EXCLUSIVE: The Foreign Secretary weighed in the controversy engulfing the Greens over a motion that effectively called for Israel to be abolished and replaced with a single Palestinian state
Green leader Zack Polanski is under fire over an anti-Zionism motion backed by members(Image: Jordan Pettitt/PA Wire)
Ed Miliband has hit out at the Green Party over a controversial motion equating Zionism with racism – and said Zack Polanski should have called it out.
The Foreign Secretary weighed in on the row that has rocked the Greens, after members voted to back the position that effectively called for Israel to be abolished and replaced with a single Palestinian state.
Vivien Lichtenstein, the chair of the Jewish Greens, called for Mr Polanski to resign on Friday, accusing him of a dereliction of duty for failing to intervene on the vote.
Asked about the motion, Mr Miliband, who is Jewish, said: “I profoundly disagree with them. I think it’s a very retrograde step for them to have taken this position.
“Because they are exactly falling into the trap that you should avoid which is to somehow confuse and label those who are strong supporters of the state of Israel as being racist. Why?
“It’s wrong. I think Polanski to be honest should have called it out. I think he’d have been in a much better place if he’d have called it out. It’s not what we need in our politics.”
Mr Polanski’s leadership was already under intense pressure over the vote, which he missed to campaign in the Holborn and St Pancras by-election where he was standing as a candidate. His woes deepened on Friday when he was defeated by Labour’s Sagal Abdi-Wali, who won with a majority of 3,364.
The Green Party leader said on Friday that he would not have voted for the motion as it stood, and said it was for the Israelis and the Palestinians to decide on the future of the region.
Asked if he supported the motion, he said: “I would have supported the motion as amended. It wasn’t amended, so no.”
But he added: “Ultimately, I agree with the substance of the motion. Where I disagree is the idea the Green Party should be deciding what the future of the region looks like.”
On BBC Radio 4’s Today programme Mr Polanski, who is Jewish, refused to say whether Israel had a right to exist. “I believe Israelis and Palestinians should have equal rights in a democracy,” he said.
Asked to give a yes/no response, he said: “At the moment Palestinians don’t have equal rights, so I think I’m answering your question really clearly.”
Ms Lichtenstein told Times Radio she was considering leaving the party as she said it was “absolutely” a dereliction of duty by Mr Polanski for failing to intervene.
She said: “It was a big mistake for Zack not to find a place, a quiet place, where he could have gone online for the motions debate, where he could have spoken to the two amendments that he supported.
Asked if he should remain as leader, she said: “No, I think he should resign.”
It comes as a Green Party MP has said she wants to make sure her party is not “vulnerable to capture by extremists and racists”.
Ellie Chowns, said there had been a “lack of leadership” from Mr Polanski, but that he now had an “opportunity” to bring the party together in its wake.
Elsewhere, former Greens leader Caroline Lucas warned Mr Polanski must “urgently address the crisis that has overtaken the party”.
Writing in this newspaper, she claimed the country needed a “strong Green party”, but that the Zionism is Racism motion had caused hurt.
She said: “Those of us who spoke against the motion were clear: the policies and approach of this Israeli government are racist, its horrific actions in Gaza constitute genocide, and a campaign of boycott, divestment and sanctions is necessary and legitimate. But supporting a motion which effectively denies Israel the right to exist crosses a very significant red line.”
