretary

17/1/2017

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Former Labour Foreign Secretary Jack Straw looks set to be sued over a rendition case which dates back to 2004 in Libya.

Straw faces allegations of abduction and torture brought by Abdul-Hakim Belhaj a so-called former Libyan dissident.

Straw is accused as he was responsible for MI6 at that time; MI6 helped the US kidnap Belhaj in Bangkok in 2004 in order to return him and his wife to Tripoli.

BBC News reports Tuesday "Mr Belhaj, a leading opponent of then Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, says he was abducted - along with his pregnant wife, Fatima Boudchar - as he attempted to fly to London to claim UK asylum. After being returned to Libya, he spent six years in jail, while his wife was released shortly before giving birth. Mr Belhaj, who was once regarded by Western intelligence services as a terrorism suspect, alleges he was tortured by his Libyan jailers and questioned by British intelligence officers during his detention."

Tuesday the Supreme Court in the UK backed a Court of Appeal ruling allowing him to sue.

Mr Belhaj, 50, reportedly is determined to sue "unless he receives an apology and a token £1 in damages."

For him now it is all about an apology.

In 2012 we wrote the following about Mr Abdul-Hakim Belhaj and his quest for justice:

Op-ed: DID UK GOVERNMENT APPROVE ABDEL HAKIM BELHAJ'S RENDITION?

According to the BBC today, April 9, 2012, successive UK governments have lied to the British people. No surprise there really. Today's report involves the case of a man extradited to the Gaddafi regime in Libya.

Abdel Hakim Belhaj's was deemed a terror suspect by the Gaddafi regime. Currently he is the commander of the Tripoli Military Council.

The BBC report claims, "Mr Belhaj says he was tortured in jail. Successive UK governments have denied complicity in rendition or torture."

According to their report though their denials have all been lies. The report goes on: A letter from an MI6 officer refers to Abdel Hakim Belhaj's rendition to Libya. It congratulates the Libyans on the "safe arrival" of the "air cargo". Mr Belhaj says he was tortured in jail. Successive UK governments have denied complicity in rendition or torture.

But BBC correspondent Peter Taylor says he understands Mr Belhaj's rendition was given ministerial approval.

However it is not clear at what level of government the decision was authorised.

The letter from the senior MI6 officer, Sir Mark Allen, to Col Gaddafi's intelligence chief, Musa Kusa, was found last year [2011] in the rubble of Musa Kusa's headquarters, which were bombed by allied forces. As well as congratulating the Libyans on the arrival of the "cargo", it points out that "the intelligence was British".

The letter was sent in 2004 when Mr Belhaj was the leader of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group. MI5 believed the group was close to al-Qaeda and involved in recruiting young Muslims in Britain to fight in Iraq.

It appears MI6 had discovered that Mr Belhaj was in Malaysia and about to head for London in the hope of obtaining political asylum. MI6 informed its foreign intelligence partners, and as a result Mr Belhaj was intercepted in Bangkok, presumably by the CIA, and rendered to Libya. Our correspondent says the letter suggests MI6 was complicit in Mr Belhaj's illegal rendition and alleged torture in Libya - but that MI6 was not acting unilaterally. He says his understanding is that MI6 obtained authorisation from the Labour government of the time for its action said the BBC correspondent.

Opinion: Each such report that becomes public raises more questions. How many innocent people have had their lives ruined on merely a suspicion without a trial? How many times do government's cover up such stories? How come this man could be shipped to Libya? Why did the government feel the need to lie?

But perhaps what galls most is that according to the BBC report the Labour Foreign Secretary back in 2004, Jack Straw, flatly denied any government involvement. He reportedly said last year [2011],

"We were opposed to unlawful rendition. We were opposed to any use of torture or similar methods. Not only did we not agree with it, we were not complicit in it and nor did we turn a blind eye to it." He added: "No foreign secretary can know all the details of what its intelligence agencies are doing at any one time."

Challenged with this latest information Mr Straw's office had no comment to make.

I bet it didn't. Is there any wonder that so many people do not trust any politician nor any political party?

