Petition prompts No. 10 apology over code breaker Turing

By Craig Woodhouse, Press Association

Friday, 11 September 2009

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Alan Turing helped crack German Enigma codes during the Second World War

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Gordon Brown issued an apology to a Second World War code-breaker who committed suicide after being found guilty of gross indecency with another man.

The Prime Minister last night said Alan Turing, who took his own life in 1954, had been treated "inhumanely" and paid tribute to his work cracking the German Enigma codes.

Writing on the Downing Street website after thousands signed a petition calling for an apology, Mr Brown said 2009 had been a year for "deep reflection" and a chance for Britain "to commemorate the profound debts we owe to those who came before" because of the 65th anniversary of the Normandy landings and the 70th anniversary of the UK's commitment to fight fascism.

He went on: "I am both pleased and proud that, thanks to a coalition of computer scientists, historians and LGBT activists, we have this year a chance to mark and celebrate another contribution to Britain's fight against the darkness of dictatorship; that of code-breaker Alan Turing."

Describing Mr Turing as a "quite brilliant mathematician", the Prime Minister said: "It is no exaggeration to say that, without his outstanding contribution, the history of World War Two could well have been very different. He truly was one of those individuals we can point to whose unique contribution helped to turn the tide of war.

"The debt of gratitude he is owed makes it all the more horrifying, therefore, that he was treated so inhumanely. In 1952, he was convicted of 'gross indecency' - in effect, tried for being gay. His sentence - and he was faced with the miserable choice of this or prison - was chemical castration by a series of injections of female hormones. He took his own life just two years later.

"Thousands of people have come together to demand justice for Alan Turing and recognition of the appalling way he was treated.

Mr Brown said thousands of other gay men convicted under laws prohibiting homosexual relationships had been treated "terribly".

And praising Mr Turing's code-breaking work for its role in helping defeat fascism. The Prime Minister added: "On behalf of the British government, and all those who live freely thanks to Alan's work I am very proud to say: we're sorry, you deserved so much better."

Welcoming Mr Brown's move, human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell said all those who suffered similar treatment to Mr Turing also deserved an apology.

Mr Tatchell, of gay rights group Outrage!, said: "This apology is most welcome and commendable. But a similar apology is also due to the estimated 100,000 British men who were convicted of consenting, victimless same-sex relationships during the 20th century.

"Singling out Turing just because he is famous is wrong. Unlike Turing, many thousands of ordinary gay and bisexual men were never given the option of hormone treatment. They were sent to prison.

"All these men were criminalised for behaviour that was not a crime between heterosexual men and women."

He continued: "The homophobic 'gross indecency' law, under which Turing and many others were convicted, was a consensual offence and it only applied to sex between men.

"It was the same law that was used to prosecute and jail Oscar Wilde in 1895. First legislated in 1885 as part of a Victorian-era crackdown on homosexuality, this law was not finally repealed until 2003."

Comments

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Time for reflection

richleau wrote:

Friday, 11 September 2009 at 06:46 am (UTC)

for once Brown is right. We should reflect and on a wider scale especially those Jingoists who write columns praising Britain as a haven of liberalism and democracy not just now but over the centuries as a nation somehow genetically better than everyone else for which the rest of the world owes us a burden of gratitude should be the first to think again.

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Finally

fin_d_empire wrote:

Friday, 11 September 2009 at 07:39 am (UTC)

55 bloody years later Britain finally admits it treated a war hero and mathematical genius who invented the digital computer not much better than Hitler did his own gays. Britain's own version of Dr. Mengele chemically castrated Turing and made him grow boobs. That's after destroying all traces of his wartime work, booting him out of Cambridge, and sinking his career.

The man not only won the Brit/Yank side of the war (a sideshow compared to what the Red Army accomplished, admittedly) but made the greatest discovery of the 20th century: The programmable digital computer. Think about it, what's more important, Einstein discovering that e=mc2 or Turing discovering the computer? How many nukes do you have at home? How many microprocessors?

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Wot about Oscar

chiennoir wrote:

Friday, 11 September 2009 at 08:09 am (UTC)

"It was the same law that was used to prosecute and jail Oscar Wilde in 1895." Has there ever been an apology for Oscar. I know he didn't invent a computer or save Britain's arse during the war, but he subverting Victorian smugness, and that's something we often still have to live with.

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Alan Turing andothers

nabuco0 wrote:

Friday, 11 September 2009 at 08:45 am (UTC)

The british self caled super democrats needed 55 years to restore Alan Turing and to recognise his immense contribution to the world. They did this only under great pressure of scollars and public.

