Free public lecture: Women and the welfare state in 2019

Come join the Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers in conjunction with the Haldane Feminist Lawyers at this special International Women's Day edition of our yearly human rights lecture series.

We will be discussing the state of women within the welfare state in 2019, including "benefits reform", the effect of austerity and fighting back against these policies. We will be hearing from Caoilfhionn Gallagher QC, a barrister from Doughty Street who have been involved in successfully challenging the benefits cap and the bedroom tax.

There will be time for contributions from the floor, as well as questions and answers. Latecomers are welcome to enter quietly.

 

Date: 19 March 2019
Time: 6.30pm to 8.30pm
Place: University of Law, Store Street, London

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Solidarity with the International Working Women’s Day Strike 2019

Today, for the third year running, women across the world are going on strike as part of a militant, joyful feminist international, against a world lurching towards barbarism.

With fascism on the march, emboldened by the ascent to power of far-right politics in the U.S.A, Brazil, Poland, India, and Italy, feminist movements in the past year have continued to occupy the front-line of the international fight against barbarism. Among these: the Ele Não movement against Jair Bolsonaro’s fascism in Brazil; the Marea Verde for free, safe, legal abortion in Argentina; the Keralan women who formed a 620 km long human chain to protest for equality in India, the Ni Una Menos movement across Latin America, the Ni Una di Meno movement resisting Salvini’s ‘Security law’ in Italy, and the Kurdish women’s revolution which continues to be instrumental in both the military and ideological defeat of ISIS.

Here in the UK, the past year has seen migrant women in precarious work organise strikes in London, and thousands of public sector working women on strike in Glasgow, as well as the growth of a new feminist anti-fascist movement, which in December led the march against Tommy Robinson and Fortress Britain, carrying a vast banner that read “The enemy doesn’t arrive by boat, he arrives by limousine.”

By withdrawing waged and unwaged labour today, the feminist international is making visible - and making connections between - the many forms of work women do: from the exploitative work of commodity production to the invisibilized work of social reproduction; from the struggle for bodily autonomy, to the struggle for anti-imperialist self-determination; from the fight against gender violence and femicide, to the fight against capitalist extractivism and ecocide. As the Feminist International says, this is a movement that is shaped by feminist movements in the South, and is unequivocally anti-colonial, anti-cisheterosexist, anti-racist and anti-capitalist.

It is a fight to change not only our conditions of work, but our world. In the words of Women’s strike UK: “We are not asking for our fair share under capitalism, we are seeking to destroy altogether a system that is designed to divide and oppress us.”

The Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers stands in full solidarity with the International Working Women’s Day strike.

We call for donations to the UK Women’s Strike Fund, to help offset the costs to women leaving work and attending strike action and women’s assemblies.

Forward comrades, to a red feminist horizon!

Haldane AGM, Elections, & Lecture: "Being a Socialist Lawyer" - 7 February 2019

The Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers AGM will be held on Thursday 7 February 2019 at 6.30pm, at the Universtiy of Law. The AGM will also elect the Officers and Executive Committee of the Society.

There will also be an informal discussion with Executive Committee members about socialist amd the law. Refreshments will be provided, and members will be invited to a social event afterwards.

 

Day of the Endangered Lawyer: 24 January 2019

 

Please join us at the Turkish Embassy at 12:00pm on 24 January 2019 for the Day of the Endangered Lawyer protest.

The Day  of  the  Endangered  Lawyer  is  the  day  on  which  we  turn  the  spotlight  on lawyers  all  over  the  world  who  are  being  harassed,  silenced,  pressured,  threatened, persecuted,  tortured.    Murders  and  enforced  disappearances  as  well  are  not  out  of  the ordinary.  The  only  reason  for  these  outrages  is  the  fact  that  these  lawyers  are  doing  their job, and  fulfilling their  professional  obligations, when  they  are  needed  the  most.  

The  24th  of  January  was  chosen  to  be  the  annual  International  Day  of  the Endangered  Lawyer  because  on  this  day  in  1977  four  labour  rights  lawyers  and  a coworker  were  murdered  at  their  office  address  at  Calle  Atocha  55  in  Madrid.  This  is known as  the  Massacre  of  Atocha.

The  International  Day  of  the  Endangered  Lawyer  aims,  on  the  one  hand,  to  create awareness  that  the  practice  of  the  legal  profession  in  many  countries  involves  significant risks,  including  that  of  being  murdered,  but  it  aims  as  well  at  denouncing  the  situation  in a  particular  country,  where  lawyers  are  victims  of  serious  violations  of  their  fundamental rights  because  they  exercise  their  profession.

