On Wednesday,  the 22nd July 2015, it was the 10th anniversary of the death of Jean Charles de Menezes  which was commemorated by his family, members of the Justice for Jean campaign, friends, supporters and members of the public.  

          

In the above four pictures you see flowers being laid at the foot of the memorial mosaic  by supporters of the Justice for Jean campaign.  Something that is  common to all four images is the word “INNOCENT” which is the core reason why this mosaic came into existence, how it was first conceived of, made and installed in 2010, why it is still there today and will be there for as long as the family, campaigners for Justice for Jean, friends and supporters are alive to keep their promise to represent this innocent man who was shot 7 times int the head and once in the neck  by police in the morning rush-hour on a commuter train in front of passengers.

This mosaic represents not only Jean Charles, but, as Asad Rehman clearly spelt out in his address to the media, all the other victims of extra-judicial killings at the hands of the police, not just here in the UK, but as well as in many parts of the world and particularly America where the campaign, “Black Lives Matter”, has come about in response to the many deaths of young black men at the hands of the police.

Jean Charles was killed  on Friday, the 22nd July 2005,  when the police implemented the government’s Shoot To Kill  policy which gave the police  the authority to be Judge, Jury and Executioner in a country that prides itself on the abolition of the death sentence as well as its long-cherished tradition of Habeas Corpus. In Latin this means”you have the body”,  which phrase determined the rights of the person in custody and the responsibilities of that person’s custodian to ensure s/he is not deprived of freedom without recourse to the due process of the law.  That is written into the statutes of this country but seemingly no more. The tragic irony in all of this is that Habeas Corpus now seems to have been taken literally in that the consequences of the  Shoot to Kill indeed gives the police the body, but one that is dead making due process of the law redundant. Death sentences are  taking place without recourse to the courts where it is that innocence or guilt can be proven. The situation then is worse than it was before the Abolition of the Death Sentence when in most cases the condemned person had at least been proven to be guilty.

This website intends to share the story of how the memorial mosaic came about  in response to Jean’s death and the family campaign for justice.  But first is a pictorial account of the 10th anniversary of Jean Charles’ death.

The family of Jean Charles and members of the  Justice for Jean campaign arrive at Stockwell Tube Station where a short service was held in front of the commemorative mosaic done for Jean Charles.

Journalists and supporters gathered on the pavement outside Stockwell Tube Station in expectation of the arrival of the family and campaign members.

Asad Rehman, family spokesman and one of the coordinators of the Justice for Jean Campaign,  addressed the waiting crowd and the media.

“If there can be justice for the family it’s not only justice for them individually – it goes some way to rebuilding trust in our police forces and the Metropolitan Police Force, and that can only be a good thing for everybody.”

This was followed by a minutes silence at the exact time  that Jean Charles was shot 7 times in the head and once in the neck by the police on a crowded commuter train at 10.07 on that Friday morning of the 22nd July, 2005.

A short prayer service was held by the family’s priest

Vivian Figueiredo, Jean’s cousin,  tells the media how she still misses her cousin who she was very close to and why she is determined to continue to campaign for justice for Jean with the hope that this will pave the way for other families who have suffered the same loss caused by deaths of loved ones at the hands of the police. “We deserve it  and a lot of people who are out there fighting for justice need this”.  About their appeal to the European Court of Human Rights  she said she  appreciates their case was heard and that she hopes it will benefit other  families as well.

The family lawyer explains to the media how far the case has progressed at the European Court of Human Rights.

Vivian lays flowers in memory of Jean Charles

                                A song composed by a member of Jean’s family was sung by two friends

NOTE: All  images on this website, other than those linked to their sources, are copyrighted by the author of this website and other contributors to it. . Permission to use any of these images can be made by emailing:  jeancharlesmemorial@gmail.com