Catching up with the latest BNP news snippets

South Wales Evening Post accepts paid ad from BNP

Journalists at the South Wales Evening Post were incensed today when they found out that the paper had accepted a paid for election advert from the BNP. Protests were lodged with senior management and questions were asked about why it had been accepted. The journalists were told that as it was legal and paid for as part of the election it could not be stopped and that anyone who wanted to complain should take it up with the editor - who returns from a foreign trip today.

Everyone is incensed that we only found out about it only a few hours before publication - close to the end of a shift for many people and after much of the paper had been laid out - and had no effective means of challenging it at that stage. However, journalists are looking at ways of taking this issue up with management, including the idea of taking out an advert from journalists and staff on the paper on election day itself.

In the meantime, we would ask people in Swansea to assist us in showing Post management that accepting adverts from the BNP will not be welcomed by staff at the Post. In particular many journalists rightly feel that it undermines their journalistic credibility and reporting of these issues. It will certainly lower the standing of the paper in the eyes of many people in Swansea.

As well as the acceptance of the advert can give credibility to the BNP's claim that they are somehow legitimate by standing in elections like any other political party.

Could as many people as possible do the following to assist the journalists in the Post who are campaigning against this advert being placed.

Write a letter to the paper taking up the BNP and arguing against them. Although the paper is no longer taking letters about election issues, enough letters going in could force the paper to print them after the election. email: HaveYourSay@swwmedia.co.uk or to Have Your Say, Evening Post, Adelaide Street, Swansea SA1 1QT

Send letters of protest to the editor Spencer Feeney on spencer.feeney@swwmedia.co.uk or to the Post's address which is Evening Post, Adelaide Street, Swansea SA1 1QT - This can also be done directly by the website. Other senior editorial staff such as the news editor can be emailed via this site as well.

Send copies of any letters of protest to Mike Witchell at witchglen@btinternet.com

The switchboard number is (01792) 510000 and the Swansea newsdesk is (01792) 514606. Their website is www.thisissouthwales.co.uk

UAF

BNP hoists distress signal

BNP members are becoming increasingly dejected at the success of the Hope not Hate campaign. An article on the BNP website by Martin Wingfield, editor of the BNP's newspaper The Voice of Freedom, reveals that in Maryport where he and his wife Tina are standing for election, "Labour have successully [sic] worked all the nursing homes and sheltered housing in the wards for their postal votes and this has probably given them an unassailable lead".

He goes on to warn: "To all those working so hard in preparation for Thursday's big poll, please don't be unrealistically over-optimistic about your results".

Hard work is what it is all about. Where we have distributed our Hope not Hate leaflet, we have had a good reception from voters. Local Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties, and others, who work their wards properly, as Labour has done in Maryport, can defeat the BNP. Thursday – polling day – is nearly here but every hour of campaigning still counts.

The Wingfields demonstrated their pessimism to voters. Their literature stall placed in front of scaffolding in Maryport was adorned with a large Union Flag. It was upside-down. Flying the flag upside down is "lese-majesty", which means insulting the Crown, and is theoretically still a crime in the UK. It can however be flown upside-down as a distress signal.

Hope not hate

BNP man on false firearm charge

A British National Party candidate standing for election to Walsall Council has been charged with possessing an imitation firearm.

Dominic Bugler, 38, of Avon Crescent, Pelsall, appeared at the town's magistrates court on Monday. Mr Bugler is the BNP's candidate in the Pelsall ward for the local elections taking place on Thursday.

He has been remanded in custody to appear at Wolverhampton Crown Court on 8 May. More as (or when) we get it.

BBC

BNP launches lying attack on 18 year-old Maryport anti-fascist

When the then 16 year-old William Hague spoke at the Conservative Party's Annual Conference back in 1977, the media loved it. Here was a (very) young man, politically-savvy and, like him or not, an excellent orator, taking part in the political process. An unusual sight then and a lot more unusual now. Even where they disagreed with him and his views, the media had the good sense to attack his views and not him as a person, judging that a vitriolic personal attack on a youth, no matter from which part of the political spectrum he hailed, would be counter-productive and would be deemed as, in some indefinable way, tacky and unnecessary.

The BNP though - as we've seen on numerous occasions - will attack anyone with whom they disagree. Or rather, anyone who has the courage to speak out against the fascist party.

While most of the country is applauding the government's decision to allow 18 year-olds the right to stand in elections, the BNP seems to be doing its utmost to shut at least one 18 year-old up by making untrue allegations on its website about Jonathan Wood, anti-fascist campaigner who, with his friend Duncan Money, has contributed to the formation of Maryport Against Racism.

Jonathan and Duncan have come in for a lot of crap from the far-right since the media reported on their activities. Their photographs and personal details have appeared on a number of websites including Redwatch - intimately linked to the exceedingly violent Combat 18 and run by the poisonous little nazi bastard Kevin Watmough. Redwatch exists for one reason only - to encourage violence against the people who appear on its pages. The British National Party has NEVER condemned Redwatch for posting the pictures and details of these two teenagers. Nor will it.