 Every  year  on  24  January  lawyers’ organisations  dedicate  this  day  to  the  endangered  lawyers  in  a  particular  country:  2010 Iran,  2012  Turkey,  2013  Basque  Country/Spain,  2014  Colombia,  2015  Philippines,  2016 Honduras,  2017  China  &  Egypt.  The  European  Democratic  Lawyers  (AED-EDL) established  the  Day  of  the  Endangered  Lawyer  in  2010.  Since  then  it  has  been  coorganized  by  AED-EDL  and  the  European  Association  of  Lawyers  for  Democracy   (ELDH)  and  the  foundation  “The  Day  of  the  Endangered  Lawyer”.  Many  other  lawyers’ organisations  and bar associations  have  supported this  project. In  2019  the  Day  of  the  Endangered  Lawyer  focuses  on  the  endangered  lawyers  in Turkey.

There  are  around  78  separate  criminal  prosecutions  and  investigations  against  human  rights  lawyers. Hundreds  of  lawyers  are  charged  within  these  criminal procedures.  Most  of  them  are  under  judicial  control  with  a  ban  from  travelling  abroad  or with the  duty to give  signature  to the  police  headquarter on certain days  of  the  week.   A

In all the cases  which  have been chosen  as  examples (see the attached Report) lawyers  were  accused  just because  of  practising  their  profession.  By  so  doing,  the  Turkish  State  systematically violates  the  UN  Basic  Principles  on  the  Role  of  Lawyers  and  it  is  obvious  that  this violation has  direct  impacts  on the  right  of  defence.  

Haldane Winter Party 13 December 2018

Join us on 13 December 2018

The Haldane Winter Party 2018 will be on 13 December 2018, at Garden Court Chambers.  Advance tickets are £12 (full price) or £8 (student/unwaged/low waged).  Tickets on the door will be £15/£10; we will accept cash or PayPal.

Entertainment, drink and vegetarian food will be provided throughout the night, within your ticket price.

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Early bird tickets are no longer available: tickets can be purchased on the door either below, or with cash.

Ticket Type

Full Price £15.00 GBP Student / Unwaged / Low-Waged £10.00 GBP

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Solidarity Statement Following the Conviction of the Stansted 15

On Monday 10 December 2018 a group of peaceful anti-deportation activists, the Stansted 15, were convicted of offences under the Aviation and Maritime Security Act 1990, a piece of legislation introduced in the wake of the Lockerbie bombing aimed at combating international terrorism. The Stansted 15 prevented the departure of a chartered flight deporting 60 people from the UK to Nigeria, Ghana, and Sierra Leone, many of whom were at risk of great harm if removed.

The charge - endangering safety at an aerodrome - carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. The defendants were initially charged with the lesser offence of aggravated trespass: four months after the protest action, the prosecution amended the charge to the more serious offence of endangering the safety of an aerodrome. The decision to increase the seriousness of the charge, without any change in evidence, appears to be intended to dissuade activists from taking direct action.

Of those who would have been deported on the flight, 11 remain in the UK to have their cases heard, while some have been granted leave to remain. Among those scheduled to be on the flight were recognised survivors of trafficking and slavery who had sought protection in the United Kingdom.

It is a great injustice that it is those who have acted to save lives who have been convicted, rather than those who acted to put people at risk of death and persecution. The conviction of the Stansted 15 is a damning indictment of the Home Office and the UK Government's intolerance of criticism. Instead of reflecting on the hostile environment and what motivated the activists to take direct action, the government has subjected these brave individuals to a long and expensive trial which has treated their actions as equivalent to those of terrorists.

We express our solidarity with the Stansted 15, and all those who take action against the cruel and racist immigration policies of the British government. We support the calls of the Stansted 15 for an immediate end to deportation charter flights, and for a full independent public inquiry into the government’s ‘hostile environment’.

Solidarity Statement for the Stansted 15

The Executive Committee of the Haldane Society along with its president, Michael Mansfield QC make the following statement concerning the Stansted 15:

On 28 March 2017, 15 activists, known as the Stansted 15, physically prevented the departure of a chartered aircraft intended to deport individuals from the UK to Ghana, Nigeria and Sierra Leone. It is the activists’ case that some of the people on the flight were at risk of serious harm if forcibly removed to their home country.

