Guantanamo actors held at Luton airport
The actors who star in movie The Road to Guantanamo and the original detainnee Ruhal Ahmed were questioned by police at Luton airport under anti-terrorism legislation, it has emerged. The men, who play British inmates at the detention camp, were returning from the Berlin Film Festival where the movie won a Silver Bear award.
One of the actors, Rizwan Ahmed, said a police officer asked him if he intended to make any more "political" films.
The men were released quickly and not arrested, said Bedfordshire police.
INQUIRY
"Six people were stopped under the Terrorism Act. This is something that happens all the time and obviously at airports and train stations," said a spokeswoman.
"There is a heightened state of security since the London bombings. Public safety is paramount."
COULD ALL OF THIS BE BECAUSE OF THE SIGNIFCANT VIEWS RELATING TO MORAL PANIC THAT THE GOVERNMENT,MEDIA AND THE PUBLIC HOLD?
Actor Farhad Harun was also questioned, along with Shafiq Rusul and Rhuhel Ahmed, the men whose detention in Guantanamo is chronicled in the film.
Mr Ahmed also alleges that he was verbally abused by a police officer and had his mobile phone taken from him for a short period.
The actor also claims that he was told by police that he could be held for up to 48 hours without access to a lawyer.
He says he was initially questioned at the airport's baggage pick-up area and taken to a separate room when he demanded to know why.
They have called for an urgent inquiry into what happened while one of the film's producers, Melissa Parmenter, said the detention was outrageous.
Sunday, 29 June 2008
Tipton 3 interigation - part 12 of the film
Just a glimse of the film.
No one could tell these young boys they were guilty, when they weren't.
They all had alabys, and were later proven inocent.
Michael Winterbottom's protrayal of what the young British Muslims incountered is shown with such realism and the young actors who played them have done a superb job as young Ruhal Ahmed, Asig Iqbal and Shafiq Rasul, the young lads from Tipton.
Amoungst the cast was Riz Ahmed (who played Shafiq Rasul)the young British actor who plays Sohail in BRITZ.
No one could tell these young boys they were guilty, when they weren't.
They all had alabys, and were later proven inocent.
Michael Winterbottom's protrayal of what the young British Muslims incountered is shown with such realism and the young actors who played them have done a superb job as young Ruhal Ahmed, Asig Iqbal and Shafiq Rasul, the young lads from Tipton.
Amoungst the cast was Riz Ahmed (who played Shafiq Rasul)the young British actor who plays Sohail in BRITZ.
Tipton 1 - His account... What really happened
Who are the real Terrorists?
Is the world really going backwards?
Terrorism vs. Racism .....
Is the world really going backwards?
Terrorism vs. Racism .....
Ruhal Ahmed (TIPTON 3) Speaks ....
Life at Guantánamo Bay
Ahmed was stripped down, given body and cavity searches and had his head and beard shaved. He was then dressed in goggles, a woolen cap, a jacket and what jailers called a "three piece suit": a chain that wraps around the waist, connecting handcuffs to shackles. He was on his way to Guantánamo.
There, abuse continued as "the rule, not the exception," Ahmed recalls. Interrogations would be as often as twice a day, or as lengthy as twelve hours, he adds.
A change in leadership, he says, changed detainee life for the worse.
"The treatment got really, really bad when [Major General] Miller came," Ahmed avers. "That's when it all started. That's when the torture and interrogation with dogs, hot and cold environment -- stuff like that started happening."
When asked what other forms of abuse he personally experienced, Ahmed says quickly and gravely, "sexual abuse." A strange silence follows. When asked for specifics, he says simply, "I don't really want to go into details."
THE CONFESSION!
"After going through five months of torture, being interrogated twice a day, left in isolation," Ahmed says, "they broke me."
He and his friends admitted to appearing in a propaganda video with Osama bin Laden and 9/11 hijacker Mohammed Atta, both of whom he claims to have never met.
But the confession was contradicted by evidence already known to UK authorities: that Ahmed was working, on probation, and serving community service in Tipton at the time the tape was filmed.
Ahmed admits to having been arrested for a number of petty offenses, including theft, lying to police, and handling stolen goods. Though none of the crimes linked him to militant Islam, they provided investigators with a public record of his whereabouts at the time the tape was filmed.
"They had no idea what they were doing," he adds. "They just wanted scapegoats. They just want people to believe that Guantánamo Bay is right."
Ahmed believes that Guantánamo interrogators were "obviously" aware that they were extracting false information from detainees. "By torturing people, you cannot make them confess the truth," he explains. "You can make them say what you want, but you can't get what you don't [already] know. Torture doesn't work."
