A Conservative MP and former British Army colonel is facing an uncertain political future after being convicted of a racially aggravated public order offence but a fellow backbencher has raised £9,000 toward his legal fees with an online fundraising page.
The MP, a former British Army officer who served with distinction in Northern Ireland and the Balkans, told Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei, “You’re taking money off my country, go away” after he was ambushed by the activist outside a Foreign Office building, Lancaster House in Westminster on Dec. 14, 2022.
He told Mr. Alwadaei, an activist with the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy, to “get stuffed” and added: “Bahrain’s a great place. End of.”
Mr. Alwadaei filed a complaint with the Metropolitan Police, which led to the MP being charged.
Over the weekend, Mr. Stewart reportedly offered to give up the whip while he appeals his conviction, although that has not been confirmed.
‘This is no way to Treat our Veterans’
The fundraising page states, “This is no way to treat our veterans.”On Friday, Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring fined Mr. Stewart £600 and ordered him to pay £835 in legal costs.
Mr. Clarke-Smith described the charges and the conviction of Mr. Stewart as “outrageous” and said the money raised would help to pay the fine and any legal costs involved in appealing the case.
The Conservative Party’s deputy chairman Lee Anderson described Mr. Stewart as a “war hero” and wrote a message of support on the fundraising page, urging him to, “keep your chin up old soldier.”
He also wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter: “Colonel Bob Stewart. Is a friend and a war hero. I speak with Bob most days and share the odd tipple. After 4 years of being an MP I have got to know Bob really well.”
Mr. Anderson added: “It’s obvious that Bob has seen things in battle that no other person would want to see. He has served his country and been decorated at the highest level for bravery. This man is now deemed a criminal in his 70s after a lifetime of public service.”
Friday’s court hearing heard Mr. Stewart had just left an event hosted by the Bahraini Embassy when Mr. Alwadaei, a human rights campaigner, approached him and shouted, “Bob Stewart, for how much did you sell yourself to the Bahraini regime?”
In an exchange which was filmed by activists and went viral on social media, Mr. Stewart replied: “Go away, I hate you. You make a lot of fuss. Go back to Bahrain ... Now shut up, you stupid man.”
Mr. Stewart, who was stationed in Bahrain with the Army in 1969, said he remained fond of the country and he told the court, “I’ve spent my whole life in a way defending minorities and people of different colours.”
‘My Honour was at Stake’
“He was saying that I was corrupt and that I had taken money. My honour was at stake in front of a large number of ambassadors. It upset me and I thought it was extremely offensive,” he said.Asked to explain the meaning of what he had said, Mr. Stewart said: “‘Go back to Bahrain’ meant why don’t you go back to Bahrain and make your point there.”
Passing sentence, Mr. Goldspring said, “I accept he is not racist per se, but that is not the case against him ... Good men can do bad things.”
Mr. Stewart was chosen as the Conservative parliamentary candidate for the new seat of Beckenham and Penge, which has been carved out of two seats—the Tory stronghold of Beckenham, and the Labour bastion of Lewisham West and Penge.
Mr. Stewart had a majority of 14,258 at the 2019 general election but the Beckenham and Penge seat will be high on the list of Labour’s targets at the next general election, which is due to take place by Jan. 2025 at the latest.
The Conservative Party has not commented on the matter, and Mr. Stewart has not issued any statement since being convicted on Friday.
