The BNP's Nazi link exposed once again in a easy to follow dummies blog post.

Ok, let's keep this simple so the fascists can follow it.

Last night in Swansea, South Wales, Nick Griffin leader of the BNP held a meeting with fellow patriots to discuss their campaign to get representatives of their party into the Welsh Assembly.

One of the adoring fascist groupies present at the time was Bryan Powell.
And here he is proudly standing with BNP leader Nick Griffin.

And here's Mr Powell relaxing at home.

Obviously this will be an embarrassment to the BNP and especially Nick Griffin because nobody could have know about this, or could they?

Well that's not true as Mr Powell's Neo-Nazism has been known for some time.

And as EDL are quite happy to ignore it, we should also expect the BNP to do exactly the same thing.



Thanks to Stand up to Hate

Koran-protest US pastor Terry Jones excluded from UK

Controversial US pastor Terry Jones has been excluded from the UK for the public good, the Home Office has said.

The pastor had been invited to the UK to give an address to the right-wing group England Is Ours in Milton Keynes.

Mr Jones gained international attention for threatening to burn a copy of the Koran outside his church in the US on the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

A Home Office spokesperson said the government "opposes extremism in all its forms".

He said: "Numerous comments made by Pastor Jones are evidence of his unacceptable behaviour.

"Coming to the UK is a privilege not a right and we are not willing to allow entry to those whose presence is not conducive to the public good.

"The use of exclusion powers is very serious and no decision is taken lightly or as a method of stopping open debate."

Mr Jones - who is pastor of the Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Florida, which has fewer than 50 members - came to prominence in September after he announced plans for his "International Burn a Koran Day".

His plan was internationally condemned and sparked many demonstrations around the world. He eventually called off his protest.

BBC News

The BPP cannot count - are we surprised?

This article was submitted by one of our readers, Iliacus. 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.

Although, of course, it's the arrival - eventually, maybe - of the BNP's accounts which gives us the greatest amusement, from time to time it's worth looking at the financial performance of some of the lesser players on the nuttier fringes of the far-right.

The BPP (British People's Party) for example. Now, credit to this group - at least it met the deadline for submitting its 2009 accounts, something the BNP failed to achieve. As it did for 2008. And 2007. And 2006. And 2003-2005 for that matter.

For those who don't know, the BPP is a far-right micro-party, born out of a split in the Nationalist Alliance. Its leading (I use the term loosely) lights are Kevin Watmough and David Jones, who between them fill the four official positions within the party. (A simple google search will tell you all you need to know about these two characters, their party, and their past). Their annual report for 2009 reveals that they fought no elections in the year, concentrating instead on building membership and organisation.

The success of these efforts can be gauged by their electoral efforts in 2010. They fought one ward - Todmorden in Yorkshire - where David Jones polled a magnificent 4.95% of the vote. Pretty terrible for what must have been a national target ward. After all, it was their only ward!

Anyway to return to their 2009 accounts. The accounts were, at least, on time. Unfortunately they're gibberish. Consider the following, and tell me if I've misunderstood.

Carried forward from previous year £120
Income during 2009 £2,655
Expenditure during 2009 £1,475
Balance at end of year £868.79

Now, my calculation is 120 + 2655 - 1475 = 1300
So where's the missing £431.21 gone?

Or are they just idiots? I think I know the answer to that one!

Dutch poised to elect rightwing liberals as economic fears dominate

Polls suggest VVD win but raise questions over inclusion of anti-Islamic Geert Wilders in possible coalition government

Dutch voters are expected to elect their first liberal prime minister in almost a century tomorrow in an election dominated by the age of austerity looming over Europe.

As in Britain and Germany, the liberals are tipped to prosper at the expense of the two big parties that traditionally command the centre-right and the centre-left in the Netherlands: the Christian Democrats (CDA) and Labour (PvdA). Opinion polls indicate a triumph for the VVD, rightwing free-market liberals campaigning for swingeing public spending cuts, tighter rules on immigration and pragmatic scepticism towards the EU.

The election was called a year early after the collapse of the Christian Democrat-led coalition in February over the presence of Dutch troops in Afghanistan. But neither the Afghan war nor the explosive issue of Muslim immigration has played a prominent role in the campaign, meaning the anti-Islamic populist Geert Wilders has failed to capitalise. Wilders and his Freedom party are nonetheless predicted to double their share of seats to 18 in the 150-seat second chamber in The Hague, while coming in fourth. Only a few months ago, he was being tipped to win the election.

