After the 25th Anniversary of the racist murder of Jay Abatan – the campaign going forward. Justice must be served!

 

Press Statement: Justice for Jay Campaign
 Immediate Release,  31^st January 2024
 

After the 25^th Anniversary of the racist murder of Jay Abatan – the campaign going forward. Justice must be served!
 

 

 Background

Jay Abatan, a black man of mixed Nigerian and British heritage, died on 29th January 1999, following an unprovoked attack by a gang of white men, in the early hours of the 24th of January in Morley Street, Brighton. He was taken to the Royal Sussex County Hospital with significant head injuries and never regained consciousness. He was placed on life support which was switched off five days later.

 

Twenty Fifth Anniversary events

 

29^th of January 2024 was the 25^th anniversary of the death of Jay and still no justice has been served despite the killers being known to the police. This, combined with a catalogue of failures by Sussex Police and failures in the judicial system, mean that twenty-five years on, nobody has been convicted for Jay’s murder.

 

New evidence that police officers that bungled the case holidayed abroad with suspects has come to light yet Sussex police have failed to act upon this.

 

To mark the 25^th anniversary, a  well-attended vigil was held  outside Brighton Police station the day before, on Sunday 28^th of January and a meeting in the Houses of Parliament took place on the anniversary, Monday 29^th of January, launching a pamphlet about the campaign, attended by the Abatan family,  members of Parliament, representatives from BARAC UK, the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) and Brighton and Hove Stand Up to Racism,  who are part of the Justice 4 Jay Campaign, plus representatives from various campaign groups and journalists.

 

Sir Peter Bottomley MP chaired the meeting.

 

Other MPs in attendance included Bell Ribero-Addy, Claudia Webbe, Jeremy Corbyn, Kim Johnson, Richard Burgon and Annelise Dodd. Messages of solidarity were received from MPs who wished to attend but were unable to, due to other business and these included Caroline Lucas who has agreed to table an Early Day Motion, John McDonnell, Beth Winter, Barry Gardiner, Peter Kyle and Sam Tarry.

 

Speakers at the meeting included brother of Jay, who was also attacked at the same time as Jay, Michael Abatan, Zita Holbourne, Chair of BARAC UK and Hector Wesley, PCS NEC.

 

Over the 48 hours, the campaign garnered mainstream national, local and international news coverage.

 

Taking the campaign for justice forward

 

Going forward, Justice for Jay will be stepping up the campaign to ensure that justice is served.

 

There will be an Early Day Motion and a series of parliamentary questions tabled in parliament and MPs will be writing to Sussex Police.

 

There will be formal complaints lodged with the Independent Office for Police Conduct and the campaign will be pursuing a public inquiry and an investigative inquiry as well as legal action regarding the criminal aspects of the case which include the killing of Jay Abatan but also the physical assault on Michael Abatan.

 

The Alliance for Police Accountability are supporting the Justice for Jay campaign. A fundraiser has been launched, administered by BARAC UK, to raise money towards legal fees.

 

To support the campaign:

 

•      Messages of solidarity and information relating to the case, can be sent to:

justiceforjayabatan@outlook.com and barac.info@gmail.com

•      Join the Justice for Jay Facebook page   https://www.facebook.com/JusticeForJayAbatan

•      Donate towards the legal fundraiser - https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/justice-for-jay-abatan

•      Write to the Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner, calling for a new public inquiry into the killing of Jay Abatan - pcc@sussex-pcc.gov.uk

•      Download the pamphlet in electronic form here; https://blackactivistsrisingagainstcuts.blogspot.com/2024/01/justice

-4-jay-25th-anniversary-event-in.html

•      Write to your MP asking them to sign the EDM 349, tabled by Caroline Lucas MP on 1st February 2024

•      Invite a speaker from the campaign to your trade union / organisation AGMs, branch meetings and conferences

 

Michael Abatan, brother of Jay Abatan, Justice for Jay campaign said:

 

 “The new witness coming forward shows that it is not too late to get justice for my brother.  I have been humbled by all the support I have received and thank everyone mentioned in this statement. It has been a long fight for the truth which is yet to come out. I will continue to keep a clear and open mind and let the evidence speak for itself. I urge anyone with any information to come forward and do the right thing. Injustice for one is injustice for all”

 

Zita Holbourne, National Chair BARAC UK, Justice for Jay Campaign said:

 

“Twenty-five years is too long for any family to have to dedicate lives fighting for justice, it is too long to wait to grieve. The Abatan family need and deserve answers, they need justice, and we need to see the killers and those who helped cover up their crime, punished. Justice must be served and we will be working as a community to support the family in ensuring that it is.” 

 

Ends

 

Contact: justiceforjayabatan@outlook.com or barac.info@gmail.com

 

#Justice4Jay  #JayAbatan #SussexPoliceAreNotInnocent