Wellington: More than 40 arrested in protests

More than 40 people were arrested as rival groups clashed in a Shropshire town where a march was banned by the home secretary on Saturday.

Up to 350 members of the English Defence League and 250 opposition protesters gathered in Wellington. People at both rallies began to disperse after speeches were made but there were "pockets of disorder" afterwards, West Mercia Police said. Ten people were charged, the rest were cautioned or bailed.

Chief Inspector Keith Gee said the arrests were mainly for public order offences. Three police officers were assaulted but none were seriously hurt. He said there had been "few problems during the build up to and during the assemblies and there have been no reports of damage to property or serious injuries."

The leader of Telford and Wrekin Council, Kuldip Sahota, praised the "fantastic effort by council officers, West Mercia Police and the whole community of Wellington."

He said Wellington could now return to normal and community could go about its business peacefully again.

"Our street cleaning team was out immediately after the demonstrations were over and the crowds dispersed and very soon after that were were able to re-open the road that had been closed." he said.

BBC

Home Secretary bans Telford EDL march

The home secretary has banned an English Defence League (EDL) march through a Shropshire town amid fears of disorder.

Theresa May she had stopped the march in Telford to protect "communities and properties". She said the ban would not stop an EDL presence in Telford on Saturday.

Telford and Wrekin Council had made the request under the Public Order Act on the advice of West Mercia Police.

Mrs May said: "I have given my consent to a ban on marches in Telford this weekend. It is clear that a ban is needed to ensure communities and properties are protected."

However, she said there would be a "significant number" of police deployed on Saturday.

"I encourage all local people to work with the police to ensure community relations are not undermined," she said.

Church Street in Wellington is to be the location of any protest by the EDL.

The council welcomed the ban but said security measures would remain in place.

Councillor Shaun Davies said: "People can be reassured that both organisations (police and the council) have the resources available and the experience to deal with any incidents on the day."

Chief Inspector Keith Gee of West Mercia Police said the ban did "not prevent any static assemblies taking place, which are still lawful provided they remain peaceful and we have no legal powers to prevent them".

He added: "We shall do everything possible to ensure that any assembly on Saturday remains peaceful and poses the least amount of disruption possible for those not involved in the assembly."

The EDL said it was going to Telford because "local people's voices deserve to be heard".

"We are not coming to Telford to inconvenience anyone, and we certainly do not intend to cause any trouble," a spokesman said.

BBC

BNP youth leader arrested

Kieren Trent, leader of the British National Party’s “young adults” organisation Resistance, was arrested by Thames Valley Police yesterday (Sunday), according to a report on a far-right activist’s blog. His computer equipment was seized.

The arrest followed a demonstration in Wolverton, Milton Keynes, against a local councillor who voted in favour of granting planning permission to Bletchley mosque. Councillor Mike Galloway, a Liberal Democrat, is a member of the Milton Keynes Development Control Committee, which deals with planning applications, and chair of the Local Development Framework Advisory Group.

Bletchley mosque has been the target of BNP opposition since last autumn, with Trent leading several protests.

Trent and another person were held in custody on suspicion of committing an offence under section 5 of the Public Order Act – disorderly behaviour, the report said. If convicted he could be fined.

The report says the demonstration forms part of a new approach to activism consisting of “explaining the failures of an individual councillor to their immediate neighbours and ensuring that the community realise who is responsible for the changes that are coming about”.

It seems more a new excuse for harassment than anything else. Trent, who has stood unsuccessfully for election to Milton Keynes council, was one of a group of BNP activists involved in a violent confrontation with Asian youths in Barking a few days before last year’s general election. The incident was caught on film, posted on YouTube, but Trent was not charged despite being clearly visible landing blows and kicks to someone on the ground.

Hope not hate

Thanks to NewsHound for the heads-up

EDL founder Stephen Lennon's police assault charge dropped

The founder of the English Defence League (EDL) will no longer face a charge of assaulting a police officer.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has dropped the accusation against Stephen Lennon, 27, of Luton, Bedfordshire, after new evidence emerged. The CPS said Mr Lennon would now face an offence under the Public Order Act.