There was little doubt in The Hague today that Mark Rutte, the VVD leader, would be the new prime minister. In a highly fragmented proportional representation system, however, he will struggle to cobble together a coalition of the right. [Today's] vote will be followed by weeks, perhaps months, of horse-trading over possible coalitions.

One big question is whether the maverick Wilders will be offered a cabinet seat for the first time. Rutte's party is predicted to get 36 seats. His logical coalition partner, the CDA, are polling at 24. They need 76 for a majority. Wilders' seats would enable a majority for a rightwing coalition. Unlike in neighbouring Flanders, in Belgium, there is no cordon sanitaire erected by the mainstream around the extreme right, but the Dutch centre-right remains reluctant to go into government with Wilders.

The Islam-bashing leader wants a total stop to Muslim immigration and mosque-building, and a tax on Islamic headscarves. He has offered tacit support in parliament for a VVD-CDA minority government in return for tough immigration policies. A similar arrangement exists in Denmark, where the far right props up a rightwing government.

While Rutte looks certain to be the big winner, the main loser is expected to be the prime minister, Jan-Peter Balkenende. The CDA leader has headed three governments since 2002, all of which fell. The polls suggest a heavy defeat for his party, from 41 seats to around 23. The PvdA, under the new leadership of Job Cohen, the former mayor of Amsterdam, is also expected to lose a couple of seats.

The election is the first national ballot among the 16 eurozone countries since the eruption of the Greek debt crisis, which then escalated into a full-blown single currency emergency. The campaign has highlighted the degree to which voters' economic worries have hijacked the agenda. Rutte is promising spending cuts of €20bn (£16.5bno) euros to balance the budget over four years from a deficit currently of almost 7%.

In what has become almost routine in Dutch politics, he is also bashing Brussels, demanding, British-style, a slimming down of EU powers and their repatriation to member states, the possibility of British-style "opt-outs" from areas of EU legislation and a British-style big fight over the EU budget when it comes up for review from next year.

Guardian

English Defence League: Inside the violent world of Britain's new far right

The English Defence League is planning a series of demonstrations this summer.
(To watch the video, go here)

Undercover Guardian investigation reveals plan by English Defence League to hit racially sensitive areas in attempt to provoke disorder over summer

MPs expressed concern tonight after it emerged that far-right activists are planning to step up their provocative street campaign by targeting some of the UK's highest-profile Muslim communities, raising fears of widespread unrest this summer.

Undercover footage shot by the Guardian reveals the English Defence League, which has staged a number of violent protests in towns and cities across the country this year, is planning to "hit" Bradford and the London borough of Tower Hamlets as it intensifies its street protests. Senior figures in the coalition government were briefed on the threat posed by EDL marches this week. [Today] up to 2,000 EDL supporters are expected to descend on Newcastle for its latest protest.

MPs said the group's decision to target some of the UK's most prominent Muslim communities was a blatant attempt to provoke mayhem and disorder. "This group has no positive agenda," said the Bradford South MP, Gerry Sutcliffe. "It is an agenda of hate that is designed to divide people and communities. We support legitimate protest but this is not legitimate, it is designed to stir up trouble. The people of Bradford will want no part of it."

The English Defence League, which started in Luton last year, has become the most significant far-right street movement in the UK since the National Front in the 1970s. A Guardian investigation has identified a number of known rightwing extremists who are taking an interest in the movement – from convicted football hooligans to members of violent rightwing splinter groups.

Thousands of people have attended its protests – many of which have descended into violence and racist and Islamophobic chanting. Supporters are split into "divisions" spread across the UK and as many as 3,000 people are attracted to its protests.

The group also appears to be drawing support from the armed forces. Its online armed forces division has 842 members and the EDL says many serving soldiers have attended its demonstrations. A spokeswoman for the EDL, whose husband is a serving soldier, said: "The soldiers are fighting Islamic extremism in Afghanistan and Iraq and the EDL are fighting it here … Not all the armed forces support the English Defence League but a majority do."

