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Explore ‘Uncovering Post Office Scandal’s Emotional Impact,’
a deep dive into the human stories and emotional aftermath of a major postal scandal.
Uncovering the Post Office Scandal’s Emotional Impact
The Post Office scandal stands as a stark reminder of how deeply flawed systems can devastate innocent lives. It wasn’t just about faulty technology – it was about a callous disregard for justice and human decency.
We’ve all heard the statistics: hundreds of innocent Subpostmasters prosecuted, over 230 imprisoned, and four driven to take their own lives. But understanding the raw emotional toll and the sheer indifference shown by those in power requires more than numbers.
This page begins with a collection of powerful videos that reveal the human cost of the scandal – stories of shattered lives, stolen years, and a justice system that turned its back on its duty.
A Dramatisation That Opened Eyes
It took a television dramatisation, Mr. Bates Vs The Post Office, to truly bring the scale of this injustice into sharp focus for millions. The drama not only highlighted the catastrophic failures of the Horizon IT system but also shed light on the institutional arrogance that allowed these wrongful prosecutions to continue for decades.
Lives Destroyed, Justice Delayed
The questions still haunt us: how could this be allowed to happen for so long? And why, even now, are so many victims waiting for compensation? Over 60 people have passed away without receiving justice or acknowledgment for the trauma they endured.
The Danger of Blind Faith in Technology
The Post Office scandal is more than just a story of corruption – it’s a warning for the future. As we embrace artificial intelligence and increasingly rely on technology, we must remember that systems are only as infallible as the people who design and manage them. Blind faith in technology over human judgment is dangerous.
Moral Responsibility
This scandal goes beyond the Post Office – it implicates our Government, which owns the Post Office, and our criminal justice system, which failed to protect its citizens. Urgent action is needed not just to compensate the victims but to hold those responsible accountable.
As you explore the videos on this page, including the final segment on Lamar Johnson’s overturned murder conviction, you’ll see how systemic failures and blind reliance on technology can rob individuals of their freedom and dignity.
Let these stories remind us all of the critical importance of empathy, morality, and standing up for what is right.
Het Onthullen van de Emotionele Impact van het Post Office-schandaal
Het Post Office-schandaal is een schrijnende herinnering aan hoe gebrekkige systemen het leven van onschuldige mensen volledig kunnen verwoesten. Het gaat niet alleen om defecte technologie, maar ook om een kille minachting voor gerechtigheid en menselijke waardigheid.
We kennen allemaal de statistieken: honderden onschuldige subpostmasters werden vervolgd, meer dan 230 werden opgesloten, en vier mensen maakten een einde aan hun leven. Maar om echt de rauwe emotionele tol en de schaamteloze onverschilligheid van degenen aan de top te begrijpen, is meer nodig dan cijfers.
Deze pagina begint met een verzameling krachtige video’s die de menselijke kant van dit schandaal belichten—verhalen over verwoeste levens, gestolen jaren en een rechtssysteem dat zijn plicht verzaakte.
Een Dramatisering Die Ogen Opende
Het duurde een televisiedramatisering, Mr. Bates Vs The Post Office, om miljoenen mensen echt bewust te maken van de omvang van deze onrechtvaardigheid. De serie bracht niet alleen de catastrofale gebreken van het Horizon IT-systeem aan het licht, maar legde ook de institutionele arrogantie bloot die deze foutieve vervolgingen decennialang in stand hield.
Verwoeste Levens, Uitgestelde Gerechtigheid
De vragen blijven ons achtervolgen: hoe kon dit zo lang doorgaan? En waarom wachten zoveel slachtoffers, zelfs nu nog, op compensatie? Meer dan 60 mensen zijn inmiddels overleden zonder enige vorm van erkenning of genoegdoening voor het trauma dat zij hebben doorstaan.
