When I wrote my reflection on the recent Remembrance Day controversy in the UK, I began by confessing that I have never worn the commemorative poppy. I have, however, always doubted my disavowal of this symbol and wondered if my rejection was, regardless of its genuine pacifism, ultimately disrespectful to those who had sacrificed their lives for their country. I am truly relieved to find Joe Glenton, a British veteran expressing views that are consonant with my own less experienced ruminations. Glenton underscores his withering criticism of both the fascistic posturings of the contemporary British establishment and the inherent hypocrisy of the celebration. He quotes Harry Patch who was the last survivor of the trenches of the First World War, “War is a calculated and a condoned slaughter of human beings. War has no use to anyone” and further, that “remembrance was nothing more than show business.” For anyone new to this insight who is open to its heartfelt pacificism, Remembrance Day will never be the same again.
Yesterday was Remembrance Day, and I must confess that, as someone who has lived in lands whare this ritual is practiced since I was 17, I have never worn the Remembrance Day poppy. This is because, while I respect those who have fallen in service of their country, I have always thought this symbolism to be sanctimonius; that it is as much about pomp and militarism, as it is about honouring the sacrifices of the fallen.
My concerns have been heightened by the controversy around this year’s Remembrance Day observances in the UK, wherein the highest officials of government cast aspersions on the March calling for a ceasfire in Palestine that took place on the same day (Saturday 11th November). The Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, had called for this march to be postponed claiming that it was “disrespectful and provocative,” because of its coincidence with and proximity to the service at the Cenotaph. His Home Secretary, Suella Bravaman, had characterized previous marches as “Hate Marches” on the basis of the chant “From the River to the Sea, Palestine Will be Free,” which she interpreted as a call for “the erasure of Israel from the map.” The irony of this savage disparagement, is that the ethea of Remembrance Day and the March for Palestine, are in fact, one and the same. An ‘armistice’ is a ‘ceasefire.’
There is, an even deeper irony here. The Imperial British symbol of remembrance, the red poppy, is also a national symbol of Palestine, a nation whose obliteration was initiated in one of the closing acts of the said imperium. As Rosabel Crean explains, the poppy, which grows in abundance in Palestine, symbolizes the relationship between Palestinians and their land, the bloodshed they have endured, as well as their resistance against Israeli occupation. My new awareness of the Palestinian symbolism notwithstanding, I will continue paying my respects to the dead of war, both civilian and military, without wearing the Remembrance Day poppy.
The Koboi Project 
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