"It shouldn't be allowed in any country, whatsoever," he adds. "Even if a tortured person is a terrorist, you've just become a terrorist by torturing them. You've actually come to his level, and that's the last thing you want."
BACK INTO THE WORLD !!!
"One day," Ahmed continues, "they just told us we were coming home. We were handed over to the British government, the British police and [then] to Paddington in London."
After two days of questioning at Paddington Station, he explains, "They open the doors and said, 'you can go home.'"
The release of Ahmed, Iqbal and Rasul in March 2004 came four months after the US Supreme Court agreed to hear the detainees' legal challenge to their indefinite imprisonment without charges, and less than three months before the court sided in their favor.
"I think that was one of the reasons why we were released," Ahmed says. "It's not the reason, but it's probably one of the reasons. There was a lot of pressure on Tony Blair by the British MPs."
Ahmed is now married, with a family. Dogs and children are frequent interruptions in an otherwise sober interview.
Ahmed was stripped down, given body and cavity searches and had his head and beard shaved. He was then dressed in goggles, a woolen cap, a jacket and what jailers called a "three piece suit": a chain that wraps around the waist, connecting handcuffs to shackles. He was on his way to Guantánamo.
There, abuse continued as "the rule, not the exception," Ahmed recalls. Interrogations would be as often as twice a day, or as lengthy as twelve hours, he adds.
A change in leadership, he says, changed detainee life for the worse.
"The treatment got really, really bad when [Major General] Miller came," Ahmed avers. "That's when it all started. That's when the torture and interrogation with dogs, hot and cold environment -- stuff like that started happening."
When asked what other forms of abuse he personally experienced, Ahmed says quickly and gravely, "sexual abuse." A strange silence follows. When asked for specifics, he says simply, "I don't really want to go into details."
THE CONFESSION!
"After going through five months of torture, being interrogated twice a day, left in isolation," Ahmed says, "they broke me."
He and his friends admitted to appearing in a propaganda video with Osama bin Laden and 9/11 hijacker Mohammed Atta, both of whom he claims to have never met.
But the confession was contradicted by evidence already known to UK authorities: that Ahmed was working, on probation, and serving community service in Tipton at the time the tape was filmed.
Ahmed admits to having been arrested for a number of petty offenses, including theft, lying to police, and handling stolen goods. Though none of the crimes linked him to militant Islam, they provided investigators with a public record of his whereabouts at the time the tape was filmed.
"They had no idea what they were doing," he adds. "They just wanted scapegoats. They just want people to believe that Guantánamo Bay is right."
Ahmed believes that Guantánamo interrogators were "obviously" aware that they were extracting false information from detainees. "By torturing people, you cannot make them confess the truth," he explains. "You can make them say what you want, but you can't get what you don't [already] know. Torture doesn't work."
"It shouldn't be allowed in any country, whatsoever," he adds. "Even if a tortured person is a terrorist, you've just become a terrorist by torturing them. You've actually come to his level, and that's the last thing you want."
BACK INTO THE WORLD !!!
"One day," Ahmed continues, "they just told us we were coming home. We were handed over to the British government, the British police and [then] to Paddington in London."
After two days of questioning at Paddington Station, he explains, "They open the doors and said, 'you can go home.'"
The release of Ahmed, Iqbal and Rasul in March 2004 came four months after the US Supreme Court agreed to hear the detainees' legal challenge to their indefinite imprisonment without charges, and less than three months before the court sided in their favor.
"I think that was one of the reasons why we were released," Ahmed says. "It's not the reason, but it's probably one of the reasons. There was a lot of pressure on Tony Blair by the British MPs."
Ahmed is now married, with a family. Dogs and children are frequent interruptions in an otherwise sober interview.
Tipton three complain of beatings
Three Britons released from Guantanamo Bay after two years of imprisonment have told of the conditions they endured as terror suspects.
The three - Ruhal Ahmed, 22, Asif Iqbal, 22, and Shafiq Rasul, 26, all from Tipton in the West Midlands.
They had been captured in Afghanistan, suspected of links to the Taleban, and were taken to the US camp in Cuba.
The three told UK newspapers they were often beaten by US troops.
Their claims of abuse come after similar descriptions by two other released Britons.
But US Secretary of State Colin Powell has dismissed claims of mistreatment. Mr Powell, told ITV's Tonight: "We have watched Guantanamo Bay very carefully, knowing of the interest of a number of nations, including the United Kingdom, and knowing that we have responsibilities under the Geneva Convention, and because we are Americans, we don't abuse people who are in our care."
Mr Powell said it was "not in the American tradition to treat people in that manner"
Yet Americans are known to be assertive and not tolerate what they belivev to be terrorism. They belive that Guantanamo Bay is a humane place, quite the poosite in the film.
