Roma in Hungarian village terrorized by racist "National Guards"

They march through the village every morning in heavy boots, tight pants, black vests and white shirts. It's not a carnival parade, but a patrol by the nationalist and racist Hungarian National Guard, which has its own vision of what "order" is. This past week the Guard wanted to introduce "national order" in the North Moravian village of Gyöngyöspata, where they are making life very unpleasant for local Roma.

"In Parliament they told me I'm a disaster tourist," says Gábor Vóna, chair of the opposition Party for a Better Hungary (Jobbik), which is radical, devious, and very far-right. On 15 March the party made the decision in Budapest for the Guard to target the village of Gyöngyöspata. "I don't deny that I was there with them. I both saw and heard a catastrophic situation," Vóna says.

***

The first person this reporter encountered in Gyöngyöspata was Piroska, an approximately 35-year-old woman standing by a house in the center of the Roma quarter. The Roma minority in this village lives in a separate section, in homes that are a bit more shoddy than the houses where the Hungarian majority lives, but there is neither chaos nor squalor there. Conditions overall are fairly orderly, at least as far as the houses and yards are concerned.

Piroska tells me that "THEY" march here every morning, singing their songs, and that at night "THEY" shine floodlights into her windows. This happens even though her family is considered one of the most proper in the village.

Who are "THEY"? They usually wear boots, and some are in camouflage, but the majority are in those black pants, white shirts and a black vest with "For a more beautiful future" inscribed across the back of the uniform. That is the name of their club for "protecting citizens", but in reality they are just ordinary fascist Guards, who have come here to terrorize the Roma population.

The leader of one such group, Tamás Eszes, claims they just wanted to see for themselves what was going on in the village, because they were receiving complaints that the Roma were stealing in large numbers and are impossible to live with. He and his people should have left town by now, but the Hungarian population allegedly demanded they stay. He claims the non-Roma people were glad some soldiers finally showed up.

When I ask Piroska what the local Hungarians think of the Guard, she says her fellow citizens are of two kinds: Those who are glad the Guard is there, and those who have had enough of them. Whether people are going to the store, to the doctor, or waiting for the bus, wherever they go, the "Guardists" are there in large numbers.

"I am not exaggerating: This is a state of apartheid," insists Aladár Horváth, the outraged head of a well-known Hungarian civic association for Roma rights and freedoms. He is surrounded by about 500 people, half of whom are members of various civic associations from Budapest, the other half of whom are local Roma people.

The aim of the gathering is to draw attention to the license being taking by the Guards and to the fact that the police - the only authority with the right to use force when crimes are being committed - is taking no action. To be more precise, the police are active when it is necessary to prosecute Roma people, let's say, for theft - then, they take action - but when an illegal squad of racists has been marching through a village for two weeks, the police do nothing.

The owner of the local bed-and-breakfast, Magdolna Bernáth, invites the activists from the capital to spend a year - or at least three days a week - in the village. If they come for just an hour or two, she says, they will not get a trustworthy image of the real situation in the village of Gyöngyöspata. When asked what the solution is, she has a simple answer: Everyone must work.

If you want to eat, you must make money - that is the local businesswoman's recipe. She doesn't say the "Gypsies" don't want to work, she just says there is a lot of fertile land in the village that would produce for anyone for free, but it continues to lie fallow.

The Roma children in the village, however, are enthusiastically reciting the most revolutionary work of Hungarian poet Sándor Petőfi, because at this time of year the whole country marks the anniversary of the 1848 revolution. Everyone in Hungary knows these lines, even Roma children:

"God of Hungarians, we swear unto Thee, We swear unto Thee - that slaves we shall no longer be!"

See the full Radiožurnál report in Czech: Maďarskou vesnici terorizují nacionalistické gardy.

