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| Islamonline : "Livingstone Urges British Muslims to Vote Labour" |
| 2005-04-14 |
| Ken isn't just an islamo-friendly zionist-bashing leftist (moonbat?), he is also a politician looking for muslim ballots : "Muslims, vote for the "good" candidates, the ones that *understand* you"... Note that in La Belle France this kind of ultimately suicidal political engineering is ongoing, too. Nicolas Sarkozy is clearly positionning himself as the "communautarist" futur presidential runner, many local pols are giving the usual concessions in exchange for votes, one socialist strategist (IIRC Pascal Boniface, JFM, with his much bigger forehead, will be able to correct me if I'm wrong) stated that the party should trade the jewish vote (600 000) for the much more promising muslim vote ("officially" 6000 000),... The times clearly are for a sharing of the political power, and this is only the beginning... LONDON, April 14, 2005 (IslamOnline.net) — The Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, has met with Muslim leaders to appeal to Muslims to vote Labour in the coming elections or at the very least vote for the Labour candidates who oppose the US-British occupation of Iraq. "I want to make a specific appeal to the Muslim communities with regard to the general election. I know many Muslims are angry with some of the actions of the Labour government. But I would ask you to remember that this election will choose the government. "I would appeal to the Muslim communities in their own self-interest to vote Labour but to those who refuse to vote Labour across the board, I would say, at the very least, vote for the very many Labour candidates who opposed the war in Iraq," Livingstone made the appeal in a significant event organized by the Muslim Association of Britain (MAB) and hosted by the Muslim Welfare House. Mayor Livingstone, known for his wide popularity among the sizable Muslim community of three million people, highlighted the vital role of Muslims past and present as well as the importance of what is yet to come on all levels and what is expected of Muslims in this regard, the MAB said in a press release sent to IslamOnline.net Wednesday, April 13. "Over the last three years, Britain's Muslim communities have advanced dramatically to constituting themselves as a more and more confident and powerful political force in towns and cities throughout Britain," Livingstone addressed the 40 Muslim representatives at the meeting. "They have done so on a clear and progressive agenda of opposition to the invasion of Iraq, justice for Palestine, support for religious freedom and defence of civil liberties." Welcomed The appeal apparently won the support of Muslim leaders attending the meeting, at a time some of Conservative Party candidates call for the expulsion of asylum seekers, some of them hailed from Muslim countries for political or economic reasons. President of MAB Ahmed Sheikh thanked the Mayor for his initiative and said MAB has called upon British Muslims to vote for candidates who were against the Iraq invasion and support the withdrawal of British troops, who oppose the Anti-terror legislation, are supportive of local needs of the minority and stand for the rights of the oppressed particularly the Palestinians. Anas Altikriti of MAB, stated that never before had the Muslim vote been so enthusiastic, positive and well-structured and never before had any of the main parties realized the importance that is attached to Muslims and their performance in a General Election. Tanzeem Wasiti from the Muslim Council of Britain commented that MCB is therefore launching its policy document, Electing to Listen, and highlighting the ten key questions to be asked to all prospective parliamentary candidates. "We hope that the major political parties will listen to legitimate concerns of the community and reflect those concerns in their policies," said Wasiti. MCB said it will also be revealing their selection of constituencies around the United Kingdom with substantial Muslim populations where they shall be holding regional meetings with parliamentary candidates. Muslim leaders from the main political parties will also attend and publicly join the effort to urge British Muslims to participate more actively in mainstream politics. Among the people who attended the meeting with Livingstone was Yasmin Qureshi, Labour prospective candidate for Brent East who stressed that she will be a voice raising the concerns of British Muslims within the Labour party and in the House of Commons whether on domestic issues such as education and housing or government policy on Iraq and Palestine. A number of contributors all welcomed the organization of the event at this crucial moment of time and hailed the Mayor of London as a great friend of Muslims and all religious and ethnic minorities "that make up the diverse and richly colorful picture of the capital". Tense Relations Relations between the Labour government and British Muslims have witnessed a rising deterioration, especially following the government's decision to scrap its proposed Anti-Religious Hatred law. Prime Minister Tony Blair was warned by Muslim leaders that there could be a further backlash among Muslims supporting Labour at the forthcoming general election if he again reneged on his pledge to outlaw the incitement of religious hatred. If passed, the Anti-Religious Hatred law would make it illegal to incite violence and discrimination against any religious group. Instead, the government forced through the Anti-Terrorism bill which Muslim leaders see as a threat to confiscate freedoms and civil rights. British Muslims were infuriated by statements from Home Office Minister Hazel Blears and the commissioner of the Metropolitan Police that the Muslim minority would be the main target of the new legislation. Muslims have repeatedly complained of maltreatment by police for no apparent reason other than being Muslim, citing the routine stop-and-search operations. Senior British parliamentarians admitted last August that anti-terrorism laws are being used "disproportionately" against the Muslim minority |
| Posted by:Anonymous5089 |
| #4 I would love for this bastard to jump in front of my car but he will never come to my little burg. I can dream can't I? |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet 0â Doom 2005-04-14 7:41:17 PM |
| #3 red ken is an embarassment to Tony, and undoubtedly helps win votes for the Tories. Trying to win muslim votes for Labour instead of Lib Dems or Galloway is, I presume, an attempt to disguise that. |
| Posted by: Liberalhawk 2005-04-14 3:29:53 PM |
| #2 Oddly drug dealers are disproportionately hurt by anti drug dealing laws. |
| Posted by: mhw 2005-04-14 3:22:25 PM |
| #1 Senior British parliamentarians admitted last August that anti-terrorism laws are being used âdisproportionatelyâ against the Muslim minority Odd how a group that disproportionately involves itself in terrorism is disproportionately caught by anti-terrorism laws. |
| Posted by: Robert Crawford 2005-04-14 3:15:03 PM |