So who do we believe ????
The three - Ruhal Ahmed, 22, Asif Iqbal, 22, and Shafiq Rasul, 26, all from Tipton in the West Midlands.
They had been captured in Afghanistan, suspected of links to the Taleban, and were taken to the US camp in Cuba.
The three told UK newspapers they were often beaten by US troops.
Their claims of abuse come after similar descriptions by two other released Britons.
But US Secretary of State Colin Powell has dismissed claims of mistreatment. Mr Powell, told ITV's Tonight: "We have watched Guantanamo Bay very carefully, knowing of the interest of a number of nations, including the United Kingdom, and knowing that we have responsibilities under the Geneva Convention, and because we are Americans, we don't abuse people who are in our care."
Mr Powell said it was "not in the American tradition to treat people in that manner"
Yet Americans are known to be assertive and not tolerate what they belivev to be terrorism. They belive that Guantanamo Bay is a humane place, quite the poosite in the film.
So who do we believe ????
The Road to Guantanamo - TRAILOR
Channel 4's drama from multi award-winning film director Michael Winterbottom – The Road to Guantanamo – created huge international impact and won the prestigious Silver Bear for Direction for Winterbottom and Mat Whitecross in competition at The 56th Berlin International Film Festival.
The Road to Guantanamo .....
Synopsis
The film tells the story of Ruhal Ahmed, Asif Iqbal and Shafiq Rasul (the 'Tipton Three'); three young British men from Tipton in the West Midlands of Pakistani and Bangladeshi origins who traveled to Pakistan in September 2001 just days after the September 11 terrorist attacks in the USA for supposedly a wedding for a friend of theirs. While staying at a mosque in Karachi, the three decided to take a rash and dangerous trip to Afghanistan to see first-hand the encounters of the region.
Mixed with interviews with the three men themselves, and archive news footage from the period, the film contains an account of the three men's experiences from their travels into Afghanistan and to their capture and imprisonment.
Traveling by van, Ruhal, Asif, and Shafiq, with two other friends, crossed the border in October, 2001 just as U.S. warplanes began attacking Taliban positions all over the country. They made it to Kandahar without incident, and later to the capital city of Kabul a few days later. After nearly a month of "lingering" aimlessly around Kabul, the Tipton Three decided to return to Pakistan. But through a combination of bad luck and the increasing chaos, the friends apparently took the wrong bus which traveled further into Afghanistan towards the north and the front-line fighting between the Taliban and the Northern Alliance rebels.
Imprisoned at a base at Mazzar-e Sharif, they were interrogated and discovered to be of British origin. With no luggage, money, passports, and no reason or clear explanation for being in Afghanistan, Ruhal, Asif, and Shafiq were handed over to the United States military and imprisoned in a U.S. Army stockade for a month with other foreign Taliban soldiers, being regularly interrogated and occasionally beaten by American soldiers.
In January, 2002, the 'Tipton Three' were declared "enemy combatants" by the U.S. Military, and flown with dozens of other Taliban and Al-Qaeda fighters to Guantánamo Bay, Cuba where they remained for the next two years. They were held in mostly solitary confinement without charge or legal representation.
The rest of the film shows several scenes depicting their alleged beatings during interrogation, the use of alleged torture techniques such as 'stress positions' and attempts to extract forced confessions of involvement with Al-Qaeda and the Taliban. The isolation continued from the Camp X-Ray where they were held as well as another camp during the two years they were there where they were subjected to more questioning by U.S. Army and CIA interrogators. Because of the devastating 9/11 attacks committed by Al-Qaeda on U.S. soil, the Americans believe that Al-Qaeda is the one acting illegally and its members and affiliates deserve absolutely no protection or special treatment under any international laws.
The Tipton Three were all released without charge and without any compensation for their imprisonment in 2004. The three were flown back to England where, one year later, they went back to Pakistan for the wedding they planned to attend in the first place.
The film tells the story of Ruhal Ahmed, Asif Iqbal and Shafiq Rasul (the 'Tipton Three'); three young British men from Tipton in the West Midlands of Pakistani and Bangladeshi origins who traveled to Pakistan in September 2001 just days after the September 11 terrorist attacks in the USA for supposedly a wedding for a friend of theirs. While staying at a mosque in Karachi, the three decided to take a rash and dangerous trip to Afghanistan to see first-hand the encounters of the region.
Mixed with interviews with the three men themselves, and archive news footage from the period, the film contains an account of the three men's experiences from their travels into Afghanistan and to their capture and imprisonment.
