Archive Page 2
Terror of Flight 101: An echo of Orwell.
The flight leaves Heathrow airport’s Terminal Four, every Wednesday bearing the number KQ101. The echo of George Orwell’s Room 101 is unhappily appropriate. On this Kenya Airways jet, many asylum-seekers’ worst nightmares do come true. KQ101 is the deportation flight chartered by the British Government to return refugees [...]
On her blog, Writing, Life and the Universe, Angela Young tells us about a seminar she attended in the UK with Mark Thornton, where the subject matter, for authors, is how to sell your book to the independent bookshops. Mark’s course, entitled, Shelf Secrets, runs over a single day and is presented at Mostly [...]
Early in 2005, a man in Northern China confessed to a murder that had taken place ten years previously. Reports say that he gave a detailed description of the scene where he claimed to have raped and then killed a young woman. On the strength of the confession, the judicial authorities accepted the man’s guilt.The problem was, they had already executed another man for the murder. Nie Shubin, a young farmer, had been found guilty of the rape and murder in 1995 after reportedly being tortured in police custody. His family are now seeking official compensation. But of course, nothing will bring Nie back.
In a separate case, Tang Xingshan was found guilty of murdering his wife in 1987. He insisted he was innocent and claimed that he had only confessed because he was severely beaten during the interrogations. His pleas were ignored and he was executed in 1989.In June 2006, Teng’s wife - the alleged murder victim - reappeared. Alive and unharmed. The murder for which Teng had been executed had never taken place.
The above is quoted from the literature of Amnesty International. China is preparing for the Summer Olympic Games in Beijing in 2008. The Chinese authorities are particularly sensitive right now about how they are regarded by the international community. I support Amnesty’s campaign to reform and ultimately abolish China’s use of the death penalty.
If you enjoyed this post, subscribe to my RSS feed
Thirteen reasons why you should read Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys.
*
Neocons on a cruise. Johann Hari, in The Independent, sets sail with America’s swashbuckling neocons:
From time to time, National Review – the bible of American conservatism – organises a cruise for its readers. I paid $1,200 to join them. The rules I imposed on [...]
Save a Blogger from Begging: Buy Stuff:
Signed first editions
at special prices.
Subscribe to posts
Recent Comments