BNP candidate Anita Cooper blames hackers for messages (UK)

Hackers were today accused of filling a would-be BNP councillor's website with hate-filled racist abuse.

The Facebook networking page for Anita Cooper, British National Party candidate for Fawdon, Newcastle, is littered with twisted messages.

Using the name “Anita MrsBnp Cooper”, the profile page includes sick jokes about the Pakistan floods that killed more than 1,500.

In photos posted on the site, Mrs Cooper is pictured with BNP leader Nick Griffin, party activist Angelos Gavriel and Martin Vaughan, the party’s fundholder for South Tyneside.

In one post, it is claimed an increasing demand for Facebook from ethnic minorities had prompted creators to set up a new site named “Junglebook”.

And in another the author claims to have become ill after travelling on a coach from Barnsley with Asian people.

Posts mocking Polish immigrants, foul-mouthed rhymes and general abusive comments are also posted.

Today, Mrs Cooper said she was unaware of any racist remarks on her Facebook page and said someone had hacked her account.

She said: “I’m totally unaware of any racist remarks. It very much sounds like it was hacked as I don’t use Facebook a great deal.

“I’m not a racist - I’m just not like that. I’ve got friends that are all different colours and I’ve got friends who are Muslim. [Racism] is something I do not approve of. It’s not what the party is about - we are not a racist party and I am far from that.

“It must be that someone has hacked my account and I don’t want to be branded a racist.

“It’s not nice knowing that someone has been going on there. As soon as I can get to a computer I will go on and delete the profile or change my password.” A spokesman for Tyne and Wear Anti-Fascist Association, said: “Whoever wrote these comments is a racist person who has a problem with Pakistani people and they stereotype.

“People have contacted us about these comments and they are obviously very shocked and concerned.”

But Ken Booth, former regional BNP organiser and council candidate for Fenham, said: “Mrs Cooper told me she had not recollection of the comments.

“I know one or two people who have had their Facebook hacked. I had some comments appear on my Facebook page that I didn’t write.

“I will have to look into it. I will see Anita on Wednesday and will ask her about it then.

“The jokes don’t sound any worse than ones you would hear in a bar at a social club. It seems like they have transferred to the internet.

“People get carried away with the internet and live their lives on Facebook. I would advise members to keep it clean and respectable on the internet.”

Mrs Cooper was nominated as Fawdon ward’s prospective local candidate for the May 5 elections.

In recent weeks she has taken to the streets to hand out leaflets and canvass support for her election push.

In one post the author shows support for killer Raoul Moat, in which they call for the media to “leave” him alone.

They wrote: “Why can’t the news just leave Raoul Moat alone, the poor lad has gone now. RIP big lad.”

Hari Shukla, vice chairman of the Newcastle Council of Faiths, said: “This being a multi-cultural and multi-racial society, we need to support those who create understanding in our community and support every member of our community irrespective of their background, colour or religion.

“It’s important that we keep these in mind when we are trying to attain a multi-cultural society which is an asset for Newcastle.”

A police spokeswoman said they had not received any complaint about the page.

She said: “However, if a complaint is made to the police about the contents of any Facebook page then we would make inquiries.”

No-one from Facebook was available for comment at short notice.

Chronicle Live

German state launches renewed move to ban far-right NPD

The interior minister in the eastern German state of Saxony-Anhalt has announced he's preparing a new proposal to ban the far-right German National Party (NPD).

Holger Stahlknecht, a member of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats, also invited other states to take part in the action.

"We want to push forward proceedings with the necessary judicial care," Stahlknecht said in the state capital Halle.

However, he also warned against people against getting their hopes up about a possible ban.

"If the NPD is gone, the problem of right-wing extremism won't just disappear."

The NPD are often labeled as a neo-Nazi organization. The party is classified by Germany’s internal security agency as a "threat to the constitutional order" because of its extremist philosophy. The NPD currently has seats in two of German's 16 state parliaments, but none at federal level.

According to the German constitution only central government has the power to apply for such a ban through the courts. Opinions are divided as to whether the party should be banned.

Muted response from other states

There was a mixed response to the call for a ban from other German states. The interior minister in the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein was cautious about the idea. Christian Democrat Klaus Schlie told the news agency dpa that he would need convincing and concrete arguments before he decided to support the bid.

"Another failure in court would be fatal," he said, referring to a similar attempt to ban the NPD in 2003.

When that case came before the Federal Constitutional Court, it was thrown out after it was revealed that a number of the NPD's inner circle were in fact undercover agents or informants of the German secret services. Since the government bodies were unwilling to fully disclose their agents' identities and activities, the court found it impossible to reach a verdict.

The head of the Committee on Internal Affairs in the German parliament, Wolfgang Bosbach said in the light of the 2003 trial, he was completely against the idea of banning the NPD.

"I would advise against it," the Christian Democrat politician told the local Mitteldeutsche Zeitung.

He explained he understood the concerns of Saxony-Anhalt, since the problem with the German National Party was more significant in the eastern states than in the western states, but he said the risks were too great.

"We would have to take the undercover agents out of the NPD," Bosbach said. "And that would entail a long-term observation of the party."

Bosbach said it was clear that the NPD's policies went against the constitution. But in order to ban the party, it would have to be proven in court that the party acted in a aggressive, militant way against the free democratic basic order. That was the biggest hurdle, he said.

