Welsh Tories withdraw call for anti-racist body to be defunded after making factually inaccurate claim

Martin Shipton

The Welsh Conservative group at the Senedd has withdrawn a letter calling for the defunding of an anti-racism group after falsely claiming that one of its employees was engaged in antisemitic activity.

In fact the individual concerned is not an employee of Race Council Cymru (RCC) – and the allegation of antisemitic behaviour by her is a matter of dispute.

‘Serious allegations’

The now withdrawn letter sent to Social Justice Minister Jane Hutt by Tom Giffard, a regional MS for South Wales West, said: “I write to you with concerns following serious allegations involving an employee of Race Council Cymru (RCC) and their involvement in activities widely considered to be antisemitic.

“Video evidence brought to my attention shows Nelly Adam, also known as Queen Niche, leading chants such as ‘from the river to the sea’ at pro-Palestinian events in Cardiff. As you may know, this phrase has been classified as incitement to hate in parts of Germany and is widely recognised as undermining Israel’s right to exist.

“Additional footage captures Ms Adam propagating harmful stereotypes, including the blood libel trope, and making other inflammatory remarks that should deeply concern us all.

“It is worth highlighting that Race Council Cymru, as an organisation entrusted with £1.3m of public funding since 2017, is tasked with promoting equality and upholding the rights of all religious and ethnic groups in Wales. This role makes the allegations even more disturbing, as they risk undermining trust in RCC and jeopardising its ability to deliver on its core mission.

“I urge the Welsh Government to take the following immediate actions:

1 Launch an independent investigation into Race Council Cymru and the specific

allegations against Ms. Adam. The investigation should assess whether RCC’s practices and leadership align with its publicly funded mandate to promote equality and inclusivity.

2. Suspend all public funding to RCC until the investigation is complete and accountability measures are in place to prevent any further harm.

3. Conduct a review of all public sector partnerships with RCC to ensure that its leadership and policies reflect the values of inclusion, tolerance, and equality for all communities in Wales.

“As antisemitism continues to rise across the UK, we must take a zero-tolerance approach to hate speech and ensure that publicly funded organisations are held to the highest standards of integrity and inclusivity.

“I trust that you share my deep concern regarding these allegations and will act swiftly to restore public confidence in Race Council Cymru’s operations. I look forward to your prompt response outlining the steps the Welsh Government intends to take.”

‘Independent contractor’

Nation.Cymru contacted Race Council Cymru to seek a response. Professor Uzo Iwobi, the organisation’s founder and chief executive, said: “We are not working with Nelly Adam. Nelly worked for Race Council Cymru as an independent contractor for a brief period after the death of George Floyd on the ZeroRacismWales campaign. This is not the same as the Palestinian protests that are ongoing.

“The statements made by the Welsh Conservatives are inaccurate. Nelly’s full time employer is the NHS.

“Race Council Cymru has the leaders of both the Jewish and Palestinian communities in its multicultural hub. It is shameful that Conservative politicians are stirring up trouble with inaccurate and unfair information.”

Prof Iwobi added: “What the Conservatives have done is a smear which could seriously damage Race Council Cymru’s reputation. We work hard to bring communities together and will not tolerate being defamed in this way.”

We told the Welsh Conservative Senedd group what Prof Iwobi had said, and shortly afterwards were sent a press statement in which a spokesperson for the group said: “We understand that Race Council Cymru have clarified that Nelly Adam worked for them as a contractor several years ago but that they no longer have any links to her.

“We welcome this statement and as a result we are withdrawing the letter which was written by Tom Giffard MS to the Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice.”

‘Antisemitic’

The press release sent out by the Welsh Conservatives based on Mr Giffard’s letter also contained links to seven videos involving Ms Adam which, according to him, could be viewed as antisemitic and problematic:

* Chanting “from the river to the sea” as well as “no peace on stolen land”.

* Getting a young child to sing “Palestine is occupied; Resistance is justified”.

* Justifying the Iranian bombing of Israel.

* Leading chants of “Resistance is justified”.

* Propagating the blood libel trope.

* Attacking police officers.

* Argues that it is wrong to call Hitler the most evil man that ever lived.

Supporters of the Palestinian cause would argue that in each instance, there was a counter-argument to the one put forward by Mr Giffard:

* While supporters of Israel see the slogan “from the river to the sea” as a call to destroy the Jewish state, many pro-Palestinian activists consider it “a call for peace and equality” after decades of military rule over Palestinians.

* Supporters of the Palestinian cause argue that under international law Israel is illegally occupying Palestinian land and that resistance is therefore justified.

* It is argued that Iran’s bombing of Israel was justified under international law because it was in retaliation for the earlier bombing of Iran.

* Resistance is justified in response to Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestinian land.

* For many centuries, the “blood libel” has falsely accused Jews of murdering Christians in order to use their blood in the performance of religious rituals. No such allegation is made in the video sent to Ms Hutt.

* A video posted by Ms Adam to Instagram depicts a heated altercation between pro-Palestine protesters and police officers, but does not show protestors physically attacking the officers;

*Another video posted to Instagram by Ms Adam shows an African activist claiming that King Leopold II of the Belgians (1835-1909) had been responsible for more deaths than Hitler, yet had not achieved the same level of notoriety because his victims were black.