Al-Qalam 
By Al-Qalam Reporter
When the British Government placed an obstacle to prevent prominent activist Mandla Mandela from travelling to the UK for a series of pro-Palestine meetings, the next best thing was to hold a Zoom meeting to get his message across.
He was scheduled to speak in Manchester, Edinburgh, and Glasgow, but Mandela cancelled his flight last week after encountering visa complications, sparking outrage from Palestinian solidarity organisations.
The Sheffield Coalition Against Israeli Apartheid, which was set to host Mandela, announced that he would address attendees via Zoom due to the visa issue.
The organisation highlighted the confusion surrounding his travel documents, stating that British officials initially informed Mandela that his South African government passport did not require a visa. However, as the travel date approached, he was informed that a visa was indeed necessary. Despite interventions from senior figures within the African National Congress, the British embassy did not issue a visa in time for his flight.
“This shows their utter contempt for freedom of expression, human rights or any pretence of international solidarity by the ruling Labour Party,” said Roshan Dadoo of the South African BDS Coalition, who expressed disbelief at the UK government’s actions.
He said Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government has yet again caved in to pressure from the pro-Israel lobby and the British mainstream media’s smear campaign against Mandla Mandela.
Dadoo pointed out that this was not the first time that pro-Palestinian speakers from abroad have faced obstacles in the UK.
The Sheffield Coalition emphasised their commitment to continuing the fight for Palestinian solidarity. “We will make every effort to have Mandla come to Sheffield in the near future. We will not allow expressions of solidarity with the Palestinian people to be silenced,” the organisation said.
The South African BDS Coalition’s Dadoo drew a comparison between Starmer’s actions and those of former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, a prominent supporter of apartheid South Africa.
“He may try to ignore the trade union movement and his own Party but he will not be able to ignore the many hundreds of thousands who have marched and campaigned across Britain for a ceasefire and end to the occupation,” Dadoo said.
Dadoo also criticised the UK’s continued arms sales to Israel, calling it complicity in what he described as genocide.
“By remaining complicit in the genocide of the Palestinian people, he is failing all but those that are fuelling genocide,” he said.
Drawing historical parallels, Dadoo recalled the vital role of ordinary British citizens in the Anti-Apartheid Movement, which played a significant part in bringing international sanctions against apartheid South Africa.
“We will never forget the ordinary British people in the Anti-Apartheid Movement who played such a critical role in forcing the international community to ultimately implement sanctions against apartheid South Africa, isolating the regime in support of our liberation struggle,” he said.
Dadoo said the coalition’s message resonates strongly with South Africans, who remain steadfast in their support for the Palestinian liberation struggle against what they describe as apartheid, occupation, settler colonialism, and genocide.
