Month: November 2022
Germany Tries to Stop Free Speech Returning to Elon Musk’s Twitter
Germany, a country known for its authoritarian governments and strict “hate speech” laws, is moving to prevent free speech from returning to Twitter in the wake of Elon Musk’s takeover of the social media platform.
Politicians in the European country, now under the rule of the left-wing Social Democratic Party (SDP), is concerned that content moderation rules will be relaxed on the platform, something that political elites now consider unacceptable.
The SPD’s digital spokesman, Jens Zimmerman, has called for swift action from the state regulator if Twitter’s content moderation falls short.
Via Handelsblatt (translated):
“The Federal Office of Justice must therefore take Twitter under stricter supervision and act quickly and decisively in the event of violations.” The Germans are threatening not just the company but Musk himself if he does not censor viewpoints: If Twitter does not meet the requirements, there are penalties not only against the company, but also against the managers responsible.”
Germany, which has one of the strictest censorship regimes in the western world, was one of the first European governments to pressure tech companies to censor their users. In 2015, then-chancellor Angela Merkel was caught on a mic telling Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg to control “hate speech” on the platform.
Since then, Germany has passed a flurry of laws and regulations designed to suppress dissident viewpoints on social media, including a law that allows the government to fine social media platforms anywhere between 5 million and 50 million euros for failing to take down content that is illegal under German law, a category that includes hate speech.
European crackdowns against tech companies have been encouraged by politicians in the U.S., with Hillary Clinton calling on the European Union to pass the Digital Services Act, praising the law for tackling “disinformation” on social media platforms.
Should Britain Pay Climate Reparations? Qatar Exposes Liberal Hypocrisy
Britain could house migrants on cruise ships and in holiday parks as councils push back against hotel accommodations
The Home Office in the United Kingdom is considering the use of luxury cruise ships and holiday parks such as Butlin’s and Pontins to accommodate the ever-growing number of asylum seekers arriving on England’s southern shores, a report in The Times newspaper has revealed.
Other accommodations being considered include university dormitories.
The change in tack comes due to local councils becoming more opposed to hotels across the U.K. being block-booked by the Home Office to house those crossing the English Channel and claiming asylum.
The processing of some claims has seen a backlog of over a year, meaning those in hotels are residing in Britain for a considerable length of time while it is decided whether or not they actually have the right to be there.
Recent testimony from Home Office staff and border chiefs to the U.K. parliament’s Home Affairs Select Committee revealed the total cost to the British taxpayer for hotel accommodations being block-booked for months in advance by the U.K. government is £5.6 million per day for Channel migrants; a further £1.2 million per day is being spent on accommodating Afghan nationals evacuated from the country following the Taliban’s return to power last year. That is a total figure of £2.48 billion (€2.87 billion) per year.
Over 40,000 prospective asylum seekers have now landed in Britain via the English Channel this year alone, while a further 28,000 crossing attempts have been thwarted by French authorities.
Some local authorities have been inundated with complaints from local residents about the use of hotels in their areas being used to house migrants.
There have been reports of hotels kicking out legitimate guests halfway through their stay after signing government contracts to accommodate new arrivals to Britain.
Weddings and other special occasions booked months in advance have also been canceled by hotels taking up commercial contracts with the Home Office.
Moreover, far more sinister behavior has been reported by some staying in hotels.
The Britannia Hotel in Standish has been the subject of fierce local debate in recent months, with parents of school children in the village north of Wigan telling local media they were keeping their daughters inside due to concern over the behavior of a number of asylum seekers being housed at the facility.
Some of the adult men at the hotel located near the local secondary school were accused of filming girls’ PE lessons, winking, and commenting on teenagers as they walked home from school; on one occasion, a 12-year-old was surrounded and filmed by the men.
One asylum seeker residing at the hotel was recently jailed for nine years for the rape of a drunken woman on a night out in Wigan.
In the London borough of Waltham Forest, a 30-year-old male asylum seeker was recently arrested for the rape of a 17-year-old boy, while another adult male was cuffed by police and charged with one count of sexual touching of a child under 13.
Local authorities in Kent, the English county bearing the brunt of the migration crisis, recently penned a letter to Home Secretary Suella Braverman warning her department that they are close to “breaking point” with local services too stretched to accommodate any more asylum seekers arriving in the country.
The 11th Hour, of the 11th Day, of the 11th Month
The eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month marks the end of the First World War. This image is of a memorial to the poet Wilfred Owen, who was killed just before hostilities ended. The anguish and futility of war perfectly embodied in a sculpture.
India: Missing doctor found dead after Muslim League leaders had threatened him in his clinic, Hindu groups demand strict action
On Thursday, the dead body of a renowned dentist named Dr Krishnamurthy was found on a railway track at Hattiyangadi near Kundapur in Kerala. The doctor was reported missing from Badiyadka in the Kasaragod district of Kerala and his body was found in mysterious circumstances on November 10.
