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Rhondda Records is with you every day
bringing the news ------- that gives a
view of world events different to 
the mainstream media or
social media!

Except Sundays - our day of rest.

Newsflash - today -- June 12th

Image: we're back!






 

Arturo O'Farrill calls for an end - to
barbaric U.S. crime against Cuba

Washington, June 12th, 12:37am

 (Prensa Latina) 

 

The award-winning pianist and composer.... winner of the
Grammy, Arturo O'Farrill affirmed that the oil blockade 

imposed today by the US Government on Cuba - is a 

barbaric crime and called for an immediate stop.

 

"I come before you today to advocate for the sovereignty and 

security of the Cuban people," said the founder of the Afro 

Latin Jazz Orchestra -- as he called on the US' people to 

act now in favour of the embattled Caribbean nation.

 

Donald Trump's administration - he said in a video that 

circulated on his social networks - has added oil 

sanctions for several weeks now, which have 

permanently disrupted life on this beautiful 

island .....that suffers continuous and 

prolonged blackouts.

 

O'Farrill denounced that "this is not only a problem of quality of 

life, hospitals cannot perform operations, garbage is not being 

collected, people cannot move, food is scarce and the 

people of Cuba ------ are suffering immensely."

 

The renowned musician, who was born in Mexico City on June 

22, 1960 and grew up in New York, called on citizens here to 

write "to their governor, their state representatives, their 

local representatives, the president and ask that this 

barbaric crime against a small island....... be 

stopped immediately."

 

In addition, he rejected the false argument that Cuba would pose

 an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security of 

the United States. "Nothing could be further from the truth," 

he stressed.

 

There are no weapons of mass destruction in Cuba; there are 

no foreign agents seeking to harm us; there is absolutely no 

understandable way, that it can be blamed for constituting 

a threat to the United States. This is intolerable, stressed 

the educator, creator of the Afro Latin Jazz Music 

Academy, an artistic education program
in New York City.

 

"Call your elected representatives, demonstrate, do whatever it 

takes, but please don't allow the Cuban people to suffer any 

more --- unnecessarily," O'Farrill concluded.

 

In a recent exclusive interview with this reporter, the musician 

expressed his resolute opposition to the growing threats of 

U.S. military aggression against Cuba. He pointed out 

that this is the wrong path.

 

"If I see a problem in your house, I can't go and command it. 

The United States wants to do that - and I feel sorry for it. 

That's such a fundamental flaw, that I'm embarrassed."

 

Later he insisted that "no one can go to a country and tell people 

how they have to live" and advocated a return to the stage of 

rapprochement between Cuba and the United States, when 

in December 2014... Presidents Raúl Castro and Barack 

Obama announced the reestablishment of diplomatic 

relations and months later embassies were opened 

in Havana and Washington.

 

In their dialogue, O'Farrill reiterated that it is time to maintain 

"solidarity with Cuba at this time. There is nothing more 

important in my life. To support my people in Cuba..." 

he said.

 

Since Trump returned to the White House in January 2025, he 

has taken the economic, commercial and financial blockade 

against Cuba to unprecedented levels. As of January 29 of 

this year, new unilateral coercive measures focused on 

cutting off all oil supplies to the country in order to, 

through the attempt of economic strangulation, 

force a change of government.

 








Image: People hold up a banner as they protest against Israel at the entrance of the International Criminal Court.




















 UK judge.. brands Palestine Action 
activists ‘terrorists’ for storming 


Israeli weapons company


June 12th, 7:07pm


(PressTV) 


 


In yet another blatant example of Western complicity with 


the Zionist regime, a UK judge has ruled that 4 Palestine 


Action activists have a “terrorist connection” for 


storming a UK site of the Israeli weapons 


manufacturer Elbit Systems.


 


The ruling by Justice Jeremy Johnson was delivered 


as hundreds of Palestine Action supporters held a 


demonstration outside Woolwich Crown Court 


in south-east London on Friday.


 


Metropolitan Police arrested 107 peaceful protesters 


who had gathered to support the activists.


 


In August 2024 -- at the height of the Israeli regime’s genocidal 


war on Gaza -- Charlotte Head (30), Samuel Corner (23), Leona 


Kamio (30), and Fatema Rajwani (21) carried out a 


courageous direct action at Elbit Systems’ 


factory near Bristol.


 


They inflicted approximately £1.2 million in damage to military 


equipment destined for the occupying Israeli forces ---- aiming 


to disrupt the flow of weapons used to slaughter defenseless 


Palestinian civilians and to pressure for the closure of this 


Israeli arms factory operating on UK soil.


 


However, the judge declared that the damage “had a terrorist 


connection” because the activists are linked to Palestine 


Action, the pro-Palestinian direct-action group that the 


UK government had proscribed as a “terrorist 


organization” in July 2025.


 


Notably, the High Court later ruled this proscription unlawful 


in February 2026 -- a decision the UK government is still 


appealing, while keeping the ban in force.


 


Under the legislation, even membership in or public support for 


the group is now a criminal offense in the UK, punishable by 


up to 14 years in prison.


 


Because of the judge’s “terrorist connection” ruling, the four 


activists will be denied normal early release provisions.


 


Instead, a Parole Board will assess their supposed 


“risk to the public” before they can be freed.


 


UK keeps sending arms to Israel
despite ban: Report


 


A new report says Britain keeps exporting arms and equipment, 


including F-35 fighter jet parts, to Israel - despite a government 


suspension in September 2024.


 


UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, strongly 


condemned the UK’s misuse of counter-terrorism laws against 


pro-Palestinian activists, describing it as disproportionate 


and a threat to fundamental freedoms of expression 


and assembly.


 


This case exposes the hypocrisy of the British establishment: 


it shields Israeli war criminals and their arms suppliers while 


criminalizing peaceful citizens who dare to resist the 


machinery of genocide.