Mr Lennon was arrested as members of the Muslims Against Crusades group burned a poppy during a two-minute silence on Armistice Day in London. A police officer suffered a head injury during the clashes in Kensington, west London, as about 50 men linked to the EDL were kept away from the protesters. Five other people associated with the right-wing organisation were arrested and two Muslim protesters were held on suspicion of public order offences.

Two men, aged 30 and 26, have since been charged with public order offences and are due to go on trial later this year. The CPS and the Metropolitan Police were unable to say immediately if the remaining five would face charges. The CPS said Mr Lennon had not yet been formally charged with the new offence.

Mr Lennon described this potential new charge as being "out of a Christmas cracker" and said he would deny it. He said: "This is a joke, a farce. It completely shows they are trying to pin anything they can on me. I will plead not guilty to the public order. I was trying to prevent a crime of burning poppies. I was trying to do the police's job because they failed to keep the rule of law on the streets of London."

The Metropolitan Police said it would not be commenting on Mr Lennon's remarks.

BBC

Anti-Allah outburst earns EDL supporter £200 fine after protest in Leicester

A man has been fined for making offensive comments about Allah during the English Defence League protest in Leicester. Lee Whitby was found guilty of using racially aggravated abusive words during the protest in the city centre on Saturday, October 9.

During a trial at Leicester Magistrates' Court yesterday, the 27-year-old pleaded not guilty to chanting "threatening, abusive or insulting" words that were likely to cause "harassment, alarm or distress."

Although he admitted making comments, Whitby said he did not believe they would have been heard by anyone other than police officers or fellow EDL supporters. However, magistrate Rick Moore ruled that officers were likely to have been alarmed by the defendant's words.

Whitby, of Holley Place, Stoke-on-Trent, said he was an EDL supporter and had travelled by train to Leicester on the day of the protest with about 30 people from Stoke and Crewe. He also admitted being part of previous EDL protests in Newcastle, Dudley, Stoke, Bolton and Bradford.

The defendant told the court he was leaving the protest site in Humberstone Gate East and was being ushered towards the train station when he uttered the offensive chant.

Whitby, who chose to represent himself, said: "I went to an EDL demo and was in an area which was isolated away from everyone else. The only people that would have heard were the EDL. I was not aiming it at anyone. No-one around would find it offensive. Otherwise, I wouldn't have said it. I was just voicing my opinion at an EDL meeting with just EDL people around."

Alexandra Blossom, prosecuting, said the comments made were bound to cause harassment, alarm or distress because of Leicester's multicultural society and the fact the words were said in the city centre.

She said: "A number of people present that day were likely to be offended. It was a high-profile event and members of the public would have been in the city on a Saturday. The remarks are even offensive to police. A clear message needs to be sent out about using such behaviour in a multicultural city."

The court heard Whitby had two previous convictions for common assault.

Mr Moore said: "It is a fact you were with others chanting and police were within hearing distance but there is no evidence of non-police officers within hearing distance. It is likely that a police officer or officers hearing the words would be likely to be alarmed and for that reason we find you guilty of this offence."

Whitby was fined £200 and ordered to pay a further £200 in costs, as well as a £15 victim surcharge.

Leicester Mercury

Thanks to NewsHound for the heads-up.

Man jailed for posting racist video clips on YouTube

A man has been jailed for 15 months for uploading racist video clips on to YouTube.

Gareth Hemingway, 29, of Bognor Regis, earlier pleaded guilty to five offences under the Public Order Act at Leeds Crown Court. The clips called for a "racial holy war" and were designed to provoke violence against ethnic minorities, particularly in Dewsbury. When he was arrested, police found Nazi and racist memorabilia at his home.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said the material came to the attention of police when a journalist researching Dewsbury on the internet came across videos Hemingway, of Longford Road, had posted and reported them. The CPS said they included titles such as 'red, white and blue through and through' and 'Dewsbury needs help'. They also featured racist references and imagery including an assault on a black man by a white man.

