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Refugees in Calais: Support and Solidarity page 2
Welsh Assembly: Could UKIP win?
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'United We Stand' Unite Against Fascism Wales Newsletter email: secretary@uafwales.com
web: uaf.org.uk
Winter 2016 tel: 07704 356894
Fascist 'no shows' in 2015 L ate last year fascist supporters of the self-proclaimed ‘War on
ISIS’ and ‘Valley Frontline’ boasted on Facebook of how they were going to march through Cardiff and ‘sort ISIS out’. It was clear from their racist postings that they regarded all Muslims as ISIS supporters, and anyone who opposed them as ‘red scum’. The day of the march was December 5th. By midday nearly 200 of us turned out, as did quite a lot of police with horses and riot gear, a sign they took it seriously as well. By 2.00 p.m. we were all still waiting and ended the protest - whether the fascists never came or turned up, saw our numbers and disappeared, we don’t know. The positive outcome is that the backlash against Muslims and refugees did not find a concrete political expression which fascist’s could build on. Newport & Anglesey So we ended the year in a way similar to how it started. In January another fascist group, the ‘Welsh Alliance’, said they would march in Newport against Muslims. Again Unite Against Fascism Wales organised a counter-demo and over 200 marched through Newport town centre. There was no sign of the ‘Welsh Alliance’ although apparently a dozen or so had been directed by the police to stay in a pub. The fact that any of them still came when Welsh Alliance founder, Mervyn Jones from Deeside, had just been jailed for 17 years for raping three 8 -10 year old girls, speaks for itself. Also during the year local people on Anglesey overwhelmed a group of Infidels from England who mistakenly thought north
Wales a good place to spread their hate message. In the May general election only one fascist stood in Wales. That was Adam Lloyd, the local National Front fuhrer, standing in Bridgend… where he got 66 votes. We should not be fooled into thinking that 2015 was a quiet year with few problems for anti-fascists. We not only oppose fascist organisations but also the wider racism that helps them build and we saw plenty of that last year around the issues of immigration and Islamophobia. Fascists down but UKIP up In the general election in May we saw the anti-immigrant party UKIP winning over 200,000 votes in Wales – just a few thousand behind Labour. Over the summer we saw the wonderful humanitarian response of people toward the plight of Syrian and other refugees, with collections of food, clothes and money. But then also the mean-spirited response of Cameron and co and the orchestration of a racist, anti-Muslim backlash from the rightwing media. Stand Up To Racism This is why in October UAF Wales held a joint meeting to encourage two other organisations who are taking up these issues: SUTU - Stand Up to Ukip; and SUTR: Stand Up to Racism. On the centre pages we have given them some space to discuss the issues they are dealing with.
Coming up in 2016.... February 6 - UAF national conference, London go to uaf.org.uk to register February 6 - UAF counter demo to Pegida UK in Birmingham March 19 - March and Rally against Racism in Cardiff organised by SUTR and UAFW March 26 - UAF Wales counter-demo to National Front 'white pride' rally.
supported by:
Islamic Society for Wales
2 unite against fascism wales
Refugee's are Welcome Here:
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Sadiq and Mubarak are refugees from the conflict in Darfur. While I was sat drinking tea with them in their make-shift social tent in the ‘Sudan’ area of the Calais refugee camp (known as ‘The Jungle’), Sadiq told me their story.
It was typical of the stories we’ve all become accustomed to, though hearing this first hand, sat eye to eye discussing with some of the survivors, is a profound experience. After leaving Sudan, they made their way through Libya to get on a “very small boat”. He told us how there were “many people there, maybe a hundred persons”, and he made a ‘whooshing’ noise while gesturing an up-and-down motion with his hand to give an idea of the violent currents they experienced while crossing the Mediterranean. I was also told how their part of the camp was now huge, with some people having been there for a year or more. Sadiq said he’d stopped counting the days now. Care 4 Calais On this occasion we have linked up with the aid charity ‘Care 4 Calais’, the only UK charity now operating there, who organise support for the ever growing number of people stranded in The Jungle. Our first call was to the groups’ two warehouses where goods are collected, sorted and then loaded for distribution. It was an incredibly well organised operation with everyone having a clear role and operating with real purpose in their work. But this is despite that the fact that they are, in truth, massively under-resourced for the tasks at hand. The 40 or so volunteers present that day was the most they had ever had since they have been open. Freindly hellos After an hour or so we left to head out to assist with a distribution of jumpers, having been briefed on how to carry out a distribution by Claire, one of the founders of Care for Calais. On the way we had a leave the cars behind due to the crowding that now exists, meaning there is little room to park, and make the rest of the journey in the back of the van. As soon as we arrived the doors were swiftly opened and the eight of us were greeted with a friendly “Hellos” from the hundred or so refugees already queuing. My role involved forming a human corridor
so that people didn’t crowd too much in a way that would have made the distribution harder or end up in a crush. Freezing At first I was just saying hello and observing the queue for a few minutes until I looked up and noticed the tents for the first time. I couldn’t grasp that this was where these people actually lived. Rickety, makeshift structures with no insulation in the freezing cold, all looking as if they would collapse in a strong gust of wind. Yet at the same time most people were upbeat and the atmosphere largely positive. People shared jokes and would cheer when someone struggling to pick out a jumper they wanted finally made a decision. Liverpool FC Everyone laughed when a young teenager tried to cheekily jump in the queue right in front of us and was quickly asked to join at the back. Various degrees of English were spoken but most tried to engage us in polite small talk at least. I even had the bizarre experience of discussing Liverpool FC’s form and the fact I don’t follow cricket with a number of the residents. We must have been there for a few hours but it seemed like no more than half an hour. Certainly the most powerful and haunting moment came towards the end when one of the long-term volunteers who had built up relationships with some at the camp tapped me on shoulder and said “You need to come with me,” before leading me into the camp and pointing to the tent where Sadiq was sat and saying “Go in there, that guy will make some tea for you.” Sitting and talking with Sadiq and warming myself on the open fire, while Mubarak cleaned the cups and the water boiled in the saucepan, is an experience that I will without doubt remember for the rest of my life. Smell the Smoke Despite there being a number of holes which had been cut into the three walls for ventilation, I can still smell on my jacket the smoke that inevitably stung my eyes. He was determined to show his gratitude to us by making tea for the entire group of volunteers, though like me, most seemed to feel that they couldn’t take tea which would keep him warm in the already freezing afternoon. He repeated that he
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John, Warehouse Care 4 Calais
unite against fascism wales
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: an eyewitness to practical solidarity by Peter Edwards
for future convoys but also to ramp up the pressure on our government to open the border and let them in. That is the fight the SUTR is looking to build.
