Mark Enters His 8th Year of Wrongful Imprisonment

JUSTICE FOR MARK BARNSLEY
CAMPAIGN BULLETIN-AUTUMN 2001
 
The Struggle for Justice Goes On
As Mark Enters His 8th Year of Wrongful Imprisonment.
 
In our last bulletin (early summer), the Justice for Mark Barnsley Campaign 
announced that weíd be holding a demonstration outside the Home Office in 
London on June 8th, the 7th anniversary of the Pomona Incident.
    The demonstration coincided with  the inauguration of  the new 
government and was therefore a chance to let the incoming Home Secretary 
David Blunkett know that our demand for justice for Mark would haunt him as 
it has his predecessors. Over 50 people with banners and placards attended, 
including supporters from the Satpal Ram Campaign and the Justice for Harry 
Stanley Campaign and after a noisy demo outside the Home Office, we marched 
to Downing Street. Anyone who wants an insight into the extent of media 
self-censorship in the UK should note that the press pack outside Downing 
Street asked the police to move us on becasue we were making too much noise 
and interfereing with their filming of the door of number 10! Nevertheless 
we made our point and would like to thank everyone who showed their support 
on the day, particularly those of you who travelled from outside London to 
show solidarity with Mark as he entered his 8th year of wrongful 
imprisonment.
    As in previous years, on June 8th supporters overseas also showed their 
solidarity with Markís struggle for justice. In Spain for example, a group 
of about 30 people gathered in front of the British embassy in Madrid with 
banners demanding ëJusticia para Mark Barnsleyí. Despite a heavy police 
presence, including a helicopter hovering above, some people tried to throw 
leaflets inside the embassy. Later the picket moved to a busy train station 
in Madrid where passersby were told about Marksí situation. In Luxembourg a 
solidarity concert was held in support of Mark. Information leaflets were 
handed out and people discussed his case between the bands. Similarly in 
Malta a well-known local band dedicated their concert to Markís struggle, 
followed by coverage in their national press. All over the world people were 
also busy sending faxes, e-mails and letters to the British government 
demmanding justice for Mark Barnsley.
 
The Protests Continue.
On July 5th, Determined to let  Blunkett (a Sheffield MP) know that the 
injustice done to Mark (a Sheffield man) would not be forgotten, supporters 
in London picketed Blunkettís speech to the National Probation Service 
Conference. Blunkettís staff and the conference centre management showed 
their commitment to fredom of speech by trying to get the police to move us 
on before Blunkett arrived. We refused to leave and eventually it dawned on 
Blunkettís PA that footage of demonstrators being bundled into police vans 
outisde his first big speech wouldnt do his image any good and he was forced 
to walk past the demonstration.
 
 
MARK MOVED TO HMP WHITEMOOR.
On 5th of October Mark Barnsley was moved to High Security, Whitemoor prison 
in Cambridgeshire. His new address is:Mark Barnsley WA2897 - HMP Whitemoor, 
Longhill Road, March, Cambs, PE15 OPR, England.
As soon as we have further information about Mark's current situation we 
will let you know.
 
Those of you with e-mail/internet access will have been informed over recent 
months about some of the following developments in Markís situation.
 
The victim of a gross miscarriage of justice, Mark has steadfastly refused 
to collaborate with the system since his wrongful imprisonment over 7 years 
ago. Instead of doing prison work he has spent his time constructively, 
working on the campaign to overturn his conviction and clear his name, 
supporting other prisoners and doing education classes when possible.
 
According to the prison service, the reason prisoners are given work is so 
that they can learn a trade as part of their rehabilitation. In theory, 
increasing their chances of getting a job upon release. At Wakefield Prison 
however, prisoners either make prison uniforms or do extremely tedious 
packing work for a private company based in South Yorkshire called Hepworth 
Building Products. In return for working 25 hours per week they are paid 
from nothing to £5 (yes thatís per week). Even with bonuses, prisoners are 
paid a maximum wage which is less than 10% of the minimum wage paid to 
workers on the outside. No wonder private companies are eager to exploit 
this captive workforce.
 