Stuart Laidlaw, reviewing lawyer for the CPS, said: "Gareth Hemingway decided to use the very public forum of YouTube to distribute videos of racist and inflammatory nature which he had edited, and which were designed to provoke violence against ethnic minorities, particularly those living in Dewsbury. They called for a 'racial holy war', described acts of violence and made supportive references to far right groups such as Combat 18 and Patriots of White European Resistance."

Mr Laidlaw added: "Freedom of speech carries with it responsibilities. Publishing something that is abusive and insulting and that is likely to stir racial hatred is against the law and the CPS will work with the police to prosecute robustly anyone who does so."

BBC

EDL member seen kicking officer

A member of the English Defence League who was involved in the disorder which broke out at a rally in Stoke-on-Trent has been jailed for 16 weeks

Jake Payne travelled up to the city from his home with friends to attend the event in Hanley city centre on January 23 this year.

Laura Jones, prosecuting, told North Staffordshire magistrates: "Payne was seen by officers at 3.20pm as part of a crowd in hostile confrontation with police. He was seen to kick out violently at one police officer, then encouraging some of the people in the crowd to behave in a disorderly fashion."

She said Payne admitted he was a member of the EDL and had previous convictions for public order offences. Payne, aged 22 of Florey Gardens, Aylesbury, pleaded guilty to using threatening abusive or insulting words of behaviour with intent and failing to answer to his bail.

Lee Yates, defending, said: "He says he wishes to be sentenced and sent to prison forthwith because he knows from past experience he is unable to comply with community orders."

This is Staffordshire

BNP supporter in court today over election assault charge

A supporter of the British National Party is due to appear in court today after allegedly attacking a gay Conservative candidate at the UK's local elections, earlier this month

A supporter of the British National Party is due to appear in court today after allegedly attacking a gay Conservative candidate at the UK's local elections, earlier this month. Desmond OFlynn, 45, is said to have attacked the openly-homosexual Tory candidate on the evening of 6 May.

A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police Service told PinkPaper.com: "We can confirm that a 45-year-old man f.rom Mitcham Park, Mitcham has been charged with a section 4A public order offence. He will appear on bail at Wimbledon Magistrates' Court today, 18 May. This follows an incident at Canons Leisure Centre in Mitcham on 6 May."

Pink Paper

Peter Tierney and Merseyside BNP head to court yet again…

Andrew Tierney in typical pose

Today, Merseyside BNP “super-activist” Peter Tierney was up at the Crown Court to enter a plea on charges of assault. In response, Liverpool Antifascists turned up to distribute leaflets informing the public of exactly who Merseyside BNP has in its ranks.

Overall, the response to the leaflets from the public was a positive one and several hundred were distributed. The only negative response we received was from people who picked up on the word “BNP” and instantly became wary, only letting their guard down once they realised we were opposed to the fascists, not for them. Such a reaction from those mistakenly believing we supported the BNP is a common one, and betrays the depth of feeling against the party amongst the ordinary, working class people of Liverpool.

As a counterpoint, the fascists were out in force today, with Steve Greenhalgh, and Clive Jefferson amongst those most familiar to the BNP amongst the swarm of suited “activists” waiting to enter the court. And of course there was Andrew Tierney, who was happy to mingle with the gaggle of tracksuited boneheads brought in to make laughable attempts at intimidating us “reds.”

Steve Greenhalgh before the hissy fit that nearly saw him arrested
for breaching Section 5 of the Public Order Act, the same offence for
which one antifascist was branded a "thug" by Merseyside BNP and
had his photo, name, and address published on Redwatch

For as long as we were there, Andrew continued to film us. There were also shouts and attempts at goading from him and his fellow goons as time drew on. Perhaps due to the proximity of the crown court, the police (better known for protecting the BNP rather than persecuting them) actually responded to complaints about the filming.

Particularly ironic was the moment when one police officer threatened to charge Steve Greenhalgh with a breach of section 5 of the Public Order Act for swearing at him. It was this same breach that one of our own activists was found guilty of when Tierney’s accusations of assault and criminal damage were thrown out as untenable nonsense. For Merseyside BNP this amounted to a “serious public order offence,” though we imagine it will quickly become “police persecution” now that Greenhalgh is on the receiving end.

