AN English Defence League supporter attacked a police horse, punching it eight times during last month’s demonstration in Blackburn.
Robert Gavin Tromans was one of five people to appear at the town’s magistrate court on Friday in connection with disorder during the rally.
Tromans, 29, of Beverley Road, West Bromwich, attacked the horse as police formed a mounted cordon to control a crowd on Northgate.
He pleaded guilty to using threatening behaviour and was remanded on bail for the preparation of a pre-sentence report with a warning a custodial sentence could not be ruled out.
Andrew Church-Taylor, defending, said Tromans, a former soldier, was a supporter of the EDL but not a member and had attended the rally with an organised coach party.
“His intention was to get back to his coach and not to cause any trouble,” said Mr Church-Taylor.
Also appearing in court was David Monks, 34, of Haydock Street, Bolton, who pleaded guilty to using threatening behaviour.
He was made subject to an electronically monitored curfew between 8pm and 6am for 91 days.
The court heard a man attending the rally in Blackburn was punched unconscious by fellow supporters after heckling one of the speakers.
Catherine Allan, prosecuting, said CCTV of the incident showed Monks throwing a punch but it did not show whether it connected.
“The other man was in fact punched unconscious but not necessarily by this defendant,” said Miss Allan.
Lisa Swales, 27, of Eastfield Gardens, Bradford, pleaded guilty to assaulting a police officer during the rally.
She suddenly lunged forward and grabbed his testicles, the court heard.
She was sentenced to 12 weeks in prison, suspended for 12 months, made subject to community supervision for 12 months with a condition she attends the stop binge drinking programme.
Susan Bowden, defending, said Swales had attended the demonstration with a group of friends but wasn’t involved with the EDL.
Thomas James Ferguson pleaded guilty to using threatening behaviour after being ordered to leave the rally.
He was drunk, became abusive and swung a punch at an officer before he was arrested.
Ferguson, 22, of Cherry Tree Guest House, Islington, Blackburn, also pleaded guilty to theft from a shop and two offences of failing to answer bail.
He was jailed for 28 days.
Patrick Joseph Doyle, 48, of Cobourg Close, Blackburn, pleaded guilty to assaulting a police officer in the execution of his duty.
He had caught the officer on the temple and knocked his helmet off, the magistrates were told.
Lancashire Telegraph
Monday, 16 May 2011
Curfew for man who threw punch (EDL news, UK)
A man from Bolton was given a curfew order by magistrates after he threw a punch while attending an English Defence League rally in Blackburn.
A court was told how a man was being escorted out by stewards for heckling one the speakers when he was punched by a number of fellow supporters.
David Monks, aged 34, of Haydock Street, Bolton, pleaded guilty to using threatening behaviour before Blackburn magistrates and was made subject to an electronically monitored curfew between 8pm and 6am for 91 days.
Catherine Allan, prosecuting, said CCTV of the incident showed Monks throwing a punch but it did not show whether it connected.
“The other man was in fact punched unconscious but not necessarily by this defendant,” said Miss Allan.
Mr Michael Blacklidge, defending, said: “The irony is that this happened between EDL supporters who fell out amongst themselves.
Bolton News
A court was told how a man was being escorted out by stewards for heckling one the speakers when he was punched by a number of fellow supporters.
David Monks, aged 34, of Haydock Street, Bolton, pleaded guilty to using threatening behaviour before Blackburn magistrates and was made subject to an electronically monitored curfew between 8pm and 6am for 91 days.
Catherine Allan, prosecuting, said CCTV of the incident showed Monks throwing a punch but it did not show whether it connected.
“The other man was in fact punched unconscious but not necessarily by this defendant,” said Miss Allan.
Mr Michael Blacklidge, defending, said: “The irony is that this happened between EDL supporters who fell out amongst themselves.
Bolton News
Protesters clash at anti-Muslim rally in Melbourne (Australia)
Australian Defence League supporters clashed with Left-wing protesters in the city yesterday as the group held its first local rally, sparking a warning from the Baillieu Government that bigotry would not be tolerated.
A small team of police initially kept the groups apart, but ADL supporters were forced to end their protest early when activists encircled them and tore up placards.
The ADL is an offshoot of the English Defence League, which has staged demonstrations in areas of high Muslim concentration in the UK.
About 40 ADL members, including women dressed in mock hijabs, protested in Federation Square yesterday over issues such as the certification of halal meat and concern sharia law would be introduced.
Protest organiser Martin Brennan claimed the group had 1400 members but denied it was anti-Muslim.
"We are not racist whatsoever, we are against radical Islam infiltrating Australia," he said.
Australian Federation of Islamic Councils president Ikebal Patel said the group was provocative and wrong to believe that most Australian Muslims wanted to bring in sharia law.
