Remembrance Day Services Honour Veterans

War Graves 'Have Enormous Power To Engage'

Updated: 1:51am UK, Sunday 10 November 2013

By Mark Stone, Asia Correspondent, in Burma

Just outside the chaos and the buzz of Burma's largest city, Rangoon, is a place of remarkable peace and tranquility.

Set back from the busy highway linking Rangoon to the Burma's new capital city Naypyidaw is the Taukkyan War Cemetery.

Taukkyan is the final resting place for 6,426 soldiers of the Commonwealth who fought and died in one or other of the two world wars.

The headstones are lined up in perfect uniformity. I spot a Private Jones and a Corporal Johnson.

Their names seem oddly incongruous so far from 'home'. It is a reminder of just how global the two world wars were.

As always at war cemeteries, the ages are sobering. Most of those I pause by in Taukkyan are teenagers.

Around the world there are a staggering 23,000 war cemeteries just like Taukkyan.

You will find them in 153 different countries, they hold the remains and bear the names of 1.7 million individuals and they are all managed and beautifully maintained by an organisation called the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC).

"The CWGC maintains the very fabric upon which remembrance of the war dead is focussed," Peter Francis, from the CWGC, told Sky News.

"Today, the war graves and memorials are perhaps the only physical reminder of the war left. They have an enormous power in my experience to engage the individual in the war and the sacrifices made."

The gravestones that line the fields of Northern France are well-known, but similarly poignant cemeteries can be found in every country where battles of either world war were fought.

From Burma to Libya and from Turkey to Thailand they are all as moving as they are magnificent.

Some are in deserts, some in mountains, some under snow and some lined with palm trees.

Many of the cemeteries are the legacy of an extraordinary pledge made during the two world wars.

These were the days before repatriations of the like we see today. Back then, soldiers were buried where they fell, but admirable efforts were made to record each individual burial location.

When the guns fell silent, as many of the bodies as possible were 'repatriated', not home, but to a central cemetery where they could lie side-by-side.

Mr Francis points out that World War One marked a step-change in how the victims of war were remembered.

"Before the First World War it was unusual to remember the sacrifice of 'ordinary' soldiers," he explained.

"One only has to look around London and see the memorials to Generals, or go to the battlefield at Waterloo (just 100 years before the Great War) to see that there was very little to mark the sacrifice of the soldier. The First World War and the CWGC changed all that.

"It is all too easy, for those of us who have grown up with the two minute silence, the poppy, the war graves, the memorials, to think there was an inevitability about the commemoration of the war dead. That is not the case."

Along with the 6,426 marked graves at Taukkyan is a memorial wall on which are etched the names of a staggering 27,000 others who died during the battles in Burma and who have no known grave.

Burma, now Myanmar, was a battle ground for both wars and has been for many more since.

The upkeep of so many cemeteries, some in countries now the frontline of new wars, is a huge undertaking.

Mr Francis tells me about one cemetery which is a 45 minute boat ride to a remote Scottish Island. Access to another involves a dangerous journey across Libya.

"Every site, every grave is inspected, assessed and maintained by our dedicated workforce - some 1,300 strong worldwide (the vast majority gardeners and stone masons)," he told me.

"Some may stay at one cemetery their entire career, others will move from country to country. Some are even the third generation of their family to work for us - one of the nice things about the organisation is that we do have a sense of 'family'."

While there are cemeteries in unstable counties like Syria, Iraq and Libya, there are challenges even in places like the UK.

"Here in the UK we face a very peculiar challenge," Mr Francis said.

"Most people do not realise that in the UK, the Commission commemorates more than 300,000 Commonwealth servicemen and women who died in the two world wars - their graves and memorials to be found at a staggering 13,000 locations.

"There is little awareness of this. These range from small rural churchyards to large urban civic cemeteries. In essence we have to enter into 13,000 agreements to maintain these sites."

The CWGC, which is well-funded by grants from Commonwealth-member governments, expects that visitor numbers will increase by up to 30% over the next four years.

It has now embarked on a renovation and modernisation programme.

