One thing I’ve noticed over the past 11 years covering Tower Hamlets is how easy it is to find some kind of link in national political rows to the politics of east London.
Today, the Mail on Sunday carries a story on comments made at a Palestine Solidarity Campaign hustings in Ealing in February 2015.
It quotes Rupa Huq, then the parliamentary candidate for Ealing Central and now its MP, telling the audience that a Labour government “could probably” ensure Britain apologised for helping to create the state of Israel in 1948.
The story says this is the latest episode in Labour’s anti-Semitism row.
It’s not been a good couple of weeks for Rupa Huq. Ten days ago, she unwisely went on to the Today programme in an attempt to defend Naz Shah over her anti-Semitic Facebook postings. She told Radio 4: “If it is career destroying it seems we are entering a phase where its trial by Twitter. As far as I know Naz Shah did not write antisemitic tracts or anything, she pressed ‘Share’ on a picture which was idiotic and foolish.
“I do think this does demonstrate the perils of social media. As far as I understand, this is before she was an MP, before she was a candidate even. She shared a post on Facebook. It’s easy to click those buttons.”
It’s not only the perils of social media. As Rupa is learning, it’s also the perils of speaking in public, on the hoof, on matters about which you’re not fully briefed, where anyone can record you, and particularly if those knowledge gaps include Palestine and Israel.
I first met Rupa in 2007, when she was up against the likes of Lutfur Rahman, John Biggs and Rushanara Ali in Tower Hamlets trying to secure the Labour candidacy for Bethnal Green in Bow. She wrote a short diary piece (left) about her experiences for me at the East London Advertiser at the time – and asked it be headlined ‘Diary of a Nobody’.
She struck me then as being slightly naive about the poisonous waters of Tower Hamlets politics and I was relieved for her when she failed to beat Rushanara.
I’m not sure some of that general naivety has completely disappeared.
As a direct result of the Mail article (which, at her insistence, this morning changed the words ‘should apologise’ in its headline to ‘could apologise’), she has received some pretty vile hate mail by email.
This one has been forwarded to the police:
“Get out of my country you ugly racist cu*t! Ugly, smelly Muslim vermin.”
I won’t name the person who emailed this, but let’s look at what prompted him to send it.
In the article, Rupa was quoted in this context:
Answering a question about whether an apology should be made, Ms Huq said: ‘1948, that happened under a British government. To my mind, an apology – yes. You could do one. A Labour Government could probably get that through.’
She added: ‘But it sounds a bit Tony Blair to me though, and we all know what happened to him.
Ms Huq – whose sister is the former Blue Peter presenter Konnie Huq – told The Mail on Sunday that the remarks she made did not reflect her actual views.
‘I don’t think that, those aren’t my views,’ she said. ‘I was answering a question. I went on later to say that there shouldn’t be an apology.
‘I have supported Labour Friends of Israel events and am a signatory to the We Believe In Israel charter.’
The video clip of the meeting is here:
Rupa told me today that with Angie Bray, the Tory candidate, declining to attend the February 2015 meeting, she was ‘probably the most right wing person there’ and was frequently jeered. She said she felt a little bit out of her depth on the specifics of questions raised.
She said the candidates were asked ‘Should the UK apologise for Israel?’ This was her answer in full:
“On the question of the historic legacy… I mean I said at the beginning that it’s a long, long history – you can trace it back to BC. I mean I think you’re referring more specifically to 1948 that happened under a British government? To my mind… an apology… Yes you could do one…. a Labour government could probably get that through, but it sounds a bit Tony Blair to me though, and we all know what happened to him. He did apologies for the Irish potato famine in 1998 amongst other things but he was pilloried. I mean you couldn’t make it up.
“But yeah, it would be possible to do an apology, but I think what’s more important is to move forward and to make sure that Palestinian people can live in peace in an independent state of their own, I think that’s what we need to focus on. I mean an apology – yeah you could do that, it might be symbolic but for the future we want a viable Palestine.”
So a bit more nuanced. She is a strong supporter of the two-state solution and strongly supports Israel’s right to exist. No doubt she’ll get vile emails from the other side now.
However, for the wellbeing of her own political career, she’d be well advised to stick to subjects on which she is a master of detail from now on…and stay away from the media for a while.
Trial by Jeory 
You’re asking a MP to do something which is against their nature – not be opportunist and don’t speak about stuff they don’t know. You have as much chance of that happening as having a cat not catch mice.
I also recall Huq’s bid to be an MP – her writing for the ELA, even her commentating on the blog of Dave Osler. Her blatant self-promotion which didn’t pay off for her in Tower Hamlets. She instead lost out to someone who can play that game even better.
What would be better if she did indeed push off, along with the MP for Bethnal Green and Bow, because they are not like the rest of us – they are Oxbridge, naturally and with that ‘right to rule’ attitude. Indeed so pompous is Huq, she is even ridiculed in the latest Private Eye (link – https://twitter.com/Southpawpunch/status/725899431866847232) for her trading Oxbridge stories with a fellow MP in the House of Commons.
I feel sorry for her getting this racist abuse and I think she is being maligned in the current ludicrous criticism of her for supposedly being soft on Anti-Semitism. But the latter is in a way she won’t understand. It’s all part of the near all (there’s one or two real cases) synthetic campaign against Corbyn under the guise of opposition to anti-Semitism. But she won’t see that, though- it will all be about her.