Romea.cz

SARKOZY SUFFERS POLL SETBACK AS FAR-RIGHT CLOSES IN (France)

With 86 percent of votes counted, Interior Minister Claude Gueant said the president's center-right supporters had won 32.5 percent of the vote, with left-wing parties totaling 48 percent and Le Pen's anti-immigrant party polling 15 percent. However, polling institutes said Sarkozy's own UMP party scored just 16 percent, barely ahead of the National Front. The interior ministry did not issue any separate score for the UMP. The opposition Socialist party won about 25 percent with the hardline Left Front on 9 percent, ecologists on 8 percent and unaffiliated left-wing candidates with another 6 percent. "This may be the best result we have ever recorded in cantonal elections, which are not traditionally favorable to the National Front," Le Pen said on France 2 television. The vote showed people were turning their backs on decades of look-alike policies of center-right and center-left governments that had driven France into economic and social decline, she said.

The local elections, the last popular vote before next year's presidential election in which Sarkozy is expected to seek a second five-year term, confirmed Le Pen's breakthrough to stand neck-and-neck with other likely mainstream contenders. The decisive second round of the departmental elections for some 2,000 local councilors will be held next Sunday. Because the voting system favors alliances, the National Front is unlikely to win many seats since UMP leader Jean-Francois Cope reaffirmed that the mainstream conservatives would not back any far-right candidate. Turnout in the first round was at a record low of 45 percent, according to the interior ministry. One of the most unpopular presidents in recent history, Sarkozy has trailed left-wing rivals in opinion polls for months but he has now also fallen behind Le Pen in three surveys.

Typically, the National Front scores poorly in departmental elections, and Sunday's results were another indication that the far right is eating into Sarkozy's support due to exasperation over unemployment, living standards and immigration. Marine Le Pen, elected leader in January, has given the party a less abrasive image than her father Jean-Marie, who was convicted of inciting racial hatred and minimizing the Nazi Holocaust. While popular Socialist IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn is keeping France guessing over whether he will run and Sarkozy has yet to formally announce his candidacy, Le Pen is already on the campaign trail. Her overtaking of Sarkozy has put conservatives on the defensive, insisting he is their best candidate.

Sarkozy's personal popularity ratings have slumped to around 29 percent in recent surveys taken before he put France in the vanguard of an international coalition to stop Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's forces attacking civilian protesters. A CSA poll this month credited Strauss-Kahn with 30 percent support in the first round of a presidential election, with Le Pen on 21 percent and Sarkozy 19 percent. A second, more recent Ipsos survey gave Strauss-Kahn 33 percent versus 19 for Le Pen and 18 percent for Sarkozy.



Reuters

Anti-Racism Week Starts in Finland

Finland is celebrating the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination today, on Monday, with several cities holding events to celebrate. The day kicks off an action week against racism.

The Red Cross is campaigning against racism in schools, workplaces, on the streets and on Facebook. They are handing out anti-racist pioneer awards and ’I am opposed to racism’ badges. An electronic version is also available on their Facebook page.

The International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination can trace its roots to March 21 1960, to commemorate the Sharpeville massacre in which Apartheid-era South African police killed 69 people demonstrating peacefully against repressive laws.

Six years later the United Nations General Assembly declared the first International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

Yle

March 21st is the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

The International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination is observed annually on 21 March. On that day, in 1960, police opened fire and killed 69 people at a peaceful demonstration in Sharpeville, South Africa, against the apartheid "pass laws". Proclaiming the Day in 1966, the General Assembly called on the international community to redouble its efforts to eliminate all forms of racial discrimination (resolution 2142 (XXI)).

Since then, the apartheid system in South Africa has been dismantled. Racist laws and practices have been abolished in many countries, and we have built an international framework for fighting racism, guided by the International Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. The Convention is now nearing universal ratification, yet still, in all regions, too many individuals, communities and societies suffer from the injustice and stigma that racism brings.

The first article of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights affirms that “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights”. The International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination reminds us of our collective responsibility for promoting and protecting this ideal.

United Nations Website

Czech Police may handle neo-Nazi march in Brno differently than Nový Bydžov (Czech Rep)

Yesterday Police President Petr Lessy told the Czech Press Agency that police are preparing massive security measures in relation to the announced 1 May meeting of the Workers' Youth (Dělnická mládež - DM) in Brno. Lessy emphasized that officers would be brought in to ensure order not only from South Moravia, but also from other regions.

