“In Amsterdam, the Dutch MP Geert Wilders is on trial for daring to criticise the Koran and comparing it with Mein Kampf. To some people this may be an extreme opinion, but why is he on trial for expressing it? It harmed no-one (being offended is not the same as being harmed) and is shared by many.”
National Secular Society president Terry Sanderson on the NSS website, 8 October 2010
Even The Spittoon recently posed the question: “Is the NSS pushing anti-Muslim bigotry as ‘secularism’?”
A far-right Belgian leader who posted names and addresses of 770 residents on the web in a bid to prove “Islamisation” was at work in the city of Antwerp could face a 500,000-euro fine for racism.
Filip Dewinter, leader of Vlaams Belang (which means Flemish Interest), said on his website that the official registry of residents of an Antwerp suburb “includes only 21 Flemish names”.
“All the other names are African or North African. This mind-boggling list symbolises the Islamisation of entire districts of Antwerp and elsewhere,” he said.
Dewinter, who has a seat in the regional parliament of Flanders, dubbed the district in question “Mecca-on-Escaut”, the latter being the river that runs through the northern city.
His party, unlike an increasing popular sister movement in neighbouring The Netherlands, is on the decline, sliding from 24 percent of the regional vote in 2004 to 12.6 percent in June this year on an anti-immigrant and separatist platform.
A commission for the protection of privacy filed a complaint Thursday against him before the Antwerp prosecutor’s office, alleging violation of a 1992 law banning the publication of private information “based on racial or ethnic origin”.
A commission official, Emmanuel Vincart, told AFP that if the prosecutor pressed charges under article six of the country’s privacy legislation, the politician could be fined up to half a million euros.
Dewinter responded by saying he would keep the list to first names only. “But the political analysis remains unchanged,” he said, according to the domestic Belga news agency. Barely three percent of the names on the list are ethnic Flemish.”
Tomas Vandas, chairman of the Czech Workers’ Party of Social Justice (DSSS), the most famous representative of the Czech far right, is learning from Dutch populist Geert Wilders, but without success as yet, daily Hospodarske noviny (HN) writes yesterday.
Just as Wilders, Vandas wants to drive immigrants and Muslims away from the country and just as Wilders he has been put on trial for his hateful statements. “In our country it is not yet so pressing like in the Netherlands, but the time may come in a few years. They (Muslims) will start to build mosques here and pull down Christian churches,” HN quotes Vandas as saying. He said it is time to warn against Muslims. “Yes, our party will soon focus on this, too,” HNquotes Vandas as saying.
The government of Solothurn does not want a cantonal initiative against the burqa or niqab. It has rejected the request by a member of the right-wing Swiss People’s Party, saying the phenomenon is too insignificant in Switzerland and in the canton. The canton of Aargau has already filed an initiative with Bern for a cantonal intiative to prohibit the Islamic veil.
Muslims in the Netherlands say that remarks by politician Geert Wilders have poisoned attitudes toward them, making them feel unwelcome and at risk, according to complaints disclosed at his hate speech trial Wednesday.
“My family and I no longer feel safe in the Netherlands because Mr. Wilders is continually making hateful remarks about Islamic Dutch people,” said one complaint read out by the judge. “It’s getting scary…. Soon the kids won’t be able to say that they’re Muslim or half-Moroccan,” wrote the citizen, whose name was not released.
Dozens of similar complaints filed with public prosecutors eventually led them to file charges against Wilders, citing frequent statements he has made comparing Islam to Fascism, calling for a ban on Muslim immigration and for banning the Quran.
Dutch Christian Democrats (CDA) endorsed a government coalition with liberals relying on the support of an outspokenly anti-Islamic party on Tuesday, but analysts said the pact could prove frail.
The coalition born of three months of wrangling will rely on backing from the Freedom Party (PVV) of Geert Wilders, currently on trial for public criticisms of Islam including a comparison with Nazism. Concessions to the PVV include a pledge to ban the Islamic burqa face covering and tighter immigration rules.
The deal was sealed when all 21 CDA MPs voted to back a pact with the Liberal VVD. Two MPs had echoed reservations expressed on Saturday by a CDA congress about the recourse to PVV support.
Update: See also “Christian Democrat dissidents back coalition but remain anti-Wilders”, Dutch News, 6 October 2010
Further update: See “Another Dutch Christian Democrat resigns”, RNW, 6 October 2010
A special court in Amsterdam will decide on Tuesday afternoon if new judges should be sworn in for the trial of anti-Islam MP Geert Wilders on charges of inciting hatred.
On Monday, Wilders’ lawyer Bram Moszkowicz challenged the legitimacy of the court after the presiding judge appeared to criticise Wilders’ decision not to answer any questions. Jan Moors said Wilders had often been accused of avoiding discussion about his views on Islam and Muslims. “By remaining silent, it seems you’re doing that today as well,” he said.