In July, Mark was told he was being allocated to the prison workshop. 
Knowing that he would refuse to work on principal and therefore face a 
charge and segregation, the campaign urged supporters to protest to the 
prison authorities over their practice of forced labour. We also urged 
people to protest to the private company which exploits cheap labour at HMP 
Wakefield.
 
By Friday 3rd of August, as International support for the protests 
increased, a number of Markís supporters took the initiative by deciding to 
take a more direct form of action to highlight his situation. They invaded 
and shut down Hepworth Building Products site in Doncaster, South Yorkshire. 
About 30 people invaded the site - locking the main gates and disrupting the 
lunchtime shift-change. Quickly knocking up banners and some leaflets on 
Hepworthís copier to distribute to workers with details of the companyís 
exploits. The action disrupted the warehouse and offices for about 2 hours. 
The fire brigade were called to cut through the locks on the gates but 
turned around and departed to cheers after it was explained to them what the 
protest was about. According to one of those involved: ìIt was only a small 
action, but considering it was relatively spontaneous it was a great 
success. There were no arrests, the workers were mostly  supportive and 
seemed to know nothing of their companyís involvement in prison labour.î  
Another participant says: ìOutside we waited in the pissing rain with our 
soaking banners for the police to cut the locks, which were luckily too 
sturdy... some children came over with warm clothes to lend us. The 
passers-by; children and adults; and the workers; were incredibly 
sympathetic. The fire brigade were summoned by the police and on arrival, we 
talked to them about taking a role in political activity. The firefighters 
then decided  they couldnt obey police orders without their area manager 
being there. Finally the locks were blowtorched off by the company itself. 
We cheered the firebrigade for not scabbing as they drove off waving, left 
the childrensí clothes,and left with no arrests.î
 
Shortly after the occupation of Hepworths, Mark was segregated at HMP 
Wakefield for ìrefusing to workî. Later on the same day he was suddenly 
given a Good Order And Discipline (GOAD) notice saying he was ìUnder 
investigation for activities likely to undermine the good order of HMP 
Wakefieldî and would be held in segregation for 28 days. By coincidence (?) 
an article/letter co-signed by Mark had just been published in the radical 
newspaper FRFI! two days before (see opposite page). The prison would give 
no further details about Markís segregation, despite letters from his legal 
team. A protest picket was quickly organised by the campaign outside the 
Home Office in London.
 
By mid-August, after spending 2 weeks in Wakefield prisonsí Segregation 
Unit, Mark was suddenly moved to the Segregation Unit at nearby HMP Leeds 
where he remained for a further 7 weeks until his latest move to HMP 
Whitemoor.
 
 
Prisoners in Britain call for Solidarity Action with Turkish Hunger 
Strikers.
 
On 30th June, 22 year old Zehra Kulaksic died following 221 days without 
solid food. She was the fifth person to die on the hunger-strike being 
staged by TAYAD (the Association of Families and Friends of  Political 
Prisoners) in solidarity with Turkish political prisoners.
    By 11th of September the total of those who have either died on the 
death-fast or were murdered by the Turkish State during its vicious 
onslaught against protesting prisoners on 19 December 2000 rose to 64. The 
prisoners are continuing their protest against the regimeís attempts to 
destroy them by confining them to isolation cells in the new repressive 
F-type prisons.
    Prisoners across Europe (Germany, Holland, France, Austria, Greece, 
Belgium, Spain, France, Ireland...) are increasingly showing  their 
solidarity with the on-going struggle of the Turkish prisoners. At the end 
of  June 2001, Mark Barnsley (then at HMP Wakefield) and John Bowden (HMP 
Bristol) issued the following statement in support of the prisonersí 
struggle in Turkey :
 
