The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
+16
Lancebloke
Ally
Orwell
chris63
Annette O Fish
Amarië
Garek the Guard
azriel
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Lorient Avandi
Eldorion
Pettytyrant101
Mrs Figg
halfwise
David H
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Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
well looking at it from the point of view of an English person looking at things from the outside in a foreign country, there are people who would kill and give their lives to live in the UK and in particular England. Things are much much worse for most other parts of the world and even a large chunks of Europe like Greece Spain and Italy. Quite frankly to hear Petty and others going on and on about how terrible it is to live in the UK it makes me laugh at the ridiculousness and lack of knowledge of how hard it is on the outside. Try it sometime and you will soon realize just how lucky and privileged you are in the UK. really. The UK is by no means perfect but believe me its far far worse than you can imagine outside.
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Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
The UK is in worse debt than Greece, Spain, Italy and Ireland- we owe 900% more per year than our income- this country is on the verge of financial collapse and is in an unsustainable position.
This is an interesting piece-not short, very scary, but a pretty reputable source-Money Weekly-
I dont think you realise how bad things have become here.
Azriel whilst I sympathise with you I have limited sympathy I am afraid- as a whole England keeps voting right - England gave the UK 14 years of Thatcher and you only elected a Labour government because Blair moved the party right of centre (the NHS Trusts were Blair creations not Tory after all).
If you keep voting for the devil you shouldnt be surprised when he burns you.
This is an interesting piece-not short, very scary, but a pretty reputable source-Money Weekly-
I dont think you realise how bad things have become here.
Azriel whilst I sympathise with you I have limited sympathy I am afraid- as a whole England keeps voting right - England gave the UK 14 years of Thatcher and you only elected a Labour government because Blair moved the party right of centre (the NHS Trusts were Blair creations not Tory after all).
If you keep voting for the devil you shouldnt be surprised when he burns you.
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Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
I agree with you Mrs Figg ! I watch the news, I read, I discuss with other people outside this Forum, & a few of them are foreigners. To hear how their country "behaves" & how they have to live does open your eyes ! I do agree but, & this is gonna sound SO naive !, I just wish we ALL could have a decent standard of living, enough decent food on the table, a reason for getting up in the morning with a smile on your face & knowing, ok, things can be tough but, it will be worth it & you will enjoy the results. It wears you down keep hearing all the negative stuff, At the moment its all Doom & Gloom, whether its Propaganda or not, its still there even if you try to switch off your ears & eyes. And thats a shame ! So, to eleviate the drudgyness of it, I make light of it, so that it doesnt become to opressive. I AM fed up of Politicians striking points AGAINST each other, blaming each other for every fooking thing they can, when right in front of them, people are asking, "is there a better way ?" "we need help ?" "why wont you notice us ?"
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Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
True Petty, true. Does this boil down to apathy ? I think it does. I vote but nearly ALL my friends & family DONT, whats that saying ? Its not a case of "let the other guy do it", you gotta do it yourself !
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Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
Precisely Azriel- which is why later today I am officially heading down town to join the Yes campaign and volunteering for leafleting, campaigning ect. (I would have done it this morning but their HQ doesnt open till midday)
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Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
Good on you ! I actually ignore people when they bang on about how its a waste of time voting, "they are all shits" etc etc, So, youde rather let the person in that you dont like just cos you couldnt be bothered to get your arse down to a voting poll ?! its YOUR vote thats wasted in not being used ! And that seems to be the mentality !
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Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
Yeah sadly- I plan on leafleting and trying to convince the poor (like myself!)- as they tend not to vote and this vote is too big and important not to take a role in- so I want to try to reach them, I want to convince them to vote and that it will mean something. And hopefully if its coming from someone like them rather than some suit it might have more appeal, and no one tends to go into run down estates to look for votes- if I can persuade one person to vote who otherwise wouldn't have (even if they vote no!) it will be worth it.
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Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
yes Azriel and I am sorry if I sounded harsh, but it makes me angry when I hear people whining on about England and how bad it is. thats not directed at you btw. its tough for everyone at the moment and when its a deep recession things are tough for all but the rich. At least in England there is some kind of safety net if you are out of work, here there is nothing, and I mean nothing, even if you have kids. Its easy to complain if you have only lived in a small town protected from the worst ravages of a truly and utterly corrupt gvt. you need to experience the true harsh realities of living outside the UK to really appreciate just how protected people are in comparison. the UK doesnt have the mafia or mafia boss presidents, it has freedom of speech and media, its relatively safe, women are relatively equal, from my standpoint its a pretty fantastic place to live and I am proud of being English. we are widely respected and for our democracy and sense of fair play. I am sick of people dragging down my country, it makes for people to be unecessarily down when we need positive energy to dig ourselves out of this crisis.
rant over
rant over
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Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
The Westminster government is what is dragging down England- combined with a rise in right wing politics- like BNP, UKIP ect (a pattern also seen across mainland Europe)- the natural reaction to hard times is to circle the wagons and blame the foreigners.
All those things you are proud of Figg England is in danger of losing- its NHS is going private- and look at the results so far- mass deaths and corruption- the welfare benefits are being hacked back, cut or removed altogether, the poor are being evicted form social housing for daring to have a spare room.
If people dont get crabbit about these things- whats to oppose them continuing? Its no good sticking your head in the sand chanting 'lallala England's brilliant' and hoping its not happening.
All those things you are proud of Figg England is in danger of losing- its NHS is going private- and look at the results so far- mass deaths and corruption- the welfare benefits are being hacked back, cut or removed altogether, the poor are being evicted form social housing for daring to have a spare room.
