Parliamentary candidates’ abuse: more than meets the media’s eye
JVL Introduction
In the immediate aftermath of the 2024 election, complaints were made by some parliamentary candidates about intimidation by pro Palestinian activists; John Woodcock (now Lord Walney) submitted a dossier that has now been examined by Middle East Eye (MEE). The Home Secretary announced ” a rapid review of harassment faced by candidates. However, it may well be, based on the Woodcock dossier, that some of the candidates subject to abuse are not going to be included.
MEE has found some serious concerns with the methodology and sources for Woodcock’s dossier and within this article also outline some of the abuse that is still affecting some of the Independent candidates.
Published with permission of Middle East Eye
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This article was originally published by Middle East Eye on Wed 11 Sep 2024. Read the original here.
Paper-thin and partisan: Lord Walney's election abuse dossier blaming pro-Palestine protesters examined
John Woodcock claimed there was a ‘pattern of intimidation’ of politicians by pro-Palestinian protesters – but relied on unreliable and partisan sources
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All lighting groups and outside influence must be banned. There is too much influence in British politics which is destroying democracy
Thankyou for highlighting the weaknesses and lack of detail in the woodcock dossier, I did not know many of the facts you have reported about and the difficulties some of the pro palestinian independent candidates faced and are still having to deal with.The mainstream media it seems do not seem to have interest to reporting such information.
No doubt Woodcock, essentially a Tory peer will be rejoining Labour any day now. He’ll be welcomed with open arms.
For the last decade, most of these ‘abuse’ claims have been coded versions of punching down and telling Black and/or Working-Class people they should know their place.
Despite the sacrifices of WW2 generations, which including Hannah Arendt and others demanding ever forward rigorous anti-Nazi vigilance, we are being told that publicly scrutinising our politicians and Israeli colonialists for Fascism, is abuse.
We have actually had the obscenity in the case of Reginald D Hunter, Diane Abbott, Marc Wadsworth, Jackie Walker and others of seeing Black people vilified for talking back to white colonists or their lobby. And let’s remember aspects of Israel apartheid victimise Jewish people of colour too, so the country would hardly be a universal safe space for them even if they Black Jews.
This of course is a replication of the ‘talking-back taboo’ of the plantation. But nothing now is beneath our ruling-classes.
Can someone tell me why Woodcock is regarded as an expert in the field?