Monthly Archives: May 2011

‘Peacefully protesting against Islamic extremism’ – another EDL member is charged with affray

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A man from Birmingham has been charged with affray following ugly clashes at an English Defence League demonstration in Aylesbury in May last year.

Stuart Bates, aged 41, of Lazyhill, Kings Norton, was charged with affray by Thames Valley Police on May 5. He was bailed and appeared at Aylesbury Magistrates’ Court on Monday where he entered a not guilty plea to the charge. The case was adjourned and the next hearing will be at Aylesbury Crown Court in July.

Bucks Herald, 25 May 2011

According to Searchlight Stuart Bates is a regular participant at EDL demonstrations. He is also a trusted member of the BNP West Midlands security team. “In fact Bates is so highly regarded that he was drafted in to provide security for Griffin at the BBC Question Time fiasco and at his High Court appearance.”

Bates has stood as a BNP candidate for Birmingham City Council on a number of occasions. Contesting the Quinton ward in this year’s elections he got 267 votes (3.62%).

It has also been claimed that Bates acted as a bodyguard for Stephen Lennon (“Tommy Robinson”) at the EDL demonstration in Luton in February.

Qur’an ‘desecrated’ in Chorley mosque attack

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Chorley mosqueA Quran was “desecrated” and racist graffiti daubed at a mosque, it has emerged. Two teenagers have been charged with racially aggravated criminal damage connected with the incident in Chorley.

Police said intruders entered the Dawat Ul Islam Masjid, also known as Chorley Mosque, in Brooke Street, before causing interior damage and damaging various items, including a Quran. Officers added that racially-abusive graffiti was found on walls at the building during the incident.

Police said that their investigations had not linked the attack to any organised anti-Islamic group.

Coun Hasina Khan, who lives nearby and represents Chorley east on the borough council, said many Muslims in the town were shocked by the incident. She said: “Every religion and all places of worship should be given the greatest of respect by all members of the community.” She added: “Chorley is a place of cohesion between the communities and incidents like this are very rare.”

Sergeant Kevin Mountain, from the Chorley neighbourhood police team, said: “We treat incidents of this nature with the utmost gravity. I would urge anyone who feels they have been subjected to a crime because of their race or religious beliefs to contact us immediately and we will investigate fully.”

The £500,000 mosque, which opened five years ago, has a capacity for more than 500 worshippers and was the first purpose-built mosque in Chorley. Its facilities include a wash room and two large prayer rooms on each floor.

The incident happened on April 16 but police have only just released details after charging two people.

Daniel Barrow, 18, of Berkeley Close, Chorley, has been bailed to appear before Blackburn magistrates on July 15 charged with racially-aggravated criminal damage. A 17-year-old youth has been bailed to appear before a juvenile court in Chorley on July 5 charged with two counts of racially aggravated criminal damage.

Lancashire Telegraph, 25 May 2011

Posted in UK

EDL threatens to gatecrash European anti-racist meeting in Luton

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Stephen Lennon with anti-mosque placard2A Euro MP says a bid by the English Defence League to hijack an anti-racism meeting in Luton today (Thursday May 26) will not derail the event. Richard Howitt will be joined by other members of the European Parliament to discuss racism and extremism, as part of his campaigning against far right groups across Europe.

But the EDL says it is angry at the politician’s criticism of their organisation. EDL leader Tommy Robinson says he plans to try to enter a meeting planned at Luton Town Hall to put questions to Mr Howitt.

He said: “I want to get in and talk to him. Are they going to talk about militant Islam? They need to wake up and not be afraid to talk about the real problem. The EDL hasn’t got a stall outside Don Miller’s in the town centre every week. We’re not the ones they need to stop. It’s just a political stunt by Richard Howitt so he can say that he’s stopped racism.”

Mr Howitt says the MEPs, from five European countries, have “hands-on”experience in tackling extremism, and that the aim of the visit is to show that Luton is a “centre of excellence” for combating racism and extremism. During the visit they will speak with faith leaders, councillors, trade unionists, Unite Against Fascism, Searchlight and join with the Luton Town FC Managing Director and players.