If people dont get crabbit about these things- whats to oppose them continuing? Its no good sticking your head in the sand chanting 'lallala England's brilliant' and hoping its not happening.
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Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
and its no point in continually slagging off somebody elses country. I never said it was perfect, but if you think you could do better outside the UK feel free to try it.
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Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
The argument its worse elsewhere is not a good excuse for sitting back and watching what you think is good about this country slipping away or being actively destroyed.
People have to make their stand, get out there, take action themselves, get involved.
And you first have to identify the things worth preserving-like the NHS, like a proper safety net, free education and the things that are not worth keeping- huge MP's expenses, bankers receiving millions in bonuses for heading banks that have failed and cost the tax payer millions, 20 billion on nuclear weapons we dont need or can afford ect
Your arguments seem to me to amount to - it could be worse so do nothing. Its getting worse because no one does anything.
People have to make their stand, get out there, take action themselves, get involved.
And you first have to identify the things worth preserving-like the NHS, like a proper safety net, free education and the things that are not worth keeping- huge MP's expenses, bankers receiving millions in bonuses for heading banks that have failed and cost the tax payer millions, 20 billion on nuclear weapons we dont need or can afford ect
Your arguments seem to me to amount to - it could be worse so do nothing. Its getting worse because no one does anything.
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Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
''Your arguments seem to me to amount to - it could be worse so do nothing. Its getting worse because no one does anything''
and your arguments amount to pulling false accusations from out yo ass. show me one place where I have said its best to do nothing. no you can't because thats all bs coming from your imagination.
and your arguments amount to pulling false accusations from out yo ass. show me one place where I have said its best to do nothing. no you can't because thats all bs coming from your imagination.
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Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
I didnt say you had said it- I said your arguments 'seemed' to be saying that- it all seems to amount to stop complaining, its better than other places, it could be worse.
All I am saying is it is getting worse already and sitting back and not taking an active role is I think less and less an option- on which cue I have to go out and sign myself up for volunteering for the YES campaign.
I havent done something like this since my 20's!
All I am saying is it is getting worse already and sitting back and not taking an active role is I think less and less an option- on which cue I have to go out and sign myself up for volunteering for the YES campaign.
I havent done something like this since my 20's!
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Pettytyrant101- Crabbitmeister
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Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
what is it? yes to free Haggis on the NHS.
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Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
Takes less time than I thought (mind you I got a lift there and back in a mates car) to sign up for the YES campaign-few forms to fill out and thats it- I am now an official activists- I even get a name badge to prove it- which in the words of the Doctor (and equally applicable to drunks) "Its got my name on it, in case I forget. That does happen."
"yes to free Haggis on the NHS."- Mrs Figg
That is a ridiculous thing to say Figg-if you are ever in a Scottish hospital you find you already get Haggis free (porridge too)
"yes to free Haggis on the NHS."- Mrs Figg
That is a ridiculous thing to say Figg-if you are ever in a Scottish hospital you find you already get Haggis free (porridge too)
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Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
Figgs, I didnt feel you were being harsh ? far from it ! Im in a difficult place cos I can sometimes see both sides of the same coin & I cant make the correct decisions! There are so many things to be grateful here (uk) I just hope we dont sink under our own "sea". I think looking back in history could teach us, (as if we havnt learnt by now!) How did people cope ? what were their tactics ? & did they succeed ? Much like planing a battle, many of todays stratagists look to Ancient Greece, Persia etc for plans.
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Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
I suppose a lot of the time I think back to my grandparents generation, they had it as tough as it gets, the war, rationing, just the start of the NHS and public walfare, but they had a positive lets get on with it and stop moaning attitude. They didnt have it cushy like people today, there was no housing benefit, people actually starved to death, or got rickets, or went through life with rotting teeth. There was no tv to speak of, no fast food or 24/7 beer and pizza. No credit cards, just hard graft and hope for the best. My family had land and a farm in a tiny village called Mellor, they lost most of the land and had to sell it to the Duke of Devonshire because there were no male workers to work the farm, they had all died in the war. My grandmother took in an orphan boy she found hiding in the hayloft, he had been wandering a bit like Oliver Twist around the countryside until he was half dead with malnutrition. They fed him and gave him a home, and he stayed on the farm as part of the family. It was amazingly hard to survive but it was only 60 or so years ago. Now people have everything they need, although we are going through a terrible time it will get better, and nobodys children are starving on the streets.
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Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
One of the things that's changed here since my parent's days is that it's much harder to live between jobs without some kind of safety net. It used to be that families and communities were closer. There was always a father /uncle/neighbor who had a farm or small business that would give you a job for a few weeks or months until you got going again.
Personally I enjoy a simple life. What's more troubling is the increasing inequity I see. I work hard and produce food for thousands of people. But there are some people who are "earning" more in one week than I will in my entire lifetime, and I can't see that they produce anything at all.
It's easier to sacrifice if everybody feels they're in it together, like during the War or the Depression.
Personally I enjoy a simple life. What's more troubling is the increasing inequity I see. I work hard and produce food for thousands of people. But there are some people who are "earning" more in one week than I will in my entire lifetime, and I can't see that they produce anything at all.
It's easier to sacrifice if everybody feels they're in it together, like during the War or the Depression.
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Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
My Dads's generation thought of a job as something that was pretty much for life,at a push you maybe might have 2 or 3 jobs over your life.
Now jobs are short term- care work for example is increasingly fixed term contracts- full time jobs themselves are becoming harder to find with a massive increase in part time work instead- its a whole different ball game and the notion of being in the same job for your life is rarer and rarer.