Traveling by van, Ruhal, Asif, and Shafiq, with two other friends, crossed the border in October, 2001 just as U.S. warplanes began attacking Taliban positions all over the country. They made it to Kandahar without incident, and later to the capital city of Kabul a few days later. After nearly a month of "lingering" aimlessly around Kabul, the Tipton Three decided to return to Pakistan. But through a combination of bad luck and the increasing chaos, the friends apparently took the wrong bus which traveled further into Afghanistan towards the north and the front-line fighting between the Taliban and the Northern Alliance rebels.
Imprisoned at a base at Mazzar-e Sharif, they were interrogated and discovered to be of British origin. With no luggage, money, passports, and no reason or clear explanation for being in Afghanistan, Ruhal, Asif, and Shafiq were handed over to the United States military and imprisoned in a U.S. Army stockade for a month with other foreign Taliban soldiers, being regularly interrogated and occasionally beaten by American soldiers.
In January, 2002, the 'Tipton Three' were declared "enemy combatants" by the U.S. Military, and flown with dozens of other Taliban and Al-Qaeda fighters to Guantánamo Bay, Cuba where they remained for the next two years. They were held in mostly solitary confinement without charge or legal representation.
The rest of the film shows several scenes depicting their alleged beatings during interrogation, the use of alleged torture techniques such as 'stress positions' and attempts to extract forced confessions of involvement with Al-Qaeda and the Taliban. The isolation continued from the Camp X-Ray where they were held as well as another camp during the two years they were there where they were subjected to more questioning by U.S. Army and CIA interrogators. Because of the devastating 9/11 attacks committed by Al-Qaeda on U.S. soil, the Americans believe that Al-Qaeda is the one acting illegally and its members and affiliates deserve absolutely no protection or special treatment under any international laws.
The Tipton Three were all released without charge and without any compensation for their imprisonment in 2004. The three were flown back to England where, one year later, they went back to Pakistan for the wedding they planned to attend in the first place.
What I am looking to research .....
Critical Research
For my critical research i am going to be focusing on the issues surrounding 'CRIME AND THE MEDIA'. This is because i am interested in researching British crime involving young Muslims, the possibility that 'moral panic' surrounding young Muslims is leading to the hype of Terrorism or Extremism. I am planning to evaluate the different stereotypes that young Muslims uphold within the western society since the tragedies of 9/11 and 7/7. I will be closely studying documentaries that focus on my area such as Channel 4 Dispatches, also documentary dramas such as 'BRITZ' and 'THE ROAD TO GUANTANAMO'.
I want to explore the detaining process of fugatives, when arressted on terrorism laws. The recent Hollywood film 'RENDITION' complies with this. Also the detaining process of the Tipton 3 in GUANTANAMO BAY for over 2 and a half years.
Also i want to research how innocent civilians can get caught up in terrorism related issues due to moral panic within the media. For example the young Muslims boys who were arressted from Forest Gate.
For my critical research i am going to be focusing on the issues surrounding 'CRIME AND THE MEDIA'. This is because i am interested in researching British crime involving young Muslims, the possibility that 'moral panic' surrounding young Muslims is leading to the hype of Terrorism or Extremism. I am planning to evaluate the different stereotypes that young Muslims uphold within the western society since the tragedies of 9/11 and 7/7. I will be closely studying documentaries that focus on my area such as Channel 4 Dispatches, also documentary dramas such as 'BRITZ' and 'THE ROAD TO GUANTANAMO'.
I want to explore the detaining process of fugatives, when arressted on terrorism laws. The recent Hollywood film 'RENDITION' complies with this. Also the detaining process of the Tipton 3 in GUANTANAMO BAY for over 2 and a half years.
Also i want to research how innocent civilians can get caught up in terrorism related issues due to moral panic within the media. For example the young Muslims boys who were arressted from Forest Gate.
Tuesday, 17 June 2008
CRITICAL RESEARCH ! ! !
CRIME & MEDIA - Topic 4
THE QUESTION : (Topic 4)
1. Give an account of, and evaluate, the research methods you used to investigate tge realtionship between crime and the media.
2. With detailed reference to your specific area of study, discuss and analyse the aspects of the relationship between crime and the media that you have researched.
This is a MEDIA exam, research must relate to the MEDIA. Remember Key Concepts :
L
I
A
R
THE QUESTION : (Topic 4)
1. Give an account of, and evaluate, the research methods you used to investigate tge realtionship between crime and the media.
2. With detailed reference to your specific area of study, discuss and analyse the aspects of the relationship between crime and the media that you have researched.
This is a MEDIA exam, research must relate to the MEDIA. Remember Key Concepts :
L
I
A
R
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