Russian nationalists may fuse into one group

A new organization uniting leading nationalist movements may appear in Russia, Aleksandr Belov, the founder of the Movement Against Illegal Immigration, or DPNI, has said.

In an interview with Interfax, the group’s former leader suggested that in the future the entire nationalist movement in the country will be “reformatted”.

“It is highly likely that a unified organization will be created and the spector of its interests will widen and involve not only the issue of illegal immigration but also political and social demands,” Belov said.

As to whether nationalists will go into politics and create their own party, Belov said it is too early to speak about that and he is not entitled to make such comments. “But it is obvious that the possibility of registering such party and participating in elections is close to zero,” he added.

Earlier this week, the Moscow Prosecutor’s Office suspended the DPNI activities after it had concluded that the movement was “pursuing extremist goals and objectives.” The final decision though is to be made by the Moscow City Court.


Meanwhile, the Federal Migration Service (FMS) believes shutting down the nationalist movement was not a good idea, since it would only serve to bolster the group’s standing and so far it hasn’t enjoyed much support among the population.

“From our point of view, DPNI activities were neither good nor harmful,” Konstantin Poltoranin, FMS spokesman, told the agency. “It had no independent programs, no support within society. What would change with its closure? Radical measures can only provide publicity for such organizations.” The solution, according to FMS, would be taking either criminal or administrative proceedings against activists in movement, who violate the law and foment inter-ethnic discord.

Member of the Public Chamber Iosif Diskin, on the contrary, believes that the DPNI should have been shut down long ago.

“Each time this movement organized any event, it would end up with…mass disorders. Therefore, it has been a while that there was a legal basis for suspending its activities,” he told Pravda.ru.

Lately, nationalistic moods have been on the rise in Russia and climaxed in a riot on Moscow’s Manezhnaya Square on December 11. Initially a crowd of youths gathered near the Kremlin to mark the death of a football fan that was killed in a fight with ethnic North Caucasians. The meeting soon snowballed into a nationalist brawl with ethnic minorities and police being attacked.

The country’s leadership has been seeking a solution to this thorny issue and trying to educate the country’s multi-ethnic society to live in peace and respect one another. According to President Medvedev, "inter-ethnic conflicts are lethal for Russia, no matter where they occur”.

RT.Com

Forde must wait for life-or-death decision (USA)

Jurors who must decide whether Shawna Forde should become the third woman on Arizona's death row went home Friday without reaching a decision. They'll resume deliberations on Tuesday.

Forde, 43, was convicted Monday of first-degree murder in the May 30, 2009, deaths of Arivaca residents Raul Junior Flores, 29, and Brisenia Flores, 9, and of attempted first-degree murder in the shooting of Gina Gonzalez, Flores' wife and Brisenia's mother.

Prosecutors presented evidence the Floreses were shot by Jason Bush, 36, after he and Forde forced their way into the home, claiming to be law-enforcement officers looking for fugitives.

The prosecutors said Forde wanted to rob Flores to fund her border protection group, Minutemen American Defense.

Gonzalez testified that as she lay feigning death, she heard Brisenia plead for her life and the gunman shoot her twice at point-blank range.

On Friday, the attorneys argued why Forde should or should not be executed.

Defense attorney Jill Thorpe said Forde is a "broken person" and recounted testimony about the repeated acts of sexual and physical abuse and abandonment Forde suffered as a child.

Because of her childhood, Forde desperately needed to be loved and to feel important, Thorpe and co-counsel Eric Larsen said.

She married five men, became involved in the Minutemen organization and turned into a braggart who made outlandish claims, Thorpe said.

The abuse and a subsequent stroke led to a mental illness that left Forde unable to assess people like Bush and co-defendant Albert Gaxiola, to foresee the dangers ahead and to change course, Thorpe said.

Thorpe asked the jury to ask themselves, "Are we the type of society that says 'We're going to put you down because you are broken ... or are we the kind of society that says segregation is enough?' "

It's Forde's mental illness that prevents her from acknowledging her role and from apologizing, Thorpe said.

"She's not even facing what's going on here," Thorpe said.

Thorpe also asked the jury to look at Forde's moral culpability and compare it to Bush's.

Is Forde as culpable as you if you, "hearing the fear in a child's voice as she's begging you not to shoot her and you do it anyway?" Thorpe asked.

The death penalty should be reserved for the "worst of the worst," Larsen told jurors.

Imposing the death penalty might have an unintended consequence.

"Shawna is going to be a celebrity. She's going to be a martyr, she's going to revel in this," Thorpe said.

Deputy Pima County Attorney Rick Unklesbay said the Floreses would be alive if not for Forde.

Unklesbay, too, urged the jury to think about moral culpability, noting Forde did nothing to stop Bush from shooting any of the victims.