"nobodys children are starving on the streets."- Mrs Figgs
Sadly not true- have a look at the UK figures for child poverty. And they are steadily increasing- policies like the bedroom tax and the cuts to benefits are only making this worse not better.
The appalling cuts this government have made to crucial support services ect are also having a damning effect.
We also have a booming slave trade, although they dont like to call it that, and so prefer to call it human trafficking, slavery by another name.
Things are more Dickensian than you might think.
When I was in my teens we had Thatcher- and my generation got the label Generation X- the lost generation-as there was mass youth unemployment and a whole generation were left to long term unemployment. (funny how this is a repeating trend with Tory governments)
Now its happening again and my little brothers who is at college is in real danger of being the next generation x- and that makes me even more crabbit than when it happened to me.
'What's more troubling is the increasing inequity I see. I work hard and produce food for thousands of people. But there are some people who are "earning" more in one week than I will in my entire lifetime'- David
I completely agree. As a care worker my wage was as low as society could legally get away with- completely undervalued.
And yet a banker who presided over a Bank that gambled peoples money recklessly and ran up ginormous debts and then needed bailed out by the tax payer, walks away with a bonus alone worth more than I will ever earn in my life time caring for people. Something has to be wrong there.
And even when I was working the wages are so low that I still got benefits just to make it enough to scrape by on- and thats wrong too- when you can work full time hours and your wage is still not enough to cover basic living needs.
Whilst this government harps on about the scroungers and the workshy the figures are actually very clear- most of those claiming benefits are not even unemployed-they are working but getting paid such a pittance they still get benefits- usually working tax credits, help with rent, or family allowances.
And if you do have children good luck- this government says once they are 3 you should be back in work- except the cost of child care will use up all your wages and if you turn down work on that basis they will stop your benefits anyway because you are refusing!
Now jobs are short term- care work for example is increasingly fixed term contracts- full time jobs themselves are becoming harder to find with a massive increase in part time work instead- its a whole different ball game and the notion of being in the same job for your life is rarer and rarer.
"nobodys children are starving on the streets."- Mrs Figgs
Sadly not true- have a look at the UK figures for child poverty. And they are steadily increasing- policies like the bedroom tax and the cuts to benefits are only making this worse not better.
The appalling cuts this government have made to crucial support services ect are also having a damning effect.
We also have a booming slave trade, although they dont like to call it that, and so prefer to call it human trafficking, slavery by another name.
Things are more Dickensian than you might think.
When I was in my teens we had Thatcher- and my generation got the label Generation X- the lost generation-as there was mass youth unemployment and a whole generation were left to long term unemployment. (funny how this is a repeating trend with Tory governments)
Now its happening again and my little brothers who is at college is in real danger of being the next generation x- and that makes me even more crabbit than when it happened to me.
'What's more troubling is the increasing inequity I see. I work hard and produce food for thousands of people. But there are some people who are "earning" more in one week than I will in my entire lifetime'- David
I completely agree. As a care worker my wage was as low as society could legally get away with- completely undervalued.
And yet a banker who presided over a Bank that gambled peoples money recklessly and ran up ginormous debts and then needed bailed out by the tax payer, walks away with a bonus alone worth more than I will ever earn in my life time caring for people. Something has to be wrong there.
And even when I was working the wages are so low that I still got benefits just to make it enough to scrape by on- and thats wrong too- when you can work full time hours and your wage is still not enough to cover basic living needs.
Whilst this government harps on about the scroungers and the workshy the figures are actually very clear- most of those claiming benefits are not even unemployed-they are working but getting paid such a pittance they still get benefits- usually working tax credits, help with rent, or family allowances.
And if you do have children good luck- this government says once they are 3 you should be back in work- except the cost of child care will use up all your wages and if you turn down work on that basis they will stop your benefits anyway because you are refusing!
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A Green And Pleasant Land
Compiled and annotated by Eldy.
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Warning may contain Wholesome Tales[/b]
the crabbit will suffer neither sleight of hand nor half-truths. - Forest
Pettytyrant101- Crabbitmeister
- Posts : 46837
Join date : 2011-02-14
Age : 53
Location : Scotshobbitland
Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
And now we have food Banks, something Ive never seen or heard of before ! Every supermarket you see has a basket or box where you can donate any can or packet of food you can spare, This was what you did to help Africa or wherever, NOW its to help US, & the need for food banks is rising faster every week where people are struggling ! PEOPLE, decent, proud, caring people, who cant believe weve sunk to these depths ! People who were once working maybe ? some might have lost the home they had for years, kept the mortgage going & now are practically penny less. I dont believe this Government are trying to raise spirits when all theyre doing is crushing spirits ! Imagine packing, maybe selling stuff just for food & pay Bills, & then telling your kids the home is lost, sold,repossessed, lose your friends at school as we've got to move in with granny, or, lose your mates at school as the council are putting all of us into "bed & Breakfast" for a hundred yrs while they find us a place.
_________________
"All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us. It's the job that's never started as takes longest to finish.”
"There are far, far, better things ahead than any we can leave behind"
If you always do what you have always done, you will always get what you always got
azriel- Grumpy cat, rub my tummy, hear me purr
- Posts : 15702
Join date : 2012-10-07
Age : 64
Location : in a galaxy, far,far away, deep in my own imagination.
Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
the idiots are at it again
Italy storm over expulsion of Kazakh dissident
BBC news
A top civil servant has resigned in Italy amid a political storm over the deportation of a Kazakh dissident's wife and six-year-old daughter.
The interior minister's chief-of-staff, Giuseppe Procaccini, resigned as the incident threatened the stability of Italy's ruling coalition.
