Hear All Sides

MIDDLE EAST

ON MONDAY another two Palestinian children died when the car they were travelling in was blasted by missiles from an Israeli helicopter.

Surely, an announcement that a United Nations peace-keeping force will be deployed in the region is long overdue. Yasser Arafat has been pleading with the UN to take such action, yet continues to be described by the Israeli government as the major obstacle to the peace process.

Common to all theatres of violence, it is the innocent who are the victims. How many more children must be killed or maimed before the UN acts? Where is the much proclaimed 'ethical foreign policy' of Tony Blair? If such a policy was the reality wouldn't he be leading the calls for the UN to take action in a humanitarian cause?

In the Balkans he was hailed as the hero, but it has become obvious that, if he cannot act in the interests of the US, his ethics disappear quickly.

Teesside Against War makes this appeal to all those concerned to see the UN take action. - Bill Wennington, Press Officer, Teesside Against War.

CAR PARKING

I READ with some astonishment an article (Echo, Dec 6) regarding a proposal by Darlington Borough Council to issue residential parking permits at a cost of £25 to residents of central Darlington.

This proposal, which is nothing more than a form of indirect taxation, is ludicrous.

There is no way that holders of these permits would be guaranteed parking in their own street, let alone within walking distance of their own homes at all times, such as late night shopping etc.

Not only is this system unpoliceable, but is totally unfair on residents, and is one more financial burden on the motorist. - Audrey Thompson, Darlington.

I FIND the idea that Darlington Council is going to demand payment from residents of central Darlington for the right to park outside their own homes deplorable.

We already pay Road Fund Tax to use the roads. Is it our fault that outsiders such as college students and shoppers prefer using our streets as unpaid car parks? How would they feel if we all parked on their fronts all day?

Surely it would be fairer to charge all residents of Darlington who own a car a surcharge on the council tax to cover these costs that the council say are untenable, or get a handout from those who collect the Road Fund Tax, as only a small percentage is actually used for what it is collected for. - Brenda Tingate, Darlington.

FOLLOWING a recent article about permit parking in Darlington (Echo, Dec 6), I am neither for nor against it as it does not affect me.

But what does affect me, and I am sure other readers, is how they have calculated the supposed £107,000 to implement it.

There is no way it should cost that much from the taxpayers' money to install some extra signs, print some plastic or cardboard passes and possibly paint some additional road markings. - I White, Hurworth Place, Darlington.

DRUGS REFORM

I AM furious and sad that a Government which talks so much about how it cares about the community can possibly think of legalising cannabis use.

I believe the average person in this land respects the fact that scientists know more about drugs than most. In recent years, research has demonstrated that young men who take cannabis are five times more likely to show violence than those who avoid the drug.

I cannot imagine what they hope to achieve by putting a dangerous narcotic in the clutches of youth.

When something harms, it is better to learn from it than to accept it. The drug barons must be laughing all the way to the bank. I know parents could be crying all the way to the morgue. - Aled Jones, Bridlington.

WAR SOCIETY

MAINLY retired and serving police officers and ex-servicemen run the War Research Society as a charitable hobby. It was founded many years ago and supports a number of causes including the Commonwealth War Graves, Normandy Widows and Veterans.

We run coach trips to the battlefields and cemeteries of Northern Europe. All trips have an experienced guide and conducted tours of the battlefields and visits to requested cemeteries and memorials are made.

Anyone wishing to visit the battlefields and cemeteries in Europe, including group visits, need only send a medium-sized stamped addressed envelope so that details can be forwarded. - Robert Hall, War Research Society, Dovecot Cottage, Cockburnspath, Berwickshire, TD13 5YW.

HOSPITAL PATIENTS

REGARDING your article (Echo, Dec 7) regarding elderly hospital patients, I would like to point out that stopping or reducing benefits for long-stay patients in hospital does not just apply to elderly patients, but it applies to the mentally ill as well.

I personally know two people who have lost their homes because they were in hospital for more than six months, their benefits were drastically reduced so that they could no longer afford to pay their bills.

They even lost all their furniture and, when they came out of hospital, they were forced into rented accommodation and had to start building a new home from scratch.

One person, after being in hospital for more than a year, had her benefits reduced to £13.50 a week. How can she possibly pay her mortgage and household bills out of that?

So it isn't just elderly patients who are suffering loss of benefits through long stays in hospital. Mentally-ill patients are suffering too, and something needs to be done about it. - Margaret A Greenhalgh Hartley, Mental Health Matters, Darlington.