Following the British National party's poor showing in this month's local and national elections anti-racist campaigners say some far-right activists may be turning away from the ballot box and returning to violent street demonstrations for the first time in three decades.

Nick Lowles, from Searchlight, said: "What we are seeing now is the most serious, most dangerous, political phenomenon that we have had in Britain for a number of years. With EDL protests that are growing week in, week out there is a chance for major disorder and a major political shift to the right in this country."

In undercover footage shot by Guardian Films, EDL spokesman Guramit Singh says its Bradford demonstration "will be huge". He adds: "The problem with Bradford is the security threat, it is a highly populated Muslim area. They are very militant as well. Bradford is a place that has got to be hit."

Singh, who was speaking during an EDL demonstration in Dudley in April, said the organisation would also be targeting Tower Hamlets.

A spokesman for the EDL confirmed it would hold a demonstration in Bradford on 28 August because the city was "on course to be one of the first places to become a no-go area for non-Muslims". The EDL has already announced demonstrations in Cardiff and Dudley.

The former Home Office minister Phil Woolas said: "This is a deliberate attempt by the EDL at division and provocation, to try and push young Muslims into the hands of extremists, in order to perpetuate the divide. It is dangerous."

The EDL claims it is a peaceful and non-racist organisation only concerned with protesting against "militant Islam". However, over the last four months the Guardian has attended its demonstrations and witnessed racism, violence and virulent Islamophobia. During the election campaign David Cameron described the EDL as "dreadful people" and said the organisation would "always be under review".

A spokesman for the Home Office said that although the government was committed to restoring the right to "non-violent protest … violence and intimidation are wholly unacceptable and the police have powers to deal with individuals who commit such acts. The government condemns those who seek to spread hatred."

He added: "Individual members of EDL – like all members of the public – are of course subject to the law, and all suspected criminal offences will be robustly investigated and dealt with by the police."

Guardian

The BNP, migration and the misuse of Christianity

It is now a week since the infamous edition of BBC TV’s Question Time in which Nick Griffin pitted himself against 'mainstream' politicians. Now, the BBC Director General Mark Thompson has indicated that the BNP may appear annually on the programme.

The whole saga was more of a watershed for Question Time than for the BNP’s fortunes. The BBC had a good argument for the invitation and no doubt a less honourable intention bound up with the increasing 'tabloidisation' of news coverage. In this case, the news vendor was the story far more were than the news makers. That said, democracy is democracy and unsavoury views have the right to be aired. On balance, my own view is that they were probably wrong, but it is a balance. So what do we make of it all now?

On the election front, we have to take into account the fact that there may be some limited success for the BNP but this will not be of any significance in the manner of other European countries' experience of the Far Right. The danger is that it has 'taken the eye off the ball' of the isolationist, anti-immigrant yet smooth-talking UKIP.

However, there were two revelations in the programme which continue to play on the mind. The first was the incoherence of the three mainstream politicians on the issue of immigration. Chris Huhne was the most disappointing. He was clearly caught up in the moment in cloaking the best of all the party positions on immigration into the schoolyard “we are tougher than you” debate.

Jack Straw was unable to convince anyone that the Labour government’s tough approach had any impact. It is deeply ironic that Labour is seen as the party of immigration when its United Kingdom Border Agency (UKBA) is bringing the kind of fear which the BNP would love to be able to spread, directly into our communities.

Baroness Warsi was the most disingenuous. Having told us that we need honesty, she then proceeded to trot out a line which would have us believe that a future Conservative government would cap immigration. That is only possible if we withdraw from the Geneva Convention, Human Rights conventions and the European Union.

Anyone who wants to have a mature debate about the highly complex and extremely nuanced issues of migration in a world of cheap travel, unequal economies, huge investment in arms, persistent and irresolvable conflicts and climate change, needs to worry far more about the three main parties than about the BNP.

The second issue playing on the mind is Nick Griffin’s insistence that the BNP is defending ‘Christian Britain’. It seemed that he was using the word Christian to mean not-Muslim and not-Jewish. His one good word for Islam was that it opposed usury, in this case coded fascist language meaning that Muslims opposed Jews. Like everything that comes out of Nick Griffin’s mouth, this was very chilling, not least for those of us who hold our Christian commitment as something very precious.

