By KUNA
London : British Prime Minister Gordon Brown urged his country’s armed forces Friday to wear their uniforms in public and condemned any abuse against them by people opposed to the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The Prime Minister spoke out after senior officers at the Royal Air Force (RAF) base of Wittering, in southern England, advised airmen and women to wear civilian dress when they visited the nearby town of Peterborough in case they were verbally abused. Speaking at 10 Downing Street, Brown said “All our armed forces should be able to, and encouraged to, wear their uniform in public and have the respect and gratitude of the British people for the huge commitment to public service they show”.
“I encourage the local police to back up our armed forces so that not only can our armed forces wear their uniforms in public, but they should have the gratitude of the British public for the work they do”.
The Prime Minister went on “I believe the great majority of the British public would condemn any form of abuse”.
“I condemn absolutely any members of the public who show abuse or discrimination to our armed forces”.
“The public will want to show our respect and gratitude to our armed forces and we will back up the police in their efforts to show that at RAF Wittering or anywhere else it’s possible for the armed forces not only to wear their uniform but to have the thanks of the British public”, he added.
A Ministry of Defense spokesman said the decision at RAF Wittering was a local one made by station commanders and added that generally service personnel were encouraged to wear uniforms in public.
Britain’s Defense Secretary Des Browne described the situation earlier as a “great shame”.
He said “We must defend our forces’ right to wear their uniforms in public”.
Police said they were not aware of any incidents of service personnel being attacked or abused in Peterborough, near Cambridge, southern England.