Source and full story: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-17651802

The story of this man highlights how a person can be deemed a terrorist and rebranded a freedom fighter to suit.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jan/17/libyan-dissident-abdel-hakim-belhaj-wins-right-to-sue-uk-government-over-rendition

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NHS blame game as Tories target GPs now

14/1/2017

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A huge failure and it continues under unelected PM Theresa May

Opinion: The blame game.

The mismanagement of the NHS by unelected Theresa May's Tory government continues.

This time the target of abuse is over worked GPs.

But as the Tories scapegoat GPs never forget blame lies with the Tory government elected in 2010 and Mrs May's current unelected government.

In response to claims by some A and E patients that they attend a hospital emergency department as they are often unable to get a timely appointment with their General Practitioner the Tory government is pushing ahead with its plan for a seven-day a week appointment service and has issued a threat.

In order to force the issue through "Some GPs in England have been warned they could lose extra funding if they fail to meet a commitment to keep their surgeries open for longer."

Some are already feeling the financial pinch.

Some may be pished to close and what then? Will a private GP service pick up the slack?

"The government wants surgeries to open between 08:00 and 20:00, seven days a week, unless they can prove the demand is not there" reports BBC News Saturday.

That has obvious implications both good and bad.

Previously the government has compared the NHS to supermarkets that offer a seven-day a week service but come on.

It is not a one-size fits all affair.

A few years ago NHS trusts where forced to jump through hoops to get foundation trust status. Locally hospitals spent time, money and effort establishing so-called "business groups."

The obvious Tory desire to privatise the NHS is there if you take a good look.

Having worked for a GP practice and then in NHS hospitals from about 1997 until retirement there is always work to do to improve the service but that is true of any large organisation.

Moving the goalposts, moving them again and then again, undermines the service, hits the morale of staff, leads to staff moving on and ultimately millions of pounds later invariably means you are back to square one but in many ways in a worse position.

The Tory government and political hopeful party UKip would prefer a privatised health care system.

The Liberal Democrats may be talking the talk with regards to the current NHS crisis but never forget they sat alongside an NHS slashing Tory government in coalition for five years. They could have quit and forced an election but they preferred to hang on to their time in office.

In doing so they lost all credibility especially when it comes to the NHS.

Only a Labour government will commit to the NHS as a cradle to grave healthcare service.

But if we sit back and allow an unelected PM to drag her heels until the next scheduled General Election in 2010 it may be too late.

Boundary changes look set to reduce the number of Labour MPs. Other factors including BRexit will impact on an election.

But while the electorate remain blinkered the NHS is being made unfit for purpose ahead of privatisation.

It is how Tory governments work.

Remember public transport, water, Royal Mail and energy privatisation all sold to you on a promise of more competition and better value for money? What whopping lies were told? A few people got that bit richer out of previous privatisation and the big loser was the general public.

The NHS is as a crossroads and it will never be safe in Tory hands.

If you do not believe that you are deluded.

Full BBC News story:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-38620935

Related:
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/blog/live/2017/jan/14/jeremy-corbyn-speech-fabian-society-promises-complete-break-with-this-rigged-system-in-speech-to-fabians-politics-live
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/nhs-crisis-latest-jeremy-corbyn-theresa-may-denial-gps-scapegoating-labour-leader-conservative-prime-a7527191.html
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/nhs-crisis-conservative-government-tory-party-blame-hospitals-humanitarian-red-cross-unions-doctors-a7521451.html

You cannot trust UKip on the NHS

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An unexpected letter to Sasha and Malia Obama

14/1/2017

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Time Magazine has published a letter from Jenna Bush-Hager and Barbara Bush, daughters of George W Bush, to President Obama's daughters as the family prepare to leave the White House next week. The women know exactly what it means to live in the White House for eight years and then pick up life in the real world again:

"Malia and Sasha, eight years ago on a cold November day, we greeted you on the steps of the White House. We saw both the light and wariness in your eyes as you gazed at your new home.

"We left our jobs in Baltimore and New York early and travelled to Washington to show you around. To show you the Lincoln bedroom, and the bedrooms that were once ours, to introduce you to all the people—the florists, the grounds-keepers and the butlers—who dedicate themselves to making this historic house a home.

