MADAM – From March to September, roughly once a month on a Saturday morning, Amnesty mid-Glos group held street collections in Nailsworth, Stonehouse, Stroud, Minchinhampton, Wotton-under-Edge, Dursley and Painswick, raising £658.70.
We should like to thank everyone who contributed and assure them the money has been sent to Amnesty International UK to help fund its research into human rights abuses all over the world.
Everyone is welcome to attend our monthly meetings which are held at the Star Anise café in Stroud at 8pm on the second Wednesday of the month.
The next one is on Wednesday, October 8, when we shall be calling for asylum support rates to be increased in our country. A cross-party Early Day Motion (EDM) calls on the government to increase asylum support rates to at least 70 per cent of Income Support. These people are fleeing persecution and many are destitute.
Come and get involved. We shall be writing to Neil Carmichael MP and Geoffrey Clifton-Brown MP about this vitally important issue.
You may also want to ask your MP about this face-to-face. Please visit www.amnesty.org.uk for more details if you are unable to come along on the 8th.
We shall also be continuing our involvement in the 'Stop Torture Campaign' by writing to the EU, which is currently reviewing the law which prohibits trade in items used for torture. We shall write asking them not to profit from torture.
As I write these words I am saddened and shocked by the fact that such an action by Amnesty is necessary in the 21st century.
On the brighter note, come along on Human Rights Day on Wednesday, December 10, to Write for Rights: we send greetings cards to Prisoners of Conscience and sometimes their families. There will be more details nearer the time.
If going to a gig to support Human Rights appeals to you, there may be news of one coming up shortly. For more details call 01453 872446 or 07969505488.
We also have a Facebook page and a Twitter account if you’d like to keep in touch.
Carole Oosthuysen
Secretary Amnesty International mid-Gloucestershire Group
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