An investigation is underway after anti-fascist campaigners and British National Party supporters clashed in Liverpool.
Ten people were arrested following a violent fracas in Church Street on Saturday morning.
The far-right party was collecting signatures on the city’s busiest shopping street when trouble flared.
At around 10.45am, anti-fascist demonstrators and the BNP came head-to-head in aggressive scenes.
Three women and three men, who were holding a counter-rally against the political party, were detained.
They were held on suspicion of criminal damage, affray and assault and taken to police stations in Merseyside.
The women – 23, 22 and 21, from Aigburth, Toxteth and the city centre – and the men – 26, 25 and 24, from Birkenhead, Kensington and the city centre – were later released on bail pending further inquiries.
Two days later, three BNP activists were apprehended on suspicion of criminal damage and affray.
The suspects, identified by the far-right group itself, are Peter Tierney, 53, from Hale Village, his brother Andrew, 44, from Huyton, and a woman, 59, from Wirral, were all released on bail.
A man in his 50s or 60s was arrested shortly after the incident but will face no further action.
Both parties gave different accounts of the disturbance.
Liverpool Echo
Thursday, 9 December 2010
ROMA IN CZECH TOWN PROTEST MAYOR'S GENERALIZATIONS ABOUT THEM (Czech Rep.)
On Sunday, 5 December a Czech Television report on the situation in the town of Nový Bydžov opened with local resident Petr Suchánek, the initiator of a petition against the Roma, saying, "A handful of residents is terrorizing the majority and radical solutions are desired." The broadcast also quotes Mayor Pavel Louda (ODS) claiming police would be supplying him with statistics on crimes committed by Roma, even though statistics on suspects disaggregated by ethnicity are not kept by the police. The report was broadcast as part of the "168 Hours" program. Louda's previous general condemnation of all Roma as criminals has particularly outraged members of the Roma community who have lived most of their lives in the town. Louda issued an official declaration in the immediate aftermath of allegations that a female resident of Nový Bydžov had been raped and that police suspected a local Roma youth was the perpetrator. Louda entitled the declaration "Gypsies are raping, town prepares special measures" and posted it to the town's web page. He later removed it in response to criticism from around the country.
The declaration included the following general condemnations of Roma: "The citizens' hatred of the Gypsies is boiling over." "There are only two state police officers serving in the town. Since their jurisdiction is broader than just the town itself, whenever they are called away, the town is left unprotected and the Gypsies merrily cause trouble by shouting in the streets, threatening people, including with knives, and committing theft and rape." "While all decent people are at work, the Gypsies hang out on the benches on the town square, contentedly shooting the breeze." "The citizens condemn all of these activities and do not want the Gypsies here - they want them to disappear, but how can this happen? The town's hands are bound, particularly by state legislation which does not make radical measures possible - otherwise, the town would be sued for discrimination." The Czech Television report summarized the mayor's claims into the following sentence: "The number of Roma has grown to more than 5 % of the population over the past five years, and they are rampaging through the town bothering people, stealing and raping."
Louda was also quoted as saying, "If someone rapes your daughter, you definitely won't say you love Gypsies." Roma residents contacted by Czech Television protested the mayor's remarks. Štefan Mital, a Roma entrepreneur, responded to the mayor's generalizations as follows: "One person raped that girl. I condemn that, and you cannot tar all of the Roma with the same brush." Mital was born in Nový Bydžov; now 33, he runs a construction business. He and his friends believe the mayor's remarks have harmed the majority of Roma people who are law-abiding - and not just in Nový Bydžov. Czech Television facilitated a meeting between Mayor Louda and the local Roma and filmed the results. "I work in a factory where that petition is being passed around... How do those people see me now?" Roma resident Miroslav Oláh asked at the meeting. "I believe, and I am convinced of this, that whoever does his work properly will not be harmed," responded Mayor Louda. In his previous remarks, Louda had given the impression that all Roma - including Roma employers and employees - were criminals who could not be compelled to "disappear" because of the risk of anti-discrimination lawsuits.