So what divides Nick Griffin’s Christianity from mainstream Christianity? It is interesting that it is the more right wing of the Christian church which has leapt to its defence. What differs seems to be the fruit, not the ideology. History tells us that no Christian could sleep safely in a fascist state. However, many Christians, like the BNP, still seem to hold ‘Christian Britain’ as the ideal. They still believe our faith makes us superior to others.

How often are we told that Islam’s problem is that it did not have a reformation or was by-passed by the enlightenment? Christian amnesia fails to remember how many died in the Reformation and how it rent the church apart. It fails to recall that the Enlightenment has weakened our capacity to sense the transcendent. When statehood and faith are inextricably aligned, we cease to tell the narrative of the faith but tell instead the story of the state’s interest cloaked in virtuous language.

Bishop Michael Nazir Ali, writing in the Guardian, argues that Christian missionaries challenged difficult and enslaving cultural practices in many countries and were often, though by no means always, a force for good. That is what happens when one culture meets another. It is possible to see more clearly what is wrong with your own. It is one of the great pay-offs of migration.

The real irony is that as people of other faiths come to the UK, we will experience the same cultural challenges as those posed by previous generations of Christian missionaries. As a simple example, in my own church there is a fear that the children will be bored if they have to spend 10 minutes in the church service before their own activities. God forbid that they should hear the Bible read beautifully or learn to be quiet when they pray. Their Muslim playmates at school will be patiently undergoing the discipline of learning the Qur’an word for word and growing up better for it.

The truth is that in London, at least, the church is an immigrant church. The thousands upon thousands of Christians attending Mass, delighting in Orthodox liturgy and singing praise and worship songs with their well-thumbed Bibles in hand, are migrants. While this is happening, our church leaders are desperate not to defend them from the potential violence and hatred of the BNP, but to defend a privileged place in British society for themslves. Indeed, Lord Carey seems to want to deny their presence in defence of ‘Christian Britain’.

As Christians in Britain (we are not the whole of it!) we have to be faithful to the narrative of our faith. This is a narrative, within the Bible itself, in which the constant struggle between the nomad and the settler is played out. It is a history which tells us that the fruits of faith are indeed totally rotten when it is aligned to power and wealth. It is also one which tells us that the faith is powerful on a world stage when it defends the persecuted and the poor. A little humility is in order.

Christians who are housing undocumented migrants; buying their supermarket vouchers so the UKBA cannot determine what and how people spend their pittances; shouting loud that no civilised state would imprison children, as Britain does, for just being the children of deportees, and yes – “singing the Lord’s song in a foreign land” (as it says in the Psalms) - they, are the answer to Nick Griffin’s crude appropriation of the name ‘Christian’.

By our fruits will we all be known.

Ekklesia

Kaminski admits wearing 'fascist' symbol

Michal KaminskI, the Polish MEP at the centre of the controversy over David Cameron’s European alliances has admitted he wore the symbol of a totalitarion group, claims he had previously denied.

In an interview with the JC, Mr Kaminski was asked if he had ever said he was proud to wear the Chrobry Sword [pictured, left], the symbol of the National Radical Camp (ONR). Formed in 1934, the extreme rightwing, nationalist ONR- Falanga was largely a student movement, but practised violent anti-Semitism including attacks on Jewish students, buildings and businesses, organised boycotts of Jewish businesses and attacks on left wing groups. The group used the medieval symbol of the Mieczyk Chrobrego – the Chrobry sword. Mr KaminskI categorically denied knowledge of wearing the Chrobry sword symbol.

He told the JC: “No, I never wear it. I don’t even know which symbol you are referring to.”

But Mr KaminskI later issued a clarification, where he admitted he had worn the badge. He said: "I did wear the sword, which was used around a millennia ago to crown Polish Kings, on my lapel on occasions. After 1989 it was used as one of the symbols of the Christian National Union and many Conservative politicians would wear it, including politicians now in the Civic Platform.

“In recent years it has been taken as a symbol by the Far Right. Although it is not the same, there are similarities with how the BNP in Britain has taken the Union Jack as their symbol. When I felt the symbol started having this meaning I stopped wearing it and I asked the rest of my party to stop too.”

He added: “I acknowledge that it is possible that my pronunciation was unclear, so I am happy to clarify his position on this controversial symbol."

