Last week saw what for many represented an astonishing U-turn by the leadership of our Union on its stance on Gaza. After sixteen months of genocidal warfare being waged by Israel’s military machine – a machine built up by the USA, the UK and many other Western countries – our Regions were finally encouraged to circulate details of the National march held in London on 15th February in support of Gaza.
The circular from Head Office declared “….the potential for further escalation of this humanitarian crisis is clearly increasing…”. Those of us within the United Left and beyond who from Day One and throughout the conflict, have joined the marching millions calling for Ceasefire, feel bewildered about this sudden about turn. The facts are too many and too horrendous to cite in full, but we know that even in the early months of Israel’s indiscriminate bombardment of this tiny, over-crowded strip of land, more children had been killed than in all global conflicts in the past two years.
And yet, at that time a senior Officer of our Union was cautioned that a case of gross misconduct was being considered against him and a threat to his ex-gratia pension payment was mooted, for the ‘crime’ of speaking at a rally calling for Ceasefire, peace and justice.
We know that that horrendous casualty figure has now swelled beyond 12,000 children fatalities. Several international agencies, including a UK-led piece of research published in the Lancet, have concluded massive under-reporting of casualties. In June 2024, this research estimated 64,000 deaths through traumatic injury – 41% higher than Gaza’s own figures – with the majority being women and children. More recent research, again published in the Lancet, estimates a death toll of more that 186,000, when starvation and lack of health care is taken into account. And then of course, we await the discovery of what lies beneath the burned out rubble of its towns and settlements.
So, why only now – sixteen months later – does Unite’s leadership give qualified support to the call for mobilisation of our members in demanding permanent ceasefire, an end to ethnic cleansing and genocide?
It is certainly not for lack of trying on the part of our activists, branches and constitutional committees, who throughout the conflict have been making clear their demands that our Union take a clear and principled stand on calling for ceasefire and, in line with long held Unite policy, supporting the Palestinian people in their quest for self-determination. Several motions have worked their way through our constitutional structures to the Executive Council, only to be ruled out of order by its Chair. We have to ask was this inexperience, naivete – or was it a failure to listen to and debate the deeply felt concerns of our members? Our Executive and its Chair are there to hold the leadership and Officers to account – and many good UL comrades and indeed others on that most senior committee – have been both principled and vocal in this respect.
We understand of course that Unite members working in the Defence industries must be considered when any debate is being held on what our position should be in such matters. Similarly, we know that a small number of anti-war activists may have used unfortunate language and sloganeering outside of a small number of our members’ workplaces. However, the progressive statements that did emerge from our Aerospace Sector, calling for no direct arms sales to Israel, came from the elected representatives themselves, rather than our Union’s leadership.
This terrific early move could and should have been built upon. Unite has a proud track record of reaching a consensus between the different interest groups within our Union’s membership. The vicious, disproportionate and unprecedented scale of the Israeli response to the calamitous events of 7th October 2023, called for clear leadership, public condemnation and mass mobilisation of our members. We got none of this – instead there was a wall of silence which, in equal parts, has mystified and disappointed Left activists within Unite and indeed within the wider labour movement. Unfortunately, Palestine is but one area where Unite can no longer be said to represent a powerful, influential and principled voice in the arena of progressive and organised working class values.
So, while of course we welcome the fact that the pressure exerted over sixteen months by lay activists, may have finally been responded to, the question remains as to what extent this stunning leadership U-turn is about cynical self preservation rather than belated realisation of the justice of the cause. The United Left will continue to press the case for abiding by Unite policy and working with all those committed to peace and justice and a free Palestine.
NB: See United Left model Policy Conference motion on Palestine for use in branches and committees