The branch is being asked to back this year's annual delegate meeting's call for justice for the Grenada 17 - political prisoners jailed after the US invasion of the Caribbean country 22 years ago.
Click on the headline to access Amnesty International's 2003 article on the issue. Amnesty says the 17's trial was fatally flawed and wants their release or an independent trial. Some of the 17 are ill. Onne - former trade union leader Chalky Ventour - has cancer.
ADM voted unanimously to back the trade-union backed campaign and has given £500 to the Committee for Human Rights in Grenada UK. But unless a large number of people respond individually the target of £27,500 will not be reached. The 17 are getting free legal help but other legal costs will be met by any donations received.
Head office has circulated branches with a number of things they or individuals can do:
* Donate a sum. The branch will discuss next week.
* Publicise the case by passing on info (click on the headline for more) to friends, colleagues, trade unionists etc. Or write about it for your own publication, radio or TV station.
* Write to the Prime Minister of Grenada Dr Keith Mitchell urging their release. Or sign the online petition at http://www.petitiononline.com/grenad17/petition.html
* Join the Campaign for Human Rights in Grenada - £12 for individuals.
* Tell Paul Mackney, general secretary of NATFHE (pmackney@natfhe.org.uk) if you can help with an update of Bernard Coard's book How the West Indian child is made educationally subnormal in the British school system. Bernard Coard is one of the 17 and is a former deputy prime minister of Grenada,
1 comment:
Response received from Committee thanking us for our donation:
"Now that the rights of the Grenada 17 to take their appeal to the Privy Council have at long last been conceded, there is hope that their incarceration of more than 20 years may be coming to an end - assuming their case is successful."
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