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1. We should stand up for Assange: Geoffrey Robertson QC

Geoffrey Robertson QC, Leading Human Rights Lawyer
(Caption & Pic Courtesy Of One Click)
The treatment of WikiLeaks’ spokesperson Julian Assange, facing investigations of harassment and rape, has been disgraceful, leading international human rights lawyer Geoffrey Robertson has said from London and the Australian government should make a formal protest to the Swedish ambassador on behalf of Assange, an Australian citizen. “Mr Assange has been the victim of utterly incompetent prosecutors who have severely damaged his rights - the rights that every person in Europe has granted to them under the European convention,” Robertson said, speaking exclusively to Crikey last week. “The Australian government - now that we have a government - should carpet the Swedish ambassador and make a formal protest against the treatment of Assange.” The charges against Assange came several weeks after WikiLeaks released a cache of nearly 80,000 US government documents covering ongoing Afghan war operations, revealing higher levels of civilian casualties at US-alliance hands, and a bleak picture of US progress in the war. The timing of these events led many to speculate on the possibility that WikiLeaks’ highest profile figure may have been drawn into a sting based on Sweden’s comprehensive and wide-ranging sex crime and harassment laws, as a way of splitting progressive support for the organisation. US counter-intelligence bureau documents have previously spoken of destroying WikiLeaks by attacking its existence as a “centre of trust” for diverse groups of activists and whistleblowers. “In due course I predict that the European Court of Human Rights would uphold Assange’s position and order the Swedish government to compensate him. His lawyers should already be preparing for that eventuality,” said Robertson.
Guy Rundle, Crikey
Related Links:
* Julian Assange Case Setting Off Major Civil Rights Alarm Bells
Carin Stenström, Rixstep

2. Hospital Patient Dies After Being 'Restrained' By Seven Police Officers

Olaseni Lewis, known to his family as Seni, was a young black man aged 23 years, engaged in post-graduate Masters studies in IT and Business Management at Kingston University. He had no prior history of mental illness or any untoward behaviour until the evening of Sunday 29 August 2010 when his family and friends noticed that he was behaving strangely, alternating between calm and agitated phases. They sought professional help, resulting eventually in his admission as a vulnerable voluntary patient at the Bethlem Royal Hospital early in the evening of Tuesday 31 August 2010. Within hours of leaving him at the hospital, however, they were to learn that he had collapsed after being restrained by police officers who had been called by hospital staff. Seni was taken by ambulance to Mayday Hospital where brain stem death was confirmed following tests on 3 and 4 September 2010. Deborah Coles, co-director of INQUEST, that is working with the fa mily and their lawyer said: "This is a deeply disturbing death and it is vital both for the family and the public that there is a rigorous, far-reaching investigation into the fatal restraint of a vulnerable black man in need of care and protection. INQUEST has worked on far too many cases where dangerous restraint has resulted in the deaths of vulnerable people, a disproportionate number of whom are from black and minority ethnic communities."
Press Release, INQUEST
Related Links:
* Family Demands Rigorous Inquiry Into Death Of Patient Restrained by Seven Police Officers
Peter Dominiczak & Katie Linsell, London Evening Standard

3. Please Help Us To Stop Insane Camden Biolab Planning Application

Would you like to stop Big Pharma building a dangerous level 3 biocontainment lab in the heart of Central London instead of the government creating youth and community facilities so badly needed for all? This biolab that will act as a terrorists beacon, putting London locals and international tourists equally at risk far and wide? UKCMRI (Medical Research Council, University College London, Cancer Research UK and The Wellcome Trust/GlaxoSmithKline) have now officially registered their Planning Applicatiion, Number 2010/4721/P. The person dealing with the application is Neil McDonald of Camden Council at neil.mcdonald@camden.gov.uk. Together with email address, we provide all contact details including phone number and snail mail address. There are certain reasons for objections that are taken into account eg. size/style of the building, congestion, inappropriateness for area, overcrowding, loss of land use for housing, public facilities/open land etc. We need to stop the Camden Lab insanity. Please register your protest to the Planning Application now!
Information Release, Stop Camden Lab Campaign
Related Links:
* ! STOP INSANITY ! Level 3 Bio Lab Set Be Built In Heart Of Central London
Information Release, Stop Camden Lab
* Bird And Swine Flu 'Super-Lab' At St Pancras Site
Mark Blunden, London Evening Standard

