Ethnic MPs toe party line over Libya war in UK parliament

LONDON: British Muslim MPs failed to oppose the war on Libya and joined the overwhelming majority of the Commons to vote in favour of the Western-led military action in Libya by 557 to 13 votes -- a majority of 544.
Labour’s Sadiq Khan, Yasmin Qureshi, Khalid Mahmood, Anas Sarwar, Rushnara Ali, Shabana Mehmood, and Conservative MPs Rehman Chishti, Sajid Javid toed their party lines and failed to register their protest through anti-war vote.
Misgiving and reservations in the public, especially in the Muslim communities in Britain and elsewhere, are spreading fast as not only the Western hypocrisy is starkly clear but also the intent of the West to occupy the oil resources of the rich North African state is clear for all to see. Indian and African origin MPs from both the Labour and Conservatives also voted for the war on Libya.
The opposition to war on Libya largely consists of Labour MPs from the Socialist Campaign Group, but also includes the Tory MP John Baron, the Green Party leader, Caroline Lucas, and two SDLP members.
The notable exceptions of the MPs who opposed the war and defied the party line are: John Baron, Graham Allen, Ronnie Campbell, Jeremy Corbyn, Barry Gardiner, Roger Godsiff, John McDonnell, Linda Riordan, Dennis Skinner, Mike Wood, Caroline Lucas, Mark Durkan, and Margaret Ritchie.
During the debate in the parliament, Labour’s left-wing MP said he was “far from convinced” that people in Britain supported the wave of attacks on the North African state. He also claimed that because of close military and trade ties in the region, the Western powers were refusing to help civilians in other countries who were fighting oppressive regimes.
Speaking to The News, Corbyn said the public were concerned about the money that is being spent on this particular enterprise where it will lead to, its ultimate objectives. He said the public had not forgotten how they were lied to in case of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Lord Nazir Ahmed said Col Qaddafi is a ruthless dictator who needs to be removed but it should only be done by the Libyan people. “I support the United Nations call to protect the civilians and take all necessary measures to save the Libyan people from this tyrant. Col Qaddafi has proved to be an unpredictable and ruthless dictator and he needs to be removed.”
Lindsey German, Stop the War Coalition’s Convenor, said it was shameful that MPs believed in what the prime minister told them in a very arrogant way. She said the “gullible” MPs had taken Britain to another war and it was clear that “no lessons have been learnt from the adventures in Iraq and Afghanistan.” She said it was shameful that the same parliament was not concerned about the massive human rights violations in Bahrain, Yemen and other Arab countries where despots are suppressing their people. “This is only for the Western strategic interests and has nothing to do with the human rights of Libyan people.”
Saeed Shehabi of Bahrain Freedom Movement said the lack of proper response from the Western powers was baffling yet they were very excited about Libya. “We have not seen serious condemnation or rejection of the human rights abuses in Bahrain. Revolution in Bahrain is same as that in Libya but it’s peaceful and we have not been given any moral support by the West.”
The News tried to contact Muslim/Pakistani origin MPs but no one was available to comment.