51 lines
3.2 KiB
Plaintext
51 lines
3.2 KiB
Plaintext
LEVELLING THE LAND
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The Levellers press release on the criminal justice bill
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For some time now the Levellers have been involved with a number of
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environmental protest groups,travellers support groups,squatting support
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agencies, civil liberties campaigners and people who are striving to make life
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in this country more interesting,pleasant and just. Consequently we are among
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the first to realise the serious threat to justice and civil liberties contained
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in the Criminal (In)Justice and Public order bill. The bill if passed will
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*Make a travelling lifestyle a criminal offence * make non-violent direct action
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a criminal offence * privatise the correctional facilities for young offenders *
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remove the right for people who are being evicted from their homes to be present
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at the court hearing that will decide on their future * make attending any
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unlicenced celebratory gatherings a criminal offence * make it legal for the
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police to pull out samples of a detainees hair and search their mouths without
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permission * make it illigal for a jornalist to investigate the activities of
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`terrorists' organisations * change the legislation arond the rigth to silence
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that has been considered fair and just for three and a half centuries,such that
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a detainees silence under interrogation can be used to infer guilt * take the
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control of bail conditions form the courts and give it to the police (this can
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be used to back up measures to criminalise peaceful protest) * make way for
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build up of personal information (including genetic codes) on people who have
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not been convicted of any crime * bring back the prison hulks last seen in
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Victorian times * bring back SUSS laws(stop and search on suspicion) An
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amendment to this section will target certain areas such as Clubs, Festival
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sites and areas within towns and cities such as streets and housing estates.
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Its direct effect will be to increase homelessness, fill the newly privatised
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prisons with young people who have a conscience and increase urban arrests. It
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will not promote justice, clamp down on crime or improve public order.
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Legislation within this bill contravenes international human rights law. This
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legislation is opposed by Libery (National council for civil liberties), Shelter,
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Char (Housing campaign for single people),Shac, Amnesty International, the
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Association of Metropolitan Authorities,Metropolitan Police Federation ,
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GreenPeace,The Green Party,the Advance Party, the Law Society, and numerous
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respectable and peaceful campaigning organisations and all people with a genuine
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conscience who have read the execrable thing.
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A large proportion of the bill is intended to criminalise lifestyles that the
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Tory voters disaprove of. These opinions are not made from an informed position,
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but because ao an irrational fear of the unknown. We would normally expect an
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intelligent government to see through hysterical reactions and take into account
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bigotry and ignorance when forming legislation. This is clearly not the case
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with this bill. Either its proposers are too stupid to realise that what they
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propose sets dangerous precidents and is morally unjustifiable or they are aware
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of this and are sufficiently morally bankrupt ot choose to ignore this.
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