August 26, 2009

The BNP and Mr Khan - facts not included

It's been a vintage summer of lies and deceit for the British National Party.

To pick out just a few highlights, there was the DDoS attack that never was, the Helen Forster/Colclough affair, a second DDoS attack that never was, and umpteen promises to sue Searchlight, the Mirror and Uncle Tom Cobley and all.

The BNP is very good at lying to the public, but even better at lying to its own members - which seems to be the sole intention behind half the tall tales which appear on its website. That, and, of course, the self-manufactured opportunities to scam yet more cash from the pockets of an all too credulous membership, which has even been got to believe that Nick Griffin cannot use part of his Euro salary (his personal income) to help fund the BNP.

No fool, that Nick Griffin.

No fools either are we, so when the screaming words Muslim Post Office Manager Bans Woman from Sending Parcel Because Her Son Serves in Afghanistan headlined an article from Welsh regional organiser Brian Mahoney on the BNP's interminably slow website, we could be fairly certain that a Muslim Post Office Manager Did Not Ban Woman from Sending Parcel Because Her Son Serves in Afghanistan.

Now had the headline appeared in the Daily Mail there might just have been a kernel of truth to the story, twisted and sensationalised out of all proportion to be sure, but distantly predicated on a fact nevertheless. But this story originated with the BNP, a party which considers facts to be an optional extra.

The gist of the story is quickly told: the mother of a soldier serving in Afghanistan took a parcel addressed to the said son to a Muslim-owned Post Office, and was told in no uncertain terms that she could not send it due to the fact of her son serving in Afghanistan.

As Mahoney puts it: "A Muslim post office manager in Cardiff has refused to serve a British soldier’s mother — because her son serves in Afghanistan."

You would have thought that something like that would - rightly - create something of a stir. Wouldn't the local press have got on the case? Wouldn't the Daily Mail have stopped the presses? Wouldn't local councillors and MPs have got involved?

But none of that happened.

The first, and only news of this putative cause celebre appeared on the BNP website - the BNP had scooped the world!

To quote from the BNP's version of events:
“Mrs [Maria] Davies’ 21-year-old son is a soldier in a Welsh regiment who recently began an eight month tour of duty in Afghanistan,” Mr Brian Mahoney, BNP leader in Wales, said.

...

“Imagine, then, Mrs Davies’ shock when the owner of her local post office in Wilson Road, Ely, Cardiff, a certain Mr Khan, asked her where her son was serving.

“When she told him Afghanistan, he informed her that she was not welcome to send him anything from her post office, either packages or money,” Mr Mahoney said. He also instructed his staff not to serve her.

“All this took place publicly in the shop in front of witnesses,” he continued. “It left Mrs Davies astonished, frustrated and upset.”

Even a neighbour who later offered to post her parcel was refused service because they had identified from whom the parcel was being sent.
Accompanying the article was a video interview with Mrs Davies, in which Mrs Davies confirmed to Mahoney that Mr Khan had told her she was banned from the Post Office "because my son was in Afghan" (sic).

The video left a number of us unconvinced that this was the whole truth, mostly because of Mrs Davies' uncomfortable demeanour throughout, but more tellingly her assertion that "I know he [Mr Khan] can do bad things", which suggests that Mrs Davies and Mr Khan have a history.

And so, it turns out, they do.

Mr Anjum Alam Khan owns or manages a number of shops in the same road as his Post Office in Wilson Road, one of them being a Nisa convenience store, at which Mrs Davies was a customer. Earlier this year a technical fault with the store's electronic payment system led to several Nisa customers being repeatedly debited for items they had previously purchased, and among their number was Maria Davies, who lost £200.

Mrs Davies, who is unemployed and lives on benefits, was rightly aggrieved, particularly when her bank charged her for going overdrawn. “I can’t buy any food or anything,” she told her local paper. “This has taken my child support money, my tax credit, my child benefit, my income support and a portion of my next child support payment.”

Nisa promised to repay its serially charged customers, and to refund any bank charges incurred. There was no suggestion of impropreity on the part of Mr Khan.