The police president claims he intends to proceed so that the extremists understand that "things will not be rosy for them" in Brno. Lessy's claim comes less than a week after police cleared the way for neo-Nazis who were breaking the law to march through Nový Bydžov after using mounted officers to brutally disperse counter-demonstrators.

The police leadership is said to be displeased that the radicals have been regularly organizing 1 May events in the city rather frequently. "We do not want Brno to become a war zone, but we will not tolerate displays of substandard behavior," said Tomáš Kužel, the South Moravian Regional Police chief.

The DM is connected to the Workers' Social Justice Party (Dělnická strana sociální spravedlnosti - DSSS), whose predecessor was the recently dissolved Workers' Party (Dělnická strana - DS). The Supreme Administrative Court ended the DS activity because of its members' radical approaches.

Two years ago, the DS convened a 1 May demonstration in Brno. The court subsequently handed down suspended sentences and fines to their entire leadership for the radical statements made by its members at that event.

The DM has announced two events for 1 May of this year in the center of Brno. Local authorities did not grant permission for either of them. Court disputes over those events ended in a cassation complaint to the Supreme Administrative Court, which recently overturned the municipal decision that one of the events could not be held.

According to many nonprofit organizations, police totally failed during the most recent extremist event in Nový Bydžov. They did not manage to protect local Roma people and dispersed a peaceful counter-demonstration in a brutal way. Organizations such as the Czech Helsinki Committee and ROMEA say police took no action while extremists violated the law.

Romea

Hundreds attend peaceful rally to counter neo-Nazi event in Claremont (USA)

Hundreds of people attended a rally Saturday against hate. The Claremont for Peace rally was held at Memorial Park to counter a neo-Nazi rally by the National Socialist Movement. About 30 people attended the neo-Nazi rally, police said.

The neo-Nazi event was held at Foothill and Indian Hill boulevards.

The white supremacist demonstrators rallied for an hour and a half to oppose illegal-immigrant enrollment at the nearby Claremont Colleges.

Between 300 and 500 counterdemonstrators rallied nearby. Between 200 and 300 others held a separate peace rally in opposition to the white supremacists in a park four blocks away.

About 110 officers were deployed at the white supremacist rally. There were no arrests and no reported injuries or property damage.

In an email before the event, Claremont for Peace said it had called the rally "in the name of peace, celebrating social justice, love and intercultural understanding."

The group is an ad-hoc collective formed to create an organized response to the National Socialist Movement's hateful messages, the group stated.

Southern California Public Radio

America gets a jarring wake-up call on Islamophobia by Adel Syed and Lana Daoud (Opinion, USA)

Last month, the Islamic Circle of North America Relief (ICNA) sponsored a fundraising dinner in Yorba Linda, California to raise money for women’s shelters and hunger relief across the United States. Families, including young children and elders, arrived to the event, and attempted to remain unscathed by epithets being shouted at them by angry protesters. The widely viewed video documenting the event speaks for itself.

Nonviolent protests, to be clear, are a civil right and valid expression, but the vitriol that attendants were subjected to during the ICNA event is symptomatic of a larger ailment. It is not only indicative of a growing gap of understanding, but a legitimization of fear and paranoia evident in the words of the protesters, and even in speeches by two U.S. congressman, Ed Royce and Gary Miller, and Villa Park Councilwoman Deborah Pauly.

The protest rally – sponsored by local Orange County conservative group ACT! for America, and Pamela Geller’s Stop Islamization of America (now designated a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center) – initially took issue with a single speaker at the ICNA fundraiser. But it was their choice of hateful language and insults against Muslims that has since caused the uproar.

The shock of such hate is still palpable, and nearly a month after it took place, the protest has served as a wakeup call. People of all faiths and backgrounds across the country showered the Council on American Islamic Relations-Greater Los Angeles Area (CAIR-LA) with e-mails and phone calls of support, some even crying, showing their solidarity with Muslim-Americans. The heartfelt messages were followed by eager questions: “What can I do? I want to do something, but don’t know where to start.”