"Our headstone replacement capacity is now at 22,000 headstones a year and we are re-engraving some 19,000 headstones a year in situ - maintaining the very fabric upon which remembrance of the Great War is largely based and keeping alive in stone the names of those who died."

The commission's website now contains an interactive database allowing people to search for a relative who died in a far-away battle.

Initiatives like this help younger people connect to a past with which they no longer have a direct generational link. 

"An increased awareness of, and sense of ownership in, war graves in the UK, will greatly assist the Commission's task of caring and maintaining for these sites, some of which may have been abandoned to nature over the decades," Mr Francis said.

Back at Taukkyan, I watch one of the commission's volunteers, an elderly Burmese man. He rakes away fallen leaves from the pristine grass around the rows of graves.

Two young Burmese boys wander past. I wonder how much they know of their country's troubled history. Hopefully for them, the troubles are history.

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Terror Suspects Face Controversial Mosque Ban

The Home Office is considering banning terror suspects from visiting controversial mosques, Sky sources say.

Suspects subject to Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures (Tpims) would not be allowed to worship at mosques on a Home Office's list, the sources said.

The plan could also clamp down on the amount of time they spent at mosques, the sources said.

The tougher restrictions would form part of a plan to further restrict terror suspects' freedoms after Mohammed Ahmed Mohamed escaped from a London mosque by dressing in a burka earlier this month.

Pressure is mounting on the Government to explain how the al Shabaab-linked suspect managed to escape surveillance despite being the subject of a Tpim.

Defence Secretary Philip Hammond told Sky's Murnaghan programme that lessons needed to be learned from the case.

"The security services and the police face a huge challenge monitoring very large numbers of potential threat streams and we are acutely conscious that the terrorist only has to get lucky once - we have to get lucky every time," he said.

"Because of the large numbers of potential threats that we are monitoring and managing, it is inevitable that every now and again that one will slip through the net.

"When that happens we have to learn the lessons, we have to tighten the system."

Home Secretary Theresa May has come under fire since Mohamed fled

Shadow Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper MP, said her Government counterpart Theresa May was "belatedly trying to close the stable door that she herself threw open" with the stricter measures.

"This Home Secretary repeatedly ignored warnings that ditching relocations would increase the risk that terror suspects would abscond," she said.

"After losing two out of the ten suspects she's been forced to admit there's a problem. But her hands are tied by her own legislation.

"If Theresa May has finally realised that she did the wrong thing by weakening terror controls, she should apologise. And David Cameron should take over the crucial decisions on terror suspects as its clear the Home Secretary can't be trusted to get it right."

Imam Ajmal Masroor told Sky News that the plan was a "crazy idea".

"They're talking about restricting mosques, listing mosques, deciding if the mosques are dodgy then restricting all individuals from their rights to worship," he said.

"What's going to be happening to those mosques? Are they going to become the focus for EDL and other racist groups to attack?

CCTV of Mohamed leaving the mosque in a burka

"These are divisive policies in my view and if individuals are committing crime intelligence services and our security forces have failed in keeping a tag on them, why are they blaming Muslims and the mosque for it?"

A hunt involving the Metropolitan Police's counter terrorism command, MI5 and the UK Border Force has so far failed to track down Mohamed.

But he is not the first person to breach a Tpim since they were introduced to replace control orders in early 2012.

Last December, Ibrahim Magag, who is understood to have attended terrorist training camps in Somalia, absconded from a Tpim notice after ripping off his electronic tag. The police search for him is continuing.

Tpims were introduced in place of controversial control orders that individuals could be placed on indefinitely.

The control orders allowed forced relocation, curfews of up to 18 hours a day, electronic tagging and vetting of visitors.

The Coalition moved to the new system after sustained anger of the system, which some said amounted to virtual home arrest.

Tpims saw forced relocation scrapped, the curfews were replaced with a requirement to stay overnight in a house and they would no longer be indefinite and would instead need renewing every two years.

It has been revealed that before Mohamed escaped he had been twice remanded in custody for allegedly breaching controls imposed on him.

The 27-year-old was released from custody despite facing 20 charges for breaking the restrictions Tpim and the earlier control order.