Media reports had accused him of meeting Kazakh officials before the deportation took place.
Interior Minister Angelino Alfano faces a Senate no-confidence vote on Friday.
The whereabouts of dissident oligarch Mukhtar Ablyazov are unknown.
But in May, his wife Alma Shalabayeva and their child were arrested in a night-time police raid on their villa in suburban Rome. They were then put on a private plane with Kazakh diplomats and flown to Kazakhstan.
The Kazakh ambassador has been summoned to the Italian foreign ministry for an explanation.
Human rights campaigners have accused Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev of silencing independent media and persecuting political opponents, as well as using the police and courts to keep a tight grip on power.
Mr Ablyazov, a former energy minister and chairman of BTA bank, fled the country in 2009. He was granted political asylum in the UK but his current location is not known.
BTA filed a lawsuit against him, accusing him of siphoning off billions of US dollars from the bank. He denies wrongdoing, calling the case politically motivated.
Interior Minister Alfano, who is in Silvio Berlusconi's centre-right People of Freedom (PdL) party, told parliament on Tuesday that he had not been told about the police operation targeting Mr Ablyazov's family.
"I was not informed and nor was any colleague in the government or the prime minister informed," he said, adding that he had ordered a review of the department that handles deportations, "so this can never happen again".
Opposition politicians are demanding his resignation over the affair. "This is not a credible story. It's something from a Grade Z movie," said Michele Giarrusso, a senator from the anti-establishment Five Star Movement.
Mr Alfano, quoted by the Associated Press news agency, said Kazakh diplomats had urged police to search for Mr Ablyazov in Rome and had then demanded that the fugitive's wife and child be deported.
Was it collusion?
Ms Shalabayeva is reported to be at her parents' home in the Kazakh capital Almaty with her daughter. She cannot leave the city and is accused of having obtained false passports for family members, Reuters news agency reports.
Mr Ablyazov says it was a Kazakh state-organised "kidnapping" and he fears for his family's safety.
The operation was condemned by Amnesty International.
"The Italian authorities must ensure that there is a full investigation and criminal prosecution for any violation of their human rights. Only then can any allegations of collusion between the Italian and Kazakhstani authorities be put to rest," said John Dalhuisen, director of Amnesty's Europe and Central Asia Programme.
The Italian government has retroactively revoked the expulsion order for Ms Shalabayeva and her daughter.
(er..ita a bit late now? )
Italy storm over expulsion of Kazakh dissident
BBC news
A top civil servant has resigned in Italy amid a political storm over the deportation of a Kazakh dissident's wife and six-year-old daughter.
The interior minister's chief-of-staff, Giuseppe Procaccini, resigned as the incident threatened the stability of Italy's ruling coalition.
Media reports had accused him of meeting Kazakh officials before the deportation took place.
Interior Minister Angelino Alfano faces a Senate no-confidence vote on Friday.
The whereabouts of dissident oligarch Mukhtar Ablyazov are unknown.
But in May, his wife Alma Shalabayeva and their child were arrested in a night-time police raid on their villa in suburban Rome. They were then put on a private plane with Kazakh diplomats and flown to Kazakhstan.
The Kazakh ambassador has been summoned to the Italian foreign ministry for an explanation.
Human rights campaigners have accused Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev of silencing independent media and persecuting political opponents, as well as using the police and courts to keep a tight grip on power.
Mr Ablyazov, a former energy minister and chairman of BTA bank, fled the country in 2009. He was granted political asylum in the UK but his current location is not known.
BTA filed a lawsuit against him, accusing him of siphoning off billions of US dollars from the bank. He denies wrongdoing, calling the case politically motivated.
Interior Minister Alfano, who is in Silvio Berlusconi's centre-right People of Freedom (PdL) party, told parliament on Tuesday that he had not been told about the police operation targeting Mr Ablyazov's family.
"I was not informed and nor was any colleague in the government or the prime minister informed," he said, adding that he had ordered a review of the department that handles deportations, "so this can never happen again".
Opposition politicians are demanding his resignation over the affair. "This is not a credible story. It's something from a Grade Z movie," said Michele Giarrusso, a senator from the anti-establishment Five Star Movement.
Mr Alfano, quoted by the Associated Press news agency, said Kazakh diplomats had urged police to search for Mr Ablyazov in Rome and had then demanded that the fugitive's wife and child be deported.
Was it collusion?
Ms Shalabayeva is reported to be at her parents' home in the Kazakh capital Almaty with her daughter. She cannot leave the city and is accused of having obtained false passports for family members, Reuters news agency reports.
Mr Ablyazov says it was a Kazakh state-organised "kidnapping" and he fears for his family's safety.
The operation was condemned by Amnesty International.
"The Italian authorities must ensure that there is a full investigation and criminal prosecution for any violation of their human rights. Only then can any allegations of collusion between the Italian and Kazakhstani authorities be put to rest," said John Dalhuisen, director of Amnesty's Europe and Central Asia Programme.
The Italian government has retroactively revoked the expulsion order for Ms Shalabayeva and her daughter.
(er..ita a bit late now? )
Mrs Figg- Eel Wrangler from Bree
- Posts : 25954
Join date : 2011-10-06
Age : 94
Location : Holding The Door
Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
all this lot sounds like a John Le Carré espionage book
Italians reverse Ablyazov's wife deportation. A story of puppets and puppeteers
After 1.5 months Italian Interior Ministry has suddenly reversed its decision to extradite Alma Shalabayeva and her daughter to Kazakhstan, Tengrinews.kz reports citing the Italian government.