Commenting on the possibility of an EDL protest during today’s event, he said: “The demonstration against me is a typical example of the EDL shouting and screaming from the sidelines and causing upset and fear while ordinary people just want to get on with living peacefully and happily in Luton.

“My European MEP colleagues were saddened to see people from France, Germany and Denmark joining the ranks of the EDL march in Luton earlier this year. The significance of the EDL spreads far beyond the UK’s shores which is why we need a Europe-wide response and I think the EDL must be running scared if they feel they need to hold a protest on Thursday.

“Luton is resilient and Lutonians won’t let racists and extremists dictate to them. I am confident threats and intimidation by the EDL aimed at stirring up panic, racial hatred and fear will never succeed in dividing Luton.”

Luton Herald & Post, 26 March 2011

Belgium: senate gives green light to veil ban

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Belgium was set Wednesday to become the second European Union country to enforce a ban on public wearing of Islamic face veils, as its senate failed to raise objections against the provision passed last month by the lower chamber of parliament.

The Chamber of Deputies approved the so-called burqa ban law on April 28. The senate had 15 days to interfere with it, but declined to do so, the Belga news agency said, quoting sources from the Belgian Parliament.

Belgian lawmakers had already voted to ban Islamic face veils last year, but the law did not get into the statute books as parliament was dissolved in the wake of a government crisis fueled by a row between the country’s French and Dutch-speaking politicians.

“This time it should go through,” Belga wrote, indicating that the law is set to be enforced ten days after its publication in the country’s official journal.

The measure is supported by all political parties except French- and Dutch-speaking Greens, which either opposed it or abstained in last month’s chamber vote.

The law would punish anyone caught in public places with their face completely or partially covered –thus preventing their identification – with fines between 15 to 20 euros (21 to 35 dollars) and/or up to seven days’ imprisonment.

Human rights groups such as Amnesty International have criticized it, arguing that it “would violate the rights to freedom of expression and religion” of affected women.

DPA, 25 May 2011

Another anti-Islam protest comes to Dearborn

Posted on by Bob Pitt

OOTDAnother protest over what organizers call “radical strains” of Islam is planned on Saturday in front of Dearborn City Hall.

The Order of the Dragon, a pro-Israeli group, is planning the 3 p.m. demonstration to call attention to the “implementation of Sharia” or Islamic law in some court rulings, said Frank Fiorello, the head of the group’s Michigan chapter.

“We have a lot of people worried about Sharia creeping into family court,” said Fiorello, a Marlette resident. “There are 23 different jurisdictions where Sharia is being implemented in family court.” Fiorello did not provide specifics, but said there are recent cases in Ann Arbor District Court.

Other groups participating in the rally include the American Defense League, ACT! For America and David Horowitz’s Freedom Center’s Palestinian Wall of Lies, Fiorello said.

Fiorello, a Detroit native, was scheduled to host controversial Florida Pastor Terry Jones’ protest in Dearborn on April 22 but Fiorello backed off his protest after meeting with Dearborn Mayor John O’Reilly and a member of an interfaith group.

Jones ended up protesting a week later after being ordered by a Dearborn district judge that he would have to post a peace bond if he wanted to protest outside the Islamic Center of America on Good Friday.

Fiorello also said he backed away from Jones after a difference of option about how the protest should be handled. “We’re not wanting to be involved in shock tactics,” said Fiorello. “That is not our route.”

Jones, meanwhile, has planned to protest against “radical Islam” at the Arab American International Festival in Dearborn next month.

Detroit News, 25 May 2011

FPÖ politician faces legal action over mosque ‘game’

Posted on by Bob Pitt

SCREENSHOT Moschee / FP… / WahlwerbungAustrian authorities have filed incitement charges against a right-wing politician for commissioning a video game that required players to target and stop mosques, minarets and muezzins as they pop up on a screen.

Prosecutors in the city of Graz accuse Gerhard Kurzmann of the far-right Freedom Party of commissioning the game as promotional material in the run-up to regional elections last year.