 


True terrorism is the Zionist regime’s daily massacre of 


Palestinians -- not the brave actions taken to stop the 


weapons flow. The resistance continues.


 


 


_____________________________________________________


 


 


Israel intensifies airstrikes and 


home demolitions across Gaza


June 12th, 6:48pm


(PressTV) 


 


The Israeli regime has launched a new wave of brutal airstrikes, 


heavy gunfire, and large-scale home demolitions across the 


besieged Gaza Strip, in flagrant violation of the October 


ceasefire agreement.


 


Palestinian media, citing local sources, reported on Friday - that 


Israeli tanks and drones unleashed intense fire on al-Tuffah 


neighbourhood east of Gaza City, while repeated artillery 


shelling pounded the area.


 


Israeli military vehicles also directed heavy fire toward 


residential zones in Beit Lahia in northern Gaza.


 


In a particularly vicious attack, Israeli artillery struck Abu 


Hussein School in Jabalia refugee camp early on Friday, 


wounding five displaced Palestinians and damaging 


one of the few remaining shelters in the north.


 


Israeli warplanes bombed the courtyard of a home 


belonging to the Sarsour family in Deir al-Balah 


and targeted nearby farmland east of the city.


 


An Israeli strike also destroyed parts of the al-Khamisi family 


home in al-Maghazi refugee camp, causing extensive 


damage, followed by a 2nd airstrike on the camp.


 


Meanwhile, occupation forces carried out widespread 


demolitions of Palestinian homes east of Khan Yunis 


in southern Gaza.


 


Hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians continue 


to live in tents and makeshift shelters after the Israeli 


genocidal campaign reduced their homes to rubble.


 


The ceasefire announced on October 10 has been repeatedly 


violated by the Zionist entity, resulting in the killing of at 


least 981 Palestinians since then.


 


Since the launch of its criminal military offensive on October 8, 


2023, the Israeli regime has killed around 73,000 Palestinians, 


wounded more than 173,000 others, and inflicted widespread 


destruction that has damaged or destroyed 90% of the 


blockaded territory’s civilian infrastructure.


 


Backed by the unwavering support of the Islamic Republic of 


Iran and the Axis of Resistance, the Palestinian people and 


their valiant resistance continue to stand firm against this 


ongoing Zionist barbarity, defending their legitimate rights 


and dignity.


 


 


______________________________________________________


 


 


Israel launches fresh aggression 


on southern Lebanon, violating 


April ceasefire


June 12th, 5:06pm


 (PressTV)


 


The Israeli regime has continued its relentless violations of the 


April ceasefire, launching multiple airstrikes, drone attacks, 


and artillery shelling on several towns and villages across


 southern Lebanon.


 


Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA) reported on Friday 


that an Israeli air raid on the small village of al-Bayyad 


in the Tyre district --- injured one civilian.


 


The strike hit the main street near the Ali Kamal Suleiman 


Volunteer Centre, affiliated with the al-Risala Health 


Ambulance Association. The wounded individual 


was transferred to hospital for treatment.


 


An Israeli drone also targeted the town of Jibchit in the 


Nabatieh district, while warplanes struck the Arid 


Dbeibin area in the Marjayoun district.


 


An explosion rocked the Khiam plain in Marjayoun, and 


artillery shelling hit the outskirts of Buyut al-Sayyad 


in the Tyre district.


 


 Separately, Israeli warplanes - attacked Qalaouiyah town, 


as enemy drones flew at low altitude over Baysariyeh in 


the Sidon district and surrounding areas, continuing to 


terrorize civilians.


 


In response, Hezbollah fighters carried out a series of 


effective operations against the occupation forces.


 


The Lebanese resistance group targeted Israeli soldiers 


and military vehicles in Shamaa town in the Tyre 


district using rocket salvos and artillery fire
---- in successive waves overnight.


 


In multiple statements, Hezbollah announced that its 


mujahideen targeted an Israeli drone, fired rockets 


at a military post, and ambushed a convoy of 


armoured vehicles near Majdal Zoun.


 


A surface-to-air missile forced an Israeli Hermes 


450 drone ....to retreat, over Iqlim al-Tuffah.


 


The resistance also struck a newly established 


Israeli army post in Balat ---- with rockets.


 


Hezbollah monitored a force of 12 Israeli armoured 


vehicles advancing from Shamaa towards the 


outskirts of Majdal Zoun late on Thursday.


 


Resistance fighters repelled the advance with rockets, 


destroyed two Merkava tanks using guided missiles 


in Shamaa, and ambushed the convoy again -----


 early on Friday.


 


During the enemy’s withdrawal toward Tayr Harfa, 


Hezbollah ---- detonated an explosive device, 


destroying another military vehicle.


 


Israeli drones use crying children, sirens ---- 


to spread fear in south Lebanon: Residents


 


Residents in south Lebanon say Israeli drones... are broad-


casting the sounds of crying children and other distress 


signals ....as a form of psychological warfare.


 


Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah stated on Friday that 


any ceasefire agreement between Iran and the US must 


also encompass Lebanon, underscoring the strong 


strategic axis ....linking Tehran and the 


Lebanese resistance.


 


Fadlallah criticized the Lebanese government’s direct 


negotiations with Israel, which have failed to bring 


any relief or protection to southern Lebanon.


 


He emphasized -- that Hezbollah supports diplomacy 


grounded in strength -- through indirect channels, 


while noting that the government is negotiating 


on issues..... beyond its capacity to deliver.


 


Despite the ceasefire announced on April 17 and 


extended until early July, the Israeli regime 


persists in its aggressive attacks 


on Lebanon.


 


Since the escalation on March 2, these violations have killed 


at least 3,711 people and wounded 11,483 others. Among 


the martyrs are at least 247 children and 132 health 


workers, according to Lebanon’s Ministry of 


Public Health.