The protests have served as a catalyst for dialogue, whereby those who have been working together across various faith communities at a grassroots level can now bring people together for the real discussion. Muslim-Americans have been aware of, indeed feared, the escalation of threatening rhetoric since the September 11, 2001 attacks. However, only after the YouTube video of the protest at the ICNA event permeated the blogosphere did those who had been on the fence decide that enough was enough.

Americans are not a monolithic group, but a diverse nation that can work together. There are steps that can be taken to move toward inclusiveness and greater civility toward one another. Some steps that concerned citizens can take to involve local authorities and create positive change include contacting members of Congress to ensure they know their constituency is represented by diverse voices; or reaching out to local places of worship or organizations to encourage outreach among various faith communities.

This spring, CAIR-LA is organizing a conference to provide necessary leadership skills to encourage civic engagement among Muslim-Americans. In addition, the Los Angeles Sheriff’s department initiated an engagement process with Muslim-American community leaders through the Muslim American Homeland Security Congress, a community partnership in which law enforcement, Muslim-American leaders and youth throughout the Los Angeles area work together to keep communities engaged with one another. Such programs can serve as a model across America for people of diverse backgrounds to work toward a common goal of building a balanced society.

The American collective conscience has always been able to differentiate between a few who seek to marginalize and scapegoat a particular community and the majority that values pluralism. The outpouring of support from across religious and ethnic communities is a testament to the belief in equality for all.

The late U.S. President John F. Kennedy once said, “Ultimately America’s answer to the intolerant man is diversity, the very diversity which our heritage of religious freedom has inspired.” Muslim-Americans have been part of the American fabric since the 18th century, and continue to make contributions to society. Muslim-Americans are well represented in the armed forces, and serve as doctors, engineers, and school teachers in America’s classrooms.

Ensuring that America continues to be a model of inclusiveness can only occur when Muslim-Americans are seen as fellow neighbors to engage with, not outsiders to be shouted at, or altogether avoided.


Adel Syed is the government relations coordinator and Lana Daoud is the development coordinator for the Council on American Islamic Relations, Greater Los Angeles Area. THE DAILY STAR publishes this commentary in collaboration with the Common Ground News Service (www.commongroundnews.org).

Daily Star

White supremacist gets 60 days in jail for threats (Canada)

Self-professed white supremacist Kyle Robert McKee has been sentenced to 60 days in jail after pleading guilty Thursday to three criminal charges -including what Crown prosecutor Janice Rea called "racist motivated threats."

McKee, 25, pleaded guilty to uttering threats and possession of a weapon dangerous to the public in connection with an incident on Feb. 13, and for assaulting a woman at a prior party.

Rea said McKee made the threats when he confronted Jason Divine, who was driving through the southwest neighbourhood and hanging posters, identifying McKee as a member of a neo-Nazi group.

She said McKee made reference in the threats to whether or not Divine needed another visit, alluding to a home invasion last Nov. 8.

No charges have ever been laid in connection with that incident, Rea noted.

Provincial court Judge John Bascom accepted a joint submission for the 60-day total sentence, less credit for 33 days already served. McKee also must provide a DNA sample.

McKee had two attempted murder charges dropped last May in connection with a homemade bomb being planted outside a condo.

Calgary Herald

CALLS MOUNT FOR PROBE AFTER ATTACK ON ROMA CAMP (Albania)

The OSCE, US and EU ambassadors in Tirana have called for an investigation after a Roma camp on the outskirts of Tirana was burned down three weeks ago by perpetrators who have not yet been found.

