Labour would have expelled Archbishop Desmond Tutu
JVL Introduction
After Keir Starmer tweeted his admiration for Archbishop Tutu (“a tower of a man, and a leader of moral activism“), Skwawkbox rushed to condemn his jumping on the bandwagon in an article entitled Starmer shredded for Tutu hypocrisy: ‘You’d have expelled him from Labour’.
All well deserved as Starmer fails to notice Tutu’s consistent use of the word apartheid to describe the situation in Israel-Palestine, and his equally consistent support for BDS.
Were Tutu in the Labour Party he would no doubt long ago have received any permutation of a Notice of Investigation, a Suspension, a Reminder of Conduct, or an outright Expulsion “for undermining the Party’s ability to fight racism”.
As a reminder of the real Desmond Tutu, not the plastic saint Starmer chooses to bow down to, here is Tutu in the Guardian in 2002 (when that paper still attempted to host an honest debate on the injustices of Israel’s oppression of the Palestinians).
This article was originally published by the Guardian on Sun 29 Dec 2002. Read the original here.
Apartheid in the Holy Land
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Unfortunately 20 years is a long time in politics. I have sent them a ritual letter of protest at their deletion of comments pointing out the failure to mention Tutu’s support of Palestine in their obituary but I hold out no hopes that it will be printed.
https://azvsas.blogspot.com/2021/12/the-dishonesty-of-guardian-knows-no.html
The LP dog is wagging the Starmer tail I suspect. He is not a stupid man but may be misled …I hope so.
The hypocrisy of the Guardian, like that of the Labour Party under Starmer, knows no bounds. It used to publish fair-minded criticism of Israel. It has previously published Assange and Snowden. Now it deletes any reference to Israel’s abuses of Palestinian rights below the line, and any positive reference to the pre-eminent journalistic whistleblowers of our time. Who is calling the tune?
‘Those who continue to do business with Israel, who contribute to a sense of normalcy in Israeli society, are doing the people of Israel and Palestine a disservice. They are contributing to a profoundly unjust status-quo.’
‘The Israeli government is placed on a pedestal and to criticise it is to be immediately dubbed anti-semitic, as if the Palestinians were not semitic.’
Starmer does not get it. Starmer upholds many profound injustices.
The last book, written by The Observer journalist, Nick Cohen, I bought, and read, was – irony of ironies – ‘You Can’t Read This Book.’ – published in 2012
A tome – meant to be funny – on the UK’s Libel laws and Censorship, with a dedication to the contrarian, Christopher Hitchens, who had died, the previous December.
“In – ‘You Can’t Read This Book’ – one of the wittiest and most excoriating journalists at work today passionately and persuasively describes how we, in the liberated west, find ourselves in a situation in which you can write a novel, criticise an alternative therapy, or ‘offend’ a religion by drawing a cartoon and risk ending up financially ruined or even dead.”
As we all know, Nick has been on a journey, in the intervening ten years. He may view his journey as beneficial, in some way.
This one time reader and ‘fanboy’ does not. Not in any way shape or form, Nick.
Where did it all go wrong?
Have a word with your editorial staff – and your Moderators. They’re bringing shame to the words of C P Snow, making them a nonsense.
I am a Labour Party woman of colour member. I was born in an African Reservation created under British colonial rule and the war of liberation in my country of birth forced me to come here. I have been a supporter and a member of the Labour Party because I felt that the party was willing to seriously address issues raised in this article. These in my view, are painful and extremely uncomfortable issues to discuss in any meeting. I therefore cannot see how the party can ask that anti-racist issues be discussed in a comfortable manner. This in my opinion limits all anti racist and discriminatory discussions in the party because members will be afraid of disciplinary measures being taken against them.
“They are cheering Tutu, let me jump on the bandwagon and they will cheer me.” Starmer.
Criticism of Israel can never be anti semitic because Jews are always with the oppressed never the oppressor
The Jewish State does not exist it is a figment of imagination
John, I think you meant “jeer”.