 


The Lebanese resistance, backed by the steadfast support 


of the Islamic Republic of Iran, continues to defend the 


nation’s sovereignty and people ------- against this


Zionist aggression.


 


 


_________________________________________________________




'Which peace ---- have you chosen': 

Mother of 7-year-old Makan Nasiri 

writes letter to FIFA president

June 12th, 12:49am

(PressTV)

 

A bereaved Iranian mother whose seven-year-old son was killed 

in a US-Israeli airstrike on a school in Minab ---- has written a 

devastating letter to FIFA president Gianni Infantino as the 

2026 FIFA World Cup gets underway in the US, Mexico 

and Canada.

 

More than 100 days after the bombing that killed at least 168 

school children, the mother of Makan Nasiri, the only victim 

whose body has never been recovered, has broken 

her silence.

 

On behalf of all the grieving mothers of Minab, she has written 

a letter to Infantino ......about the true meaning of peace.

 

“Which peace have you chosen,” she asks the FIFA president 

in the letter. Her son Makan loved football above all else.

 

The mother described the morning of February 28th, when Makan 

put on his chequered school uniform, wore his cream-coloured
sneakers, and placed his blue sports pullover in his school 

bag so he would not catch a cold after playing. He left 

happily for school ...but never returned.

 

Saturdays were his favourite, she writes in

 the letter, because he had football class.

 

"Today, all that remains of my son is one shoe, that blue pullover, 

and the sound of his laughter in the hearts of those who loved 

him ...and believed in peace," she wrote.

 

"Mr. President, can you hear the laughter 

of my missing little boy too," she writes.

 

The distraught mother, who didn’t even get to bury her child, 

said she does not write with anger. She described herself 

as a mother whose child's whole world was a ball, a 

playground, and the simple dreams of living, 

laughing, and growing up.

 

Describing football as the common language of humanity and 

the fact that FIFA speaks of peace through football, she said 

football.... has become a wound that will never heal.

 

The mothers of Minab, she writes, now 

raise their children only in imagination.

 

"In our dreams, they grow up, become football players like Mehdi 

Taremi, score goals for our country, and wear blue sports shirts 

with doves of peace upon them," reads the letter.

 

"Mr. President, can you see those birds of peace?"

 

The mother invoked a tradition from her culture, which includes 

pouring water behind travelers before a journey so they return 

home safely, adding that her son left for school --- and never 

returned home “because of American bombs and war."

 

She noted that today, the mothers of Iran send their national 

football players into the world with the hope that this time, 

their sons will return safely.

 

“Makan Nasiri” remembered among fans 

during Iran vs New Zealand match.

 

Iranian Embassy in the UK shared an emotional clip ahead of the 

World Cup, honouring the Minab-born football-loving boy, whose 

only remaining trace after the US bombing was a single 

shoe.@presstvsports pic.twitter.com/nDt9fesWUP

 

— Press TV Sports (@presstvsports) June 7, 2026

 

Addressing Infantino directly, the grief-stricken mother 

acknowledged his power to choose who receives 

football's peace awards and who plays on the 

world stage, obliquely referring to the so-

called “peace prize” he handed to 

US President Donald Trump.

 

"You cannot change the meaning of 'peace' for a mother," 

she stated. "For me, peace means a child who stays 

alive and walks to a football field on his own feet."

 

The bombing, carried out by the US and the Israeli regime on 

February 28, targeted a school in the southern Iranian city 

of Minab, marking one of the biggest tragedies of the 

imposed war.

 

While many other children were killed, including his friends 

and classmates, Makan remains the only victim whose 

body has not been recovered.





















Image: Gwenllian, Princess of Wales' Birth Day



Today June 12th, in 1282,


 


Gwenllian,


 


Princess of Wales,


 


is born.


 


Gwenllian ferch Llywelyn, was abducted by an English royal,


Edward 1 of England, who built his castles all over Wales


to keep the Welsh servile (some hope!), and killing the 


last Prince of a united Wales, Llewellyn, by trickery, 


ordered that Gwenllian, his only child by his wife, 


Eleanor, who died in childbirth, a year-old baby, 


be imprisoned in an English convent, so that 


she would not have children --- who might 


restore Welsh independence. And she 


remained there until her death....... 


53 years later.


 


With Gwenllian having spent almost the entirety of her life 


as a nun in England, she was raised with no knowledge 


of her mother tongue and likely, couldn’t even spell or 


pronounce her own name. It is difficult to determine 


if she was even aware of who she was; who her 


parents were and why she was sent to the 


Priory at such a young age. 


 


She died on June 7th, in 1337, a few days 


before her 55th birthday, from “old age”.


 


To this day, she is remembered as one of the 


most tragic figures in Welsh history. A stone 


memorial in her honour, made of Welsh 


blue slate, lies now in the convent


at Sempringham. 


 


A plaque in her honour, is to be seen just below the peak


of Yr Wythnos. It was proposed to be kept safe in the


new building there. but permission was refused.



That memorial plaque was vandalised, torn 


down and found lying way down from the 


peak, yet is now new --- and restored.


 


As a mark of respect to her standing in Cymru's history, 


a peak in Eryri* - Carnedd Gwenllian - with the name


marked on the UK's Ordnance Survey maps, now


reunites Gwenllian with her father, uncle and 


mother, after whom other peaks in the 


area.... are named.


 


There is also a new daffodil named in her honour.


 


When she was still alive, aged 19, her kidnapper


- in 1301 - made his own son ''Prince of Wales.''


 


This insulting tradition --- continues even now.


The current 'Prince of Wales' daughter, uses


Gwenllion's rightful title --- as her own.


 


 


*The English name for  Eryri- 


is Snowdonia..... from the


Old English "snaw dun," 


meaning "snow hill"


 


 It's proper name -- Eryri,
means abode of eagles.


