Issue 15-07-2011
Featured story
Seeking peace in Sierra Leone
When Abdul Kamara was asked by his friends in civil war-ravaged Freetown, Sierra Leone, to join the rebels and fight, in 1998, his reply was emphatic: ‘No. I believe that fighting and war are wrong.’ As a result of his stance Abdul was tortured and imprisoned by both sides of the...
Top stories
A near-death experience
I am of the opinion that near-death experiences (NDE) are worthy of serious consideration among people who are concerned about violence and cruelty, for example, those involved in Quaker peace work.
Managing money
Recently I have read Treasure Islands: Tax Havens and the Men Who Stole the World by Nicholas Shaxson. He defines a tax haven as ‘a place which seeks to attract business by offering political, stable facilities to help people or entities get around the rules, laws and regulations of jurisdictions...
Court battles over ‘right to protest’
Quakers are among a group of campaigners facing court this month for their part in a protest at Fortnum & Mason in March. The Friend understands that there are at least two Quakers among the 145 people arrested after a sit-in at the London store. The protestors began to appear...
Back in the trenches?
Last Thursday will go down in the history books as a milestone in the history of conscientious objection. After sixty years, the European Court of Human Rights at last ruled unequivocally that the right of conscientious objection to military service is protected under the European Convention on Human Rights and...
Mapping our journeys
I recently enjoyed participating in a Woodbrooke course that explored the issues arising from Karen Armstrong’s book The Case for God. We heard from Timothy Peat Ashworth, Rachel Muers, Harvey Gillman, David Boulton and Alex Wildwood, both individually and also in dialogue with one another. There were opportunities for...
All articles
Letters - 15 July 2011
Legal aid Thanks to Alan Bean for his lucid and powerful article on changes to the legal aid system (8 July). Friends are rightly concerned about the effects of many of the proposed government spending cuts; but Alan helps me to see that this one has a unique character, being an...
Eye - 15 July 2011
Cultivating peace In an old walled garden near the centre of Seaford a twelve-foot-tall figure stands amid the shrubs. At one side of the path letters carved in stone prompt us to ‘walk cheerfully over the world’ while on the other side of the garden a tablet urges us to â€...
Whither Next?
We train them to fire bullets that we have sold them And wonder why they kill the rioting crowd.
British Quaker arrested by Israeli authorities
An eighty-three-year-old British Quaker has been arrested by Israeli authorities while trying to visit Bethlehem. John Lynes, a Hastings-based Quaker, is one of sixty-nine international visitors who were arrested while attempting to enter the West Bank in response to invitations from local residents. The charges against them remain unclear. John...
Weapons sold to Bahrain
Business secretary Vince Cable is facing legal action over the sale of weapons used against peaceful demonstrators in Bahrain. Armoured vehicles made in the UK were sold to Saudi Arabia and deployed when Saudi forces entered Bahrain to help the country’s regime to suppress dissent.
Methodists warn against ‘Big Society’
Britain’s Methodists have warned that David Cameron’s ‘Big Society’ initiative could end up fuelling poverty and division. The coalition’s economic policies came under repeated attack during the annual Methodist Conference, held in Southport last week. ‘Not everyone will be able to join in the Big Society...