Resignation from the Labour Party, in Solidarity with Palestine
Yesterday, I resigned my Labour Party membership and thereby my place in Oxford City’s Labour Group, on the basis of my principles and convictions. I will now serve the people of Headington Hill & Northway as an independent councillor, with unchanged commitment to representing everyone in our ward. I look forward to continuing to work collectively with my co-councillors and the admirable organisations and groups that make our community thrive.
June Jordan once described support for Palestine as a “litmus test for morality”. By claiming to “stand for international law and the protection of innocent lives” while refusing to condemn (or even acknowledge) collective punishment, war crimes, genocide and ethnic cleansing committed by Israel in Gaza, Keir Starmer’s Labour leadership has, in my view, dramatically failed this litmus test.
My MP repeats, “It is imperative that international law is upheld”. But international law is not being upheld, as numerous legal experts have warned. Starmer states, “all human life is equal”, and “innocent lives must be protected”, yet will not call for a ceasefire when Israeli forces have killed at least 7,028 Palestinians (including at least 2,400 children), wiped dozens of entire families off Gaza’s civil registry, and obliterated neighbourhood after neighbourhood. It would seem that the leadership subscribes to the racist, dehumanising view that Palestinian life is not equal.
In Gaza today, 17,500 civilians are injured, civilian infrastructure is utterly devastated and over 2 million Palestinians are trapped under siege with no safety or basic necessities, as indiscriminate Israeli carpet bombing continues. The humanitarian aid promised by our government is our bare minimum duty towards the Palestinian people, and no substitute for rights, freedoms and justice.
That the Labour leadership continues to issue hollow statements as we watch a genocide unfold before our eyes is, in my view, unconscionable. I have resigned from the party because I can no longer stand with a leadership that claims to value international law, human rights and equality, but will not condemn clear violations of these by Israel, and call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. Self-defence does not justify crimes against humanity; no violence against civilians should be condoned.
I believe that to truly strive for peace and justice, for sustainable safety and wellbeing for everyone, we must recognise and commit to addressing the root cause of ongoing violence, which is oppression, illegal Israeli occupation and apartheid. It is widely recognised that Israel has, for decades, violated international law and human rights with impunity. And while Labour Party Conferences have previously passed multiple noteworthy motions on Palestine, Starmer’s leadership fails to uphold these resolutions and to represent members’ commitment to freedom, equality and justice.
Standing with the Palestinian people or with the Israeli state is not determined by religion, background or affiliation. It is, I believe, a straightforward question of what principles we defend, what kind of society we aspire to, and fundamental humanity. I unequivocally stand with the Palestinian people in their steadfast, seven-decade-long struggle for respect for their inalienable rights and human dignity, for liberation, for self-determination and return to their stolen homes and land. I stand with millions of people internationally demanding freedom, justice and equality for all, and daily reminding the world that, “never again means never again, for anyone”.
In the words of Jewish Voice for Peace, if we stand for ‘a just society, rooted in equality rather than supremacy, dignity rather than domination, democracy rather than dispossession’, we must stand with Palestine.
I urge everyone to read the Joint Statement from local Oxford University Groups and support the Palestine Solidarity Campaign.
Cllr Barbara Coyne
Oxford City Council — Headington Hill & Northway Ward
