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www.celtic-connection.com
FEBRUARY 2011
DEMONSTRATORS outside the Chilcot Inquiry into the events leading up to the war in Iraq made their voices heard.
Curtain comes down on Iraq war inquiry
LONDON - Jack Straw, the former foreign secretary, brought the public hearings of the Iraq inquiry to an end on February 3 after 21 weeks of hearings and more then £2 million of taxpayers' money.
Straw told Sir John Chilcot and his panel that while some within Tony Blair's government might have wanted regime change to oust Saddam Hussein, this was never UK policy, pointing out how it would have been "palpably illegal."
While there have been times of high emotion, much of the inquiry has been focussed on process. Critics of the war claim the Bush administration had decided by the middle of 2002 to remove Saddam by force, and that the UK was aware of this and had offered its support.
Yet Blair repeatedly denied this, insisting he was trying to persuade the U.S. president to go down the UN route.
However, Sir Christopher Meyer, the UK's ambassador to Washington at the time, highlighted a private meeting between the two men in April 2002, after which Blair began to talk openly about regime change.
Faced with suggestions from two former cabinet secretaries that senior ministers did not know that dealing with Iraq could lead to military action, Straw noted, "They would have to be deaf, dumb and blind not to be aware of this," adding how his colleagues had expressed "absolute astonishment" to him about the suggestion they had been kept in the dark.
Perhaps one of the most remarkable evidence sessions came when Baroness Manningham-Buller, the former head of MI5, described the intelligence on Iraq's weapons threat as "fragmentary," noting, "If you are going to go to war, you need to have a pretty high threshold to decide on that."
She also claimed the Iraq invasion had "substantially" increased the terror threat to Britain, having radicalised some Muslims, who saw the invasion as an attack on Islam.
While the remit of the inquiry was to examine the decisions made, how events unfolded and what lessons could be learned, for some it was about one thing: putting Tony Blair on trial.
The first of the former PM's two appearances showed him uncharacteristically nervous but, by the end, produced a defiant performance. In his second appearance last month he expressed "deep and profound regret" about the loss of life during and after the 2003 war.
While the Chilcot Inquiry is not supposed to be the trial of Tony Blair, it would be inescapable for it not to pass judgment on his decisions, how they were made and highlight any mistakes they believe were made.
It is likely to criticise his "sofa government," where decisions were taken by the ex-PM's inner circle, rather than the cabinet.
Straw defended the method, saying the outcome would not have been any different if Blair had held more formal discussions. "The fact he used soft furnishings rather than hard chairs does not make him a bad person," quipped the former cabinet minister.
It could be that all the money, time and effort expended on the Chilcot inquiry simply has one result: to reinforce people's already held views. One thing is for sure, the controversy over the Iraq war will rage on.
Winding up the proceedings, the chairman, Sir John Chilcot, said completing their final report was a "significant task" which would take "some months."
David Cameron accused
of handing PR coup to UK extreme far right
THE FIRST of the former PM Tony Blair's two appearances showed him uncharacteristically nervous. In his second appearance last month he expressed "deep and profound regret" about the loss of life during and after the 2003 war.
MUNICH - David Cameron was accused of playing into the hands of right wing extremists on February 5 as he delivered a controversial speech on the failings of multiculturalism within hours of one of the biggest anti-Islam rallies ever staged in Britain.
Muslim and anti-fascist groups questioned the prime minister's judgment and sensitivity to the issues, saying he had handed a propaganda coup to the hard-right English Defence League (EDL) as 3,000 of its supporters marched through Luton chanting anti-Islamic slogans.
Some of crowd were jubilant, saying that Cameron "had come round to our way ofthinking."
Downing Street issued a robust defence saying the prime minister was "absolutely unapologetic."
A spokeswoman said the speech had been "in the diary for months." She added, "The idea that he would be blown off course on an issue as fundamental as this by the English Defence League is ridiculous and extraordinary."
Cameron told the Munich Security Conference, attended by world leaders, that state multiculturalism had failed in Britain and pledged to cut funding for Muslim groups that failed to respect basic British values.
He blamed the radicalisation of Muslim youths and the phenomenon of homegrown terrorism on the sense of alienation that builds among young people living in separate communities and the "hands-off tolerance" of groups that peddle separatist ideology.
Just a few hours later, EDL leader Stephen Lennon told the crowd they were part of a "tidal wave of patriotism" that was sweeping the UK.
Activists, some wearing balaclavas and others waving English flags, chanted "Muslim bombers off our streets" and "Allah, Allah, who the fuck is Allah."
EDL supporters from Newcastle, Scotland, London, West Yorkshire and Sheffield joined Luton-based supporters. There were also flags representing German, Dutch and Swedish Defence Leagues.
Nick Lowles, director of anti-extremist group Hope Not Hate, said the timing of Cameron's remarks had allowed EDL members to claim the government was on its side.
"The prime minister's comments were unhelpful. On a day when extremist groups of varying persuasions were descending on Luton, his words were open to misinterpretation at best, and at worst were potentially inflammatory.
"Whatever the intention, the timing of this speech has played into the hands of those who wish to sow seeds of division and hatred."
Mohammed Shafiq, chief executive of the Ramadhan Foundation, said Cameron had handed a "propaganda coup to the EDL and their extremists."
Labour also weighed in, attacking the timing of the speech and rejecting
PRIME MINISTER David Cameron speaking at the Munich Security Conference said that multiculturalism in Britain has failed.
implications from Cameron that it had failed to address issues of Islamic extremism and the complex issues of multiculturalism during 13 years in office.
Former home secretary Jack Straw said it was "ill-timed" and "ill-judged." Former Labour minister Margaret Hodge said, "This is a hugely difficult area. I agree that there are some areas where we need strong assimilation -speaking English and abiding by British law.
"But Cameron appears to suggest we can impose a much wider assimilation
with British values and the danger is that this approach will perversely entrench those separate identities that he wants to meld.
"The state has to be very cautious in using its power to mould cultural values. Comparisons with far-right groups on the day the EDL is mounting a demonstration is needlessly provocative.
"It is not merely the Muslim community's responsibility to combat extremism; we all have responsibilities, particularly to ensure that minority communities do not feel excluded."
Wikileaks reveal British Minister 'advised' Libya on Meg rah i release
LONDON - The British Government is set to publish more official documents on the Lockerbie bomber, after American families reacted with fury to revelations that ministers had advised Libya on his release.
Prime Minister David Cameron has asked Cabinet Secretary Sir Gus O'Donnell to review government papers on Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi's case, with a view to publishing them "shortly."
The UK Government signalled it would act after the publication of Wikileaks' documents that suggested Labour's then foreign minister Bill Rammell wrote to his counterpart in Libya in October 2008 to advise on how Megrahi could be freed from a Scottish prison.
RammelPs letter was sent about a week after Megrahi was diagnosed with prostate cancer and it advised the Libyans that this could lead to his release on compassionate grounds.
The disclosure of the letter has led to claims that its existence undermines the previous Labour Government's
ABDELBASET Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi was released in August 2009.
insistence that it was not complicit in the release of Megrahi.
Pan Am Flight 103 exploded over the Scottish town on December 21,1988, killing 270 people in the air and on the ground. Megrahi is the only person ever convicted over the atrocity.
The diagnosis of terminal cancer led to Scottish justice secretary Kenny MacAskill freeing Megrahi in August 2009 on the basis that he had only about three months to live. Nearly 18 months later, Megrahi is still alive and is living in Tripoli.