Declan’s data is deleted

It seems bad luck keeps bumping into Declan and me: at 5.10am on Saturday I was urinated on while I slept in my sleeping bag in the porch we have been sleeping in since 3 November 2006 (see previous blog); and yesterday afternoon both our booked computers in the local Council's Idea Store Whitechapel library contained a virus which infected each of the two USB drives we were using – Declan lost his database of over 3,000 scientists and academics from around the world (although he had an up-to-date copy of it in Google Mail), as well as a Word document of a categorised list of British signatories of his petition to the UN on therapeutic cloning.



It is not the first time that our data has been deleted through no fault of our own: on 26 January all emails sent to Declan after 12 August 2007 were moved to Trash and 300 draft documents, which included the names and email addresses of over 2,500 scientists and academics, were deleted for good (see blog “Declan’s Google Mail is raided”).

Perhaps it is unfortunate that the Idea Store is situated in Tower Hamlets, one of the poorest boroughs in London: for instance, the Methodist Church Whitechapel Mission, a day centre for homeless people, is just across the road (on 18 June 2007 we were barred by the minister's wife due to concerns about our safety). Still, the library is a modern building and the computers are up-to-date and well-equipped: a firewall, virus program, and filter software are installed across the network; moreover, all computers are programmed to automatically restore custom settings (and delete all activity by prior users), if you re-start them.

I was under the impression that all these things are supposed to be covert – but apparently not. The Independent ran a piece on 10 July entitled: “J'accuse! Ségolène Royal links Sarkozy 'clan' with break-in at apartment”. On France 2’s nightly news programme, the defeated French presidential candidate, Ségolène Royal, said she believed that there was a “link” between a break-in at her apartment on 27 June and her accusation the previous day that the President's wealthy friends were mounting a "take-over" of France. This followed a decision by Sarkozy to ban advertising from state-owned television – potentially increasing by €450m (£350m) annually the revenue of commercial television channels owned, or controlled, by his close friends. "I observe that on the day after I said that it was time to halt the Sarkozy clan's take-over of France, my home was ransacked," Royal told astonished viewers. "I make a link between the two events." Her comments were immediately dismissed by politicians close to Sarkozy who said they were the result of a "martyr complex". However, senior opposition figures sprang to Royal's defence. Jean-Marc Ayrault, the leader of the Socialist group in the lower house of parliament, said that President Sarkozy's 14 months in power had created a "climate" which "recalled the most unpleasant periods of French political history". Once such a climate is created, he said, "anything can happen".

For the record, this is Declan's email yesterday to the manager of Idea Store Whitechapel:

Subject: Idea Store Whitechapel

Dear Mr Abidin

Previous correspondence refers.

Yesterday evening my wife and I booked two computers for today - computer 16 from 1.00pm to 4.45pm and computer 15 from 2pm to 4pm. For security reasons, and as usual, we both re-started our computers prior to log in so as to automatically delete all prior activity. Nonetheless, we were both greeted by an announcement: "Tazebama.dll". Shortly after my wife then put her USB drive into her computer, she discovered that most of the portable programs contained in her USB drive were now inoperable. In my case, after I then put my USB drive into my computer, I was unable to open a database (containing the names and email addresses of over 3,000 scientists and academics from around the world) through Microsoft Excel due to "an error trying to open", and a related Word document entitled "List-Breakdown UK" was "corrupt and unreadable" (see attachment).

According to information derived from the internet, Tazebama.dll is W32.Mabezat.B, which is "a backdoor worm that spreads through network shares and allows attackers to access and gives full control over infected computer". In respect of Tazebama.dll, the Symantec website advises to "perform a forensic analysis and restore the computers using trusted media".

If I am in any way mistaken, please so advise at your earliest convenience.

Please would you acknowledge receipt.

Yours sincerely
Declan Heavey
Card no. D000355837

Eighth visit by the police

At 11.15pm last night we were woken by two police officers at the porch we have been sleeping in since 3 November. To put this eighth visit in context, I have to roll back a few days, to Thursday to be precise.

That evening, Declan wasn’t able to sell The Big Issue because the regular London Lite girl had encroached on one side of his pitch and there was a guy harassing passers-by to take a copy of The London Paper on the other side.

We reckoned that the Bishopsgate City of London police had made the decisive move on our only source of income in order to stop Declan from submitting his application against the UK to the European Court of Human Rights (he has already lodged the case with the Court by introductory letter of 18 May), reducing us to illegal beggars in a matter of two or three weeks. And because I have been working like a demon on the application ever since, we were hardly surprised to wake up and find two police officers eyeing us. The spin this time?

The Chief Superintendent of Police for the City of London (there are two – CS Alex Robertson is responsible for anti-terrorism and public order) has come up with the policy that rough sleepers are to be woken every hour to force them to get off the streets. Hmmm.