4. New Study Calls For Volatern (Diclofenac) Drug Ban - Massive Heart Attack Risk

(Pack Shot Courtesy Of One Click)
There are calls today for one of Australia's top-selling painkillers to be banned, after another study linked it to an increased chance of stroke in healthy people.
Commonly sold as Voltaren, diclofenac is available in a number of brands and is as dangerous as the arthritis drug Vioxx, according to the author of the study. Danish research identified Voltaren, a popular anti-inflammatory analgesic, as one of a class of drugs which increase the risk of stroke. The eight-year Gentofte University Hospital study examined data from more than 2.5 million Danes who had a prescription for non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. It found diclofenac increased the risk of stroke by 86 per cent in people not previously thought to be at risk. The study's author, cardiologist Dr Gunnar Gislason, has said the public needs increased awareness about the cardiovascular risks of these drugs even in healthy people. Clinical pharmacologist Professor David Henry is the chief executive of the Toronto-based Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences and Adjunct Professor at the University of Newcastle in New South Wales. He says Voltaren shou ld be withdrawn from sale in Australia. One Click Note: Diclofenac is also called Voltarol®, Voltarol SR®, Voltarol Retard®, Voltarol Rapid® Diclomax SR®, Diclomax Retard® Motifene®, Defenac®, Diclofex®, Dyloject®, Flamrase®, Flamatak®, Econac®, Rhumalgan SR®, Rhumalgan XL®, Volsaid SR®.
Alison Caldwell, ABC News

5. FDA Urges Florida Not To Bar Foster Kids From Pysch Drug Trials

How many children in foster care have served or are currently serving as human guinea pigs in commercial drug trials? The FDA, which is charged with ensuring the safety of children in drug trials, fails to maintain a record of children enrolled in commercial drug trials. After the suicide of 7-year old Gabriel Myers, George Sheldon, Florida's Secretary of the Dept. of Children and Families, sought answers. In response to his numbers inquiry to the FDA, Jill Hartzler Warner, an associate FDA commissioner, stated: "the FDA didn't have an exact number [of children in foster care]. Or even an estimate. The FDA, in fact, doesn't have the slightest idea how many Florida foster kids are or have been involved in its drug studies."
Vera Hassner Sharav, AHRP

6. Vietnam To Destroy Tamiflu Stock That Cost Millions Amidst Massive Corruption Allegations

The Ministry of Health has ordered the destruction of a controversial reserve of over 9.7 million capsules of Oseltamivir (aka Tamiflu), Tuoi Tre reported Monday. The reserve is estimated to be worth some VND280 billion (US$14.3 million) in total. In a report published prior to the dust-up, government inspectors accused the Ministry of deliberately overestimating the need for the medicine in a proposal it submitted to the government in November 2005. At that time, Vietnam had only recorded 91 cases of influenza A (H5N1) virus between 2003-2005. The ministry didn’t stipulate a maximum price for the raw materials placing orders with the drugs companies, the inspectors charged. Instead, the domestic drug firms were left to buy materials from India at $17,500-18,000 per kilogram --nearly 50 percent more than offered by a Swiss company. Investigators also accused the companies of receiving over $6 million in questionable reimbursements from their s uppliers, and failing to report the exchange to the government.
Thanh Nien News