The coming days will see the conclusion of the trial of the Stansted 15 at Chelmsford Crown Court. Originally charged with aggravated trespass, their charges were amended to endangering safety at an aerodrome under section 1 of the Aviation and Maritime Security Act 1990. This law was intended to address terrorist acts and carries a maximum sentence of imprisonment for life. The amendment of the charge risks being a politically chilling decision which dissuades activists from taking direct action; it also associates non-violent direct action with terrorist acts.

The Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers recognises that there is a long and proud history of direct action in the UK which has preceded significant changes in the law and government policies. It is an apt time, on the 100 year anniversary of women winning the right to vote, to remember that the suffragette movement employed direct action.

In April 2018, Amber Rudd, then Home Security admitted that the Home Office used deportation targets.[1] Corporate Watch updated its report on Charter Flights and referred to evidence indicating that immigration officials target certain nationalities for removal in the lead up to a Charter Flight.[2] In June 2018, the Independent Monitoring Boards’ Charter Flight Monitoring Team expressed concern about the use of excessive restraint in Charter Flights.[3] The Independent Monitoring Board also noted that there had been no official response to their report of 2016.[4] In addition, recent government policies have been deemed to unlawfully remove people with a right to be in the UK (for example the Windrush controversy[5] and the High Court decision  finding that the removal of European nationals for rough sleeping was unlawful[6]).

In this context, we express our concern that such serious charges have been laid against the Stansted 15. We express our solidarity with the Stansted 15, and with activists everywhere who put their bodies and freedoms on the line to save others.

[1] 27 April 2018, The Guardian, Amber Rudd was sent targets for migrant removal. Leak reveals, https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/apr/27/amber-rudd-was-told-about-migrant-removal-targets-leak-reveals

[2] 2 July 2018,Corporate Watch, Deportation Charter Flights: Updated Report 2018, https://corporatewatch.org/deportation-charter-flights-updated-report-2018/ 

[3] 12 June 2018, Independent Monitoring Boards, Annual Report of the Independent Monitoring Boards’ Charter Flight Monitoring Team for reporting year 2017,  https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/imb-prod-storage-1ocod6bqky0vo/uploads/2018/06/IMB-Charter-Flights-2017-annual-report.pdf

[4] Ibid para 2.1

[5] 18 July 2018, The Guardian, Revealed: depth of Home Office Failures on Windrush, https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/jul/18/revealed-depth-of-home-office-failures-on-windrush ; BBC News, Home Office ‘was told about Windrush Problems in 2016’, https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-43900697

[6] 14 December 2017, BBC News, Deporting EU Rough sleepers from UK unlawful, High Court rules, https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-42354864; R (On the Application of Gureckis) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2017] EWHC 3298 (Admin)

AGM and Lecture on Neoliberalism and Human Rights

The Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers invites you to join us at the next lecture in our human rights series on 6 December 2018 at 6.30pm. Our speaker, Patrick O’Connor QC of Doughty Street Chambers will be speaking on Neoliberalism and human rights.

The lecture will be followed by our Annual General Meeting. The lecture is open to all, although the AGM is open only to members.

Motions for discussion at the AGM, and candidatures for election, can be submitted up to 72 hours in advance of the AGM, or at the AGM itself.

The lecture will take place at:

Room S101
University of Law
14 Store Street
London
WC1E 7DE

Latecomers are welcome to enter quietly.

 

Free Public Lecture (MANCHESTER): Fracking and Protest

 

The Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers is proud to host this meeting with speakers Richard Brigden and Anna Morris (barristers) and Ewa Barker (anti-fracking activist). The meeting will discuss the defence of protest, injunctions, and campaigning in light of the quashing of the convictions for the anti-fracking protesters - the Preston Road Three - and the resumption of fracking by Cuadrilla.

The meeting will take place from 6pm to 8pm at Garden Court North Chambers, 3rd Floor, Blackfriars House Parsonage, Machester, M3 2JA.

Latecomers are welcome to enter quietly.

Free Public Lecture: Mental Health, Austerity, and Capitalism

 

The Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers invites you to our free public lecture, Mental Health, Austerity, and Capitalism. The lecture will take place on Thursday 29 November 2018 at 6.30pm to 8.30pm, at Room S101, University of Law, 14 Store Street, London, WC1E 7DE.

Speakers:

• Rheian Davies: mental health lawyer

• Daniel Carelli: mental health service user

• Sophie Talbot: Disability Labour national executive member.

Latecomers are welcome to enter quietly.