Milan Bajza reminded Louda of that statement: "You literally said all Gypsies steal, are loud, commit rape, things like that..." The mayor responded: "Do you not know that crimes are being committed here recently, burglaries, people being threatened?" "That's what the police are for," said the Roma residents. "Naturally that is what the police are for," Louda said, adding: "nevertheless, everyone who has complained has said it was the Roma." In response, Václav Tichý, the town's chief of police, said: "As far as violent crime is concerned the same standard still applies and we clear up 88 % of cases." When the mayor was asked whether he had requested statistics from the police on how many perpetrators of crime in the town are Roma, he said he had requested them and would have them by Friday. When a reporter asked whether it was even possible to create an inventory of suspects according to their ethnicity, Louda responded: "It's not registered according to ethnicity, it's a register of all attacks and I have asked the director to tell me the number of those incidents committed by Roma. There is nothing illegal about that."
The reportage then shows Václav Tichý saying, "You cannot tell from the police statistics whether a Roma person committed the illegal behavior." Crime statistics on the ethnicity of suspects have not been kept since the 1990s. During the meeting with local Roma, the mayor expressed amazement that (in his view) there were many new Roma residents in the town whom he had never seen before. "Where are they coming from, who is bringing them here?" the mayor asked, raising his voice, and turned to the Roma entrepreneurs present: "You're all in business...don't you know you need people? Who are you employing?" Zdenìk Mital responded that he employs all kinds of people, "black, white" and invited the mayor to come see for himself. Petr Suchánek, the initiator of the petition which has taken aim at all Roma without exception, then challenged the local Roma to "keep order among themselves". Štefan Mital responded: "I can't go visit a family I don't know and tell them what not to do, that's bad." "Why?" a reporter asked. "I am not a state body or the police who can address these things for someone," Mital answered.
According to the Czech Television report, it is not easy to get information on how many Roma have recently moved into the town. To confirm this, a clip is then shown of a Roma person railing against the reporter from the window of their home. The mayor is beefing up the municipal police force, wants to install more video cameras in problematic parts of town, and has already ordered police raids on video poker parlors. Anyone caught playing the machines who is also on welfare (support for material distress) will lose their benefits. According to recent reports, this tactic has paid off and local Roma who gamble on the machines have stopped going to game parlors there and have found others to visit in nearby towns. According to the reportage, the meeting with the mayor did produce some positive results. The longtime Roma residents told the mayor they would try to speak with Roma children and youth about the situation. The mayor responded by saying: "I will be happy to apologize to you, I will apologize to all the others who behave decently."
Romea
The declaration included the following general condemnations of Roma: "The citizens' hatred of the Gypsies is boiling over." "There are only two state police officers serving in the town. Since their jurisdiction is broader than just the town itself, whenever they are called away, the town is left unprotected and the Gypsies merrily cause trouble by shouting in the streets, threatening people, including with knives, and committing theft and rape." "While all decent people are at work, the Gypsies hang out on the benches on the town square, contentedly shooting the breeze." "The citizens condemn all of these activities and do not want the Gypsies here - they want them to disappear, but how can this happen? The town's hands are bound, particularly by state legislation which does not make radical measures possible - otherwise, the town would be sued for discrimination." The Czech Television report summarized the mayor's claims into the following sentence: "The number of Roma has grown to more than 5 % of the population over the past five years, and they are rampaging through the town bothering people, stealing and raping."
Louda was also quoted as saying, "If someone rapes your daughter, you definitely won't say you love Gypsies." Roma residents contacted by Czech Television protested the mayor's remarks. Štefan Mital, a Roma entrepreneur, responded to the mayor's generalizations as follows: "One person raped that girl. I condemn that, and you cannot tar all of the Roma with the same brush." Mital was born in Nový Bydžov; now 33, he runs a construction business. He and his friends believe the mayor's remarks have harmed the majority of Roma people who are law-abiding - and not just in Nový Bydžov. Czech Television facilitated a meeting between Mayor Louda and the local Roma and filmed the results. "I work in a factory where that petition is being passed around... How do those people see me now?" Roma resident Miroslav Oláh asked at the meeting. "I believe, and I am convinced of this, that whoever does his work properly will not be harmed," responded Mayor Louda. In his previous remarks, Louda had given the impression that all Roma - including Roma employers and employees - were criminals who could not be compelled to "disappear" because of the risk of anti-discrimination lawsuits.
