Issues discussed 10th September:-

Moordown Community Centre (MCC)

MCC have been in contact with plans to reopen next week on 14th September.  Groups will be required to complete a risk assessment – DR has been in contact and MCC and they are devising their own to complete. However, the announcement this week of a maximum of 6 people per gathering has now made us returning next month unrealistic. We will hold a Zoom meeting instead on 8th October.

We did discuss other ways forward, such as adopting the model used by the New Forest group of having a small planning committee (that could be more flexible where it meets) and having bigger meetings with a speaker (which could now more easily be arranged to be over video platforms like Zoom), or “open forums”. The issue of whether, when MCC does reopen fully, we can still have people we don’t know turn up without  “booking in” was also discussed. But with so much uncertainty all ideas remain on the table.

Quiz Night

Sadly this is now unrealistic with current restrictions. Online charity quizzes are popular and can be investigated further. But with no desperate need for funds this wasn’t seen as a priority.

Write 4 Rights

With recent changes in restrictions its hard to predict how amenable the library will be to hosting an event. New practical issues were flagged up – disinfecting pens, maintaining distancing, etc – which will present new challenges if we need to implement. But how necessary would such steps would be?  Organisations vary enormously in how they apply COVID precautions. We will just have to be flexible and adaptable. But we remain hopeful of holding some sort of W4R event.

Speaker on Syria

JW from the New Forest Group had recommended booking the Revd Dr. Andrew Ashdown. She attended a Zoom talk of his on Syria and found it very informative (and well presented).  Whilst the talk will highlight the dire situation and flag up some Human Rights abuses, he is not an “Amnesty specific” speaker. We agreed to try and facilitate this on an evening in mid October or November.

Update

Andrew is agreeable to do this. He sent this information:

“The Syrian conflict: the human impact.”

Revd Dr. Andrew Ashdown has made multiple visits to Syria since 2014, (and visited the country several times before the way) and has travelled extensively in Syria as a guest of local Church communities.  He has visited communities close to the frontlines and most affected by the war, including many internally displaced, and refugees in Lebanon and Iraq.  Last year, he was awarded a PhD for his thesis on Christian-Muslim relations in Syria both before and during the war and the importance of the Eastern Christian paradigm in that dynamic.  His work will be published in a book by Routledge in November for global distribution.  As well as continuing a priestly ministry, Dr. Ashdown is Manager of Good Governance and Advocacy Development for an International Charity.

In this illustrated talk, Andrew will describe the complex, diverse religious and social landscape of the country, some of the realities on the ground during the war, and the human impact of the conflict.  There will be time for Questions and Discussion.

Local Groups Newsletter

DR has received this from AIUK and subsequently forwarded it to those at the meeting. He flagged up two items:-

Marielle Franco mosaic. This was done by the Southampton group by taking photographs walking around the city. The resulting mosaic is now in the Sea City Museum!

Auction of Promises. This was done by the Croydon group as a fundraiser. They put together “offers” by group members, circulated asking for bids, and raised 500 pounds.

DR will seek more information about both of these.

Update:

This is the Croydon groups list of promises

Auction of Promises, Skills and Experiences

1. A £25 Uber voucher
2. A succulent plant in a beautiful glazed pot from Prick, London delivered within the Croydon area
3. 2 tickets and 2 drinks for a Folk and Blues Night at Ruskin House once it re-opens.
4. A picnic by the sea to include transport for up to 2 people from Croydon and a short walk on a date to be arranged.
5. An Irish soda bread loaf, a lemon drizzle cake, a Fair Trade banana loaf and a jar of Fair Trade marmalade delivered within the Croydon area.
6. For those who love walking- a guided trail walk (any distance) on local footpaths-discover some hidden local gems.
7. A £50 Amazon voucher
8. Collection and disposal of rubbish to the municipal skip-one journey. Rubbish must be sorted into plastic, wood, metal etc and be in suitable bags where possible. Items must be able to fit into a small, family car. Paint and toxic or harmful waste will be rejected.
9. Language conversation practice in French or Kiswahili (holiday conversation standard only).
10. £20 Marks and Spencer voucher
11. A number of old National Theatre programmes- 1996-2018-delivered within the Croydon area.
12. A place on a virtual workshop. Details attached. 10 places available.
13. For those who love running a guided trail run (any distance) on local footpaths-discover some hidden local gems.
14. For those new to running an offer to run with you at your local parkrun-or help you to a new personal best. Perhaps you are new to running and want company for a bit of confidence. The person making the offer is not a coach or expert but she is happy to
offer tips or will try to answer questions from her experiences of running between 5-50 miles.
15. Eight scones, jam and clotted cream delivered within the Croydon area
16. A £50 Amazon Voucher
17. Guided tour of Cambridge colleges (free entry to colleges).

From Southampton Group:-

Thanks for getting in touch.   The collage of Marielle was something we had tried with an earlier case.  That was very well received.  When the lockdown was imposed, one of our group suggested we try this idea with a current case.  We took photos every day and sent them to our technical wizard to build into a mosaic.  He tried out three photos and, once we stepped up our efforts to send even more pictures the result was much improved.  I thought Richard Crossfield had sent all three mosaics to all the group working on Marielle’s case.  Just to make sure you get the right information, I’m going to forward your email to Giampaolo, our Chair and technical wizard. He will be able to give you details of the programme he used and can forward the final mosaics to you.

Southampton Groups Mosaic

Campaigns

The latest newsletter from the South America team is on the blog; LP has forwarded the Eastern European newsletter; LF has received a huge amount of information relating to China and will forward. There hasn’t been a recent update on the Marielle Franco case file.

We did reflect that one of the consequences of not meeting up is we haven’t been writing letters, which has been a regular feature of our work. We will all try to rectify this individually.

Finances

As a consequence of not paying out postage or room hire, and no imminent commitments with cost implications, there are no concerns. We also received a donation of stamps earlier this year which would cover any W4R event if we can hold them.

Next meeting

Will be on October 8th pm on Zoom. DR will “host” again as we agreed to pay for a Zoom update to facilitate the speaker (although we will investigate other platforms). This can be cancelled after one month and will only cost 12 pounds. DR stressed he doesn’t want to take over as chair and we should revert to rotating the hosting if online meetings have to persist.

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