Conservative Member of Parliament Calls the Campaign Against Sadiq Khan – ‘The Rough and Tumble of Politics’.

Efforts by the Conservative party to link the new Mayor of London to Muslim extremism during campaigning for the capital’s election were just part of the “rough and tumble” of politics, a senior MP said on Saturday.

As politicians from all sides lined up to condemn his party’s tactics in the mayoral race won by Sadiq Khan, the son of Pakistani immigrants and the first Muslim to hold the job, Defence Secretary Michael Fallon refused to apologise.

“In the rough and tumble of elections, you get stuff said, questions asked,” Fallon told the BBC when asked if he regretted describing Khan as a “Labour lackey” who speaks alongside extremists.

“I think it is right that candidates for some of the most important offices in Britain do get scrutinised about their past associations.”

Conservatives including Prime Minister David Cameron and Fallon himself had sought to question whether London would be safe being run by the 45-year-old Khan, a Labour Party MP who grew up in public housing in the capital’s inner city.

Khan, whose parents worked as a bus driver and a seamstress, defeated Conservative candidate Zac Goldsmith, the son of a billionaire financier, by a record margin to secure the biggest individual mandate in British political history. His victory in Thursday’s election made headlines around the world.

Some commentators suggested the focus on Khan’s religion had backfired in a city noted for its diversity and which is one of the world’s top financial centres. Britain remains largely free of the identity politics seen in the United States.

During the race Goldsmith had joined forces with Cameron and other senior party members to question Khan’s past appearances alongside radical Muslim speakers at public events, accusing him of giving “oxygen” to extremists.

CONTROVERSY, CONGRATULATIONS

A former human rights lawyer, Khan said he had fought extremism all his life and regretted sharing a stage with speakers who held “abhorrent” views.

“This election was not without controversy and I am so proud that London has today chosen hope over fear and unity over division,” Khan said in a short speech after the results were announced early on Saturday. “I hope that we will never be offered such a stark choice again.”

Sayeeda Warsi, a former Conservative Party chairman, said the campaign had damaged the party’s reputation and credibility on issues of race and religion, while Labour politicians called on Fallon and Cameron to stop smearing their candidate.

As the left-wing mayors of New York and Paris saluted Khan, the Financial Times newspaper described the win as a “remarkable triumph over the racial and religious tensions that have bedevilled other European capitals”, saying it highlighted London’s tolerance.

Among the first to congratulate Khan was Goldsmith’s sister Jemima, a journalist and campaigner who described London as a city for all cultures, backgrounds and religions. She said the victory was a great example to young Muslims.

“Sad that Zac’s campaign did not reflect who I know him to be — an eco friendly, independent-minded politician with integrity,” she tweeted.

Sajid Javid, business secretary and a Conservative, said on Twitter: “From one son of a Pakistani bus driver to another, congratulations.”

Khan’s victory makes him the first Muslim to head a major Western capital, presiding over such issues as policing, transport and housing for 8.6 million people. The mayor does not run the City of London financial district but can try to influence the government in lobbying for the capital.

The Labour party also maintained control of the London Assembly, making the capital one of the few bright spots for the opposition party, which endured a day of poor results in elections elsewhere in the country.

The post Linking Sadiq to Extremism is the ‘Rough and Tumble’ of Politics Says Michael Fallon appeared first on TELL MAMA.

The London mayoral campaign has been a heated set of campaigns that have focussed on the backgrounds of individuals and on the associations that candidates have had with people whose views have been regarded as ‘repulsive’ and ‘extreme.’ Newspapers have led headlines on associations with extremists and social media activity has suggested that one of the candidates is Islamophobic. Within these charges, the truth has been somewhat lost.

Questioning the links between a candidate and their past associations is legitimate political discourse when someone puts themselves up for a public role such as the mayoral candidate for London. However, framing a candidate who happens to be Muslim just through the lens of extremism at a time when Muslim communities feel that they are trying to counter anti-Muslim tropes, may well have wider and deeper community impacts. This is not to say that questions should not be asked, however, there is much more to Sadiq Khan than his past associations and in the next few weeks, we would urge that the issues be looked, which include transport, housing and the role that London can play as a beacon city globally for financial investment. These are bread and butter issues and Sadiq continues to lay out these plans daily in his campaign. His plans on these bread and butter issues should be engaged with and the continuous focus on whom he associated with ten or more years ago is re-enforcing a view in some quarters, that Muslims as a whole cannot be trusted. This is unacceptable and if anything, may be turning off Muslims who may have considered politics as a future career.

Alternatively, we have seen Twitter campaigners from Labour suggest that Zac Goldmith is Islamophobic. This is a line that has been pushed by a lot of Labour campaigners against the Conservative MP and environmental activist. We have met with and spent time with Zac Goldmith. He is far from being Islamophobic and is reflective and thoughtful and deeply cares about communities. To label him as Islamophobic, undermines the value and the strength of the term and Zac is someone who has spent many years working with faith communities and with Muslim communities. Indeed, he was instrumental in working with the Kingston mosque in tackling the far right who had targeted the mosque and his involvement brought all communities together against far right extremists targeting the local Muslim community. To suggest that Zac Goldsmith is Islamophobic is to suggest that Sadiq Khan may be susceptible to being sympathetic to people with extreme views. Both narratives and suggestions are just obscene.

There are two weeks to go before Londoners go to the poll to elect their London Mayor. In these two weeks, let us focus on the policies of both Zac and Sadiq which can ensure that London remains the great city that it is. Let us vote for the candidate who can further enhance our capital city at an international level and thereby bring in much-needed investment and ensure that housing and transport issues are looked at. That is what we want from a London Mayor and that is what we hope campaigners focus on.

The post In the last weeks of the Mayoral Campaign, let’s tone down the heated rhetoric appeared first on TELL MAMA.