Petition Tag - campaign

Interpreter service. We want to keep BSL interpreter at GDA for things you need like doctors, appointments ok. But we have a problem, we might lose this service at GDA ok, why? Because NHS Gloucestershire want to put it together with other service like French, spanish translation team. That mean hard get good BSL in Gloucester if they have one big office somewhere else like maybe birmingham, anywhere cos cheaper for them save money.

Please sign this petition if you want to keep this BSL service at GDA and you know that good for us here in Gloucestershire.

Thanks


GDA = Gloucestershire Deaf Association

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GB Rhythmic Gymnastics Group are a talented and dedicated group of rhythmic gymnasts who have been training hard full time with NO funding to be able to achieve their dream of competing at London 2012.

Even though there is a host country place available for them at the Games, British Gymnastics are choosing NOT to nominate them for this! At the Olympic Test Event, BG/BOA chose to set a benchmark score they wanted the girls to achieve.

Despite being agonisingly short (.273 points) of this target on qualification day and actually exceeding the score during the finals - BG have refused to give them this golden opportunity they have worked so hard for!

Please sign the petition to help get these girls to the Games and promote the beautiful sport of Rhythmic Gymnastics in the UK!

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Mae’r A470 yn ffordd gefnol sy’n rhedeg o Gaerdydd yn De Cymru i Landudno yn y Gogledd. Bu I Lysgenhadaeth Glyndŵr lansio ymgyrch yn y flwyddyn 2000 i enwi’r ffordd yn ‘Brif Ffordd Owain Glyndŵr fel coffâd teilwng i’n harwr cenedlaethol mwyaf ar achlysur 6oomlwyddiant cychwyniad ei Rhyfel Mawr am Annibyniaeth 1400 - 1421. Bu i’r Cynulliad Cymreig anwybyddu’r apêl yn y flwyddyn 2000 ond nawr, gan fod yna alw o gyfeiriad arall i ran o’r ffordd gael ei alw yn “Y Royal Welsh Way” fel cydnabyddiaeth o’r Catrawd Brenhinol sy’n talu llw o deyrngarwch i Frenhiniaeth a Threfn Loegr sy’n parhau i feddiannu Cymru, mae Llysgenhadaeth Glyndŵr wedi penderfynu ail gychwyn yr ymgyrch a lansiwyd gennym yn y flwyddyn 2000.

The A470 is a spine road that runs from Cardiff in South Wales to Llandudno in the North. Embassy Glyndŵr launched a campaign in the year 2000 to name it 'Prif Ffordd Owain Glyndŵr' in memory of the greatest of our national heroes Prince Owain Glyndŵr and his copatriots who fought a great War of Independence from the year 1400 - 1421. The National Assembly of Wales ignored our request then and now, in the light of a campaign being launched to name a part of the road 'The Royal Welsh Way in recognition of the Royal Welsh Regiment who swears allegiance to the English royalty and the English State who still occupies Cymru, Embassy Glyndŵr has decided to re-launch the campaign initiated in the year 2000.

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The businesses at the Muirhouse shopping centre are struggling due to the demolition of many homes in the area, and the building of new homes being delayed.

The butcher which has served local people for over thirty years has already closed, and more businesses look set to close as well, unless the Council intervenes to get the rents and business rates for the shops reduced.

We also know that when things get boarded up in this area, they become a target for vandalism and fire-raising, which would be dangerous for the people living above the shops.

Here is a link to the Edinburgh Evening News article on the situation with the Muirhouse shops:
http://tinyurl.com/ce3vx8s

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Herman Cain asked for and has been granted Secret Service protection, according to the agency charged with protecting American officials.

“[Homeland Security] Secretary [Janet] Napolitano, at the request of the Cain campaign, consulted with congressional advisory committee which today authorized protection for Cain,” said George Ogilvy, a Secret Service spokesman.

Ogilvy would not discuss nature or duration of protection. It is also not clear if any other candidates have received Secret Service protection. One law enforcement official would not say which other campaigns might be getting security, but did confirm Cain began getting it today.

Cain’s campaign would not discuss the protection.

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Ulverston is one of the last market towns in England with a working local economy and an independent character. Now this is under threat from a proposed new superstore.

We want to stop this happening. See www.keepulverstonspecial.co.uk for more about our campaign.

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We are declaring a moral separation from the current ruling administration and the policies it is currently enacting which is diminishing our liberties.

Moral Declaration simply means:

- Declaring our willingness and our ability to no longer support the current administrations decisions.

- Asserting our stance under ‘Redress of Grievances’.