We cannot help but to believe that the bad blood between Mr Khan and Mrs Davies might have something to do with this, and is the fount of Mrs Davies' statement that "I know he can do bad things", and that whatever passed between them is perhaps the reason Mrs Davies is banned from all of Mr Khan's premises.

Whatever did pass between them we'll probably never know, but we do know that Mr Khan felt provoked enough to impose a ban, and that the ban has nothing to do with Mrs Davies's son serving in Afghanistan.

In fact Mr Khan supports the British operation in Afghanistan, and his Post Office has collected on behalf of British troops. He is considered a hard-working member of the community.

But, as an Asian Muslim, he is everything the BNP hates, and naturally the party has maliciously published his contact details, which can be for one purpose only.

For their part, Mr Khan, and Post Office Manageress Mrs Thomas, have issued the following statement:
“There is absolutely no truth in the allegation made to the British National Party that the Post Office in Wilson Road, Ely, Cardiff will not accept parcels for British troops in Afghanistan.

It should not be repeated and we reserve the right to pursue legal action against any person or body repeating the allegation and call for its removal from any website or other publication.

The Wilson Road Post Office has always accepted and continues to accept such parcels. Indeed the Wilson Road shops including the Post Office recently held a ‘Heroes Collection’ for British troops.

The allegation is false and malicious and related to a separate dispute with a customer.

As a result that customer is not welcome at these premises but our services can be accessed by someone else on their behalf if they so wish.”
And so there we have it.

Another BNP lie squarely nailed - but don't blink, another one will be along very soon now.

27 comments:

MCARF said...

A much needed myth busting. Hope you don't mind if I republish it on the MCARF blog.

Anonymous said...

Davies has a reputation in Ely. The BNP fuck up again.

Anonymous said...

Conservative Council embroiled in race row after discovery of document labelling schoolchildren 'Pakis'

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1209159/Conservative-Council-embroiled-race-row-discovery-document-labelling-schoolchildren-Pakis.html

Antifascist said...

"A much needed myth busting. Hope you don't mind if I republish it on the MCARF blog."

No problem at all with that.

eric the fish said...

Excellent piece of digging,Denise.

My worry is that the BNP version will become urban myth/fact and could lead to attacks.

The Mersey BNP site has the Youtube video with an attack on 'this filthy Muslim' and says he should be sent back. It also claims to have telephoned him.

Maybe this should be reported to someone.

JJ said...

Another fine article from LU. I bet the BNP HATE you. LOL

eric the fish said...

I wonder if she is same maria Davies who had a go at GBrown in Cardiff for poor equipment. Walesonline reported that her HUSBAND was serving in Afghanistan.

Further, this BNP story is on tweetmeme. No idea how to tweet etc, so maybe some young'un can put this proper version there.

Needs to ne nipped in the bud. Often with say Daily Mail lies and distortion their version stays around the news sites as fact.

Amazing the DM hasn't picked this up.

Anonymous said...

Given the choice between that woman and a hard-working pillar of the community who happens to be Asian I know who I'd believe.

The most disturbing thing about this story is how the Mail picked up on this and ran with it. I have long suspected that there are pro-fascists within that paper.

Hurrah for the Blackshirts...sorry...BNP!

Unknown said...

"The most disturbing thing about this story is how the Mail picked up on this and ran with it."

As far as I know, the Mail didn't.

Note that Mrs Davies did not seek to take this anywhere but to the BNP.

GMex said...

Lying scumbags!!!

The British Nazi Party will stoop as low as the gutter to infiltrate weak minds with their bastard lies.

Anonymous said...

An example of the type of social misfits and ASBOniks the BNP attracts like flies to a pile of dogshit.

Yes indeed in all fairness the Daily Mail, or even the hate filled Express or Daily Star didn't pick up on this, she (Ms.Davies) chose to go to the fascists.

Anonymous said...

Well I've been googling this story all day and cannot find anything about it in any "credible" newspaper.

Now I wonder why that is? Why she chose instead to go to the BNP with her story...

The lying bastards have this story posted all over the internet, loads of forums, social networking sites etc. Absolute scum!

Wombat said...