"The four of us wandered the majestic halls of the house you had no choice but to move in to. When you slid down the banister of the solarium, just as we had done as eight-year-olds and again as 20-year-olds chasing our youth, your joy and laughter were contagious.

"In eight years, you have done so much. Seen so much.

"You stood at the gates of the Robben Island cell where South Africa's Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for decades, your arms around your father.

"You travelled to Liberia and Morocco with your mom to talk with girls about the importance of education - girls who saw themselves in you, saw themselves in your parents, saw who they could become if they continued to study and learn.

"You attended state dinners, hiked in national parks, met international leaders and managed to laugh at your dad's jokes during the annual Thanksgiving turkey pardon, all while being kids, attending school and making friends.

"We have watched you grow from girls to impressive young women with grace and ease.

"And through it all you had each other. Just like we did.

"Now you are about to join another rarified club, one of former First Children - a position you didn't seek and one with no guidelines.

"But you have so much to look forward to. You will be writing the story of your lives, beyond the shadow of your famous parents, yet you will always carry with you the experiences of the past eight years.

"Never forget the wonderful people who work at the White House. Our greeter as seven-year-olds at our grandfather's inauguration was Nancy, the White House florist, who ushered us in from the cold.

"She helped us make colourful bouquets of winter flowers for our grandparents' bedside. Twenty years later, Nancy did the flowers for Jenna's wedding. Cherish your own Nancy.

"We stay in touch with our secret service. They were part of growing up for us: there for first dates, first days and even an engagement and a honeymoon.

"We know it wasn't always easy - the two of you and the two of us were teenagers trailed by men in backpacks—but they put their lives on hold for us.

"Enjoy college. As most of the world knows, we did. And you won't have the weight of the world on your young shoulders anymore. Explore your passions. Learn who you are. Make mistakes - you are allowed to.

"Continue to surround yourself with loyal friends who know you, adore you and will fiercely protect you. Those who judge you don't love you, and their voices shouldn't hold weight. Rather, it's your own hearts that matter.

"Take all that you have seen, the people you have met, the lessons you have learned, and let that help guide you in making positive change. We have no doubt you will.

"Travelling with our parents taught us more than any class could. It opened our eyes to new people as well as new cultures and ideas.

"We met factory workers in Michigan, teachers in California, doctors healing people on the Burmese border, kids who lined the dusty streets of Kampala to see the American president, and kids with HIV waiting to get the antiretroviral drugs that would save their lives.

"One tiny girl wearing her finest lavender dress looked young, which she was not.

"She was little because she was sick. Her mom admitted that she might not live to see these drugs work, but her brothers and sisters would. After meeting this girl, Barbara went back to school and changed her major, and her life's path.

"You have lived through the unbelievable pressure of the White House. You have listened to harsh criticism of your parents by people who had never even met them.

"You stood by as your precious parents were reduced to headlines. Your parents, who put you first and who not only showed you but gave you the world. As always, they will be rooting for you as you begin your next chapter. And so will we."

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Tristram Hunt MP quits

14/1/2017

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Another one bites the dust.

Tristram Hunt, Labour MP for Stoke, announced Friday that he is quitting politics.

Days ahead of Christmas 2016 Jamie Reed, also Labour, announced he was quitting as MP for Copeland triggering a by-election. He does not actually leave his role as MP until late January and now Hunt has also resigned.

Labour MP Paul Flynn summed up Hunt's resignation with this tweet "Tristan Hunt contributed valued historic scholarship but new job offers more scope for talents than 3 years shouting 'RESIGN' at Tories" to which one person replied "@PaulFlynnMP Hunt has spent last 15 months shouting resign at Jeremy Corbyn..and not at the Tories. He is no loss to Labour or the country."

Mr Flynn did have a more critical tweet earlier Friday but he appears to have deleted it!

2016 was a year of division in the Labour Party with deep splits. Wounds are still raw but it looks like 2017 will also be a bumpy ride.