- Affirming that in good faith and trust-

- We are done giving them moral support!

• We are presenting the new Moral Declaration of Independence with grievances in accordance with the United States Constitution and current U.S. Code of Law.

• We openly recognize that we have shared the intent and the spirit of the original Declaration of Independence.

• The original document was a declaration of war; however, at this time that is not the direction that America can withstand.

• Its strength and spirit is as viable today as when first written. (We intentionally utilized much of the original writings.)

• This document, as a petition with signatures will be taken to and registered in Washington D.C.

The cornerstone of our constitutional Republic has been the Declaration of Independence. The men who founded this great nation knew that those who rule must be of the character that recognizes that we will all stand before the God of heaven and be held accountable. These founders also knew that the ruling class often forgets this fact. We have been given the right to reset to the original intent of this founding document.

Now is the time… for all patriotic citizens to stand up and be counted.

“Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord” (Psalm 33:12).

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Each year the coastguard deals with 200-300 incidents where propellers or rudders of boats become snagged on floating lines and fishing gear.

Many of these incidents are avoidable, which is why MBM has decided to launch a campaign to introduce mandatory rules regarding the visibility of lobster pots and other fishing gear and to put pressure on authorities to come down harder on those that flout the rules.

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The public are unhappy with the current voting system and the proposed AV system is too complicated and of little interest to the majority of the public as will be shown by today's low turn out. The public have become disenfranchised with politics and our patriotism has been shaken.

Many other countries with excellent governments and economies use Proportional Representation voting systems such as Party List Voting, e.g. Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, Italy, Portugal and South Africa. It can be implemented simply with little if no additional costs. Other PR systems are still in use in Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and Germany on of the strongest economies in Europe. Voting turn out is getting lower and lower every election, the public are not happy with the current situation and revolts will become more common.

The public need to know and SEE their votes and opinions count, AV is not enough and people think you are not listening to them. They need honest politics where a coalition works together and is honest when they dislike or like the others policies. Please give us a referendum on PR so we can show you how we feel and listen to the results so we know you have our interests at heart.

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The AIDS Committee of Durham Region (ACDR) launched a new awareness campaign directed and designed by youth. The Cover your C**%K, Protect your P*&%$Y campaign was launched in January 2010. The safer sex campaign contained valuable information surrounding youth and HIV/AIDS.

In November 2010, The Durham District School Board (DDSB) banned any material containing the image of a Cat and Rooster which appeared on the campaign from entering their schools.

This has resulted in Durham Region youth being unable to receive this proven effective safer sex messaging and education on behalf of the ACDR at DDSB locations and events.

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In November 2010 I was told on two occasions to remove my Poppy whilst at work as it was not part of my Uniform.

I initially refused and tried to sort the issue within the company but with no response the media were notified and my story hit the National newspapers and was aired on both BBC & ITV and also on radio five live and local stations.

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Neuroblastoma is a very aggressive form of childhood Cancer; after domestic accident, it is the second most frequent cause of mortality in children.

It is the single most common type of Cancer in infants and the 4th most common type of Cancer in children. However, few people have heard of it and most do not know the signs and symptoms.

This means that although symptoms may have been present in the child for some time, in over 75% of children the diagnosis is not made until the disease has reached stage 4, the final stage. Prognosis for this group is grim, offering around 5% chance of survival.

In contrast, children diagnosed in the early stages have up to a 95% chance of survival.

Treating a child who has stage 4 Neuroblastoma costs the NHS an average of £600,000 in the first year alone. Around 75 children per year will be diagnosed at stage 4. Several of those families will opt for treatment abroad, meaning an average of £300,000 of UK fundraised money, per child, will go overseas.

Most children will still not survive – largely because their symptoms were diagnosed too late.

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Scotts Meadow is located in Torquay on Riviera Way, next to 'The Willows'. Cavanna homes wants to build 230 homes on this meadow, and we are advocating against it. Saving 'Scotts Meadow' is an issue we feel very strongly about. We believe that many people do not know about the many wonderful benefits of keeping Scotts Meadow as it is. We hope that you will come around to our way of thinking and support our advocacy.

We think we should all save Scotts Meadow because:
• It is a good place to spend time with your family, or to walk your dogs.
• If we build houses on Scotts Meadow it will be bad for the environment.
• There is not much green space around 'The Willows', so it is vital that we protect what little there is, such as Scotts Meadow.
• Scotts Meadow has been a part of many people's lives for many years, and so if people have enjoyed it before now, they will enjoy it for years to come.
• We need to protect the meadow to enhance its value as a wildlife site.

