EXPOSED: How Israel OCCUPIES British Justice

The sentencing of four young Palestine Action volunteers to a combined total of 26 years and four months in prison is a national disgrace that brings shame on both the British state and the judiciary, compounded by the decision three days later to uphold the prescription of Palestine Action. The Filton four were convicted for criminal damage and in one case for grievous bodily harm without intent during a raid on a factory at Filton near Bristol but they were sentenced as terrorists. The jury was not informed that this would happen. Judge Jeremy Johnson also ruled that the defendants could not tell the jury why they had carried out the action and he barred barristers from reminding the jury of their ancient right to reach a decision based on their own conscience. While the trial was ongoing the media was not allowed to report these restrictions. Had the judge not added the terrorist connection the defendants would have been entitled to parole and would have been released having already spent 18 months in prison. The terrorist connection means the sentences are considerably longer than they would otherwise have been and there will be no possibility of parole until two-thirds of the way through the sentence compared to 40 percent of the sentence for non-terrorist crimes. If, as is likely, the it's highly probable they will have to serve their time in full. As convicted terrorists for decades after their release they will be subject to extremely intrusive restrictions. For example the authorities will have the right to stop and physically search them and their property at any time. Whatever your view of Palestine Action the treatment of these four young people clearly defies all natural justice. For the last three years the Israeli army has been engaged in what is widely recognized as a genocide in Gaza. They've maimed, mutilated and murdered many many tens of thousands of children. That Israel's largest arms manufacturer continues to operate freely in Great Britain is an indelible stain on our national reputation and should haunt Keir Starmer and his two Home Secretaries Yvette Cooper and Shabana Mahmoud to the end of their days. Instead it is four young people who sought to sabotage the machinery of death who must languish in prison for years as terrorists. It's been clear from the first that the treatment of the 25 people arrested for the Filton raid was intended to create a justification for the banning of Palestine Action as a terrorist organization. To that end the judicial process has been manipulated and distorted at every turn. The decision to uphold the prescription of Palestine Action suggests it has served its purpose. In theory the judiciary in the UK is entirely independent of the government but the process of judicial appointments is notoriously lacking in transparency and certainly in Jeremy Johnson the government could scarcely have hoped for a more compliant judge. Would you each stand up please? The use of terror legislation enables the government to bypass fundamental civil liberties that date back to Magna Carta. In introducing the current Terrorism Act in 1999 the then Home Secretary Jack Straw assured Parliament that it would be applied only to those guilty of serious premeditated violence that aimed to create a climate of extreme fear. The actions of the Filton 4 clearly do not fit this description. Straw went on we will have handed the terrorists the victory that they seek if in combating their threats and violence we descend to their level and undermine the essential freedoms and rule of law that are the bedrock of our democracy. That is precisely what has now happened. The Filton 4 will appeal their sentences. It'll give the British judiciary if not the British government a chance to redeem itself. The sentences last Friday were listened to in stunned silence in the courtroom. As the defendants were led down to the cells 30-year-old Leona Cameo sentenced to six years turned and said quietly to hear the birds sing the drones must be silenced. The public gallery erupted in cheers and applause. A furious Judge Johnson ordered it to be cleared. Here at Double Down Newswatch we depend on you. We have no billionaire owners or sugar daddies. It's that which enables us to be fearless and independent in our coverage. If you value independent media and the alternative perspective it provides please do sign up to Double Down News on Patreon and support us in any way that you can.