 


 


Gwenllian


 


A baby snatched to shield a bloody crown,


 


A helpless pawn caught in a deadly game,


 


Your destiny was sealed in cradled sleep,


 


A child held hostage in a house of God.


 


Did the echo of a different life


 


Ever whisper through those captive walls:


 


A harp, a lullaby, a blazing hearth,


 


A mother’s dying breath on your soft skin?


 


You never knew your land or learned its tongue,


 


You couldn’t even write your given name.


 


Did you ever feel a power deep within,


 


To stir a humbled nation to arise?


 


Your language, culture, birthright, all erased,


 


Your lonely life a tattered shred of time.


 


You were our last, but not our lost princess.


 


Your footprints on our rocky path remain.


 


Survival is our nation’s special skill,


 


And time has merely honed our stubborn pride.


 


 


by Roger Griffin










 

Iran --- hails Ireland’s move 

to ban --- imports from the

illegal Israeli settlements

May 27th 11:34am

 (PressTV)

 

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs 

Kazem Gharibabadi hails Ireland’s decision to ban imports from 

illegal Israeli settlements, describing the move as a practical 

step toward holding the Israeli regime accountable for its 

violations of international law.

 

“Ireland’s decision to ban imports from the illegal settlements 

of the Israeli regime is a commendable step toward turning 

international law from rhetoric into action,” Gharibabadi 

wrote in a post published on social media platform X 

on Wednesday.

 

He pointed to a 2004 advisory opinion by the International Court 

of Justice (ICJ), which stated that the settlements had been 

“established in breach of international law” and said the 

ruling obliges states not to recognize the illegal status 

created by the settlements or support their 

continuation in any form.

 

“Therefore, buying and selling settlement products is not normal

 trade, but economic complicity in sustaining occupation and 

whitewashing an unlawful situation," he further wrote.

 

He added that Western governments that present themselves 

as defenders of international law must now match words 

with action instead of backing down under pressure 

from the Israeli regime, certain US lawmakers, 

and powerful business lobbies.

 

The remarks came as several European countries are moving 

toward tougher measures against Israeli settlements built

 on occupied Palestinian land.

 

Dutch Prime Minister Rob Arnoldus Adrianus Jetten said 

on Friday that Amsterdam would suspend all economic 

transactions linked to settlements in the occupied 

West Bank and the Golan Heights.

 

The measure is intended to “prevent Dutch society from 

contributing, through our economic activities, to illegal 

occupation & the maintenance of illegal settlements,” 

Jetten explained.

 

Meanwhile, a report by Palestine’s Colonization and Wall 

Resistance Commission (CWRC) --- has described 2025 

as a “year of bloodshed” in the occupied West Bank, 

documenting over 23,800 attacks by Israeli forces 

and settlers ---- against Palestinians.

 

In early 2026, Israel's so-called internal security service, Shin 

Bet downgraded the classification of settler violence against 

Palestinians in the occupied West Bank from “terror attacks” 

to “serious incidents,” narrowing the definition of terrorism 

to cases involving explicit intent to kill and reducing the 

priority of investigations.

 

Since October 7th, 2023, when the Israeli regime launched its
genocidal assault on Gaza --- Israeli forces and settlers have 

killed at least 1,155 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank

--- wounded nearly 11,750 others, and abducted around 

22,000 people, according to official figures.



Image: No thanks to Israeli goods App

The world and her daughter are calling for a boycott
of the genocidal colonial apartheid state of Israel.

Place yourself on the right side of joy and sorrow
by joining the world's boycott - say ''no'' to evil!


Keir Hardie - Britain's first Labour MP - opposed World War One.

His namesake is stammering his way in the opposite direction.



VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV




ROGER WATERS
TO MUSICIANS:-
"BOYCOTT ISRAEL"

Roger Waters formerly of Pink Floyd, in an open letter,
 calls on his fellow musicians --- to boycott the Zionist
Israeli regime and follow the example of the cultural
boycott against the ex S. African Apartheid regime.

“Given the inability or unwillingness of our governments
 [to act] …. I write to you now, my brothers and sisters …
 to ask you to join with me, & thousands of other artists
 around the world, to declare a cultural boycott
on Israel,” Roger Waters says in his letter.

Waters says the Zionist regime has been found guilty of
 major breaches of human rights and international law
 by international organizations, UN officials and the
International Court of Justice.

He touches on two such cases, saying the regime has been
 identified as perpetrating the “crime of Apartheid”, including
 in a statement on March 9th, 2012 by the UN Committee on
the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, and the “crime of
ethnic cleansing” including in East Jerusalem (al-Quds).

Waters adds that he has been a member of the Boycott,
 Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign against the
 Israeli regime’s occupation of the Palestinian lands and
 Tel Aviv’s violations of Palestinian human rights for 7
 years, and now wants other musicians to also join
the anti-Israeli front.

“Please join me and all our brothers and sisters in global
 civil society in proclaiming our rejection of Apartheid in
 Israel & occupied Palestine, by pledging not to perform
 or exhibit in Israel or accept any award or funding from
 any institution linked to the government of Israel, until
 such time as Israel complies with international law
and universal principles of human rights.” 

The former Pink Floyd Musician also says he has recently
 faced a boycott by the US media after his November 29th,
 2012 address at the UN on behalf of the Russell Tribunal.

In the address, he sought accountability for the Zionist
 regime’s violations of the international law and the lack
 of United Nations resolve that prevents the Palestinian
 people from achieving their inalienable rights,
especially  the right of self-determination.


____________________




AT THE FACTORY


Tickets from


www.wegottickets.com/thefactory

www.ticketweb.co.uk

browse venues in Wales

www.ticketlineuk.com

02920 230130

Cash tickets from:

The Factory, Porth
Instrumental Music, Penygraig
Spillers Records, Cardiff


For more details visit


www.factoryporth.com
www.facebook.com/TheFactoryVenue
Twitter @TheFactoryPorth
01443 687080


***********************************************



Daytime Delights...