Having delivered our leaflets and accomplished what we needed to, antifascists then left the scene – and the boneheads – behind. We will, however, be returning when Tierney faces trial and he is finally forced to face the truth of his actions back in April.

Further updates on the case to follow soon.

Liverpool Antifascists

Web racists challenge convictions

Sheppard (left) and Whittle were jailed after a failed bid to seek asylum in the US

Two men have started appeals against the UK's first convictions for inciting racial hatred via a foreign website

Simon Sheppard, 51, was sentenced to four years and 10 months, and Stephen Whittle, 42, to two years and four months at Leeds Crown Court in July.

Sheppard, from Selby, North Yorks, and Whittle, of Preston, Lancs, controlled US websites featuring racist material. Sheppard's counsel Adrian Davies told the Appeal Court on Thursday the sites were "entirely lawful" in the US. He said that there was no evidence that anyone in England and Wales - except for the police officer in the case - had ever seen any of them.

Referring to the jailed UK extremist Muslim cleric Mr Davies said: "Despite this, Mr Sheppard has been sentenced to a longer term of imprisonment than Abu Hamza," he told the court. "These are matters which, in my submission, ought to attract the closest and most careful scrutiny of the court of the supposed legal basis of these convictions."

During their first trial in 2008, Sheppard and Whittle had skipped bail and fled to California, where they sought asylum claiming they were being persecuted for their right-wing views. However, they were subsequently deported back to the UK.

The investigation began when a complaint about a leaflet called "Tales of the Holohoax" was reported to the police in 2004 after it was pushed through the door of a Blackpool synagogue. It was traced back to a post office box in Hull registered to Sheppard. Police later found published material including grotesque images of murdered Jews alongside cartoons and articles ridiculing ethnic groups.

The pair were charged under the Public Order Act with publishing racially inflammatory material, distributing racially inflammatory material and possessing racially inflammatory material with a view to distribution. Sheppard, of Brook Street, Selby, was found guilty of 16 offences and Whittle, of Avenham Lane, Preston, was found guilty of five. Sentencing, Judge Rodney Grant said that he had rarely seen material which was so abusive and insulting.

At the Court of Appeal on Thursday, Mr Davies said that the Act did not contemplate a situation where publication was in an electronic form but only in "hard copy" form. And publication did not result merely when a website was set up but only when someone actually looked at it.

The hearing continues.

BBC

Neo-Nazi Group Glorify Murder of Minorities

The Centre for Social Cohesion (CSC) urges the police to take action against the UK wing of the neo-Nazi group Blood & Honour (B&H). The group is currently distributing music CDs which encourage hatred and acts of terror against ethnic minorities, contrary to both the Public Order Act 1986 and the Terrorism Act 2000.

B&H, an international neo-Nazi organisation, promotes extremist music and live concerts by neo-Nazi rock bands. B&H openly states its admiration for Hitler and the Third Reich and its Field Manual claims that ‘National Socialism is the ideology of the national revolutionary movement which Blood & Honour represents’.

Incitement lyrics

B&H’s east Scotland wing, the ‘Highlander Division’, is currently selling a variety of neo-Nazi music CDs via its Highlander East Coast (HEC) website. All of the following song lyrics are taken from albums currently on sale on the Blood & Honour website.

The materials incite hatred and violence against:

Black and Asian communities

We’ll bomb your cities, destroy your towns
Wipe out the scum, kill all the browns
Hang politicians and waste the police
Until I’m feeling better, the murder will not cease!

['Bomb the Cities', from the Blue Eyed Devils' album Murder Squad]

Non white scum we’re gonna kill you
Slit your throat and watch you die
Time to crush the brown eyed subrace
Strangle, beat and crucify

Total destruction of all non whites
Right now is it time to attack
Take your guns, go shoot and kill
Cause the jew government won’t send them back

['Vandalize and Victimize', from the Blue Eyed Devils' album Murder Squad]

Nigger lover! Race traitor!
Walk in shame and hide your face

On your knees, my gun to your head
Worthless scum you know what lies ahead
With the pull of the trigger, now you’re dead!

