We Need Your Help.

[amethyst58]

Last night whilst watching the Prime Minister on the news, I thought why don’t we canvass the PM’s Office direct concerning the rights of our drivers being held in prisons abroad?

We have had petitions handed in to Downing Street, we’ve canvassed local MPs about named drivers (in our instance John Vasey), and we’ve organised demo days. Nevertheless, to date we have not yet contacted the PM direct concerning the plight of ALL drivers held in foreign prisons.

I took a look at the PM’s website last night and found, although they suggest that if your enquiry is personal and you want a reply you should write to the PM using snail mail, that “All e-mail messages are read and each month the Prime Minister receives a report on the issues raised, together with a representative sample of individual e-mails.”

Bearing this in mind, I thought that we should try to organise a mass e-mail appeal to the PM direct through the 10 Downing Street website. If every driver/courier takes the time to send an e-mail to the PM about the same topic and containing roughly the same comments, then it will be registered with the PM’s office that there is a lot of ill feeling concerning the way that our drivers are detained and held abroad for “Transportation and Importation”.

Therefore, I am asking now for everyone’s help, for ALL UK DRIVERS HELD IN FOREIGN PRISONS, in sending a mass e-mail containing roughly the following:

“Dear Mr Blair,

I would like to draw your attention to a problem concerning British citizens being held in prisons abroad.

There a large number of British truck drivers currently being held in foreign prisons, either having been charged and convicted with “Transportation and Importation” of illegal substances, or are currently on remand awaiting a trail and sentencing. It is a foregone conclusion in most cases that these prisoners will be found guilty and will face heavy gaol sentences and fines, even though most, if not all, strenuously deny any knowledge of the goods on their truck, or having committed any crime.

I urgently request your help to free these British citizens who are being wrongly detained in European prisons.

These people are in effect “POSTMEN”. They know that they have goods to transport but cannot check what is in the load because it is shrink wrapped and the recipient is within their rights to refuse the goods if the load has been opened. Would we prosecute a postman for delivering a letter bomb?? NO we wouldn’t, so why should these innocent men be prosecuted abroad for doing what is effectively the same job.

As far as I am aware, when these men are originally detained, there is a severe breach of their rights according to the Human Rights Act. They can be held for a number of days without any hot meals, facilities to wash, and access to a competent translator.

Please help.

Yours sincerely”

Here is a link to the 10 Downing Street website’s contact pages: number-10.gov.uk/output/Page821.asp. If you select “Transport and Railways” from the drop down menu and then type your message, we will be making a start.

Please help, every e-mail sent will help.

REMEMBER, THIS COULD HAPPEN TO YOU IF YOU WORK ABROAD.

[danneke]

Amethyst, no disrespect, but, for more than a decade I and others have sent letters and petitions to the various prime ministers and transport ministers also foreign secretaries regarding our men held around the world. There have been demonstrations in London, and lengthy petitions handed into Downing Street at regular intervals. The standard reply is " we do not get involved in other countries judicial systems ".
Good luck with your attempt tho it is always good to know others out there are as concerned as I am about our men. I hope you do not get disillutioned when others feel differently about things. I have over the years gained tougher layers of skin so nasty remarks made against me and the lads do not hurt me anymore.
Danneke. Driver and Families Help Line

[amethyst58]

Danneke, thank you for your reply. I understand everything you’ve said. However, only having become interested/involved because of a family member who was detained on remand nearly a year ago, I wasn’t aware of approaches that had been made to previous prime ministers. I do know about the protest days and petitions that have been handed in.

Anyway, we’ll stay positive and hope that this time it will do the trick. You never know, one day they might just take notice and decide to do something about it.

[truckyboy]

Amethyst…its a great idea…but i would go further than that…how about sending one to that big fat lump called Kinnock…who supposedly tries to represent the british in his role as commissioner whilst drawing huge salaries for him and his wife while on the pretext of working, well lets give him something to do, or if not maybe someone knows who we can contact in the brussels H.Q that will point us in the right direction…another idea is to write to all the companies located in the yellow pages…(each area has its own volume) that works within transport and ask them to sign a petition a swell…the list of opportunities are endless…another very good person to have on board is Vanessa Redgrave, who is a great campaigner of human rights…if anyone knows …she does…and i`ve seen her in action when i met her while transporting the Royal Shakespeare Company on a 6 week European tour…