Sir David Amess: Conservative MP stabbed to death.

 

Fri 15 Oct 2021  Sir David Amess: Conservative MP stabbed to death. 

Conservative MP Sir David Amess died after being stabbed multiple times at his constituency meeting in Essex England.  As former MPs, we have a special appreciation about meeting constituents in sometimes emotional situations.  I would meet my friend Sir David Amess every year at the PMOI rallies that were in support of the Iranian dissidents who are working for a free democratic secular Iran.  I hope the international media will take up this tragedy concerning the consequences of evil ideas.  

I am sure there is a long story about the Islamic perpetrator, Ali Harbi Ali.  He appeared to be on a premeditated mission. Police said they had discovered Islamist material on his phone following the fatal stabbing.  Ali Harbi Ali is accused of travelling 50 miles by train to commit the murder and freely admitted to killing Sir David.  It appears Ali had planned his attack more than a week in advance.  He had been waiting calmly in the church before stabbing the Conservative politician 17 times - only to then sit silently waiting for police to arrive.  Police are investigating any possible connection with Islamic terror groups, with The Times reporting he may have been inspired by jihadist group al-Shabaab - an offshoot of al-Qaeda.  

There are two stories.  The first one is about excellence, achievement and goodness. The other is a story of degradation and evil.  All who knew Sir David must work to ensure that good triumphs over evil. PF

LEIGH-ON-SEA, England — For the second time in little more than five years, a British lawmaker meeting with constituents was killed in full view of the public, this time in a genteel seaside town, where the victim, a Conservative Party member of Parliament, was fatally stabbed on Friday inside a church.

The attack, which the authorities declared a terrorist attack early Saturday, stunned Britain’s political establishment, raising questions about the security of lawmakers at a time when the country is already on edge, unnerved by shortages of food and fuel, and frayed by a political culture that has become increasingly raw and combative in the aftermath of Brexit.

“The early investigation has revealed a potential motivation linked to Islamist extremism,” the police said.  The police said they had arrested a 25-year-old man on suspicion of murder and had recovered a knife at the scene.

Sir David Amess, 69, was the Member of Parliament for ‘Southend West’ in Essex, and was a long-serving member of the House of Commons known for his soft-spoken manner and hard-line views on Brexit.  He was engaged in the everyday political routine of meeting with constituents when the attack occurred in Leigh-on-Sea, on the mouth of the Thames, about 40 miles east of London.

Ben-Julian Harrington, the chief constable of the Essex Police, called it a “tragic day,” in which the life of a public servant was “horrifically cut short.”

The death of Mr. Amess, known as much for his campaigning on behalf of animal welfare as for his criticism of the European Union, evoked the memory of a similar attack on an MP in 2016, days before Britons voted in a referendum to leave the European Union.  

Mr. Amess’s death shocked members of Parliament, who expressed outrage over the attack, paid tribute to his long government service and recoiled at another example of sudden violence inflicted on a politician making the rounds with the local constituency.

“David was a man who believed passionately in this country and its future and we’ve lost today a fine public servant and a much-loved friend and colleague,” a visibly shaken Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in a televised statement.

Mr. Johnson described Mr. Amess as “one of the kindest, nicest, most gentle people in politics,” who, he added, had an “outstanding record in passing laws to help the most vulnerable.”

The speaker of the House of Commons, Lindsay Hoyle, said in a statement, “This is an incident that will send shock waves across the parliamentary community and the whole country.”  Mr. Amess, he said, had “built a reputation for kindness and generosity” over almost four decades in government.

In Britain, most members of Parliament hold regular meetings, known as surgeries, to allow constituents to raise issues of concern.  While the gatherings allow politicians to maintain contact with voters, they can also make lawmakers, who often travel without protection, vulnerable to security breaches.  During the 2019 general election, lawmakers complained about being targeted by abuse on social media, which some feared would mutate into violent attacks on the street.

Mr. Amess had been scheduled to hold a meeting with voters at the Belfairs Methodist Church in Leigh-on-Sea, a district of Southend, when the attack occurred. Photographs taken at the scene showed a number of emergency responders and a cordoned-off area around the church.  The police said that officers had responded to reports of a stabbing shortly after 12:05 p.m., and that Mr. Amess had died at the scene.

“We are not looking for anyone else in connection with the incident and do not believe there is an ongoing threat to the wider public,” the police said.

A father of five, Mr. Amess first entered Parliament in 1983, when Margaret Thatcher led the Conservative Party.  He initially represented the seat of Basildon in Essex, where his election consolidated a groundswell of support for the Conservatives in that area. He switched constituencies to Southend West in 1997, a seat that he held in every subsequent general election.

Mr. Amess was a social conservative and a staunch supporter of the British monarchy.