['Hate Filled Mind', from the Blue Eyed Devils' album Murder Squad]:

Bang, bang - watch ‘em die
Watch those niggers drop like flies

['Bang, Bang', from Berserkr album Crush the Weak]

Jewish communities

Death to the ones from the underground
All I hear is victory’s call
My nation’s honor rising above all
I regret nothing that I’ve done
I’ve seen so many through the sights of my gun
But to kill for the Reich is my job
A soldier in my nation’s murder squad

My orders are simple, plain and clear
Murder on command and have no fear
In my heart I know what’s right
To do what I must for my nation’s fight

Traitors are hung and others shot dead
Kill the jew and cut off his head
Destroy the enemy and his lies
Send the filth to an early demise

['Murder Squad' by Blue Eyed Devils album of the same name]

This is only a small example of a wide range of material which contains similar language.

Other titles on sale include: ‘Fueled by Hate’, ‘Force Fed Hate’, ‘Genocidal Hate’, ‘Spread the Hate’, ‘Anthems of Hate’, ‘Operation Racewar’, ‘Race Riot’, ‘People Take the Gun’, ‘Aryan Revolution’, ‘Jew Boys’, ‘Don’t Buy From Jews’, ‘Jew Boy ‘98′, ‘Killing Spree’ and ‘Ovens Again’.

The album cover art includes images of black men hanging from the gallows in segregation-era America, and ‘Crush the Weak’ by Berserkr features a photograph of piles of dead Jews.

Glorification of Terrorism

B&H is not, at present, a proscribed organisation in the UK, as in the past it has stopped just short of advocating terrorist activities. B&H nonetheless states in its field manual that those who carry out terrorist actions in the name of neo-Nazism ‘must be respected rather than condemned’ and considers those who condemn neo-Nazi violence to be ‘pathetic’ and ‘cowardly’.

The Terrorism Act 2006 widened the criteria for proscription under the Terrorism Act 2000 to include the glorification of terrorism. Accordingly, a group which publishes or disseminates material glorifying acts or terror is liable for proscription.

B&H speaks approvingly of ‘lone wolf’ terrorists as follows:

“Die-hard ‘Nazis’ not comfortable in any watered-down, democratic outfit, still have an option through leaderless resistance and direct action. [...] These lone white wolves must be respected and left alone to stalk the worst enemies of our race. They expect no support and assistance but they deserve acknowledgement and understanding.”

Inciting Racial Hatred

According to the Public Order Act 1986, individuals who distribute recordings of visual images or sounds which are threatening and abusive are guilty if they either intend to or are likely to stir up racial hatred.

The HEC website is hosted by an American server in an apparent attempt to circumnavigate the UK’s anti-racist legislation. Although prosecuting individuals for what they post on foreign servers has long been a difficult task, a precedent was set by the Sheppard & Whittle case where the Crown Prosecution Service convicted both men for incitement to racial hatred based on material posted on US based websites.

While the HEC website is hosted in the US, the CDs it advertises are sold and distributed within the UK, and the return address for faulty goods is a mailbox at a storage centre in Dundee. The individuals who administrate the B&H HEC site are required to comply with UK legislation regarding the sale and distribution of recorded material.

Edmund Standing, author of recent CSC report ‘The BNP and the Online Fascist Network’, who has uncovered this information, says:

“The activities of Blood & Honour and the individuals associated with it should be taken very seriously by the Home Office. The recent rise in arrests and convictions of white supremacists shows that the materials disseminated by Blood & Honour are more than just words, and there are people who are willing to act on them.”

“The dissemination of such materials is a threat to all minority communities in the UK and should be of concern to Jewish and Muslim communities, with the latter in particular facing a demonstrable rise in persecution from neo-Nazis and far right bigots.”

UPDATE:

Also being sold on the HEC site:

A nice selection of BNP merchandise…

This is a Centre for Social Cohesion Press Briefing relating to research by Edmund Standing

Harry's Place

Restrictions on protests near BNP festival

Derbyshire Constabulary, in conjunction with Amber Valley Borough Council, is placing Restrictions have been placed on any protests planned in the vicinity of the British National Party's Red, White and Blue event this weekend.