Forde stole Gonzalez's jewelry and then, upon learning Gonzalez was still alive, turned to Bush and yelled, "Hey! She's still alive! Get back in there and take care of her!" Unklesbay said.

Days after the slayings, she told an FBI informant they had more targets, Unklesbay said.

"That's the moral, reasoned response Shawna Forde had after Brisenia had two shots put in her head," Unklesbay said.

While Forde was probably abused to some degree, it's not enough to warrant leniency, Unklesbay said.

Forde must've realized her childhood was abnormal and she wanted something better for her two children, because they apparently weren't abused and still love her, Unklesbay said.

And yet, Forde plotted the Flores home invasion and slayings.

Child-abuse victims, "if they have an ounce of compassion in their soul, they just don't do that," Unklesbay said.

If jurors are unable to unanimously decide Forde deserves the death penalty, Judge John Leonardo will sentence Forde to life in prison with or without the possibility of release. Forde also faces prison time for attempted murder and various burglary, aggravated assault and robbery charges.

Bush is scheduled to go to trial March 15 and Gaxiola June 1.

They, too, face the death penalty.

 Arizona Daily Star

MP rejects BNP claim after rant is published (UK)

THE British National Party is to make an official complaint against Gavin Barwell, after the MP publicised one of its candidate's rants about "violent immigrants" in New Addington.

The far-right party alleges Mr Barwell breached the Data Protection Act when he sent a questionnaire, filled in by Clifford Le May, to the Advertiser nearly a year and a half ago.

In the pamphlet, Mr Le May urged the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, to "stop ruining our community by stuffing New Addington with violent immigrants who have no right to live among decent civilised white people".

He also referred to Mr Barwell, who he ran against for the Croydon Central seat in the general election last May, as a "traitor to his race and nation".

Now Mr Barwell has received a letter from the BNP threatening to take the matter to the Information Commissioner.

Mr Barwell told the Advertiser: "It's completely bizarre. I've never heard of anyone in a political party complain about their views being made public.

"Perhaps he is ashamed of what he said, as he should be."

In the letter, Tony Martin, the BNP's Croydon and Sutton branch organiser, wrote: "In mid 2009, Clifford Le May received a questionnaire sent out by your organisation.

"Cliff filled in and returned the completed questionnaire only for it to be printed in the Croydon Advertiser.

"Recently I have been looking into the legality of this leak and who is responsible.

"It looks illegal under the Data Protection Act 1998 and Gavin Barwell has confessed to this indiscretion on his blog.

"I contacted the Information Commissioner's Office and was told to contact you first before making any official complaint."

When the Advertiser contacted Mr Martin, who has replaced Charlotte Lewis as Croydon and Sutton branch organiser, he pointed out a promise made on www.croydonconservatives.com not to share information with third parties.

The disclaimer, under the heading Information Collection and Use, reads: "We never sell or share information to anyone outside the Conservative Party."

Mr Martin added: "I want to get the message across that we are not prepared to be trodden on.

"The Conservatives promise never to share information but this is exactly what they did.

"We're not looking for compensation, but an apology."

Mr Barwell admitted the privacy disclaimer existed but added: "Were it the response of a private individual I wouldn't have released it.

"But this was someone running for public office, so people have a right to know his views."

After giving Mr Barwell a deadline of seven days to respond to his concerns, Mr Martin says he now intends to submit an official complaint to the Information Commissioner.




This is Croydon

TERROR THREAT ACCUSED 'HAD AK-47' (South Africa)

Police found an AK-47 assault rifle and ammunition at the home of a South African terror suspect accused of  threatening Britain and the US, prosecutors said.

Brian Roach's lawyers told a bail hearing he would plead guilty to attempted extortion, but not to terror charges.

They also said the 64-year-old was no longer seeking bail.

Roach is accused of sending emails threatening to spread foot-and-mouth disease in the US and Britain unless the governments paid him four million dollars (£2.5 million).

Prosecutors have said police have not found evidence that Roach had the means to carry out his threats.

Roach, who owns an engineering firm outside Johannesburg and has business interests in Zimbabwe, is accused of saying in emails that he wanted the money to compensate white Zimbabwean farmers for land lost, and accusing the US and British governments of not doing enough to help the farmers.

About 4,000 white farmers have been forced from their farms since 2000 in what Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe calls a campaign to put more land in the hands of impoverished blacks.

Many of the beneficiaries, though, have been senior politicians who are close to Mugabe.

South African investigators worked with US and British officials on the case, and arrested Roach on February 12 after a seven-month investigation.

