Scottish Defence League march banned

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A far right group will not be allowed to march in Edinburgh on the eve of the 10th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist atrocity.

The Scottish Defence League wanted to rally in the capital’s east end. However, Edinburgh City Council backed opponents who said the gathering would be a threat to public safety.

The Scottish Defence League (SDL) is an offshoot of the English Defence League which has been associated with trouble at gatherings south of the border. That group was cited by Norwegian gunman Anders Breivik as an organisation he admired.

About 50 SDL supporters held a rally in Edinburgh last year. They were outnumbered by 2,000 counter protesters marching under the banner of Scotland United.

The SDL notified the council they intended to march from near the American Embassy to the east end of Princes Street on 10 September.

The decision to turn down the proposal was made by members of the council’s licensing committee on Friday over fears of public disorder.

BBC News, 19 August 2011

Update:  See also the Scotsman, 20 August 2011

Maryam Namazie and her allies

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Enemies Not AlliesThis week Maryam Namazie of the Worker-Communist Party of Iran announced the publication of a new book, Enemies Not Allies: The Far-Right. Co-authored by Namazie and Adam Barnett, it is issued under the imprint of One Law For All, an organisation launched by the WPI and its friends to campaign against the supposed threat posed by Sharia law in the UK.

The authors claim that the far right have “attempted to hijack legitimate criticism of Islamism” and the stated aim of their book is to establish the differences between the position of OLFA and that of “racist campaigns and organisations”. So we are given a summary of the ideology and political practice of the British National Party and the English Defence League, and of Stop Islamisation of Europe and its US franchise headed by Robert Spencer and Pamela Geller, all of whom the authors roundly denounce.

Now it is certainly true that the WPI have major differences with the BNP, the EDL, SIOE and SIOA. Obviously Maryam Namazie and her comrades do not have a long history of activity on the neo-Nazi right like Nick Griffin, they do not head a violent anti-Muslim street movement like the leaders of the EDL, nor are they rabid ultra-Zionists like Pamela Geller. However, when it comes to Islam, the common ground that exists between the WPI and sections of the Islamophobic right, including some of its most extreme elements, is quite clear. And that is something Enemies Not Allies completely ignores.

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Jail for refusal to remove veil in New South Wales

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Australian authorities said motorists who refused to take off face-covering veils such as the burqa when asked to do so by police could be sent to jail for up to a year.

Under the changes to laws in New South Wales state, police will be able to ask drivers to remove helmets, masks, the face-covering niqab veil and the all-body garment the burqa. Refusal to do so would incur a fine of Aus$220 (US$228), but in the most serious cases could result in up to a year in jail and a fine of Aus$5,500.

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Police give green light to Scottish Defence League protest in Edinburgh

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Stop the Fascist SDLA controversial far-right group is set to win permission to stage a demo in Edinburgh after police chiefs said they had no objections to the Scottish Defence League being allowed to stage a parade – despite protests from politicians, trade unions and anti-racism organisations.

Critics believe the group has deliberately chosen the date to inflame racial hatred and capitalise on recent publicity linking its sister group, the English Defence League, with Norwegian terrorist Anders Breivik.

The SDL has given Edinburgh City Council, which will rule on the application tomorrow, “freedom of speech” as the main reason for holding the event, which it expects to attract around 200 supporters.

Justice secretary Kenny MacAskill wants the protest banned, claiming the group is known to espouse “both racist and homophobic views” and expressing concern the march could pose a threat to public safety. Local MSPS are also among those against the application.

Lothian and Borders Police has warned the local authority to consider the group’s proposed demo “in the context” of the recent riots that flared across several English cities.

But it has effectively given the green light to the march, which will include a rally beside the statue of the Duke of Wellington, despite admitting the group’s views are “controversial” and that a sizeable “opposition rally” is likely to be held.

Superintendent David Carradice has told the council he is confident the force can handle a demo by the SDL and any planned counter-demonstration, insisting it is used to catering for groups that want to “exercise their right to protest”.

He said: “Whilst there can be no guarantees there will be no disruption to the daily business of the community, we are confident that, with the assistance of the council, an operation can be put into place to minimise such and thereby allow the SDL rally to go ahead and cater for an opposition rally too.”