Building more homes in the willows will put pressure on local facilities as there is already a lack of community facilities.

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We the students of Gray’s School of Art were concerned to hear of proposed staff redundancies at our Art School.

Staff at Grays School of Art were called to a meeting with Prof. John Watson, the Dean of Design & Technology on Wednesday 6 October 2010 and told that the Art School had a budget deficit and needed to make savings of £500,000 and these savings would be met through staff redundancies. They were told they would all receive the option of voluntary redundancy.

We are concerned that other options for saving money and funding the Art School have not been fully explored. Redundancy on such a wide scale will severely damage the quality of teaching that the school has always managed to provide.

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For Mental Health Awareness - (www.mentalhealthawareness.co.uk)

I've been researching the training which police staff - from station reception officers, to police community support officers, to police constables – receive in relation to mental health. I have found out that police currently receive very little training in mental health awareness and recognition.

It is inevitable that police staff will come across a person with mental health issues at some point during there career. Unpublished research undertaken within the Metropolitan Police suggested that 15% of incidents they dealt with on a daily basis were mental health related.

There are many scenarios in which the police may come across a person with a mental health issue. One of which is in the administration of justice. Up to 90% of prisoners have some form of mental health problem (Singleton et al. 1998), This shows how probable it is that the police will come across someone with a mental health problem.

Another scenario is in relation to the Mental Health Act; where an individual is suspected of having a mental health problem and is in need of immediate care or control, the police can use Section 136 of the Mental Health Act 1983 to take the person from a ‘public place’ to a ‘place of safety’ for up to 72 hours. Where the person is not in a public place, the police may use Section 135 of the Mental Health Act to gain access to a person’s home or property by force following the granting of a court warrant.

The IPCC website states that 'Mental Health is a factor in many of the most serious cases of police misconduct investigated by the IPCC'. This is just further evidence of the necessity for police to be trained in mental health.

As police have been given powers, under the Mental Health Act, to assist people who are in mental distress, and inevitably come into frequent contact with people who have mental health problems, I strongly believe that there should be Government legislation to ensure that police are trained to a sufficient standard in mental health so that they can deal with the situation appropriately and effectively.

Upon researching this issue it seems that the solution to this problem could be if legislation ensures that police receive Mental Health First Aid (MHFA). This is well-known and could be a very valuable learning tool for the police. 'The Mental Health First Aid Initiative represents a useful way of delivering training for the Police and allied agencies – police officers, front desk workers, call centre workers, PCSOs and the Crown Prosecution Service – to understand more about mental health issues, to implement procedures and to engage within communities with local agencies more effectively'.

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The government stated to people who have a disability that the Disability Living Allowance will be there until you die.

But now they are cutting it down due to the National Debt in the U.K.

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Please sign our petition and help us reach our goal of securing a permanent home for Bray Cancer Support Centre.

We urgently need to secure funding for a new home as we are finding it increasingly difficult to cater for the 5,500 people who use our centre on an annual basis.

WHO ARE WE?
The Bray Cancer Support Centre is a registered charity based in Bray, Co. Wicklow, Ireland (number 12589). We were the first and are now the largest community based cancer support centre in Ireland.

In 2009, the Centre provided over 13,800 free client support services to people throughout the Bray, Wicklow & South Dublin areas, availing of emotional support, practical help, counselling, complimentary therapies as well as other classes. Bereavement counselling and support groups are also an integrated part of our centres services.

We are to the forefront in providing cancer support services and facilities free of charge to people affected by cancer in the greater Bray, Wicklow, South Dublin and Leinster areas.

www.braycancersupport.ie

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Cyprus is a small country and a member of the EU. Two fifths of the island are populated by over 50,000 Turkish troops which is the basis of the division on the Island. Over the last 5 to 10 years all the Greek and Turkish Cypriots have been working hard and unceasingly to show the world they are one people and wish to live together in peace and harmony.

However until a few months ago very little news of this has reached the media in the outside world. Now, in a changing world we see the EU, America and the UN speaking out in favor of Cypriot unification. Ban Ki-moon (Secretary General UN) said; "As I walked down Ledra street people from both communities began chanting- 'Solution NOW Solution NOW!'"

In addition, in the EU Parliament a resolution was passed on the 10th February, calling on Turkey to immediately begin withdrawing her troops from North Cyprus, to give back the closed part of Famagusta to the Republic of Cyprus and to address the issue of over 200,000 settlers form mainland Turkey who have been moved into North Cyprus. We feel that time is running out for a solution and to echo the voices of all the hopeful Cypriots; "The time for a solution is NOW!"

