By Steve McKenzie
Last Friday saw draconian sentences handed down to the so-called Filton 4. This was the British establishment sending out a message, by means of what was clearly a show trial: that direct action – in this case attempting to prevent ethnic cleansing and genocide carried out by Israel – will not be tolerated by the British state.
The sentences bore no relationship to the crimes for which the defendents were convicted: Sam Corner received 8 years and 8 months for GBH and crimminal damage; Carlotte Head and Leona Kamio both got 6 years for criminal damage; Fatema Rajwani got 5 years and eight months for criminal damage.
Compared to real crimes of violence perpetrated against ordinary working people, these sentences were extremely harsh, justified according to the judge, Geoffrey Johnson, by a so-called ‘terrorist’ connection, making it therefore permissible under anti-terrorist laws to pass greater sentences.
This decision of the judge had not been known to the jury before they gave a guilty verdict and almost certainly would have made a difference had they known. This was only the latest manoeuvre by the judge in the course of a trial that seriously prejudiced the position of the defendants.
The defendants were not allowed, for example, to explain why they took the action they did in August 2024, thereby preventing them from putting their defence into any kind of context. The time when the action took place was before the government took the ludicrous decision that Palestine Action should be deemed to be a ‘terrorist’ organisation and therefore proscribed.
There are many other examples of the distorted and biased road down which this case was driven. There can be no doubt that an appeal will be lodged.
Mass pressure is needed to free the Filton 4
However, it would be extremely unwise to put any faith in the British legal system after what we have seen so far and ultimately it will only be from the pressure of mass action that any really effective steps will be taken to free the Filton 4.
Outside Woolwich Crown Court there was a well attended demonstration and right to promote civil disobedience and actions to support the Filton 4 and the wider cause of Palestinian rights are of vital importance.
It was good to see trade union banners from the local Unite community branch and the local Trades Council on display at the demonstration, as well as good turnout of individual union members.
However there is still clearly a great deal of work be done in the Labour and trade union movement. Motions calling to free the Filton 4 should be put to trade union branches and passed up to regional and national executives. Emergency motions should be submitted to trade union conferences.
This show trial was an absolute travesty of justice and its decisions must be reversed.
[Feature picture is from Filton 4 Defence Committee website, showing (left to right) Carlotte Head, Leona Kamio, Samuel Corner and Fatema Rajwani]