JC

Community centre bans BNP after Golliwog row

The venue set to host the British National Party's controversial Christmas party tonight has pulled the plug on it after a host of complaints.

The Ore Community Centre in London Road had been hired by the party to stage its festive fundraiser at a cost of £10 an hour. However, the BNP sparked widespread outrage after announcing it would be selling Golliwog dolls at the event alongside St George crosses, Union Jacks and BNP regalia.

Critics branded the dolls racist and condemned the BNP as biggotted far-right extremists - demanding to know why a community centre would allow such a group to use its facilities.

At the time (last Thursday) a spokesman for the centre said the BNP used the hall on a monthly basis and that they "had never had any problems with them". However, he later confirmed a meeting would take place to decide whether or not the BNP was a suitable client. Now, hours before the event was set to take place, it seems the committee has decided to ban the right-wing party - much to the disgust of its local organiser.

BNP bigwig Nick Prince has slammed the decision. He said: "The British National Party has used the venue since April 1 2008 and has always treated the venue with total respect and there had never been a problem or an incident."

He claimed he was informed by telephone and told the decision was taken after pressure from certain individuals - individuals Mr Prince believes include a host of local politicians. Hastings MP Michael Foster and local Labour leader Jeremy Birch were among those who criticised the controversial BNP last week.

Mr Prince said: "I believe it is pressure from the likes of Cllr Birch and Mr Foster that has started this. A community centre should be used by all for all and there is no reason for the British National Party not to be allowed to use it."

The Christmas party, which was set to include a quiz and Activist of the Year prize, was due to be picketed by anti-fascist protestors. Representatives from Hastings and District Trades Council, Unite Against Fascism and Love Music Hate Racism had all planned to protest against the BNP outside tonight's event.

Hastings and St. Leonards Observer

Racist Chippenham thug is jailed

National Front thug Aiden Minnis, who launched an unprovoked racist attack on a man in the street, has been jailed for four years and three months.

Minnis, of Woodlands Road, Chippenham, who used to be a member of the far right party, hit his mixed race victim over the back of the head with a port bottle in the late night attack. The 22-year-old, who has a history of violence, shouted racist insults at his victim and before the assault in Chippenham.

A judge at Swindon Crown Court today jailed Minnis for the attack and a number of other violent incidents including a robbery and attempted robbery.

Claire Marlow, prosecuting, told the court how the race attack on Darren McMillan took place on Sunday September 2 last year. She said he had been out on the Saturday night in Chippenham and Bath and was walking home along Bristol Road towards Hungerdown Lane at about 3am. He noticed two men walking towards him and heard them starting to shout the racial abuse.

“At first he was not bothered but as they got closer he took out his mobile phone and started to call the police,” she said.

“He recalls being on the phone to the operator when he heard one say ‘Yeah, you get help’ and use more racial abuse. As he went along he felt himself being stuck to the back of the head by something hard. He fell to the ground still connected to the operator.”

He came round to find he was covered in blood from a cut to the back of his head which required nine staples.

Miss Marlow said the man who was with Minnis called the police to tell them how he had seen him strike the victim with a bottle of port he had been drinking from.

The court heard that two months later Minnis robbed one man of his wallet and contents and tried to rob another, punching both to the face, and in January this year he and an accomplice assaulted a homeless man.

Minnis pleaded guilty to robbery, attempted robbery, common assault and unlawful wounding.

The court heard he had a long history of offending, most of which involved violence, including a racially aggravated public order offence. Jason Taylor, defending, said his client was still a young man and was striving to change his ways.

“He was a member of the National Front, a class A drug addict and an alcoholic by the age of 20,” he told the court.

“Since then he no longer associates with the National Front, no longer has an addiction the class A drugs. The last addiction he had to alcohol he says even now is entirely under control and was before he was remanded into custody on the last occasion.”

At the time of the offending he said his client was living on friends’ sofas after being thrown out of home. He said he was now in a stable relationship with a woman who was pregnant with his child and due to give birth in May.

Jailing him Judge Douglas Field said “Aiden Minnis, you are 22 years of age and you have a long record of serious offending. Much of your offending has to do with violence and now I have to deal with you for three groups of offences all of which have a violent element to them.”

