Conservative MP Suella Braverman
By Our Special Correspondent
New Delhi, November 13: In a first major political shakeup in any nation in the aftermath of the Israeli offensives in Gaza against the Hamas, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak sacked anti-immigrant home minister Suella Braverman on Monday as part of a Cabinet reshuffle. Braverman, a leading Brexit voice in the UK political space, triggered controversy with her claim that the pro-Palestinians holding protests in London were “hate marchers”.
While the sacking of Braverman is being seen by commentators as a desperate attempt by Sunak to save the prospects of the ruling party, David Cameron, former Prime Minister, made a comeback as Foreign Minister of the UK. Cameron is noted to have a pro-China stance when he was the prime minister of the UK, while also being a vocal supporter of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) of Chinese President Xi Jinping. Cameron’s past handling of the Middle East affairs is also likely to be utilised by Sunak at a time when the UK is delicately poised to balance national interests in the Arabian world following Israel’s all-out offensives against the Hamas in Gaza with a heavy toll of the civilians.
Braverman, an Indian origin UK politician, has also been at the forefront of fuelling anti-immigration sentiments in the UK to pander to the right-wingers in the country. She oversaw a controversial move of the UK sending the immigrants to Rwanda, which ran into legal trouble within the country. Braverman was also a critic of the ongoing negotiations for India-UK free trade agreement. She had been claiming that an agreement with India would unleash a wave of Indian immigrants into the UK. The Spectator in a report stated that Sunak sacked Braverman for her remarks against the pro-Palestinian protestors in London. The US and Europe are witnessing strong pro-Palestine rallies.
Braverman was, incidentally, a first leading voice who came down heavily against the protestors. She even wrote an article in a UK daily to further push her anti-immigrant narrative. The Conservative MP has been highly criticized by the rights groups. Economists have widely argued that the centrality to anti-immigration sentiments in the UK brought economic perils with acute shortage of skilled manpower in Britain holding back the economy. The India-UK free trade was slated for signing last year by Diwali, but the countries are still negotiating the finer details with mobility of migrants reportedly holding back the inking of the pact.
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