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Asians slam U.K. Minister move to "rebrand'' them

Hasan Suroor

It could lead to two "classes'' — the white native Britons known simply as "British'' and others identified by their ethnic origin

LONDON: The Asian community has denounced a proposal to "rebrand'' British nationals of foreign origin by describing them in their passports as "Asian-British,'' "Indian-British'' or "Pakistani-British.''

The proposal made by Home Office Minister Hazel Blears was roundly condemned by Asian groups and individuals who called it "patronising'' and warned that this could lead to two "classes'' — the white native Britons known simply as "British'' and others identified by their ethnic origin.

Keith Vaz, prominent Asian MP of Indian origin, said the community did not need "external labels,'' and the Government should encourage young Asians to become "more involved in the mainstream''.

"We know who we are and we are comfortable in being able to identify ourselves without the need for external labels,'' he said.

Shami Chakrabarti, director of the human rights group Liberty, said the proposal showed how "disconnected'' Ministers were from the people on the ground.

"This is the whole problem: You have people feeling patronised and alienated and then a white Minister comes along and says: `Don't worry, I'm going to rebrand you and everything will be all right'.''

Ghayasuddin Siddiqui of Muslim Parliament said the move would not help integration.

"Nobody cares for labels. We have to create a stake-holding society and an inclusive society... ..Some young people say to me: `We have British passports but are treated as Pakis.' Unless we begin to respect each others' cultures, there may be problems,'' he said.

Nitin Sawhney, the noted musician, felt that in a climate when people were being "specifically targeted'' for their ethnicity and skin it was "dangerous'' to come up with such proposals.

If you are going to focus on nationality then you should refer to everyone as British if that person is born here. Why is it necessary to specify an origin, especially in this climate?'' he asked.

The idea was also attacked by some Labour MPs who said while the Minister's intentions were good, her solution to make immigrants feel proud both of their ancestry and the country was wrong.

Ms. Blears, who is leading a consultation with minorities on integration, floated the idea in an interview to The Times.

"In America they do seem to have this idea that you are Italian-American, or Irish-American, and that's quite interesting... I'm going to talk to people and find out how does that feel? It is about your identity, and I think it's really important,'' she said.

Faced with a hostile reaction, Downing Street was quick to disown the idea saying that it was "not something the Government is proposing or suggesting.''

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