Anger with Labour on the 18 May Palestine demonstration in London (Picture: Guy Smallman)
While we were marking Nakba Day last week by holding events in solidarity with the Palestinians, the Israeli far right was showing its true colours.
Thousands of Israelis joined a march with demands for forcing Palestinians to leave Gaza.
It wasn’t a fringe event. Two cabinet members took part—communications minister Shlomo Karhi, who is a member of prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s Likud party, and national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
“To end the problem, in order that the problem won’t come back, we need to do two things—one return to Gaza now. Return home. Return to our holy land,” said Ben-Gvir to a rally at the end of the march.
“And second, encourage emigration. Encourage the voluntary departure of Gaza’s residents. It is ethical. It is rational. And yes, it is humane,” he continued.
Another MP Zvi Sukkot said Israel should “tell the countries of the world who with hypocritical morality care for the Gazans that they will be much safer in other countries. If they love them so much, South Africa should take the residents of Jabaliya.”
Expulsion and murder. This is the true face of the Israeli leaders.
Ruth Robinson, Manchester
The escalation of violence in Gaza is heartbreaking. Israel has trampled on human rights laws and begun a second Nakba with the systematic removal of Palestinians from Gaza through violence or intimidation.
It is our collective responsibility to stand in solidarity with the people of Gaza. Supporters of the Palestinians said for months that Israel lies about its crimes.
The assault on Rafah is another utterly despicable war crime.
As bombs rain down on a trapped and terrified population, our government needs to end its complicity in this massacre.
“Who so ever kills an innocent human being, it shall be as if has killed all mankind, and who so ever saves the life of one, it shall be as if had saved the life of all mankind.” (Qur’an 5:32)
Arshad Ahmad, Unite union health and safety rep
We saw last week the government claim there is plenty of work for job seekers.
Alongside this, we’ve seen the Trussell Trust release its end-of-year figures—more people than ever are using its food banks.
The Trust distributed 3.1 million emergency food parcels over the last 12 months—a 94 percent increase over the last five years.
If that weren’t disgraceful enough, a third went to starving children.
Many people working full-time are struggling to put food on the table, let alone those claiming Universal Credit.
Rishi Sunak’s recent comments, pushing benefit claimants back to work and requiring job seekers to look for at least 18 hours of work a week, increase the pressure on the most vulnerable.
This government crushes the neediest in society.
As the Trussell Trust figures show, this government refuses to do its duty to struggling people.
Socialists should aim to protect all of society, and it is clear this government does not share this aim.
We must continue to support the work of food banks all across the country, but recognise that this work should not be necessary.
We must fight for a future where this food crisis is seen, as it should be, as a catastrophic failure of the government.
Simon Birch, East London
As a Green Party member, I was interested in Yuri Prasad’s article—Greens making gains but are they an alternative? (Socialist Worker, 7 May).
It makes a very good point about the two faces of the Greens—one aimed at Tory voters, the other aimed at Labour voters.
The Green Party is a left wing social democratic party. Left criticism that the Green Party is petty bourgeois misses the point that both the Tory and Labour parties are also petty bourgeois.
We must remember that the Bolsheviks stood candidates for the Duma, the Tsarist parliament.
In the same way, the Socialist Workers Party (SWP) stood candidates in elections during the 1970s. Perhaps the SWP should do so again?
In the meantime, I’m voting Green.
John Smithee, Cambridgeshire
The recently-published results of the PCS union national executive elections make disappointing reading for the Democracy Alliance (DA).
This is mainly made up of members from the Left Unity (LU) group, which the Socialist Workers Party was part of until last year.
As we said at the time we departed from LU, we need a left that isn’t primarily orientated on internal elections and fighting for bureaucratic control of the unions.
The LU-led executive did not turn votes for action into sufficient struggle to win on pay in recent battles.
The vast majority of PCS members don’t engage in the voting. Just 8.6 percent voted in these elections.
The DA has narrowly won president, lost three out of four vice-presidents, and has only 14 out of 30 seats on the executive.
In 2023-4, the DA held the post of president, all four vice presidents, and 26 out of 30 ordinary executive seats.
We need to consider how we can build a new Left in PCS and we must continue to develop our Palestine solidarity work in PCS.
We need an organisation which is focused on building rank and file struggle from below
Steve West, Edinburgh
Esther McVey—the Tory “common sense minister”—recently said civil servants should not wear rainbow-coloured lanyards.
I’ve always thought such things were a useful if low-level way of weeding out the most awful people at work.
If they object to you wearing one, they’re probably not going to be your best mate or a reliable opposition to management.
But after McVey’s speech, the lanyard is now a crucial part of my workwear. I display it with pride.
Hazel Swainston, West London
In 2022 I was part of the BT strikes that showed a change of mood among workers.
In the end we settled for a small loss.
Last week BT said it will cut another £3 billion of costs. But at the same time the company is increasing dividends to shareholders. The share price rose 8 percent on this news.
I’m now expecting job losses. The best thing about the 2022 strikes was new people in the union and we need to mobilise them again.
BT worker, South London
Vaughan Gething, the first minister of Wales, needs to go.
Last week he sacked his minister for social partnership because she had allegedly revealed to the media that he lied to the UK Covid-19 Inquiry. She says she didn’t leak the evidence. He says he didn’t lie.
In any case it’s the substance that matters, not the messenger.
Aled Eurig, Bangor, north Wales
Keir Starmer’s Labour launch last week had not a word for the people of Scotland.
Mhari Black MP was right to say he intends to be “prime minister for England only”.
Independence now.
Margaret McCarthy, Perth
Plus: readers on Zionist football chants and the legacy of empire
Plus: readers on the far right in Scotland, The Odyssey and Jason Arday
Plus: Why socialists visiting picket lines is our bread and butter
Who provides the best terrain for struggle?
