‘Descend on the Dorchester’: veterans in demo against stoning

Thousands of people across Croydon have vowed to join George Clooney in his boycott of the Dorchester Hotel because of its owner’s use of the medieval punishment of stoning people to death for homosexuality or adultery.

The Dorchester on Park Lane, owned by the Sultan of Brunei

That’s easily done, of course, for those of us unable to afford the £4,000 per night top-priced hotel rooms.

But this Saturday, those who oppose this barbaric punishment have an opportunity to join a demonstration outside the Dorchester Hotel in swanky Park Lane.

The Dorchester is one of the many hotels worldwide owned by the billionaire Sultan of Brunei, who is responsible for calling for the archaic executions.

The demo is being organised by two veteran activists from South Norwood, Ian Bone and Jane Nicholl.

“Descend on the Dorchester” is not the first time our Bone has taken on royalty.

Power to the people: Ian Bone and Jane Nicholl last year faced down legal threats from the Qatari royal family

Last year Bone called for the Qatari royals, the owners of The Shard at London Bridge, to give homeless people the 20 empty flats in their building.

At £5million each, these “luxury executive apartments” had been empty since the Shard was built, so it seemed a public-spirited thing to do.

But the Qataris took out a High Court injunction against Bone, with the Croydon pensioner facing the possibility of being sued for hundreds of thousands of pounds, and he and his partner Nicholl losing their home. But the High Court ruled in Bone’s favour and the Qataris went home in their gold-encrusted Lamborghinis to one of their many posh London mansions to plan buying up more of the capital.

This Saturday, April 6, from around 2pm, Bone and Nicholl are hoping to get a group of like-minded people – including George Clooney if he fancies coming along – to protest outside the Dorchester.

Sultan of stones: Brunei

The Sultan of Brunei is not expected to put in an appearance, which is just as well as there will be lots of people from the LGBT community turning up who’d like to have a strong word in his bejewelled ear.


About insidecroydon

News, views and analysis about the people of Croydon, their lives and political times in the diverse and most-populated borough in London. Based in Croydon and edited by Steven Downes. To contact us, please email inside.croydon@btinternet.com
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