Support from Benjamin Zephaniah
22 April 2005
Reg Keys is doing a very honourable thing by standing against Tony Blair in Sedgefield, because Blair represents everything that's wrong with the war on Iraq, and everything that's wrong with politics.
War is about sons and daughters and fathers and mothers being killed, about real people dying and not about plastic politicians and their policies. Most people know that the politics behind the war is wrong, but I get the feeling that in this election campaign the parties are colluding in not speaking about it.
They talk about being tough on crime - this war is the biggest crime we have seen, the biggest illegal act that has happened for many years, and they are not talking about it.
I would ask people to forget all the spin of the election campaign and think back to the way our politicians have behaved over the war. Election campaigns depend on money; they set the agenda and try to get us worried - for example today is the day we should be worrying about immigration. I appeal to people not to be fooled by this agenda, but to remember what these same politicians have actually been doing over the last few years - I appeal to you to remember the war on Iraq when you vote.
Of course I am very concerned about schools and hospitals and security and pensions - but I'm also concerned about schools and hospitals and security and pensions in Iraq.
Travelling around the world I see that the standing of Britain has gone down so much that I find myself apologising, find myself saying no, the people of Birmingham and Liverpool don't want to kill you, the people of Sedgefield don't want to kill you. I am constantly trying to repair the damage that this government has done, trying to rebuild cultural bridges where the politicians have knocked them down.
I come from a Rastafarian background where the word 'peace' is an active word - we make it into a verb. There is no way to peace - peace is the way. You cannot bomb people into peace.
I really respect what Reg Keys is doing; not only do I give him my support but I give him, and all those who have suffered such loss in this war, my love.
- ©Reg Keys, 2005 -
