Human rights remain mostly intact in Wales
WE ELECT representatives to Cardiff Bay and Westminster to pass laws and to make decisions at a national level, while acting within their powers. As individuals, whether we voted for the present incumbents or not, we can disagree with particular decisions.
I’ve been very critical of the UK Government’s handling of the pandemic, and I think that Mark Drakeford and Welsh Labour made some poor decisions as well.
But recent letter writers, who call the present governments in Wales and UK “dictators”, have no understanding of what a dictatorship entails. Adding, as one letter does, that “we’ve lost any human rights we might have had”, is absurd. In a dictatorship, the writer would be arrested, possibly jailed for years, tortured or even executed – all contrary to human rights declarations and treaties.
I’ve just checked the 30 articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights – a useful summary can be found on Amnesty’s website – and I’m confident and grateful that most remain intact here in Wales. To pick some key points, we have a regular secret ballot, education and a health service, the right to speak out without fear or arbitrary arrest, and laws which do not, in theory, discriminate in favour of (or against) certain groups.
The partial exceptions could be the rights to employment and sufficient food. For some people, these have been compromised in the current situation. The right to those things still exists, but the practice needs to be improved as soon as possible.
We must always be alert to real attempts to roll back our basic rights, and vigorous debate is fine. But namecalling and exaggeration is unhelpful at a time when we need to work together to support our communities.
Paul Seligman Cardiff
Politicians have lost the plot
THE Welsh Government Seems to have lost the plot completely this weekend. Instead of tackling the virus they seem to be attacking the healthy majority instead of the minority who have the virus. They should be concentrating on identifying the infected and isolating them away from the rest of the population. In case they didnt know this, perhaps they should read how our ancestors dealt with pandemics.
The decisions they come up with defy common sense. They have closed shops and businesses, restricted sales of many items and told everyone to isolate, yet the death rate is far above what it should be even with the virus.
They are building a new coronavirus hospital, which should be great, but it’s in the middle of the top hospital in Wales. Not a good idea for a hospital dealing with a very infectious disease. It makes you wonder if the aim is to make more victims. Isolation hospitals are usually built in isolated areas, making it difficult for the disease to spread.
We are fed up with politicians coming up with plans and instructions that look good on paper but are not practical. They seem to forget that people still have to live in their communities.
Bill Symons
Cardiff
Build this cancer unit to save lives
AS a Whitchurch resident, I want to write to support the development of the new Velindre Hospital in Whitchurch. The facilities at the current cancer unit are greatly overstretched and have been for some years. With the additional strain caused by the Covid pandemic, many more people are having to wait even longer for treatment.
If this development is stopped it will be at least 10 years before an alternative can be built, as can be seen by the length of time the current plan has taken so far and we just cannot wait that long. There are people to be treated and lives to be saved.
I have heard people claiming that the Northern Meadows have been walked for decades, which is clearly not the case. Even 10 years ago the only regular walkers there were a few horses. I and a few others would sometimes walk there but we had to breach the fence to get in. I rarely saw anyone else there. Forest Farm is there right next to the area with its link south through Hailey Park, Pontcanna Fields and all the way to Bute Park. Go north along the Taff Trail to Castell Coch, Garth mountain and Caerphilly mountain. So, we are hardly living in an area bereft of open, green space.
I have also heard of the argument that oncology units should only be co-located with general hospitals, with the Clatterbridge Unit in Liverpool cited as an example of an oncology unit that was relocated from its site in the Wirral to a general hospital in Walton, Liverpool. This is untrue. The oncology unit in the Wirral remains, still offering the whole range of treatments, and is one of three such sites including Walton Hospital.
The final argument against the new development is that the financial model being used – Mutual Investment Model (MIM) – is just the same as the discredited PFI. This is misleading. The MIM model was developed in Wales to address all the disadvantages, costs to the state and benefits to developers that characterised PFIs. With a MIM you get transparency, involvement in the management of the development and financial benefits for the community.
I know some people have become so exercised in their opposition to the development that they threaten not to support Julie Morgan’s reelection next year. That would be a grave error. Throughout her political
Name-calling and exaggeration is unhelpful at a time when we need to work together
Paul Seligman Cardiff
life Julie has supported the green agenda and, more than any other politician I have ever known, she has shown a willingness to listen to her constituents and take seriously their points of view. Any attempt to show dissatisfaction with her and the Labour Party at the ballot box can only result in allowing the Tory Party into power in Wales. The Tory Party’s have announced their intention to sweep away any local democratic involvement or veto in the planning process. Developers will be given a free hand to build wherever they like, whatever they like and whenever they like and there will be nothing we or the local authority will be able to do about it.
If the hospital does not go ahead then housing will take its place over an even greater area and you can be sure that the private developers will just turn a deaf ear to our protests.
I regret that we will lose some open space, but I do not regret the hospital going ahead. I was treated there for prostate cancer more than 10 years ago and when I go back for annual check-ups, I can see how much more crowded and overstretched the place is year on year.
Having had excellent effective treatment, I want others to have the same opportunity and as soon as possible.
Save lives – build the hospital. John Evans Whitchurch
It’s a bit late now...
SO THE limiting of what supermarkets can sell is now being done in the name of “fairness” to the small retailer. About time! But where was this thinking when planning permission was being given to these greedy supermarket giants? Why is the high street dying? I will explain no further. The reason is now becoming evident. Ron Boyce
Cardiff
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