Wilders evoked his right to silence at the start of the trial, saying he would not answer any questions and that his lawyer would answer on his behalf.
The BNP has taken its race hate message to Larne. Skinhead members of Nick Griffin’s far-right party spent the last week leafleting homes in the Co Antrim seaside town. They put scaremongering mail through doors warning about a new asylum seeker centre which is being built in Larne.
The BNP news-sheet includes a fake picture of two Muslim women dressed in burkas walking down the Glenarm Road. The leaftlet states: “The good folk of Larne do not want their town being used as a dumping ground, holding centre, or whatever name the liberal elite wish to call it. No matter how much sugar coating is applied to this foul tasting proposal, the Ulster BNP … will not have the wool pulled over their eyes.”
But what the BNP leaflet does not say is that the asylum centre is being built inside the local PSNI station. The 25 immigrants held there ahead of deportation will not be able to leave the complex. They will not be allowed enter the town and will be shielded from public view.
Larne Mayor Bobby McKee accused the BNP of whipping up racial tension. He said: “I wouldn’t give these BNP people the time of day. They held a protest at a council meeting at the beginning of September and only 10 people showed up. They have no support.”
Bobby explained that the majority of refugees who will be held at the new detention centre will be children. “They will be held within the grounds of the PSNI station before being deported. It’s not like they will be running the streets,” he added. “Instead of moaning the BNP should recognise the contribution refugees have made to society. They come to Northern Ireland and gladly do the jobs no-one else will do. You’ve got to give them credit for that, they are only trying to escape poverty.”
The BNP Larne leaflet drop was the brainchild of its new Northern Ireland organiser Steve Moore – who was born in the town. On the BNP’s website, Moore said: “Local people are horrified by this news that their town has been earmarked as a dumping ground for illegal immigrants and bogus asylum seekers.
“We have seen that it is almost impossible to deport anyone from our country because of the insane Human Rights Act. Larne will undoubtedly become home to these economic migrants.”
Belfast Telegraph, 5 October 2010
Regarding the BNP’s new organiser the current issue of Searchlight reports:
“When Moore isn’t posting videos by white power bands such as Skrewdriver on Facebook, he reveals his fancy for all things ‘Third Reich’ by sharing videos of Adolf Hitler with his online friends. One apparent favourite is entitled: ‘Why the world cannot forget Adolf Hitler’. He also has a penchant for songs and videos of the German Wehrmacht. Elsewhere, Moore has thrown his energies into trying to stop a mosque allegedly being built in Ballymena, the heartland of Paisleyism. Like most BNP members, Moore calls Muslims ‘ragheads’ and Catholics ‘taigs’.”
Over 4,000 people gathered in central Stockholm on Monday to demonstrate for diversity and against racism, with the anti-immigrant Sweden Democrats in focus as the party took its place in parliament for the first time.
The demonstrators gathered on Sergels Torg in central Stockholm to listen to speeches and then began a march towards Sweden’s parliament, the Riksdag, on Myntorget.
Behind the demonstration were the anti-racism groups the “September Alliance”, Stockholm’s anti-racist culture association, and various Facebook groups, with speeches held by, among others, Left Party leader Lars Ohly.
Similar, if smaller, demonstrations were held across the country on Monday evening.
The demonstration was a repeat of the massive spontaneous turnout on the day after the Swedish general election, which left the Sweden Democrats with 5.7 percent of the vote and 20 seats in parliament.
See also EuroNews, 5 October 2010
A group of 40 English Defence League supporters descended on Blackburn to protest about a fast food restaurant’s decision to sell Halal chicken.
Police said the group staged the demonstration outside KFC, in Haslingden Road, Blackburn, around noon on Saturday. Although no arrests were made, officers dispersed the protesters around 4pm and carried out a “reassurance operation” throughout the town. And officers maintained a high-visibility presence around the store yesterday after intelligence revealed that the right-wing group planned to hold further protests at the store this week.
The EDL protest is aimed at pressurising KFC to end its Halal food trial. KFC is trialling Halal chicken in a number of stores across the country. In East Lancashire, they include Blackburn and Burnley.
A spokesperson for KFC said: “Police advised us of these planned protests, which are the actions of a very small minority. While we acknowledge the right to peaceful demonstration, we do not tolerate any anti-social behaviour at our stores.
“Our Haslingden Road restaurant is taking part in our Halal trial due to demand from our customers, and the overall response has been positive. Our Halal chicken is still stunned before slaughter, however we have made sure that there is a non-Halal restaurant nearby to give customers a choice.”
Inspector Andy Winters said: “The protesters dispersed around 4pm, but we maintained a police presence for reassurance through the night.”
Lancashire Telegraph, 4 October 2010
Update: See “Police act over Blackburn KFC Halal demos”,Lancashire Telegraph, 5 October 2010