This week, furious at the continuing great coverage that the two are getting for their anti-fascist activities, the BNP decided to go on the offensive itself - by making up a load of lies about Jonathan. Before it did that, it made sure that he was clearly identifiable in the article, pointing out precisely who his parents are (two councillors) and which council they serve on. The BNP might not be Redwatch but it can sure act like it.

Having identified him clearly, it then went on to state that, according to its less than impeccable sources, he had been arrested on four separate occasions; for car theft, joyriding, vandalism and drug offences. This information, it claimed, was provided by one of Jonathan's former classmates at Netherhall School, who described him as 'a bit of a looney'.

Just one snag. Well actually quite a few snags. Jonathan has never been a student at Netherhall School and he has never been arrested.

Clearly the whole article has been made up by either the BNP itself or the BNP member who provided the information. This isn't the first time the BNP and its myrmidons have lied to the press and public about those who oppose them. The dirty tricks department must be the busiest part of the British National Party. That and the money-laundering department.

Well this time they were quickly proved wrong. Let's hope the apology arrives or is posted up on the BNP website before the election, or at the very least the article is removed. But don't hold your breath. The party has never yet resorted to the truth where a lie will serve its purpose and we don't expect it to start now.

BNP targets Maryport in elections

Concerns that the British National Party was intending to target Maryport in next month's local elections have been confirmed.

BNP candidates will contest two Allerdale council wards in the town, including Ellenborough, which is held by husband and wife Martin and Janice Wood - the parents of teenage anti-BNP fighter Jonathan Wood.

They are being challenged by former town resident Martin Wingfield, who edits the BNP magazine, Freedom.

His wife, Tina Dorothy-Rose Wingfield, will fight the Ewanrigg ward, standing against sitting member Carni McCarron-Holmes and Carl John Holding, a Labour candidate who wants to replace retiring councillor, Pat McCracken.

The BNP is also fielding a candidate at Broughton-St Bridget’s, which takes in Great and Little Broughton, Brigham and villages around Cockermouth.

Nigel Williamson, a Great Broughton resident, will stand there against Tory hopefuls Adrian Paul Davis-Johnston and Eric Nicholson and Labour candidates John Ardron and Kenneth John McDonald.

Last month the BNP claimed it would not be standing in any Cumbrian constituency.

Paul Stafford, the BNP's Cumbria chairman, is to contest the Wigton seat. He is standing against Labour's John Crouch, independents George Scott and John Armstrong and Alan Hortin.

Times and Star

Maryport's Rock Against Racism

Last Sunday, April 1st, Maryport Against Racism organised it's first ever public event, Rock Against Racism and it was a great success.

A Sunday night is not the best night to hold a rock concert, as the club owners pointed out, but we still managed to attract an audience of about 100 people mainly local people. Even better was that while we expected the audience to be mainly young people it was people of all ages who turned up.

The purpose of the concert was to raise awareness about racism in general and racist political parties, the obvious one being the BNP, in particular which are once again organising and winning support. Judging by the amount of people who gave us their contact details to get more involved we were very successful in this.

The other important part of the night was that people enjoyed themselves and with a cheap bar and some excellent bands it’s safe to say most people had a good time.

The bands playing were punk rockers (in a teenage sort of way) Band Substance, Six String Revolution with acoustic protest songs, some classic rock with AWOL, Shore who sounded a lot like Oasis, more class rock from Ionian and finally Speeding Bee who were more like stand up comedians than a band.

I had a slot to do a short speech on racism and the arguments racists use in between AWOL and Shore which was well-received, even if I say so myself. I would post up a transcript of this but I ad-libbed most of it on the night.

Despite our various worries beforehand, that no-one would turn up on a Sunday night or that some of threats from people on the internet would actually be carried out for once, all the planning ensured that the event happened without a hitch.

Since this was our first public event we were all extremely happy with the result. We have reached a wider audience, mobilised more people in the run up to the local elections and gained a fair bit of publicity for ourselves. We would suggest that any local groups similar to ours tried out similar events because we put across a powerful anti-racist message, accompanied by a great soundtrack and fun while we did it.

(Thanks for the report, Duncan) :-)

Maryport Against Racism

Maryport will be rocking against racism this Sunday

Anti-racism concert for local bands

Jonathan Wood, 17, and Duncan Money, 18, who set up a group opposed to racism in the town, have organised the concert, which will feature local bands. It is due to start at Grasslot Working Men’s Club just after 5pm.

The concert will be opened by Workington punks Band, Substance, followed by Six String Revolution, who are influenced by protest singers. Next in line is Maryport rock band AWOL, who have appeared at the Maryport Blues Festival and the Silloth Beer Festival.

Ionian is a Maryport and Keswick band who played at the Maryport Blues Festival and Solfest in 2006, and were regional winners for Cumbria and Lancashire in the Rockidol 2006 competition. Next is Speeding Bee, from County Durham.

Duncan, who is studying at Oxford, will talk about the group he and Jonathan set up – Maryport Against Racism – and the reasons behind the gig.

News and Star