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Last week, in the Mayoral election, came the unmistakable rumble of a faith bandwagon being heaved into place. Sixty-three Muslim leaders published an open letter saying it was in the "best interest of the Muslim communities of London" to re-elect Ken Livingstone, who had "constantly championed justice in the Middle East, freedom for the Palestinians and withdrawal of occupying troops from Iraq".
We could, perhaps, point out that the letter's signatories included several members of Ken's taxpayer-subsidised hallelujah chorus, such as the 1990 Trust (lucky recipients of £150,000 from the Lee Jasper Benevolent Fund). Even the most substantial figure on the list, the unfairly maligned academic Tariq Ramadan, forgot to mention that his Lokahi Foundation has received £450,000 from the Mayor.
We could note that the letter's release had the effect - doubtless by complete coincidence - of obscuring an inconvenient ITN opinion poll showing Mr Livingstone's Tory opponent, Boris Johnson, within a single point of Ken, despite an unimpressive campaign so far.
We might even speculate about further missives from Mr Livingstone's rainbow coalition: how about an open letter from, say, the Friends of Ian Blair, speaking of Ken's "unique tolerance" of police chiefs whose officers kill innocent people?
Or perhaps an open letter from the Association of British Travel Agents (Club Class Branch) praising the Mayor's "deep personal commitment" to the long-haul freebie?
But I think the Muslim letter will backfire for quite different reasons. The idea that "community leaders" can order anyone how to vote will surely be rejected by any selfrespecting voter.
More fundamentally, the London Mayoral election cannot change anything about Palestine or Iraq. So why didn't the open letter say a single word about crime, transport, housing - or any of the issues that the voting actually will decide? Aren't Muslims allowed to care about those?
I think Muslim Londoners might be rather insulted by the implication that they can be treated as a giant vote-bank to be activated not by arguments about the issues, but by pressing emotional buttons on subjects which are, for this election, totally irrelevant; treated, in short, as fools.
Many Muslims - like many of the rest of us - do care profoundly about Palestine and Iraq. But they know the difference between the future of the Middle East and the future of the bus service. In an election about London, I think people want to be addressed as Londoners.
Perhaps London's Muslims are already ahead of me here. That same ITN poll showed, fascinatingly, that Livingstone's support is actually lower among non-Christians than among Christians.
Voters know, even if Ken does not, that identities are plural. Muslims, like anyone else, want the freedom not to be defined by their faith, and certainly not to be politically corralled by it.
You might choose to define yourself as a lawyer, or an environmentalist, or a Pakistan cricket fan, or simply a Londoner. But to Ken and his chums, a Muslim is all you ever will be, and a clunky pitch on Palestine is all you will ever get.
Reader views (5)
Ken's frantically calling in his markers.
What's interesting is to examine the relationship between those who come out and 'support' him like this and those to whom Ken's largesse (i.e. our cash) has been distributed.
You'd be surprised at how similar those two lists actually are. On second thoughts, maybe it isn’t such a surprise.
- Chuck Unsworth, London, 08/01/2008 19:58
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I would have thought that a letter of support from Muslim leaders would have signed Ken's political death warrant unless London has suddenly become a Muslim majority.
- Casperslides, Bath, UK, 08/01/2008 18:47
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If the Kiwi Expat wants to understand how Ken gets away with it, he should read Andrew's last piece on Mrs. Pinfold in Sutton, who was removed as a democratically elected representative by a non-elected body for whistle blowing.
We have been seeing the end of democratic representation in the UK for some time now led by the New Labour project, of which even Livingstone is a part.
The imposition of the EU Constitution by the back door and the punishing of any dissenting voice to the corruption in our national and local governments are just a tip of the iceberg.
- Stephen Rothbart, Prague, Czech Republic, 08/01/2008 15:48
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Keep playing the religion and race cards Ken, they are as out of date as you and your friends are. Goodbye and good riddance to you and your unelected cronies at Tammany Hall.
- Stephen, London, England, 07/01/2008 18:04
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How does he get away with playing the race/religion card so blatantly? Most civilised cities would cringe and hang their collective head in acute embarrassment if someone like this was their mayor! PC London is becoming a parody of itself.
- Kiwi Expat, London, UK, 07/01/2008 13:20
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