Milan Bajza reminded Louda of that statement: "You literally said all Gypsies steal, are loud, commit rape, things like that..." The mayor responded: "Do you not know that crimes are being committed here recently, burglaries, people being threatened?" "That's what the police are for," said the Roma residents. "Naturally that is what the police are for," Louda said, adding: "nevertheless, everyone who has complained has said it was the Roma." In response, Václav Tichý, the town's chief of police, said: "As far as violent crime is concerned the same standard still applies and we clear up 88 % of cases." When the mayor was asked whether he had requested statistics from the police on how many perpetrators of crime in the town are Roma, he said he had requested them and would have them by Friday. When a reporter asked whether it was even possible to create an inventory of suspects according to their ethnicity, Louda responded: "It's not registered according to ethnicity, it's a register of all attacks and I have asked the director to tell me the number of those incidents committed by Roma. There is nothing illegal about that."
The reportage then shows Václav Tichý saying, "You cannot tell from the police statistics whether a Roma person committed the illegal behavior." Crime statistics on the ethnicity of suspects have not been kept since the 1990s. During the meeting with local Roma, the mayor expressed amazement that (in his view) there were many new Roma residents in the town whom he had never seen before. "Where are they coming from, who is bringing them here?" the mayor asked, raising his voice, and turned to the Roma entrepreneurs present: "You're all in business...don't you know you need people? Who are you employing?" Zdenìk Mital responded that he employs all kinds of people, "black, white" and invited the mayor to come see for himself. Petr Suchánek, the initiator of the petition which has taken aim at all Roma without exception, then challenged the local Roma to "keep order among themselves". Štefan Mital responded: "I can't go visit a family I don't know and tell them what not to do, that's bad." "Why?" a reporter asked. "I am not a state body or the police who can address these things for someone," Mital answered.
According to the Czech Television report, it is not easy to get information on how many Roma have recently moved into the town. To confirm this, a clip is then shown of a Roma person railing against the reporter from the window of their home. The mayor is beefing up the municipal police force, wants to install more video cameras in problematic parts of town, and has already ordered police raids on video poker parlors. Anyone caught playing the machines who is also on welfare (support for material distress) will lose their benefits. According to recent reports, this tactic has paid off and local Roma who gamble on the machines have stopped going to game parlors there and have found others to visit in nearby towns. According to the reportage, the meeting with the mayor did produce some positive results. The longtime Roma residents told the mayor they would try to speak with Roma children and youth about the situation. The mayor responded by saying: "I will be happy to apologize to you, I will apologize to all the others who behave decently."
Romea
Fashion is still racist, says Naomi Campbell (UK)
The 40-year-old from Streatham said the industry had taken a step backwards, as she collected a special honour at the British Fashion Awards.
She told the Evening Standard: “We're all aware that we need to introduce more women [of colour].
But what I've seen recently is that I've seen it go backwards slightly. We need to raise awareness again and need to start using women of colour more. When I look at the shows this season, there weren't as many as a year-and-a-half ago. We've got to keep speaking out, so as boring as it may be, if you hear me saying it over and over again I have to stand up for my fellow comrades.
“It's not for myself, but the younger girls who come up to me and say, We didn't get used this season, we didn't do this, someone used 81 models and didn't use one of us.' In that respect if they come up and talk to me, and I'm able to speak on their behalf, then I will.”
Alexandra Shulman, editor of British Vogue, admitted “classically pretty white girls” were favoured. She said: “I really admire Naomi for lobbying about the use of a models with a more varied ethnicity. The industry is changing and there are more top black and Asian models, and of course as the Far East becomes a huge economic factor, Asian models are getting large amounts of work in their home territories.
