javid race row
Sajid Javid defends calling grooming gang ‘sick Asian paedophiles’
SAJID Javid defended calling a grooming gang “sick Asian paedophiles” and the government's right to strip them of their British citizenship today.
The Home Secretary said on BBC Radio 4’s Today that he took the scandal personally because Rochdale is his hometown and the men shared his Pakistani background.
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He insisted he was right to call them “sick Asian paedophiles”, arguing that ignoring their ethnicity would give a boost to extremists.
Javid also said it was his job to keep the British public safe even if it meant they were being sent back to countries where they may face fewer checks on their actions.
In October he faced criticism after tweeting about a group of 20 men in Huddersfield who were found guilty of rape and sexual abuse of girls.
He tweeted: “These sick Asian paedophiles are finally facing justice. I want to commend the bravery of the victims.
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“For too long, they were ignored. Not on my watch. There will be no no-go areas.”
Speaking on the Today programme, Javid stressed why the background of the grooming gangs needs to be acknowledged rather than ignored.
He said: “I'm very much aware of the need for politicians to be careful with language as well as what they do.
"When it comes to gang-based child exploitation it is self-evident to anyone who cares to look that if you look at all the recent high-profile cases there is a high proportion of men that are of Pakistani heritage."
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“There could be - and I'm not saying there are - some cultural reasons from the community that those men came from that could lead to this type of behaviour".
"For me to rule something out just because it would be considered sensitive would be wrong.
"If I had ignored it, or been seen to ignore, that is exactly what I think extremists would like to see in this country.
"It would give them oxygen and I refuse to do that."
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The Court of Appeal upheld a decision to strip three members of the Rochdale grooming gang of their British citizenship in August.
Abdul Aziz, Adil Khan and Qari Abdul Rauf were among nine men jailed in May 2012 after being found guilty of grooming and sexually exploiting many young girls.
Javid defended the government’s move, he said: “I'm the British Home Secretary. My job is to protect the British public and to do what I think is right to protect the British public."
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