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Terror Bill passed

Friday, 11th March
Blair and Clarke have finally forced their Prevention of Terrorism Bill through Parliament. It will need to be renewed after a year, but it's still the most frightening piece of legislation to go onto the statute books in modern times.

Big Ben

On Monday, the House of Lords voted by 249 to 119 to force changes on the Bill that would require all Control Orders to go before a judge. More amendments were forced on the Bill on Tuesday. The Bill ping-ponged between the two Houses before finally being passed after a thirty-hour debate.

Even with Lords' amendments, the Bill is a gross violation of Civil Liberties. It seeks to punish people not for what they have done, but for what the government thinks they might do. And it provides a licence for the harrassment of people who have committed no crime.

Opposition to the Prevention of Terrorism Bill has been unprecedented. It marks the start of a new stage in the the fight against our government's policies of repression and militarism.

The Bill is due for renewal in a year's time. Let's use the next general election to make sure that our representatives in Parliament will stand up for civil liberties.

"We cannot forgive you if you betray us, and you betray us if you compromise. You betray us if you do not see the excesses of a totalitarian state in what you are asked to endorse."
Message to MPs from Gareth Peirce - Full article in the Guardian