Since his landslide election victory in September, Jeremy Corbyn seems constantly in tandem with the words Stop The War Coaltion in the British press. But who are the group, why are they controversial and is Corbyn right to stand by them?
The group
Stop The War Coalition was founded directly after 9/11 with the aim to stop war in the middle-east as a reaction to attacks on the World Trade Center. Since then, they have been campaigning against the War On Terror as well as, what they believe to be, unjust wars.In 2003, they joined forces with the Campaign For Nuclear Disarmament, The Muslim Ascociation of Britain to hold the largest anti-war march in British history, campaigning against the invasion of Iraq.
Controversy
Following the recent Paris attacks, the group controversially posted an article titled “Paris reaps whirlwind of western support for extremist violence in Middle East”, for which they later apologised. The group has also been criticised by human rights activist Peter Tachell as ignoring the controversial regimes of Assad and Putin in their criticisms of what they call U.S imperialism. Many MPs such as Tristram Hunt and Caroline Lucas have critised the group, with Lucas leaving the group recently.
What’s Corbyn got to do with it?
Corbyn was the chair of the group since its 2011 and only recently stepped down after the results of the Labour leadership election. He said he would continue to support the group and has been an active member since the groups inception. He was present at the groups launch and spoke at the event.
Should he move away from the coalition?
His role in the group has been criticised by some Labour MPs and some have said that he should distance himself form the group. Although the group is known for being controversial, they represent Corbyn’s anti-war policy. As a group that denounced action in Iraq and said that military intervention would destabilise the region, they seem to compliment a Corbynistic military strategy. However the controversial claims and history of the group mean that their policy becomes Corbyns. As a face of the second biggest political party in the UK, Corbyn should weigh up whether Stop The War Coaltion is not only representative of him, but Labour as a whole.
Photos by Garry Knight