Het Gevaar van Blind Vertrouwen in Technologie
Het Post Office-schandaal is meer dan alleen een verhaal van corruptie—het is een waarschuwing voor de toekomst. Terwijl we kunstmatige intelligentie omarmen en steeds meer op technologie vertrouwen, moeten we ons realiseren dat systemen slechts zo betrouwbaar zijn als de mensen die ze ontwerpen en beheren. Blind vertrouwen in technologie boven menselijk oordeel is gevaarlijk.
Morele Verantwoordelijkheid
Dit schandaal gaat verder dan de Post Office alleen—het legt ook de schuld bij onze overheid, die eigenaar is van de Post Office, en bij ons rechtssysteem, dat er niet in slaagde zijn burgers te beschermen. Er is dringend actie nodig, niet alleen om de slachtoffers te compenseren, maar ook om degenen die verantwoordelijk zijn, ter verantwoording te roepen.
Wanneer je de video’s op deze pagina bekijkt, inclusief het laatste segment over de vrijspraak van Lamar Johnson, zul je zien hoe systematische fouten en blind vertrouwen in technologie individuen hun vrijheid en waardigheid kunnen ontnemen.
Laat deze verhalen ons eraan herinneren hoe belangrijk empathie, moraliteit en het opkomen voor gerechtigheid zijn.
1 Judge tells Post Office their cases were a ‘sham’
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9 feb 2024
Judge tells Post Office their cases were a ‘sham’ in an early acquittal of a subpostmaster accused of stealing money from her branch.
Despite Post Office assurances that all acquittals were reviewed, this certainly didn’t seem to happen in earlier cases and this likely led to more subpostmasters being pursued that otherwise may not have been.
Chances were missed to bring the Post Office Scandal to an end and instead subpostmasters are now having to relive it as some of the cases explored here from the case studies identified by the Post Office Inquiry have left innocent victims having to face their tormentors and relive their experience of this miscarriage of justice again.
2 Our Childhoods Were Shattered By The Post Office Scandal
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25 apr 2024
One of the post office’s most senior managers, Angela van den Bogaerde, faces big questions today at the inquiry into the Horizon IT scandal, which saw the lives of hundreds of sub-postmasters totally devastated by allegations of theft and false accounting.
Katie Downey, daughter of Tony Downey, one of the victims of the Post Office scandal, leads the ‘Lost Chances for the Children of Subpostmasters’ campaign, which seeks to support children affected by their parents’ wrongful convictions and financial devastation.
She explains what she wants to achieve with the campaign, alongside two other children of victims of the post office scandal Rebekah Foot and Fraser Holmes
Broadcast on 25/04/24
3 Former Post Office Minister Paul Scully On Calls To Remove Paula Vennells’ CBE| Good Morning Britain
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9 jan 2024
Over 700 workers were wrongly convicted during the Horizon Post Office scandal. Now, a petition with over a million signatures is calling for Paula Vennells, former CEO of Post Office LTD, to be stripped of her CBE. This comes amongst additional calls for Post Office executives responsible for the scandal to be brought to justice.
GMB is joined by Former Post Office Minister, Paul Scully and Author, Nick Wallis who has written extensively about the scandal.
Broadcast on 09/01/24
4 Post office scandal: ‘I can’t see an end to it’ – Alan Bates
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27 feb 2024
Former sub-postmaster Alan Bates has been giving evidence to the Business and Trade Committee, chaired by Labour MP Liam Byrne.
Mr Bates said that even with massive public support and awareness following the success of the ITV drama that bore his name, his compensation claim is “not getting any faster” and “he can’t see an end to it.”
Educational: Nick Wallis
At minute 6: A scam
At minute 11
We all knew something terrible had happened at the Post Office
We knew there had been a computer failure that led to hundreds of innocent people being prosecuted for alleged fraud.
We’d read that it was the UK’s biggest miscarriage of justice.
But it has taken a television dramatisation to make me – and I’ve no doubt millions of others – fully appreciate the callous disregard for justice by senior figures at the Post Office, and the impact the scandal had on those poor people who were wrongly accused.
