Vigil to remember Ian Tomlinson

I attended the vigil in remembrance of Ian Tomlinson tonight around the Royal Exchange organised by his family. Firstly, the organisers were refused permission by the cops to allow the PA system be used as it was something about electricity/cables. It had been originally agreed by a one of the cafes to allow the organisers to use the electricity supply for the PA. But the cops scuppered that one for reasons  unknown (the cops were lurking in the background as well)!!

So we had to make do with a megaphone.

Samantha Rigg-David and Marcia Rigg-Samuel

Speakers included Julia Tomlinson and son Paul who made spoke poignantly and powerfully about Ian. Jules Carey, their solicictor, spoke about the events of the 1st April, the ongoing investigation and how the family have been failed. Jules spoke about how the media latched onto Ian’s ill health as a distraction from what happened to him (kind of reminded of how similar it is to the death of Cynthia Jarrett where much was made of her health problems as a distraction from her actual death at the hands of the police).

Vivian Figueiredo

Solidarity was shown by other relatives of people who have died in police custody Samantha Rigg-David and Marcia Rigg-Samuel spoke about their brother Sean who died in Brixton police station August 2008 and still experiencing an uphill struggle to find out why and how he died.

John McDonnell MP

Vivian Figueiredo, cousin of Jean Charles de Menezes, spoke about the importance of solidarity. John McDonnell MP made references to Southall in ’79 with the death of Blair Peach by the SPG and how lessons were not learnt.

Julia Tomlinson

I found the vigil powerful and very emotional especially with people holding candles. People killed by the state yet their families fight an uphill struggle to find out the truth, battling an unaccountable system. I have nothing but admiration and respect for the courage shown by countless families and friends who battle and struggle.

It has a personal dimension for me as I have been close to people who have died in the custody of state and only recently I met Marcia and Samantha Rigg who went to the same school as me as a kid. I remembered their brother Sean as well. I hadn’t seen them for over 30 years so it came a shock to meet them again in these appalling and shocking circumstances.

Justice and solidarity.

Kevin’s report here.

Candlelit Vigil to remember Ian Tomlinson tonight

I will be attending the vigil to remember Ian Tomlinson this evening.

The family of G20 protest victim Ian Tomlinson are due to lead a candlelit vigil to remember his death.

Mr Tomlinson, 47, died after he was pushed to the ground by a police officer during clashes in the City of London that marred the meeting of political leaders on April 1.

His widow Julia and stepson Paul King will address supporters at the event in Royal Exchange, in the shadow of the Bank of England.

They will be joined by MP John McDonnell, their solicitor Jules Carey and the family of Sean Rigg, 40, who died in custody at Brixton police station in August last year.

Mrs Tomlinson said: “Ian died in tragic circumstances, an ‘innocent passer-by’ trying to get home, after a police assault at the G20 protests.

“Eight months on our family are preparing for our first Christmas without him and still waiting for justice.

“We have been grateful for public support this year and would like an opportunity to hold this public memorial gathering to remember Ian, with our friends and supporters around us.

“We ask that those who attend please wear black as a mark of respect and remember that this is peaceful event.”

The Tomlinson family have lodged a fresh complaint with the Independent Police Complaints Commission, claiming a senior Metropolitan Police officer misled those investigating his death as part of a “cover-up”.

Mr King said the unnamed officer alleged Mr Tomlinson fell to the ground before he was struck by an officer and pushed to the ground.

TUC: Half a million fewer workers earning overtime pay

Very grim reading from the TUC that exposes the continuing realities of the recession.

The number of people working paid overtime in the UK has fallen by nearly half a million in the last year to just under four million, a TUC analysis of official figures reveals today (Friday).

Official data shows that in Summer 2009, 15.8 per cent of employees in the UK earned paid overtime, a fall of 1.5 percentage points since Summer 2008. Employees were working an average of six and a half hours paid overtime per week this year, a fall of 12 minutes on 2008.

And

Workers aged 20-24 have experienced the sharpest fall in overtime – 15.9 per cent of young people earned overtime pay in 2009, compared to 20.1 per cent in 2008 – a fall of 474,000.

Brendan Barber says: 

While many in the City look to their stocks and bonuses as a barometer of the health of the economy, having enough hours of work and overtime pay matter far more to millions of workers and their families. Falling unemployment, decent pay rises and the revival of overtime pay are the issues that ordinary workers will use to judge whether our economy has truly recovered.

So just what is the TUC strategy in pushing for these demands of decent pay rises, paid overtime and so on?

Morning Star article on women and the pay gap…

Rape victim failed by cops

A woman’s allegation of rape was not investigated because her case notes were left under piles of paperwork on a detective’s desk, the Guardian has learned.

The error was spotted when she phoned the force two months after the complaint in December 2005, and by that stage, crucial CCTV footage that would have shown the attacker forcing her to a cash machine after the assault had been destroyed.

Last night experts and campaigners said the case could lead to more women using the Human Rights Act to hold the police to account for failing to take rape complaints seriously. The woman, who suffers from bipolar disorder, has accepted £3,500 compensation to settle out of court and two officers have been disciplined .

Furthermore

One of the two experienced officers disciplined later accepted the allegation ranked at least a nine out of 10 in terms of seriousness, saying he had made a “grave error” in not recording the crime or sending an investigator to see the victim.

The second officer was judged to have not been “conscientious and diligent” in her inquiries. Both said the woman’s mental health had not affected the way they investigated her case.

But campaigners said research suggested a higher proportion of rapes reported by victims with mental illness ended up being “no-crimed”. “This case reflects a concerning attitude among police to rape itself and to women with mental health problems,” said Ceri Goddard, Fawcett Society chief executive.

I have met many many women when I was involved in the mental health user movement who had experienced sexual assault and rape. Many times these women didn’t tell anyone because of the fear of being disbelieved because of their mental health history and even when a woman plucked up the courage and strength to tell someone again their mental health history was flung back at them with something about being an unreliable witness ‘cos women with mental health problems obviously ’can’t tell the difference between fact and fantasy’! If that’s not misogyny then I dunno what is…!!

When it comes to sexual violence women are being let down time and time and time again by the police and the judiciary system. It is an absolute scandal. 

There is a major problem with reporting, evidence gathering and conviction rates for rape. We are seeing an increase in blaming the woman ‘cos she was drunk, ‘cos she had been a willing participant, and so on. Or disbelieved/not taken that seriously ‘cos she had mental distress.

And rape crisis centres are disappearing due to lack of funding and other support centres that deal with sexual violence are being starved of funding. There are, shamefully, 50% less rape crisis centres now than in 1985. Only 5% of rapes ever end in conviction.

Sexual violence is wedded in the patriarchal capitalist order. At least we have an awareness to challenge and counter these myths prevalent in this society but that too is an uphill struggle.