Denis MacShane, the Labour MP for Rotherham and staunch defender of free speech and human rights, has sent a letter to Amnesty International’s UK Director, Kate Allen, regarding the organisation’s decision to suspend Gita Sahgal. It is reproduced below in full:
Kate Allen
Director
Amnesty UK
17-25 New Inn Yard
London
EC2A 3EA 10 Feb. 10Dear Kate,
I was very concerned to hear on Today this morning that Amnesty International has suspended Gita Saghal because she quite rightly raised questions about whether Amnesty should be promoting someone whose views run contrary to everything Amnesty stands for.
I know she works for the International Secretariat but Amnesty UK is involved as it has been promoting the man in question. Given your own admired and respected role in raising women’s right issues as part of Amnesty’s work I do think some reflection is required before the International Secretariat victimises one of its most respected researchers because she rightly called into question Amnesty’s endorsement of Mozzam Begg whose views on the Taliban and on Islamist jihad stand in total contradiction of everything Amnesty has fought for.
Wherever Islamist ideology wins power as in Afghanistan under the Taliban whom Mr Begg so much admires there has been an immediate assault on human rights especially on women and on freedom of expression. Under the Taliban every citizen of Afghanistan became a prisoner of conscience. Yet Mr Begg went to live under Taliban rule and has never resiled from praising the Taliban.
His terrible experience in Guantanamo cannot justify Amnesty endorsing someone whose political ideology is opposed to everything Amnesty works for. Mr Begg is entitled to make his case and enjoy freedom of expression in the UK. But his support for the Taliban’s and extreme jihadist ideology with its denial of human rights means that Amnesty should leave to his own and other organisations the business of promoting him.
For Amnesty to victimise a woman who has raised legitimate questions about Mr Begg is Kafkaesque as Gita Saghal, the exposer of an ideology that denies human rights, has her career threatened by the very organisation meant to defend human rights.
Yours sincerely,
Rt Hon Denis MacShane MP
22 Comments
Ah, the Zionist warmonger Denis MacShane.
Remember his office which turned out to be his garage?
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1183548/The-MP-claimed–125k-garage-used-constituency-office-paint-peeling.html
Or his collection of laptops
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1196038/Labour-MP-Denis-MacShane-claims-expenses-laptops–just-years.html
and the eight grand paid to his brother for ‘research’
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1194462/Former-Labour-Ministers-8-000-cash-poet-brothers-translation-services.html
all at the taxpayers expense
what a guy!
Funny how Islamists suddenly find the Daily Mail useful as a source when they choose to quote from it.
Islamophobia-Watch regard it as an Islamophobic rag.
Speaking of IW, this superb article by Denis MacShane is posted on it. Most probably because it’s an incisive, compact and comprehensive critique of “Londonistan” and the politics of Melanie Philips.
Funny how ‘resistor’ is here now, attacking MacShane and quoting from the Daily Mail. Oh the irony!
Funny how “resistor” (like so many of his Islamist chums) does not so much attack the content of MacShane’s letter as the character of its author.
I, perhaps vainly, wonder if resistor would like to rebut what MacShane has written rather than playing the man?
…and just in case anyone missed his rapier-like wit, “resistor” repeats exactly the same post over on Harry’s Place on 11 February 2010, 12:20 am:
http://www.hurryupharry.org/2010/02/10/a-letter-from-denis-macshane-mp-to-kate-allen-of-amnesty/
How tiresome.
‘Funny how “resistor” (like so many of his Islamist chums) does not so much attack the content of MacShane’s letter as the character of its author.
I, perhaps vainly, wonder if resistor would like to rebut what MacShane has written rather than playing the man?’
So ‘playing the man’ is out of order? Try telling your mates at Harry’s Place. I just wanted to expose MacShane for the greedy scumbag he really is. I suppose you support his use of the expenses system to feather his (and his brother’s) nest.
MacShameless is just joining part in a Zionist witch-hunt against AI – the usual suspects are involved
Nick Cohen
Martin Bright
David Aaronovitch
David Toube
etc
‘resistor’, you may “expose” whomever you wish. But I’m glad to note that you’re one less Islamist who will crow angrily if ever we want to link to the Daily Mail.
And to repeat Abu Faris, do you have any comment on the substance of MacShane’s letter to Amnesty?
And finally, is Gita Sahgal going against Amnesty because she is a Zionist too?
