tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post745335607518619630..comments2024-03-24T23:01:57.640+00:00Comments on The Justice Diaries: Justice Secretary MacAskill turns his back on Scots injustice victims from Edinburgh ‘silent walk for justice’Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-82260737058407692802008-12-07T19:09:00.000+00:002008-12-07T19:09:00.000+00:00Not very inspiring this MacAskill guy is he ? Is t...Not very inspiring this MacAskill guy is he ? <BR/>Is that why he has the position to gum up justice instead of deliver it ?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-64812893327245733472008-12-07T19:08:00.000+00:002008-12-07T19:08:00.000+00:00Yes I find it quite shocking no one bothered to co...Yes I find it quite shocking no one bothered to come out and meet up with the group but when it comes to lawyers Mr MacAskill can do anything he wants as you point out.<BR/><BR/>Wave some money at him and see what happens ?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-35167164650581948462008-12-06T21:49:00.000+00:002008-12-06T21:49:00.000+00:00So we have 129 msps including MacAskill each takin...So we have 129 msps including MacAskill each taking home about 100k a year in salary & expenses and probably a bit on the side and not one of those bastards could spare what 10 minutes to speak to the families ?<BR/><BR/>I'd say much more but you probably wont publish the comment<BR/><BR/>Good think we have the Herald and you around thoughAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-44726180852503015592008-12-06T21:32:00.000+00:002008-12-06T21:32:00.000+00:00MacAskill,As Mr Sweet says,YOUR FIRED!MacAskill,<BR/><BR/>As Mr Sweet says,<BR/><BR/>YOUR FIRED!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-1917638444578619042008-12-06T20:17:00.000+00:002008-12-06T20:17:00.000+00:00a fairly good letter in the herald for you to look...a fairly good letter in the herald for you to look at -<BR/>http://www.theherald.co.uk/features/letters/display.var.2473321.0.foreign_nationals_see_scots_justice_with_all_its_flaws.php<BR/><BR/>Foreign nationals see Scots justice with all its flaws<BR/><BR/>As someone who took part in Thursday's "silent walk for justice" in Edinburgh I would congratulate Julia Horton and The Herald for portraying fairly this event in the newspaper's video, online and print editions. Other newspapers and media missed the point about this event, which was organised by Maria Jansson and Guje Börjesson from Sweden to voice their dissatisfaction at the Scottish justice system's treatment of the death at Prestwick in 2005 of Annie Börjesson, and to give a platform to others who shared their sense of injustice.<BR/><BR/>The Herald pointed out that no-one from the Scottish Government would meet the organisers of the walk to accept a letter to the Justice Minister, Kenny MacAskill.<BR/><BR/>Other media were dominated by the presence of the Megrahi family, and while this family were perfectly entitled to have their say, most of the media concentrated solely on them at the expense of other families taking part.<BR/>advertisement<BR/><BR/>The organisers, Jansson and Börjesson, had made it clear that they welcomed anyone who had a genuine sense of injustice to take part in a silent and dignified walk. They also made it clear that they could not make a judgment on the merits of individual cases, but would take messages from anyone, together with their own, to Mr MacAskill, whom they had long asked to meet.<BR/><BR/>In the absence of Mr MacAskill, Ms Börjesson read out her letter to him to the crowd outside the Scottish Parliament, saying: "We who have walked here today are confident that the talent Scots have for innovation can be utilised to come up with a solution to our needs. One that would offer a human dimension to those who feel a cold and dispassionate justice system has passed them by. Where there is a gap in legislation, we ask you to fill it, and where legislation for appeal exists, we ask that this be carried out speedily. Justice delayed is justice denied."<BR/><BR/>I wish that I shared her confidence in our justice system, but her message carries some weight, coming as it does from a stranger from a foreign land. We Scots who criticise our justice system are often labelled as the "usual suspects" and dismissed accordingly. This is not so easy to do when the critic is an intelligent and articulate Swedish lady who views things from a fresh perspective, having no personal axe to grind other than a wish to see a proper investigation into the circumstances of her daughter's death.<BR/><BR/>I found the following observation on how we are affected by the presence of outsiders in our midst appropriate to Ms Börjesson's comments to Mr MacAskill: "Sociologists have a term for what an outsider does to a society just by being there. The stranger conducts a commonsense inventory'. This is not a conscious act, but just because the outsider has not been socialised into that system they have an effect of making everyone there consider what is the accepted wisdom."