On the last Friday of Ramadan, 5th April, CAMPAIN took part in the Al Quds rally in London. The Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC) annually organises this event, that carries the Arabic name for Jerusalem - Al Quds. It brings together people of diverse faiths and none, in opposition to Israel’s conduct towards the Palestinians; see this video.
The rally forcefully made the point that anti-Zionism is not anti-Semitism and rejected the actions of those extremists within the British Government who smear peaceful protestors as extremist - a prime case of the pot calling the kettle black. We alluded to this phenomenon in a previous blog that highlighted the role of people like Robin Simcox, Britain's Commissioner for Countering Extremism, and other right-wing placemen whom the Government has appointed to positions of authority.
Our secretary Jonathan Coulter made a powerful speech expressing CAMPAIN’s angle on the event, and saying that Gaza is the moral compass of today.
CAMPAIN was there to challenge politically-motivated misrepresentation in the UK, of which the false propaganda and big lies in favour of Israel and about Gaza are a particularly egregious example. While left-wing and Muslim people have borne the brunt of this assault it has impacted adversely on our democracy as a whole and affected everyone. It was recognition of this that led to the formation of CAMPAIN to combat the problem wherever it occurred (in the BBC, the Labour Party or the Church of England) from a non-partisan standpoint.
You can watch all eleven speeches from Al Quds Day 2024, as speakers from all faiths and backgrounds united in a single call of resistance against genocide.
Notable among them was the speech of the Director of the Peacemaker Trust, Rev Stephen Sizer, who called for genuine peace in the Middle East, as opposed to peace without justice that involved sending food to Gaza by parachute while supplying bombs to kill the people.
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