LATEST NEWS

31.01.2010:Here's an interesting read about Defence Select Committee Report on MOD Police & Service Police submitted to Parliament in 2005. I've belatedly stumbled across it!
CLICK HERE

19.01.2010:Have just received the following from Bob Peedle.
Sent: Monday, 18 January, 2010 16:00:39
Subject: funeral of the late Lance Corporal Pritchard RMP.
"Dear Bob (Adams). The Reg. Sec. has just passed on to me details of the funeral arrangements for the late Lance Corporal Pritchard. The Church service is at 12noon on Tuesday 2nd February at All Saints Church in Carlisle Road, Eastbourne, BN21 4HE. This is followed by the burial at the Langley Cemetary after which all are invited to the Lanham Hotel in Royal Parade on the Sea Front. There will be serving soldiers there as well as other RMPA Standards and members. I will be there. John Baber says that any members of the CESA will also be welcome. Bob Peedle.

08.01.2010: For January 2010 Forces Reunited Newsletter:
CLICK HERE

17.12.2009:Ian, The following was posted on Watchdog and I thought you would like it. "Major Phil Packer has received the Helen Rollason award at the 2009 BBC Sports Personality of the Year show. The 37-year-old, who is a paraplegic after sustaining injuries while on duty in Iraq in 2008, defied doctors to complete the 2009 London Marathon. The Pride of Britain Fundraiser of the Year walked two miles a day on crutches to complete the epic feat in 13 days. He also rowed the English Channel and climbed a 3,000ft mountain to raise £1.2m for the Help The Heroes charity. This is the 11th year the award has been presented, which was named in tribute to former BBC Sport presenter Helen Rollason who died in August 1999 following a two-year battle with cancer. After collecting the award, Packer said: "I've been very lucky to have a family and wonderful friends to support me over the last 18 months. The Sussex-born man will be medically discharged from the army in February 2010 and will then dedicate his efforts towards setting up the British Inspiration Trust, which will help to encourage activities for young people". Bob Adams, East Sussex Branch, RMPA.

01.11.2009:Men of Kent & Kentish men (and other former and current service members) passing through the Weald of Kent dying of thirst and looking for the nearest watering hole, first read this article in the "Daily Mail" 30th October 2009.CLICK HERE

The last TV series of 'REDCAP' will be re-screened by 'FOXTELL' UK TV from October 2009, for those who missed it previously.

