The Labour peer Lord Swraj Paul has said that time has come for the Asian community to play a bigger role in British politics by seeing they get a reasonable representation.
All of us have contributed to this country… this is
the time for all the Asian community to play a bigger role and see that we get a reasonable representation,” Lord Paul, who is also Britain’s Ambassador for Overseas Business, said.
“The political parties are very keen to involve people from the ethnic communities so this is an opportunity for you all to play an even bigger role in society,” he said.
Referring to the hung verdict, Paul said: “There is only one winner, and that is the voters themselves.
“They have clearly told all the parties that they want a change and they are not satisfied with the change that is being hawked around.”
Lord Paul, a leading NRI industrialist, while addressing members of the Women’s India Association of the UK told them Asian women in the UK must play a bigger role in politics and society.
He extended a special welcome to erstwhile Bollywood film star Sanjay Khan and his wife Zarine, saying Sanjay must get great credit for making Bollywood what it is today.
He also referred to the recent accident of his wife Lady Aruna Paul, a patron of the Association, saying “even though she is in some pain, she did not want to miss this dinner, and especially your warmth, due to her long association with the WIA.”
Acknowledging the role of women, Lord Paul said, “Being a wife and mother is a true vocation because it is you who nurture and ensure the survival of the family unit.”
“To those of you who have unselfishly supported your husbands, sons and daughters at the expense of a professional career of your own, I would say that the responsibility of supporting a family and community is as hard a task, and in the long term has as much influence in the world, as going to an office every day.
“At the same time we have a number of women here this evening successfully pursuing a professional career, either before or after embarking on family life. We are all very proud of the women in the Indian community whose contributions to the professions, to the arts, to politics and to business have been outstanding,” he said.
Lord Paul, Chancellor of two leading British Universities – Westminster and Wolverhampton – said: “mothers and wives fulfil a great role in ensuring the best education for the younger generation. Education must be both external and internal as young people need both a broad knowledge of how the world works, and a firm sense of personal integrity and honesty.
“It is your efforts that have made our young boys and girls achieve such good results in their schools and universities and I especially congratulate you on that. And of course your spouses.”
King of Pop Michael Jackson gets royal send off
Los Angeles, July 8 (DPA) From the fleet of Bentley limousines that transported his family, to the endlessly fawning comments of television anchors throughout the blanket coverage, Michael Jackson, the late King of Pop, got a send-off Tuesday that was fit for royalty.
As the 30-vehicle convoy left the Forest Lawns Memorial Park in the Hollywood Hills, it drove past dozens of broadcast trucks, with several news helicopters buzzing overhead. Police closed the 101 Freeway to allow the procession easy passage to the public memorial in downtown Los Angeles. Traffic in the opposite direction also slowed to a virtual standstill as commuters halted their journey to catch a glimpse of the hearse.
As the procession drew up to the Staples Centre a high-flying plane drew a huge heart in the blue Los Angeles sky, while fans screamed, “We love Michael!” TV crews were set up on dozens of large podiums close to the entrance, as the country’s most distinguished news anchors, from Katie Couric to Brian Williams, led the coverage.
“We made so many sacrifices to see him one last time. We sold everything we had in our house,” said one fan, who journeyed for three days on buses from South Carolina to southern California to attend the memorial, even though she had no ticket.
Inside the arena, a large royal blue stage was erected at a basketball court that usually plays host to the Los Angeles Lakers. The backdrop featured a photo of a smiling Jackson looking up towards the sky and the words: “In loving memory of Michael Jackson King of Pop. 1958-2009.”
A lavish gold-coloured programme featured pictures of Jackson with presidents, political leaders and showbiz stars, and tributes from his family and friends.
The elaborate service began with Smokey Robinson reading tribute letters from the likes of Diana Ross and Nelson Mandela. The backdrop then changed to an image of stained glass windows as Jackson’s casket, laden high with flowers, was wheeled in. His pallbearers were each wearing a single, sequined glove in a tribute to one of Jackson’s signature styles, as a gospel choir sang.
The elite of pop music performed tributes for Jackson, from Mariah Carey and Stevie Wonder to John Mayer and Usher.
“The title King of Pop is not big enough for him,” said Berry Gordy, the founder of Motown who discovered Jackson and guided his early career. “I think he is simply the greatest entertainer that ever lived.”
But for some in the entertainment world, the endless fawning and hagiography was a little much. Media columnist Brian Lowry could barely wait for the event to end as he blogged it live for entertainment trade paper Variety. He juxtaposed the reverential tones with the bizarre behaviour that Jackson often displayed and which “makes the worshipful tone characterizing much of this coverage even more questionable.”
African American activist Al Sharpton, in his eulogy for Jackson, tried to explain the pop star’s mass appeal. “You would have to understand the journey of Michael to understand what he means to us,” said Sharpton.
“When Michael started it was a different world but because he kept going, because he refused to let other people decide his boundaries, he opened up the whole world. It was Michael Jackson who brought blacks and whites and Asians and Latinos together. It was MJ who made us say ‘We Are The World’ and ‘Feed the Hungry’.”
Only one reader of Variety, commonly regarded as the Bible of the US entertainment industry, bothered to post a comment – and he obviously did not agree with Sharpton. “A grotesque and vulgar display,” noted reader Jack Henry of the ceremony. “The US is not only financially bankrupt, but morally and culturally bankrupt as well. God help us.”