It is still a shame for british leadership that it took such a long time to apologise.

In the case of the conviction of Turing and many others the british elite was not much more human than the nazi's

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Re: Alan Turing and Batang Kali massacre

kakhengtan wrote:

Friday, 11 September 2009 at 09:29 am (UTC)

"While Turing was dealt with under the law of the time and we can't put the clock back, his treatment was of course utterly unfair and I am pleased to have the chance to say how deeply sorry I and we all are for what happened to him."

The massacre of Batang Kali innocents need no reflection for long.

"In the case of the conviction of Turing and many others the british elite was not much more human than the nazi's", right!!

Brown the humane shd apologize now to the victims of Batang Kali, no double standard please. Just because Alan is a famous man.....

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re: Wot about Oscar

brinksman wrote:

Friday, 11 September 2009 at 09:00 am (UTC)

It's always nice to see someone come up with the perfect line that clears the fog. I never thought about Oscar Wilde and his suffering at the hands of hypocrites, until I read that. How perfectly true.
www.millarcrime.com

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it only applied to sex between men

kuma2000 wrote:

Friday, 11 September 2009 at 09:50 am (UTC)

Apparently it never applied to women as Queen Victoria regarded it as inconceivable that such a thing could occur.

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Qui bobo?

had_it wrote:

Friday, 11 September 2009 at 10:24 am (UTC)

Turing deserved an apology from those ingrates who hounded him to death.
I am not sure how an apology, from someone who was not involved to someone who cannot hear, serves anyone beyond the one making the apology.

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Re Wot about Oscar

chiennoir wrote:

Friday, 11 September 2009 at 11:50 am (UTC)

Oscar Wilde has perhaps an even stronger case for an apology than Turin - whose case was strong enough - and the reason is that Oscar Wilde's prosecution was the direct result of a political conspiracy involving the Cabinet. Had the Government of the time not pursued a prosecution against Wilde, the Marquis of Queensbury would have exposed the relationship that had taken place between one of his sons - who'd committed suicide - and Lord Rosebury, who at the time was the Foreign Secretary I believe. (He was later Prime-Minister.) This would have created such a huge scandal that the government itself would have been toppled. These facts are not very widely known for the same reason that the albeit circumstantial evidence for a political conspiracy behind the murder - I would say assassination - of Chirstopher Marlowe is not widely known. Government always like to present itself as being above criticism. Nobody in government wants to see the true nature of government exposed.

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ONE OF THE ICONS OF THE MOST HANDSOME MAN TOO

famulla wrote:

Friday, 11 September 2009 at 12:51 pm (UTC)

"On behalf of the British government, and all those who live freely thanks to Alan's work I am very proud to say: we're sorry, you deserved so much better." Copy. I copy.
The Prime Minister last night said Alan Turing, who took his own life in 1954, had been treated "inhumanely" and paid tribute to his work cracking the German Enigma codes.
Petition prompts No. 10 apology over code breaker Turing
"All these men were criminalised for behaviour that was not a crime between heterosexual men and women."
Alan Turing gave us the PC. I admire him. HOWEVER, GAY They cannot give a small bird or bee. Why are they standing in the queue that I have to refer to the Holy books?
But why are we charming this one up now? Is brown trying to win us by bringing the clever men and then set the date for election? I have no idea of the agendas of the politicians. Oh I have do much against them.
I thank you
Firozali A. Mulla

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Alan Turing

commondog wrote:

Friday, 11 September 2009 at 01:09 pm (UTC)

The man was used and abused by a very demanding and jealous system. It was the way of the times which is cold comfort to any of his friends, relations and colleagues who survive now. But surely a PM who was a pre school child, cannot really apologise from the heart. It is a paperwork exercise.

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Gay persecution

arthur_ide wrote:

Friday, 11 September 2009 at 02:51 pm (UTC)

Ever since the odious opportunism of organized religion reared its nefarious carniverous head and began to harm and/or murder marginalized groups in the name of a god politicians and states have made good the threats of religious leaders to eradicate and end all actions they seem to think are either unnatural or abnormal--yet homosexuality exists in every species on this planet and has been as old as time. Still the government puts up restrictions against gays and lesbians, rather than do the democratic thing by incorporating all people as one in a society of tolerance and education. The greatest threat to democracy and government are the churches, synagogues, mosques, temples, etc. that continue to preach hatred against gays and lesbians because of some antiquated text that is frequently read of out context (compare Genesis 19 with Ezekial 16:49) to cause pain and suffering so that religious miscreants like the episcopacy of the Anglican communion can continue to feast on those who live outside its self-confined intellectual prisons. It is time that the UK breaks with Canterbury and York and build a strong wall separating state and church and telling the episcopacy, priests, pastors, rabbis, mullahs, monks and so forth to go into a closet and mumble their prayers there and leave the open sky and fresh air for mortals who think for themselves. Christianity, like Islam and Judaism, has created more suffering on this planet than any other doctrine or philosophy. That is why Adolf Hitler was a devout Roman Catholic until his own suicide (John Toland, Adolf Hitler, New York: Anchor Publishing, 1992, p. 507; and, Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf, Ralph Mannheim, ed., New York: Mariner Books, 1999, p. 562.)