Mohamed is currently seeking damages from the Government in a human rights legal challenge involving allegations of torture.

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Funeral Appeal After WWII Veteran Dies Alone

Hundreds of people are expected to attend a funeral of a war veteran they never knew after it emerged he died with no close friends or relatives.

Harold Jellicoe Percival served as RAF ground crew and helped with the famous Dambusters raids during the Second World War.

He died last month aged 99 in a nursing home.

Mr Percival's funeral will be held at 11am on Armistice Day at a crematorium in Lytham St Annes, Lancashire.

The veteran never married, had no children and has no close family members able to go to the service.

A request for servicemen first went out in a local newspaper

But after publicity in local newspapers and social media, funeral directors say they are now hoping for a good turnout.

The RAF Association tweeted that its "Northern area will be in attendance" so Mr Percival "won't be alone".

Afghanistan veteran Rick Clement, who lost both legs in 2010, has been using Twitter and Facebook to urge people to turn up to pay their respects.

"Need a big favour from any military or ex serving members. This fallen soldier at 99 years old is having a funeral on Monday," he said.

"It says he has no family to attend in Lytham St Anne's. If your in the area can you give him the send off he deserves." 

He later thanked all those who had supported the appeal, saying: "Harold is going to get an amazing send off."

Comedian Jason Manford has also got behind the campaign.

Mr Percival lived in Penge, south London, before joining the RAF.

He was based in northwest England and became part of the ground crew which helped the Dambusters, the squadron which was initially formed to destroy dams in the Ruhr valley in Nazi Germany.

Mr Percival helped support the Dambusters' daring raid during World War Two

After working in Australia, he later retired to England and lived at a care home in Lytham St Annes.

Matron Janet Wareing said: "Harold was a lovely character, very strong-willed and independent.

"He was quite a private man, and he loved reading his Daily Telegraph every morning.

"We have already been contacted by military veterans who are intending to come, even though they have never met him.

"We've been told one group is looking to bring around 200 people to the service, which would be fantastic."

Mr Percival does have a nephew, David Worsell, but he is not able to attend so his son - Mr Percival's great nephew - will represent the family.

He was a distant relative of former British Prime Minister Spencer Perceval, the only PM to have ever been assassinated.

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Andy Murray Fans Arrested After 'Gun Scare'

Police arrested four men suspected of brandishing a gun at tennis star Andy Murray - but later realised they were autograph hunters with a tennis racket.

The mix-up happened in north London on Wednesday at around 5pm when the Wimbledon champion was in a car with his agent.

Two men apparently got out of another car and knocked on the window of Murray's vehicle to ask him to sign the racket before he drove off, but a member of the public thought the racket was a gun and contacted police.

A Scotland Yard spokesman said they received a report of a man with a firearm in a Mercedes car in Swiss Cottage and the vehicle was stopped in Chelsea, west London.

The four men, aged between 21 and 31, were arrested on suspicion of possessing a firearm and taken into custody, but were later bailed until late January pending further inquiries.

The spokesman added: "A search of the car was conducted and no trace of a firearm was found."

Murray is currently recovering from back surgery he had in September.

In July, he became the first British man to win Wimbledon for 77 years, although he missed the latter part of the season after undergoing the surgery.

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Protest Over Union Workers Blacklist Scandal

Sixty activists have vented their anger during a protest over the scandal of blacklisted workers.

The demonstrators at the Alder Hey Hospital building site in Liverpool want to highlight what they claim is the continued anti-union stance, and denial of facilities for trade unionists, of the site's main contractor, Laing O'Rourke.

It is one of eight major construction companies which are to compensate workers whose names were on a secret industry blacklist of 3,200 men, exposed after years of campaigning by unions.

Workers on the blacklist claimed they were denied work, often for merely raising legitimate concerns about health and safety on building sites.

Legal action is being taken on behalf of some of those on the list, with the case in the High Court on November 29.

Saturday's protest was called by the Blacklist Support Group, which says Laing O'Rourke has refused to negotiate with construction unions over rates of pay or safety and has denied union officials access to the site to speak to workers.