Scotsman, 19 August 2011

Update:  See “Council to decide whether far-right group march through Edinburgh”, STV, 19 August 2011

Mosque plan goes forward despite opposition

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Plymouth, Minn. — A proposal to house a mosque in a soon-to-be-closed suburban post office is now heading to the Plymouth City Council, after being reviewed by the city’s planning commission Wednesday night.

About 200 people attended the hearing, which commissioners tried to limit to a discussion about logistics such as parking spaces, access and building use. But of the 16 or so people who spoke before the commission, two raised objections to the mosque on religious grounds, and the atmosphere sometimes grew heated.

“The center of Plymouth is not the appropriate place for this,” said resident Connie Sambor, who invoked the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, and said the community was forgetting the attacks too soon. She was interrupted by commission chair Jim Davis. “Ma’am, I’m going to have to cut you off. We’re here to talk about the building and the land use issues, not to talk about political opinions,” he said.

Jeff Baumann, of Coon Rapids, went a step further. “Aiding the enemy is treason,” he said.

“These are not my enemies, sir,” Davis replied. “Will you please sit down?”

“They are the enemy – they are saying they are the enemy,” Baumann insisted before finally yielding the floor.

Some commissioners also reported they received anti-Islamic e‑mails in the run-up to the meeting.

Many of the people who spoke at the public hearing were local Muslims such as Tamim Saidi, who told the commission his family is glad to belong to the Plymouth community, enjoyed living there, and wanted a place near home to worship. “This is our home. This is our country, and we love this country,” he said. “We have been here for a long time, and it’s time for us to have a place where we can worship.”

Non-Muslims, including Plymouth resident Steven Miller, also expressed support for the mosque. “I want the community to know that I not only approve of this facility but I do plan on going there and visiting and learning from the people who are there. I hope that you approve this,” he said as meeting attendees clapped.

The proposal goes to the Plymouth City Council next week for approval.

Minnesota Public Radio, 18 August 2011 

See also KARE who spoke to Ms Sabor after the meeting. “What’s it going to take for Americans to wake up to the Islamic agenda in this country?” she demanded.

‘NUTS!’ Allen West’s response to CAIR’s call to break links with anti-Muslim extremists

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Congressman and possible senator Allen West lives in his own serene and strange reality where, no doubt, his recent response to a local Islamic group makes perfect sense.

In early August, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) sent a 679-word letter to West urging him to cut ties with “anti-Islamic extremists”. CAIR singled out Brigitte Gabriel, Pamela Geller, Robert Spencer, and Rev. Neil Dozier as Muslim-haters with whom West has shared stages.

“Muslims protect and serve our great country and are afforded equal protection under law,” the letter read. “We shouldn’t have to defend our rights to worship freely or participate in the governing of our society.”

Soon afterward, CAIR received the following letter, which was first reported by CBS4. The Muslim group sent us a copy, which we’ve embedded below. We believe it might be the dumbest thing ever written on congressional stationery.

Executive director Nezar Hamze tells Riptide he’s befuddled: “Obviously, I was expecting a little more from an elected official. I don’t know if he was calling me nuts or calling my request nuts or what.”

(West’s spokesperson has yet to explain to New Times what the congressman meant.)

Hamze doesn’t think he’ll write West back. “How can I respond to this?”

Miami New Times, 16 August 2011

Allen West NUTS

Norway: Progress Party official claimed the Qur’an makes Muslims mentally ill and potentially violent

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Trond RedThe month of Ramadan came into full effect last week, and followers of Islam must be truly amazed by what Norway has been saying about them. In a week when the Progress Party has been put under scrutiny due to Carl I. Hagen’s “most terrorists are Muslims” comments, FrP are dealing with more criticism today.

It has been revealed that Trond Røed, respected leader of the Buskerud region, was forced to apologise after admitting to sending out an eleven-page document to almost 100 party members in 2004. Contained in it are suggestions that people who follow Islam must be “deprogrammed” using psychiatric help, as well as arguments for imposing a veto on further preaching of their faith.

VG alleges the document consists of several highly controversial statements about Islam and Muslims, including one that alleges repeating certain Qur’an verses could lead to indoctrination leading to tendencies that are more violent.

