For the second week in a row, Students’ Initiative organized protests across the country against the radical right. More protests planned.
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The editor-in-chief of the conservative daily newspaper, Berlingske Tidende, is satisfied that he has now been charged with leaking classified intelligence documents in his newspaper in February 2004. The two journalists who wrote the articles about the leaked documents had already been charged at the end of April. Their editor expects all three to be acquitted if the case against them proceeds.

In a series of articles in the newspaper from 22 February 2004, Michael Bjerre and Jesper Larsen published excerpts of reports which they had obtained from Major Frank Grevil of the Danish Defence Intelligence Service (Forsvarets Efterretningstjeneste, FE).

Grevil, a secret agent who helped to write FE’s intelligence assessments of Iraq’s weapons capabilities for the Danish government, felt that Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen had exaggerated existing information about Iraq’s alleged weapons of mass destruction in order to persuade the Danish parliament to participate in the ill-fated invasion of Iraq in March 2003.

Grevil himself has been sentenced to four months’ imprisonment, but is appealing his sentence in the European Court of Human Rights, on the basis that evidence that might play a decisive part in his defence has been withheld.

More detail about the most recent development, plus link to background article, below. read full story / add a comment

Joe Higgins demands for social housing
Government aids “speculator landlords” and “profiteering developers” read full story / add a comment

This month’s Featured Readers – Mike McCormack, Jan Schlegel & Mags Treanor - are all fiction writers. read full story / add a comment

The conference will open with a keynote address by Marian Harkin, independent Member of the European Parliament for the North West of Ireland. read full story / add a comment

Christy Moore and Dr. Owens Wiwa, Vincent and Maureen McGrath

to Lead Annual Famine Walk from Doolough to Louisburgh

on Saturday May 20th 2006

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In a letter to the Ombudsman of the Danish Parliament, staff at the Danish Prime Minister's Office have invoked "very wide powers of discretion" under the legislation, to defend Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen's persistent refusal to be interviewed by prize-winning journalist Bo Elkjær.

In response, Elkjær points out that Fogh promised to give him an interview when they met at the offices of the Danish Union of Journalists in Copenhagen in January 2004. On that occasion, Elkjær had just been awarded the prestigious Cavling Prize for his work in exposing the lies by which Fogh and his cabinet persuaded the parliament to support Denmark's invasion of Iraq.

By Elkjær's account, staff at the Prime Minister's Office have made the excuse that Mr Fogh "did not have space in his calendar," even though Elkjær has given the Prime Minister's Office complete freedom to set the time and place for an interview. Fogh's staff have repeatedly failed to keep promises that they "would call back".

One of Elkjær's intentions for an interview is to ask why, at a press conference on 21 March 2003, Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen "emphasised a nuclear threat [from Iraq] that the government several days before, in an internal paper, had clearly and unequivocally rejected."

"It is clear from the records of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that the government had several days previously arrived at the definitive conclusion that Iraq did not have a nuclear weapons programme, or indeed any nuclear programme at all," says Elkjær.

Please read Billy O'Shea's translation of the latest exchange below. read full story / add a comment

July 15th will be an International Day of Action Against Climate Change. As G8 energy ministers promise trillions in new subsidies to the industries destroying our planet and our future, we will take action to shut them down! This is a call for autonomous, decentralized actions appropriate for your town, city, or bioregion. read full story / add a comment