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Re: Gay persecution

theprogramme wrote:

Friday, 11 September 2009 at 11:15 pm (UTC)

That's why the ancient Greeks used to take young boys away and have fun with them as they went about thier business of sluaghtering villages and gaining support. Obviously this way of living is counter producive. It's a good job we've moved on because it's obvious after two thousand years that we can't reproduce if we all sleep with men and let women die.

The religion of Abraham isn't the problem, it is you who is the problem. What do you believe in? Apart from Atheism. Come on tell me the meaning of life if you're so sure of yourself?

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Re: Gay persecution

arthur_ide wrote:

Friday, 11 September 2009 at 11:33 pm (UTC)

You do not know Greek history, obviously. Homosexuality was fully accepted, but so was heterosexuality, and in both cases the purpose was not the procreation of warriors (except in Sparta), but to develop society with new people and new ideas.

Abraham is a myth--he is the inverted Hindu god Brahama (the "a" is just moved from the back to the front) and his tales are inventions and redactions from far older India and Akkadia myths coupled with the ontology of the gods of Babylon and Canaan.

I accept what I can see, hear, and experience. I have no belief system as that would degrade the reality of atheism which is a Greek work meaning "without god" or the need of a supernatural being. Life has one purpose--to live. Once life is over, the body deteriorates (or regenerates into nucleus and other cells and disperses throughout the multiverse (a universe would be one like the Milky Way). I do kind things out of compassion, not because of some illusionary promise of a reward in another place or time. I do not go against the free will and consent of another as I do not want another to do a similar disservice to me. While we are basically like wild animals, mortals are more bloodthirsty and feed on their own young: be it cannibalism or the military that uses the young as fodder for senseless wars. Therefore, the meaning of life is to enjoy every minute of it to the fullest--and not to worry about some imaginary being or an absurd concept of a life after death. After death there is nothing for the individual who lived.

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Long overdue

richardm30 wrote:

Saturday, 12 September 2009 at 03:46 am (UTC)

This apology is long overdue. This man basically helped save western civilisation - and he way GAY. So to all those bigots, 1950's-style Christians and Muslim fundamentalists - you OWE this man your lives and your freedom (including your freedom to spread bile and Hate about gay people). But will the fact that Turing was GAY stop you from spreading lies and bile about gay people - of course not. But that does not change the fact that you owe your lives to the accomplishments of this quiet man - whose only crime was to be himself in the quiet of his own house. For this he was hounded to his death by Hate, driven by the same faith-based moralizers that infect society today.

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The Programme.

chiennoir wrote:

Saturday, 12 September 2009 at 07:21 am (UTC)

The ancient Greeks actually practiced a form of paederasty - not to be confused with paedophilia - and that's distinct from homosexuality. They frowned on the idea of two men forming a lifelong relationship. They also frowned on the idea that the passive partner might enjoy his part in the sex act, because that would make him like a woman. They were mysogynistic, but they did not frown upon the idea of marriage and reproducing children. Homosexuality - or paederasty - had for them a kind of educational value. The Greeks weren't perfect of course. Theirs was a warrior-culture with all the masculinist distortions of such a culture. But then, if you read between the lines, so was the culture of the Ancient Hebrews. No culture could survive in those days without being militaristic. They both employed slaves. It's absurd to blame the decline of the Greeks on homosexuality. Their cultural achievement were second to none. You just have to see Oedipus or The Oresteia performed to realise that. All the Ancient Jews bequeathed civilisation was a miserable book, which tried to tell people how to live. (I don't say that there weren't wonderful things in it.) It was a book which justified genocide no less than the persecution of gays. But of course, there will always be people like you around, who will justify anything if it's part of their belief-system, people who lack the imagination to overcome what they've been taught. You can't even have a conversation with such people because everything is black and white for them, not shades of grey. The sooner that belief-system is consigned to the dustbin of history, the sooner we can all start living our lives in the way that we choose.

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