The Socialist Equality Party (SEP) has openly criticized the Starmer government for its decision to proscribe Palestine Action, deeming it a fundamental infringement of the democratic rights of the proletariat. From this moment forward, affiliating with or expressing any endorsement for this organization is officially considered an offence. While the SEP firmly believes in prompting masses of the working class into political action, it does not condone the individual protests advocated by Palestine Action as these fails to put an end to the ongoing conflict in Gaza or battle the apparent collusion of British imperialism.
However, the SEP emphasizes the need for workers and youth in Britain, as well as globally, to resist governmental oppression. The government’s branding of an assembly of young, peaceful protestors against Israel’s alleged war crimes and ethnic cleansing in Gaza, along with UK’s indirect involvement, as terrorists seems to intention to criminalize the vast number of people in the UK and across the world protesting this unparalleled act of atrocity.
Britain’s involvement in this conflict has been intensely criticized, with the government being accused of helping the Israeli regime annihilate tens of thousands of Palestinians, of which a majority were women and children, by providing weaponry and conducting RAF surveillance flights. The genuine culprits, according to accusers, are the Labour government and the primary opposing factions, who are seemingly attempting to suppress those who voice opposing views on genocide and wage a war on working-class living standards to fuel their strategic agendas across the Middle East and further afield.
The state is allegedly leveraging its power to incarcerate political opponents in large numbers, with multiple individuals already facing charges. Around 56 PalAction affiliates are currently being prosecuted for activities related to their peaceful protests at military compounds and factories, involving misdemeanors such as trespassing and vandalism. Moreover, a significant number of members have been reportedly arrested since June 20, and in several instances, prosecutors have insisted on connecting the affairs with terrorism.
Numerous United Nations special rapporteurs, civil rights groups, legal advisers, and several well-known personalities have commented on the so-called ‘chilling effect’ on freedom of speech as a consequence of labeling PalAction a terrorist organization. According to the Terrorism Act (2000), individuals affiliated with, inviting support for, recklessly showing support for, or arranging meetings in favor of a proscribed organization are considered criminal offenses; all of these carry a maximum penalty of 14 years in jail. Furthermore, it is also a crime to cause reasonable suspicion by wearing certain attire, carrying specific articles, or showcasing an image of an item—like a flag or logo—that may suggest support or membership.
The government’s assertions that there is no broader intent to criminalize protests against anti-Gaza are deemed inconsequential by critics. Others who are potentially vulnerable to incarceration include SOAS student Sarah, who publicly defended the rights of Palestinians to resist occupation, and Mo Chara from the Irish hip-hop group Kneecap. Punk rapper Bob Vylan is also under investigation for his anti-genocide statements at Glastonbury.
Some argue that the government’s shift towards authoritarian tendencies is in part due to its policy of favoring financial elites and maintaining warfare, interests that are inherently incompatible with democratic methods. The crisis revolving around the Starmer administration and the welfare bill, and their previous backtrack on winter fuel payments confirm such assertions. Stoked by popular backlash, Labour eventually had to slash a proposed £5 billion cut to neutralize a mutiny amongst its own MPs.
The immediate intensification of police repression following Starmer’s embarrassing defeat aims to assure the ruling class that there will be no additional retreats from their attack on the proletariat. Such aggression is necessary, they argue, to increase military expenditure to 5 percent of GDP, while transferring more social wealth into the deep pockets of major banking institutions and corporations.
Observers argue that this unprecedented attack on working-class democratic rights cannot be countered through appeals to any political representatives or institutions of capitalist governance. The lack of support for Palestine Action is evident, with only 26 MPs voting against proscribing it and merely 11 Peers following suit when the bill made it to the House of Lords.
Furthermore, Mr Justice Chamberlain recently confirmed the dearth of any democratic rights constituency within the ruling class by denying Palestine Action’s legal representation request for interim relief from the order until a formal judicial review is applied for in the near future.
Contrary to longing for a reformist era and the inception of a diminutive version of the Labour Party Mark II, critics argue that the response to the Starmer government’s actions should be strategic industrial and political countermeasures. Such initiatives should be driven by grassroots organizations, unaffiliated to trade union bureaucracies, and necessitate the urgent establishment of a new workers’ party founded on truly socialist foundations, such as the Socialist Equality Party itself.
The post Socialist Equality Party Condemns Proscription of Palestine Action appeared first on Real News Now.
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