And then they came for me



Date: 25th October 2008

Time: March sets off at 12.30.

Street meeting commences at Grey’s Monument at 1pm

Route: Old Fire Station – Brighton Grove – Stanhope Street – past Government Offices North East to Grey’s Monument



"First, we are strengthening the border. Fingerprint visas are an important part of that; anyone applying for a visa—currently, three quarters of the world's population—now has their fingerprints checked against UK databases....

Secondly, there are e-borders. The pilot scheme for our electronic border system has already checked more than 50 million passenger movements since January 2005, and that has contributed to more than 2,100 arrests for crimes including murder, rape and assault. E-borders will cover 95 per cent. of European economic area nationals, excluding UK nationals who are coming back, by the end of 2010.
Thirdly, we have ID cards. We will be introducing these for foreign nationals next month, to lock people to one identity so that those who are here legally can prove it, and to help to deal with those who are here illegally. By 2014-15, 90 per cent. of foreign nationals, excluding EU nationals, will have an identity card. .... Fourthly, we will have a new single border force with new powers for front-line staff."
Phil Woolas, House of Commons debates,Tuesday, 21 October 2008

"In Germany, they came first for the Communists, And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Communist;

And then they came for the trade unionists, And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a trade unionist;

And then they came for the Jews, And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Jew;

And then . . . they came for me . . . And by that time there was no one left to speak up."

Pastor Martin Niemöller (1892–1984)

This may seem like a dramatic poem to be sending out but it is worth remembering the context of the rise of fascism in Germany in the 1930s. Fascism doesn't occur suddenly, it is a creeping process. Facism doesn't have to call itself the BNP or National Front. It is the process that is important, not the name. We are entering a period of economic crisis and the Government is and will continue to use racism to divide the working class. Whether or not we stand up against this will affect the lives of many people.

Just take Clara, a new TCAR member who will join the march on Saturday. She is a woman who has been imprisoned for 2 years in administrative detention. Her crime? Being an asylum seeker. There are less asylum seekers arriving in Newcastle now than a few years ago, but this is not due to lack of war, persecution and poverty around the world. It is because more people are being detained under the New Asylum Model and fast-tracking system. When she is ready, perhaps Clara can share with us the realities of what she describes as 'torture' in the privately run detention centres. Until then, read Outsourcing Abuse for more information about what is going on. It is little wonder that resistance within detention centres is so high. But those inside have few rights. Out here we still have the right to march and the right to meet. But these shouldn't be taken for granted. We need to stand up for these rights if we want to keep them. So join us on the march!

Solidarity,
Annie (Communications Secretary)