Statement following third meeting between Jewish community leaders and Labour Leader Keir Starmer

 

The publication of the EHRC Report was welcomed by the Jewish community as it vindicated their concerns. The Jewish Labour Movement (an affiliate of the Labour Party) has already stated:

Members have been subjected to persistent levels of abuse that passed criminal thresholds, whilst Jewish women Members of Parliament such as Luciana Berger and Dame Louise Ellman were left little choice but to resign under extreme duress. Jewish Labour members, our friends and allies have far too often faced the perverse insinuation that we have ‘weaponised’ antisemitism by the very same individuals who have perpetrated it against us, with little if inadequate intervention by those who could have stopped it.

Now the British Board of Deputies the main organisation representation has issued the following Statement following meetings held with Sir Keir Starmer, leader of the Labour Party: 

Marie van der Zyl, President of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, Jonathan Goldstein, Chair of the Jewish Leadership Council, Mark Gardner, Chief Executive of the Community Security Trust and Mike Katz, Chair of the Jewish Labour Movement said: “We thanked Keir Starmer and the Labour Party for their firm and constructive response to the damning verdict delivered by the Equality and Human Rights Commission last week.

“We expressed our disgust that his predecessor Jeremy Corbyn had, by contrast, responded by diminishing and dismissing the legal findings of the report, thereby challenging the Labour Party’s new commitment to rooting out the problem and giving the Party no choice but to suspend him.

“While we discussed a constructive means of Labour delivering the technical recommendations of the EHRC report, a crucial element of the way forward is about culture.

“Those who are responsible for obstructing the new, positive direction set for the Party around antisemitism and undermining the confidence of the Jewish community and Jewish Labour Party members are part of the problem and the Labour leadership will need to find a way to put a stop to it.

“Calls for leniency on the basis of party unity are misplaced when the issue at hand is antisemitism. If the Party is to show zero tolerance to antisemitism, there can be no unity with antisemites or their enablers. Indeed, the EHRC rightly dismissed such political considerations as being inappropriate for an issue in which Labour has moral and legal responsibilities.

“Recognising the progress made, but that there is still a long way to go, we expressed our ongoing willingness to work with Keir Starmer and Labour to return the Party to being proudly and unequivocally anti-racist once more.”

British Board of Deputies website: www.bod.org.uk

Colombia: Condemn death threats against leaders of the education union

 

In the three decades until 2016, Colombian trade unions report that 990 of their members were murdered. Another 3,000 were threatened with assassination.

And despite the peace process in the country, such threats against trade unionists continue.

On 26 October, death threats were sent to all 15 members of the Executive Committee of FECODE, the Colombian Federation of Education Workers, as well as to the President of the Trade Union Confederation CUT.

The threats took the form of a funeral wreath with the words 'rest in peace'.

Sixteen candles and 16 obituary notices with the name of each targeted union leader were also delivered to the home of Carlos Rivas, FECODE's Secretary for legal affairs.

The threats come in the aftermath of national actions led by trade unions over the social, health, education and economic crisis in the country.

FECODE is also leading an initiative to promote schools as 'zones of peace' through community dialogues.

Enough is enough.

FECODE and the Education International have launched a major new online campaign on LabourStart demanding that the Colombian authorities act to ensure immediate protection measures for the entire FECODE leadership, and for all union and social leaders and activists.

Those trade unionists must be allow to exercise their right to express opinions, to demonstrate and to organise to defend the public education system.

Please take a moment to show your support for this campaign - click here.

Thank you!

Eric Lee

The strange world of Corbyn's supporters

 

As the infighting continues it's interesting to look at the reactions of those individuals who support Jeremy Corbyn. Their views range from sheer blind devotees to completely deranged if not sinister.

One Corbyn supporter, Jamie Harwood from Hexham (whose local Constituency Labour Party is a hotbed of extremism of all sorts) strangely muses:

Starmer's suspending of Corbyn, a man of principal and integrity is weak, cowardly and shows how dangerous media manipulation of truth is right now..

Putting aside the hero worship of Corbyn and obvious hatred of Keir Starmer the remarks Corbyn made were in a televised interview for all to see and Corbyn knew exactly what he was doing. Paying the rebel, making himself the martyr and centre of attention in order to distract from the antisemitism that flourished under his watch.

Maureen Carney writes on Labour Outlook's Facebook Page in response to Richard Burgon heir apparent of the Corbynista movement:

I think it is a truly shocking thing to do to a man who has spent his life fighting for good justice and equality. A shameful act and unforgivable. Sinister forces are at play here. I am increasingly finding Starmer revolting !!!

In this case I did ask her the obvious question:

Which sinister forces are you referring to out of interest? 

I got no reply though one could make an intelligent guess especially as further down she is followed by

Ian Finlay who may give us a clue as to what "sinister" forces are at play in their view:

Richard it is not antisemitism we have to worry about it is the fascism and Keir et al are the worst. Taking money from Israel to ensure a socialist government will never happen. Jeremy Corbyn grew the membership of labour far more than any other leader. At the last election Jeremy still got 3m votes more than Blair’s last election. The right of the Labour Party will never win . He wouldn’t be bought by anyone which is why he has been persecuted. Love you JC keep safe and keep battling . Xxx g and I xx

Those pesky Jews Zionists are at it. again  No antisemitism here. Nothing to see. Move along....