As one of them is issuing us a ticket – we already had two from November – we are asked the usual questions: how long have we being sleeping in the porch, why don’t we go into a hostel, what about getting a job, etc.

It was good that Declan knew from his reading of an article entitled “Rough Sleepers” in the April issue of the Police Review magazine that people have the right to sleep in the streets if they want to. The police have the power to arrest people for sleeping rough under the Vagrancy Act 1824, but they need to comply with the Human Rights Act 1998. They will frequently use the Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003 to crack down on offensive behaviour and they will enforce the Vagrancy Act 1824.

Anyway, it was clear from Declan’s answers to their questions that we are doing our best to get off the streets – they didn’t bat an eyelid when Declan told them that our unemployment benefit was terminated by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) because he didn’t “sign on” two days before he was due to do so; nor when they were informed that we are working on Declan's application to the European Court of Human Rights, having been denied an effective domestic remedy by the DWP both in the manner we had the benefit initially suspended and eventually terminated.

They didn’t seem too surprised either when Declan told them that he had applied to Chief Superintendent Jerry Savill of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets under the Data Protection Act 1998 for a copy of the statement Detective Constable Alexander Head took on 27 April into the assault on him in the Whitechapel Mission on 17 February, when a homeless punched him twice in the face in an unprovoked attack.

As the police officers walked off at 11.40pm, Declan asked them when we could next expect to be woken by the police. He was told that we will not be woken again until next week. Who can doubt it?

And so interminably on.

Letter on behalf of the trustees of the Methodist Church in Tower Hamlets

Last Thursday Declan received a letter from Superintendent Minister Peter Powers on behalf of the trustees of the Methodist Church in Tower Hamlets regarding the harassment and intimidation Declan is being subjected to in the Whitechapel Mission – some of which I report in this blog almost all the time. This is the letter (my favourite bit is at the end, where he says he is simply saddened by Declan’s “cynicism”):

Dear Mr Heavey

Thank you for your letters of 24th & 28th April and many enclosures. Although you have not actually asked for response to me I have noted the contents of your letters.

I have spoken to Mr. Tony Miller, Director of the Whitechapel Mission and he has assured me that every care possible is taken of all those who work or volunteer at the Mission as well as those who visit the Whitechapel Mission. This is as I would expect.

It is indeed unfortunate that you feel you have been subject to “harassment and intimidation” whilst using the Whitechapel Mission’s services, although I note that your difficulties seem to be with one particular other person who also uses the Mission’s services rather than with any staff or volunteers. Obviously we cannot control the actions of everyone who comes to use the Whitechapel Mission and any incidents of assault should be reported to the police, which it seems you have already done. I cannot comment on the actions or response of the police in this matter that is for them.

The work of the Whitechapel Mission is part of the Methodist Church help offered to the some of those in most need in society. We see it as part of our Christian faith to help those in need if we can. The services provided by the Whitechapel Mission are open to anyone who comes, both those who are homeless, such as yourself, and those who are vulnerably housed in insecure or temporary accommodation. I see that in addition to the showers and breakfast offered you also use the postal address service provided by the Mission.

I note that you run a blog on the internet called ‘Network of those Abused by Church’ (http://network-of-those-abused-by-church.blogspot.com/). What I find interesting is the fact that you appear to run an organisation that calls for the separation of church and state and for public policies that are based on secular principles, not religious doctrine. You seek the “scientific, rational examination of religion to protect future generations from the ignorance so often fostered by religion hiding behind doctrinal smoke screens”. Clearly you have some issues with the Church and yet it is the Christian Church, not the secular state that seems to be offering you support and help. In fact, it is many of the secular institutions that you appear to have problems with and continue to cause difficulties for you. Can I point out that the Whitechapel Mission raises all its own funds for the work it does and receives no state funding whatsoever. It simply saddens me that your cynicism can’t actually see beyond the smoke screen you appear to have made for yourself.

Yours sincerely,

Rev. Peter Powers
On behalf of the trustees of the Methodist Church in Tower Hamlets

Cc. Mr. Tony Miller, Whitechapel Mission
      Rev. R. Graham Carter, President of the Methodist Conference

Rev Powers should perhaps be informed that the director of the Whitechapel Mission, who he refers to as “Mr” Tony Miller, is, er, a minister – how do I know that? I looked him up on the internet. There are other things he also gets wrong, like the showers and the breakfast he says we use in the Whitechapel Mission.

Take showers. Declan has never showered in the mission because men shower communally. There is one shower in the women’s washroom, which I would be using if it wasn’t for the fact that there has been no hot water since 22 April (a first), at least not from 6.00am to 6.35am.