Starts at 1pm

The Parc & Dare, Treorchy


Lunchtime Concerts in the Lounge Bar.


Indulge in a delicious cake and a cup of tea
while enjoying music and sing-along songs
from fantastic Welsh musicians.


Ticket information:

The Cultural Services Booking & Information Line:

08000 147 111
or book online at

www.rct-arts.co.uk 


 *************************************************



Mid Rhondda Modelling Club...

7pm - 9pm


Tonyrefail Comprehensive School
Mid Rhondda Modelling Club

has been running for over 30 years.

We meet on a regular basis

& enjoy making models for display.

We encourage both Gentlemen

and Ladies to attend,
and also young people aged 12+.

However, Young people under 16,
must be accompanied by an adult.


Ticket information

£1 contribution every week. Under 16's free


Telephone Mr. Davies on 01443 686658



************************************************



 Comedy In The Laughter Lounge


The Park & Dare Theatre, Treorchy.


COMEDY IN THE LAUGHTER LOUNGE


Join us once a month in the intimate setting
of the Laughter Lounge for some
top notch comedy with some of the
biggest and brightest
rising comedians on the circuit.

Laugh? You'll snort like a pig!


Hilarious - TimeOut.



www.rct-arts.co.uk






Rhondda Records exists to express the Rhondda's
vision --- when it was confident, powerful, caring,
and socialist.

A Rhondda very aware of the media's poisonous
tricks -- how they con working class people into
attacking each other, or racial groups, or, often,
even their best allies and friends... instead of
seeing their real enemies:--- an elite who hate
the very idea that working people can think,
create, or achieve a fairer society.

Thatcher said her proudest achievement was
Blair and New Labour - who parachuted in
careerists and expenses fiddlers - to stop
local Labour members having a say, and
who made genuine socialist MPs leave
the Labour party in disgust and many
members and voters to despair...
and the young to stop voting.

Jeremy Corbyn was always attacked because
he was trying to reverse all that New Labour
corruption --- that's why membership was
flooding in all over the UK.


______________________________________


Get Involved!

– If you feel you’ve been ‘purged’,
take this online survey:

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/857YMDK


or this one:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc0du5YuhPZ8ahI
oxC_b6pvBprmGA4XFdG-0r2dOVYyc4UNFg/viewform?c=0&w=1


– Request all your own data that
the Labour Party holds on you:

http://www.labour.org.uk/pages/privacy


_______________________________________



IF - YOU THINK you HAVE
BEEN UNFAIRLY BARRED:

“Any member who is suspended & intends
to appeal the decision should throw in a
 ‘Subject Access Request in accordance
with the Data Protection Act’ --- for ALL
 data that the Labour Party hold on them.

The Labour Party are Data Controllers and
 therefore have to, by law, provide you with
 all material/information they hold on you.”

If anyone is in contact with anyone who
was barred from voting --- please can
you pass this info on:

The Labour leadership election was under the
jurisdiction of the electoral reform services.

If you were unfairly deprived of your vote you
can call them on 0208 365 8909 and lodge
 your complaint, and inform them of your
Data Protection request.

https://www.electoralreform.co.uk

The notification letters barring new members
did not give a clear reason, or information on
how to appeal, so Vox Political suggests that
 anyone in this situation, could also contact
 Liz Davies here: http://www.whycantivote.com

She is a barrister --- who can
advise members on what to do.



**************************************


PONCY LABOUR MPS PROBLEM?

A huge drop in working-class Labour MPs,
caused a massive drop in support among
 voters with similar backgrounds, reveals
 research seeking to explain why support
has dwindled in the party’s heartlands.

The study says past leaders like Kinnock
 and Blair made a concerted effort to pick
 “more and more middle-class candidates
to run for office, during the 80s and 90s,
 as part of an effort to rebrand” -- which
had initial successes at the ballot box.

But this “conscious electoral strategy”
stored up problems, as working-class
 voters who initially, just didn’t vote in
response, now seek an alternative.

The solution? Trust each constituency to put
forward its own candidates, and don't impose
 ‘party-approved’ choices who can't do the job.


Now, unfortunately, there are "entryist"  MPs who, for
decades, have been groomed by CIA cold war relic
organisations -- like the Atlantic Council -- and are
now trying to misdirect the Labour Party towards
cuts, a militarised police, and a US war agenda...
- and their anti-Corbyn slant is hobbling Labour.

‘How Can I Deselect My Labour MP?’ A Short Guide
to Reselection and Democratic Accountability
by Eric Sim, excellent free advice here:

http://novaramedia.com/2016/07/13/how-can-i-
deselect-my-labour-mp-a-short-guide-to-
reselection-and-democratic-accountability/

CHRIS BRYANT - SUPPORT THE MEMBERS'
LEADERSHIP CHOICE & POLICIES - OR GO!

Chris Bryant, the Rhondda's dodgy MP,
was on TV -- as soon as the PLP coup
started -- telling us that Jeremy MUST
go, because it was the ONLY way to
act in the Labour Party's interest...


Chris Bryant's voting record:
from TheyWorkForYou.com

On Tuition Fees:

On 27 Jan 2004:
Chris Bryant voted in favour of university tuition
fees increasing from £1,125 per year, to up to
£3,000 per year.

On 31 Mar 2004:
Chris Bryant voted to allow university tuition fees
 to increase from £1,125 per year, to up to £3,000
 per year.

On 31 Mar 2004:
Chris Bryant voted for the introduction of variable
university tuition fees (top-up fees) of up to £3,000
per year in place of the previous fixed fee of £1,250
per year.

