Fownhope’s Heart of Oak Society traces its roots to the age of friendly societies, when communities provided their own safety net. Its anniversary celebrations reveal a tradition still very much alive, says MARK SEDDON
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‘Europe wanted to demoralise us, to keep us away, to make sure we wouldn't save any more migrants’
Ben Cowles speaks to FABIAN HEINZ, volunteer activist aboard the migrant rescue boat Europe turned its back on
Fabian Heinz (centre)
ANGUS REID explains the significance of Cuba’s egalitarian in letter and spirit Family Code and the pertinent lessons it holds for democracies anywhere in the world
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NICK WRIGHT considers how the isolation of Israel and a new film on the controversial Italian communist leader are creating new reference points for Italy’s left
CARLOS MARTINEZ says Cuba’s achievements in the face of a criminal blockade are startling, but the island’s future if the United States succeeds in crushing it looks bleak
AMNON BROWNFIELD STEIN reports that far-right MPs who mobbed the event organised by Hadash may have helped raise awareness of the brutality of the Israeli right
“IN THE beginning the biggest problem was the cold because there weren’t enough clothes or enough blankets,” Fabian Heinz says describing the conditions on board an NGO ship that Europe refused to give port for 10 days after it rescued 64 migrants off the Libyan coast on April 3.
“We also didn’t know what they could eat. We tried serving them porridge but some of them had to puke if they ate it. Some didn’t eat at all. We had to learn how to treat them and how to deal with the limited amount of things on board.
“Later on the biggest problem was psychological. They were frustrated and confused and kept asking: ‘What are we waiting for?’, ‘Are we going back to Tripoli?’, ‘Will Europe let us in?’”
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