Journal article sparked campaign for war pardons

The man who successfully campaigned for pardons for soldiers shot for cowardice in the first world war got his idea from an article in the Newcastle Journal. John Hipkin says he read a report in 1990 about soldiers from the north-east who had been executed for cowardice, and was angered by the fact that many of them were boys who had lied about their age in order to fight for their country. He and his wife launched their "Shot At Dawn" campaign soon after. This week they were delighted when the defence secretary, Des Browne, announced that the government will amend a bill in the autumn in order to grant a collective pardon to 300 executed soldiers. (Via Newcastle Journal)