On 31 Mar 2004:
Chris Bryant voted to allow university tuition fees
to increase from £1,125 per year to up to £3,000
per year, and to make other changes to higher
education funding and regulation arrangements.

On 14 Sep 2004:
Chris Bryant voted against: the immediate abolition
 of all tuition fees, the re-introduction of maintenance
grants of up to £2,000 for students from low-income
homes, and changes to the country's higher
education system.

On 14 Sep 2004:
Chris Bryant voted to reject the Liberal
Democrat policy of abolition of tuition fees.

On 25 May 2016:
Chris Bryant was absent for a vote on Queen's
Speech - Forcing Schools to Become Academies
- Further Rises in University Tuition Fees


On Human Rights:

Consistently voted for introducing ID cards

Almost always voted for requiring the mass
retention of information about communications

Generally voted for mass surveillance of
people’s communications and activities


On the Environment:

Generally voted against greater regulation
 of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) to extract
 shale gas


On Special Interests:

Almost always voted against limits
 on success fees paid to lawyers in
no-win no fee cases

Generally voted against a
statutory register of lobbyists


On War or Peace:

Generally voted for use of UK military
 forces in combat operations overseas

Consistently voted for the Iraq war

Consistently voted against an
 investigation into the Iraq war

Generally voted for replacing Trident
 with a new nuclear weapons system

On 2 Dec 2015:
Voted to support UK airstrikes in Syria
[without UN authorisation]

On 2 Dec 2015:
Voted to support UK airstrikes in Syria
[without UN authorisation]


On Independence:

Generally voted for more EU integration

____________________________
   

Chris Bryant Labour MP
From Wikipedia

(aka 1962-1986: Mr Christopher John Bryant
1986-1991: The Reverend Christopher John
Bryant, 1991-2001: Mr Christopher John
Bryant, 2001-: Mr Christopher John
Bryant MP.)

Born in Cardiff, to a Scottish mother & a Welsh
 father, Bryant grew up in Cardiff, Wales (where
 his father worked for 5 years), and Cheltenham.

He was educated at Cheltenham College, an
independent school for boys in the spa town
of Cheltenham in Gloucestershire, where he
was captain of the school swimming team,
and Mansfield College at the University of
Oxford, where he graduated in 1983, with
 a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in English.
 This was later promoted to a Master of
Arts degree (MA (Oxon)), as per tradition.

After completing his first degree, Bryant began
 training to be a priest in the Church of England
at Ripon College, Cuddesdon, in Oxfordshire.
There, he obtained a degree in theology.

Although a member of the Conservative
 Party, and an elected office-holder in the
 Oxford University Conservative Association,
he joined the Labour Party in 1986, after
leaving Oxford.

He was ordained deacon in 1986 and priest in
1987. He served as a Curate at the Church of
 All Saints, High Wycombe, from 1986 to 1989;
then as a Youth Chaplain in Peterborough,
as well as travelling in Latin America.

In 1991 Bryant left the ordained ministry, after
deciding that being gay and being a priest,
were incompatible. Statements made by
 Richard Harries, then Bishop of Oxford,
 also influenced his decision.

After leaving the priesthood in 1991, Bryant
worked as the election agent to the Holborn
 and St Pancras Constituency Labour Party,
 where he helped Frank Dobson hold his seat
 in the 1992 general election.

From 1993, he was Local Government officer
for the Labour Party; he lived in Hackney and
 was elected to Hackney Borough Council in
1993, serving until 1998. He became Chair of
the Christian Socialist Movement.

 He is both a member of the Labour Friends
 of Israel and Labour Friends of Palestine &
 the Middle East. From 1994 to 1996 he was
 London manager of the leader-grooming
 "charity", Common Purpose.

 He was Labour candidate for Wycombe, in the
 1997 general election (he lost by 2,370 votes),
and Head of European Affairs for the BBC,
from 1998.

His selection for the very safe Labour seat of
Rhondda, South Wales in 2000, shocked many
 people given Bryant's background – gay, an ex-
Anglican vicar, and someone who was a Tory,
while studying at Oxford, and a member now,
of the Henry Jackson Society 'think tank' ---
 described by The Guardian newspaper as
 'neoconservative'. It is pro-US, pro-NATO
and pro-military intervention, as well as
being fundamentally anti-socialist.

 Fifty-two people applied for the candidature
and a local councillor was hot favourite to
 win, before Bryant was parachuted in.

In 2004, a photograph of Mr Bryant in his
 underpants, which he had posted to a gay
 dating website, was published in 'papers.

When an interviewer suggested he was
 a 'disgrace to the Rhondda', he replied:
"They can't get rid of me."


His pay, allowances and some expenses:

The basic annual salary for an MP, from
April 1st, 2016 is £74,962.  MPs also get
 expenses: to cover the costs of running
 an office, employing staff, having some-
where to live in London, plus, in their
constituency and travelling between
 Parliament and their constituency.


His MP's expenses story:

Chris Bryant changed second home
 twice to claim £20,000: the deputy
leader of the House of Commons,
 "flipped" his second home twice,
 in 2 years, allowing him to claim
 almost £20,000 for renovations
 and fees.

Chris Bryant, MP for the Rhondda, split over
 £92,000 of expenses between 3 properties
 in Wales and London --- within five years.

In 2004, he attempted to claim £58,000 to
 overhaul his second home in Wales, after
allegedly complaining that properties in
his constituency were "terrace or mine
 owners' houses".

Mr Bryant, a former Church of England clergyman,
wanted the money for a new bathroom & kitchen,
 and to demolish his conservatory. He'd bought the
 detached house for £97,500, under a year earlier.

 He submitted a claim to the Commons fees office for
 £58,493.26 --- almost 3 times the annual maximum.
 He noted that the claim exceeded his allowance.