Around 700 were prosecuted for alleged theft, fraud and false accounting – 230 of them imprisoned. Four took their own lives.
All because Post Office investigators, backed by their managers, refused to believe the word of human beings – not a couple, but hundreds – over supposedly infallible technology. Just like the Titanic couldn’t sink, the Horizon IT system was fool-proof.
But how could it be allowed to go on for so long in view of the numbers coming before the courts? And why, 24 years after those wrongful convictions, are so many still awaiting compensation? Indeed, more than 60 have passed away without receiving a penny.
This country was quick to conclude they were guilty but unforgivably slow to compensate them for their shattered lives. That needs sorting out now, before it’s too late for any more victims.
Remember, the Post Office is owned by our Government, with the scandal exacerbated by our criminal justice system, and it is the Government – the country – that has to put this right without further delay.
There should also be fresh criminal investigations into the actions of those who perverted the court of justice, for that is surely what they did.
So, well done to ITV, the writers and the cast for giving us Mr Bates Vs The Post Office, and brilliantly telling a hugely important story that has stark lessons for us all at the dawn of the age of Artificial Intelligence. It is a reminder that blind faith in technology over people is extremely dangerous.
Haven’t we all worked for those who insist the computer must be right?. The computer knows best. It’s the users – “the dinosaurs” – who are to blame. I certainly have in the world of newspapers.
Of course, we must embrace technology, but not blindly, because what makes us human is our ability to be moral, to have empathy, and to know right from wrong.
We wisten dat er een computerstoring was geweest die ertoe had geleid dat honderden onschuldige mensen werden vervolgd voor vermeende fraude.
We hadden gelezen dat het de grootste gerechtelijke dwaling van het VK was.
Maar het heeft een televisiedramatisering nodig gehad om mij – en ik twijfel er niet aan dat miljoenen anderen hetzelfde ervaren – volledig te laten beseffen hoe onverschillig de hogere figuren bij de Postkantoor waren ten opzichte van gerechtigheid, en de impact die het schandaal had op de arme mensen die ten onrechte beschuldigd werden.
Ongeveer 700 mensen werden vervolgd voor vermeende diefstal, fraude en valsheid in geschrifte – 230 van hen werden gevangen gezet. Vier namen hun eigen leven.
Alles omdat Postkantoor-onderzoekers, gesteund door hun managers, weigerden het woord van mensen – niet één stel, maar honderden – te geloven boven zogenaamd onfeilbare technologie. Net zoals de Titanic niet kon zinken, was het Horizon IT-systeem waterdicht.
Maar hoe kon het zo lang doorgaan, gezien het aantal mensen dat voor de rechtbank werd gebracht? En waarom, 24 jaar na die onterechte veroordelingen, wachten er nog steeds zoveel op compensatie? Meer dan 60 mensen zijn zelfs overleden zonder een cent te ontvangen.
Dit land was snel om te concluderen dat ze schuldig waren, maar onbegrijpelijk traag om hen te compenseren voor hun verwoeste levens. Dat moet nu opgelost worden, voordat het te laat is voor nog meer slachtoffers.
Onthoud, het Postkantoor is eigendom van onze overheid, en het schandaal werd verergerd door ons strafrechtsysteem. Het is de overheid – het land – die dit recht moet zetten zonder verdere vertraging.
Er zouden ook nieuwe strafrechtelijke onderzoeken moeten worden gestart naar de acties van degenen die de rechtsgang hebben verdraaid, want dat is zeker wat ze hebben gedaan.
Dus, chapeau voor ITV, de schrijvers en de cast voor het brengen van Mr Bates Vs The Post Office, en het briljant vertellen van een enorm belangrijk verhaal met duidelijke lessen voor ons allemaal aan de vooravond van het tijdperk van Kunstmatige Intelligentie. Het herinnert ons eraan dat blinde trouw aan technologie boven mensen extreem gevaarlijk is.