<BR/><BR/>Let us hope Ms Börjesson, by her observations and commonsense comments can cause Mr MacAskill to try to see ourselves as others see us.<BR/><BR/>Tom Minogue, Dunfermline.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-33255118581891823572008-12-06T19:14:00.000+00:002008-12-06T19:14:00.000+00:00Quite an indictment of Scotland that not one of th...Quite an indictment of Scotland that not one of those at the parliament even bothered to come out<BR/><BR/>Doesnt that tell you that Scotland doesnt need the parliament after all ???Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-18136951525309485742008-12-06T18:41:00.000+00:002008-12-06T18:41:00.000+00:00Clearly we are electing the wrong people who are t...Clearly we are electing the wrong people who are treating this as a them v us issue so vote them out next time<BR/>Aitken's comment is just plain sick btwAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-37636316071583704602008-12-06T15:06:00.000+00:002008-12-06T15:06:00.000+00:00so not one overpaid politician could be bothered t...so not one overpaid politician could be bothered to venture out of the parliament building to meet the protesters ?<BR/><BR/>hope this wakes some people up about what the ***** really think of the rest of usAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-55620096298068196032008-12-06T01:38:00.000+00:002008-12-06T01:38:00.000+00:00dont you have any decent judges over there who can...dont you have any decent judges over there who can order an inquiry anyway despite what these no action politicians do just sitting around ignoring everyone ?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-26158988898232499852008-12-05T22:40:00.000+00:002008-12-05T22:40:00.000+00:00Too bad for your justice minister who sounds like ...Too bad for your justice minister who sounds like a complete asshole anyway but good linkage with those clips of him saying stuff like he will protect bent lawyers !Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-68524771401492937462008-12-05T21:20:00.000+00:002008-12-05T21:20:00.000+00:00Has Aitken got any kids of his own who have been w...Has Aitken got any kids of his own who have been washed up dead on beaches ? <BR/>oh wait his profile says he is single and 61.oh.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-18493165655471823022008-12-05T20:05:00.000+00:002008-12-05T20:05:00.000+00:00The media have their part to play in all of this a...The media have their part to play in all of this as well. Many publications didn't fairly cover the event, focussing as they did on Mr Megrahi's family. That wasn't the family's fault, and I know no-one on the walk was aggrieved in any way that they had attended - in fact, most of us were delighted. But articles like this one from the Record are just shoddy headline grabbers. Nobody "hijacked" the walk, except those reporters who failed to properly inform the wider Scottish community as to what the walk was really about.<BR/>I'm not saying all of the reporters fall into this category - there was some good coverage as well, but it's the ones like Amy Devine who need to take a long, hard look at themselves.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-69753939061688537182008-12-05T20:00:00.000+00:002008-12-05T20:00:00.000+00:00Coward, quizling, not fit for purpose.....These ar...Coward, quizling, not fit for purpose.....These are just some of the terms which suggest themselves as apt decriptors of Mr McAskill.<BR/><BR/>By contrast, a magnificent effort by all concerned with the March For Justice, time now to take this protest beyond the borders of Edinburgh and Scotland's little parish.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-69730194280308891142008-12-05T19:44:00.000+00:002008-12-05T19:44:00.000+00:00Interesting tone in the Record.Perhaps Bill Aitken...Interesting tone in the Record.Perhaps Bill Aitken would like to face up Dr Jim Swire with all that bile he has stored in his torag belly for victims of injustice.<BR/><BR/>btw is Aitken saying the torags are against victims of injustice because it sure sounds that way !Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-4731444830761466912008-12-05T18:39:00.000+00:002008-12-05T18:39:00.000+00:00http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/20...http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/2008/12/05/families-of-killers-hijack-silent-walk-for-justice-86908-20947187/<BR/><BR/>Families of killers hijack silent walk for justice<BR/><BR/>Dec 5 2008 By Amy Devine<BR/><BR/>FAMILIES of convicted murderers "hijacked" a candlelit vigil to highlight alleged miscarriages of Scottish justice yesterday.<BR/><BR/>The Silent Walk For Justice was organised by Jansson and Guje Borjesson, whose daughter Annie was found dead on Prestwick beach on December 4, 2005.<BR/><BR/>Police said she killed herself, though her parents maintain she was murdered.