'Fairness has been denied to the Palestinian people': Labour MP Afzal Khan on the need for Gaza justice

In the days leading up to the recent pivotal vote in the UK parliament on a ceasefire in Gaza, Manchester, Gorton MP Afzal Khan’s inbox was filled with emails from constituents urging him to back the motion.

The problem was that as a key member of Keir Starmer’s shadow cabinet and one of Labour’s most high-profile Muslim MPs, Khan was expected to tow the party line on the issue and not back the call for a ceasefire.

As the number of dead in Gaza rose, Khan became inundated with desperate pleas from Mancunians of all ages, with thousands of people from all backgrounds and faiths urging him to resist the internal Labour pressures.

Khan listened to his heart and constituents on the issue, resigning from the shadow cabinet and joining 55 other Labour rebels in backing the call for peace.

Now on the backbench for the first time as an MP, Khan — a long-standing supporter of the Palestinian cause — is perhaps in a better position to condemn the Israeli onslaught in Gaza than ever before, a campaign that has cost around 15,000 Palestinian, mostly civilian, lives.

"I want fairness, whether in the UK or any other part of the world," he told The New Arab shortly after the vote.

"It is that fairness, I feel, that has been denied to the Palestinian people, and right outstanding citizens anywhere in the world should stand up and support the Palestinians so they can have their rights and self-determination in Palestinian land."

Gaza ceasefire

The British public has been overwhelmingly in favour of a ceasefire with hundreds of thousands of protesters taking to the streets in London each week demanding the UK government call for an end to Israel’s assault on Gaza.

While the ceasefire vote in parliament on 15 November did not pass, Khan believes the sense of justice among the British people will eventually prevail and see a foreign policy emerge that is more representative of their views.

The UK's new foreign minister, David Cameron, recently struck a slightly different tone on the issue of civilian casualties from the Israeli assault than his predecessor, saying the death toll in Gaza was "too high", in one sign of positive change. 

This sense of fairness is something he noticed at Manchester Town Hall back in the 1980s when the council decided that the coat of arms of South Africa would remain veiled from public view until the policy of apartheid ended.

"The British people are, actually, a fair people, and when they realise something is not right, [then] they see the injustice and they will always stand on the right side," he said.

"There is a huge strength in the British public toward fairness and they will always stand up for that."

Made in Manchester 

Khan’s modest upbringing and rapid ascension up the Labour ladder, from local councillor to shadow minister, sits well with the aspirational ethos of the Labour Party under Keir Starmer.

Born in Pakistan, Khan was adopted by family in the UK aged 11 and moved to North West England, leaving school early with no qualifications.

He worked as a labourer at a Lancashire cotton mill, a common practice for working-class Northerners, before realising the importance of education and returning to school.

"When people come to me, it’s very easy for me to relate to them, I can see some of the difficulties they are going through because I, myself, have gone through these"

Khan worked as a police officer and solicitor in Manchester, witnessing the divisiveness of local political leaders and a lack of representation for Mancunian Muslims, before deciding to enter local politics as a Manchester City Councillor from 2000 to 2015.

Amid a trend of career politicians, this grounding in everyday life has been integral to his outlook in politics, understanding that legislation passed by MPs and councillors will have a real impact on working people.

"When people come to me, it’s very easy for me to relate to them, I can see some of the difficulties they are going through because I, myself, have gone through these," he said.

"If you have never had [these experiences] this is where the gap comes in… having people who reflect society is very important."

People's politician

Midway through his career, Khan shattered a glass ceiling in local politics by becoming Manchester’s first Muslim lord mayor — his work with the city's diverse community seeing him win the national Co-op Mayor of the Year Award.

Khan said that his identity has been shaped by a multitude of factors and being a British Muslim is one of them.

"That value, of bringing benefits to others, is what brought me into politics and that is what I strive for"

"Islam is a very progressive faith; it talks about fairness and equality. This is the golden thread… that we need to make sure we have a just and fair world, we need to make sure we are all equal," he said.

"These are some core human values that help us get on in the world and have a fair society that allows us [the opportunities] to progress."

Later, he was presented with a CBE for fostering community cohesion and good local governance, something also inspired by the universal message of the Prophet Muhammad.

"For me, these positions don't mean much; ultimately, the key value I carry is what the Prophet said, that the best among humanity are those who benefit others," he said.

"That value, of bringing benefits to others, is what brought me into politics and that is what I strive for."

Community building

He has also worked closely with Manchester’s Jewish community, setting up a Greater Manchester Muslim Jewish Forum to encourage inter-faith dialogue.

"I recognise we are all part of the Abrahamic faiths. Judaism, Islam, Christianity — their core values are similar, they come from the same area, from the same message, the same God," he said.

His career some him confront prejudices in all forms. During the 2014 European election, Khan faced off with the far-right when the British National Party (BNP) made a personal attack against him, sending leaflets to every home in North West England telling them a vote for Labour was a vote for Muslims.

Khan and two other Labour candidates won their seats in North West England while the BNP lost all their MEPs, including the seat of its leader Nick Griffin.

"On election night in Manchester Town Hall, I went over to him, and I said, 'Nick, this is [the] message you sent to the people of the North West, but [they] prefer a Muslim over you'," he said.

During his time in the European Parliament, he was part of a campaign to have the EU recognise a Palestinian state, a cause that has remained at his core to this day.

"The world can recognise Israel, yet [it won't] recognise Palestine! It's almost like saying 'I recognise the child but not the mother'. How is that possible?"

"I have been a long-standing supporter of the Palestinian cause. Fundamentally there is an injustice in what is happening with the Palestinian people. I just can’t get my head around that you have a Palestine and Palestinian people, and from that Israel," he said.

"The world can recognise Israel, yet [it won't] recognise Palestine! It's almost like saying 'I recognise the child but not the mother'. How is that possible?"

Palestine

Khan now sits on the backbenches for the first time in his career as an MP, depriving him of the access to Labour policy circles he once enjoyed but privileging him with the freedom to speak more candidly about politics.

The ability to articulate political messages from the heart, which most people can relate to, has been one of Khan's key strengths as a politician. It has helped the people of Manchester to understand injustices being committed on the other side of the world, as well as build bridges within their community.

Khan said he will continue to fight for issues close to his heart in parliament, such as poverty in the UK and across the world, and Palestinian rights.

"Well, it’s a core issue for me. As long as I am a member of parliament, I will continue to champion this and any other place in the world where human rights violations occur. I fundamentally believe in the freedom of the individual to decide," he said.

"That is why Kashmir and Palestine have been [my] core campaigns… I have no intention of changing my mind on that, I will continue championing them."

Paul McLoughlin is a senior news editor at The New Arab

Follow him on Twitter: @PaullMcLoughlin