The game – called “Moschee Baba,” German for “See ya, mosque” – was posted online and sparked widespread condemnation.

Prosecutors said Wednesday they also have filed charges against Alexander S., the head of an unnamed Swiss advertising company, who allegedly designed the game.

A court date has yet to be set.

Associated Press, 25 May 2011

South Shields churchgoer denies hate campaign against Muslims

Posted on by Bob Pitt

John WhiteA church stalwart accused of leaving rashers of bacon outside a mosque and Muslim homes has denied running a religious hate campaign. John White was arrested as police investigated a spate of incidents in South Shields earlier this year.

He pleaded not guilty at Newcastle Crown Court to five offences of religiously aggravated harassment, alarm, or distress. The charges all involve the deliberate targeting of Muslims on different days between January 2 and 29. White, who has been attending the same church for 30 years, also faces a string of racially-aggravated offences. But those were not put to him during his brief plea and case management hearing.

Tom Moran, prosecuting, said: “We are likely to nail our colours to the mast because really this case is about religious aggravation rather than racial. It may be a decision is taken not to try him on those other counts but I can’t confirm that today.”

White, 63, of Homestall Close, South Shields, will now go before a jury in the week beginning July 25. He was further remanded on bail with a number of conditions. One of those – an exclusion area – is to be challenged by White’s lawyers. Stuart Graham, defending, said: “One condition is not to enter Baring Street. That causes difficulty for the church he has gone to for 30 years.”

White’s arrest followed a series of disturbing attacks in South Shields. Bacon and pork was thrown at the homes of Muslim families around the town centre. A slab of bacon was also left outside one of the community’s most popular mosques – the Jam-E-Masjid Bangladeshi Muslim Culture and Welfare Association in Baring Street.

Evening Chronicle, 20 May 2011

Via London Muslim

Posted in UK

How the Terrorism Act is used to bully Muslims into spying on their communities

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Vikram Dodd examines evidence that the police and MI5 are abusing Schedule 7 stop and search powers to try and turn innocent people into informers.

Guardian, 24 May 2011

See also “Asian people 42 times more likely to be held under terror law”, Guardian, 24 May 2011

And “Black and Asian people unfairly targeted by anti-terror law”, FOSIS press release, 23 May 2011

FOSIS quotes Lord Ahmed as stating: “Ten years after it was first introduced, Schedule 7 is having an extremely damaging impact on community relations. This government has failed to adequately investigate and regulate Schedule 7 in the way that it has with other stop and search powers such as Section 44. That’s why I think it’s time we had an independent review into the use of Schedule 7.”

The FOSIS and StopWatch briefing paper on Schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act 2000 can be consulted here.

Islamophobia and the media

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Pointing the FingerPress TV reports on the launch of Pointing the Finger: Islam and Muslims in the Contemporary UK Media, the collection of articles edited by Julian Petley and Robin Richardson.

Julian Petley, who is a professor of Screen Media and Journalism at London’s Brunel University, said that newspapers in Britain are more inclined toward right-wing perspectives than TV and radio.

Petley said among the British newspapers only the Guardian and the Independent are “to some extent” liberal though the two have a tiny circulation compared with right-wing papers.

Petley added that while TV and radio are generally more liberal than the print media the situation is changing as the private sector – especially media linked to Rupert Murdock – takes hold in the industry.

He said that even the BBC is joining the rightists as TV and radio networks are rapidly moving toward Islamophobic content in line with the shift in the media atmosphere.

He stated that based on their findings, published as part of Pointing the Finger, the Islamophobic content in British media centres on four common clichés about Muslims.

Petley said the four beliefs are: all Muslims are the same, all Muslims are under the influence of religious teachings, all of them are lower than other people in moral, human, cultural and political terms and “all of them are considered a threat”.

The launch meeting also featured a speech by AbdoolKarim Vakil, joint editor of Thinking Through Islamophobia: Global Perspectives, who described Islamophobia as effectively a new form of racism that tries to reduce Muslims to a race. He added that such attitudes are to be expected from right-wingers yet even leftists in Britain hold racist anti-Islamic views.