Chippenham Gazette and Herald

Radio Four documentary on the BNP - Turning right

Radio 4 documentary on the BNP - Turning right

As the dust settles on May's local elections, Gerry Northam traces the rise of the far right and investigates its claims to Christian roots and respectability. Andy why, in a recent nationwide poll, did a high percentage say they would "consider" voting BNP in the next general election?

A wide range of people were interviewed for this programme including Nick Griffin and specialists from Searchlight Information Services.

BBC Radio 4, Tuesday 8 May 8pm, repeated on Sunday 13 May at 5pm

Ex-BNP Member Fights Race Hate

A FORMER BNP organiser turned anti-racism campaigner has been in Coventry promoting the fight against hate crime.

Andy Sykes spent a week in the city leading anti-racism training for police, youth workers, Youth Offending Services staff, Victim Support officers and firefighters.

The aim of the training was to promote awareness of racism and give people confidence to challenge it when they see it.

It is also hoped they will feed their training back to other people in their organisations and the communities in which they work.

As part of the training, participants had DNA samples analysed to reveal their ethnic background.

Alison Quigley, Coventry City Council's hate crime reduction officer, who organised the training, found she is genetically linked to people in Russia, Iran and Romania.

She said: "One of the key points of the training is to make clear that there is no such thing as people being biologically British.

"The anti-racism training drives home the importance of not just challenging racist behaviour but also having the background knowledge to pinpoint the factual inaccuracies that lie behind many racist beliefs."

Andy Sykes joined the BNP in 2001, thinking it was a progressive party concerned for the future of the nation.

He quickly became disillusioned and worked as a mole, passing information to the Trades Union Congress.

In 2004, he worked with an undercover BBC reporter on a documentary that provoked national debate about the far-right party.

ICCOVENTRY.CO.UK

Welsh politicians stand up for diversity

Political leaders from across the political divide are to join together to promote tolerance and diversity across Wales.

The leaders of Welsh Labour, Welsh Conservatives, Plaid and the Welsh Liberal Democrats, as well as other parties, will take part in Hope not Hate Sunday, an event organised by anti-facism group Wales Friends of Searchlight.

WFoS have set the date Sunday 22nd April for the event. It comes as a direct response the British National Party’s decision to stand in every regional list seat in the National Assembly elections on 3rd May.

Hope not Hate Sunday will be launched across Wales with political leaders, election candidates and supportive organisations outlining their views on tolerance and progression in Wales. WFoS organisers have called the event: "A unique opportunity for all mainstream political parties and candidates to lay down their arms for a short while and jointly call for a Wales built on tolerance, respect and equality."

Cardiff based Darron Dupre, Secretary of Wales Friends of Searchlight, said: "It says everything about the gut instincts of people in Wales, that all of our mainstream political parties and candidates have embraced this unique and special day to promote hope, not hate. That instinct flies in the face of everything far right parties such as the BNP stand for. Hope not Hate Sunday will be an opportunity for our political parties to say to the people of Wales where they stand on promoting diversity and tolerance."

The day will be completed with Cardiff’s Unite Against Racism Music Festival. This will include a family fun day from 5-8pm with face painting and open mike's, and later performances from bands from every culture across south Wales between 8-2am.

Hope Not Hate Sunday Launch:
South Wales: Outside the Senedd Building in Cardiff Bay, Cardiff at 10.30am
North Wales Launch: Outside Flint Town Hall, Flint at 10.30am
Cardiff Unite Against Racism Music Festival: Callaghan’s, Castle Street, Cardiff. Admission £3. For further information see: http://www.myspace.com/uarcardiff

PinkNews

France's Political Mainstream Panders To Far Right Voters

We are 22 days away from the first ballot in the upcoming French presidential election. In the last few days, the whole spectrum of the political parties have played a fear game based on the question of national identity. As we could see throughout the mainstream media, the two leading parties of the right and left wings, the Socialists and the center-right, rallied some traditional far-right ideas and their ideological proposals.

On the one hand, the Socialist Party candidate Segolene Royal wants French families to keep the national flag at home to unwrap their blue-white-and-red colors on July 14, national Bastille Day. She also wants French people to memorize the "Marseillaise," the national anthem. Furthermore, Royal announced that delegates will sing the Marseillaise as a lyrical conclusion to end every Socialist convention. No doubt those proposals are shamelessly courting the jittery far-right voters, who may change their vote at the last moment.

