PLEASE NOTE VENUE CHANGE
Hundreds will be demonstrating in London on 20 June against Sharia and
religious laws….
Hundreds will be demonstrating in London against Sharia and religious laws
and in support of secularism and universal rights on Sunday 20 June 2010.
The rally organised by the One Law for All Campaign will be held from
1400-1600 hours at Richmond Terrace junction with Whitehall opposite Downing
Street (SW1A 2). (Please note venue change from Trafalgar Square made by
police; closest underground: Westminster.)
On the day, the Campaign will make public its new report entitled: Sharia
Law in Britain: A Threat to One Law for All and Equal Rights. In the report
One Law for All outlines what Sharia law is, how it is practised in Britain
and exposes the way in which Sharia Councils and Muslim Arbitration
Tribunals are circumventing British law and human rights legislation. The
report also reveals the gross injustices to women and children in particular
and reiterates the need to end Sharia and all religious courts on the basis
that they work against, and not for, equality and human rights.
After the One Law for All rally, there will be a march organised by Iran
Solidarity from 1600-1700 hours. The march will move from Richmond Terrace
Junction to a protest at the embassy of the Islamic regime of Iran.
According to Spokesperson, Maryam Namazie, “whilst racist and far Right
groups like the English Defence League and the British Nationalist Party
blame ‘Muslim immigration’ for Sharia law in order to further their inhuman
agenda, it is people living under Islamic laws or the many who have fled
Sharia and sought refuge here who are the principal victims of Islamism, and
in the forefront of the struggle against it. Within this context, the One
Law for All Campaign and the fight against Sharia law in Britain is an
important front in the ongoing battle of people in Iran and everywhere
against Islamism and for freedom, equality and secularism.”
The march will culminate in a protest rally in front of the embassy of the
Islamic regime of Iran (16 Prince's Gate, London SW7 1PT; closest
underground: Knightsbridge). The event will end at 1730 hours.
Notes:
1. Confirmed speakers and performers at the London rally include: AK47
(Street Poet); Asad Abbas (Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain); R Y Alam
(Poet); Adam Barnett (Musician); David
Fisher (Singer/ Songwriter); Lilith (Street Poet); Lyrical Agent (Emcee);
Rony Miah (Lawyers’ Secular Society); Maryam Namazie (One Law for All and
Iran Solidarity); Gerard Phillips (National Secular Society); Naomi Phillips
(British Humanist Association); Fariborz Pooya (Iranian Secular Society);
Brent Lee Regan (Emcee); Yasmin Rehman (Women's Rights Campaigner); Gita
Sahgal (Activist); Muriel Seltman (Activist); Sohaila Sharifi (Equal Rights
Now); Peter Tatchell (Human Rights Campaigner); and others. We will also
screen a segment of a major new film for HBO called For Neda by director
Anthony Thomas.
2. June 20 marks the day when 27-year-old Neda Agha-Soltan was shot dead by
the Islamic regime of Iran’s security forces at a protest in Tehran. Her
demand for freedom in the face of all-out repression has made her a symbol
of people everywhere. According to Maryam Namazie, “It is very apt for us to
remember Neda in our battle for equal rights in Britain or wherever we
happen to live. Neda’s murder and Sharia law in Britain are intrinsically
linked; both are the result of the rise of the political Islamic movement of
which the Islamic regime of Iran is a cornerstone.”
3. To read responses to Frequently Asked Questions, go to:
http://www.onelawforall.org.uk/about/faq/. The responses are entitled:
The affinity between the far right and the Islamists; Islam matters because
of political Islam; Secularism is an important vehicle to protect society;
We will have nothing to do with the English Defence League; Criticising
Islam is not racist; Laws should safeguard rights not violate them; There’s
no place for Sharia law in Britain; The right to asylum is a basic human
right; and many more.
4. To donate to the crucial work of One Law for All, please either send a
cheque to our address below or pay via Paypal by visiting:
http://www.onelawforall.org.uk/donate/. We need regular support that we can
rely on and are asking for supporters to commit to giving at least £5-10 a
month via direct debit. You can find out more about how to join the 100 Club
at the above link.
5. For more information, contact:
Maryam Namazie
One Law for All and Iran Solidarity
BM Box 2387
London WC1N 3XX, UK
Tel: +44 (0) 7719166731
onelawforall@gmail.com
iransolidaritynow@gmail.com
www.onelawforall.org.ukwww.iransolidarity.org.ukhttp://iransolidarity.blogspot.com
Topic: Stand Up and be Counted!