Fellow prisoners,
Many of you will be following the courageous life and death struggle 
currently taking place in the Turkish prisons. In the F.I.E.S. isolation 
units of Spain (equivalent to our CSC units) prisoners have recently 
launched an initiative in support of the Turkish prison struggle and in 
support of their own 3 demands. This initiative, which is supported by 
prisoners in France, Greece and by Basque and Kurdish prisoners, is in the 
form of a hunger protest on the first Saturday of each month. The three 
demands of the F.I.E.S. prisoners are as follows:
1. An end to the F.I.E.S. units.
2. An end to ëdispersioní, whereby prisoners are moved away from their 
families.
3. The release of all terminally ill prisoners, and those who have spent 
more than 20 years in prison because of their political beliefs and militant 
attitude.
    In solidarity with our comrades in the Turkish prisons and those 
fighting for justice throughout the world, we propose the launch of an 
initiative along the same lines as the Spanish prisoners -  A food strike on 
the first Saturday of every month.
    Since the Whitemoor and Parkhurst escapes of 1994 and 1995 there has 
been a concerted attempt to crush the British prison struggle once and for 
all, a war of attrition the State has all but won. By making this simple act 
of solidarity we are taking the first step towards renewing the struggle and 
asserting our humanity and our defiance.
    Like the F.I.E.S. prisoners we are proposing 3 reasonable and achievable 
demands of our own:
1. A minimum of one hourís daily exercise in the open air - It is appalling 
that at a time when prisoners are once again being locked 2 and 3 to a cell, 
the statutory allowance of daily exercise has been reduced to only half an 
hour.
2. The right of all prisoners to wear their own clothes - Twenty years after 
Bobby Sands and his comrades died on hunger-strike, the right of prisoners 
to wear their own clothes is still not enshrined in the prison rules. 
Because of this, governors regard the wearing of civilian clothes as a 
ëprivilegeí that can be withdrawn at any time. This is increasingly 
happening with prisoners placed on ëbasicí.
3. The abolition of compulsory prison work - We are currently seeing the 
growing exploitation of prisonersí labour by private companies and by the 
State. If prisoners choose to work in return for remuneration they should 
have that choice, but compulsory work is nothing less than slavery.
    These are the three demands that we propose. We ask that all militant 
prisoners, all those who have not been crushed by State repression, all 
those not bought off by the arse-lickers charter of the ëIncentives and 
Earned Privileges Schemeí, all those who have an instinct for solidarity and 
the courage to stand up against oppression support this proposal. Our 
numbers may be few but they have the potential to grow. Spread the word. 
Support the protest. The fightback starts here.
 
Mark Barnsley
John Bowden
 
Just 2 days after the above statement was published in Fight Racism, Fight 
Imperialism! (FRFI!), Mark was put in segregation at Wakefield Prison (see 
above).
 
 
New Campaign Support Group in South Yorkshire.
In July, campaign supporters in South Yorkshire organised a public meeting 
in Rotherham. A presentation of Markís case was given and the organising of 
regular campaign activities discussed. Most people at the meeting seemed 
willing to get involved in different aspects of the campaign.  Since the 
meeting information stalls have been held in Sheffield city centre and other 
local venues and due to the interest from the public, are set to become a 
regular event. The campaign had an information stall at the Mark Thomas gig 
in Sheffield on October 2nd. Future South Yorkshire campaign meetings are to 
be held monthly. Justice for Mark Barnsley South Yorkshire can be contacted 
by e-mail at: JFMBSYORKS@aol.com or via the campaign postal address in 
Huddersfield.
 
 
Announcing a New Justice for Mark Barnsley Book.
We are now proud to anounce that our new 92 page book ëIn the Hands of the 
Enemy : Mark Barnsleyís Struggle for Justiceí is now available. The book is 
a fully illustrated collection of writings by Mark, his family and a broad 
range of his supporters and fellow prisoners. Designed to give the reader a 
fuller understanding of Markís case and his long campaign for justice, the 
many varied articles also give valuable insight into miscarriages of 
justice, the prison system, Markís long history of political activism and 
his connection to the wider struggle for justice. This book is powerful 
reading.
 
IN THE HANDS OF THE ENEMY
Mark Barnsleyís Struggle for Justice
With an Introduction by former Political Prisoner John Barker
 
Published by
Justice For Mark Barnsley. Available October 2001. Paperback, 92 pages, 
Illustrated.
 