“We strongly urge the responsible authorities to take the appropriate action by investigating the disturbing February events in order to ensure that such acts are not repeated,” the three ambassadors said in a statement. “We also encourage the authorities to take the appropriate action to provide necessary social assistance, including housing, to those people who have now found themselves homeless,” the statement added. Some dwellers in the camp, which was home to roughly 40 families, told local media the attackers arrived at night and beat them with sticks while setting fire to their barracks over several days, pressuring them to relocate. The residents of the camps say the police failed to prevent the attacks and provide protection for the families, who now have moved to live in settlements in Tirana and other cities. Police denied on Friday that they had disregarded the laws against discrimination of minorities and the protection of children while dealing with the case. According to the police statement, the Roma “initiated the conflict” with their neighbors, which then escalated. “We have questioned the Roma about the fire that swept their dwelling but they have refused to testify,” read the statement.

According to the Union for Albanian Roma, a Tirana-based NGO, up to 150,000 Roma people live in Albania, part of a community that struggles with discrimination, poor literacy rates and massive unemployment. The ambassadors reminded the Albanian government that it committed itself to the objectives of the Declaration of the Decade of Roma Inclusion and ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination and the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women. The statement also underlined that the fight against discrimination and the protection of the rights of Roma is one the twelve key priority areas needing particular attention, set forth by the European Commission as precondition for Albania to be granted EU candidate status.

Balkan Insight

'SUPREME COURT PAVED THE WAY FOR CONVICTION OF WILDERS' (Netherlands)

 The president of the Supreme Court last November restricted freedom of speech, as a result of which it could have been easier for other judges to get Party for Freedom MP Geert Wilders convicted. So, at least, suggests TV programme Uitgesproken WNL. The Supreme Court ruled on 23 November that a T-shirt with the slogan Combat18 constituted incitement to hatred and was therefore forbidden. According to WNL, the president of the Supreme Court, Geert Corstens, was personally co-responsible for this verdict. The Combat 18 verdict offers a handle for being able to convict Wilders of incitement to hatred, according to lawyer Gerard Spong. Spong, who is not a party to the Wilders court case, said that Corstens gives the impression with the verdict that he wants to achieve an accounting with the PVV leader "via the back door."

The accounting that Corstens is said to want to effect arose after Wilders sharply criticised the functioning of the judiciary last October, promoted by his own court case. About a week later, Corstens criticised the statements of the PVV leader on TV programme Buitenhof. According to the lawyer, Wilders undermined confidence in independent jurisprudence with his remarks. Wilders' lawyer Bram Moszkowicz also has doubts on the course of events. He said that his clients is "not amused." Moszkowicz considers it disquieting that members of the Supreme Court make statements about Wilders while his case might still come up there at a later stage. Moszkowicz also referred in this connection to last year's leaked memorandum by Diederik Aben, Solicitor-General to the Supreme Court. In this, Aben termed it wrong that lower courts honoured the request by Wilders to have the judges hearing his case replaced due to the appearance of bias. Wilders is currently on trial for incitement to hatred and defamation of Muslims. The case concerns statements that he made outside parliment, as within parliament, he enjoys immunity.

Nis News

TOWN RESIDENTS SIGN PETITION SUPPORTING RIGHT-WING CIVIC GUARD GROUP (Hungary)

Over 1,000 residents of Gyöngyöspata , Heves county, signed a manifesto demanding the operation of the far-right Civil Guard For a More Beautiful Future, citing a lack of public safety, on Wednesday afternoon. Local residents say the police, local government and local civil guard have been unable to enforce order for a number of years. Mayor László Tábi said "we recognise the presence of the civil guard in the village as long as it operates under lawful frameworks."  No local Roma attended the village meeting, but relayed a message that said "let police jail the Gypsies who are criminals but all 300 local Gypsies should not be punished." Civil guard members left Gyöngyöspata on Thursday evening, police announced. Heves county police and emergency police are continuing their stepped up patrols of the village.

Politics Hu

Oldham woman jailed over 'disfigured face' hate attack (UK)

A woman who attacked another woman because she had a facial disfigurement has been jailed for eight months.

Rachel Rooney, 31, of Capesthorne Drive, Oldham, taunted Chantelle Richardson - who has arteriovenous malformation - before punching her.

Ms Richardson's condition means she has an irregular connection between veins and arteries. Trauma to the nose could lead to bleeding and severe strokes.

