Peter signed the below petition…

http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/legal/story.jsp?story=616328

‘Bill is beginning of the end of liberty’
By Robert Verkaik, Legal Affairs Correspondent

03 March 2005

Tony Blair’s determination to press ahead with a new terror Bill has provoked a storm of protest from all sections of society, including the Church, the legal profession, showbusiness and the arts.

A petition of 1,000 names, organised by the civil rights group Liberty, and published in The Independent today, calls on the Government to rethink its anti-terror policy.

It states: "We choose to live in a democracy that protects life, liberty and the rule of law. The Home Secretary is now proposing new laws to replace internment in prison with measures including house arrest at his discretion. This loss of liberty is to be based on his suspicion rather than proof before a court."

Many of those who have joined the campaign are concerned that the rush to legislation will have implications for civil rights for many years to come.

Peter Hitchens, the right-wing columnist and signatory to the petition, said: "Habeas corpus is a fundamental principle of liberty. The idea that the Government should simply be able to do away with it on its own fiat is the beginning of the end of liberty."

Among the signatories are 350 lawyers and five bishops, as well as dozens of well-known actors, directors and playwrights.

Mike Leigh, the director nominated in this week’s Oscars for his film Vera Drake , joins the actor Sir Ian McKellen, the singer Peter Gabriel, the novelist Frederick Forsyth, the playwright David Hare and the jazz-funk DJ Mr Scruff in backing the declaration.

The actress Miriam Margolyes said: "Once you wiggle around with the basic and long-established freedoms of the public, you’re very close to the totalitarian laws favoured by fascists."

The fashion designer Vivienne Westwood said: ‘When I was a schoolgirl my history teacher explained the fundamental rule of law embodied in habeas corpus. He spoke with pride of civilisation and democracy. We can only take democracy for granted if we insist on our liberty.

-Gathered by gabrielized

On Wednesday, 16 February 2005, the councilwoman of the Arts of the City council of Madrid, Alicia Moreno, signed a three-year agreement with the three major people in charge of the WOMAD festival : Peter Gabriel (as the founder of WOMAD), its artistic director, Thomas Brooman, and the person in charge of WOMAD Spain, Dania Dévora. The meeting took place at the central seat of the organization, in Box (United Kingdom).

Feb 16 2005, Peter Gabriel, Alicia Moreno, Thomas Brooman & Dania Dèvora in Box
[ Karin´s comment : I think there´s some progress on the "What-To-Wear-During-Public-Photo-Sessions" front ;o) ]

WOMADRID, which is the name of the festival in Madrid, will take place from May 20^th to 22^nd 2005, and will be part of the cultural programme coinciding with the Celebrations of San Isidro.

This way, Madrid is added to other cities that already are hosting the festival, like Adelaide (Australia), Athens (Greece), Benoni (South Africa), New Zealand, Palermo (Italy), Rivermead (United Kingdom), Singapur… and, in Spain, Cáceres (which has been hosting the festival for thirteen years) and Las Palmas / Gran Canaria (which has been hosting the festival for ten years).

Founded in 1982 by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Brooman, WOMAD is now present in 22 countries worldwide. Its objective is to spread the wealth of our multicultural society to an ever-increasing number of people and to celebrate the cultural diversity through the artistic music, dance and other manifestations.
Between May 20^th and 22^nd, within the Celebrations of San Isidro, the Casa de Campo will be the site of WOMADRID, with three stages that will simultaneously offer various acts of dance and music. In addition, there will be children´s and adults´ workshops, trading stalls offering crafts, and a sample of international gastronomy. WOMADRID will be a meeting point that will turn Madrid, for three days, into a truly international scene.

(The following newslinks are all in Spanish)

http://www.canariasahora.com/portada/editar_noticia.asp?idnoticia=58197&idtemageneral=7
http://www.madridiario.es/mdo/actual/secciones/madrid/womad-160205.php
http://es.news.launch.yahoo.com/dyna/article.html?a=/050218/183/3x0mj.html&e=l_news
http://iblnews.com/txt/noticia.php?id=124540
http://es.news.yahoo.com/050216/4/3wvba.html
http://www.informativos.telecinco.es/dn_25605.htm
http://www.los40.com/articulo.html?xref=20050217l40l40not_11&type=Tes&anchor=l40actn01&d_date=
http://www.diariodesevilla.com/diariodesevilla/articulo.asp?idart=918403&idcat=1182
http://es.news.yahoo.com/050218/183/3x0mj.html
http://www2.rincondelvago.com/ocio/musica/noticias/noticia.php?p=74810
http://www.madridmusic.com/…
http://www.cadena40.com/articulo.html?xref=20050217l40l40not_11&type=Tes&anchor=l40actn01&d_date=
http://www.cplus.es/codigo/noticias/ficha_noticia.asp?id=452513

Remember the last time it was announced Peter would take part in a relief benefit single ? ? ? Yeah, it was "DO THEY KNOW IT´S CHRISTMAS", and I don´t know whether it was just a hoax in the first place or whether Peter just contributed to the single by donating studio time, technical support, mastering facilities or whatever – in any event, Peter was nowhere to be found on the eventual product ! ! !

So I am deeply sceptical about the next benefit project that claims Peter would participate. It´s SHARON STONE´s project. After she had joined Peter in session – – – "Can Artists Still Change the World ?" – – – at the World Economic Forum in Davos, (see the picture "Peter listening" below by Loïc Le Meur – it shows Sharon Stone AND Peter Gabriel !!!), and even there, immediately sprung to action by pledging $10,000 for the fight against malaria and raising a substantial sum for the same cause among her fellow WEF participants, she seems to have been infected by the "benefit virus" ;o) . . .

Anyway, here is a selection of the news links about this project :

http://sify.com/news/fullstory.php?id=13671311
http://www.contactmusic.com/…
http://www.eonline.com/News/Items/0,1,15922,00.html
http://eurweb.com/story.cfm?id=18883
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/entertainment/10893415.htm
http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050212/ap_en_ce/people_stone_rich_6
http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/journalgazette/living/10896414.htm
http://www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1413,36~78~2708880,00.html
http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory?id=493675

The basic facts :

The song is named "COME TOGETHER NOW" and will benefit victims of the Dec. 26 tsunami disaster in Asia.
Producers : Denise Rich and Sharon Stone
Written by : Denise Rich, Sharon Stone, Damon Sharpe and Mark Feist
Alleged contributors : Aretha Franklin, Lindsay Lohan, Natalie Cole, Wyclef Jean, Peter Gabriel, Patti LaBelle, Lionel Richie, Mya, JoJo, Gavin DeGraw, Brian McKnight, Kelly Price and Paulina Rubio

Denise Rich and Sharon Stone plan to establish a foundation for tsunami victims.

Please wait until the finished product will hit the shelves. For only then it will be clear whether Peter Gabriel will actually have contributed or not :o( . . .

Beside taking part in sessions and dinners like the one named "Can Artists Still Change the World ?", the best way to have met Peter Gabriel at the World Economic Forum in Davos (end of January 2005) apparently was – – – lurking in hallways and bathrooms ! ! !

Here are some Davos pictures taken by Vassil Mladjov :

His fellow weblogger Tony Perkins met Peter in a hallway, which lead to a very interesting conversation with Peter : "Peter Gabriel and the Greek Gods" .

And Loïc Le Meur has some very blurry pictures online of Peter in session :

On all these pictures, you may note Peter´s "Identity Card", which reads "Peter B. Gabriel" – and shows a promo picture of him taken in 2000 ! ! !

Let´s see where Peter may show up next time – and will we see the famous black red-hooded top once again ? ? ? ;o)