LONDON, July 7: A British member of parliament sparked a race row on Saturday after accusing gangs of young British Asians of drug dealing, while honest Asians were too frightened and intimidated to ask police for help.

Ann Cryer, a member of the ruling Labour party who represents the nothern English town of Keighley, said Asian “ghettos” in her constituency were beset with drug crime.

Her comments were condemned as dangerous and irresponsible, with one Asian leader calling for her to resign over remarks which were “damaging to race relations”.

Cryer’s constituency is near the northern town of Bradford, which last summer was ravaged by Britain’s worst race riots for a decade.

She cited drug links between Pakistan and Asians living in Britain as one of factors feeding crime.

Cryer said: “In a period of six months there have been four killings of young Asian men, by young Asian men.

“It is all drug and gang related, all about who is selling drugs in which territory.”

Cryer said young Asians did not have “professionals” to look up to because of “Asian flight” — once they become successful they leave the neighbourhood.

Instead, youngsters in the Asian community saw drug dealers in big cars and smart suits as role models.

Cryer has been criticised in the past over her comments about Britain’s sizeable Asian community, most recently when she said immigrants should learn English properly before they could enter the country.

Shahid Malik, a member of the Labour Party’s National Executive Committee and a former member of Britain’s Commission for Racial Equality, said Cryer should consider resigning and described her remarks as “extremely dangerous stereotyping of race”.

“Her comments are offensive and damaging to race relations and I think it is not good enough.”

Ghayasuddin Siddiqui, head of the self-styled Muslim Parliament of Great Britain, said poverty and a lack of education in the Asian community was the core problem, but Cryer was right to speak out because local Muslim leaders were out of touch.

“Drug culture and gang warfare are seeping through the entire community in Britain,” he said.—AFP