LGSM News
It's quite illogical to say ‘I’m gay and I’m into defending the gay community but I don’t care about anything else.’ It’s important that if you're defending communities, you’re defending all communities and not just one.
Mark Ashton
It's quite illogical to say ‘I’m gay and I’m into defending the gay community but I don’t care about anything else.’ It’s important that if you're defending communities, you’re defending all communities and not just one.
Mark Ashton
LGSM has backed the call from the Orgreave Truth & Justice Campaign for a full Public Inquiry into the policing of the Orgreave picket in June 1984 by writing to Theresa May, the Home Secretary.
Our letter said:
We support the call for a full public inquiry into the actions of the police at the Orgreave coking plant on 18th June 1984…We have waited for nearly two and a half years for the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) to complete their ‘scoping’ exercise on whether to investigate the actions of the police on that day.
We were disappointed by the IPCC announcement on 12th July 2015 that despite there being evidence of police officers using excessive force, manipulating evidence and lying in court, there would be no investigation…
The IPCC report concedes that ‘the unwillingness to disclose evidence of wrongdoing by officers does raise doubts about the ethical standards of officers in the highest ranks of the South Yorkshire Police at the time’. That,in itself, should constitute sufficient grounds for investigation. Instead they have decided that no investigation will take place, due to the passage of time and the fact that there have been no miscarriages of justice in the form of wrongful convictions. This is entirely unacceptable.
We believe that this issue is of national significance. A full investigation into the military style policing used on that day is now long overdue and only a full public inquiry can properly put this matter to rest. Our members have been on multiple peaceful marches, demonstrations, parades and public events over the last four decades. In a mature democracy such as ours, the compact between the public and police at events of this sort relies on mutual trust and respect and a commitment on both sides to remain within the law. The policing of the Orgreave event in 1984 was a gross breach of this compact and damages the reputation of the police and any Government that gave sanction to this.
Only a full public inquiry into the events at Orgreave in 1984 can right the wrong and properly restore the relationship between the wider public, the police and Government today.
Our letter went to the Home Secretary on 22 July and we will share details of the response we receive on our website. We urge all friends and supporters to back this call for a Public Inquiry and to write to the Home Secretary at this email address: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