Shalabayeva is the wife of Mukhtar Ablyazov, the former banker who fled Kazakhstan when charged with embezzling $5 billion from BTA bank in Kazakhstan. The massive fraud was found out after the bank almost collapsed in the financial crisis and had to be taken over by the government to save millions of Kazakhstan citizens from loosing their deposits and keep the bank afloat. He was sentenced to prison terms both by Kazakhstan courts and by the UK's High Court in London, but still remains comfortably at large in Europe.
The authorities said that Alma Shalabayeva's extradition to Kazakhstan was done with observance of all the required procedures and was absolutely legal until today when the Italian authorities have suddenly decided that they have wronged the criminally notorious banker by extraditing his wife back to her home country.
The unexpected change of the official mind would have seemed oddly out of place if not for the row around the Italian Interior Minister and Vice PM Angelino Alfano. Opposition MPs have discovered that masking Ablyazov for a political refugee and using his wife’s deportation as a human rights bomb against Alfano could be a way to undermine Alfano and make him resign.
Only a few months ago Italian government expressed readiness to sign extradition treaties with Kazakhstan, while now the Italian Democratic party (PD) senators are saying that the extradition breached laws forbidding deportation of foreigners to states where they might be subject to political persecution which implies that Kazakhstan has suddenly started to be viewed as one of such states by the Italian government and Ablyazov, the criminal charged by the London High Court for embezzling billions, has suddenly become a political refugee.
A scheme that has worked once
Ablyazov was appointed to lead BTA bank back in 2005 and remained in the position until he fled the embezzlement charges in 2009. He was not involved in any politics in Kazakhstan or elsewhere while chairing the bank, but started posing as Kazakhstan President Nazarbayev’s vocal critic immediately after he was accused of fraud and fled Kazakhstan with a healthy fortune of $10 billion.
In a common understanding political refugees are people persecuted for their political opinion, of which he had none, but not for their financial crimes which he had in plenty, according to London’s Judge Nigel Teare who sentenced Ablayzov to prison for failing to disclose his assets.
This is not the first time when Ablyazov reserves to the tactics of turning into a vocal opponent of the government immediately after being charged with a financial crime. All the difference is that he did not flee Kazakhstan the first time so the case did not draw very much international attention.
He was first charged with embezzlement in 1999 when he served as Kazakhstan Minister of Energy, Industry and Trade. He had to resign because of the criminal case and immediately turned his cloak and joined the government’s opposition. After several years of court procedure he was sentenced to 6 years in prison in 2002, but was amnestied less than a year later in April 2003. After that he turned his cloak back and peacefully coexisted with the government dealing in bank loans instead of politics.
Ablyazov has been following in his own footsteps over the past several years, but things might turn out differently the second time with all the international attention his affair is getting. He is surely enjoying manipulating western media and placing paid articles, but even from the actions of the Italian officials that are using his case to undermine their political opponent Alfano it is clear that everyone is playing their own ‘game of thrones’.
Missing part of the puzzle: No dual citizenship for Kazakhstan
While Kazakhstan, Russian and British authorities are chasing Ablyazov with arrest warrants Italian Interior Ministry has reversed its decision to extradite Alma Shalabayeva and her six-year-oil daughter to Kazakhstan and authorized Shalabayeva’s return to Italy where she “can explain her position”. Italian Prime-Minister Enrico Letta has even initiated an internal investigation of Shalabayeva’s deportation.
However, Italy has not always been ignoring its partner-countries’ warrants or calling illegal migrants back to explain positions. The deportation took place in late May after Italian law-enforcement authorities held a special operation in a house in the suburbs of Rome in an attempt to capture Mukhtar Ablyazov. The former banker was not found in the house, but the police did find his wife and daughter who for some reason chose to produce their African IDs instead of Kazakh ones. On May 31 Alma Shalabayeva and her daughter Alua were deported to Kazakhstan for illegal stay at the territory of Italy under fake passports.
Shalabayeva later filed an 18-page declaration that was distributed by her lawyers
to all the prominent Western media, where she confirmed that they were brought to the police quarters in Rome early in the morning of May 29. After spending two days in a detention center for illegal immigrants they were deported to Kazakhstan on the official grounds of possessing fake Central African Republic passport.
Ablyazov's lawyer, Riccardo Olivo later denied that Shalabaeva and her daughter had any forged documents and said that they were carrying valid Kazakhstan passports and EU residency permits issued by Latvia.
Judging from the Italian police reports however, the two chose not to produce their valid Kazakhstan IDs or their Latvian permits, as the Italian police was not aware they had any of those.
Two days later in the hearing on May 31 Riccardo Olivio confirmed that his clients held Central African Republic passports. But he insisted both of the passports were legal and produced signed confirmations from the Central African Republic embassy that the passports were genuine.
Here is where the missing part of the puzzle comes in: Kazakhstan legislation does not support dual citizenship. This means that Shalabaeva could have either a valid Kazakhstan passport or a valid Central African Republic passport, but not both of them at the same time.
And here is a copy of Shalabaeva’s valid Kazakhstan passport with her photo published by Italian Insight that shows that she indeed possesses a Kazakh passport.
However, the African embassy's testimony became the ground for the Italian government’s decision to revoke the deportation ruling.
Strange as it may seem, after it took the authorities 72 hours to deport the wife and daughter, it took them a month and a half after the passports' validity was proven in court to reverse the decision. It only remains to guess who or what turned the tide, and if the tide is going to persist. But it is clear enough that every puppet in the show believes itself a puppeteer.