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The Norwich to Ninety campaign aims to persuade the Department for Transport to include a range of improvements to the Norwich to London line as part of the new Greater Anglia franchise specification.

Whatever is included in the new franchise will be the service that is delivered for rail passengers on the Great Eastern Main Line for the next decade.

We want:

• A ninety-minute journey time between Norwich and London.

• More reliable services, improving upon recent performance.

• New Inter-City style trains including features such as wi-fi.

• More train capacity - but without down-grading the Norwich to London service to commuter-style carriages.

• Station improvements, including better car parking and facilities for waiting passengers.

We will also be campaigning for other improvements including:
• Cleanliness and comfort
• On-board facilities such as wi-fi and catering
• Measures introduced to reduce engineering disruption
• Improvements to rural lines

The Norwich to London line is a crucial economic artery, linking Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex to London. Investment is essential to bring it into the 21st century and to allow these counties to remain competitive.

For example the 115 mile journey from London to Norwich takes around 1hr 50mins, yet Birmingham (118 miles) can be reached in only 1hr 23 mins and York (180 miles) in 1 hr 59mins.

A shorter journey time in high quality trains would encourage more people to switch from cars to the railway, reducing road congestion and carbon emissions, as well as improving the economic competitiveness of the city and county.

Please sign the petition and encourage others to do so and ensure the Department for Transport listens to commuters and train users in Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex and train users in general to ensure the new franchise includes the much needed improvements.

Follow us on twitter and have your say on the trains
http://twitter.com/Norwichin90

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With a new school meals contract due to start in September 2011, Kingston Council has an ideal opportunity, and the lead-time required, to make the borough’s school meal service a model of excellence for local authorities across the country.

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PETITION SUMMARY

Without the right to work, asylum seekers are paralyzed economically, psychologically, intellectually and socially. This leads us to confusion which leads to stress and eventually to extreme forms of depression. It feels like the government has given up on our lives. This has a negative impact on the progression of the nation and giving up on the lives of asylum seekers feels like giving up on the nation.

“My name is Adam and I come from Darfur, Sudan. I would like to tell you about the Brighter Futures’ campaign for asylum seekers to have the right to work. I want to tell you about this because I know what life looks like for people like me who escaped from genocide in Darfur. The Home Office takes too long to decide our cases – and when you know your story is true this is very hard. This means you’re just staying at home, and you get bored with the TV. You can’t work – you see yourself growing up but you can’t do anything with your life. We’d like permission to work for everyone who’s been here for more than six months. If they don’t change this today, tomorrow for me will be too late.” Adam Teneh, 19, from Darfur

Brighter Futures is a self advocacy group for young asylum seekers and refugees, who are campaigning for all young asylum seekers aged 16 and over to have the right to work from six months after arriving in the UK. Brighter Futures is also calling for the Home Office to make it easier for young asylum seekers who do have the right to work to prove this.

We believe asylum seekers should have the right to work because:

• We need financial independence to satisfy our basic needs such as food, shelter, transport and education.
• We can then contribute to the economy through taxes.
• We can then relieve the burden on the benefits system.
• We can then integrate better with our local communities.
• We can change the image of asylum seekers - we want human dignity and respect.
• It enables the Government to reduce social problems such as asylum seekers being exploited by having to work illegally.

Finally, we get to grow financially, intellectually, emotionally and in confidence - as every human being has the right to for a brighter future.

We hope that this petition will compel the government to take a positive policy decision rather than believing the myths about asylum seekers. If the government truly believes in human rights, they must understand that not being able to work feels like the loss of our lives. Understanding the situation and taking into account these issues, we hope you will support our campaign.

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Our group, Japan Anti-Vivisection Association (JAVA), has been seeking the abolition of animal experiments in Japan.

As animal testing for cosmetics has been banned in EU since March 11, 2009, we took this opportunity to launch a campaign to seek the abolition of animal testing for cosmetics, targeting SHISEIDO, the largest cosmetic company in Japan. However, the company still refuses to stop animal testing despite our repeated cry against animal experiments.

