item0065D  956, 957

First:  There should be no early withdrawal of Coalition troops: having become an “Occupying Power” we share the grim responsibility for maintaining civic order in Iraq, and we are making progress with police training and improved civil administration; enough time has now passed for the UN to be brought in diplomatically, without seeming to validate the appalling illegalities of the original US/UK invasion; the condemnation of the world has been made abundantly clear, even to George Dubya;

Second: We should join Spain’s demand for all troops to be placed under a UN Mandate, although I do not think that, as original prime movers ourselves, it lies in our mouths to should threaten the actual withdrawal of our troops or set an arbitrary deadline;

Third:  We should withdraw our support for the handover of power on 30 June to an unelected “Interim Government”, which will simply sell off Iraq’s birthright, by way of mass privatisation, to US corporations; as Occupying Powers, we should hand over power only to an elected Iraqi Government; this would not be convenient for the Americans, for it would muddy the dark pools of the US Presidential Campaign, but we must find the strength and independence of mind now to adopt a distinctive and responsible policy line on Iraq;

Fourth:  We should re-schedule the handover of power, under UN oversight, to move straight from the present Occupying Regime to elections which would both (a) adopt the Constitution and (b) elect the first Government – that would be awkward constitutionally, but not impossible.

Where do you stand, on these difficult issues?  Drop me a line

 < Back to Home Page

And to put it bluntly, they succeeded.  They won, and I lost.  They were manipulating the vote, from a position of office and authority. They got me thrown off the LIBERTY “Council” – and as the Council elects the Board, I was thrown off the Board as well. 

“Is this not sour grapes, from someone who simply lost an election?” – I hear you cry.  Judge for yourself.  I still have a copy of the letter written on 23 April 2002 and sent by both of them, to their voting friends - heaven only knows how many Liberty voters received the letter.  Liberty Elections are contested only by a few hundred Members, and this kind of manipulation can pay off handsomely. 

• And it did.  By acting ruthlessly, they got rid of me. 

The two-man clique consisted of Barrister John Lyons, aspiring New Labour lawyer, former Liberty Chairman, by then moved on to Vice-Chairman, and Solicitor Sadiq Khan, Liberty Chairman (now a Labour Parliamentary candidate). They are both still in office. The letter was in my view a deliberate manipulation of the electoral process, and an inappropriate use of their elected positions as Chairman and Deputy Chairman.  They were careful to present themselves to the voters by their titles, by virtue of their respective Offices, and to offer their telephone and E-mail numbers for subsequent discussion.  And the same two men still dominate LIBERTY, from within.  No electoral process has since succeeded in dislodging them.  I pledge my allegiance to the Liberty cause, without reserve - but I owe no allegiance to these two. 

Date: 23rd April 2002

Dear ........................................

Liberty Elections

Last week we wrote to you about the current election for Liberty Council, and the risks posed by candidates who sought to undermine the pluralist basis on which  Liberty has sought to work.

Since sending out that letter, we have received several responses from Liberty members asking our advice about whom to vote for in the election.  More than one person has said that, with 27 candidates standing, it is not easy to know how best to cast their votes.

We did not mention specific candidates in our original letter, because it was not part of our intention to tell people how to vote.  We were more concerned to alert Liberty members to the plan, by a small group, to significantly alter the basis on which Liberty works.  However, as we have received requests for advice, we are providing a list of candidates whom we support.  If you wish to follow our advice. then voting for candidates in the order below will maximise the chances of electing people who will make a positive contribution to  Liberty. 

• [ There follows a list of fourteen favoured candidates, whose names are not germane to the historical record and which I have omitted, in recognition of the fact that they may not have been knowing participants in this manipulative process, and their confidentiality should be protected.  The List does not of course include the names of any of my associates or myself... ]

You may not wish to follow our advice, and order candidates as you think fit.  As we said in our original letter, whom you vote for is entirely a matter for you.

I hope you do not mind us writing to you in this way.  We are only doing so, because we care deeply about the future of  Liberty. 

(Signed)

Sadiq Khan (Chair, Liberty)               John Lyons (Vice-Chair, Liberty)
                            (writing in a personal capacity)

.......................................................................................

What do you think?  Was this fair campaigning, or not? 

• I will let you be the judge.

• And read a perceptive response from Labour stalwart Caerphilly's Peter Fitzgerald