Tony Blair, the former prime minister who led Britain into the Iraq and Afghan wars, will give the proceeds of his autobiography to a veterans’ charity, his spokesman said on Monday.
The move was warmly welcomed by the charity itself, but peace campaigners said the money would not “wash the blood” from the hands of the leader who has defended Britain’s role in the invasions since standing down three years ago.
The book, entitled A Journey, will be published on Sept. 1 and, as Blair’s first personal account of his decade in power at the head of a Labour government, is expected to become a bestseller.
Reports said Blair has already received a £4.6 million (US$7.2 million) advance for the book, which should generate an even bigger sum.
A spokesman for Blair said on Monday that all the proceeds will be donated to a project funded by veterans’ charity the Royal British Legion, which provides rehabilitation services for seriously injured members of the armed forces.
“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 spokesman said.
“The Royal British Legion is just such a cause,” he said. “In making this decision, Tony Blair recognizes 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 honoring their courage and sacrifice.”
Royal British Legion director general Chris Simpkins said Blair’s donation was “very generous” and it was “much appreciated and will help us to make a real and lasting difference to the lives of hundreds of injured personnel.”
Rose Gentle, whose son was killed in Iraq in 2004, said the donation was “too little, too late” for the soldiers who died.
“Why couldn’t he have put money into the forces when they needed it in Iraq when they had a lack of equipment and everything else?” she said.
“He’s never come out and actually apologized to the families and kids who have lost loved ones. I think he is doing this just now to make people think he has changed his opinion on the forces,” Gentle added.
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