The BNP is staging the event at a site on Codnor-Denby Lane on Friday, Saturday and Sunday and a number of groups have indicated their plans to stage a protest in response to the event on Saturday.

After talks between Derbyshire Police and Amber Valley Borough Council this has been agreed to but with certain safeguards. But, as part of this process the police and council have invoked a number of sections of the Public Order Act 1986 to help prevent serious disorder, serious damage to property and serious disruption to the local community.

Section 14 of the act has been utilised to identify Codnor Market Place as a designated area for public assembly prior to and following the procession between 9am and 5pm for all those attending the demonstration. Section 12 of the act has been used to impose conditions on the public procession, which will take place between Codnor Market Place and Codnor Denby Lane.

The protestors will set off from the Market Place no earlier than 11.30am. They will follow a route along the A6007 Heanor Road, Codnor to its junction with Codnor Denby Lane where it will turn right into Codnor Denby Lane adjacent to Crosshill Church. It will then continue along Codnor Denby Lane, to the area identified as the designated protest point, where it will halt. At this point, a further public assembly may take place until 2pm, at which time the procession will turn around and return to the Market Place in Codnor via the same route.

Those who have participated in the public procession may then rejoin the designated protest point at Codnor Market Place for the remainder of the period specified in the notice. The procession will be marshalled by the event organisers and accompanied by police officers.

Finally section 14a of the act has been invoked to prevent trespassory assemblies around the area known as The Bungalow in Codnor Denby Lane and the adjacent lands to an area that does not exceed a radius of five miles. This part of the act prevents anyone trespassing on private land because of police fears that there may be disruption to the event and disruption caused to the community.

All the orders run from 9am on Friday, August 14, to 4pm on Sunday, August 16. Anyone not abiding by the legislation may be liable to arrest.

Acting Assistant Chief Constable Steve Cotterill said: "We are trying to find a balance between allowing legitimate assembly and maintaining public safety and minimising inconvenience to people who live or work in the affected area. We hope that people will abide by the law in order to voice their opinions in safety."

Derbyshire Times

Prosecutors press for action against BNP leaflets

• Pressure mounts for end to race hate law loopholes
• CPS powerless to pursue complaints made by police

Senior prosecutors are calling for the laws on race hate crimes to be strengthened to counter the threat posed by the British National party.

The threshold for securing a conviction is so high that far-right activists are able to evade prosecution for material that many people would consider to be threatening and racist, according to sources at the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

Prosecutors blame the lack of convictions on the strict legal test, which requires showing an intention to "stir up racial hatred" or a likelihood that racial tension would be stirred up.

The offence, which was created under the Public Order Act, only applies to acts that take place or are witnessed in public so it does not cover leaflets that are pushed through people's letter boxes. It also offers no protection against the publication of inaccurate or false information.

Several BNP leaflets have been referred to the CPS over the last five years – some by senior police officers and one by a judge – but no further action has been taken.

Peter Herbert, the chairman of the Society of Black Lawyers and a part-time judge, submitted a complaint last year over a leaflet called The Changing Face of London that had two pictures, one depicting an all-white street party from the 1950s, the other showing three Muslim women wearing a niqab, one of whom is making a V-sign towards the camera.

"Under the law, it has been extremely difficult to mount a prosecution against extremism and hate speech," said Herbert. "But with the rise of the BNP, and the subsequent rise in racist attacks and the fear the party's leaflets can provoke, it is essential we are given the tools to deal effectively with this threat."

Herbert said the law should protect people from material that creates a fear of racist attacks as well as those that are deemed to incite racial hatred. "All the evidence suggests that it is people from minority communities and the faith communities that are put in fear of violence when racist leaflets are delivered in town centres or on estates. If someone handed out the same thing in the workplace, most employers would consider that gross misconduct; if someone does the same thing in the street, there is very little we can do."

Another complaint was submitted to the CPS by Lancashire police who expressed concern about a BNP leaflet which blamed Muslims for the heroin trade. Four people were arrested and released on police bail last year but detectives are still waiting to hear from the CPS about whether they have grounds to prosecute for "incitement to stir up racial hatred".