Gri££in is the biggest liar of the lot. If he can deny the Holocaust happened, he can lie about just about anything including what he does with all the money from his stupid begging letters.

peter smith said...

One day in the next few months, the shit will hit the fan and Cyclops will bugger off to Croatia, where he can live like a limp off the rank and file members hard-earned cash without anyone giving a shit, and Paedo Boy Collett will finally take over the running of the party, much to the absolute delight of the sheeple who stayed with Griffin no matter what the lying, cheating sod does.

Says a lot for the IQ of the average BNP member, lol!

Anonymous said...

"The Merseyside BNP"???

Which drug dealing facist gangster runs things in Liverpool, these days, since the days of Owens?

Unknown said...

Couldn't they sue the BNP for libel?
The BNP site spread the story and there was a facebook group "send Mr Khan to prison.."

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=153658145766

(now deleted) which was started by Roger Phillips - a BNP activist from Kerry in Powys.

"WalesBNP" still have a video up on youtube.

Maybe the PO could fund a libel suit? Maybe the CWU could help?

John P said...

Anonymous said...

"The Merseyside BNP"???

Which drug dealing facist gangster runs things in Liverpool, these days, since the days of Owens?

Well, according to Owens one third of MI5, most of Special Branch, MI6 on their tea breaks and the bloke from Quiggins.

Anonymous said...

Mr Khan can't be that strict a Muslim, one of his shop is named Bargin Booze. This woman looks like trouble and kept saying throughout the video that they wouldn't serve her and give her, her money (benefits.) Post Offices only do that if customers are known trouble makers and have been abusive in the past.

Brummie said...

Maria Davies is all the BNP despises, unemployed, on benefits and badly educated, a prominent example of 'underclass'.

Well, all Joey Owens despises anyway!!!

Anonymous said...

The Post Office Counters Ltd have a policy of refusing certain members of the public from using their services if that person has caused problems in the past, i.e become abusive or assaulted a member of staff, I wonder if this applies to Ms Davies?

Anonymous said...

I totally agree with listerforjan, I think Mr Khan has a very good case for bringing a successful libel action against the BNP when he returns from India. Can somebody please burn a copy of the BNP video, as it will be needed in court as evidence, are there any good libel lawyers out there?

Karen said...

Yes, Maria Davies is everything that the BNP despises however she is also typical of the type of people that the BNP elite are happy to use to further their cause without then giving a hoot about. A pity that these people (sheeple) are too stupid to understand that they are just being used - same goes for the football thugs, skinheads and the rest. For Griffin and his ilk they are all just the disposable fodder to be used and discarded to further their own aims. If you know how they think (and I do having been part of this) these are the very people that the Nazi elite was in favour of sterilizing etc. In the perfect BNP world the same or worse fate would await the likes of Maria Davies!

Anonymous said...

"I think Mr Khan has a very good case for bringing a successful libel action against the BNP when he returns from India"

Yes but if he did he and his family would be subjected to violence and threats from the BNP's "bitches" like the NF, BPP etc.

It would be understandable if he wants to forget about the whole thing.

Anonymous said...

I see the BNP has hurriedly removed this item from its page, presumably in fear of being done. Well done for exposing the lie LU.

Unknown said...

I stumbled on another Facebook group:

http://www.facebook.com/wall.php?id=119016594593
"Boycott using Wilson Road PO"

which was started by a Paul Tryrrell (supposedly of the Royal Signals)

I thought he might be a dupe, but after I was kicked-off there (just for posting the statement of denial) I have my doubts.

I might drop a line to someone in the MOD in case he really is who he says. Signals is a pretty sensitive function.

Unknown said...

The youtube video posted by "walesBNP" (which seems to be Roger Phillips' channel) is still there.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6FQpnxCpw0

I really think a libel writ would put the wind up these guys. If Mr Khan has the stomach for it. It could cost the BNP serious money - wiping out any Euro windfall.

Sam Horan said...

Unfortunately the BNP are also using this 'story' as a sort of gimmick for a facebook propaganda campaign. Unfortunately given the amount of service personnal and families (myself included) on there it is going to strike a nerve, fortunately i have the sense to take amything the BNP say with a enough salt to make the ocean a fresh water pond...