"It's of great concern that anyone is out there trying to disrupt the peaceful social fabric of Australia," he said.
Islamic Council of Victoria spokesman Nazeem Hussein said the ADL's views were uninformed and saddening.
State Multicultural Affairs Minister Nick Kotsiras said the Government did not tolerate racism, bigotry or the incitement of hatred.
"Activities which undermine the multicultural harmony of Victoria will be dealt with swiftly," he said.
The ADL protest was swamped by the much bigger group of activists and unionists who shouted anti-racism slogans.
Anti-racism protester Mick Armstrong, from Socialist Alternative, said the ADL was trying to copy the tactics of its British counterpart.
"They have had their protest and we have ended it," he said.
Herald Sun
Man beaten with iron bars in racist attack (UK)
A man has been assaulted by an armed gang in South Belfast, in what police believe was a racially motivated attack.
The victim was attacked by three males in the Florenceville Drive area of the Ormeau Road at 12pm on Saturday.
Two of the attackers struck the man repeatedly with iron bars, while a third man tried to cut the victim with a knife.
He was later treated in hospital for cuts and bruising.
The attackers are all described as being in their early 20s and around 6' tall.
The first attacker is thought to be of medium build with short ginger hair. He was wearing a blue hooded top, black tracksuit bottoms and white trainers, and carrying black handled knife.
The second man is described as being of heavy build with short blonde hair. He was wearing a black coat and blue jeans.
The third attacker is thought to be of heavy build with short dark hair and light coloured clothing.
U.tv
The victim was attacked by three males in the Florenceville Drive area of the Ormeau Road at 12pm on Saturday.
Two of the attackers struck the man repeatedly with iron bars, while a third man tried to cut the victim with a knife.
He was later treated in hospital for cuts and bruising.
The attackers are all described as being in their early 20s and around 6' tall.
The first attacker is thought to be of medium build with short ginger hair. He was wearing a blue hooded top, black tracksuit bottoms and white trainers, and carrying black handled knife.
The second man is described as being of heavy build with short blonde hair. He was wearing a black coat and blue jeans.
The third attacker is thought to be of heavy build with short dark hair and light coloured clothing.
U.tv
Community praised following racist demonstration (EDL news, UK)
A multi-cultural community has been praised for the way it reacted to a racist demonstration.
Police have also been applauded for the way in which they dealt with the flash demo outside a Darlington mosque by members of the English Defence League (EDL).
Three people were arrested after about 30 members of the EDL gathered outside the Jamia Mosque on North Lodge Terrace on Saturday at 4.20pm.
It is believed they had attempted a similar demonstration in Middlesbrough earlier in the day before moving on to Darlington.
The group chanted nationalistic slogans and, according to witnesses, intimidated local residents.
However, the group was dispersed by police who arrived in large numbers to control the demonstration and then remained in the area for the rest of the night to prevent any re occurrence.
Read the full item at The Advertiser
Police have also been applauded for the way in which they dealt with the flash demo outside a Darlington mosque by members of the English Defence League (EDL).
Three people were arrested after about 30 members of the EDL gathered outside the Jamia Mosque on North Lodge Terrace on Saturday at 4.20pm.
It is believed they had attempted a similar demonstration in Middlesbrough earlier in the day before moving on to Darlington.
The group chanted nationalistic slogans and, according to witnesses, intimidated local residents.
However, the group was dispersed by police who arrived in large numbers to control the demonstration and then remained in the area for the rest of the night to prevent any re occurrence.
Read the full item at The Advertiser
AUSTRIAN PARLIAMENT BARS HOLOCAUST SONG BY THEODORAKIS
Earlier this year 'Zorba the Greek' composer publicly described himself as ‘anti-Israel and anti-Semitic,’ blamed ‘Zionists’ for Greece’s economic woes.
The president of Austria’s National Council pulled the plug on the song “Mauthausen Trilogy,” which was slated to be sung at a Holocaust remembrance event in Vienna on May 5, because of the songwriter’s anti-Jewish statements. Barbara Prammer said that she was “made aware of alleged anti-Semitic statements from Mr. Theodorakis,” and that “without being able to examine the content” decided to change the music program, Austrian media reported late last week. Mikis Theodorakis achieved global fame with his musical score to the 1964 film Zorba the Greek. Earlier this year, he declared on Greek television that he was “anti-Israel and anti-Semitic.” “Everything that happens today in the world has to do with the Zionists,” the composer said. He asserted that “American Jews are behind the world economic crisis that has hit Greece also.” Theodorakis also slammed Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou for establishing closer relations with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, who was guilty, he said, of “war crimes in Lebanon and Gaza.”
