Network news

Sign the petition to protest the arrest of nine women campaigning to end discriminatory laws.

Nine women’s rights activists were arrested outside of the Rahe Abrisham Gallery just prior to a small, peaceful assembly planned to commemorate the National Day of Solidarity of Iranian Women on June 12th.

June 12th has been chosen by Iranian women’s rights activists as their national day of solidarity to object harmful actions which attempt to silence Iranian women. Women’s rights activists are continually denied the right of freedom of association and assembly. Even meetings in private homes are often broken up by security forces.

Help stop the 2011 census being run by an arms company with close links to the United States government.The process of running the 2011 Census will be contracted out by the Office of National Statistics to a private company.

One of the two contractors in the final round of selection is the arms company Lockheed Martin, 80% of whose business is with the US Department of Defense and other Federal Government agencies.

This might concern you because:

• The Census rules mean that every household will be legally obliged to provide a wide range of personal information that will be handled by the chosen contractor.
• Lockheed Martin produces missiles and land mines which are being used in Afghanistan and Iraq and which are illegal in many countries.
• They also focus on intelligence and surveillance work and boast of their ability to provide ‘integrated threat information’ that combines information from many different sources.
• New questions in the 2011 Census will include information about income and place of birth, as well as existing questions about languages spoken in the household and many other personal details.
• This information would be very useful to Lockheed Martin’s intelligence work, and fears that the data might not be safe could lead to many people not filling in their Census forms.

A PWYP campaigner has been arrested in Gabon at the start of an EITI trip that calls for disclosure of company payments and government revenues from oil, gas and mining. Marc Ona had been granted a US visa to attend the New York event, but was prevented by police from boarding the airplane at Libreville airport after he had already cleared security and passport control. There is no legal basis or justification for this travel ban nor has Mr. Ona been notified in writing by the authorities.

Gabon is a member of the EITI International Board, a celebrated global initiative for disclosure of company payments and government revenues from oil, gas and mining. Civil society participation in the oversight of these public revenues is a key component of the multi-stakeholder nature of the EITI, and harassment of NGOs active in the process is contrary to Gabon’s obligations under the initiative.

“The international community and supporters of EITI should make clear to the Gabonese government that it must respect the rights of civil society campaigners to engage in a constructive dialogue on issues of public interest”, said Marc Ona.

Be sure to hide all your data first…

In April a US court ruled that border agents can search your laptop, or any other electronic device, when you’re entering the country. They can take your computer and download its entire contents, or keep it for several days.

Meanwhile in Canada border guards could be able to search ipods and other devices for content that “infringes” on copyright laws, such as ripped CDs and movies.

According to an article on Canada.com, the Canadian federal government is secretly negotiating an agreement called the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), which would “create a international regulator that could turn border guards and other public security personnel into copyright police”.

Save money and time by upgrading your computer rather than buying a new one.

Help to protect the environment by preventing unnecessary e-waste and save yourself money at the same time!

The energy required to produce a new computer is enough to run a computer for 10 years, and the energy saved by extending the life of your computer by a year could run it for 2 years. Watch the campaign video to find out more.

Show your solidarity with the Iraqi union leaders under threat for defending workers rights. 8 Union leaders are being forced to transfer to the most dangerous area in Baghdad in the latest attack on the union working against the exploitation of Iraqi oil workers.
Hassan Juma’a Awad, President of the Iraq Federation of Oil Unions, reports on a dangerous escalation of the Oil Minister’s hostility to the IFOU and its leadership. Oil Minister Hussein Al-Shahirstani is the same Maliki government official who some months ago directed the management of the oil companies not to have any dealings with the union. He calls for international labour laws to be respected in Iraq where trade unions are still subject to repression using Saddam era legislation.

Visit the “Hands of Iraqi oil” site for more information on the campaign and to send a letter of protest to the Iraq embassy.

From bicycle parades and green blogging to rainwater harvesting and walking: Make 5th June a zero emissions day!

After the brutal suppression of popular demonstrations against South Korea’s new US beef import deal, the government is requesting that portals delete dissident blog postings. The Internet is playing a key role in mobilising public opinion around the issues. People are using blogs and online forums to share their experiences in marches, expose police brutality, and debate the issues and effective ways of protesting. Netizens, media activists, and online newspapers provide live coverage on the internet using cameras, mobile phones and notebooks. Police are now threatening to ‘manage’ opinion on the internet and investigate activist users.

“We need a treaty with no loopholes, no exceptions and no delays.” Sign the petition to help put an end to these weapons that contain multiple explosive submunitions. These weapons are dropped from aircraft or fired from the ground and designed to break open in midair, releasing the submunitions and saturating an area that can be the size of several football fields. Anybody within that area, be they military or civilian, is very likely to be killed or seriously injured.

As so many of the submunitions fail to work properly, huge quantities are left on the ground and, like landmines, remain a fatal threat to anyone in the area long after a conflict ends. These weapons kill and injure people trying to rebuild their lives after conflict. They stop people from being able to use their land and access schools and hospitals. They can remain a threat for decades.

Cluster bombs were first used in World War II by German and Soviet forces. During the 1970s, the USA used massive numbers of cluster bombs in Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. More recently, cluster bombs were used extensively in the Gulf War, Chechnya, the former Yugoslavia, Afghanistan, Iraq and in Lebanon in 2006. Despite mounting evidence of humanitarian harm, many governments are reluctant to give up cluster bombs.

Tell the Mayor not to endanger the lives of cyclists and pedestrians! The LCC has written to London Mayor Boris Johnson asking him not to make a snap decision to allow motorbikes to use bus lanes. Even Transport for London has said the data the mayor is considering, is ‘not considered sufficiently reliable to inform a decision on such an important issue’.”
If taken, the decision would not only be against the advice of transport officials, but also without the input of cycling and pedestrian groups.
You can add your name to the letter by filling in the form on the LCC website .