- Conference
- 2003 National Delegate Conference
- Date
- 24 February 2003
- Decision
- Carried
Conference notes that:
1) Samar Alami and Jawad Botmeh were wrongly convicted in 1996 of conspiracy to cause explosions in relation to the 1994 bombings of the Israeli Embassy and Balfour House and they were sentenced to 20 years;
2) a campaign to have the convictions overturned has achieved widespread support here and abroad, including that of the Palestine Legislative Council and the Palestinian General Delegation to the United Kingdom; 200,000 signatures were collected on a petition in the Occupied Palestinian Territories; a further petition of 4,400 signatures from Britain and a dozen countries was also submitted;
3) Amnesty International is concerned that they have been denied the right to a fair trial and that their convictions are unsafe;
4) new information came to light as a result of David Shayler’s revelations. This new information, issues around the use of Public Interest Immunity Certificates, failure by the security services, the police and the prosecution to disclose other materials at the trial and their admitted errors formed the basis of an appeal. This was dismissed in the Court of Appeal in November 2001 and in December 2002 the House of Lords refused leave to appeal there;
5) Samar and Jawad now intend to take their case to the European Court of Human Rights. There will be a wait of several years. They have so far been in prison for seven years.
Conference welcomes the work of the West Midlands Regional Council in support of this campaign since April 2001 but recognises that the issues it raises are national and not regional ones so meaningful support needs to be in the name of UNISON as a whole.
Conference therefore agrees that UNISON officially sponsors the Campaign for Freedom and Justice for Samar and Jawad.
Conference instructs the National Executive Council to:
a) put arrangements in place so the national union and the West Midlands Region can work jointly on the issue;
b) identify ways to promote the campaign and investigate ways to work jointly with other organizations like Amnesty International, Liberty and Miscarriage Of Justice Organization;
c) in consultation with the campaign, issue at an appropriate time, a branch circular with campaign materials and a financial appeal;
d) offer assistance with publications, and:
e) offer assistance with lobbying and campaigning both within the United Kingdom and in the Council of Europe.
Conference agrees to send its greetings and solidarity to Samar and Jawad.