Back in September 2001 we held a number of protest events in Swindon opposing the proposed attack on Afghanistan.
The very first event was an impromptu march organised by someone who had no connection with the left or peace movement, and was attended by about 100 people. There were three local Muslims there, Khan Nawaz, Azim Khan and Abdul Latif. The three of them later worked with me, and others on the left, to organise a series of lobbies of our two pro-war Labour MPs.
They have all been active supporters of the Stop the War Coalition, and I have also worked with Latif in a charity that provides advice for people who don’t speak English as their first language. Indeed Latif was due to come around to my house this morning to discuss some business connected to the charity, but we had to reschedule due to the snow.
So I was very interested to see Latif pictured and quoted in today’s Swindon Advertiser, the local paper that covers Wootton Bassett.
The Adver reports from yesterday’s repatriation ceremony that passed though Bassett: “Among the mourners were Muslim pensioners Abdul Lati 65, and his wife Samina, 52, who have lived in [Wootton Bassett] since 1995 and branded Islam4UK as “extremists”.
“Mr Latif said ‘I’ve been to these repatriations about 13 times now and we have great sympathy with the families who have lost their children at war. they are fighting for all of us, not just their religions but for all of us”
“We have great respect for everyone that passes through here. We sit here in peace and harmony while they fight for us. That is why we come here to show our respects. Although we believe in Islam we do not support Islam4UK. they are a minority of Muslims. they are extremists and we will not support them walking through Wootton Bassett”
On the same page in the newspaper, Farasat Latif, of the Call to Islam Centre in Luton , is quoted as saying he and other British Muslims would join a counter demonstration against Anjem Choudary if the Islam4UK march goes ahead. Farasat Latif said: “Islam is about peace and respect, neither of which will come from this action. this is Britain and British people have a right to grieve for their war dead without this insult. Yes, many in Afghanistan have died and we grieve for them but through prayer as is taught in Islam. this is a political statement and Wootton Bassett is not the town for political statements”
Firstly, congratulations to the Adver reporter Scott McPherson for a good story that helps to puncture the climate of anti-Muslim hysteria that is building up over Islam4UK’s proposed march.
But we also have to acknowledge that there is a very strong pressure building on British Muslims to keep quiet about opposition to the war in Afghanistan, a pressure that of course Anjem Choudrey is seeking to increase in order to polarise and inflame opinion still further.
But this also means that the left needs to urgently consider how to impose the issue of Afghanistan further up the mainstream political agenda. The government are currently having all the running in the media, despite the fact that a majority of the public oppose the war.
The convenient Mr Choudrey deserves an MI5 pay check for continually associating opposition to the war with his brand of moonbat extremism. Of course I have no evidence that actually he has an association with the security services, but “the labourer is worthy of his hire”, as the Bible says.
But the issue exposes a raw nerve, and the left needs to raise its game to help to give expression to the majority opposition to the war.