In cosmetics and household products research, painful experiments are carried out on animals, including rabbits, mice, rats and guinea pigs. Animal testing is not legally required in Japan. Only when an additional ingredient is included in “the limitation on combinations of preservatives, ultraviolet absorbers and tar dyes (positive list)” or where the maximum acceptable quantity is changed, and in manufacturing the products, such as permanent wave solutions, hair dyes, or skin lightening/whitening cosmetics, classified as “quasi-drugs” containing new ingredients (the “quasi-drugs” is the classification used only in Japan and Republic of Korea and such products are regarded as “cosmetics” in the United States and EU), animal testing data is required. So it is possible for companies to manufacture ingredients, combination of ingredients and final formulations of cosmetics without animal testing. There are about 100 cruelty-free cosmetic companies listed in JAVA’s shopping guidebook for consumers “JAVA Cosmetic Guide”, but unfortunately SHISEIDO and other major companies keep conducting animal testing simply because they want to make excessive profits by patented medicinal properties.

In spite of the fact that since March 2009 the EU has banned animal experiments for cosmetics in EU countries and the sale of cosmetic products in EU countries for which animal experiments were performed outside the EU, SHISEIDO has been keeping making products for EU consumers from ingredients that are not tested on animals, despite the continuation of animal testing in Japan and other countries.

So EU consumers are still be in danger of buying products made by the company which keeps conducting animal testing in other countries It means that EU ban cannot protect EU consumers from cruel cosmetics.

A survey conducted by JAVA has revealed that approximately 90 percent of people say they would choose a brand that has not been animal-tested. Japanese consumers also want cruelty-free cosmetics. Japanese major companies should not ignore the global trend and should stop animal testing voluntarily. If they want to develop new ingredients, they should wait until alternative non-animal testing methods have been fully established.

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I saw a petition on this Web Site that was against naming a New York Street after presumed cop killer Mr. Mumia Abu-Jamal. He's been in jail wrongly convicted for too many years. He should have a street named after him for being slandered with Lies for So Long.

Several years ago I unexpectedly came across my 1st read of Mumia Abu-Jamal, on a Web Site. I didn't judge whether this was True or False. The second time I read about him was on my cell phone on a Blog and it mentioned a Mr. M. Shiffman. Now I have found a Blog about Mr. Michael Schiffman, who is an author in Germany and he wrote a book about Mr. Abu-Jamal and the contrived "evidence" that was made up about him. I just found Mr. Bennett's Blog talking to the author:
http://www.abu-jamal-news.com/article?name=German+Book+Reveals+New+Evidence

If you Really are concerned about Justice for Mumia Abu-Jamal you'll see that the cops harassed and threatened witnesses, so that they would lie under oath! It was a staged trial and Not a Real Deserved trial:
http://orgs.sa.ucsb.edu/asian/mumia.html

Mr. Abu-Jamal did get a street named after him after all. At the very least Why is he still in jail after a Witness as late as last Oct./08, came forward and admitted that she was harassed, so that she would be forced to lie at his trial! So he didn't kill that cop. Someone at the crime scene, over heard a cop saying the name of the person who really killed the cop. The cops also re-arranged the crime scene too!

I find it unconscionable that Mr. Abu-Jamal is still locked up! A Lot of people internationally know he's innocent because of the facts. I hope he is released.

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NEA started the Bring Your Own Bag Day (BYOBD) since 2007. It started with every first Wednesday of the month to the current every Wednesday of the week. Most Singaporeans try to avoid patronizing participating supermarkets on Wednesday which defeat the purpose of BYOB or Stop the Wastage of Plastic Bags campaign.

Upon my last trip to GuaugZhou (广洲) I noticed the locals Bring Your Own Bag campaign is as successful as Korea. Most of the retail outlets do not provide carrier unless with a fee. I see all citizens with recycle bags whenever they are out to shop. I was not spared too. Regardless of buying of groceries, apparels or even books almost everything it’s Bring Your Own Bag.

Can we Singapore move towards this direction? I love Singapore, I love the Earth, and I love the planet we are in. I am sure I am not alone. May we help to keep the beautiful earth we are in and preserve it as much as possible for our next and future generations?
Did You Know...?
• More than 2.5 billion plastic bags are used every year in Singapore.
• Almost half of these bags are given away unnecessary such as customers asked for more than required.
• Plastic bags suffocate, disable and kill thousands of marine mammals and sea birds worldwide each year. When the animal dies and decays, the plastic bag is free again to repeat the deadly cycle.
• It only takes less than a week for an average Singapore family to accumulate 50 plastic bags.
• Most of these recyclable plastic bags are often thrown away without being recycled.
• Plastic bags thrown away as litter, dirty our public places, rivers and canals, and may even clog up drains, and this would lead to stagnant water and mosquito breeding.
• By using reusable bags during our shopping trips, we will use fewer plastic bags and help to conserve the earth's resources.
• We can help to put an end to this earth destruction.
• Say "NO" to plastic bags now!
• Say "YES" to less waste, haze and global warming.

