NEWHAM STAND UP TO RACISM:
PRESS RELEASE 29/06/2017 1:18 pm
Why are Newham police not treating acid attack as an anti-Muslim terror incident?
On 21 June Resham Khan and her cousin Jameel Mukhtar, 37 were both doused in sulphuric acid as they sat in traffic in Beckton, east London. Resham was preparing to celebrate her 21st birthday. Jameel had to be put into an induced coma in hospital.
As the acid burned their skin and eyes, they lost control of the vehicle they were in and crashed. With their clothes burning off them, the pair ran into the road begging for help. They were eventually taken to a local hospital by a passing motorist. Their injuries are described as “life changing”.
NEWHAM POLICE FAIL TO TREAT ATTACK AS AN ANTI-MUSLIM TERROR INCIDENT
Today Newham police issued a description of a man wanted for questioning, John Tomlin, 24. However, in a statement Newham police have said “there is no current information to suggest the attack was racially or religiously motivated”.
We find this a truly shocking assumption to make.
We call on the Borough Commander, Ian Larnder to immediately ensure his force treat this crime on the basis that the evidence clearly points to an anti-Muslim terror attack.
1) This was a random, potentially deadly, acid attack by a white male on two victims whose only identifying characteristic was that they were of Muslim appearance.
This fact alone should warrant immediate investigation on the basis of an anti-Muslim attack.
2) A brief examination of John Tomlin’s facebook page would reveal posts from a website hosting extreme far-right and Nazi material. (See posting and profile pic capture attached)
A post on Tomlin’s facebook page features a Crusader with drawn sword held aloft and a roaring lion and reads:
“A sleeping lion can only be provoked so much before it wakes up and attacks… and so will us British.
“We will stand & we will fight. We will reclaim what is rightfully ours. We will not surrender. Out of ordinary Brits, heroes will arise, champions will be made & we will make Britain great again.”
Newham Stand Up to Racism believes that the failure of Newham police to investigate this crime as a potential anti-Muslim terror attack, gravely undermines confidence in the ability of Newham police to protect the diverse population of our borough.
The overwhelming majority of our borough are of minority ethnic origin; the single biggest community are of Muslim origin (32%), the second highest in the UK. This makes our community a particular target for fascists and the far-right.
CONCERNS OVER NEWHAM POLICING…
The Resham Khan and Jameel Muhktar attack and the separate case of the death of Edson Da Costa.
While these are two completely separate cases we cannot help but note that this attack, by terrible coincidence, took place on the day of the tragic death of Edson Da Costa, as a result of a police stop, six days earlier, on the same road on which Resham and Jameel were attacked.
While noting their separate and distinct character we have to point out that taken, these events, in such close proximity of time and place, together stand to undermine confidence amongst wide sections of our community in Newham who are increasingly subject to institutional racism, racist and Islamophobic stereotyping in the media and a rising number of far-right attacks.
Contact for further comment and information: Rob Ferguson, Convenor Newham Stand Up to Racism.
Mobile 07989 573 785. Email: standupnewham@gmail.com