TWIN GREATER MANCHESTER WITH PALESTINIAN CITY SAYS GREEN MAYOR 

The Green Party’s Greater Manchester mayoral candidate Geraldine Coggins will announce today (Friday 24 July) that she will seek to twin her city-region with the Palestinian city of Ramallah in the West Bank if she is elected as Mayor next week. 

Making the announcement outside the Dar ul Uloom Mosque in Manchester’s Longsight District, Coggins will say: 

“Greater Manchester has a proud tradition of international solidarity, from the campaign against apartheid to welcoming refugees fleeing conflict. In that spirit, I will explore opportunities to twin Greater Manchester with Ramallah in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, creating lasting partnerships between our communities and demonstrating our commitment to peace, justice and human dignity.” 

“It is shameful that Andy Burnham and Bev Craig seem unable or unwilling to call out Israel’s ongoing genocide of the Palestinian people in Gaza. Instead, Labour continues to be complicit in these horrific war crimes trading weapons and offering diplomatic and intelligence cooperation. As the Green mayor of Greater Manchester, I will show that another way is possible.” 

Coggins has chosen Ramallah because, like Greater Manchester, it has growing technology, creative and professional services sectors, creating opportunities for collaboration. It is also home to leading universities and research institutions so is well-placed for partnerships with Greater Manchester’s universities. As the de facto administrative centre of the Palestinian Authority and a well-established municipal partner, Ramallah has the capacity to sustain a long-term relationship.  

Notes 

The Green Party was the first to publish a fully-costed manifesto for the Greater Manchester mayoral by-election. Entitled Hope for Greater Manchester it sets out Geraldine Coggins’s plan to take Greater Manchester back from big money and put people and planet before profit.