“It still remains that for most people in this country, classically pretty white girls are their beauty role models, like Kate Moss and Cheryl Cole.”
Campbell praised the British Fashion Council for helping ensure fairness in the industry. A spokesman for the organisation said: “London is one of the world's most multicultural cities and we encourage representation of that on the women's catwalk. Naomi is an incredible model who has had an amazing career, and we were thrilled to be able to honour that last night.”
At the ceremony at the Savoy, Campbell was moved to tears as she collected the Special Recognition Award in front of an audience including Samantha Cameron, Claudia Schiffer, Victoria Beckham and Yasmin Le Bon. The model thanked her mother, who was in the front row, and her partner Vladislav Doronin, who she said “puts up with a wild wild woman”.
Alexander McQueen received a posthumous award for outstanding achievement in fashion design. Lara Stone was named Model 2010 and Alexa Chung won the British Style Award.
This is London
Jerusalem protestors slam rabbis' 'racist' letter (Israel)
Around 150 people gathered outside Jerusalem's Great Synagogue on Wednesday to protest against a letter by rabbis forbidding Jews not to rent property to non-Jews, an AFP correspondent said.
The letter, which was signed by 50 rabbis and made public on Tuesday, provoked a wave of criticism, including from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said "this kind of speech should be banned in a Jewish and democratic state."
The letter instructs that "it is forbidden in the Torah to sell a house or a field in the land of Israel to a foreigner," referring to the Pentateuch -- the first five books of the Bible.
The protestors waved banners saying: "Racism is blasphemy" while others, some of them observant Jews wearing skullcaps, carried placards with religious slogans, reading: "The Holy One, blessed be He, is against racism."
"Jews and Arabs refuse to be enemies!" they shouted as a small group of far-right protestors hurled insults and abuse at them.
Addressing the demonstrators, Israeli activist Sara Benninga said: "We have come to protest against racism, oppression and inequality. Wherever there is racism, we will be there!"
Signed mostly by state-employed rabbis, the letter warns that "he who sells or rents them (non-Jews) a flat in an area where Jews live causes great harm to his neighbours" suggesting that person be "cut off" from the Jewish community.
The letter, which is reportedly to be published in religious newspapers and distributed in synagogues across the country later this week, was largely understood to refer to Israel's Arab minority.
It also drew criticism from from Amnesty International, which said it was clearly aimed at Israel's Arabs.
Israel has 1.3 million Arab citizens, those who remained in the country after the creation of the Jewish state in 1948 and their descendants.
Associated Press
The letter, which was signed by 50 rabbis and made public on Tuesday, provoked a wave of criticism, including from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said "this kind of speech should be banned in a Jewish and democratic state."
The letter instructs that "it is forbidden in the Torah to sell a house or a field in the land of Israel to a foreigner," referring to the Pentateuch -- the first five books of the Bible.
The protestors waved banners saying: "Racism is blasphemy" while others, some of them observant Jews wearing skullcaps, carried placards with religious slogans, reading: "The Holy One, blessed be He, is against racism."
"Jews and Arabs refuse to be enemies!" they shouted as a small group of far-right protestors hurled insults and abuse at them.
Addressing the demonstrators, Israeli activist Sara Benninga said: "We have come to protest against racism, oppression and inequality. Wherever there is racism, we will be there!"
Signed mostly by state-employed rabbis, the letter warns that "he who sells or rents them (non-Jews) a flat in an area where Jews live causes great harm to his neighbours" suggesting that person be "cut off" from the Jewish community.
The letter, which is reportedly to be published in religious newspapers and distributed in synagogues across the country later this week, was largely understood to refer to Israel's Arab minority.
It also drew criticism from from Amnesty International, which said it was clearly aimed at Israel's Arabs.
Israel has 1.3 million Arab citizens, those who remained in the country after the creation of the Jewish state in 1948 and their descendants.
Associated Press
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