Spycam Summit - A Public Rally, Sun 4th July 2010

“SPY CAM OUTCRY SPARKS PUBLIC RALLY”

A Public Rally in opposition to the controversial spy cam scheme in Birmingham will take place on Sunday 4th July starting at 4.30 pm at the Bordesley Centre, Camp Hill roundabout, Sparkbrook, Birmingham B11 1AR.

Opposition to a police surveillance operation recently introduced in parts of Birmingham has grown and grown, gaining national support from campaign groups concerned about the infringement of privacy and civil liberties. The human rights group, Liberty, is also mounting legal action over the case, which it says unfairly targets Muslim communities.

The Birmingham ‘Spy Cam’ row, as it’s become known, first came to light when 200 surveillance cameras – a quarter of which are “covert” and hidden in secret locations – were placed around the Washwood Heath and Sparkbrook areas of the city. Authorities claimed the cameras were for “community safety” to combat crime and anti-social behaviour in the area. It later emerged that a Home Office fund for “Terrorism and Allied Matters” paid for the scheme, a counter-terrorism operation focused on communities described as being “at risk of extremism”.

A coalition of groups and high-profile commentators will meet this Sunday for “SUMMIT TALKS” on the issue to demonstrate both the level of concern over the issue, and the breadth of support for the campaign to have them removed. The PUBLIC RALLY organised by grass roots coalition, ‘Birmingham Against Spy Cameras’, will bring together a diverse range of organisations, community groups, campaign groups, councillors, and local residents and individuals who strongly oppose the scheme and are calling for it to be scrapped.

A large turnout is expected (venue capacity is 500) and national media coverage is anticipated.
The event will be chaired and compered by broadcaster and journalist Adrian Goldberg (talkSport, BBC Radio WM, The Birmingham Mail, The Stirrer).



Keynote speakers at the event include: 


SHAMI CHAKRABARTI, Director of Liberty (the leading human rights and civil liberties organisation)


GARETH PEIRCE, top human rights lawyer (Birmingham 6, Guildford 4, Moazzam Begg and many more)

ALEX DEANE, (Director, Big Brother Watch)
LORD HUNT of Kings Heath
LORD NAZIR AHMED or Rotherham
REV. RAY GASTON (Methodist minister, Inter-faith enabler and author)


SALMA YAQOOB (Leader of the Respect Party and Councillor for Sparkbrook)


Plus Birmingham councillors from all parties and others to be confirmed. 


Plus senior representatives from:
West Midlands Police,
The Safer Birmingham Partnership,
Birmingham City Council

This meeting is supported by:
 Muslim Association of Britain, Birmingham Citizens, Cllr Salma Yaqoob, Cllr Tanveer Choudhry, Cllr Mohammed Ishtiaq, Cllr Jerry Evans, Cllr Emily Cox, Cllr Martin Mullaney, Cllr Mohammed Ansar, Cllr Shokat Ali, Cllr Ernie Hendricks, Roger Godsiff MP, Lian Byrne MP, Lynne Jones, Hear My Voice, AerosolArabic, No CCTV, Privacy International, Liberty, Young Muslims Advisory Group, Big Brother Watch, Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Muslim Council of Britain, iChange, UKIM, Islamic Society of Britain, FOSIS, The Stirrer, South Asian Alliance, Socialist Workers Party, Unity FM, Muslim Women’s Network, Young Muslims UK, MPACUK, Shaheli Women’s Group, National Assembly Against Racism, Birmingham Trade Union Council, Unite 451, Third Sector Assembly . . . and many more.

Steve Jolly
Birmingham Against Spy Cameras (BASC)
Press: 07806 408 266