Turning of the tide
According to Thestar.com.my, on Friday, Italian authorities were discussing serious omissions in the deportation procedure and the intention to proceed with the investigations. Italy's Justice Ministry said it was unaware of the operation until after the fact and Foreign Minister Emma Bonino criticized the incident as "abnormal".
In a statement distributed by Shalabayeva's Italian lawyers on Saturday, Ablyazov thanked the "Italian people" and Prime Minister Enrico Letta for revoking the expulsion order, but said he was worried about his family.
Shalabayeva and her daughter are currently staying in Kazakhstan under a written pledge not to leave the country. They are staying in a cottage at their relatives and are neither guarded nor threatened as the video shows.
Italian Government is blaming the police for failing to warn the ministers on the routine operation, Italian Foreign Minister Emma Bonino is denying being aware of the operation, opposition MPs are calling for resignation of Interior Minister Angelino Alfano claiming he was behind the operation.
Background
Mukhtar Ablyazov is accused of embezzlement of $5 billion from Kazakhstan’s BTA Bank. The businessman fled in 2009 after the criminal case was initiated against him. Ablyazov received an asylum in Great Britain. Kazakhstan is requesting the banker’s extradition on accusations of major fraud and siphoning off of the bank’s funds via dummy companies.
On February 16 London’s High Court sentenced Ablyazov to 22 months in prison for contempt of court. According to the latest information, Ablyazov may now be hiding in France.
Italians reverse Ablyazov's wife deportation. A story of puppets and puppeteers
After 1.5 months Italian Interior Ministry has suddenly reversed its decision to extradite Alma Shalabayeva and her daughter to Kazakhstan, Tengrinews.kz reports citing the Italian government.
Shalabayeva is the wife of Mukhtar Ablyazov, the former banker who fled Kazakhstan when charged with embezzling $5 billion from BTA bank in Kazakhstan. The massive fraud was found out after the bank almost collapsed in the financial crisis and had to be taken over by the government to save millions of Kazakhstan citizens from loosing their deposits and keep the bank afloat. He was sentenced to prison terms both by Kazakhstan courts and by the UK's High Court in London, but still remains comfortably at large in Europe.
The authorities said that Alma Shalabayeva's extradition to Kazakhstan was done with observance of all the required procedures and was absolutely legal until today when the Italian authorities have suddenly decided that they have wronged the criminally notorious banker by extraditing his wife back to her home country.
The unexpected change of the official mind would have seemed oddly out of place if not for the row around the Italian Interior Minister and Vice PM Angelino Alfano. Opposition MPs have discovered that masking Ablyazov for a political refugee and using his wife’s deportation as a human rights bomb against Alfano could be a way to undermine Alfano and make him resign.
Only a few months ago Italian government expressed readiness to sign extradition treaties with Kazakhstan, while now the Italian Democratic party (PD) senators are saying that the extradition breached laws forbidding deportation of foreigners to states where they might be subject to political persecution which implies that Kazakhstan has suddenly started to be viewed as one of such states by the Italian government and Ablyazov, the criminal charged by the London High Court for embezzling billions, has suddenly become a political refugee.
A scheme that has worked once
Ablyazov was appointed to lead BTA bank back in 2005 and remained in the position until he fled the embezzlement charges in 2009. He was not involved in any politics in Kazakhstan or elsewhere while chairing the bank, but started posing as Kazakhstan President Nazarbayev’s vocal critic immediately after he was accused of fraud and fled Kazakhstan with a healthy fortune of $10 billion.
In a common understanding political refugees are people persecuted for their political opinion, of which he had none, but not for their financial crimes which he had in plenty, according to London’s Judge Nigel Teare who sentenced Ablayzov to prison for failing to disclose his assets.
This is not the first time when Ablyazov reserves to the tactics of turning into a vocal opponent of the government immediately after being charged with a financial crime. All the difference is that he did not flee Kazakhstan the first time so the case did not draw very much international attention.
He was first charged with embezzlement in 1999 when he served as Kazakhstan Minister of Energy, Industry and Trade. He had to resign because of the criminal case and immediately turned his cloak and joined the government’s opposition. After several years of court procedure he was sentenced to 6 years in prison in 2002, but was amnestied less than a year later in April 2003. After that he turned his cloak back and peacefully coexisted with the government dealing in bank loans instead of politics.
Ablyazov has been following in his own footsteps over the past several years, but things might turn out differently the second time with all the international attention his affair is getting. He is surely enjoying manipulating western media and placing paid articles, but even from the actions of the Italian officials that are using his case to undermine their political opponent Alfano it is clear that everyone is playing their own ‘game of thrones’.
Missing part of the puzzle: No dual citizenship for Kazakhstan
While Kazakhstan, Russian and British authorities are chasing Ablyazov with arrest warrants Italian Interior Ministry has reversed its decision to extradite Alma Shalabayeva and her six-year-oil daughter to Kazakhstan and authorized Shalabayeva’s return to Italy where she “can explain her position”. Italian Prime-Minister Enrico Letta has even initiated an internal investigation of Shalabayeva’s deportation.
However, Italy has not always been ignoring its partner-countries’ warrants or calling illegal migrants back to explain positions. The deportation took place in late May after Italian law-enforcement authorities held a special operation in a house in the suburbs of Rome in an attempt to capture Mukhtar Ablyazov. The former banker was not found in the house, but the police did find his wife and daughter who for some reason chose to produce their African IDs instead of Kazakh ones. On May 31 Alma Shalabayeva and her daughter Alua were deported to Kazakhstan for illegal stay at the territory of Italy under fake passports.
