blessed britons

When people call our unwritten constitution a "gentleman's agreement", they reveal more than they intend. It allows the unelected gentlemen who advise the prime minister to act without reference to the proles. Britain went to war in Iraq because the public and parliament were not allowed to know when the decision was made, what the intelligence reports really said, and what the attorney-general wrote about the legality of an invasion. Had the truth not been suppressed, our armed forces could never have attacked Iraq.

— George Monbiot

The Kings of England

mad world

In 2004 rail unions commissioned the labour movement thinktank Catalyst to investigate the financial structure and performance of the railway industry post-privatisation. One report concluded that receipts from fares increased from £2.94 billion to £4.39 billion in 2003. In the same year train-operating companies also received £1.2 billion in public subsidy.

— Unjum Mirza

Public transport: how to get back on track

UN

keep our heads down

Submitted by antarchi on September 5, 2007 - 01:28.

When Indonesia invaded East Timor in 1975, leading to the deaths of around 200,000 people in one of the bloodiest operations in post-war history, Britain in effect supported Jakarta at the UN. Declassified files show that the British planned before the invasion not to condemn the Indonesians and that 'If there is a row in the United Nations... we should keep our heads down and avoid taking sides'. Between 1975 and 1982 there were 2 Security Council Resolutions and 8 General Assembly resolutions condemning the invasion... London abstained on, or voted against, all the General Assembly resolutions, while it provided arms to Indonesia and deepened air, trade and diplomatic relations.

Legality of Iraq war: Philippe Sands

Submitted by antarchi on May 31, 2008 - 00:21.

Extract from Philippe Sands' book Lawless World

By early March the only argument left, the only plausible justification, would be to run the argument that the Security Council had somehow already authorized the use of force.

UN charter

Submitted by antarchi on May 27, 2008 - 15:30.

CHAPTER 1

Article 1

The Purposes of the United Nations are:

To maintain international peace and security, and to that end: to take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to the peace, and for the suppression of acts of aggression or other breaches of the peace, and to bring about by peaceful means, and in conformity with the principles of justice and international law, adjustment or settlement of international disputes or situations which might lead to a breach of the peace;
...

Article 2

The Organization and its Members, in pursuit of the Purposes stated in Article 1, shall act in accordance with the following Principles.

abstaining on territorial integrity

Submitted by antarchi on April 27, 2008 - 12:34.

In late 1965, the UN General Assembly formally called on all states to ‘respect the sovereignty, unity, independence and territorial integrity of Cyprus’ – the high point of Makarios’s efforts to secure the international position of the republic, free from interference by outside powers. Embarrassed to vote openly against the resolution, as too brazen an indication of their intentions, Britain and America made their displeasure clear by abstaining, along with their numerous clientele.

UN Resolution 242

Submitted by antarchi on June 7, 2007 - 02:38.

The Security Council;

Expressing its continuing concern with the grave situation in the Middle East,

Emphasizing the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war and the need to work for a just and lasting peace in which every State in the area can live in security...

1. Affirms that the fulfillment of Charter principles requires the establishment of a just and lasting peace in the Middle East which should include the application of both the following principles:

(i) Withdrawal of Israeli armed forces from territories occupied in the recent conflict;
(ii) Termination of all claims or states of belligerency...