The tribunal case has opened this afternoon, after repeated delays for talks among the parties and their lawyers, between plaintiff Elaina Cohen and right-wing Labour MP Khalid Mahmood. Cohen has accused Mahmood of racism, bullying, abuse and theft and has told the tribunal that she was sacked for blowing the whistle on ‘criminal abuse’ of domestic violence victims by a member of Mahmood’s staff and the staff member lying to the DVLA on Mahmood’s Commons stationery. Mahmood has denied ‘all allegations of impropriety’.
Mahmood’s legal representative has so far attempted to cast Mrs Cohen as a jealous, vindictive and insecure former employee prepared to cover up wrongdoing if she can keep her job. Ms Cohen has flatly denied the accusations and reiterated that she is here at the tribunal to stand up for whistle-blower and the wronged women whose exploitation she says Mahmood ignored.
Sources close to the plaintiff told Skwawkbox that she was always going to resist attempts to gag her by settling the case before the tribunal started and that she is keen to have her allegations on the official record despite the personal risks.
Labour leader Keir Starmer’s awareness of the issues has already been touched upon in the evidence and cross-examination. He has never taken action or responded to Skwawkbox’s requests for comment about his and general secretary David Evans’s failure to act.
The case continues and, absent any settlement, is expected to last well into next week. Whether Mr Mahmood will appear in person or by videolink after reporting ill health yesterday is not yet finalised.
Skwawkbox is in London to cover the proceedings. If you would like to help cover the costs ofthe trip, please see here.
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|As a Marks and Spencer ad. might say “This is not just a Central London Employment Tribunal Case Hearing, this is a case hearing at the very moment when an announcement on Julian Assange’s extradition to the United States is imminent”.
Whistleblowers deserve our utmost respect and support. Solidarity with Elaina Cohen.
The case continues at London Central Employment Tribunal, 30-34 Kingsway, WC2B.
Claudia Webbe’s appeal continues at Southwark Crown Court.
Steve has travelled from Liverpool to cover both cases so he needs donations asap, as I will.
The initial MSM reports on Claudia Webbe’s court case aren’t very positive.
I agree – solidarity with both Elaina and
Claudia!!
.. and – concerning Assange ..
I was remarking to a US friend how light
the sentences were to those objecting to the
election of President Biden by invading the
White House. Really what they were doing
was treason so why were they not
given longer sentences ?
This contrasts with the treatment of Assange who
faces a life sentence as I understand it.
Easily explained.
The people committing “treason” (how can you be guilty of anything when led along by undercover federal agents?) assisted the deep state with their recklessness.
Assange inconvenienced the deep state with his recklessness.
Besides, from my experiences it seems that whistleblowers are always persecuted.
And on the subject of shenanigans in America, have you seen 2000 mules?
I don’t think the people who tried to raid the Whitehouse
and incidentally lynch the VP needed Federal Agents.
They did its entirely by themselves and spurred on from
numerous “Fake News” sites.
What they did was really no great surprise to my US
relatives or to myself who had witnessed Trumps crazy
history from encouraging dangerous “cures” to COVID
to fawning over Putin ..
Biden appears to have encouraged a different kind of
craziness in his hoping to “weaken Russia” when it is
\not his country who is suffering and when Zelensky
is trying to defend it..
Holby”Biden appears to have encouraged a different kind of craziness”
‘Neo-con’ craziness. Since Clinton the mainstream Democratic Party have been the main promoters of neocon politics in the US. Biden’s hands were already very dirty before 2022. The success of Bernie Sanders’ challenge to the ‘moderate’ wing of the Democrats was built on this.
Sir Keir Show-Me-Your-Papers Starmer is following the same WEF script.
175 years
Anyone seen this?
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/05/18/julian-assange-should-not-extradited-espionage-charges-europe-commissioner/
A great find goldbach. Even the Daily Telegraph feels it has to step-in and cover for the fck-awful Guardnog since it sold-out to the CIA-dollar(and threats?), and became more Starmer-than-Starmer!
Nevertheless, Keir Starmer must answer for Julian Assange’s incarceration and attempted extradition.
“Leader of Labour”, my forensic arse!
Don’t want to make a habit of citing this source – its stance I can disagree with but the comments it provokes are in the gutter – though on Assange, though the guy will not be extracting pull quotes, it recognises the stakes – https://order-order.com/people/julian-assange/
It’s behind a paywall. Can you cut and paste it?
Hi timfrom, there is no paywall but the text is as per below:
“Guido had some dealings with Julian Assange many years back. He’s difficult, prickly and perhaps not the most balanced individual. It would be fair to say he has some pretty bad character flaws. All that aside he has brought into the public domain a lot that governments did not want disclosed. Some of it recklessly endangered the lives of good people – and that should rest on his conscience. Wikileaks also revealed truths that needed to be told.
