UK Jewish leaders seek clarification on Jeremy Corbyn's policies
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Version 0 of 1. Leaders of Britain’s Jewish community are seeking urgent meetings with Jeremy Corbyn amid anxieties about his attitudes towards Israel, faith schools and antisemitism. The Board of Deputies of British Jews and the Jewish Leadership Council have written to the new Labour leader requesting talks to clarify his position. Jonathan Arkush, president of the Board of Deputies, said he wanted “straight answers to straight questions” but hoped for a “constructive engagement between the Jewish community and the leader of the opposition”. He added: “It’s unfair to pre-judge before we have spoken. [Corbyn] may be considering afresh some of his views now he’s in such a senior and responsible position. He no longer has the luxury of being a lone dissenting backbencher. But that doesn’t mean I’m naive or prepared to be soft on concerns and issues raised by the Jewish community.” Arkush said specific questions included whether Corbyn repudiated the ideology and behaviour of Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon; whether he would condemn antisemitism on the far left as well as the far right; whether Labour would continue to oppose a boycott of Israel; and whether the party would continue to support and protect faith schools. Simon Johnson, of the Jewish Leadership Council, said there was “no question that we should engage with the [Labour] leadership” but added he was concerned to discover to what extent Corbyn’s views might “move from the fringe of the Labour party to the centre”. He said: “Jeremy Corbyn’s tradition of the far left has tended to be anti-Israel and supportive of boycotts and delegitimisation. The language is often inflammatory. If that radical anti-Israel, anti-Zionist tendency becomes more mainstream, what is the impact on policies such as faith schools and antisemitism?” Corbyn has vigorously rejected accusations of antisemitism, saying suggestions that he would knowingly associate with Holocaust deniers were “ludicrous and wrong”. His rebuttal followed disclosure during his leadership campaign that 15 years ago he attended meetings of a group called Deir Yassin Remembered, founded by Holocaust denier Paul Eisen. “Holocaust denial is vile and wrong. The Holocaust was the most vile part of our history. The Jewish people killed by the Nazi Holocaust were the people who suffered the most in the 20th century,” Corbyn said in response. Corbyn has also previously urged talks with Hamas and Hezbollah as part of a wider peace process in the Middle East, but he has insisted his use of the word “friends” was meant in a “collective way”. At the weekend, the Jewish Chronicle reported that Corbyn was considering appointing a “minister for Jews” as a response to the Jewish community. However, there has been no other evidence that such a move is under consideration. Luciana Berger is the only Jewish member of the party’s frontbench following her appointment as shadow mental health minister. The decision to join Corbyn’s team was not easy, Berger said in a statement, adding: “I cannot honestly say I agree with everything the new leader has said over the years. I felt he was willing to listen and engage.” Ivan Lewis, the Jewish former shadow Northern Ireland secretary, whose offer to serve on Corbyn’s frontbench was rejected, will also meet the Labour leader to discuss antisemitism. Lewis, MP for Bury South, said he had never accused Corbyn of antisemitism but wanted to discuss “antisemitism on the left … and Jeremy’s support in the past for such people”, according to a report in Jewish News. Jewish leaders had decided to seek meetings with Corbyn because it was their duty, said David Mencer, a former director of Labour Friends of Israel. But he said he had decided “with real regret” to leave the party after 20 years as a result of Corbyn’s election. “Thousands of years of persecution have given Jewish people a sixth sense, and with Corbyn the alarm bells are ringing extremely loudly. There is a way in which he frames his views that makes me feel very uncomfortable. When I listen to Corbyn speak on almost any issue, I get the feeling this is a man who doesn’t like my community.” Muslim leaders also said they were keen for Corbyn to address issues of concern to their communities. The Muslim Council of Britain said in a statement that it would “seek to engage with the new leader of the opposition just as it would with the government and any other public body for the common good of the country”. “Whilst we congratulate Mr Corbyn on his election, we hope that all politicians engage with Britain’s diverse communities, including Muslims, in more meaningful ways,” the statement said. At Finsbury Park mosque, in Corbyn’s Islington North constituency, chairman Mohammed Kozbar said that without the local MP’s support and engagement, the mosque would not have been able to transform itself from a notorious militant stronghold to an open, tolerant community organisation and place of worship. “He helped us change the atmosphere from hostile to cohesive,” said Kozbar. Corbyn, he added, “supports all communities and faiths in the constituency – Muslim, Jewish, Christian, Hindu. He has done a fantastic job here, and I’m sure he will do the same for the whole country.” Unusually for party leaders – but in line with his predecessor, Ed Miliband – Corbyn has not professed personal faith. But, in an interview with the Christian Third Way magazine in June, Corbyn said: “I’m not anti-religious at all … I go to churches, I go to mosques, I go to temples, I go to synagogues. I find religion very interesting. I find the power of faith very interesting. I have friends who are very strongly atheist and wouldn’t have anything to do with any faith, but I take a much more relaxed view of it. I think the faith community offers and does a great deal for people.” |