DW-World

Police prepared for far-right protesters in Berwick (UK)

 Extra police resources will be diverted to a Northumberland town this weekend when a far-right protest group stages a demonstration.

Between 60 and 150 supporters of the Scottish Defence League (SDL) are expected in Berwick on Saturday for a short march and rally.

The SDL is an offshoot of the English Defence League (EDL), a far-right protest movement which opposes what it sees as the spread of Islamism in the UK.

Similar events held by the EDL have led to public disorder in England, but yesterday Northumbria Police said it doesn’t expect any trouble at Saturday’s march.

However, extra officers will be drafted in from across the force area to ensure that it passes off peacefully.

Read the complete item at Journal Live

Police try to keep two protest groups apart on Weymouth Esplanade (UK)

The English Defence League (EDL) is a right-wing group that is against Islamic extremism and “radical Islam’s encroachment into the lives of non-Muslims” as well as the introduction of Sharia law into Britain. They announced a march after BBC3 screened a film about a former Weymouth lad who converted to Islam and was radicalised.

A peaceful counter protest will be held at the same time, 1pm, organised by people behind the Facebook page, Keep The Racist EDL out of Dorset, who are rallying people to join them in opposition to the EDL “bringing its hatred and violence to a diverse, tolerant Dorset.”

Assembly points for both groups have been designated at either end of the Esplanade in Weymouth, with the EDL due to meet at the pier bandstand and counter-demonstrators opposite the Pavilion.

Chief Inspector Nick Maton is in charge of the policing operation. He said: “Our strategy is based simply around ensuring the two groups are indeed separate from each other.

“Dorset Police, like all national forces, is committed to facilitating peoples’ right to protest when conducted peacefully and lawfully.

“The police’s role is to work with all communities and groups involved, to reduce and prevent crime and disorder, and to deal with it robustly where it occurs.”

Dorset Police is also issuing a reassuring message to residents, traders and visitors to the town in advance of the demonstrations.

Read the full item at Weymouth People

BNP 'expects to pay off debts this year' (UK)

The British National Party, which was facing potentially crippling debts of more than £500,000, says it expects to pay them off by the end of the year.

"We are not going bust," said party spokesman Simon Darby.

The BNP was facing doubts over its future after costly court cases brought against it, including one by the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

It also had to pay an out-of-court settlement to Marmite for using a jar of the spread in a party broadcast.

However, BNP sources say most of the debts were built up as a result of heavy spending during the last European and general election campaigns.
'Commercial solutions'

The party contested 338 seats in the 2010 general election and lost its deposit in 266 of them.

The BNP is now understood to have reached "commercial solutions" with a number of creditors over re-payments, and is believed to have met its its outstanding tax liabilities.

BNP officials say the party has instituted austerity measures including laying off staff and closing its Belfast call centre.

There has also been an increase in donations from the party's 12,000 members.

However, the BNP has had to rein back on its spending in the current elections to councils in England, the Welsh and Northern Ireland Assemblies and the Scottish Parliament.

"We've had to cut back," said Mr Darby. "We are determined to get a grip on the amount of money we spend on elections.

"We've spent too much on elections in the last few years. We really have pushed the boat out."

He said the BNP would not be incurring any more debts as a result of the current set of elections, which take place on 5 May. The party does not have access to any bank overdraft facility.

Mr Derby said the BNP was facing "a difficult" set of elections because of the financial pressure on the party, coupled with "a resurgent Labour Party".

But he predicted the BNP would still win seats in its core target areas.

BBC News

Muslims to help EDL to protect royal wedding? (UK)

Prominent Muslims in Luton say they are angry at attempts by Islamic extremists to disrupt this Friday’s royal wedding.

Extremist group Muslims Against Crusades plans to stage a demonstration on the day of Prince William and Kate Middleton’s marriage, in protest at the actions of UK troops overseas and because the prince is a member of Britain’s armed forces.

They have been barred from protesting outside Westminster Abbey, but will be able to hold demonstrations at other nearby locations.

Last week the English Defence League said its members would take the law into their own hands to stop extremist Muslims reaching the event.

Farasat Latif, secretary of the Islamic Centre in Bury Park Road, has slammed Muslims Against Crusades as “a tiny group of Muslims” who wanted to “antagonise just about the whole country”.

And he said moderate Muslims were also considering travelling to London on the day to halt any protest by Muslims Against Crusades.

“I’ve got better things to do with my bank holiday but we might actually turn up to confront them as well,” he said. “They’re not allowed to protest outside the wedding but I think they will still go down.

“Muslims all over the UK are disgusted this latest publicity stunt, and are fearing the inevitable backlash. The aim of these lunatics is to gain as much adverse publicity as possible.”

Mr Latif said he believed Muslims Against Crusades was simply a front for the banned extremist group Al-Muhajiroun, members of which hurled abuse at soldiers from the 2nd Battalion Royal Anglian Regiment, known as the Poachers, when they marched through Luton in 2009.

The president of Luton’s Central Mosque, Mohammed Shafait, said Muslims Against Crusades members had no regard for British law.

He said: “They have been given the freedom by our government to not abide by the law. The government must deal with them. They just do what they like and the police can’t do anything with them.

“Their members have been brainwashed, they are sons who have run away from their families. They give everyone a bad name.”

Mr Shafait said people in Bury Park had wanted to deal with extremism in Luton themselves, but were told not to take the law into their own hands.

“The law is stopping us from getting rid of them,” he said.

Luton Today