The judge at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court agreed it was a hate crime.
Continue reading the main story
“Start Quote

    No-one should be subject to the violence and verbal abuse that Chantelle experienced”

End Quote Rebecca Radcliffe CPS lawyer

Rooney had admitted assault occasioning actual bodily harm at an earlier hearing.
'Example to others'

But, on Thursday, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) asked the judge to consider the attack as a hate crime and increase her sentence, using Section 146 of the Criminal Justice Act.

After the sentencing, Ms Richardson said: "Today's result is an important one both for me personally and for disfigured people in society.

"I hope this will be recognised as an example to others - it is unacceptable to bully, abuse and taunt people who look different and I hope it gives other disfigured people the confidence to go out in public without fear of prejudice."

CPS lawyer Rebecca Radcliffe said: "This was a completely unprovoked attack on a young woman who was simply minding her own business and enjoying the company of her friends.

"In our view, Rooney's actions were clearly motivated by hostility towards Chantelle's disability."

BBC News

Producer is suspended in TV drama racism row (UK)

It is the TV programme which made Thame and Haddenham famous across the country but a racism storm has now put the future of Midsomer Murders in doubt.

Producer Brian True-May, who brought the show to Thame, was suspended this week for refusing to include ethnic minority actors in the show.

He believed that it wouldn’t ‘truly reflect rural towns like Thame’ to have such diversity in the programme.

The comments came out in an interview with The Radio Times where he said: “We just don’t have ethnic minorities involved. Because it wouldn’t be the English village with them.

“It just wouldn’t work. Suddenly we might be in Slough.

“We’re the last bastion of Englishness and I want to keep it that way.”

Mr True-May has received some sympathy from the town’s deputy mayor Don Butler.

He said: “I think that he has been treated a little unfairly as he is entitled to his own opinion.

“But it is fair to say that there is some ethnic minorities living in Thame.”

A pathway has been set up in the town based on the fictional show, which passes several places featured throughout the years.

Historic landmarks such as the 16th Century Spread Eagle Hotel has been featured on the programme, as has some of the independent shops and tea rooms.

But it is not yet known if anymore episodes of Midsomer Murders will be filmed. The decision is in the hands of the chiefs at ITV, who are still yet to decide Mr True-May’s fate.

In response to the interview, an ITV spokesman said the broadcaster was “shocked and appalled” at the comments. In the 14 series of the programme, only a single ethnic minority character has appeared .

Thame Today

Drunk fined for racist abuse in kebab shop (UK)

A drunk man screamed racist abuse at staff in his local takeaway after they refused to give him a free meal, a court heard.

William McNeill also shouted "Al-Qaida" at workers in the kebab shop.

McNeill, 42, appeared for sentence at Livingston Sheriff Court yesterday. He had earlier pleaded guilty to acting in a racially aggravated manner and using racially offensive language towards restaurant worker Hazim Hashim on February 27 this year.

Sheriff Donald Muirhead fined McNeill £500.

He told him: "The court has a job to teach people not to behave in a racially aggravated manner the way that you did."

Stewart Peebles, defending, said the accused had visited the busy restaurant many times before without any problems.

"He works as an HGV driver abroad with people from all nationalities and places and he has no difficulty with them whatsoever. He was very drunk on this occasion and has little recollection of anything."

News Scotsman

White supremacist sought in bombing (Canada)

Police say they are searching for Kyle Robert McKee, 24, and a 17-year-old who cannot be named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

The bombs were left near the intended victim's floor-level suite on Rundlehorn Drive N.E. Investigators believe it was a targeted attack -- but not a hate crime or gang-related.

The bombs were found Saturday morning by a resident. Police say the man made the risky move of throwing the devices into the parking lot, where they exploded.

"We want to know what the motive is. We're not certain of that right now," said Staff Sgt. Keith Cain.

Cain did not know if the wanted minor is also a member of the Aryan Guard.

There were two people in the home at the time. After interviewing them, police identified the two suspects.

"We're very interested in locating both the 17-year-old and Mr. McKee because we believe that there is danger to the victims and possibly to others," said Cain.

