Labour’s manifesto has been hailed as the most radical in decades: universal free broadband, a 5% pay rise for public sector workers, and a £11bn windfall tax on oil and gas companies.
A lot of doubt and scepticism has also been cast on the viability of its funding, too.
But an important proposal that may have passed under the radar is their commitment to an investigation into colonial legacies.
E.H. Carr once wrote: “The awkward thing about history is that bias seems an essential element to it.” Nowhere is this demonstrated better than within the
British school curriculum.
Indeed, modern
Britain cannot be understood in isolation from the benefits it accrued during the Empire – an endeavour that shaped the modern world.
And as ever it is not just Britain that was affected. There is a distinction between apologising and understanding the very real reverberations historical actions had on the way we live our lives now.The Sykes-Picot agreement in 1916 – the decision by the British and French to quite literally reshape the world following the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire by drawing lines on a map – has had a devastating impact with regards to ethnic conflicts across the world.
From wars and unrest in
Syria,
Yemen, and
Iraq, to the Israel-Palestine conflict; practically the entirety of the problems that plague the
Middle East and former colonies can be traced back to decisions made by colonial powers and administrators.
Colonisers pitted and divided groups in accordance with their political preferences and with complete disregard for the lives of the people themselves.
Any attempted form of political administration that existed consequent to “independence” was tainted with colonialism, and anyone associated a traitor, distrusted by the local people. How can children be expected to reject racist attitudes, when Britain’s white-washed education system leaves them wholly unequipped to understand the context of colonialism?The countries consequent economic dependence to their former masters meant that an amicable relationship was necessary for any form of sustenance.
Predictably,
Nigel Farage, leader of the
Brexit Party, does not think learning about colonial history would help – he doesn’t think he should “apologise for what people did 300 years ago.”
“We seem to be terribly keen to apologise for the past and a bit less worried about creating a good future,” Farage told a group of reporters in Peterborough. Related... Is Corbyn Running Out Of Time, And Surprises, To Swing The Election? The truth of the matter is that Britain is not on the brink of a string of apologies and repayments to its former colonies. Rather, what
Labour is proposing and Farage is lambasting is an investigation into Britain’s colonial “legacies”.
In fact, to date compensation for abuse victims has only been agreed to torture victims during the Mau Mau uprising and, even then, the government “continued to deny liability for the actions of the colonial administration”.
In the past, prime ministers have always stopped short of apologising for the effects of Empire.
There is a distinction between apologising for the actions of people 300 years ago and understanding the very real reverberations their actions had on the way we live our lives now.
Why is it we are so selective in which history we choose to remember and learn from?
What Farage needs to understand is that to have a ‘good future’ one must learn from the mistakes of the past - one need only look at the turmoil of the Middle East and the turbulent Hindu-Muslim tension in
India to see the reverberating effect of these decisions today.
Britain does not even acknowledge the muddled trajectory of their past actions and at this stage an apology – though long overdue – isn’t on the cards.
Of almost 103,400 offences recorded in 2018-19, three-quarters were racially motivated. How much of this
racism stems from a lack of education?
How can children be expected to reject racist attitudes, when Britain’s white-washed education system leaves them wholly unequipped to understand the context of colonialism and imperialism which continues to affect the social and economic dynamics of the world they live in?
Europe is currently experiencing the biggest refugee crisis since the Second World War, alongside the worrying ascent of far-right figures across Europe that thrive on hateful insular rhetoric.
A refugee crisis that Britain bears some responsibility for due to decisions made during the Empire and since then - herein lies the problem with Farage’s statement that Britain was ‘not a military empire’ - he himself lacks a comprehensive understanding and without this it is no wonder that there is a lamentable sense of distance towards “overseas” conflicts alongside an increasing feeling of “but it’s not our problem” and “why are we getting involved?”.
One of the Brexit Party’s flagship policies is to cap net migration - but the presence of migrant communities cannot be understood apart from colonial history and the lasting damage it inflicted on its former colonies.
“No greater indictment of the failures of British rule in India can be found than the tragic manner of its ending,” said historian Shashi Tharoor, referring to the 13 million left for dead as a consequence of partition.
The Brexit Party have a selective memory of history - MEP Ann Widdecombe drew parallels between Brexit and slavery back in July when she said Brexit was in keeping with history as “colonies turned on their empires.”
The notion of an EU as an empire is hyperbolic and attention-seeking.
More importantly, it demonstrates a clear lack of understanding of the damaging legacy of colonialism given the word is used so flippantly.
Farage and Widdecombe are in no danger of apologising for the atrocities of empire - but they may do well to read up on it before criticising those who do.
Maighna Nanu is a freelance journalist.Related... Exclusive: Labour Manifesto To Pledge Review Of Britain's Colonial Past Britain Should Not Apologise For Its Colonial Past, Says Nigel Farage 100 Protesters Remain Holed Up In Hong Kong University Despite Daring Attempts To Escape