On the other hand, the Union for a Popular Movement and their leader Nicolas Sarkozy has unveiled an odd idea about a Ministry of Immigration and National Identity, which is a genuine and extremist far-right proposal. The proposal is so scandalous that the former minister Simone Veil, who recently gave her support to Sarkozy as a representative of the French Jewish community, is now withdrawing that support She publicly criticized this ministry for the reason. She prefers the word "integration" rather than "national identity." Thus some Jews who were supporting Sarkozy because the rightist candidate backed Israeli policy in the Middle East are now rallying to vote for Francois Bayrou's centrist party, the UDF.

As a matter of fact, 22 days before the first ballot, we approach the time when stress turns into a great fear. Truly everybody wonders whether the far-right slice of the electorate could repeat the upset of the first ballot that it achieved in 2002, when the National Front's leader Jean-Marie Le Pen defeated the socialist Lionel Jospin, allowing the racist and xenophobic far-right to reach the second round of the presidential election for the first time.

Royal and Sarkozy are trying hard to reduce this great threat and trauma, but at the same time, they are sharply tempted to court a part of this far-right electorate for their own benefit.

As we can easily see, this is a very dangerous Machiavellian game being played overtly and cynically with sacred democratic values. Moreover, the whole French people are judging this political bargain, so the voters are widely conscious that their major politicians favor ethnic confrontations instead of national unity, as when Sarkozy in winter 2005 called the suburban youngster "scum," helping to fan a three-weeks fire in the suburbs around Paris.

As an obvious maneuver to clear the road for his hard law-and-order policy, he is now responding to the far-right demands. The same cause always produces the same effect. A few days ago, in the upcoming presidential election, this far-right provocation by the two leading candidates electrified the Parisian atmosphere, leading to a riot in the Gare du Nord. Suddenly, hundreds of youngsters rebelled against policemen who were just trying to arrest a man riding the subway without a ticket, which is common. However, the growing mob destroyed everything in the station before the eye of the cameras. Thus, the French people saw on television a remake of the 2005 suburban nightmare, but even worse because it took place in the center of Paris.

Meanwhile, the centrist candidate Francois Bayrou criticized this strategy of the two leading candidates Sego-Sarko (as French People call them) who play and bet unconsciously on inter-ethnic fear just to win the presidential race.

According to the pollsters, Bayrou has lost points in the recent polls. But the pollsters didn't say frankly that they question only non-suburban populations. Despite the polls, Bayrou is as popular in the suburbs as a champion boxer could be. On the contrary, Sarkozy sets the crowd on fire and incites violence immediately when he appears in any suburban town.

OHMY News

Belgians brave rainstorm for anti-racism weddings

Braving rain and hail, hundreds of Belgians took part in a symbolic ceremony yesterday in a town where three couples refused to be married by a black official.

In an impressive show of solidarity against those who have given the term "white wedding" a bad name, the couples exchanged or renewed their marriage vows in the Flemish town of St-Niklaas.

The demonstration was in support of Wouter Van Bellingen, who was born in Rwanda but adopted by a Flemish family at birth and was elected a councillor in the town last October. In February, when the three couples refused to be married by him, Mr Van Bellingen, the town's deputy mayor, described the incident as "the most primitive form of racism", because it was motivated by "nothing but the colour of my skin".

Yesterday he appeared to have made the most of his adversity, as the mass wedding he organised attracted the attention of the international media. At least 2,000 letters and emails have poured in since the incident.

By early evening, couples had gathered in the town's market square in their finery before an event held in a marquee. Chosen to coincide with the International Day against Racism the ceremony began with a group hug before the assembled couples exchanged or renewed vows in a ceremony overseen by Mr Van Bellingen. Couples then took part in a mass wedding photo, before tucking into a "multicultural dessert buffet" and taking part in a wedding dance.

The row has focused attention on attitudes towards race in a part of Belgium renowned for its sympathy with the far right. In last year's elections the anti-immigration, Flemish separatist party, the Vlaams Belang won 26 per cent of the vote.

The group has accused Mr Van Bellingen of using the mass wedding to further his own political ambitions.

Independent