Shalabayeva later filed an 18-page declaration that was distributed by her lawyers
to all the prominent Western media, where she confirmed that they were brought to the police quarters in Rome early in the morning of May 29. After spending two days in a detention center for illegal immigrants they were deported to Kazakhstan on the official grounds of possessing fake Central African Republic passport.
Ablyazov's lawyer, Riccardo Olivo later denied that Shalabaeva and her daughter had any forged documents and said that they were carrying valid Kazakhstan passports and EU residency permits issued by Latvia.
Judging from the Italian police reports however, the two chose not to produce their valid Kazakhstan IDs or their Latvian permits, as the Italian police was not aware they had any of those.
Two days later in the hearing on May 31 Riccardo Olivio confirmed that his clients held Central African Republic passports. But he insisted both of the passports were legal and produced signed confirmations from the Central African Republic embassy that the passports were genuine.
Here is where the missing part of the puzzle comes in: Kazakhstan legislation does not support dual citizenship. This means that Shalabaeva could have either a valid Kazakhstan passport or a valid Central African Republic passport, but not both of them at the same time.
And here is a copy of Shalabaeva’s valid Kazakhstan passport with her photo published by Italian Insight that shows that she indeed possesses a Kazakh passport.
However, the African embassy's testimony became the ground for the Italian government’s decision to revoke the deportation ruling.
Strange as it may seem, after it took the authorities 72 hours to deport the wife and daughter, it took them a month and a half after the passports' validity was proven in court to reverse the decision. It only remains to guess who or what turned the tide, and if the tide is going to persist. But it is clear enough that every puppet in the show believes itself a puppeteer.
Turning of the tide
According to Thestar.com.my, on Friday, Italian authorities were discussing serious omissions in the deportation procedure and the intention to proceed with the investigations. Italy's Justice Ministry said it was unaware of the operation until after the fact and Foreign Minister Emma Bonino criticized the incident as "abnormal".
In a statement distributed by Shalabayeva's Italian lawyers on Saturday, Ablyazov thanked the "Italian people" and Prime Minister Enrico Letta for revoking the expulsion order, but said he was worried about his family.
Shalabayeva and her daughter are currently staying in Kazakhstan under a written pledge not to leave the country. They are staying in a cottage at their relatives and are neither guarded nor threatened as the video shows.
Italian Government is blaming the police for failing to warn the ministers on the routine operation, Italian Foreign Minister Emma Bonino is denying being aware of the operation, opposition MPs are calling for resignation of Interior Minister Angelino Alfano claiming he was behind the operation.
Background
Mukhtar Ablyazov is accused of embezzlement of $5 billion from Kazakhstan’s BTA Bank. The businessman fled in 2009 after the criminal case was initiated against him. Ablyazov received an asylum in Great Britain. Kazakhstan is requesting the banker’s extradition on accusations of major fraud and siphoning off of the bank’s funds via dummy companies.
On February 16 London’s High Court sentenced Ablyazov to 22 months in prison for contempt of court. According to the latest information, Ablyazov may now be hiding in France.
Mrs Figg- Eel Wrangler from Bree
- Posts : 25954
Join date : 2011-10-06
Age : 94
Location : Holding The Door
Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
That's quite a story! In Italy is it always true truth is stranger than fiction?
Of course I've been following the Amanda Knox saga because she's local. Poor Raffaele Sollecito! It sees that once the Italian justice system puts a string on you, they think you're their personal yo-yo for ever!
Of course I've been following the Amanda Knox saga because she's local. Poor Raffaele Sollecito! It sees that once the Italian justice system puts a string on you, they think you're their personal yo-yo for ever!
David H- Horsemaster, Fighting Bears in the Pacific Northwest
- Posts : 7194
Join date : 2011-11-18
Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
poor Raffaele indeed, if theres a retrial he is screwed. At least Amanda wont have to return to Italy, I doubt the US gvt would allow it.
Its a possibility that for the sake of two women and a girl, one Black two Kazak, the current Italian gvt might fall, and all because of racism.
Italy minister faces more pressure over Kazakh case
ROME (Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta defended his interior minister from growing calls for him to resign over the expulsion of a dissident Kazakh oligarch's wife and daughter, as pressure on his fragile coalition mounted on Wednesday.
Interior Minister Angelino Alfano, who also holds the title of deputy prime minister, told parliament on Tuesday that he had not been informed about the operation in which former Kazakh energy minister Mukhtar Ablyazov's wife and six-year-old child were detained in May.
The pair were bundled on to a private plane to Kazakhstan two days later - an unusually swift deportation that triggered speculation that Italy was trying to curry favour with energy-rich Kazakhstan.
Alfano faces a no-confidence motion on Friday called by opposition parties who have demanded his resignation, and for the first time on Wednesday they were joined by parliamentarians from Letta's own centre-left Democratic Party.
"The position of Minister Alfano is objectively indefensible," a group of 12 PD senators said in a statement.
During a visit to London, Letta said a report by police chief Alessandro Pansa into the case showed Alfano was not involved and declared he would take part in the debate on the no-confidence motion on Friday.
"Alfano's complete non-involvement is shown very clearly from Pansa's detailed and thorough report," he said.
But the case has assumed challenging dimensions for his uneasy coalition, already struggling to contain tensions between the PD and Alfano's centre-right People of Freedom (PDL), which has warned the government will fall if Alfano is forced out.
"If Alfano goes, the government will go 10 minutes later," senior PDL lawmaker Giancarlo Galan told RAI state television.