McKee could not be reached for comment, and two skinheads at the Rundlehorn Drive apartment where the explosives were located also declined interviews.

In three interviews with the Herald since 2008, McKee identifies himself as a member of the Aryan Guard.

"A lot of us agree that when you can't be proud of being white, that's a problem," McKee has said.

Before the March 2009 white pride rally downtown, McKee spoke of curbing rowdy behaviour during the march and new measures taken by his group to forbid drinking alcohol before the event.

"Ideally, we'd like to see it eventually turn into a fairly mainstream thing. You just get your average Joe out there saying, 'I'm proud to be white.' "

And after the event -- which erupted in violence when confronted by anti-racism activists--he called it a success.

"We didn't make it to City Hall, but I think a lot of people will hear about it, and on that part it's a success."

McKee is also a frequent poster on white pride online forums, most recently praising the spray painting on the Calgary Jewish Centre and Holocaust memorial as funny.

He has been photographed with Nazi flags, white pride logos and with his right arm raised in salute.

Police say they are worried about the use of a bomb.

"Regardless of who these devices are linked to, it's a major concern for us."

The explosives are believed to be homemade, said Cain.

"Unfortunately, this type of information is available readily out there and persons that wish to act upon that can do so," said Cain. "This is definitely a big concern to us."

McKee and the 17-year-old face charges of attempted murder, possessing, making or controlling explosives and possession of a weapon or imitation for a dangerous purpose.

Calgary Herald

Dream home turns into racist nightmare as English woman is forced into selling up (UK)

An english mother has claimed racist yobs are forcing her out of her dream home in a tiny Scottish village.
June Broadhurst, 65, was horrified when vandals daubed "go home" in red spray paint all over her white-washed house.

She also had rocks thrown at the property and claims to have been abused and threatened in the street. Now she's had enough and is putting her home, in Findochty, Moray, up for sale.

"The only option left to me is to leave. It's shocking but it's been made obvious that I am no longer welcome here," she said.

Mother-of-two June was married to a Scotsman, Alex, and they lived in Manchester. They often talked about starting a new life together in Scotland, but he died in 1996 before they got the chance.

However, Ms Broadhurst decided a move north would be ideal and the sea air in Findochty, which sits on the Moray coast, might help her osteoarthritis.

She bought a house on the same street as a friend, but he passed away before she moved in. June found herself at the centre of disputes with neighbours and Aberdeenshire Council over right of way wrangles and an extension that bordered her property.

But she believes at the heart of all her problems is that fact that she's not Scottish.

Scotsman.com

Canadian Forces member probed for alleged white pride activities

Canada’s military police are investigating allegations a Canadian Forces member — reportedly a 17-year-old Winnipeg male youth — is involved with white pride activities.

Capt. Karina Holder, public affairs officer with the Canadian Forces Provost Marshal, confirmed Thursday that military police are probing allegations of alleged racist ties, which she said are unacceptable to the Canadian military.

“We have very strict policies on racist attitudes and behaviours because they run so contrary to our ethos,” Holder said. “The regulations are very clear that such attitudes are not tolerated.”

A Calgary newspaper that interviewed the accused teen identified him as a 17-year-old reservist from Winnipeg, but Holder would not confirm his age, location, or whether he is a member of the regular or reserve force.

“All I can say is the member does not have a long service record in the force,” she said.

Holder couldn’t say whether he has been suspended during the investigation or had his duties changed as a result. She did confirm military police were alerted Wednesday to allegations of a connection to white pride activists.

“We were forwarded certain information that a Canadian Forces member was involved in certain groups and we’re investigating to see whether that’s true or not,” Holder said, confirming that part of the allegation is that the accused was set to travel to a white pride rally in Calgary this weekend. “We were made aware of that. We’re not sure whether there’s any (factual) base to it or not.”

The teen in question told the Calgary Herald he does not believe in white supremacy and said although he had plans to travel to the rally, he cancelled them weeks ago.

