Mar 26, 2016 08:50 PM
Police and social workers missed opportunities to stop Bristol sex gang earlier, says review
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/cri...52016.html
EXCERPT: . . . . The report said the girls suffered “beyond comprehension” as victims of “horrific” exploitation which saw them being trafficked across the city to be raped. [...] The parent of another victim was told by a police officer that she was making “lifestyle choices” after they reported their daughter had been raped twice. [...] The victims thought they were in loving relationships with the men and had been told sharing girls for sex was a common practice in Somali culture. They were “sold” to the gangs' friends for as little as £30 and “rewarded” with alcohol, drugs or gifts to perform sex acts on older men...
Lib Dems and the Middle-East: are we prepared to address the obvious?
http://www.libdemvoice.org/lib-dems-and-...49969.html
EXCERPT: . . . In the case of the Lib Dems, one seasoned actor put it to me that senior Party figures are simply scared of being “done over by the Jewish Chronicle”. I cannot speak for the Lib Dems, but after several years studying the Israeli-Palestinian situation and engaging different actors, I believe that the fear factor bears upon the way British public figures, including politicians, religious leaders etc., and even people in professional and business life, approach the topic. It is a sorry state of affairs but I think it provides an opportunity. If we can only let go of fear, Lib Dems can frame a distinctive and convincing message, one that responds to widespread human rights concerns and our own interest in calming the situation in a convulsed part of the world. While recognising the complexity of the Syrian crisis, I feel Lib Dems could make some distinctive statements on other aspects of Middle-Eastern policy....
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/cri...52016.html
EXCERPT: . . . . The report said the girls suffered “beyond comprehension” as victims of “horrific” exploitation which saw them being trafficked across the city to be raped. [...] The parent of another victim was told by a police officer that she was making “lifestyle choices” after they reported their daughter had been raped twice. [...] The victims thought they were in loving relationships with the men and had been told sharing girls for sex was a common practice in Somali culture. They were “sold” to the gangs' friends for as little as £30 and “rewarded” with alcohol, drugs or gifts to perform sex acts on older men...
Lib Dems and the Middle-East: are we prepared to address the obvious?
http://www.libdemvoice.org/lib-dems-and-...49969.html
EXCERPT: . . . In the case of the Lib Dems, one seasoned actor put it to me that senior Party figures are simply scared of being “done over by the Jewish Chronicle”. I cannot speak for the Lib Dems, but after several years studying the Israeli-Palestinian situation and engaging different actors, I believe that the fear factor bears upon the way British public figures, including politicians, religious leaders etc., and even people in professional and business life, approach the topic. It is a sorry state of affairs but I think it provides an opportunity. If we can only let go of fear, Lib Dems can frame a distinctive and convincing message, one that responds to widespread human rights concerns and our own interest in calming the situation in a convulsed part of the world. While recognising the complexity of the Syrian crisis, I feel Lib Dems could make some distinctive statements on other aspects of Middle-Eastern policy....