April 2016 Meeting of Sheffield CND
Present: Ann, John, Jonathan, Kath
Apologies: Beryl and Bernard
As will become apparent, there is a big push on at the moment to force the pace on the Trident renewal programme which will soon be before the House of Commons; below are three opportunities to become involved and this offers us a unique opportunity to expose the manifold weaknesses in the proposal at a time when the Government is hoping to make headway with a minimum of fuss.
Correspondence
Drone Campaign Network – details of the recent ‘not guilty’ verdict for activists on charges arising from disruption of DSEI arms fair last September in London where drones were one of the sales points. There is to be a further event at Farnborough Air Show this year July 11th-17th. Billed as a ‘Family-friendly event’ this will also feature drones. Should Sheffield CND re-affiliate to CAAT?
Yorkshire CND – Glastonbury June 21st- 27th 2016 – Yorkshire CND is once again recruiting for volunteers to help with ‘property lock ups’; interested members should approach them without delay as these tend to be allocated quickly.
– PICAT (Public Interest Case Against Trident) A group of activists in Norwich have succeeded in enlisting the support of their Mayor (like our own, one of the ‘Mayors for Peace’) in taking the Secretary of State /Ministry of Defence to court for conspiring to commit a war crime in the Trident renewal programme. The same group is offering us in Sheffield the opportunity to follow their example by releasing to us and other groups where the Mayor is a member of the same group, details of the necessary paperwork and stages involved. Interested members are asked to make contact at the earliest opportunity.
Events
Opinions on Trident Members of the Labour Party are also reminded of the invitation from Emily Thornbury, Shadow Defence Secretary – known for her anti-Trident views – to submit opinions on what Trident offers in terms of security and whether it will ‘aid us in protecting Britain’s security and pursuing the values that guide our foreign and defence policy’. The deadline is April 30th (this Saturday); presumably this can be done via the Labour Party website.
MPs Debate on Trident Replacement: we originally hoped to field a good number of Sheffield MPs though it seems enthusiasm to take part is at best muted. Louse Haigh (new Heeley MP) is keen but unavailable through April and May. The new Labour candidate to replace Harry Harpham has also been approached. Please contact your MP to point out that the issue is a live one and that s/he is invited to make their position clear, preferably by responding to the invitation to the debate.
Chesterfield Mayday, May 2nd. Great line up of speakers and excellent music – for more info look up the facebook page. Shefield CND used to run a CAAT stall here; could we revive this?
Photo Exhibition on Palestine in The Winter Gardens May 15th – 21st CND joins with Sheffield PSC and Labour Friends of Palestine and SCRAP (next meeting at QMH April 28th) to mount PSC’s photo exhibition, preceded by a Naqba memorial event on the 14th.
Conscientious Objectors Day – May 14th 4-5pm, event at Barkers Pool 12 war memorial, organized by SCRAP (Sheffield Creative Action for Peace) who invite all to join them in laying a wreath of white poppies. They also invite contributions for an article about the event and COs in Sheffield for the Star or Telegraph.
Ploughshares A nationwide tour to coincide with the launch of ‘Hammerblow’, a book describing the direct action by 10 women in 1996 to disable a warplane destined for Human Rights abuses in Indonesia in 1996, will feature in this year’s ‘Off the Shelf’ festival (see’Ploughshares’ website).
Finance – Acceptance of Coop Banks terms & Conditions minuted.
Future events
June 6-9th Yorks CND direct action at AWE, Burghfield; all invited –
contact Yorks CND (01274 730 795 or info@yorkshirecnd.org.uk).
June 11th Peace in the Park, The Ponderosa; Matt will organize this.
June 18th Heeley Festival – Stall booked.
July 4th Menwith Hill – American Independence Day.
July 16th Sharrow Festival
August 6th Hiroshima Day
August 7th Peace picnic; to be organized jointly with SCRAP.
Next meeting
Wednesday May 18th, 7.30 pm QMH, St James St. Sheffield S1
Membership list problem: every month there is a problem with about ten emails that bounce back; if you know of any Sheffield or National member who is not receiving their monthly report from Sheffield CND please ask them to contact me.
John Baker, jonjoepeel@icloud.com, 0114 275 6697
Assistant Secretary, Sheffield CND