Members of the community gathered in a Catholic church on Friday evening where a Mass was said for Mr. Amess.  By then, a small memorial for Mr. Amess had taken shape on the street that passes the church where he was attacked.

Fears about the vulnerability of lawmakers spiked after the attack on Mrs. Cox, who was shot and stabbed by a right-wing extremist at a meeting in her parliamentary constituency in West Yorkshire, in northern England.  That attack took place in the fevered days before the Brexit referendum, and the assailant, Thomas Mair, an unemployed gardener, was sentenced to life in prison.

Ms. Cox’s husband, Brendan Cox, reacted to the news of the latest attack on Friday on Twitter. “Attacking our elected representatives is an attack on democracy itself,” he wrote. “There is no excuse, no justification.  It is as cowardly as it gets.”

Across the political spectrum, lawmakers and other prominent Britons recalled Mr. Amess’s gentle manner and work on behalf of animals, his promotion of his area to become a recognized City, his defence of human rights at home and abroad, the honouring of Raoul Wallenberg, and support for those suffering from endometriosis.  He was also known as a strong supporter of Israel and advocate for Holocaust remembrance.

Amess was knighted in the 2015 New Year Honours for political and public service.  He was a member of the Imperial Society of Knights Bachelor.  Amess received the "Outstanding Achievement Award" at the Charity Champion Parliamentary reception hosted by Dods in 2012 in recognition of his lifetime commitment to charitable work.

“He was hugely kind and good,” said Carrie Johnson, the wife of the prime minister, on Twitter. “An enormous animal lover and a true gent.  This is so completely unjust. Thoughts are with his wife and their children.”

“Heartbroken,” wrote Tracey Crouch, a fellow Conservative lawmaker. “I could write reams on how Sir David was one of the kindest, most compassionate, well-liked colleagues in Parliament.  But I can’t.  I feel sick.  I am lost.  Rest in Peace.  A little light went out in Parliament today.  We will miss you.”

In Leigh-on-Sea, known for its annual regatta and folk festival, news of the attack reverberated through normally tranquil tree-lined streets.

“This doesn’t really happen, this is a nice quiet area,” said Alysha Codabaccus, 24, who lives in an apartment a few doors down from the church. “I mean, it literally happened in a church.”

At Mojo’s Seafood, a small white shack that serves fresh fish from the nearby coastline, the customers expressed horror and sadness.  One remarked on the impact on Mr. Amess’s family. “He’s got five kids,” the man said quietly.

Lee Jordison, who works at a butcher shop 100 yards from the church, said he had heard sirens and seen armed officers running up the street, shattering the typical autumn afternoon quiet, and had known instantly that something was very wrong.  He said a shaken woman had told him that people ran from the church screaming, “Please get here quick, he’s not breathing!”

Mr. Jordison said he had met Mr. Amess a few times.  “He always used to visit our shop,” he said. “He was a very nice guy from the time I met him.  He had a lot of time for the community.”

Megan Specia reported from Leigh-on-Sea, and Stephen Castle and Mark Landler from London.

Oct. 18, 2021 By Stephen Castle

LONDON — Politicians from across the political divide on Monday united in tribute to David Amess, the British lawmaker killed in a stabbing last week that has heightened concerns about security arrangements for members of Parliament.

The police have declared the attack a terrorist incident and have until Friday to charge the man being held for the assault on Mr. Amess.  British press reports identified the perpetrator as Ali Harbi Ali, 25, a British national of Somali heritage and son of Harbi Ali Kullane, an adviser to a former prime minister of Somalia who currently resides in London.

Addressing Parliament on Monday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson told lawmakers that Mr. Amess “was taken from us in a contemptible act of violence, striking at the core of what it is to be a member of this House.” He said Parliament had lost a “patriot who believed passionately in this country, in its people, in its future,” and one of its “nicest, kindest, and most gentle individuals.”

The opposition leader Keir Starmer described Mr. Amess as a committed public servant whose kindness and decency touched everybody he met, adding that Parliament was “united in our grief at this terrible time.”

Amess, 69, is survived by his wife, Julia Arnold Amess, and their five children.  He had represented ‘Southend West’ in Parliament since 1997, and previously represented Basildon from 1983 until 1987.  Amess’ family released a statement saying, “The family would like to thank everyone for the wonderful, wonderful tributes paid to David following his cruel and violent death.  It truly has brought us so much comfort.  The support shown by friends, constituents and the general public alike has been so overwhelming.  As a family it has given us strength.  We have realised from tributes paid that there was far, far more to David than even we, those closest to him, knew. Our hearts are shattered.”

There was a large formal ceremony in Albania in his honour, as Sir David Amess visited many times, the ex-pate Iranians who now live there, who work for a free and democratic Iran.