“One should therefore question whether hour-long Qur’an citations over many years can cause serious psychological damage, with a consequent risk of committing criminal and destructive acts. Another question is whether it is possible to establish suitable psychiatric treatment institutions that can carry out the deprogramming,” one paragraph read.

Mr Røed also believed this document could be a useful contribution towards the Progress Party’s immigration policy views, alleging Islam has strong connections with violence.

Muslim Anne Sofie Roald, a Norwegian-born professor and Islam researcher at the Christian Michelsen Institute, says his statements indicate “a lack of history”. “Even though Islam has more of a political background, Christianity has been used politically and is, amongst other things, used for such purposes in the U.S. today,” she says, “not to mention in a politically violent manner under the Crusades.”

Trond Røed has since apologised for his actions, telling VG “I don’t stand for what I said then any longer, regret sending it and that I didn’t conduct better research at the time”. He has refused to comment on the matter further.

The Foreigner, 17 August 2011

Ken Livingstone explains why he supports a ban on the EDL march in Tower Hamlets

Posted on by Bob Pitt

We need calm on the streets of London, not this EDL march

By Ken Livingstone

The far-right English Defence League proposes to march in Tower Hamlets on September 3rd.

I want to set out here why I am supporting a ban on this march.

The EDL use religious hatred in a way that stirs up racial hatred. Their activities have often led to violence and physical intimidation.

There are many who have put forward civil liberties arguments for allowing the far right to demonstrate, however unpalatable their views may be. The context of this EDL march is now radically different following the riots and disturbances we have seen on our streets. We need to put good community relations and peace on the streets before division and extremism.

As Mayor my case to the Home Secretary would be this: the last thing we need in the uneasy aftermath of the riots is a march through one of London’s most diverse areas by far right provocateurs intent on stirring up division. We need calm and peace on our streets, not the threat of further street violence. It should be obvious that an EDL march in East London could be extremely dangerous.

We should be putting Londoners first, not the rights of the EDL to intimidate people.

It is right to be tough on those who have broken the law in the past few weeks. Equally, we cannot allow the extreme right to march with impunity into an area with the express intent of stirring up division. Not least because so many EDL actions have led to violent confrontation.

The EDL’s aim is to divide people, incite religious hatred as a means to create racial division, and turn people against each other.

In the past few weeks I have joined with politicians and community leaders from a range of backgrounds to call on the Home Secretary that this march to be banned. It is a welcome step to see such unity. Unity across party labels, faiths and backgrounds is essential opposing the dangerous threat of far-right violence.

In the aftermath of the massacre in Norway there was a clear case for halting the EDL demonstration in East London. Alleged links subsequently emerged between the EDL and Anders Behring Breivik, the Norwegian who murdered scores of people in Norway.

Now, in the context of the riots and disorder on our street, there is a compelling case that such a march should not be permitted to go ahead. For the sake of order and peace on our streets and preserving calm it would be irresponsible to let it happen.

The Home Secretary must act to ensure that the EDL is not able to bring its tour of hate to the streets of East London on September 3rd.

French businessman pays Belgian face veil fines

Posted on by Bob Pitt

French businessman Rachid Nekkaz stands next to Halima and Imen after he paid their fines for wearing a niqab in BrusselsA French businessman paid fines Wednesday for two women in Belgium who wore full-face veils in public and said he would take Belgium and France to court over laws banning Muslim niqabs and burqas.

Property dealer Rachid Nekkaz has set up a 1 million euro ($1.4 million) fund to cover fines and paid the first 50-euro penalties imposed in Belgium on two women in Brussels.

“France and Belgium have decided to forbid the possibility and the liberty of women to wear what they want,” he told reporters outside a municipal office in Brussels. The two fined women, both wearing niqabs, were also present.

“I consider that … it’s not acceptable that European governments vote in laws that don’t respect individual rights.”

Belgium’s law banning any covering of the face in public came into effect late last month. France was the first country to introduce a ban in Europe in April.

Nekkaz said he planned a legal challenge in both countries. “I will pursue the French and Belgian states in their national courts and then in the European Court of Human Rights so that they are sanctioned for violating individual liberties.”

Reuters, 17 August 2011