Who is Anas Sarwar? Learn about the first Muslim leader of a British party in history

He is not embarrassed by declaring his Muslim background and Pakistani origins, and his veiled wife accompanies him on all official occasions. He is the young Anas Sarwar who has become the talk of political and media circles, after he became the first Muslim in the United Kingdom to lead a political party in the country.

Anas Sarwar was able to win the leadership of the Labor Party in Scotland, to be the first person from the minorities to reach this position in the history of the United Kingdom, after winning the support of 57.6% of the party members, compared to 42.4% for his rival for the position, Monica Lennon.

Sarwar has not completed his fourth decade (37 years), but he is walking steadily on the path of his father, Muhammad Sarwar, who was the first British Muslim to win a parliamentary seat in 1997, and “whoever resembles his father, what is wrong?”

In fact, Sarwar never relied on his father's political legacy, but rather worked his way independently, proved himself in many political stations, and accumulated experience through contact with the jihadist of political action in the United Kingdom.

Will do politics another day, but today can I congratulate @AnasSarwar on becoming @scottishlabour leader - think this makes him first Muslim & Person of Color leading a political party in the UK, an incredible & historic achievement of which I am proud of him for.

Well done Anas 👏

- Humza Yousaf (@HumzaYousaf) February 27, 2021

childhood memories

However, the successes achieved by the young Sarwar will not erase from his memory many of the painful memories that he lived in his childhood, when his father was struggling diligently to chart his political path and write the story of his rise amid great challenges.

It was not only good news that reached the family, which was enraptured by the political rise of its father;

It was messages of another kind reaching the family home and causing anxiety and fear.

The city of Glasgow remembers in particular that his mother received in the meantime an envelope with her picture and a picture of a pistol directed at her, and a message saying that killing her would be easy, in response to her husband winning a seat in Parliament, and that memory still stuck in Anas’s mind, and that was the first He affirmed, after winning his new post, "Unity and Celebration of Diversity and the Rejection of Racism."

Anas Sarwar wins the Scottish Labor Driving Race (Getty Images)

From medicine to politics

However, the racist “messages” and types of harassment did not undermine Anas’s determination, who decided in 2010 to leave his job as a dentist, to break into the political world and win a seat in the British Parliament, which is the same seat that his father Muhammad had previously won, but the taste of victory was not complete. Where his victory coincided with the Labor Party losing its majority and leaving the government to the opposition.

Through his parliamentary work for 5 years, Anas benefited from working closely with leaders in the Labor Party, and he had an important role in the campaign of former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown to choose a new leadership for the Labor Party, in contrast, former party leader Jeremy Corbyn did not impress him. .

Congratulations to @AnasSarwar - he (and his dad before him) and I are longtime political opponents, but I also like and rate him.

That may not always be obvious in the weeks ahead as election battle is joined, so worth saying so now.

https://t.co/YrxIvzOZqp

- Nicola Sturgeon (@NicolaSturgeon) February 27, 2021

Anas took advantage of all his experience in leading electoral campaigns, to devote it during the fateful referendum that Scotland knew in 2014 for the sake of secession, and at the time he was a supporter of staying, and he was known as one of the architects of the campaign to defend staying in the Kingdom, and in the meantime he was famous for touring all of Scotland by bus It is driven alone to promote the option to stay.

Anas star became more distinguished in 2014 when he played a major role in the leadership of the party, after the resignation of the leader of the workers in Scotland, but he nevertheless lost his parliamentary seat in 2015 in favor of the Scottish National Party.

Anas did not give up, but raised the challenge again, and returned to the Scottish Parliament the following year. Rather, he raised the challenge high when he first contested the leadership of the Scottish Workers Party, and at that time he did not succeed in obtaining a sufficient majority, in the face of his rival Richard Leonard, who campaigned He was fierce and succeeded in playing a card that was embarrassing to Anas, revealing that his family's company was paying workers less than the legal minimum wages.

The man imposed himself as one of the leaders of the Labor Party in Scotland, and he became a voice and a dominant opinion in politics, and he became responsible for health affairs in the party, and then after that the spokesman for constitutional affairs within the party.

And he entered into a real battle with the leadership of the Labor Party in Scotland, which was described as a left-wing leadership affiliated with the leader of the party in Britain, Jeremy Corbyn, and Anas even wrote an open letter declaring his opposition to Jeremy Corbyn's nomination to lead the party.

Those battles with the leaders of the Labor Party gave Anas a political experience that he employed well, to win the position of party leader in Scotland, but his path will not be paved with roses, but rather with many challenges.

Election exam

A real battle awaits the new leader of the Labor Party;

The parliamentary elections in Scotland are only weeks away, and most opinion polls expect a new humiliating loss to the party, and the Scottish National Party is pushing with all its weight for a comfortable majority to fight the war for a new referendum for secession.

Behind it, the Labor Party has been trapping a series of electoral losses since 2007, many changes in the party leadership, and organizational instability, and Anas knows that he has not received a strong party, as it has been weakened by many blows and many electoral disappointments.

Opinion polls show that the Scottish National Party will lead the next elections, followed by the Conservative Party, then workers in third place, and if Anas succeeds in overturning the equation or at least occupying second place, that will be an achievement to be reckoned with, and to strengthen his political position in Scotland.

Huge congratulations to @AnasSarwar on his election as Leader of the Scottish Labor Party.

I look forward to working with him to secure our economy, protect our NHS and rebuild our country.

pic.twitter.com/sQRgotZe7r

- Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) February 27, 2021

He is expected to benefit from the support of Britain's Labor Party leader, Keir Starmer, who welcomed the election of Anas, and confirmed his enthusiasm to work with him.

In realistic language, Sarwar spoke about the situation of the Labor Party, as he emphasized - in his first statement - that the Scots did not get the Labor Party they deserve, stressing that his priority will be fighting inequality and social injustice, and confronting racism and division rhetoric.