"Road to Guantanamo" arrests - Confirmation

[Voice1]

From Blairwatch:

http://www.blairwatch.co.uk/node/838#comment
While searching through my wallet she asked me whether I intended to do more documentary films, specifically more political ones like The Road to Guantanamo. She asked “Did you become an actor mainly to do films like this, you know, to publicise the struggles of Muslims?”.

She also asked me what my political views were, what I thought about “the Iraq war and everything else that was going on”, whether the Iraq war was “right” in my view.


Attention film makers, don't you dare commit any thought crimes, or attempt dissent against Blair & Co, you'll be accused of "publicising the struggles of Muslims" and arrested. And since when did portraying torture and abuse become an offence?

I am truly ashamed of Blair & Co, and their partners in crime, the Bush regime. When is this all going to end, and when will the international community speak out to condemn these abuses?

You always hear all the rabid right wingers going on about how the UN is taking over the US, but when was the last time you ever heard of a UN resolution against Britain or the US?

[CrazyOrangeCat]

1. poor ole Orwell is doin' backflips in his grave. n/t

[Voice1]

3. Yes, our very own Orwellian nightmre nt

[neweurope]

2. Happened in the EU. I'm ashamed, too,and afraid...

GB is only the spearhead; things will be like this all over the EU.

-----------

Remember Fallujah

Bush to The Hague!

[Voice1]

4. Know what you mean neweurope nt

[tom_paine]

5. Yep. It certainly appears that BushPutinism will soon rule the world

or at least, what was once the Free World.

You Europeans thought you were immune. But everything from Hitler to Dubya shows NO ONE IS IMMUNE.

Your own Nazis and Extreme Right-Wingers are stirring. They have seen the BushPutin plan for crushing freedom and restoring the world to pretty much a pre-1776 existance (ok, maybe they are going to stop at the 1890s, though they may push on to the 1590s), and they are excited.

Plus, Tyrants around the world are probably receiving aid from Bushists seeking destruction of their liberal, weak, democratic governments and replacing them with BushPutinist governments.

Watch yourself. Totalitarian Darkness is spreading like it was 1935.

[Voice1]

6. Finally - media reporting on this today

Don't know whether it's been posted here yet, but the Guardian has this article, a whole 3 days after Craig Murray originally broke the news at his blog:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/guantanamo/story/0,,1714281,00.html

[ohtransplant]

10. Have the police explained what the happened...

that made them "suspicious" as mentioned in the quote below? Not that I expect a legitimate answer from them...



"A spokeswoman for Bedfordshire police, which patrols Luton airport, said that none of the six men had been arrested. 'The police officers wanted to ask them some questions under the counter-terrorism act," she said. "All were released within the hour. Part of the counter-terrorism act allows us to stop and examine people if something happens that might be suspicious.'"

[Voice1]

11. No official press release as yet

This is a list of all their press releases:
http://www.bedfordshire.police.uk/introduction.htm

Given that it's been 3 days since these abuses of power, they're taking their time aren't they.

[ohtransplant]

14. As * would say, "Freedom's on the march."

- right into the abyss it appears!:sarcasm:



Also,

This topic reminds me of some quotes I found here on DU...

I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too much liberty than those attending too small a degree of it. -- Thomas Jefferson

"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein

Let them call me a rebel and I welcome it; I feel no concern from it; but I should suffer the misery of demons should I make a whore of my soul. -- Thomas Paine

[Voice1]

15. Contact Bedfordshire Police Authority

You can contact the Bedfordshire Police Authority at http://www.bedfordshirepoliceauthority.co.uk/PUBLIC/conta.htm

Let them know what you think about people being held purely because they starred in a film depicting scenes of torture and abuse.

[Briar]

7. So now

"publicising the struggles of Muslims" is a terrorist act? And we're not plunging headlong into knee-jerk islamophobia?

How convenient for Bush and Bliar, that this bigotry is growing stronger and ever more irrational and vicious as they plan their next illegal war.

[Voice1]

16. Exactly Briar

That's why every one of us who is against this fascism must contact the Bedfordshire Police Authority to let them know exactly what we think.

[Voice1]

8. Breaking: BBC now reporting on this

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4736404.stm

3 days late, but eventually the so called "liberal" BBC picks up on the story.

[Voice1]

9. Something worrying from the article

From that BBC article:

"Six people were stopped under the Terrorism Act. This is something that happens all the time and obviously at airports and train stations," said a spokeswoman.

We need full disclosure on exactly how many times these abuses of power have happened.

http://www.writetothem.com

[Monkey see Monkey Do]

12. 400+ times at the Labour conference

per that Walter Wolfgang "30 Minutes" on Channel 4 last week, including one bloke who was wearing an anti-Blair T-shirt. Bloody fascists.

(Another thing I learnt from that doc I didn't know - of the three people who removed him that we were told were "private security", two were Labour councillors & one was a member of the party for 20 years.)

[Voice1]

13. It's an absolute disgrace isn't it

How do these people walk around talking about "spreading freedom and democracy" with a straight face? They're laughing at all of us, and all of our rights.

[Voice1]

17. Between 1 and 6 held like this at Luton airport every day

That's according to Bedfordshire Police's website, which now has this press release:

http://www.bedfordshire.police.uk/introduction.htm

Bedfordshire Police can confirm that four people were stopped and spoken to on arrival at London Luton Airport on February 16, 2006, under the Prevention of Terrorism Act.

A man, who was one of a party of six, was stopped first by Bedfordshire Police Special Branch officers having passed through immigration, three others travelling with him were stopped shortly afterwards. The two remaining people in their party had already passed through the airport and continued on their journey.

The four men were invited to a nearby room where their identities were confirmed and questions about their journey and reasons for travelling established. This was done under the Prevention of Terrorism Act, which is legislation regularly used by police officers working at London Luton Airport.

The men had left the airport within an hour of their being spoken with and no further police action has been taken.

No complaints have been made to Bedfordshire Police regarding this incident at this time. (There will be complaints made) A Bedfordshire Police spokesperson said: “Stopping and checking people in this way is part and parcel of police work both at the airport and across Bedfordshire as a whole. Gathering intelligence and information under the Prevention of Terrorism Act and other legislation ensures we remain vigilant when it comes to preventing and detecting crime as well as providing reassurance to those people entering into and living in Bedfordshire and the UK.”

Also note, no apology.

[muriel_volestrangler]

18. It's ironic that their images for anti-homophobic and anti-racism links

Look more like "Big Brother Is Watching You, but he is an Equal Opportunity Employer" to me.

[Voice1]

19. Yes, "Big Brother is an equal opportunities employer" apparently

Also interesting, according to this article, from a local newspaper, the Bedfordshire Police were ranked as the best behaved in their region:

http://www.thecomet.net/content/comet/news/story.aspx?brand=CMTOnline&category=News&tBrand=herts24&tCategory=newscomnew&itemid=WEED26%20Jan%202006%2011%3A10%3A13%3A810

According to the latest figures from a report on professional standards by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabularies, there were 293 complaints against Bedfordshire officers between April and December last year.Meanwhile, Hertfordshire, which has one of the largest forces in the region, is third highest in the complaints league with 526 complaints over the same period. Top was Norfolk with 665 complaints.Congratulating the Bedfordshire force, Sue Alexander, chairman of the authority's professional standards committee, said: "This is very positive news and proves we do not tolerate corruption or poor conduct of any kind within Bedfordshire police.



I'd hate to see what the police officers of Norfolk get upto!

[Clara T]

20. Here's the actual military insignia at Guantanamo

[Voice1]

21. Seriously? nt

[Clara T]

22. Yes n/t