G4S, refugee-killing mercenaries

This is a music video by British punk band Crass, of their song Securicor (another name for G4S corporation). Lyrics are here.

By Peter Lazenby in Britain:

Keep G4S hands off our services

Monday 05 August 2013

Disgraced security firm G4S must not get any more government work, campaigners demanded today following a coroner’s damning report on the death of Jimmy Mubenga.

Mr Mubenga, 46, died after being “restrained” by three G4S guards on board an aircraft at Heathrow airport in October 2010, while he was being deported to Angola.

Coroner Karon Monaghan has now exposed shocking conduct by G4S, including paying guards extra to “keep deportees quiet,” “pervasive racism” among guards, lack of training and dangerous restraint techniques.

But the Jimmy Mubenga scandal is only the latest entry on G4S‘s appalling human rights record.

Campaigners branded it “not just incompetent to Olympic gold medal standard – more importantly it is inhumane.”

The company provides prison security services in apartheid Israel and oversees shocking housing conditions for asylum-seekers in Yorkshire and north-east England.

G4S has also milked the taxpayer by charging for electronically “tagging” offenders who were dead, abroad or non-existent.

It holds government contracts worth £600 million and manages detention centres, prisons and 675 police station holding cells.

The firm’s behaviour has prompted the launch of campaigns across Britain to stop G4S cashing in on security contracts from public bodies, including local councils.

Several groups are working together under the Stop G4S banner.

The latest campaign is being launched in Manchester, with a public meeting planned for next month with the aim of persuading Greater Manchester Council to stop employing G4S.

Organisers said: “G4S provides security to Israel’s prison system and is integrally involved in abuses of human rights and violations of international law taking place there – including ill-treatment of Palestinian children unlawfully held in detention.

“G4S has systematically failed to provide adequate housing for those seeking asylum in Yorkshire and the north-east, and has been found to have taken public money for tagging dead people.

“It is serially and seriously guilty of grave misconduct, here and worldwide. It should not be allowed to run public services or to receive public contracts.

“The Stop G4S Greater Manchester Campaign is calling for all publicly funded G4S activities to be brought back in-house under public management and control.

“In particular, we are calling for Manchester council to stop contracting with G4S – now.”

Related articles

• British taxpayers’ money to fraudulent G4S mercenaries

• G4S mercenaries prosecuted for killing refugee (dearkitty1.wordpress.com)
• Jimmy Mubenga coroner issues damning report on deportations (theguardian.com)
• Jimmy Mubenga: coroner finds “pervasive racism” among G4S guards (newstatesman.com)
• G4S killer mercenary promoted (dearkitty1.wordpress.com)
• Why the Jimmy Mubenga case won’t be a watershed moment for government outsourcing (newstatesman.com)
• Jimmy Mubenga was unlawfully killed, inquest jury finds (guardian.co.uk)
• Deported Angolan Jimmy Mubenga ‘unlawfully killed’ on flight, jury rules as CPS reconsiders charges for G4S guards (independent.co.uk)
• G4S faces damages claim over killing of Jimmy Mubenga (guardian.co.uk)
• Prosecutors review Mubenga decision (morningstaronline.co.uk)