Take breakfast. After narrowly escaping being assaulted for the second time on 16 April – he brought it on himself for not talking to the homeless that visit the premises, was the view taken by the kitchen worker who intervened – he left the table with our bags to a chorus of derisive shouts and laughter from homeless about the canteen. Since that most pleasant experience, we don’t sit at a table anymore. We wash (bringing our bags with us to our respective washrooms); have a coffee standing up; and by 6.50am we are out – breakfast doesn’t kick off until 8.00am, seven days a week.

Anyway, on Thursday and Friday Declan wrote to the head of the Methodist Church in the UK, Rev Graham Carter on the subject of all the harassment and intimidation in the Whitechapel Mission, which is on-going. This is the second letter, sent by registered post (Carter's letter to Declan of 20 April can be seen here):

Dear Rev Carter

Re:  Harassment and intimidation in the Whitechapel Mission

I refer further to the enclosed copy of your letter to me of 20 April and re-enclose copy of letter to me of 8 May from Superintendent Minister Peter Powers on behalf of the trustees of the Methodist Church in Tower Hamlets regarding the above.

I also re-enclose copy of my letter and enclosures of 5 May to Chief Superintendent Jerry Savill of Bethnal Green Police Station requesting in pursuance of section 8(1) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000, a copy of the statement that was written on my behalf by Detective Constable Alexander Head in Bethnal Green Police Station on 27 April in respect of the unprovoked assault on me in the Whitechapel Mission on 17 February.

I reconfirm that on 16 April I narrowly escaped being assaulted for the second time in the Whitechapel Mission. On this occasion, as first stated in my letter to you of 17 April, the kitchen worker who intervened took the view that it was my fault for not talking to the homeless that visit the premises. (That this was the view taken, would be evident from CCTV footage.)

Although I was informed by the manager of the Whitechapel Mission on 17 February that I enter the premises at my own risk, I remain adamant that this ought not to be the case. Again, I understand that if a visitor is invited onto the institution’s premises then a common duty of care will be owed by the institution to the visitor. This is to ensure that the visitor will be reasonably safe in the premises for the purposes for which he has been invited or permitted.

On 9 May, I met with DC Head in Bethnal Green Police Station for a crime report update in respect of the assault on me on 17 February. As stated in my letter to you of 10 May, DC Head advised that he had spoken with the Director of the Whitechapel Mission, Minister Tony Miller, who confirmed to him that he was aware of what took place and the name of the suspect, but not that the canteen worker who intervened will be a corroborating witness, nor that there is CCTV footage of the assault.

Yesterday morning, DC Head left a voice message for me (see transcript attached) stating that he has spoken again with Minister Miller, who confirmed to him that there are no corroborating witnesses, but not that there is CCTV footage of the assault.

As first stated in my letter to you of 5 May, Minister Miller advised me on 1 May that in a matter of days I would be in receipt of a letter from the management of the Whitechapel Mission in response to the questions raised herein. I can confirm that I am in receipt of no such letter to date.

Yours sincerely

Declan Heavey

And this, the transcript attached:

Crime Ref: 4204886/07

Voice message of 10 May (11.03am) from DC Alexander Head of Bethnal Green Police Station
_______________________________________________________________

Good morning, Declan. It’s Alex speaking from Bethnal Green Police Station. Just to let you know – I’ve spoken to Sue and Tony. They have stated to me they have spoken to all their staff members. None of them can remember an incident involving yourself taking place. Whether that is the case – whether they just do not want to come forward and speak to police, that probably sounds like the more reason behind itself. So I’ve updated the crime in regards to that. Obviously we now have no corroborating evidence, unless yourself can get any further regarding writing your letters, and such like. What I’m going to do is – the crime is completely updated with what has taken place and our meetings and everything else. What I will do is, just for the time being – is close the crime, but it can be re-opened if anything else comes to light and we can have corroborating evidence to try and take this to court. Thank you very much. If you want to give me a call back, that’s fine – or if you want to come in, it’s not a problem either. Thank you very much. Bye bye.

So, case closed, more or less. How nice! Anyway, now that it looks like the Whitechapel Mission is not being too cooperative on the prosecution front, a decent interval may have to pass before there is an attempt to assault Declan in the place again. Which can only mean that all eyes are now on the only other place where an assault can take place: the porch. Well, wasn’t I dragged from the porch while sleeping on 5 May, only to be kicked in the back a few hours later?

Finally, these are the highlights of the week: a cleaner leaves the building by the porch a few minutes after we arrive, blowing the porch alarm on her way out (Wednesday, alarm blows 8.15pm – 8.30pm); a guy with a friend wakes us up to ask if Declan’s sleeping bag is his – only leaving after I tell him twice quite aggressively, “Do you mind? I am sleeping” (Thursday at 10.30am); an ill-mannered homeless mutters that he and his friends are going to have us sorted out after Declan wouldn’t give him some of his shaving cream (this morning at 6.10am in the Whitechapel Mission washroom).