In another incident, Derbyshire police alerted the CPS about a BNP election leaflet claiming three asylum seekers had raped a woman. The police said the rape claims were "unfounded", but the CPS said there were no grounds to prosecute under existing law. "Whilst those details in the leaflet regarding the alleged rape are factually incorrect, this in itself does not constitute a criminal offence," said a CPS spokesman at the time.

A senior prosecutor told the Guardian: "There are numerous problems. The test to show incitement is very high and the material has to be distributed in public rather than put through people's doors. This makes it really difficult to get convictions for material which many people consider racist."

A CPS source confirmed that the organisation would review its policies on prosecuting race hate crimes following the election of two BNP candidates, including the party's leader, Nick Griffin, to the European parliament.

"We will need to look again at the situation with prosecuting incidences of this material," the source said.

Last week, the Equality and Human Rights Commission, the official watchdog on race and equality, wrote a formal letter to the BNP giving them one month to remedy three alleged breaches of the Race Relations Act, including the party's whites-only membership policy.

That announcement increased the likelihood of legal action against the BNP in the civil courts, but critics say there have been too few criminal proceedings, despite material distributed by the party which many regard as inflammatory.

Herbert, the former chair of the Metropolitan police race hate crime forum, said a number of anti-racism and human rights bodies would back a change in the law.

"I expect a strong coalition will form around this idea and put pressure on the government to instigate a change in primary legislation as soon as possible," he said.

Anti-racism campaigners welcomed the crackdown on inflammatory or racist leaflets but warned more was needed to effectively counter the threat posed by the BNP.

"Where the BNP has been distributing racially offensive material, it is right that they should be prosecuted with the full force of the law," said a spokesman for the anti-fascist organisation Searchlight. "However, the way we will defeat Nick Griffin and his party is street by street and estate by estate, not lawyer by lawyer and courtroom by courtroom."

The Guardian

Letter in today's Guardian re' RWB

I was one of 30 people - from the 500-strong gathering of anti-BNP protesters - allowed within Derbyshire constabulary's 1.5-mile "official protest area". Tightly controlled under sections 14 and 14a of the Public Order Act and under constant surveillance, we marched up Denby Lane to the Bungalow, the hilltop site of the BNP's "Red, White, and Blue festival" (Czech far-right party activist to address BNP, August 16).

 Heavily flanked by police, the half-mile walk was uneventful. My arthritis slowed me down somewhat (I'm 66). A police helicopter clattered overhead, and after passing the Bungalow we reached a grass verge, where some protesters were interviewed by the local press. After 10 minutes we walked back down the hill, again past the Bungalow; "festival security" filmed us from the gateway, and further down a few vehicle drivers, irritated by being slowed up, treated us to some foul language, while four middle-aged men at a pub jeered at us to "get a job", before we rejoined the main demonstration.

 At no point did my wife and I, our comrades from Stoke-on-Trent or most of the hundreds at this protest see stones thrown, or arrests made. Indeed the assistant chief constable of Derbyshire said our behaviour was "impeccable". But what media reports there have been about the demonstrations focused only on disorderly events, and missed the fact that the vast majority of people taking part in marches of this type are law-abiding citizens, most with jobs and responsibilities, who worry about the rise of far-right politics in Britain, and in Europe.

 I fear that this type of reporting may discourage many people from attending such events, as does the constant surveillance filming by police units.

 My father, Charles Edward Honeysett, 1899-1982, served on the western front in 1918, spoke at open-air meetings and demonstrated against fascism in the 1930s, and had to serve Britain for six more years after being called up in 1939; for his sacrifice alone I have no alternative but to continue joining with all those good people with social consciences, and try to raise awareness of the ignorance, divisiveness and racism behind the BNP's "mask of respectability".

 Jon Honeysett
 Stoke-on-Trent

Guardian

BNP festival and protestors cause businesses and residents a headache

Business owners and residents living near the site of a BNP festival fear the event will cause major disruption.

