The London Philharmonic Orchestra have suspended four members of the
orchestra for 9 months for writing to a newspaper asking the BBC to
cancel the invitation to the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra to play at
the 2011 proms. The four did no know of, or take part in,
the
demonstration inside the Royal Albert Hall which led the BBC to
cancel their broadcast.
The suspension followed pressure from Jewish supporters of the orchestra
according to the LPO’s manager. This is a disgraceful attack on
freedom of speech and on democratic non-violent political activity.
There have been letters published in the Britisih newspapers from leading
musicians and cultural figure. Not only in the Guardian but also, less predictably in the Daily
Telegraph (scroll down)
Join
the FaceBook group calling for re-instatement
Send your own polite but
firm message to Timothy Walker, Chief Executive and Artistic Director
of the LPO
Follow the campaign on Twitter #LPO4