Hebben we niet allemaal gewerkt voor degenen die volhouden dat de computer gelijk moet hebben? De computer weet het beter. Het zijn de gebruikers – “de dinosaurussen” – die de schuldige zijn. Ik heb het zeker meegemaakt in de wereld van kranten.
Natuurlijk moeten we technologie omarmen, maar niet blindelings, want wat ons menselijk maakt, is ons vermogen om moreel te zijn, empathie te hebben en goed van kwaad te onderscheiden.
5 Stories of human impact from the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry
20 feb 2024
Please note this video contains material which may be upsetting.
Between February and May 2022, Sir Wyn Williams heard evidence from people affected by the Post Office scandal on how it had impacted their lives. In this Human Impact Phase, the Inquiry held hearings in London, Cardiff, Leeds, Glasgow and Belfast. Through oral evidence, witness statements, and focus groups, the Inquiry heard evidence from 189 people. Some provided evidence anonymously, and others had their evidence provided by a family member on their behalf.
7 Prosecuted for Post Office Shortfalls: Horizon Scandal Inquiry
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27 feb 2024
Former sub-postmasters, Tim Brentnall and Tony Downey, will be giving evidence at an inquiry looking into compensation delays to victims of the Post Office scandal.
Broadcast on 27/02/24
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8 Postal Scandal: Jo Hamilton’s ‘Survivors Guilt’ After Settling with Post Office
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6 mrt 2024
The CEO of the Post Office, Nick Read, has been accused of bullying and lobbying to have his salary doubled. Meanwhile, several former sub-postmasters are still waiting for compensation. Jo Hamilton, who was a victim of the Horizon IT scandal, has settled with the Post Office for an amount lower than she had hoped for.
Broadcast on 06/03/24
9 ‘It destroyed him’: Horizon scandal victims who never saw justice before death | ITV News
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12 mrt 2024
The terrible miscarriage of justice at the heart of the Post Office scandal is only some of the way to being put right.
Hundreds of people are still waiting for their criminal convictions to be overturned, many more are yet to receive compensation for the livelihoods they lost.
But there are some victims of the scandal who will never know the relief of having their name cleared, the stigma officially washed away. They are the people who died before justice was done.
10 Demanding Justice: The Post Office Scandal
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In première gegaan op 18 mrt 2022
The Post Office scandal saw over 700 Post Office employees wrongly prosecuted thanks to an error in Horizon’s accounting software.
Sky’s Ivor Bennett speaks to some of those who went through the terrible ordeal.
At minute 9: He has been stealing from old people
11 Post Office Scandal: The Full Story (So Far)
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14 feb 2024
The greatest miscarriage of justice in British legal history. In January of 2024, ITV launched the drama ‘Mr Bates VS the Post Office’ overnight the public responded to the heartbreaking stories of postmasters across the country. A battle nearly 700 sub-postmasters have been fighting since the late 1990s, was suddenly in the spotlight.
GMB spoke with politicians, journalists, sub-postmasters and Alan Bates himself, learning about the injustices suffered and the campaign heroes.
The Horizon Post Office Scandal is far from over, here is the full story so far…
12 9 Sub-Postmasters (Post Office Scandal) Share Their Heartbreak Stories On BBC Breakfast [10.01.2024]
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13 Post Office scandal: My family was ‘abused’ in Post Office ordeal | Former sub-postmaster
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6 jan 2024
“My daughter was bullied. She once was on the school bus and was spat in her hair by a young boy because her father was a thief.”
Former sub-postmaster Lee Castleton describes what it was like to be accused of stealing money in the Post Office scandal.
14 Judge overturns Lamar Johnson’s 1995 murder conviction
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15 Sneezing Fish Gag
24 mei 2011
Hungry hungry customers grind some pepper on a roasted fish, but the fish sneezes unexpectedly and flips itself off the plate, to the customers’ surprise and shock.
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