It was a stupid thing to say because it implies she thinks Israel shouldn’t exist. But it’s also an example of how poisonous pro-Palestinian advocates are. Such an apology would do nothing to alleviate Palestinian suffering but would damage the reputation and legitimacy of Israel, which is what these people are more keen on.
I hope the Police take action. There needs to be a much more visible and rigorous response to incitements to racial hatred.
In the meantime Ms Huq might like to reflect on the some of the reasons why MPs don’t always answer questions. It strikes me she needs an education in political “nous”. Politicians need to understand when they are being ‘set up’.
I agree wholly that the police should take action on ANY people inciting racial hatred.
That would include the likes of Diane Abbot.
It is quite clear to me that the Labour Party has turned its back on the British Jewish community ( ironic after Cable Street et al) and deliberately curried favour with the Islamic community.
Turning a blind eye to sex segregation at town hall meetings, honour killings, female genital mutilation, sexism, discrimination against women, sexual predatory grooming etc, it is all about the votes. The labour sisterhood might has well sew their lips up given their lack of protest.
There is a clear nasty anti Jewish movement in the left wing, and to pretend otherwise is not good.
You can see why the British second and third generation working man and women are defecting to Ukip in droves.
The Labour Party no longer represents what workers believe in
When exactly did the Labour Party turn its back on a
n honour killing?
My understanding was that the Labour party instructed its members not to go to Cable Street (though many did) – I think it was Arthur Downes who told be that.
The evuction of historical Palestine was not a first, nor last for Great Britain. These people are not even permitted to visit graves of their dear ones from generations. Refugees stuck in the wilderness whilst the US Army and their families happily inhabit and enjoy life upon these islands.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chagos_Archipelago
Good and valid point.
I am sure that Chagos Archipelago injustice is a de facto Human Rights abuse done in secret without the approval of the British (i.e. those living here) public.
Curious Cat
An idiots guide to the historic events in Palestine. 4 episodes well worth watching if you want to learn the truth. However be careful, I or you may now be called an anti-semite.
http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/specialseries/2013/05/20135612348774619.html
Straight after the 67 war, the Palestinians discovered that they were allowed on the Greyhoud type bus service and were soon whizzing around the country going to places that they were previously not allowed by the British or Ottomans.
As for Al Jazeera, this is not a rational or independent broadcaster. They are totally biased. Not that you would mind.
Al Jazeera English is a good news channel with better world coverage than dumbed-down BBC junk.
Al Jazeera English shows third-party reports that bring some of the many everyday hidden experiences to attention.
Admittedly Al Jazeera is always reticent to criticise its home state, but apart from that I give Al Jazeera English 10 out of 10 for good news reporting.
Just because its Arabic does not automatically make it bad.
Curious Cat.
Below please find her own comment on the report:
“7 May at 23:27 ·
Angered and perplexed to see the Mail on Sunday entirely misreporting comments I made at a general election hustings meeting last year to convey the opposite of what I said with completely misleading headline. For the avoidance of all doubt I believe that we need to move the middle east peace process forward and achieve a two state solution.
I do not believe that Britain should apologise for its historic actions in Israel/ Palestine as I said at the meeting but Mail is saying (just because all panellists and I were posed a question on it?) that I supported the idea.
In meantime here is an old Ealing Gazette cover with Steve Pound MP from the Summer. We are lucky to still have this paper as many examples of local journalism have vanished”.
Well
As for smelly Muslims I can honestly confirm when I was responsible for a bunch of North African Muslims, here on assignment, I was never conscious of any unpleasant smells.
They varied between a major (fluent Arabic, French, English with some Russian too) who jumped up and down on the top deck of a red London bus shouting “extremists” when he saw women at Hyde Park Corner dressed in all black, to Bachir an extremely nice, charming and wonderful major who devotedly prayed 5 times every day (Arabic, English, Russian).
Their boss, a colonel (and a Berber), was a likeable friendly character. The rest of the crowd were great too. One day they flew away in a big Russian plane I had come to love and appreciate and occasionally flew in.
Some drank alcohol – always in moderation – and others avoided alcohol. To me they weren’t Muslims but nice ordinary people whom I am proud to have known.
As for Palestine, one should not condemn all the Jews living in Israel because they have an extremest and nasty prime minister (whom they never voted for) supported by extreme orthodox Jews (state funded by the way) because many Israelis genuinely want peace, want fairness for the Palestinians and desperately want an end to the 60 years of violence. That dream will never come with the current prime minister.
Essentially one should try to live in peace with, in tolerance of and in harmony with one’s neighbours. Religion should be a private occupation rather an excuse for hating someone the hater really does not know as a person.
As one Moslem friend (from a political party I dislike) told me less than 2 days ago
My final bit today is this fundamental point …………………
Peace everyone ‘cos wars kill people whether they are good, bad, indifferent or uninvolved.
We have but one unique life so make it an outstanding experience, ‘cos you will never ever have that chance again.
Curious Cat
Ms Huq needs to learn the views of Robert McNamara (US Secretary of Defence 1960-68) on answering difficult questions: “”Don’t answer the question they asked. Answer the question you wish they’d asked.”
I haven’t watched the video clip yet (I have very limited bandwidth at the moment). But reading the transcript it would appear that she repeatedly stated that Labour could possibly get an apology through Parliament (which is the direct answer to the question asked), leaving the impression that her focus was on achieving that apology.
She’d have been better off stating clearly and briefly just once that it might be technically possible for Labour to do such a thing (were they ever in government) and then moving swiftly on to make the rest of her response entirely and solely about whether that would be worthwhile (which is really the key point to any answer on the subject.)