Henry Jackson Society
The Henry Jackson Society Project for Democratic Geopolitics is a militarist, hard-line strategy think tank, filled with intelligence deep state operatives. According to its own statements, the HJS advocates, among other things, a strong military in Britain, the United States and the EU countries as well as other democratic countries (as defined by them). It also advocates that only democracies are truly legitimate and wants a NATO 'forward strategy' including "expeditionary capabilities with a global reach", and to "assist those countries that are not yet liberal and democratic to become so"[1]. It expressly supports capitalism.
Contents
Founded
It was founded in Cambridge on 11 March 2005, was launched in the Houses of Parliament on 22 November 2005[2] and its manifesto was published by the Social Affairs Unit[3].
Structure and projects
The Society has produced a breadth of research reports and strategy papers, with a traditional British establishment view of the world.
Recent focus areas (2020) include the impact of COVID-19 on civil liberties, critiques of far-right extremism in western democracies and planning a possible legal action in an unspecified court against China for its COVID-19 response[4].
Other areas of research include finding angles on Islamic extremism & Islamist terrorism, human rights and democracy as wedges for regime changes, and various facets of foreign policy and their definition of defense (offensive operations,more armaments). Its current workstreams include:
- Asia Studies Centre. This Centre seeks to provide "an in-depth understanding of the structural shifts, regional complexities and historic tensions that exist alongside the tremendous economic and social growth that traditionally characterise the 'rise of Asia'."[5] Publications include a paper on the possible outcomes of the negotiations with North Korea,[6] and the need to safeguard critical national infrastructure in the West from vulnerabilities which may be built in by China (as opposed to US ones).
- Global Britain Programme. Focuses on "the need for an open, confident and expansive British geostrategic policy in the twenty-first century – drawing on the United Kingdom’s unique strengths not only as an advocate for liberalism and national democracy, but also as a custodian of both the European and international orders." This centre has published papers on what the European Union 'owes' the United Kingdom, as well as advocated for increased military spending by NATO members.[7]
- Russia & Eurasia Studies Centre. Researches domestic and foreign policy issues in Russia and the former Soviet states.
- Centre for the New Middle East. Established following the Arab Spring, the Society describes this Centre as "dedicated to monitoring political, ideological, and military and security developments across the Middle East and providing informed assessments of their wide-ranging implications".[8] The Centre has released reports highly critical of Iran.[9][10]
- Centre on Radicalisation & Terrorism. Focuses on the threat to the United Kingdom and elsewhere by Islamist terrorism (which these very spooks support to the hilt when required, including sheltering groups in the UK). Reports have ranged from analyses of the UK charitable sector[11] to the way in which criminals utilise the darknet[12].
- Student Rights. Created in 2009 "as a reaction to increasing political extremism and marginalisation of vulnerable students on campus". This project has tracked what it describes as "extreme" speakers on British university campuses.[13]
- Centre for Social and Political Risk. In September 2018, the Society announced the creation of a new centre, which will "identify, diagnose and propose solutions to threats to governance in liberal Western democracies",[14] focusing on social cohesion and integration; freedom of speech and political correctness; demographic change; and other issues.
Worthy of ridicule
On 23 November 2016, in an interview with RT, Craig Murray described the HJS as "a creature of the CIA" and deemed it worthy of ridicule:
- "Any organisation which embraces Jim Murphy, Nadine Dorries, Roger Scruton and Patrick Minford is going to have some fruitcake right wing opinions and be more worthy of ridicule than political debate.[15] So I really couldn’t maintain a straight face when discussing the Henry Jackson Society on Russia Today."[16]
Activities
In 2006, the Society worked to raise the profile of the Ahwazi Arabs of Iran, who the Society was very concerned were being oppressed by the Iranian government[17], a media campaign that found outlet in among other media, The Telegraph[18]. Work from this period was later used to recommend military interventions for humanitarian reasons in UK Parliament as recently as 2013.
In June 2020, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that the UK's Department for International Development is to be merged into the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.[19] The plan had first been proposed in a report published by the Henry Jackson Society in 2019, for which Johnson had authored the foreword.[20]
The Henry Jackson Initiative
The Henry Jackson Initiative, a lobby group for capitalism, was established in May 2012 to continue the work of a task force which published its report, ‘Towards a More Inclusive Capitalism’[21] at the same time. The theme is ultra-capitalistic, but it has several similarities with the Great Reset of 2020, where all 'stakeholders' do their part - owners of capital (who are well represented in the Initiative) think long term and the ones lower down are "reasonable":
.."there comes a point in all public debates when the balance of criticism swings from constructive to destructive. We believe we may now be at such a point. Economic populism serves a certain purpose, but it is at its best when tempered by pragmatic and reasonable responses from all groups in society"....
"Today’s focus on short-term performance must be replaced by long-term thinking on everybody’s part. Companies need not offer quarterly earnings guidance. They should seek ways to reward investors who hold their shares for the long term. Large investors should create portfolios of larger shares of fewer companies so that they can be more active owners of those companies. Directors must spend more time on strategy."
It offers three solutions, which should be "ethics based" not "regulatory", to the fix the confidence crisis in capitalism: Education for Employment, Nurturing Small and Medium Size Enterprises, and Reforming Management and Governance for the Long Term
The Initiative seems to have continued in the 2020 The Council for Inclusive Capitalism with the Vatican.