Steve Acheson, a blacklisted electrician and chair of the Blacklist Support Group, said: "Laing O'Rourke may pretend they have turned over a new leaf by their involvement in the compensation scheme but they show their true colours every day by their anti-union actions on building sites across the UK.

"They appear to be pathologically predisposed to victimise workers prepared to stand up for basic rights such as safe conditions or wages."

The construction unions Unite, Ucatt and GMB all had members at the protest. No one from Laing O'Rourke was available for comment.

The protest came a day after the announcement of the death of a construction worker on the Laing O'Rourke Francis Crick medical research centre project in London's King's Cross.

Unite assistant general secretary Gail Cartmail said: "This is a harsh reminder of the importance of high standards of health and safety in an industry that is extremely dangerous.

"Trade unions have a role to play in maintaining safe working environments but Laing O'Rourke has bizarrely banned Unite officials from their sites."

The TUC is organising a national day of action on November 20 over the blacklisting, when the 'Cheesegrater' building under construction in central London, another Laing O'Rourke site, will be targeted. Unions want a Leveson-style inquiry into the scandal.

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Miliband Slams Payday Lenders' Kids Ads

Payday loans companies should be banned from advertising during children's TV shows, Labour leader Ed Miliband has said.

Mr Miliband used a piece in the Sun on Sunday newspaper to claim youngsters are targeted by firms keen to exploit "pester power".

Calling for them to be treated the same as gambling and junk food promotions, he said that, if the Advertising Standards Authority failed to act, a Labour government would legislate.

Accusing the companies of using "cartoon characters, trendy puppets or cute plasticine figures" to attract children, he writes: "We all know kids learn about values of family and friendship from what they watch.

Payday loan firms such as Wonga are accused of preying on children

"We also know how easily they can be influenced. That's why I really worry when payday lenders target our kids and young people.

"And that's what the evidence suggests they are doing. How else do we explain hundreds of thousands of pounds being spent by pay day lenders for adverts during children's TV programmes.

"And why else are they using cartoon characters, trendy puppets or cute plasticine figures in some of their ads?

"They aren't simply doing it to appeal directly to parents. They want to use pester power to get kids and teenagers to put pressure on their parents."

He cited a recent survey that showed more than one in three people with youngsters under 10 said their children had repeated payday loan ad slogans to them.

Father-of-two Mr Miliband is concerned about the influence of ads on kids

"The next Labour government will ask the Advertising Standards Authority to prevent irresponsible advertising by pay day lenders that targets or exploits children and young people," he said.

"This is not just about content but also the time of day when such adverts are shown. There is no justification for ever selling pay day loans during children's TV."

Martin Lewis, the founder of MoneySavingExpert.com, backed Mr Miliband's views - having previously told a Commons committee the companies' behaviour amounted to "grooming".

Bosses from the industry - which is under investigation by the Competition Commission - defended their practices when they appeared before MPs.

Henry Raine, head of regulatory and public affairs at Wonga, told the committee: "Wonga's business is aiming to lend to people who can pay us back, that's how we make money.

"The vast majority of people pay us back on time. We freeze interest after 60 days and 25% of people pay us back early."

Mr Raine said around 3% of loans, equating to around 40,000 of Wonga's 1.25 million customers, go to the 60-day period.

He said Wonga's record compared favourably with the rest of the loan industry, including credit card companies and banks.

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JK Rowling: 'I Won't Top Harry Potter Books'

By Richard Suchet, Arts and Entertainment Correspondent

JK Rowling has said she will never write anything better than the Harry Potter novels.

The seven Harry Potter novels have sold over 450 million copies worldwide - making it the most successful book series of all time.

Speaking during a fundraising event in aid of her children's charity, Lumos (named after a light-giving spell in the Potter books), Rowling told Sky News: "As far back as 2000 I knew I would never top Harry Potter. I knew that before the series ended.

"If you've had the kind of success that you never expected you can think 'oh no, how dreadful I'll never ever top that', or you can say 'how incredibly marvellous and liberating that I made money beyond my wildest dreams and that I can affect issues I really care about'."

