BNP CANDIDATE SAYS NEO-NAZI INSIGNIA ON FACEBOOK WAS NOTHING TO DO WITH HIM (uk)

A BNP election candidate claims a hoaxer is behind neo-Nazi insignia festooned on a Facebook page set up under his name. An anti-BNP group claimed Colin Marsh’s Facebook page contained SS and neo-Nazi group Combat 18 insignia. Party leader Nick Griffin called for his candidate to be thrown out of the far-right group in an appearance on Jeremy Vine’s BBC Radio 2 show. “It’s totally ridiculous and all made up,” said Mr Marsh, who is standing in the Weaver Vale constituency, which contains large parts of Runcorn. The former Royal Navy sailor added: “It’s sickening, I’ve never seen anything like that before. It definitely wasn’t me. “Somebody has gone into Facebook and done it. The BNP have looked into it and they are quite satisfied that it wasn’t me. “I ended up going into hospital over the weekend because of this. “I suffer from angina and can’t have major shocks.” The Facebook account, called Col Marsh Eastcheshirebnp, was taken down hours after the story broke in The Sun. “Nick Griffin was right to say what he did, he’s bound on saying that and that’s what he should have said,” added Mr Marsh, who has no plans to stand down over the controversy. “It’s too late to back down so I would have to sit anyway. “There’s a lot of people saying stick with it, I’ve had a lot of support from the electorate in Weaver Vale. “It’s something I would be so proud of if I was chosen to represent them.” Maurice Cousins, deputy editor for Nothing British About the BNP, an anti-BNP campaign group, said: “Colin Marsh is a vile neo-Nazi sympathiser with values inimical to Britain’s liberal democratic way of life. “Despite Nick Griffin’s claims to have axed neo-Nazis from the party, Colin Marsh shows you the true face of the BNP it doesn’t want you to see.”


Runcorn and Widnesweekly news

FAR-RIGHT PARTY HEAD: PROTECTIVE CORPS MAY BE REESTABLISHED (Czech Rep.)

The leader of the abolished far-right Workers' Party (DS) Tomas Vandas will renew the activities of the DS protective corps by May 7 unless the Czech Interior Ministry takes steps towards the dissolution of the guards of the centrist Public Affairs (VV) party, he told CTK Tuesday. The Public Affairs allegedly formed guards that monitor the situation in dangerous locations in Prague. The guards have no special powers but were created within the election campaign. The VV guards, formed after the example of the Workers' Party units, decided to replace the police, Vandas said. He said the Workers' Party was dissolved in February for the same reason and its candidates now run in the elections for the Workers' Party of Social Justice (DSSS). The Constitutional Court ruled that the DS spreads fears of foreigners, creates feelings of danger and that its programme promotes xenophobia, chauvinism and includes racist allusions. Vandas claimed that political competition in the Czech Republic is unjust. He said the DS protective corps will be prepared to monitor the situation in Krupka, north Bohemia, on May 7 where two DSSS election candidates were brutally attacked on Sunday. Vandas recalled that the court's verdict against the Workers' Party has not yet taken effect. The guarding units of the Public Affairs operating in the first and fifth Prague districts were today criticised by Interior Deputy Minister Lenka Ptackova Melicharova (Christian Democrats, KDU-CSL) and by the Green Party.


Prague Monitor

Dudley Muslim Association brands English Defence League as liars and bigots

THE leader of Dudley Muslim Association has accused the English Defence League of provoking religious hatred over his group’s plans for a new mosque in the town.

Chairman Dr Khurshid Ahmed said far-right protesters, who staged a mock call-to-prayer in a rooftop protest on Monday, had been “un-English” in their lack of respect for the law.
He said: “This was not a protest – this was wilful incitement to religious hatred by playing that loud call-to-prayer.
“The people of Dudley have nine mosques and have never experienced a call as loud as that – or anywhere in Britain.

“Our call to prayer can only be heard within the parameters of the mosque.”

Dr Ahmed said the truth had been distorted for political ends over the planned mosque in Hall Street, which Dudley Council challenged unsuccessfully in the High Court.
And he said misinformation had been spread about the cost and scale of the project, which he claimed had been wrongly dubbed a “super-mosque”.

The Association said it had always been open in speaking to Dudley Council officials about possible alternative sites, and admitted the authority had brought a new proposal to the table.

But the plan for the new mosque has not yet been formally scrapped, the Association confirmed.

It is understood the council is suggesting an expansion to the current mosque in Castle Hill.

Black Country News

Ku Klux Klan leader guilty of murder (USA)

A Ku Klux Klan leader has pleaded guilty to murdering a woman recruit, a day after an initiation rite in the US state of Louisiana in 2008.

Raymond Foster, 45, of the Louisiana town of Bogalusa, was sentenced to life in prison for second-degree murder of Cynthia Lynch.