Funding
The Henry Jackson Society is a registered charity in England and Wales and receives financial backing from private donations and grant-making organisations which support its work.[22]
The income of the society increased significantly from 2009 to 2014, from £98,000 to £1.6 million per year.[23] It's reported that Edward Atkin, the retired baby care entrepreneur, made donations through his charity totalling £375,000 between 2011 and 2013.[24] Similarly the philanthropist Lord Stanley Kalms has given the think tank £100,000. In July 2014 Lady de Rothschild claimed that she has financed the Caring Capitalism summit and that HJS and its executive director Alan Mendoza were holding £137,000 of “surplus funds” from the conference that should be returned to the couple’s investment company EL Rothschild, and so moved to civil proceedings.[25]
In 2017, the Society was an agent of foreign influence, when the Japanese embassy gave them a monthly fee of 10,000 pounds as to pay for an anti-China propaganda campaign the Society was running[26]. The campaign was said to be aimed at planting Japan's concerns about China in British newspapers.[27]
American Friends of the Henry Jackson Society
The American Friends of the Henry Jackson Society is a body which receives funds from US donors for the Henry Jackson Society[28]. Nina Rosenwald, an activist who supported Henry M. Jackson's own Democratic Party campaigns in the 1970s, is known to have donated US$10,000 through American Friends of the Henry Jackson Society.
Secret Corporate Donors
In 2009 the society became the secretariat of two all-party parliamentary groups (APPGs), for Transatlantic and International Security, chaired by Gisela Stuart, and for Homeland Security, chaired by Bernard Jenkin. A transparency requirement upon non-profit organisations acting as secretariat at that time was that they must reveal any corporate donors who gave £5,000 or more to the organisation. In 2014, following a query, the society refused to disclose this information and resigned its position, so as to comply with the Rules. The Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, Kathryn Hudson, upheld a complaint against these APPGs, but noted the society had already resigned, and its non-provision of secretariat services therefore "appears to have taken effect" as the Rules intended. The case was closed with no further action taken and the APPGs themselves dissolved with the dissolution of Parliament in March 2015. The APPG Rules were subsequently changed so only non-profit organisations providing services to APPGs of more than £12,500 in value need to declare corporate donors.
Resources
Neocon Europe, Henry Jackson Society Project for Democratic Geopolitics
Related Document
| Title | Type | Publication date | Author(s) | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Document:David Cameron's 'counter extremism' experts work with far-right Donald Trump sympathisers | Article | 19 December 2015 | Nafeez Mosaddeq Ahmed | The link between the two organisations (Henry Jackson Society and Quilliam Foundation) and Donald Trump is Frank Gaffney, who was the chief inspiration for Trump’s call to ban Muslims from entering the United States |
References
- ↑ http://henryjacksonsociety.org/about-the-society/statement-of-principles/
- ↑ "The Henry Jackson Society" guardian.co.uk, accessed 6 March 2009
- ↑ Henry Jackson Society Manifesto, "The British Moment: The Case for Democratic Geopolitics in the Twenty-first Century", Amazon.co.uk, Accessed 27-May-2009
- ↑ https://henryjacksonsociety.org/publication/
- ↑ https://henryjacksonsociety.org/asia-studies-centre/
- ↑ https://henryjacksonsociety.org/publications/negotiating-the-peace-diplomacy-on-the-korean-peninsula/
- ↑ https://henryjacksonsociety.org/publications/after-the-nato-summit-towards-the-normalisation-of-british-military-spending/
- ↑ https://henryjacksonsociety.org/centre-for-new-middle-east/
- ↑ https://henryjacksonsociety.org/publications/going-ballistic-responding-to-iranian-missile-advances/
- ↑ https://henryjacksonsociety.org/publications/beyond-compliance-iran-and-the-jcpoa/
- ↑ https://henryjacksonsociety.org/publications/wolves-in-sheeps-clothing-how-islamist-extremists-exploit-the-uk-charitable-sector/
- ↑ https://henryjacksonsociety.org/publications/terror-in-the-dark-how-terrorists-use-encryption-the-darknet-and-cryptocurrencies/
- ↑ https://henryjacksonsociety.org/student-rights-2/
- ↑ https://henryjacksonsociety.org/news/hjs-welcomes-sophia-gaston-and-launch-centre-for-social-and-political-risk/
- ↑ "Advisory Council of the Henry Jackson Society"
- ↑ "Craig Murray interview with RT"
- ↑ http://www.unpo.org/article/3968
- ↑ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/12027744/This-is-what-happens-to-Arab-activists-in-Iran.html
- ↑ https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-53062858
- ↑ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2020/06/16/analysis-nothing-new-scrapping-dfid/
- ↑ https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey%20offices/united%20kingdom/pdfs/towards_a_more_inclusive_capitalism.ashx
- ↑ https://apps.charitycommission.gov.uk/Showcharity/RegisterOfCharities/SearchResultHandler.aspx?RegisteredCharityNumber=1140489
- ↑ https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/dec/30/rightwing-thinktank-pulls-funds-commons-groups-disclosure-rules
- ↑ https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/dec/30/rightwing-thinktank-pulls-funds-commons-groups-disclosure-rules
- ↑ https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/lady-de-rothschild-sues-think-tank-over-funds-from-caring-capitalism-summit-9625722.html
- ↑ http://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/rifkind-a-stooge-in-secret-pr-war-on-china-xfq2qp2br
- ↑ http://www.thedrum.com/news/2017/01/29/british-think-tank-funded-japan-pushing-anti-china-campaign-mainstream-uk-media
- ↑ https://powerbase.info/index.php/American_Friends_of_the_Henry_Jackson_Society