Daily Express

No more mister nice radical nationalist Jobbik (Hungary)

It seems that the decision by Gábor Vona to say nasty things about the Gypsies in Parliament while wearing the banned uniform of the Hungarian Guard on Monday wasn't the Jobbik chairman's way of celebrating Valentine's day. According to origo.hu, the leadership of the party has made a conscious decision to change their strategy, by spending more time at public forums focusing on the "harsher topics" they believe brought them success during the election campaign.

The portal notes that while Jobbik's leaders say the reason for their decision to start being naughtier again is dissatisfaction with the government's policies, it is probably also related to the fact that the party's popularity is falling. Imagine that.

Politics Hu

FRENCH FAR RIGHT POISED TO GAIN FROM WAVE OF TUNISIAN MIGRANTS

The wave of Tunisian immigrants that arrived in France last week shouldn't plan on getting too cozy. The new leader of the National Front is poised to capitalize on what she says is an immigration crisis. 

French police say they have arrested some 100 Tunisians who landed on the Italian island of Lampedusa last week as they tried to enter France. The arrested immigrants, each carrying a document provided by the Italian authorities, are being held in detention centers across southeastern France. Should these immigrants request political asylum, their demands would more than likely be turned down, and France would be under no obligation to allow them to stay. On Friday, French Secretary of State for European Affairs Laurent Wauquiez made it clear that immigrants from Tunisia should expect no special treatment. "The Interior Ministry will examine on a case by case basis those who qualify for the right to immigration. Those cases can only be very marginal," Wauquiez told a news conference.

Good news for the National Front
The government is taking a hard line on these immigrants - but that is not preventing Marine Le Pen, the new leader of the far right National Front party, from making political capital out of what she says is the beginning of a new immigration crisis. In an interview with French public radio on Friday, Le Pen said the "great wave of migrants" was one of the consequences of the revolutions taking place in the Arab world. "We have to reform our immigration policy and stop the system that's pumping immigrants into our country. That means revoking the automatic right of anyone born here to French nationality and stopping the insanely easy access to social security benefit, housing benefit, retirement pensions and free schooling," Le Pen said. According to an opinion poll published Friday, if presidential elections were held tomorrow, 26 percent would vote for Socialist hopeful Dominique Strauss-Khan, 23 percent for incumbent president Nicolas Sarkozy and 21 percent for Le Pen, meaning France would be very close to selecting the far right leader to go to the second round head-to-head against the Socialist candidate.

DW-World

French journalist convicted on racism charge over drug dealer comment (France)

Self-styled enemy of political correctness Éric Zemmour found guilty after trial over remarks about police stopping minorities

The controversial French journalist Éric Zemmour has been found guilty of incitement to racial hatred after telling a TV chatshow that drug dealers were mostly "blacks and Arabs".

The Paris trial sparked a fierce debate over freedom of speech and the extent of France's racism problem, which is poisoning the republican ideal that all citizens are equal regardless of colour.

Zemmour, a well-known media commentator and columnist for Le Figaro, prides himself on his outspoken defiance of what he deems political correct, woolly liberals.

He appeared on a chatshow last year when the debate turned to the question of the French police's excessive use of stop and search powers against minorities. He said: "But why are they stopped 17 times? Why? Because most dealers are blacks and Arabs. That's a fact."

According to the French model, where everyone is theoretically equal under a state blind to race or religion, it is illegal to count ethnic minorities or race statistics. So there are no figures on the ethnic identity of criminals.

Zemmour was also fined for telling another TV channel that employers "had a right" to turn down black or Arab candidates. Job discrimination over race and ethnicity is thought to be widespread in France.

Zemmour, whose parents were Jewish Berbers who emigrated from Algeria in the 1950s, told the court he was not a "provocateur" but a faithful observer of reality who refused political correctness. He was backed by several centre-right politicians and some on the left.

The state prosecutor accused him of using the "old stereotype that linked immigration to crime".

The Zemmour case has reflected an increasingly uneasy debate over immigration in France as Nicolas Sarkozy tries to win over the far-right vote before his difficult re-election battle next year.

The Front National, led by its new, young, female face, Marine Le Pen, is scoring its highest ever ratings in the polls after exploiting mistrust of Islam by criticising Muslim street prayers and halal-only restaurants.

After what was attacked as a disastrous national debate on "immigration and national identity", Sarkozy is now seeking to outmanoeuvre the extreme right by launching a nationwide consultation on the role of Islam in the French secular state.

The debate, to be run by his ruling UMP party, will begin in April and will seek to impose rules on how Islam should work in France, which has the biggest Muslim population in western Europe. Sarkozy told party members it was crucial because "yesterday's racists are today's populists".

He said: "I don't want prayers in the streets, or calls to prayer." He said the decision to ban the niqab in public places from April was a good thing and now "we need to agree in principle about the place of religion".

The Guardian