A former KKK member testified that Foster shot Ms Lynch, 43, after she told him: "I want out", AP reports.

Foster apologised to the victim's mother, and his own family, in court.

"I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me," he said.

Ms Lynch was shot dead in November 2008 a day after initiation rites in rural Tammany Parish, about 50 miles (80km) north of New Orleans.

Photographs taken by a witness at the intitiation ceremony show the group in white Klan outfits.

In one photo, Foster uses a sword to "knight" Ms Lynch; in another, they are shown embracing.

Disabilities
The victim's mother, Victoria Lynch, said outside the court that she forgave the killer.

"I feel sorry for both him and the entire family. It's something that never should have happened to a child like Cynthia.

"I'm relieved because Cynthia has got her justice and maybe now she can rest in peace."

Mrs Lynch said her daughter was born with a number of disabilities and had no formal education or holding a job, Louisiana's WWLTV reported.

The trial was stopped shortly after the first witness took the stand so Foster could make his plea.

BBC News

Baptist minister George Rekers denies rent boy claim (USA)

A US Baptist minister and leading anti-gay campaigner has defended himself against allegations that he holidayed in Europe with a male prostitute.

George Rekers was photographed at Miami international airport last month with a young man whom he allegedly met through a gay website called Rentboy.com.

Mr Rekers said he hired the man as a travel assistant and "was not involved in any illegal or sexual behaviour".
He said he only realised the man's profession once the trip had begun.

The photograph, published by the Miami New Times, shows the pair arriving back in Miami from a 10-day trip to London and Madrid, with Mr Rekers pushing their suitcases on a trolley.

'Nothing inappropriate'
In a statement on his website, Mr Rekers called the report "slanderous", saying he required an assistant to lift his luggage because of an ongoing condition following surgery.

"There was nothing inappropriate with this relationship," he wrote on his blog, ProfessorGeorge.com.

Mr Rekers also apparently replied to a Facebook message from the blog Joe.My.God.

He wrote: "If you talk with my travel assistant... you will find I spent a great deal of time sharing scientific information on the desirability of abandoning homosexual intercourse, and I shared the Gospel of Jesus Christ with him in great detail."

Mr Rekers sits on the board of the National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality (Narth), an organisation dedicated to changing the sexuality of gay people.

A statement released by the group said it was taking the accusations seriously, but that it would not allow "personal controversies" to detract from their work of "assisting individuals dealing with unwanted homosexual attractions".
"We are always saddened when this type of controversy impacts the lives of individuals, and we urge all parties to allow a respectful and thorough investigation to take place," the statement added.

Mr Rekers has testified as an expert in favour of a gay adoption ban in Florida. His published works include Growing up Straight: What Families Should Know about Homosexuality

BBC News

BNP vote increases, but fails to win seat

After nearly 600 results, the BNP has increased its share of the General Election vote but failed to win a seat.

The party increased its share of the overall vote by 1.83% to 514,819, but despite fielding more than 300 candidates, has failed to return an MP.
In Barking, east London, a key battle ground for the BNP, the party's leader Nick Griffin slumped to third place.
He said his party was "resilient". Mr Griffin was told to "pack your bags and go" by Labour's Margaret Hodge.
Labour MP Ms Hodge held the mainly white constituency of Barking, taking 24,628 votes - more than 16,000 more than any other candidate.

'Stay out'
She said the message from Barking to the BNP was clear: "Get out and stay out."
She added: "This is really a great moment in our history, a never-to-be forgotten moment for both the good and decent people of Barking and Dagenham."

Mr Griffin was heckled throughout his speech with chants of "Off, off, off" and "Rubbish".

But, raising his voice over the jeers, he said: "I would say this to the people of Britain: it is going to be too late for Barking, but it is not too late for Britain.

"Get rid of our masters before they get rid of us."


In an e-mail to supporters he wrote: "This election, regardless of the results, is the watershed for this party.

"Our growth and resilience is truly inspiring.

"The BNP has arrived and will be knocking on the doors of power sooner than some ever imagined!"

Weyman Bennett, the joint secretary of Unite Against Fascism (UAF), said: "The BNP's vote has been paltry. This just shows that the party's increased exposure has exposed them for what they are.

"The BNP fielded more candidates than ever and yet the party has gone backwards."

The result comes after a year of increased national exposure due to Mr Griffin and colleague Andrew Brons being elected to serve as MEPs, and the leader's appearance on BBC's Question Time.

BBC News

BNP hopes of a breakthrough dashed as party defeated in target seats

Nick Griffin failed dramatically in his bid to gain a Westminster seat this morning when he suffered a resounding defeat in the British National Party’s east London stronghold.