The “Mauthausen Trilogy” was composed by the 86-year-old member of the Greek Communist Party in 1965 to the poem by Mauthausen death camp survivor Iakovos Kambanellis (1922-2011). Recordings of the “Trilogy” have been translated into Hebrew. Victor Eliezar, a spokesman for the Greek Jewish community, told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday, “After the cancellation, the Central Board of Jewish Communities of Greece issued an announcement expressing respect for Theodorakis’s composition of “Mauthausen,” but also grief because of his recent anti- Semitic remarks.” The composer published an open letter defending his hatred of Zionism, but denied that he was anti- Semitic, according to Eliezar. “Theodorakis sent a letter to the board, that was published in the Greek media, in which he tried to prove that he is not an anti-Semite, he is a friend of the Jewish people and he hates anti-Semitism as he hates Zionism. At the end of his letter he claims that his recent remark during an interview that ‘I am anti- Semite’ was just a wrong use of word,” Eliezar wrote.
Karl Pfeifer, an Austrian Jewish journalist and a leading expert on modern anti- Semitism in Central Europe, told the Post, “Theodorakis is a self-confessed anti-Semite. But at the same time he is also a great composer. So it is justified to oppose his anti-Semitism. But how about his music? Should we also reject the music of Chopin because he was an anti-Semite? “Should we not concentrate on really important issues? Is it a victory that his music will not be played in a city where the city council one year ago unanimously condemned Israel because of the killing of nine violent Turkish Islamists? So many questions and no answer.” Pfeifer’s reference was to the Vienna city council’s resolution blasting Israel for its seizure of the Gaza protest flotilla last May. The council was the first European legislative body to unanimously blast Israel’s measures against violent jihadists aboard the Mavi Marmara. Israeli Ambassador Aviv Shir-On told the Post at the time he told the speaker of the Vienna city council that the resolution was “onesided” and that “if the the Arab countries in the UN said the earth was flat, they would take it as part of their resolution.” The resolution prompted a number of Jews to resign from the Austrian Social Democratic party.
Jerusalem Post
The president of Austria’s National Council pulled the plug on the song “Mauthausen Trilogy,” which was slated to be sung at a Holocaust remembrance event in Vienna on May 5, because of the songwriter’s anti-Jewish statements. Barbara Prammer said that she was “made aware of alleged anti-Semitic statements from Mr. Theodorakis,” and that “without being able to examine the content” decided to change the music program, Austrian media reported late last week. Mikis Theodorakis achieved global fame with his musical score to the 1964 film Zorba the Greek. Earlier this year, he declared on Greek television that he was “anti-Israel and anti-Semitic.” “Everything that happens today in the world has to do with the Zionists,” the composer said. He asserted that “American Jews are behind the world economic crisis that has hit Greece also.” Theodorakis also slammed Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou for establishing closer relations with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, who was guilty, he said, of “war crimes in Lebanon and Gaza.”
The “Mauthausen Trilogy” was composed by the 86-year-old member of the Greek Communist Party in 1965 to the poem by Mauthausen death camp survivor Iakovos Kambanellis (1922-2011). Recordings of the “Trilogy” have been translated into Hebrew. Victor Eliezar, a spokesman for the Greek Jewish community, told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday, “After the cancellation, the Central Board of Jewish Communities of Greece issued an announcement expressing respect for Theodorakis’s composition of “Mauthausen,” but also grief because of his recent anti- Semitic remarks.” The composer published an open letter defending his hatred of Zionism, but denied that he was anti- Semitic, according to Eliezar. “Theodorakis sent a letter to the board, that was published in the Greek media, in which he tried to prove that he is not an anti-Semite, he is a friend of the Jewish people and he hates anti-Semitism as he hates Zionism. At the end of his letter he claims that his recent remark during an interview that ‘I am anti- Semite’ was just a wrong use of word,” Eliezar wrote.
Karl Pfeifer, an Austrian Jewish journalist and a leading expert on modern anti- Semitism in Central Europe, told the Post, “Theodorakis is a self-confessed anti-Semite. But at the same time he is also a great composer. So it is justified to oppose his anti-Semitism. But how about his music? Should we also reject the music of Chopin because he was an anti-Semite? “Should we not concentrate on really important issues? Is it a victory that his music will not be played in a city where the city council one year ago unanimously condemned Israel because of the killing of nine violent Turkish Islamists? So many questions and no answer.” Pfeifer’s reference was to the Vienna city council’s resolution blasting Israel for its seizure of the Gaza protest flotilla last May. The council was the first European legislative body to unanimously blast Israel’s measures against violent jihadists aboard the Mavi Marmara. Israeli Ambassador Aviv Shir-On told the Post at the time he told the speaker of the Vienna city council that the resolution was “onesided” and that “if the the Arab countries in the UN said the earth was flat, they would take it as part of their resolution.” The resolution prompted a number of Jews to resign from the Austrian Social Democratic party.
Jerusalem Post
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