More than 450 million Harry Potter books have been bought around the world

Money raised from the fundraising event in London will help fight the institutionalisation of children into orphanages across Europe, which the charity claims can lead to severe developmental problems.

"There are eight million children globally being raised in institutions and everything we know about institutionalisation tells us it is harmful to children's physical and mental health," Rowling said.

"Drug taking and suicide are more likely and a lot of these children may be trafficked or end up in the sex trade. To take a child from their family we know must be damaging, it's the worst thing you can do to a child."

She added: "These themes are in the Harry Potter books. Voldemort was himself raised in an institution so, spookily, it was something I was very much thinking about.

"But we've started where the situation is particularly acute in Eastern Europe where there has been a cultural acceptance of institutionalisation that thankfully in the UK we've really overcome."

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New Mums 'Left Clueless Amid Midwife Crisis'

Nearly half of new mothers say they are not given enough advice on how to recognise if their baby has a life-threatening illness once they have left hospital, according to a survey.

The survey by the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) and Netmums also showed that nearly a third (30.8%) felt unsupported and were asked to go home when they were not ready to leave.

Nearly two thirds (60%) of women said they experienced feeling down or depressed after giving birth, and over two-thirds (40%) said they were not given enough information about breastfeeding.

Mothers' concerns have been echoed by midwives. Asked in the survey if they thought they were able to deliver clinical postnatal care to a standard they were pleased with, over half (58%) said they would like to be able to do more or a lot more.

Just over a third (40%) of midwives said that they had enough time and resources to support and inform women about emotional wellbeing.

RCM chief executive Cathy Warwick said: "These surveys confirm some of my fears about the level and quality of postnatal care that midwives are able to provide and that women are receiving.

"We know from a recent survey of heads of midwifery that postnatal care is suffering because of midwife shortages.

"Whilst I recognise that the Government are working hard to increase midwife numbers, the serious shortage that currently exists is having an impact and it is affecting the quality of care for women."

In response to the findings, a Department of Health spokesperson said: "We are doing everything possible to make sure women get the right maternity support.

"There are now over 1,300 more midwives working in the NHS since May 2010, and a record 5,000 more in training who will all qualify in the next three years. We have also increased the number of health visitors and family nurses, who provide vital support for women.

"Most women have good outcomes and positive experiences of maternity care. We know 84% of women now say they have good care, which has gone up from 75% six years ago. But we are determined to do more.

"Last year, we announced a £25m fund to pay for improvements to over 100 maternity wards and birthing units, including nine new midwifery-led units.

"The work we are doing is making a big difference to the experience that mums and families have of NHS maternity services, with more choice and a better environment where women can give birth."

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Marine Murderer 'Let Side Down', Hammond Says

The Events That Led To A Murder

Updated: 12:04pm UK, Sunday 10 November 2013

By Alistair Bunkall, Sky News Defence Correspondent

The events that led up to the murder of the injured insurgent in Helmand Province were filmed on a helmet-camera belonging to Marine B.

The footage begins as the Marine's were nearing the end of a routine patrol. An Apache helicopter is heard flying nearby. It then fires 139 rounds at suspected insurgents.

The patrol was then asked to go and perform a tactical battlefield assessment - essentially look for injured or dead bodies.

They found one Afghan lying in the middle of a field. He was badly wounded in the chest and legs. An AK-47 was found with him.

At this point Marine B is some 40 yards from the wounded Afghan, having taken up a position to scan the field for the enemy. His camera records Marine A, a 39-year-old Sergeant, and Marine C searching and assessing the Afghan.

Having established he had no other weapons or explosives on him, Marine A then instructs his colleagues to drag the man to the edge off the field. This, he claimed, was so that they weren't sat out in the open where they would be easy targets. He wanted to treat the insurgent in safety Marine A claimed. The prosecution disagreed, arguing that it was a deliberate attempt to find cover, out of the sight of the Apache and a long range surveillance camera in Camp Bastion, know as a PGSS, that might have been monitoring their activity.

Once in a clearing on the edge of the field, Marine A is heard on the video asking if anyone wants to give the Afghan first aid.

"Anybody want to do first aid on this idiot?" he asks.

"No" reply a number of Marines.