Margaret Hodge, the Labour incumbent, won by a majority of more than 16,000 to deflect the BNP leader’s challenge in what she labelled the most important moral fight of her life.
In a humiliating defeat, Mr Griffin was relegated to third place in Barking, trailing behind Conservative candidate Simon Marcus. The BNP’s share of the vote dropped by two per cent, the result of an extensive campaign to mobilise voters against the threat of the far right.

Ms Hodge, the Culture Minister, achieved a seven per cent swing, winning more than 24,000 votes and 55 per cent of the vote.
She said: “The message of Barking to the BNP is clear: get out and stay out. You are not wanted here and your vile politics have no place in British democracy. Pack your bags and go.”

She said voters had chosen democratic politics built on fairness over “a fascist politics built on division, prejudice and hatred”.

“We have not just beaten but we have smashed the attempts of extremists.”

The BNP had considered Barking a stronghold after exploiting local concerns about immigration and housing to win twelve seats in the local council in 2006.

However, following a disastrous election campaign, Mr Griffin received 6,620 votes – one third as many as Ms Hodge.
There were indications of a national collapse in the BNP vote after it failed to make headway in its other target seat, Stoke Central. It also looked likely to lose seats on the Barking and Dagenham Council, despite beginning the campaign with hopes of gaining a majority.

Mr Griffin blamed high voter turnout for his defeat and said that it was the “last chance for Barking”.

His voice drowned out by booing, he said: “This was the last of London. Within the next five years the indigenous people of London will be a minority in our own capital city. This is a wake up call, not just for London. This is a wake up call for the whole of Britain.”

Mr Griffin said he would not resign, despite the crushing defeat, however elements in his party are certain to demand answers about the disastrous performance.
There was a heavy police presence at the count in Goresbrook Leisure Centre, in Dagenham, as large numbers of BNP supporters turned out to support their leader.

The BNP’s campaign has been was plagued with trouble and infighting. In the first week, Mr Griffin faced an alleged plot by BNP officials to overthrow him. He also told police that a colleague had threatened to kill him after an investigation into the political “conspiracy”.

On Tuesday, the head of the party’s online operation resigned and took the website down with him. Simon Bennett, 41, directed BNP traffic to his personal site, which contained a lengthy diatribe against Mr Griffin and other senior figures.
The next day Robert Bailey, the party’s London organiser and Romford candidate, was videoed assaulting an Asian youth who had spat on him.

UKIP candidate Frank Maloney said he would make a complaint about Ms Hodge to the Electoral Commission, claiming she had spoken to voters inside polling booths.

At the same venue, incumbent Labour MP Jon Cruddas faced an anxious wait with a close run poll with his Tory opponent. However Mr Cruddas, widely tipped as a leadership contender, won his seat in Dagenham with a majority of 2,000 votes.

Times Online

Nick Griffin concedes defeat as BNP fails to take Barking from Labour

British National Party leader Nick Griffin last night conceded defeat in his high profile bid to win a Parliamentary seat in east London, some two hours ahead of the count being complete.

He was taking on Labour minister Margaret Hodge in Barking, where his far-right party has 12 councillors, and had devoted much of his organisation's resources to winning votes from white working class Labour supporters worried by a surge in immigration.

Interviewed at 2am however, Griffin - who has a seat in the European Parliament - said: 'I'm being realistic. Margaret Hodge is clearly going to hold the seat.'
He went on: 'The real prize is the council. Had we had a normal turnout I'm quite confident we'd have taken the council.'

Votes for Barking and Dagenham borough council are due to be counted later today.

Bizarrely, Griffin suggested that Labour were going to win unfairly purely because they had managed to encourage a high turnout in Barking, which he said disadvantaged the BNP.

Responding to BBC TV footage from Wednesday which showed a BNP campaigner fighting in the streets of Barking with Asian youths after one spat at him, Griffin claimed the mainstream parties had encouraged attacks on his supporters.
The BNP leader famously once called for the cause of nationalism to be advanced with the aid of 'well-directed boots and fists'.

But she conceded that the surge of immigration into the borough - which she suggested resulted from half of local council houses being sold under right-to-buy, and many then being rented out to other councils to house homeless immigrants - had led to concerns.

Unemployment, largely resulting from the local Ford factory reducing staffing from 40,000 to 4,000 in recent decades, had also worried residents, she said.

Mrs Hodge said: 'My wake up call came in 2006 when the BNP succeeded in getting seats on the council, and I realised then that I had to change what I was doing, and the Labour Party locally had to change.

'Local people here have real needs and real concerns about the pace of change with immigration.

'You can either take those issues and exploit them for evil purposes, which is what the extreme right is trying to do, or respond to legitimate needs and fears in a positive way, and build a strong community for everybody, whatever their background.'
Mrs Hodge remained anxious however to defeat the BNP strongly. In 2005 the BNP only narrowly missed out on coming second, with the Tories beating them into third place by just 27 votes - and Mr Griffin remained hopeful he would come second last night.
Daily Mail