London, Aug. 17: Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s decision to donate all the profits from his forthcoming memoirs, A Journey, to a charity for injured soldiers has been labelled by anti-war protesters as “blood money.”
The amount of donation by Mr Blair has not been announced, but the figure was put at more than £4.6 million in the media. Mr Blair reportedly had been paid an advance of £4.6 million for A Journey, which is due to be released on September 1. The donation to the Battle Back Challenge Centre funded by Royal British Legion will also include any royalties Mr Blair will get from the book.
“Tony Blair decided on leaving office that he would donate the proceeds of his memoirs to a charity for the armed forces as a way of marking the enormous sacrifice they make for the security of our people and the world. The Royal British Legion is just such a cause,” a spokesman for Mr Blair said. “In making this decision, Tony Blair recognises the courage and sacrifice the Armed Forces demonstrate day in, day out. As Prime Minister he witnessed that for himself in Iraq, Afghanistan, Northern Ireland, Sierra Leone and Kosovo.
This is his way of honouring that courage and sacrifice.” However, anti-war protesters and parents of some of the British soldiers killed in the Iraq war have criticised Mr Blair and said that “no amount of money will wash blood from his hands.” The anti-war group, which has been lobbying for Mr Blair’s prosecution for war crimes, said, “Tony Blair’s decision to give the money made from his memoirs to the British Legion is welcome if it means that some of those who have suffered as a direct consequence of his criminal wars will benefit.”