What Price Have We Paid? We pay a big price for using plastic bags extensively – from the devastation they cause to our uniquely island environment, to the financial cost to the retail sector of supplying plastic bags to customers…the price we pay for using plastic bags really adds up.
Plastic bags are a serious threat to our environment and natural resources they take up to 1000 years to break down.

Plastic bags are responsible for blocking drains and harming our wildlife - both marine and land-based animals. Plastic bags are often mistaken as food by marine mammals. 100,000 marine mammals die yearly by eating plastic bags. These animals suffer a painful death, the plastic wraps around their intestines or they choke to death. We Murdered Them with plastic! And we are murdering our future generations too!

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Dear Secretary of State Clinton,

Falun Gong is a traditional Chinese spiritual discipline that is Buddhist in nature. It consists of moral teachings, a meditation, and four gentle exercises that resemble tai-chi and are known in Chinese culture as “qigong.” The latter are a truly unique, and very much enjoyable, way to improve the health and condition of one’s body.

At the core of Falun Gong are the values of truth, compassion, and forbearance (or in Chinese, Zhen, Shan, Ren). Falun Dafa teaches that these are the most fundamental qualities of the universe itself, and takes them to be a guide for daily life and practice. Falun Gong is also known as “Falun Dafa.”

By 1999 Falun Gong was reported to have grown to become the largest, and fastest growing, practice of the sort in Chinese if not world history. In just seven years since its 1992 introduction to the public, an estimated 70-100 million persons in China were by then making Falun Gong a part of their daily lives.

In Asia spiritual practices of this variety are often referred to as ways of “cultivation”, or “self-cultivation,” and form an important part of traditional Chinese culture. Various Daoist, Buddhist, and Confucian practices fit this rubric.

Through consistent and dedicated practice, the student of Falun Gong comes to achieve a state of selflessness, greater insight and awareness, inner purity, and balance—the inner workings of what might be called true health. Ultimately he or she approaches what in the Asian tradition is known as “enlightenment” or “attaining the Dao” (or “Way”).

While Falun Gong aspires to inner transformation of the self, it nevertheless typically translates outwardly into positive change in the world, insofar as the practitioner becomes a more patient family member, a more conscientious employee, a more giving member of the community, and so on.

Falun Gong has thus been the subject of many citations, awards, and proclamations as conferred by government officials and a variety of organizations. Many who practice Falun Gong have been the recipients of service awards in their communities. The practice’s founder, Mr. Li Hongzhi, is a four-time Nobel Peace Prize nominee and was nominated by the European Parliament for the Sakharov Prize For Freedom of Thought.

Few people today are aware that the practice and its followers received much in the way of official recognition in China during the 1990s, prior to a dramatic, and violent, change in political winds in 1999 which saw the practice banned.

In 1993, Mr. Li Hongzhi was named the “Most Welcomed Qigong Master” in Beijing and bestowed by an official body with the Award for Advancing Frontier Science. That same year, The People's Public Security News—the official newspaper of China’s Ministry of Public Security—praised Mr. Li for his contributions “in promoting the traditional crime-fighting virtues of the Chinese people, in safeguarding social order and security, and in promoting rectitude in society.”

By 1999, Chinese officials went so far as to quantify Falun Gong’s benefits, such as when one official from China’s National Sports Commission, speaking with U.S. News & World Report, declared that Falun Dafa “can save each person 1,000 yuan in annual medical fees. If 100 million people are practicing it, that’s 100 billion yuan saved per year in medical fees.” The same official went on to note that, “Premier Zhu Rongji is very happy about that.”

Today Falun Gong is practiced freely in more 70 countries around the world, with clubs and associations existing in a range of cities, companies, universities, and other settings. Regrettably in China, its country of origin, it is currently banned and the subject of gross human rights violations at the hands of communist rulers.

While Falun Gong is practiced openly in the 70-plus countries where it is found, today in its homeland of China it is subject to well-documented egregious human rights violations. The scale and scope of abuses taking place make this possibly the largest religious persecution in the world today.

Suppression officially began on July 22, 1999 following years of escalating state abuses (timeline).

One basic explanation for the seemingly irrational campaign is the proclivities of China’s atheist Communist Party (the CCP), which fears all groups outside its control – particularly ones that subscribe to a different ideology.