£6 (includes post & packing). Folks on our mailing list see below.
ISBN: 1-873605-89-7
 
"Mark Barnsley is one of Britainís ësecretí political prisoners, a hostage 
of the State. In 1994 he was attacked by 15 middle-class students, and ended 
up sentenced to 12 years in prison for supposedly attacking them. This was 
no ëaccidentalí miscarriage of justice, but a calculated move by the British 
State to ëtake outí a political activist, a long standing thorn in their 
side. In The Hands Of The Enemy takes over where Beaten Up, Fitted Up, 
Locked Up, the first Justice for Mark Barnsley pamphlet, left off. Using 
articles written by friends, comrades, fellow-prisoners, and by Mark 
himself, In The Hands Of The Enemy tells the story of a political prisoner 
described by Prisons Minister Paul Boateng as ìa major ringleader for 
prisoners unrestî, and exposes the depths that the State will go to to deal 
with itís enemies. If, no matter how light-heartedly, youíve ever classed 
yourself as an enemy of the State, you should read this before itís too 
late, and you too find yourself In The Hands Of The Enemy. " - From the back 
cover.
 
ìThis book will arouse indignation against a system which can treat ordinary 
people in such a way. It will also inspire others to take up the campaign 
for justice, not only for Mark Barnsley, but for victims of miscarriages of 
justice everywhere.î  Direct Action , Autumn 2001.
 
ìThe critical articles on what prison conditions are - and what our rulers 
are planning for them to be - mean this book is indispensable for anyone who 
believes in a freer or fairer society. Anyone who believes in revolutionary 
change would learn a lot from this book: this is not just a warning of what 
the state can (and will) do, but also an inspiring account of revolutionary 
principles in action.î  Bulletin of the Kate Sharpley Library.
 
ìEach day Iím held within the clutches of a thousand tyrants, big and small, 
who continue to do everything they can to break me. The abuses that I am 
subjected to should be condemned, and loudly, but ultimately they will make 
no difference, they will certainly never achieve their aim of bringing me to 
my knees. I remain defiant, and will continue to fight for justice until my 
dying breath.î Mark Barnsley, Wakefield Prison.
 
Support Markís Campaign by calling your local bookshop/library and asking 
them to stock In The Hands Of The Enemy. Order In The Hands Of The Enemy by 
post direct from Justice for Mark Barnsley. Please make cheques/Postal 
Orders payable to: ëJustice for Mark Barnsleyí.
 
Supporters of the campaign, currently on our mailing list, can order the 
book directly from us at the cheaper price of £5 per copy (Orders from 
outside Europe add £1 for postage). We realise that not everyone has money 
to spend on books, so why not pop down to your local library and ask if 
theyíll stock the new book (or our first pamphlet - Beaten up, Fitted Up, 
Locked Up) that way more people will get to read it.
 
More good news! The compilation music CD ëOne Law For Them, Another Law For 
Usí is due to be pressed. The CD will be sold to raise much needed funds for 
the campaign. Not for the feint hearted, it will contain 23 blistering 
tracks of punk rock, ska, Oi! and folk music.
 
 
UPCOMING EVENTS
London Supporters Meeting
24th October - 7.30pm
Lucas Arms
Grays Inn Road - Kingscross.
All supporters in the London area welcomed.
 
YOU CAN CONTACT THE CAMPAIGN AT THE FOLLOWING:
Write to: Justice for Mark Barnsley - PO Box 381, Huddersfield, HD13XX.
J.f.M.B. (South Yorkshire) c/o above or e-mail: JFMBSYORKS@aol.com
J.f.M.B. (London) Tel: 07944 522001
J.f.M.B. (Ireland) have a NEW ADDRESS - PO Box 1981, Derry, Ireland.
 
E-mail: barnsleycampaign@hotmail.com
Visit the campaign web site at: http://www.freemarkbarnsley.com
 
You can write to Mark directly at: Mark Barnsley WA2897- HMP Whitemoor, 
Longhill Road, March, Cambs, PE15 OPR, England. If possible please enclose 
an SAE and a few sheets of paper so that he can reply.