Ex-MP Ryan: Labour moderates must stand up against antisemitism
The former MP, who did not stand for reelection last week, told 'The Jerusalem Post' she’s “relieved” that Jeremy Corbyn did not become prime minister, as he would be “a disaster” in the role.
By LAHAV HARKOVLabour MP Joan Ryan(photo credit: THE INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP DIALOGUE)
Any moderates remaining in the UK’s Labour Party must have the moral courage to uproot “Corbynism,” hatred and antisemitism at the party’s core, former Labour MP Joan Ryan said on Sunday at the sidelines of the 11th annual conference of The International Institute for Strategic Leadership Dialogue.Ryan, who resigned from her party in February to join the Independent Group of former Labour MPs because of the antisemitism and hatred of Israel, called to “uproot the phenomenon of Corbynism, which promotes hate and antisemitism,” during a panel on antisemitism and BDS, saying that Corbyn “brought a culture of poison and incitement to the party.”The former MP, who did not stand for reelection last week, told The Jerusalem Post she’s “relieved” that Jeremy Corbyn did not become prime minister, as he would be “a disaster” in the role.“Jeremy Corbyn is not fit for public office,” Ryan said. A Corbyn victory “would have destroyed any hope of Labour returning to the decent party it was. It would have been disastrous for many other counties in the world, because of the UK’s commitment to democracy and NATO.”That the British People overwhelmingly chose not to vote in Corbyn-led Labour shows that they are “fundamentally decent and committed to democracy,” she said.Moving forward, Ryan called on any moderate MPs remaining in Labour to pull the party away from hate and back to the Center-Left.“I think this is a crucially important time for those decent moderate Labour MPs still there,” she said. “If they don’t stand up, I fear for the future of Labour. Moderate MPs need moral courage to stand up and take action.”The honorary president of Labour Friends of Israel said that part of that process should include ridding the party of hatred of Israel.“Israel is our ally,” Ryan said. “The real enemies of peace in Israel and Palestine are the terrorists of Hamas, not Israel.”Ryan described Israel as “the national home of the Jewish people who have the absolute right of self-determination,” and came out against the anti-Zionist, antisemitic elements in her former party.“We don’t deny [self-determination] to anyone else but the hard Left and hard Right does that to the Jewish people,” she lamented.As difficult as it was to stand up for Israel in recent years, Ryan said she will continue to do so: “I will always speak up. I will always be a friend of Israel.”Although Ryan is no longer a member of parliament, she said she does not regret taking a stand.“I will always stand up for my principles and my values,” she said. “I never left the Labour Party; it left me. It was my political home, my career, my heart for 40 years. It’s quite devastating. But I have no doubt I did the right thing.”Ryan added that she would only rejoin Labour “if it can be brought back to the center and if it can renounce antisemitism.”Dame Louise Ellman, another former Labour MP who left the party due to antisemitism, attended the conference.Albert Dadon, founder of The International Institute for Strategic Leadership Dialogue, said “I’m very proud that the [MPs] are participating in the conference this year. There is no doubt that they are an example for courage and determination when it comes to an uncompromising fight against racism. They paid a heavy price, because they fought for important universal values.”