Is the modus operandi for 2017 resignations drip drip at a time?

It highlights why Jeremy Corbyn should have been ruthless from day one and weeded out the dead wood. It also highlights why the party perhaps should have split in early 2016 rather than battle on with at least two sides at each others throats and neither willing to come together.

It looks like Hunt jumped before he was pushed but for many he was never really true Labour.

Boundary changes will affect constituencies and the number of MPS. This could leave two MPs fighting for one seat. Tristram Hunt appears to have jumped ship before he faced such problems.

Hunt is from the so-called moderate wing of the Labour Party but that assessment is open to debate.

He like Mr Reed was hostile to Jeremy Corbyn from day one.

Both men represented areas which voted BRexit and in a big way. That means both areas could offer election success for UKip.

But both areas are not traditional Tory territory and UKip are still essentially another form of the Tory Party. The only card they offer in such areas is BRexit.

Reed has secured a lucrative post at Sellafield and Hunt is quitting to head the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

So how many other young Labour politicians are ready to jump ship and why?

How many already have nice little earners lined up?

Resignations that lead to by-elections are challenging but they may at least allow the Labour Party to get back to its socialist roots and offer voters a real alternative to Tory politics and one on the left-wing of British politics.

Eoin on Twitter is spot on when he tweeted "The Labour Party is packed full of amazing talent. Every vacancy offers one of these bright talents a chance to step forward. I welcome it."

Bring it on!

[According to the right wing Politics Home "One Labour MP [unnamed of course] said: "Tristram has been talking about this for a while, so it's no surprise that he's decided to go. "There are scores of us who would quit if we had another job to go to because we know that the party has no chance at the next election."]

More
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/12/21/labour-mp-jamie-reed-quits-sparking-copeland-by-election/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-38608825
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/tristram-hunt-resign-mp-forcing-9614387

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Death penalty for Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof

11/1/2017

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State prosecutors in the case of 21-year-old Dylann Roof, the young American white skinned man who killed black members of a bible class as they prayed, said from the outset of the trial that they would seek the death penalty.

Tuesday January 10, 2017 Dylann Roof was told he would be put to death.

The prosecutors made the decision to seek the death penalty after a series of meetings with survivors and victim's family members and because more than two people were killed in the deadly attack.

But none of the friends and family who spoke during the sentencing phase of the trial asked for the death penalty.

Nine people were murdered at the Emanuel AME (African Methodist Episcopal) Church in June 2015. They were callously shot by Dylan Roof.

Roof penned a racist manifesto prior to the gun massacre which led some to question why he was not charged with a hate crime or with domestic terrorism.

But the mass shooting was in South Carolina, a state that has no hate crime laws.

Roof's father bought his son a gun for his 21st birthday and he now has to live with what happened next.

Roof was found guilty in December and then dismissed his legal team. He represented himself as sentencing began.

Tuesday a jury of 10 women and two men recommended the death penalty for all 18 counts that had a possible death sentence attached.
At around 9.30am Wednesday Judge Richard Gergel will formally sentence Roof.

Now it seems Roof wants to file a motion for new lawyers and for a retrial The judge may not agree.

After a prosecutor's "impassioned, two-hour argument in a Charleston courtroom urging jurors to give Roof the death penalty instead of their other option, life in prison without possibility of parole" Roof reportedly said:

"In my confession to the FBI I told them that I had to do it, and obviously that's not really true. ... I didn't have to do anything," Roof said as he made his own five-minute closing argument in the penalty phase of his federal trial. "But what I meant when I said that was, I felt like I had to do it, and I still do feel like I had to do it." .

"From what I've been told, I have a right to ask you to give me a life sentence, but I'm not sure what good that will do anyway," Roof said. "But what I will say is only one of you has to disagree with the other jurors." CNN

According to CNN that means "he also suggested he'd like to be spared."

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President Obama frees Chelsea Manning over to you Julian Assange

Libyan man wins right to sue Jack Straw ex British Foreign Secretary

NHS blame game as Tories target GPs now

An unexpected letter to Sasha and Malia Obama

Tristram Hunt MP quits

Death penalty for Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof

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