Abu Faris
Hilarious since
1 Calling him an “Islamist” is attacking him rather than the content of his post-exactly what you accuse him of doing
2 Spitoon spends its time attacking the character of Muslims via its Caption compettion or attacking things in their personal lives
1) “resistor” has posted many comments on this site and all of them are of a pro-Islamist nature. So to call him an Islamist is perfectly acceptable.
2) We can have a laugh by poking fun at ourselves and at Islamists. If you find that problematic go elsewhere.
Abdullah
Can I take it, then, you have no objections whatsoever to the content of MacShane’s letter to Amnesty International?
After all, you have refused to condemn it – even after been repeatedly asked to express your opinions on the substance of MacShane’s letter.
I have absolutely no interest in anything MacShameless has to say. He, his brother and his girlfriend have been caught with their noses in the trough.
I’m surprised his girlfriend is still around to write this…
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/joan-smith/joan-smith-amnesty-shouldnt-support-men-like-moazzam-begg-1895848.html
I thought after this…
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/may/25/mps-expenses-democracy
‘I am sick of my country and this hysteria over MPs
People have been led to believe that we are governed by a corrupt political class. This is sanctimonious nonsense’
Joan Smith guardian.co.uk, Monday 25 May 2009
…she was going to leave the country.
I suppose she couldn’t live without her boyfriend’s expenses, laptops etc.
Resistor
It would be useful if you might comment on the contents of MacShane’s letter.
If not, then can we take it you find absolutely nothing contestable in the letter’s contents?
Might I also suggest that you tone down the possibly actionable defamatory statements you are making about people in no way connected to MacShane’s letter to Amnesty International.
MacShanes expenses are available to view online. I have done so and can assure you the Daily Mail is in no danger of being sued by Denis the Menace.
As for Joan Smith, read the comments below her piece in the Guardian. In comparison, I have been very restrained.
You might regard this gruesome twosome as worthy of respect and take their opinions seriously. Include me out.
“You might regard this gruesome twosome as worthy of respect and take their opinions seriously. Include me out.”
No problem, we did.
Resistor
It was the last paragraph of your penultimate post to which I was alluding. It is defamatory and entirely irrelevant to the content of MacShane’s letter to Amnesty International.
So, you are either incapable or unwilling to refute MacShane’s points – or perhaps both.
OK, I accept Joan Smith can live without her boyfriend’s expenses, laptops etc.
I’m sure she has completely principled reasons for writing her ludicrous piece in the Guardian in defence of ‘honest’ MPs.
Like the White Queen in Alice in Wonderland I can also believe six impossible things before breakfast.
“Like the White Queen in Alice in Wonderland I can also believe six impossible things before breakfast.”
Somehow the idea of a millenarian Islamist quoting Alice in Wonderland is both weird and completely appropriate at the same time.
Resistor
Exactly what has Joan Smith’s piece to the Guardian on the integrity of MPs to do with the issues raised in this thread?
Again, perhaps you might tell us what you think of the content of MacShane’s letter?
As I said, I have no interest in anything MacShameless has to say, as he is capable of saying anything if it suits his purposes.
I am merely pointing out the content of his character. Perhaps you’d like to defend his warmongering, smearing of anti-Zionists and his ludicrous expenses claims.
As I said, I have no interest in anything Shahid Malik has to say, as he is capable of saying anything if it suits his purposes.
I am merely pointing out the content of his character. Perhaps you’d like to defend his warmongering, smearing of anti-Islamists and his ludicrous expenses claims.
But that is the point, resistor. It is an entirely illegitimate line of argument. You are attacking the person and not his argument. This is called an ad hominem fallacy. No-one will take your position remotely seriously if you persist in this.
What is more, MacShane’s position on other issues may not be to your liking, but unless you can show some connection between these positions and the arguments he presents in his letter, it looks very much like you are simply engaging in smearing yourself.
I take it you want people to take your position seriously? At the moment all it looks like is that you have absolutely no defence for your line and, instead, you are engaging in whataboutery and desperate innuendo to make up for the fact that you have no argument whatsoever.
I am not trying to discredit his arguments (I just can’t be bothered) nor am I trying to smear him. He is self-smearing.
All I did was point out some uncontested facts about his expenses claims which exposed exactly the sort of person he is, and the sort of people you are to take his opinions seriously.
As for my opinions, I take it as a badge of pride that scum like you have no time for them – it would worry me terribly if you did.
More power to Denis MacShane!