Ugandan Asians
Sir: Bernard Levin contributes a two-column article regularly from London, once a fortnight, to the American controlled, Paris based, International Herald Tribune. There is probably no other newspaper, written in English, which is read by so many influential people throughout Europe. His last three contributions have dealt, exclusively with the problems facing this country, as a result of the expulsions from Uganda. His permanent leitmotif has been sharp criticism of, accompanied by homilies adressed to, his fellowcountrymen, on account of their alleged sins of omission and commission because they have not fallen over themselves in giving the Asians a rapturous welcome. He is, of course, entitled to his opinions. It is, however, a pity that he supports his case with a number of half-truths and misleading allegations. Among the welter of words, there is — for instance — no mention that there are, by now, something close to two million Commonwealth immigrants here and that it is not simply a question of finding a place for thirty or fifty thousand-odd refugees. On this side pf the Channel, both TV viewers and newspaper readers, appreciate him for what he is: a brilliant controversialist but, nevertheless, an entertainer, whom few take very seriously. What effect is he likely to have on the Continent, where his readers are not so familiar with him? I sympathise with the ' establishment ' in their reluctance to challenge Mr Enoch Powell because, jointly and severally, they are no match for him. I should, however, have thought that somebody in Downing Street and/or the Embassy in Paris would have tackled a mere scribe and stopped the rot by now. The damage to the country's standing, to judge by private reactions that have reached me, shold not be underestimated. When last heard of, Bernard Levin lived in the plushier parts of St Marylebone, not far from the BBC. The blocks of apartments have always been outside the Rent Control Acts. They contain no bedsitters. Has he offered his spare accommodation to the Uganda Resettlement Board?
Peter Berliner 110 Guilford Street, London WC1.
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