Assange’s Wikileaks exposed truths that needed to be exposed, for that the Pentagon and the US intelligence establishment is unforgiving. Even if you believe, as Guido does, that the US is generally a force for good in the world, it does not mean that it is in the public interest that all their secrets should stay secret. After exhausting all legal avenues, Assange’s case is now before the Home Secretary and Priti Patel has to make one of the most difficult decisions of her career; accede to heavy pressure from the United States and send him to die in a US jail, or stand up for freedom of the press and free speech, even when it makes allies uncomfortable. Priti should choose to support freedom of the press and not extradite Assange. Even if he is an arsehole.”
I was referring to Goldbach’s Telegraph article, but he appears to not bother ticking the comment reply notifications box. Thanks anyway.
timfrom – The Telegraph article referred to above.
Julian Assange should not be extradited to US to face espionage charges, Council of Europe tells Priti Patel
By Izzy Lyons, Crime Correspondent 18 May 2022 • 10:53am
Julian Assange should not be extradited from the UK to face espionage charges in the US, a Council of Europe commissioner has told the Home Secretary.
Last year, a British court ruled that Assange could be extradited despite claims from his lawyers that he is a suicide risk and handing him over to the US authorities would be a breach of his human rights.
A final extradition order was issued by the courts in April and the case was handed to Priti Patel for a formal decision to be made.
On Wednesday, a letter from Dunja Mijatovic, the Council of Europe commissioner for human rights, to the Home Secretary was released, in which she called on Ms Patel not to extradite Assange because of the “wider human rights implications”.
Assange is wanted in the US over an alleged conspiracy to obtain and disclose national defence information following WikiLeaks’ publication of hundreds of thousands of leaked documents relating to the Afghanistan and Iraq wars.
Writing to Ms Patel last week, Ms Mijatovic said: “It is my view that the indictment by the United States against Mr Assange raises important questions about the protection of those that publish classified information in the public interest, including information that exposes human rights violations.
“The broad and vague nature of the allegations against Mr Assange, and of the offences listed in the indictment, are troubling as many of them concern activities at the core of investigative journalism in Europe and beyond.
“Consequently, allowing Mr Assange’s extradition on this basis would have a chilling effect on media freedom, and could ultimately hamper the press in performing its task as purveyor of information and public watchdog in democratic societies.”
Ms Mijatovic finished the letter by saying that “the Government of the United Kingdom should not allow his extradition to the United States”, adding: “I therefore call upon you to decide against the extradition of Mr Assange.”
It is not the first time that Ms Mijatovic has intervened on the matter, issuing a statement two years saying that extraditing anyone who is at “a real risk of torture or inhuman or degrading treatment” is a breach of human rights.
Assange, who recently married Stella Morris, the mother of his two children, has been held in Belmarsh for three years since being dragged out of the Ecuadorian embassy in London.
You may find this very recent BBC HardTalk interview with Julian’s wife Stella Morris interesting.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/w3ct32qv
Released On: 18 May 2022
Stephen Sackur speaks to lawyer Stella Moris, wife of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange and mother of two of his children. The British government is about to decide whether to extradite him to the United States to face espionage charges. With his fate on the line, why is Assange such a polarising figure?
Thanks Steve.
timfrom – Just spotted your second comment. When I saw the first one, I thought you were asking Tim White a question. Sorry about that.
Yes left or right journalism has been put in the dock and defeated if which is almost certain julian Assange will be removed to the USA and spend time incarcerated for a very long period unless the USA has a radical shift in the two party system which is about as likely as him getting a fair trial there .
British justice as become a laughing stock with confused judges contradicting each other and waffling comments from the highest courts in the land..Julian has become a sad tired old man over these years and I doubt any journalist anywhere will ever follow his example again even if he was released tommorow.Hes been destroyed by British justice..Anyone voting for a lawyer needs their heads examined and its clear to me that the labour party are infected with them lunatics of the “BAR”
Batten down the hatches…..Big pharma on alert for another windfall and politicians ready again for new measures….ITs monkey pox and its spreading although like covid rarly kills but remember that Christmas is coming and the pharma needs feeding…..Will I need a poxy passport or like the covid one I will decline and hope that they don’t monkey around too long again.?
Off topic- the latest to successfully complete the Labour future candidates program, Mark Brown, stood in 2019 for the Tories.
Vote Labour, get Tory.
https://twitter.com/jrc1921/status/1526828968283979776?s=20&t=YBBkUW6jj8vp5sL9Lg4eCg
Mustn’t let politics get in the way of a career, must we?
Quite right goldbach. Can’t let this democracy malaky get in the way.
Smarmerite labour…Excluding socialists to the extent of harbouring and welcoming failed toerags in order to show the toerags they’re not toerag enough.
Hold on to your hats. The Beeb have, at last, done something that journalists are supposed to do.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-61508520