The Party has tried several times to eradicate all expressions of religion from China (a country traditionally referred to as "the land of the divine"). To this day Roman Catholics, many Protestants, and Tibetan Buddhists cannot worship freely in China and are at constant risk of detention and torture. By 1999, Falun Gong became a natural target as it was the largest - and fastest growing - spiritual group in China with 100 million practitioners nation-wide, according to Chinese Government reports at the time.

Others have noted that the decision to launch the campaign is linked to former-Party head Jiang Zemin’s "fear" and "jealousy" of Falun Gong. According to analyst Willy Lam (news), Jiang has been seen as "using the mass movement to promote allegiance to himself." Sources cited by the Washington Post, state that, "Jiang Zemin alone decided that Falun Gong must be eliminated," and "picked what he thought was an easy target." (more about the origins of the campaign).

Perhaps the most prominent feature of the campaign has been its prevalent use of extreme torture. Torture of Falun Gong adherents has been documented in each of China’s provinces, in jails, labor camps, brainwashing centers, and schools in China’s big cities, small towns, and villages.

Popular torture techniques include shocking with electric batons, burning with irons, tying the body in painful positions for days, force-feeding saline solutions through a plastic tube inserted up the nose, and prying out fingernails with bamboo shoots, to name a few; rape and sexual torture of the Falun Gong in detention are prevalent as well.

To date over 3,000 deaths have been documented, as well as over 63,000 accounts of torture. An estimate of the real figure puts the actual death toll in the tens of thousands (more about torture)

When the persecution was launched in 1999, tens of millions of Chinese who practiced the meditation discipline were faced with a choice. One option was to again surrender to the Communist Party and abandon a practice that had brought them better health, spiritual guidance, and, invariably, newfound hope. A second option seemed to be to continue practicing quietly at home – but as raids quickly showed, this was impossible even if one were able to turn a blind eye to the persecution of family and friends. A final option was to openly resist the persecution in spite of knowing full well what the painful consequences might be.

Indeed, those who chose the latter have most commonly faced forms of oppression that do not make headlines – dismissal from work, expulsion from universities, deprivation of health care and pensions, divorce, homelessness, and a range of other forms of discrimination (more about: persecution in the family, persecution at work and school, and destitution).

For hundreds of thousands, the most basic reality of the campaign has been long periods of detention in "reform through labor" camps – China’s Gulag system. There they are forced to work up to 20 hours per day, producing – without pay – toys, Christmas tree lights, chopsticks, and soccer balls for export. Those who refuse are tortured (more about arbitrary detention and slavery).

Be it in labor camps, jails, or in special reeducation centers, all detained Falun Gong practitioners have been forced to undergo what can only be described as brainwashing. The Communist Party’s goal is to force these people to renounce their spiritual beliefs and come to view Falun Gong as dangerous, as well as to turn in others who are active in exposing the persecution.

The key ingredients of the brainwashing process, or what the Party calls "transformation," is sleep deprivation, hours on end of staring at videos vilifying Falun Gong, threats, and Cultural Revolution-style "struggle sessions". Some particularly "stubborn" individuals who refuse to transform are injected with psychotropic drugs in asylums as treatment for the mental disorder of incorrect political thinking (more about psychological persecution).

The Party’s ultimate solution for the vast number of incarcerated Falun Gong adherents, however, is much more terrifying. According to current and former hospital employees, the Falun Gong have been used in reverse organ-matching – they have been killed by the thousands so that their organs can be used for on-demand transplants.

Livers, kidneys, hearts, and cornea are removed from the living, anesthetized Falun Gong adherents with matching blood-types and sold to Party officials and other desperate-yet-wealthy individuals from China and abroad. Undercover investigators’ phone calls to Chinese hospitals have caught doctors boasting about this practice on tape (more about organ harvesting).

But, as in every genocide of the twentieth century, extreme violence first required dehumanization of "the other" through propaganda. Indeed, one key measure in the Party’s suppression has been to limit, and distort, information about Falun Gong—both in China and elsewhere.

From day one of the suppression, the regime banned all books and informational media produced discussing Falun Gong positively. All websites relating to the practice were immediately blocked. Millions of Falun Gong books were forcibly seized and burned publicly. The regime feared people might learn, if they knew not already, that Falun Gong was a healthy, normal, and positive way of life embraced by millions (more about censorship).

These censorship efforts have, of course, extended to cyberspace, thanks in no small part to Western companies who have enthusiastically sold Internet surveillance technology to the Party’s security apparatuses. As a result, Chinese people are now in jail for posting evidence of torture online or even downloading articles about Falun Gong (more about the persecution and the Internet).