<BR/><BR/>But media attention at the march focused on the wife of terminally ill Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi.<BR/><BR/>Corrine Mitchell, mother of teen killer Luke, also joined the demonstration.<BR/><BR/>Tory justice spokesman Bill Aitken MSP said last night: "I don't think the demonstrators did themselves any favours having these people at the march.<BR/><BR/>"I doubt if ordinary people think Luke Mitchell and Megrahi are victims of in justice and I don't think this demonstration has any credibility at all."<BR/><BR/>Megrahi, 56, is serving life for the 1988 Lockerbie atrocity which killed 270 people.<BR/><BR/>Last month, he was refused bail pending an appeal - despite having been diagnosed with prostate cancer.<BR/>Lockerbie bomber's wife Aisha on the walk yesterday<BR/><BR/>In Edinburgh yesterday, his wife Aisha urged Scots to consider his suffering.<BR/><BR/>In a statement released by Megrahi's lawyer, Aisha insisted: "He is an innocent and very ill man who is suffering from psychological and physical stress. I ask people to raise their voices in his support."<BR/><BR/>Aisha was joined by her sons Khalid, Mohamed, Moutasim, Ali and daughter Ghana. Campaigners shielded Aisha as they marched down the Royal Mile.<BR/><BR/>Luke Mitchell, now 20, was ordered to serve at least 20 years for the 2003 brutal knife killing of his girlfriend Jodi Jones, 14.<BR/><BR/>He lost an appeal against his conviction in May this year.<BR/>Luke Mitchell's mother campaigns for his release<BR/><BR/>His mother Corrine carried a poster of him through the streets with the message "miscarriages of justice have no voice".<BR/><BR/>She said there was fresh evidence to launch an appeal to free her son and a new legal team had been appointed.<BR/><BR/>Susan Robinson joined the march to protest at the conviction of her childhood friend, ex-soldier Michael Ross - jailed for shooting an Orkney waiter.<BR/><BR/>The wife of cyclist Jason McIntyre, who died after being hit by a van while training near his home in Fort William in January, was present at the demonstration. The family of Kevin McLeod, who drowned in Wick Harbour in 1997, also took part.<BR/><BR/>The walkers had hoped to meet justice secretary Kenny MacAskill but he narrowly avoided the march. A spokesman said: "He has nothing to do with this."<BR/><BR/>Last night, Maria Jansson - Annie Borjesson's best friend - said she was happy that relatives of Magrahi and Mitchell took part. She said: "We are not judging anyone. Everyone was welcome."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-41799580375936943732008-12-05T18:08:00.000+00:002008-12-05T18:08:00.000+00:00Yes MacAskill could have earned himself a little r...Yes MacAskill could have earned himself a little respect by hearing out those people yesterday but as they say if the man has no respect for the people then the people should have no respect for the man, wouldn't you agree Peter ?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-21846324638796914692008-12-05T17:56:00.000+00:002008-12-05T17:56:00.000+00:00Makes disappointing reading Peter,but again, when ...Makes disappointing reading Peter,<BR/>but again, when was there ever compassion in any government recent or otherwise?<BR/>MacAsKill,and others like him will not last long in their priveleged posts, simply, if you live by the sword you die by it too.<BR/><BR/>May the candles burn long after MacAsKill!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-40142554719203352922008-12-05T14:50:00.000+00:002008-12-05T14:50:00.000+00:00News Release - A Silent Walk for Justice...Open p...News Release - A Silent Walk for Justice...<BR/><BR/>Open public message for Kenny MacAskill and Alex Salmond et al...<BR/><BR/>http://shirleymckie.myfastforum.org/sutra2399.php#2399<BR/><BR/>Silent Walk for Justice News...<BR/><BR/>http://news.google.co.uk/news?hl=en&oe=ISO-8859-1&resnum=0&um=1&tab=wn&scoring=n&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=Silent+Walk+for+Justice&btnG=Search+News<BR/><BR/>Annie Borjesson News... <BR/><BR/>http://news.google.co.uk/news?hl=en&oe=ISO-8859-1&resnum=0&um=1&tab=wn&scoring=n&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=Annie+Borjesson&btnG=Search+NewsAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-81783393975910151382008-12-05T14:32:00.000+00:002008-12-05T14:32:00.000+00:00You don't like MacAskill do you Peter ?Well neithe...You don't like MacAskill do you Peter ?<BR/><BR/>Well neither do I, and I am a solicitor myself !<BR/><BR/>His policy of stripping legal aid down to the bone is crippling access to justice and when people eventually need a solicitor they will find there are none around.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20722989.post-33358742162883942982008-12-05T13:40:00.000+00:002008-12-05T13:40:00.000+00:00Yes quite right Peter.MacAskill will give his lawy...Yes quite right Peter.MacAskill will give his lawyer pals what they want but not the rest of us<BR/>Bloody disgusting I agreeAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com