We hope everyone managed to get some rest and sunshine over the Summer. As we draw in to Autumn we want to provide you with updates on ongoing international issues as well as updates within UNISON that have a direct impact on international issues.
As always, we welcome feedback and contact from anyone who would like to get more directly involved in UNISON’s work on international issues.
Palestine – the treatment of prisoners
Around 9,500 Palestinians are currently imprisoned with over 3,200 held without charge or trial. The total number incudes approximately 90 women and over 350 minors. The Israeli authorities prohibit family visits as well as inspections by the International Red Cross and other international bodies.
Here is an article where you can learn more about the treatment of Palestinians prisoners from Sahar Francis, a Palestinian lawyer and human rights defender with decades of experience advocating for Palestinians in Israeli prisons: https://www.972mag.com/podcast-palestinians-israeli-prisons-abuse/
Update on the abduction of Nicolas Maduro
In September, in a Manhattan federal court, Venezuelan President Maduro’s legal team took a crucial stand. His lawyer, Barry Pollack, formally filed a motion demanding the dismissal of all charges on the grounds of sovereign immunity. Pollack correctly argued that the US court lacks jurisdiction because, as head of a sovereign state, Maduro is entitled to complete immunity from prosecution in foreign courts. He wrote:
“This unprecedented prosecution violates the absolute immunity from criminal jurisdiction to
which heads of state and foreign officials acting in their official capacities have been entitled for hundreds of years.”
The next key hearing on the motion to dismiss is set for November 17, 2026. The trial has been
scheduled to begin on June 1, 2027, by which time President Maduro would have been
imprisoned in a Brooklyn federal jail for 17 months.
Add your name to this crucial petition today.
Every signature strengthens the global call for justice and the immediate, safe return of Nicolás
Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores to Venezuela.
Something closer to home…
The current drive across Europe towards massive rearmament only reinforces the need to continue to campaign against war, the hikes in defence spending and the inevitable welfare and other cuts that accompany them.
That’s why the Stop the War Coalition has organised a national anti-war tour which will be coming to Brighton at the Friends Meeting House, Ship Street, BN1 1AF on 26th October at 7.00pm.
Speakers include:
- Daniele Obono, French MP, LFI
- Andrew Feinstein, Author and Activist
- John Rees, Stop the War
The meeting will be chaired by Corinna Edwards-Colledge, Brighton and Hove UNISON Branch Secretary.
If you would like to support this meeting, details and tickets are available via this link:
https://www.stopwar.org.uk/events/international-movement-against-war-on-tour-brighton/
West Sussex Pension Committee set to consider its approach to Responsible Investment
The Pension Fund in West Sussex manages some £6 billion of assets, which is the accrued deferred wages of public service workers like you. Where pension funds invest their billions are a matter of life and death in the real world. To find out more about local efforts to improve the West Sussex Pension Fund’s Responsible Investment approach and policy, see the link below.
Report on the Tom Paine Walk in Sussex
On Sunday 30th August around 60 participants and 6 dogs joined the annual Tom Paine sponsored walk from Brighton to Lewes, successfully surpassing their £5,000 fundraising target. The event, a fundraiser for antiwar and antiracist causes, went smoothly, completely bypassing the threatened rainstorms.
UNISON West Sussex’s Grace Eyre Foundation convenor Tim Halpin then gave a short talk about the effects of the occupation on people with learning disabilities in Gaza, sharing a harrowing account of his own visit to Palestine in 1992. The walk’s organisers will distribute the total funds raised equally among the listed causes. Thank you to all who donated and participated this year.
Get involved
We’ll be back with more news soon. Meanwhile, if you want to get involved with the UNISON West Sussex branch, in its international work or in workplace issues, get in touch for a chat through the office on 01243 777636 or office.unison@westsussex.gov.uk