Alongside censorship, the Party has sought to scandalize Falun Gong through an aggressive propaganda blitz. The regime has been determined to paint Falun Gong as dangerous, deviant, and abnormal.

Former Party Chairman Jiang Zemin led the way, attaching onto Falun Gong the label of "cult" three months after his ban as means to further bend public opinion. The Ministry of Propaganda thus launched numerous publications, radio and TV shows, and even plays, comic books, and exhibitions meant to criminalize Falun Gong (more about this propaganda campaign).

Government officials around the world, meanwhile, report receiving defamatory materials from Party emissaries. These are often accompanied by attempts to pressure the elected officials to stay silent about abuses perpetrated against the Falun Gong, to rescind proclamations in recognition of Falun Gong’s contributions to the community, and to block local Falun Gong activities such as parades or conferences.

Business owners, journalists, and scholars have also been subjected to similar pressure tactics and threats (more about pressure overseas), leading to a sometimes eerie silence in Western press and academia (see "Out of the Media Spotlight").

Beyond mere threats, Falun Gong adherents overseas have been physically assaulted and spied on by agents directly connected to the Chinese Communist regime (more about persecution overseas).

The Falun Gong have responded to all of this with markedly peaceful means. Throughout nearly a decade of persecution, they have refused to adopt violence. Instead, adherents first tried to reason with Communist Party rulers through letters and petitions. When these fell on deaf ears, the Falun Gong turned to Tiananmen Square where – through quietly meditating or displaying banners before being arrested - they sought to call upon the conscience of the Chinese people as well as world leaders. As the persecution continued, the Falun Gong began countering state propaganda by distributing information exposing the persecution through leaflets, VCDs, emails, and phone calls.

Collectively, this resistance movement - composed of bold individual acts in spite of great personal risks – constitutes what is probably today’s largest non-violent movement in the world (see "Righteous Resistance").

Outside of China, Falun Gong practitioners and supporters have also engaged in a range of activities aimed at exposing the persecution on the mainland. Since the Falun Gong in China are denied any legal rights there (more about violations of China’s law and the complicity of the judiciary), a group of leading rights lawyers are carrying out one of history’s broadest international campaigns legal campaigns with the aim of bringing CCP officials to justice for what these attorneys are calling the genocide of Falun Gong (more about lawsuits around the world and violations of international law).

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We were promised properly resourced quality nursing/midwifery services
- Public Sector nurses and midwives across metropolitan South Australia are taking action because the State Government has failed to deliver on its promise to support positive and resourced quality nursing and midwifery services.

It’s about time that these resources are delivered
- A promise was made, in February 2007, to provide more nursing and midwifery staff for direct clinical care so that other nursing and midwifery staff (including Level 2 and 3) could spend time performing activities that have an important impact on patients.
- Since this time, we have repeatedly requested that the resources be provided.
- To date, we have not been provided with a response or timeframe.

It’s the time we need to provide quality patient careThe failure to resource quality nursing/midwifery services has a negative impact on patient care. Failure to meet the promise means that less time is available for important work including:
- Quality improvement
- Infection control
- Rostering (ensuring adequate and appropriate staff on shift)
- Clinical teaching supervision / support of new staff
- Professional / knowledge development and resources
- Co-ordination management and planning.

We have exhausted all other options to make the State Government deliver
- Because we have not received a response, we are taking action so that the State Government will provide us with the resources we need to provide quality nursing/midwifery services.
- We regret that we have been forced to take action, but we are taking action because of our commitment to the community and your health needs.
- We ask for your patience and support in our campaign – this is a campaign to ensure the community gets quality nursing/midwifery services and that’s why ‘It’s About Time’.

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With a new school meals contract due to start in September 2011, Richmond Council has an ideal opportunity, and the lead-time required, to make the borough’s school meal service a model of excellence for local authorities across the country.

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This is a global call petition to Stop The GAZA Siege Now Petition.

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The "Just Say Nothing" campaign aims to combat deliberately argumentative and aggressive behaviour in online communities (otherwise known as "trolling") by encouraging people to completely ignore anyone who acts in this fashion (i.e. "trolls"). For a full description of the campaign, and updates on its progress, please visit the above website.

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Only some cash machines around the UK have an on-screen option to dispense £5 notes. This option should be freely available on EVERY single cash machine, so the general public can manage their money in the way they wish.

For example, cash machines are pointless if you only have £7 in your account, and do not wish to be charged for going over your limit. £5 note options should be available, for personal financial management, and to increase the circulation of £5 notes in the High Street.

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