Meanwhile that old accusation about opponents raises it's silly head again as Ricky tells us:

You cannot and will not defeat the Tories until you have cleaned the Labour Party of Tories and those infected with thier idiology. (sic)

I seem to remember these people telling everyone to go join the Tories over the years old Compo was in charge and they wonder why so many Labour voters did, "Red Wall" and all that. The worst defeat Labour has had in decades.

Perhaps Burgon and friends should take Jackie's advice when she requests:

Can you break away and create a new party? I would happily join any Socialist Party.

She is one of many Corbyn supporters who want to break away and more than a few have buggered off already.  If there is one thing that is abundantly clear these so-called "socialists" or whatever they are do not belong in the Labour Party and should be encouraged to leave.

George Galloway's Workers Party of Britain has vacancies I am led to understand!

Labour First, Labour to Win & Progress Joint Statement on the EHRC Report

 

Labour First, Labour to Win & Progress write:

The publication of the EHRC report into antisemitism in the Labour Party is a dark day in our party’s history. No democratic socialist party, with our values committed to equality and anti-racism, should ever allow anti-Jewish hatred to gain any ground within its ranks. It is a matter of shame for all of us, and there can be no excuses for, the spread of antisemitism within Labour after 2015 and the party’s failure to swiftly deal with this.

Today is a day for those impacted by antisemitic harassment, discrimination and victimisation – both Jewish members and former members of Labour, and the wider Jewish Community – to have their say about what they experienced.

We have stood in solidarity with our Jewish comrades during the disgraceful events of the last five years and we are committed to supporting Keir Starmer as he implements all the recommendations of the EHRC report, and to a zero tolerance approach which removes antisemitism from the Labour Party.

More at my other blog: Howie's Corner Too:

The worst the left has to offer rallies to defend Corbyn

The revolutionary left fall behind Corbyn

Labour Against Antisemitism (LAAS) on the EHRC Report

Denny Taylor, founder of Labour Against Antisemitism said:


“We welcome the publication of the Equalities and Human Rights Commission report into the Labour Party. 

In our view the report’s conclusion that the Labour Party has acted unlawfully is a vindication both of our decision to ask for an EHRC inquiry and of our three-year campaign against institutional anti-Jewish racism in the Labour Party. It is also a victory for those who believe in a viable mainstream Labour Party that the Jewish community can support without fear.

The responsibility now falls on Keir Starmer and the Labour movement not only to follow the recommendations of the report, but to ask serious questions about how the British Left has found itself in this situation. Antisemitism has also flourished in our trade unions, our universities and in our media, and this must also be tackled. 

In the meantime we will continue to report instances of antisemitism in the Labour Party and hold its behaviour to account - as we have always done.”

Website: labouragainstas.org.uk

Jewish Labour Movement: EHRC Report Resource List

 

After five years of pain, anger and distress, we will soon be hearing from the Equality and Human Rights Commission - the independent equalities regulator - on the extent of the problem of antisemitism in the Labour Party, and most importantly what needs to change. The fact that we have got to this point is a moment of great shame for the Labour Party.

_____________________________________

Our essential EHRC report resource list

Ahead of the report release, we put together an essential resources list on how we got to this point, key events and the problem of antisemitism on the left. 

WATCH:

• Our webinar on what to expect from the report which you can watch on our Facebook page.

READ:

• We've compiled an 'EHRC Report 101' on the background to the report.
• Our timeline of key events leading up to the report.
• Take a look at HOPE not hate's hub of articles and resources on the EHRC report, left antisemitism and its impact on the Jewish community.
• The Guardian have written up what to look out for in the EHRC report.

LISTEN:

• HOPE not hate's podcast with JLM Vice Chair Ruth Smeeth on antisemitism in the Labour Party with HOPE not hate's Matthew McGregor (or listen on your preferred podcast platform).

____________________________________________________________________

We know that when ever the EHRC report is released it will be very emotional for many of us. Help us amplify the voices of the people impacted by antisemitism - Jewish Labour members and the Jewish community. We will endeavour to keep our members informed whenever the report is released.

Website: www.jewishlabour.uk

Doctor Who - Time Lord Victorious: He Kills Me, He Kills Me Not (Big Finish Audio)

Cross-posted from Howie's World of Comics

Time Lord Victorious is a multi-media Doctor adventure that began in Doctor Who Magazine last month as a comic strip featuring the Ninth Doctor (and is continuing) plus a second comic adventure published by Titan (in an American format) featuring the Tenth Doctor. I will get around to reviewing these in due course but am a bit behind and anyway this sixty minute features the Eight Doctor who is only known from one BBC film and a short special some years back.

The Eight incarnation of the Doctor was or is played by Paul McGann and Big Finish have produced a large range of audio adventures on CD featuring him and his various companions, the best known being Charlie rescued from the crashing Airship 101 but that is a story for another day even if in the past. Time travel can be confusing.

This Doctor has of course not yet met the Ood but then he's just decided  land on a planet called Atharna to revisit one of the seven hundred wonders of the universe but somethings wrong. The place is bare, a desert where an ocean should be and there are two people in need of his help.

Photo: CC Swamp Dragon

The Doctor is about to meet Brian a rather nasty assassin and bounty hunter who is on the trial of two lovers. One to bring home the other to kill. Did I mention he's one of the Ood?

Part one of  a story to be continued in next months release My Enemy Of My Enemy featuring the Doctors most dangerous opponents?

Watch out for further comics, books, Big Finish audio CD's and a five part You Tube BBC Animation as Time Lord Victorious continues over the coming months.

Available from Big Finish