7. Taxpayer Foots Bill As Former MPs In Expenses Scandal Appeal To Supreme Court

Ex-MPs Jim Devine, David Chayton & Eliot Morley -
Pig Trougher Expenses
(Caption & Pic Courtesy Of One Click)
Former Labour MPs accused of dodgy expenses claims yesterday sparked fury by appealing to the highest court in the land. Elliot Morley, David Chaytor and Jim Devine were granted permission to go to the Supreme Court - racking up more taxpayer-funded legal bills. The three, along with Lord Hanningfield, a Tory peer also accused of expenses fraud, are due to go on trial in November but claim they cannot be tried in ordinary criminal courts. The ex-MPS argue they are protected by parliamentary privilege. Three Court of Appeal judges found against them in July saying that they could not envisage how the centuries old defence could cover "ordinary criminal activities" by MPs. But yesterday the Lord Chief Justice, Lord Judge, decided there was a "point of general public importance" for Britain's top court to rule on. The bill to the taxpayer for the prosecution and legal aid costs has already been estimated at £3million. The MPs were t old they could not have individual legal aid for the Supreme Court hearing but would get between them the cost of one leading QC, one junior QC and a solicitor.
Jason Beattie, Daily Mirror
Related Links:
* Abusive UK MPs Brand Expenses Staff As Fucking Idiots & Monkeys
Macer Hall, Daily Express
* Expenses Scandal MPs Granted Legal Aid
Big Pond

8. UK Coalition Government Set To Wreck Digital Economy Britain

Up to £500m will be taken out of the UK economy according to the Government's announcement today about the cost sharing for the letter writing regime following the Digital Economy Act. The BIS cost order confirms the 75/25 split of costs between rightholders and ISPs. ISPs will of course pass on these costs to their customers. According to the Government's own estimates that means that up to 96,000 individuals will not be able to afford an internet connection anymore. Less well off families already face big cuts in benefits and struggle to make ends meet. On top of that they might lose their main access to communication and education through the internet as a result of rising broadband costs. That runs contrary to the government's plans to increase the number of people with internet access. Up to £500m will be taken out of the economy and wasted into a bureaucratic scheme that is unlikely to bring the public any benefits. This is ludicrous giv en that we are in a recession. The case against the Act is growing. Hard evidence of economic harm is accumulating. We have every chance of getting the worst parts of the Act repealed. We have to keep up the pressure on Government and Parliament.
Florian Leppla, Open Rights Group
Related Links:
* ISPs Revolt Over Digital Economy Act
David Neal, The Inquirer

9. CFS Boy Forcibly Removed From Home By Social Services Tests Positive For XMRV Virus

Although he’d been diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome and declared medically disabled by the Social Services Administration, the Buncombe County Department of Social Services took custody of Ryan, who spent 10 months in three separate foster placements. Last year, the Baldwin family of Black Mountain fought a legal battle to get their son, Ryan back home. The family was reunited last November. This month, a breakthrough research test confirmed the diagnosis they suspected. On September 1, the family received a letter from Judy Mikovits, director of research for the Whittemore Peterson Institute for Neuro-Immune Disease that indicated that he has positive evidence of XMRV in his blood sample drawn by PSI. Ryan said: "I was placed in the care of foster parents who were told that nothing was medically wrong with me. I was put in homes that were not wheelchair-accessible, I would be forced to climb steps. In addition, I wa s given physical and psychological treatments designed to either exercise my disabilities away or to convince me that they didn’t exist in the first place. Knowing now that I have XMRV helps me remain optimistic about future treatment options. It is also reassuring to now have a concrete explanation for some of the symptoms and problems that I have experienced, especially those of the immune system."
Nelda Holder, Mountain Xpress
Related Links:
* Presence Of Murine Leukemia Virus Found In Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Patients
FDA Press Release
* Detection of MLV-related virus gene sequences in blood of patients with chronic fatigue syndrome and healthy blood donors (FULL TEXT)
Shyh-Ching Lo, Harvey J. Alter et al PNAS
* Detection of an Infectious Retrovirus, XMRV, in Blood Cells of Patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Judy A. Mikovits et al, 10.1126/science.1179052, Science Express

READ THE NEWS ON ONE CLICK
http://www.theoneclickgroup.co.uk