The following message to Vanessa Smith and the local Labour Party was sent by Caroline Andrews, Pat Cole, Paul Fisher, Cheryl Ann-Khan, Brenda Muston and Fred Muston to the Brentford, Chiswick & Isleworth Times last week. Regrettably, the paper declined to publish it. Therefore we have reproduced it below, and it will also appear shortly on the ICG website at www.communitygroup.org.uk.The above are the six ICG officers against whom the Labour Party ADMITTED the accusations contained in their election leaflet were groundless.Those concerned should take note that this letter will be the last attempt by the victims of the allegations to reach a sensible compromise with the local Labour Party on this matter before further action is embarked upon. They should be clear that if they wish this matter to go away, their continued silence is not an option:"Dear Editor "Some time ago your newspaper gave widespread coverage to a claim for malicious falsehood made by the undersigned against four prominent local members of the Labour Party through Brentford County Court. "The claim was in respect of a leaflet circulated by the four in which we were each accused of having a secret agenda to persecute members of ethnic minority groups, and which held that only by voting Labour could the potential victims of our foul intentions protect their interests. "Having declined to avail themselves of several opportunities to withdraw the allegations, we as a last resort issued claims for malicious falsehood against them. "We were aware at the time that malicious falsehood was far more difficult to prove than libel, but not having the benefit of a vast party machine behind us we were compelled to work within our means to clear our names. In particular we needed to establish not only that the allegations against us were false, but that the defendants knew they were false and circulated them maliciously. "As some of your readers will be aware the defendants freely admitted that the allegations made against the undersigned were false, but protested that the leaflet had been produced by persons unknown and that they had distributed it in complete ignorance of its contents. Although most reasonable people would consider such a claim to be laughable, the onus was on us to prove that this was not the case. Obviously we couldn't, and so we were unable to prove malice and the case fell. "With undue haste the Labour Party issued a statement to the local press gloating about having been 'vindicated' in their circulation of the leaflet. There was no sense of embarrassment or shame at having circulated vile accusations against people they did not know which they had admitted were groundless. "This was some time ago. However, one of the Labour Party members in question, former councillor Vanessa Smith, recently gave the following response to a question on a local internet forum about the role of her election agent in the production of the leaflet: "'I was present, as were quite a few other people, when the then Agent was actually putting the thing together on the desktop, she could not have been that 'surprised' as she typed it up as well!' "Obviously this is completely the opposite of what she had told the court, under oath, where she had insisted that she had had no idea who had produced the leaflet and knew nothing of its contents when she had circulated it around Isleworth. This is a matter of public record. Typically, calls for an explanation from both herself and her party, on behalf of which she continues to hold office, have met with a stony silence. "It goes without saying that we are now seeking legal advice in respect of Mrs. Smith's admission that she, and possibly others, gave false evidence during the hearing. We would, however, be grateful for a statement of Mrs. Smith's position and that of the Labour Party itself before proceeding. "What concerns us in particular is not the actions of Mrs. Smith, deplorable though they have been, but whether or not her party and its local officers approved of or even colluded with her when she misled the District Judge, and whether they are happy to continue to support her and to reward her with public office following her admission without even asking her for an explanation. "We are not vindictive people. We gave Mrs. Smith and her colleagues ample opportunity to retract the allegations made against us before proceeding with our claim. Only they can explain the difficulty which they still apparently have in distancing themselves from accusations which they admit were false and which they claimed in court they did not make and knew nothing about. After everything we have been put through, we would still settle for an apology were the Labour Party big enough to give it. "Whatever view some others might take, the undersigned believe that honesty is still an important commodity in local politics and that the electorate is entitled to an explanation from the Labour Party for what, in the absence of such, would appear to be a deliberate and organised deception perpetrated at their expense. "We still desire to resolve this matter amicably for once and for all, but we will not wait forever for the Labour Party to do the decent thing. It will be reasonable for us to presume from its further silence that it and its local officers consider wilful character assassination and perjury to be legitimate means of political engagement, and will consider our response accordingly. "Yours sincerely Caroline AndrewsPat ColePaul FisherCheryl-Ann KhanBrenda MustonCouncillor Fred Muston The Community Group (ICG)."
Phil Andrews ● 7230d