His alleged justification was disclosed... in
 correspondence between Commons officials.
 By email, an official wrote: "He had problems
finding a suitable property because in the
Rhondda there is a choice mainly of terraced
 property or mine owners' houses." When
approached by the Daily Telegraph,
Mr Bryant said: "I have never said
 or thought anything of the sort".

 In all, he successfully claimed over £13,000
 for renovations, repairs & appliances, in 2004.
Along with other bills, his annual claim was
 £20,902.

In April 2005, he flipped his expenses to his flat in
 west London, which he bought for £400,000 in April
 2002. He also claimed £630 a month for mortgage
 interest, along with other bills. After claiming over
 £3,600 over 3 months, he sold the flat in July 2005
 for £477,000.

Mr Bryant used his profits to buy a more expensive
 flat in west London, which was valued at £670,000.
 He immediately flipped his second home expenses
 there, claiming almost £6,400 in stamp duty, legal
fees and mortgage fees, incurred in the purchase.

He then began claiming interest of £1,000 a month
on the mortgage. He also claimed a further £6,000
 a year for the flat's service charge and ground rent.

In all, he claimed £92, 415 in second
home expenses, from 2004 to 2009.

Mr Bryant said at the time: "I moved flat in
 London, so as to be closer to Parliament."

Research by Channel 4 News in 2015 found that
at least 46 MPs had this kind of system in place
– a move one Labour backbencher described as
“a new fiddle”. Channel 4 reported then:

“Our investigation found that many of the MPs
 bought their London properties with the help of
the taxpayer, when a previous expenses system
 allowed them to claim back mortgage payments.
But when those claims were banned, following
 the expenses scandal, they switched to letting
out their properties, in some cases for up to
 £3,000 a month. They then started claiming
 expenses for rent and hotels in the capital.”

Among those identified was Chris Bryant, shadow
leader of the House of Commons. He had already
 bought a penthouse in London back in 2005 and
 claimed around £1,000 a month in mortgage
claims under the old system.

But after the expenses scandal, he started renting
the property out. It’s since been advertised by estate
 agents as having a private lift and a porter, with rent
 at about £3,000 a month. Meanwhile, Bryant moved
 into a new flat;- claiming his own rent on expenses.


Image: Russian scientists and Scottish ones



Russian/Scottish scientists hail long-range
secure quantum communication system.

A group of scientists from ITMO University
 in Saint Petersburg, Russia, has developed
a new approach to constructing quantum
communication systems for secure data
exchange.

 The experimental device based on the results of the
 research is capable of transmitting single-photon
 quantum signals across distances of 250 klmtrs
 or more, which is on par with its cutting edge
analogues, the ITMO press-service says.

"Now researchers are on a mission -- to create
 a fully-fledged quantum cryptographic system,
that will generate & distribute quantum keys
 and transmit useful data simultaneously",
 ITMO says.

Information security is becoming more and more
 of a critical issue not only for large companies,
banks and defense enterprises but even for
small businesses and individual users.

But the data encryption algorithms we currently
 use for protecting our data are imperfect - in the
 long-term, their logic can be cracked. Regardless
 of how complex and intricate the algorithm is,
 getting around it, is just a matter of time.

Unlike algorithm-based encryption, systems
 that protect information, by making use of
 fundamental laws of quantum physics, can
make data transmission totally immune to
 hacker attacks, in the future.

Information in a quantum channel is carried
by single photons that change irreversibly
 if an eavesdropper tries to intercept them.
The legitimate users will instantly know
 about any kind of intervention.


Researchers at the Quantum Information Centre
 of the International Institute of Photonics and
 Optical Information Technology at ITMO Uni.,
Russia, along with their colleagues from the
Heriot-Watt University, in Edinburgh, have
 devised a new way to generate and
 distribute, quantum bits.

This makes it possible to share quantum signals
--- via optical fibres --- 250 kilometres in distance.

"To transmit quantum signals, we use the so-
called side frequencies," says Artur Gleim,
head of the Quantum Information Centre, 
at ITMO University,

 "This unique approach gives us a number
 of advantages -- such as a considerable
simplification of the device architecture
 and the large pass-through capacity of
the quantum channel. In terms of bit rate
 and operating distances, our system is
comparable to absolute champions in
the field of quantum communications."

According to Robert Collins, research associate
 at the Institute of Photonics & Quantum Sciences
 at Heriot-Watt University, and one of the authors
of the study, this may become a pivotal point for
 the whole field of quantum communication and
 cryptography:

 "Down the track, this new approach can enable
 smooth coexistence of numerous data streams
 with different wavelengths in one single optical
 cable. On top of it, these quantum streams can
 be fed into the already existing fibre optic lines
 --- along with conventional communications."

The research paper is published
in the Optics Express journal.


Scottish universities are to be
congratulated for their strong
& growing links with Chinese
and Russian universities....

What a shame, that Wales is
lying low --- with academics
too scared to break from
US military research.


Image: BRICS

Image: March 26 London anti cuts demo




KILLING THE ELDERLY BY CLOSING CARE HOMES


Did you know that each time a local authority

closes a care home for the elderly, within 8

months, around half the residents are dead?

Campaigners liken the cuts and their effect
to euthanasia of the UK's elderly.
What to do?


We can start by urging our MPs to sign EDM 2251:

EDM 2251: The contents


This House notes with deep concern the worsening
crisis for elderly care as growing numbers of local
authority and private care homes face closure

Acknowledges concerns that the loss of elderly
people's care homes causes fear, anxiety and,
in many cases, a higher mortality rate, when
vulnerable, elderly people are forced to
leave their homes

Further notes that the Southern Cross crisis
will increase needs for local authority care

And therefore calls on the government to
hold a public inquiry into the deaths after
closures, of local authority care homes,
and impose a moratorium on the closure
of local authority care homes, until that
inquiry publishes its results, to ensure
that vulnerable, elderly people's lives
are not put at further risk.