Whistleblower-SIB/RMP gets another kicking!
Army whistleblower claims abuse not investigated: Innes Bowen, The Donal MacIntyre Show, BBC 5 live. 11.10.2009.
A damning High Court judgment into claims of Army abuse in Iraq has concluded that one of the Royal Military Police's (RMP) most senior figures is "a most unsatisfactory witness".
Three High Court judges ruled that RMP Deputy Provost Marshal Colonel Dudley Giles "lacked reliability" when he gave evidence to an inquiry into claims UK soldiers mistreated and murdered prisoners. A whistleblower has told the BBC he was not surprised when he heard the judges' comments.
"I believe that I was serving in something that was party to covering up quite serious allegations of torture and murder," said the former Royal Military Policeman of his time in the corps.
2004 IRAQ ABUSE CLAIMS-Last week's High Court hearing was part of a judicial review brought by six Iraqis who claim British soldiers murdered and assaulted prisoners They claim the abuse followed what was known as the Battle of Danny Boy near Majar al-Kabir on 14 May 2004. The RMP's Deputy Provost Marshal, (Investigations), Colonel Dudley Giles was a principle witness for the MoD at a High Court hearing last year into the allegations of abuse. Last week three High Court judges ruled Colonel Giles was an "unsatisfactory witness" who "lacked the necessary objectivity, proficiency and reliability"
Army abuse claims 'being ignored'
John, real name witheld, spent much of his career in the Special Investigation Branch, the Royal Military Police's equivalent of the CID. But, it was a career he felt he was forced to abandon after concluding that the RMP's standards were increasingly at odds with his own moral values.
"For too long I belonged to an organisation that wasn't seeking out the truth."
The turning point for him was a series of suspicious deaths of Iraqi citizens. One case which came to his attention involved the alleged murder of an Iraqi by a British sergeant. There was, he claims, evidence to strongly suggest that the Iraqi victim Baha Mousa had been shot at point blank range for merely throwing rocks at a British army tank. The hotel receptionist died in custody of British forces.
"A friend of mine who was a senior NCO went to the scene and was ordered not to investigate it as a murder. He was told that statements should just be taken as if it was routine incident."
Some cases involving allegations of murder and abuse, followed by a failure to carry out an adequate investigation, have already come to public attention.
The death of Baha Mousa is currently the subject of a public inquiry.
The terms of reference for another inquiry, into the alleged death in custody of Hamid Al-Sweady, will be announced on Friday.
Abuse is rare and the Ministry of Defence insists that any substantive allegations of abuse brought to its attention will always be investigated and that such cases are relatively rare.
"We must remember that over a hundred thousand of our personnel served in Iraq and, with the exception of a few individuals, they have performed to the highest standards under extraordinarily testing conditions there," said an MoD statement responding to the allegations. Any substantive allegations of abuse brought to our attention will always be investigated by the Ministry of Defence
John agrees that the vast majority of British soldiers have served their country with distinction. However, he believes that serious cases of suspected abuse are far more common than army is prepared to admit.
"I've seen documentary evidence that there were incidents, running into the 100s, involving death and serious injury to Iraqis," he claims. "It is the actions of a few who have been shown to be bad apples, but the system is so flawed and some of the decision making has been so perverse that it is fair to say that the barrel is probably rotten."
In recent decades, the bulk of military police work has involved dealing with the alleged crimes of soldiers stationed at bases in the UK and Germany.
"Soldiers fighting each other, the odd drink drive a bit of theft here and there," were the staple source of investigations according to John. British troops in Afghanistan Whistleblower 'John' says the majority of troops serve with distinction, but when troops are deployed to theatres of war and peacekeeping roles abroad, the RMP goes with them. In the case of Iraq, this meant the RMP suddenly found itself having to investigate alleged war crimes.
"We saw the Military Police, and the Special Investigation Branch in particular, being massively out of its depth," says John. The most serious cases arising out of the British involvement in Iraq have, according to John, been characterised by RMP "blunders, mistakes, ineptitude and the course of investigations being bent to serve the real or perceived interests of the chain of command of the army" rather than the interests of justice. A lack of resources, he claims, is partly to blame. But, he believes, there are also serious structural flaws in the army justice system. Senior officers in the mainstream army have to be informed when the RMP mounts any investigation into serious allegations.
LISTEN TO THE FULL REPORT Donal MacIntyre, 5 live, Sunday, 11 October at 1900 BST Subscribe to the Podcast Email the programme donal@bbc.co.uk
This, says John, gives the army hierarchy the opportunity to interfere or to make life difficult for the investigators by, for example, refusing to provide transport to the scene of an alleged crime.
"There is a common misconception that the Royal Military Police are in some way independent of the army. In fact they are very, very closely wrapped in to the chain of command and that is why so many things go wrong."
The dark picture John paints of a military police force infected by a culture of ineptitude and cover-up was dramatically reinforced last week when three high court judges accused the RMP's second in command, Colonel Dudley Giles, of being "a most unsatisfactory witness".
In a damning judgment concerning the RMP's failure to disclose documents relating to the alleged murder of Hamid Al-Sweady, the judges concluded that Colonel Giles "lacked the necessary objectivity, proficiency and reliability" expected of an official government witness.
The motto of the Royal Military Police is "By example, shall we lead". But, with the trustworthiness of one of the force's most senior officers now in doubt, the RMP will be under more pressure than ever to set a higher standard.
You can hear the full report on the Donal MacIntyre programme on 5 live on Sunday, 11 October, 2009 at 1930 BST. Download the free podcast. You can can contact the programme by emailing donal@bbc.co.uk

25 Army horses and 25 soldiers from the King's Troop RHA are taking a 'working holiday' in Blackpool from their hectic duties in London.CLICK HERE for this story and then on their homepage for other interesting news from MOD Oracle.

Sgt Ben Ross, from 173 Provost Company, 3rd Regiment, Royal Military Police, was killed in a suicide attack. His colleague Cpl Kumar Pun from 1st Battalion, The Royal Gurkha Rifles, also died in the explosion on Thursday (7th May 2009). Sgt Ross was originally from Bangor and joined the Army in 1996 before joined the military police in 2003. While in the Army, he served in Germany, Canada, Poland and the Balkans. On joining the RMP he was posted to the weapons intelligence section in Northern Ireland and later worked as part of the close protectionfor the British Ambassador to Iraq. In Afghanistan, his role was to mentor, train and advise the Afghan Uniformed Police on security, policing and law enforcement. He was married to Sheena, who is also serving with the Royal Military Police.

Picture courtesy BBC News.