IS ROCHDALE COUNCIL GUILTY OF BAD FAITH?
J'accuse. by Zola. J'accuse, (French: “I accuse”) was a celebrated open letter by Émile Zola to the president of the French Republic in defense of Alfred Dreyfus, a Jewish officer who had been accused of treason by the French army. It was published in the newspaper L'Aurore on Jan. 13, 1898.
On the 1st, December 2019. on this NV Blog Les May accused the Rochdale Councillors of 'institutional racism' for their failure to openly condemn a version of racism when it was applied to white northern workingmen employed as tree surgeons in the Rochdale ward of Newbold. Mild mutterings in private e-mails really doesn't cut the mustard.
A number of councillors have already replied to Les May's open letter on the 6th, Nov. calling on Rochdale's councillors to condemn the collective assault on the tree surgeons recorded on this NV Blog. Meanwhile, another Rochdale councillor who is Asian has quite separately engaged with me in an exchange of views on this matter below.
Readers of this Blog, in the light of the savage attack in Newbold on the tree surgeons in October 2017, must judge the wisdom of the concluding utterance of this councillor:
'Brian I don't want to waste your time justice has been served and there are no tensions in newbod of the sort you suggest'
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On Fri 25/10/2019 at 14:04, I wrote:
Dear
Councillor X,
How
are you? You will no doubt be aware of the case below for which I
provide the link. Already there are sites taking note of this
who perhaps lack the best of intentions. I suspect the people
involved were not from Kashmir. However, the critics of this
behaviour will not be so nuanced and on past experience will use a
scatter gun approach. In the light of this, it is important that the
Council should condemn in full council what has happened up Newbold
in the strongest possible terms. I'm sure that you will agree
with this, and accept that attempts to sweep this kind of conduct
under the carpet is worse than short-sighted. Please try to prevail
upon your colleagues and get them to condemn the culture that allows
this to take place?
Best
wishes,
Brian
Bamford: joint-editor of Northern Voices.
*************
On Fri the 25/10/2019 at 14:49 Councillor X replied:
Thank you Brian
I am aware of this case and as a result the council,police and
community have worked together.
I am a councillor
,not Kashmiri,Pakistani or Muslim councillor but a councillor who
serves all people of Rochdale.
In your email I
assume hints of segregation (but I know you better). However, are you
suggesting that all muslim/Asian councillors should condemn it?
We are having a
meeting with police to look at crime figures in my ward and drawing
up a strategy to combat it.
Once again thank you
for your email.
*************
To which I responded on Fri 25/10/2019 at 20:01L
Dear X,
I
wrote to you as a friend rather than as a councillor and as I am
someone who, because of my history which know about, has a certain
affection for Kasmir. Clearly as a councillor you must
represent all of your consituents, but one of the offendents in this
case , Habibur Rahman, claimed in Court that the victims were
'white b******s' who were in his 'country'.
Now Mr. Rahman was clearly making a specific georgraphical
claim, and as someone who is an ethnomethodologist and a
conversational analyst I find it curious. I take this to mean
that he exercises some control in Newbold. Now let me be clear
that I believe that all Rochdale councillors of all parties, should
openly condemn this kind of thing, precisely because it strikes at
the heart of all human decency and civilisation.
Best
wishes,
Brian
Bamford
****************
On Mon the 04/11/2019 at 07:16 I wrote: I
don't understand why you are so reluctant to invite me over to
discuss the problems of Newbold. Clearly there is something
seriously wrong in the ward. Later today I will be talking to the
police about this case of the tree surgeons. As I write this I'm
just hearing about the problems in Kashmir on Radio Four, I remember
in the 1990s when you asked me to go over there with you. The bottom
line is there must be an open and public condemnation of what
happened in Newbold at the next Full Council Meeting which I believe
is the 11th, December?
To which Councillor X replied on Mon 04/11/2019 at 08:29: Brian I don't want to waste your time justice has been served and
there are no tensions in newbod of the sort you suggest
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