"I'll put one in his head, if you want," offers Marine C.

Laughter is heard before Marine A decides:

"No, not in his head, 'cause that'll be f****** obvious."

Marine A is also seen speaking on the radio, updating his base on the status of the Afghan.

He claims he was preparing a '9-liner', the process of calling in medical evacuation, so called because of the nine lines of checks that must be completed before a helicopter is allowed to deploy. A pink 9-liner form can be seen in his hand at one point.

In addition to the video, the events were recorded in a journal kept by Marine C. This was also used in evidence.

"Now we were in cover, I was ready and waiting to pop him with a 9mm, one in the heart should do it, but I waited out for the nod from Marine A, ... and although for one minute I thought we were actually going to treat and casivac him, Marine A squashed it and sent it up that he'd snuffed it while we treated him," he writes.

"So there I was, pistol drawn, waiting for Marine A to get off the net so I could pop this little w***** and be done with it; when Marine A came back over, and thinned me out, to take up arcs with the others." 

"As I walked off..., Marine A popped him one himself!  I felt mugged off, but job done; little f*** was dead at the end of the day."

The video clearly shows Marine A lean towards the Afghan who is lying supine on the ground. He levels his 9mm pistol at the man's chest and fire a shot at virtual point blank range.

Dr Nicholas Hunt, a pathologist who gave expert witness at the trial, explained what happened next in his view:

"The hands. Particularly the right hand comes up to the area to which the weapon has been discharged – that's the first thing I noted," he told the court.

"The legs are also seen to move quite significantly. His head has started to move and his breathing becomes very obviously laboured, much more rapid than it has been before and much deeper breaths."

"He was still alive at the point he was shot. After that his breathing far less obvious – it becomes shallower and the gap between breaths increases."

Marine A's defence was that he believed the Afghan man was already dead when he shot him.

"I saw no signs of life from him, so yes I believed he'd passed,"he told Bulford Military Court.

When asked why he'd shot a man he believed was dead, Marine A replied: "Stupid, lack of self-control. Poor judgement on my part.

"I was very surprised the amount he did move. I believed he was dead. I'd not seen any movement for a few minutes. He suddenly became very animated once I'd shot him."

On the video Marine A is heard admitting he'd just broken the Geneva Convention but insists he was referring to the fact he'd shot a dead body rather an injured man.

Under cross-examination, Marine A was asked what was done to check if the man had died.

"Did anyone check the man's pulse?"

"No," Marine A answered.

"Did anyone check the man's breathing?"

"Not that I saw."

"Did anyone check the man's eyes?"

"Not that I'm aware of."

Marine B argued that he was giving the insurgent first aid but  admitted it was cursory. Marine C said that he'd started walking away from the area and had his back turned when the shot was fired. He also claimed that his diary was a form of therapy and not always accurate.

The Marines were arrested in October last year. Under cross-examination during the trial Marine B admitted misleading the investigation.

"Was there a plan to cover it up?" he was asked by Dave Perry QC for the prosecution.

"We were protecting him, yes," Marine B replied. "In my opinion he had shot an alive, injured insurgent."

Mr Perry asked: "We saw on the video you suggesting a cover story to the patrol. What was the cover story to be?"

"It was just protecting Marine A. It meant to say it was a warning shot," was Marine B's answer.

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Knife-Wielding Man Tasered After Officer Hurt

An armed man has been tasered and arrested on suspicion of attempting to murder of a police officer in southwest London.

Police were called to Falcon Road, Battersea, just after midday following reports a knife-wielding man was threatening members of the public.

Once officers arrived on the scene, the man threatened them too, police said.

One of the police officers suffered minor injuries during the incident, but did not require hospital treatment.

Jenilee Graham, a 23-year-old City worker, said: "I was coming back from Asda with my mum when we saw a woman who told us to stop where we were going.

"We didn't know what was happening, but then we saw the man who the woman was talking about pop out from behind a bus.

"He ran towards us, then he darted down a side street. It was obviously pretty scary."

The man will be questioned at a south London police station, after he is treated in hospital for the tasering.

Police say a number of knives have been recovered from the scene.

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