In the fevered climate of Rome politics, several PDL politicians say the case is being exploited as part of an internal power struggle within the PD by supporters of Florence Mayor Matteo Renzi, who has openly declared his aim of becoming the next leader of the centre-left.
They say Renzi's supporters, who include the 12 senators calling for Alfano to go, are stoking tensions with the aim of bringing down the government and forcing new elections in the hope that Renzi would become prime minister.
Letta brushed off suggestions of a PD split, saying: "There's no problem with Matteo Renzi, I see no clouds on the horizon."
TANGLED
Many details of the case remain unexplained. But Alfano's position suffered another blow on Wednesday when a senior official, who resigned over the affair on Tuesday, said he had informed the minister of a meeting with the Kazakh ambassador to discuss the case.
The claim in the Corriere della Sera daily by Giuseppe Procaccini, former head of Alfano's office, cast doubt on the minister's account that he had not been informed by his staff, even if it did not directly contradict the statement in parliament.
"What Procaccini has said makes the whole thing much more serious. I don't know what might happen between now and Friday," said one PD parliamentarian, who declined to be quoted by name.
Alfano told parliament on Tuesday that the operation was ordered after the Kazakh ambassador told Italian officials that Ablyazov, a former energy minister turned bitter critic of Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, was wanted in Kazakhstan on fraud and organised crime charges.
He said Italian police were told he was armed and dangerous but they did not know of his status as a dissident, and for that reason the case was not treated as a political issue.
Ablyazov was not present when the raid by around 50 police officers was carried out on the Rome villa on the night of May 28-29. He has since accused the Kazakh government of arranging to have his family "kidnapped".
Ablyazov fled Kazakhstan after his bank BTA was declared insolvent and nationalised in 2009 and was granted political asylum in Britain in 2011.
Its a possibility that for the sake of two women and a girl, one Black two Kazak, the current Italian gvt might fall, and all because of racism.
Italy minister faces more pressure over Kazakh case
ROME (Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta defended his interior minister from growing calls for him to resign over the expulsion of a dissident Kazakh oligarch's wife and daughter, as pressure on his fragile coalition mounted on Wednesday.
Interior Minister Angelino Alfano, who also holds the title of deputy prime minister, told parliament on Tuesday that he had not been informed about the operation in which former Kazakh energy minister Mukhtar Ablyazov's wife and six-year-old child were detained in May.
The pair were bundled on to a private plane to Kazakhstan two days later - an unusually swift deportation that triggered speculation that Italy was trying to curry favour with energy-rich Kazakhstan.
Alfano faces a no-confidence motion on Friday called by opposition parties who have demanded his resignation, and for the first time on Wednesday they were joined by parliamentarians from Letta's own centre-left Democratic Party.
"The position of Minister Alfano is objectively indefensible," a group of 12 PD senators said in a statement.
During a visit to London, Letta said a report by police chief Alessandro Pansa into the case showed Alfano was not involved and declared he would take part in the debate on the no-confidence motion on Friday.
"Alfano's complete non-involvement is shown very clearly from Pansa's detailed and thorough report," he said.
But the case has assumed challenging dimensions for his uneasy coalition, already struggling to contain tensions between the PD and Alfano's centre-right People of Freedom (PDL), which has warned the government will fall if Alfano is forced out.
"If Alfano goes, the government will go 10 minutes later," senior PDL lawmaker Giancarlo Galan told RAI state television.
In the fevered climate of Rome politics, several PDL politicians say the case is being exploited as part of an internal power struggle within the PD by supporters of Florence Mayor Matteo Renzi, who has openly declared his aim of becoming the next leader of the centre-left.
They say Renzi's supporters, who include the 12 senators calling for Alfano to go, are stoking tensions with the aim of bringing down the government and forcing new elections in the hope that Renzi would become prime minister.
Letta brushed off suggestions of a PD split, saying: "There's no problem with Matteo Renzi, I see no clouds on the horizon."
TANGLED
Many details of the case remain unexplained. But Alfano's position suffered another blow on Wednesday when a senior official, who resigned over the affair on Tuesday, said he had informed the minister of a meeting with the Kazakh ambassador to discuss the case.
The claim in the Corriere della Sera daily by Giuseppe Procaccini, former head of Alfano's office, cast doubt on the minister's account that he had not been informed by his staff, even if it did not directly contradict the statement in parliament.
"What Procaccini has said makes the whole thing much more serious. I don't know what might happen between now and Friday," said one PD parliamentarian, who declined to be quoted by name.
Alfano told parliament on Tuesday that the operation was ordered after the Kazakh ambassador told Italian officials that Ablyazov, a former energy minister turned bitter critic of Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, was wanted in Kazakhstan on fraud and organised crime charges.
He said Italian police were told he was armed and dangerous but they did not know of his status as a dissident, and for that reason the case was not treated as a political issue.
Ablyazov was not present when the raid by around 50 police officers was carried out on the Rome villa on the night of May 28-29. He has since accused the Kazakh government of arranging to have his family "kidnapped".
Ablyazov fled Kazakhstan after his bank BTA was declared insolvent and nationalised in 2009 and was granted political asylum in Britain in 2011.
Mrs Figg- Eel Wrangler from Bree
- Posts : 25954
Join date : 2011-10-06
Age : 94
Location : Holding The Door
Re: The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [3]
As always the child suffers. Teflon Don left behind a family sick and needing sessions with a psychiatrist and grandchildren mixed up.
leelee- Free-est Spirit
- Posts : 837
Join date : 2011-06-18
Location : canada
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» The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [5]
» The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [2]
» The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread
» The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread
» The Bigger, Badder, Even More Serious Thread [5]
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