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wanted us to come and see him again next time we visited. I told him I’d see him in Britain first. I could probably write a novel about the experience. The work is incredibly important but as John explained, “Everything we do is refugee focussed, so without the volunteers we wouldn’t be able to do what we’re doing here.” Fortunately through SUTR we and other activists in Bristol managed to raise donations of over £1,000 to help support the superb work done by Care 4 Calais. Stand Up To Racism The overarching question remains however; what is going to happen to these people? This will not resolve the situation. The aid work is of paramount importance, but it will only ever serve to sustain these people where they are. It will not move them any closer to crossing the border into the safety and stability they are desperately seeking. Challenge The challenge now will be to build the political side of the movement here in the UK. We need to build both
My trip was organised by the Cardiff section of Stand Up to Racism (SUTR); a relatively new organisation set up to take on the broader racist narrative and actions so prevalent in British politics. It was founded by many of the same activists who were also involved in UAF, but who recognised that with the BNP and the EDL are now essentially husks.
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ally in 'The Jungle' (main pic); making a donation delivers real support (insert)
We will be joining Cardiff and Vale Sanctuary Support and building for their aid convoy in the New Year but we have to bring the fight back with us. If you agree with that then keep your ear to the ground to get involved with the next convoy and future SUTR events.
Most fascist organisations no longer posed a real threat in the immediate term, but that the backdrop of mainstream Islamophobia and scapegoating of migrants was still creating a dangerous setting in which the far right had the potential to grow, and so there needed to be a body to take on wider questions.
It put the call out for the magnificent demonstrations on UN anti-racism day in 2014 and 2015 in London, Glasgow and Cardiff, and organised an incredible refugee solidarity demonstration of 100,000 in London back in September as well now three solidarity delegations to ‘The Jungle’.
UKIP: Could they win? Can we keep UKIP out of the Assembly? That is the big question facing Stand Up to UKIP and everybody else who opposes UKIP’s racist, antiimmigrant, anti-union policies. Estimates that they could win 5 – 9 seats have been made by various people, and that is not scaremongering. Such estimates are based, not on polls, but actual election results. In the 2014 Euro elections they did very well, doubling their previous vote to just over 200,000 – less than 5000 behind Labour. Last year in the general election they not only maintained but slightly improved their vote narrowing the gap with Labour. In the general election the first-pastthe-post system prevented them from winning any seats. In the constituency part of the Assembly elections they are likely to face the same problem. In the six seats where they came second in the general election they were still at least 10,000 votes behind Labour. Penalised But not winning constituency seats becomes an advantage in the regional section where there is a weighting against parties that have won constituency seats. For example, in 2011 Labour won 28 constituency seats so that penalised them in the regional section where they only won 2
seats. In contrast the Conservatives won 6 constituency and 8 regional seats. The fact that their vote is spread out will benefit UKIP. If their general election and Euro vote is maintained they are likely to win at least one seat in each of the five regions. The big question is can their vote be maintained? Since the general election there have been two major events that could make a difference. We have seen a great wave of sympathy and understanding for Syrian and other refugees. Across Wales thousands of people have organised and contributed to collections. Corbyn We have also seen the vote for Jeremy Corbyn and the huge audiences he gathered here in Wales and elsewhere. What difference will these events make? Many of the people involved may already have been opposed to UKIP - but did they vote? How big the turnout is will be a crucial factor. The more people who vote in the regional section – for any party except UKIP – the more the UKIP vote is diluted. So urging people to vote will be a part of SUTU’s campaign. Another part will be demonstrating that far from being a ‘people’s party’ UKIP is a rightwing, anti-union, pro-bosses organisation. In a cynical move the
UKIP leadership is allowing their local organisations to select candidates for constituency seats [where they are unlikely to win] but reserving to themselves the selection in the regional lists – where seats might be won. How many of these candidates will be their ex-Tory mates? BNP Whilst UKIP is not itself a fascist party, its racist, anti-immigrant, Islamophobic dogmas spread the kind of hate and divisions in society that fascism thrives on. It is not accidental that so many exBNP members have been attracted to UKIP, nor is it surprising to find that one of their candidates for the Greater London Authority, Anne Marie Waters, has joined the leadership of Pegida UK alongside Tommy Robinson the former EDL leader. UKIP is not unique it is part the growth of far right parties that we have seen across Europe - especially since the economic crisis of 2008 that ordinary people are still paying for. If we do not want to see a drastic shift to the right in politics here in Wales, as well as in the UK we urge you to support SUTU and help build the local groups and activities that will be necessary to keep our Assembly free of UKIP and the politics of hate.
http://standuptoukip.org
UAF Conference, supported by Stand Up To Racism, National Union of Teachers and Communication Workers Union, is taking place on Saturday 6 February 2016 at NUT HQ. If you wish to go please contact us.