************************************************


MAKING THE CONNECTION IN WALES


Households across three more English areas
will be able to access superfast broadband
in the latest phase of a Government scheme
to connect rural homes and businesses.

The £50 million funding package for Devon and
Somerset (£30 million), Norfolk (£15 million)
and Wiltshire (£4 million) will aid the roll- out
of superfast broadband services unable to
be reached by the market alone.

Areas will also receive financial support from
their local authorities and private investors,
the Department for Culture, Media and
Sport says.


So it's Broadband Heaven for England...

and crapola for Wales' broadband - the

slowest, worst Broadband in the UK !!!


Lib Dems in Scotland might have received a
pummeling for Clegg and his betrayals, yet,
in Scotland, their campaign centred on it
becoming the "most connected country in
Europe," to massively boost their economy.

In Wales, which political party is now
willing to put into practice scientists'
recommendations:  that Wales' hilly
topography requires establishing

free 'wireless' broadband?

It could connect the people of Rhondda and the
world, boosting Wales' economic regeneration,
like no other move. Wireless technology is now
supplying free broadband to an entire island
off New Zealand's coast.



Come on; if New Zealand can do it - so can we !!!



Image: China's rapeseed blossoms this Spring.

Western China has embraced "green-mode
development" - with painful changes
from which, Wales could well learn.

Eastern China has seen fast growth and
urban mess. The West, a mining and
agricultural area, has not.

Xi'an Chan-ba Ecological District, is a model
for reclaiming old mining areas.

It took six hard years, but now Xi'an is showing
the world how best to change, by turning a
badly polluted rubbish landfill site, into an all
new environment-friendly development.

As China's economic focus moves from east to
west, it's using the lessons learned during 30
or more years of rapid industrial development.

The green way for China's west, is to combine
green industrialization & green urbanization.

The western region's strategy is to adopt
effective energy-saving and environmental
protection technologies... AND to extend
its industry through science and products
unique to China's West, together with strong
vertical growth in agriculture and all its
ancilliary economic & professional spin-offs.

In undertaking this industrial revolution, the
western region will keep a sharp eye out - to
avoid all polluting non-sustainable industries.


*********************************************


A BIG DROP OF HONEY !!!

Spring is beekeeping and honey-processing
season in Yunnan province, in China.

Waves of bees flit across vast fields of flowers.

Local beekeepers and many from other places,
such as Sichuan and Fujian provinces - set up
their base in tents among the rapeseed farms.

The 430,000 hectares of rapeseed blooms in
Luoping attract myriads of bees, which
produce 15 - 20 million tons of honey a year.

Local people now look to brand their county
as a honey production base & increase sales
to outside markets.

Luoping Tianyuanmiyu Bee Industry Co Chair,
Zhu Hongkun, founded his enterprise in 2009.

It mainly produces honey, propolis and
propolis powder.

His company works with 270 plus beekeepers,
who each earn 80,000 yuan a year on average.

Some earn 200,000 yuan annually, Zhu says.

Who says beauty endowed by nature isn't worth a fortune?

The whole of the uplands of south Wales could
be as beautiful & productive, if used wisely!


Image: retirement China style




CHINA's PREMIER POINTS WAY FORWARD

As the Tories threaten a "bonfire of the Quangos",
perhaps Wales should take note. Now extracting
all our mineral wealth has been stopped (apart
from sand and rock) we find ourselves "in" the
1st World of the UK, but with a 3rd World
economy, only just kept going by quangos
which promise much... but deliver little...
and rely on weak public support.

We could WAKE UP & understand that we either
do something, or stay as begging bowl cases.

China's premier points the way forward for Wales:

"Industrial restructuring is the key... only by
developing energy-efficient, indigenous innovative
and high value added products can our companies
and economy, achieve sustainable development."


*************************************************


WHILE FRANCE, GREECE, IRELAND, ETC, STRUGGLE TO
STOP THE PENSION AGE RISING HIGHER AND HIGHER...

An online survey on qq.com, a popular Chinese
news portal, finds that 91% of its over 800,000
respondents, are against raising the current
official Chinese retirement age.

745,123 of those surveyed say they oppose
raising retirement ages -- 72,456 support it.

China's scholars & the public have been debating
whether to raise the retirement age, for the past
few years, but the issue rose to prominence after
remarks by an official.

Wang Xiaochu, the official vice minister of the
Ministry of Human Resources & Social Security,
said at a press conference that the government
was "studying the matter"...

The retirement age in China is generally set
at 60 for men and 50-55 for women.

Wow! Bet you didn't know that !!!



Image: unemployment in Wales


FARMING AND SCIENCE
COULD REGENERATE WALES


A new UN General Assembly report warns
"vast areas" of cultivated land are lost each
year, and that this could lead to unrest.

 The report says up to 30 million hectares,
 an area the size of Italy, is lost each year
to environmental degradation, industry &
 urbanization - the growth of cities - and all
because of speculative building and greed.

 The UN special rapporteur Olivier De Schutter,
 gives the example of eastern Africa, where
the amount of cultivated land has declined
by half --- in just one generation! "

As rural populations grow and competition
with large industrial units increases, plots
cultivated by smallholders are shrinking
year after year," says De Schutter.

 "Farmers are often relegated to soils that
are arid, hilly or without irrigation."

 The UN officer also mentions India as another
example, where the average landholding fell
from 2.6 hectares in 1960 to 1.4 hectares in
2000. A cut of nearly half in 40 years!

He says 500 million small farmers suffer
from hunger, partly because their right to
land is being violated.

The expert warns of the devastating
consequences, as foreign investors
compete for larger and larger areas of
the world's land for "their" agriculture.

 Rhondda Records says Wales could rebuild
its new economy by basing it on a fresh
approach to high-value added products,
using science and agriculture... such as
 the Altzeim project in Gwent.

 What have we got to lose?



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