Keir Hardie and the Boer War

Keir Hardie and the Boer War
Hardie was not in Parliament at the start of the Boer War, and his views were expressed in the Labour Leader. In an article printed in L’Humanitie Nouvelle and reprinted in the Labour Leader, he wrote:
“We are told it is to spread freedom and extend the rights of the common people, but it is really about getting a market for goods, investors, an outlay for capital, and companies' cheaper labour.”

But he then took a view of the Boers that he would reverse later in life, especially after he left the Labour Leadership and campaigned in support of the excluded minorities in South Africa. This campaign put his life in danger from the then Boer-dominated government.
In 1899, he wrote:
“As socialists, our sympathies are bound to be with the Boers. They have a  republican form of government, and they produce for use rather than exploitation for profit.”

However, his opposition to the war and his pacifism were instrumental in his selection for Merthyr and his return to Parliament. In 1901, he opposed a payment of £4000 to the Commander in Chief of the British forces in the war, gaining the support of 58 MPs, mainly from Ireland.

Jim O'Neil