The paper reported he had previously posted quotes from Hitler on his Facebook page and also posted comments on a white power website, but the boy told the Herald he has since “matured.”

Winnipeg Sun

Never again' says EDL pub landlord (UK)

The landlord of a pub which hosted a meeting of the far-right protest group the English Defence League has vowed it will never happen again.

Shane McDonald, from the Princess Royal pub on Sandon Road, said he had no idea his premises had been booked by local members of the movement, which stages demonstrations about the spread of Islam, until they arrived.

Now, Mr McDonald has banned the group from booking the venue again, despite the group’s claims on social-networking site Facebook they are set to hold a “meet and greet” at the pub in the next few weeks.

He told the Newsletter: “Yes they held a meeting here but I didn’t know until they got here and I have put a stop to it straight away.

“This pub is apolitical and we do not endorse the EDL. I have categorically said no more meetings.” The group met at the Princess Royal last month. In January last year 17 people were arrested at an English Defence League rally in Stoke-on-Trent.

Last week, Staffordshire Police said they were monitoring the Stafford group and anti-facism groups said the formation of an EDL branch in the county town was a “very detrimental” development.

Mr McDonald added: “To be fair, they were a good bunch of blokes when they came in. But with their political views it’s just not worth the hassle.” Local neighbourhood watch co-ordinator, Simon Davies, said: “This sounds like very good news. Hopefully this will mean the EDL has less of a platform in the area.” The Newsletter tried to contact the national EDL group but no-one was available for comment.

Staffordshire Newsletter

French Jews protest Marine Le Pen

French Jewish leaders condemned the far right leader Marine Le Pen at a rally in Paris.

Monday's rally was presaged by a French-Jewish radio station's plans to interview Le Pen, the daughter of notorious French politician Jean-Marie Le Pen and president of the National Front Party, which many French Jews consider anti-Semitiic. The interview was canceled amid broad community outrage.

"It's sad to come to such an event to warn Jewish people against the National Front," said Pierre Besnainou, president of the Unified Jewish Social Fund, a Jewish welfare agency.

Many French Jews see Le Pen as a somewhat more palatable but fundamentally unchanged politician from her father. In January, she gave an interview to the Israeli daily Haaretz and is believed to be trying to sanitize her party's image in an effort to make inroads with the Jewish community.

At the rally, organized by the French Union of Jewish Students, several speakers emphasized that the National Front Party is structurally anti-Semitic and that Le Pen's efforts notwithstanding, French Jews should be careful not to give her their seal of approval. 

"I don't want to exclude the National Front from the republican debate, but to speak on community Jewish radio, there is a margin," said Richard Prasquier, president of the Representative Council of French Jewish Institutions known as the CRIF. "If the Jews host her, she is respectable."

In 2002, Le Pen's father shocked the country by finishing second in the presidential election, defeating the Socialist candidate before being trounced by Jacques Chirac in the second round.

Several polls over the past few weeks have indicated that Le Pen might be able to repeat her father's success in next year's elections. A poll published in Le Parisien earlier this month reported that 23 percent of respondents would vote for Le Pen in 2012, ahead of both French President Nicolas Sarkozy and the Socialist Party candidate, Martine Aubry.

JTA

Supremacist rally planned for Saturday (Canada)

City police say they are prepared and have a security plan in place to handle whatever this weekend's white pride rally brings.

Members of the group Blood and Honour handed out pamphlets in Edmonton a few weeks ago to promote the rally in Calgary. They have also invited members from across North America to take part.

Members of the city's Anti-Racist Action group also plan to attend the rally and counter demonstrate.

Police have seen clashes between the two groups in the past and are ready to intervene if required.

"We have a number of officers who have changed their shifts so they are working a regular day on a regular shift this Saturday. We have resources in place so if we need to call them we will," said Inspector Keith Cain from the Calgary Police Service.

Two years ago both groups clashed during a march through the downtown core and police had to step in and restore order.

This year police say they have plans in place to ensure there is not a repeat of that incident.

Police say they don't know how many protestors are expected this Saturday.

 Calgary CTV