 The controversial Red, White and Blue festival will take place on fields off Condor-Denby Lane, Denby, on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Police have invoked special public order laws in an effort to keep the number of anti-BNP protesters who plan to come to the area on Saturday down to 700. But an anti-BNP activists' march and rally will mean Codnor's only car park, its Market Place, and a main road will close. And people living by the site in Denby fear noise and violence and are angry at footpath closures.

  The protesters' march, which will travel along the A6007 Heanor Road to its junction with Codnor-Denby Lane, means some shops will close. Richard Walker, owner of Tantastic salon, said: "I will probably close. I wish there was no festival and no protesters because we are going to lose money."

 Aileen Tilley, whose costume shop Fancy That is opposite Codnor car park, in High Street, said she would close. She said: "We will lose money. The police told me they couldn't tell me directly to close but I'm going to."

 Residents in Denby said they hoped Red, White and Blue would not return next year. John Lumsden, who lives opposite the festival site in Codnor-Denby Lane, said he would feel like "a prisoner in his home" over the weekend. Mr Lumsden, 65, said: "They've closed five footpaths in the area which I use to walk my mongrel dog, Dez, and to get about. Why should something we haven't asked for affect us in this way?"

 Joe Osborne, 69, of Breach Road, said: "We feel like all this has been forced upon us."

 Once police estimate that 700 activists have turned up on Saturday, new arrivals will be asked to disperse and could be arrested if they refuse. They will meet at 9am in Codnor Market Place and will be allowed to march from 11.45am. The A6007 Heanor Road will be closed. A protest point will be set up outside the festival for up to 30 protesters from 1pm to 4pm.

 After the march is over, the remaining protesters will return to the Market Place for a rally. Coaches carrying protesters will be told by police to park in High Holborn Road. A police spokesman said: "The procession will be marshalled and accompanied by police officers. We are trying to minimise the effect of the festival on local residents."

 More than 1,000 anti-BNP activists had been expected to turn up on Saturday. But police can limit the number using the Public Order Act.

Derbyshire Evening Telegraph

Nick Griffin, the finger and the Public Order Act 1986

BNP leader Nick Griffin swearing outside Leeds Crown Court

This article was submitted by one of our readers, Hexapla. We welcome any contributions from our supporters (as long as those contributions conform to the law and are in reasonably good taste). Please send your articles to us via email.

To mark his non-guilty verdict at the end of his November 2006 trial at Leeds Crown Court, BNP leader Nick Griffin celebrated, as you can see from the above picture, with a very public one-finger salute (good thing he wasn’t making a nazi salute like the one BNP Nottingham councillor Sadie Graham claims Nick Griffin made at a neo-nazi Blood and Honour concert in Scotland!).

We just thought we’d remind King Nick that he may have committed an offence under section 5(1)(b) of the Public Order Act 1986 Act, which we reproduce below for his benefit (highlighted in bold italics):

(1) A person is guilty of an offence if he-

(a) uses threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour, or disorderly behaviour, or

(b) displays any writing, sign or other visible representation which is threatening, abusive or insulting,

within the hearing or sight of a person likely to be caused harassment, alarm or distress thereby.

The interesting thing about section 5 of the Public Order Act 1986 Act is that it need not be shown that the disorderly behaviour in question is in itself threatening, abusive or insulting, nor that it brought about any feelings of apprehension in the person(s) to whom it was directed (Chambers v DPP [1995] Crim LR 896). All that is required is for the behaviour to be generally abusive and it need not be directed at anyone in particular.

We’d also like to remind Nicky that a section 5 offence comes with a statutory power of arrest and is punishable via a fine. Nick Griffin is no stranger to the Public Order Act 1986. In fact, we’d be quite disappointed if it transpires that Nick Griffin doesn’t have the intimate familiarity of the Public Order Act’s provisions as we’d expect him to have. We remind readers that Nick Griffin was convicted back in 1998 under section 19 of the Public Order Act 1986 for inciting racial hatred against Jews for his editorship of issue 12 of The Rune magazine.

Now, do I report Nick Griffin to Welshpool or Leeds police ......... hope you understand Nick. After all, a crime is a crime.

¡No Pasarán!