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3:32pm Tuesday 18th December 2007
DADS' rights campaign group Fathers 4 Justice launched its third publicity stunt in Sedgemoor in less than 12 months this week - and this time their protest gimmick has a festive feel.
After previously targeting the Willow Man and the M5 at North Petherton, the daredevil lobbyists this time struck all along the M5 corridor, at North Petherton, Edithmead and Sedgemoor Services.
Those behind the high-profile stunts daubed paint slogans on agricultural bales, hung banners from motorway bridges and left behind scarecrowds dressed as Santa Clause - all to promote their seasonal slogan: "Put the Father back into Christmas."
This is to spread their message that family laws governing parental access to children need to be balanced to be fair to fathers.
And although police moved quickly to remove traces of the group's actions, a South-West spokesman for the movement warned that more could follow over the Christmas period.
He spokesman said: "This Christmas, at least one million children in this country will be denied access to their parents or grandparents by the flawed family system that allows children to be exposed to a succession of mum's fleeting boyfriends, lovers and stepfathers with whom they have no biological connection, but gives no automatic rights of access to their real dads of grandparents.
"Dads only want the same right of access as mum's latest boyfriend.
"We as dads and grandparents love our children and just wish to spend time with them. Dads are angry at being treated like cash points by "Flash" Gordon Brown's Government.
"This (latest round of stunts) is just a taster of what you can expect and is just the beginning in the lead-up to Christmas."
gale, east coast says...
1:58am Thu 20 Dec 07
paul parmenter, Norfolk says...
6:59am Fri 21 Dec 07
Father Christmas (not), East Anglia says...
3:43pm Mon 24 Dec 07
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Mark Harris, Glastonbury says...
8:02pm Wed 19 Dec 07
I myself went to these insane Westcountry family court's what was believed to be a UK record 133 times to see kids that wanted to see me. But the secret family courts did nothing for them, they preferred to pleasure an obstructive mother while ignoring their duty to my children. Instead my three daughters had to take the law into their own hands and run away from their mother before we all got what we wanted-our family father/daughters relationship restored.
My daughters and I have just written a book called FAMILY COURT HELL, about our family court experience. Visit amazon co uk and search for FAMILY COURT HELL for more detail of what actually takes place in these corrupt courts.