According to a report by Organiser, the doctor had received threats from leaders of the Muslim League and some other locals to extend support to another dental hospital recently opened in town. The doctor had also received extortion threats and was forced to shut his clinic or face threatening consequences, as per the report.
Another report by Manorama mentioned that the dentist was accused of sexual harassment by a 32-year-old woman. Following this, the accused persons, local Muslim League leaders had come to Dr Krishnamurthy’s clinic and threatened him. They had threatened to file a police complaint if he did not meet their demands. After the threats, Dr Krishnamurthy had gone missing.
BJP leader Kuntaru Ravish Tantri and several Hindu organizations in the state including the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and the Bajrang Dal organized a protest against the incident and demanded the arrest of IUML leaders who were involved in threatening the veteran doctor.
The doctor had gone missing a few days ago. The incident came to light after his wife and other family members filed a missing report at the local police station. The assistant of the doctor during the complaint mentioned that he was threatened by some local Islamists at the clinic.
The doctor’s body was reportedly found near Udipi railway station, badly damaged by a speeding train.
The locals also discovered his bike and immediately informed to the police about the incident. The Police then lodged an unnatural death case and arrested Muslim League Kumbdaje Panchayat Secretary Ali Thuppakallu, Muslim League Badiyadka Panchayat office bearer Muhammad Hanif Yane Anwar, Kumbdaje resident Ashraf, Annadka resident Muhammad Shiabuddin and Vidyagiri Muniyuru resident Umarul Farooq for abetment of suicide and other relevant charges.
The initial investigation revealed that a group of people led by Ali and Anwar threatened to harm Dr Krishnamurthy in the clinic before he went missing a few days ago.
Mark Steyn: Apparently we have to apologise for the industrial revolution!
Pig heads and banners: Why South Koreans are objecting to the construction of a mosque by immigrant Muslims in Daegu
The locals and the immigrant Muslims are at loggerheads in the Daehyeong-dong (neighbourhood) in Daegu city of South Korea. At the heart of the controversy lies a mosque, whose construction began in December 2020.
South Korea, known for dramas and pop culture, is increasingly faced with the challenge of a demographic shift. ‘Immigrants’ now constitute 3.3% of the total population, as per 2020 data and their numbers are expected to grow exponentially.
The mosque construction in Daehyeong-dong is the latest addition to the fears of the local South Koreans, with many vowing to desert the neighbourhood once the Islamic structure reaches competition.
Muslim students, studying at the nearby Kyungpook National University, have been using a house in Daehyeong-dong for offering Namaz since 2014.
Things began to change in 2020 when a group of 6 Muslims (from Pakistan and Bangladesh) purchased a plot in the same neighbourhood. In December of that year, they secured permission from local authorities to construct a 20-meter-long mosque.
The immigrants argued that the previous house, which was used for prayer, could ‘only’ accommodate 150 worshippers at one time and lacked a cooling system and floor heating.
Complaints by the local Korean community
The Korean neighbours, who put up with the loud noise and overcrowding in the alley caused due to Namaz for years, opposed the construction of the mosque tooth and nail.
They expressed fear that a full-fledged mosque would drive more Muslims to the tiny neighbourhood for prayers, thereby exacerbating the menace of congestion.
A 62-year-old Jang told The Korean Herald, “We used to live in harmony with the Muslim community in the neighbourhood over the past years, sharing food and gifts during holiday seasons. We didn’t make complaints about their gatherings.”
“Imagine large crowds of people pass by your house’s front door several times a day. The sound of people chatting, walking and riding bikes and motorcycles will drive you crazy,” he informed. Jang said that he would vacate the neighbourhood on competition of the mosque.
Another woman, who lives in the same neighbourhood, blamed the Muslim community for overcrowding the narrow residential area. She said, “I’ve seen so many of them just park their bikes and motorcycles in the alley. They come and go in groups. It’s obvious that this small neighbourhood will be more congested.”
A 67-year-old Kim Keong-suk told The New York Times in March, “We are not against their religion. We just can’t have a new religious facility in our crowded neighbourhood, whether it’s Islamic, Buddhist or Christian.” This has increased fears of a mass exodus of the local Korean community from Daehyeong-dong.
“I had never seen people like them before, and I saw no women, only men, swarming in there,” remarked a 60-year-old resident named Park Jeong-suk. Another resident, Namgung Myeon (59), suggested that the influx of immigrants can undermine the values, national foundation and character of South Korea.
Mosque construction gets a green signal, Koreans use their ‘last resort’
After granting permission for the mosque construction in December 2020, the district administration was bombarded with complaints from the Koreans. Under pressure from all sides, the officials revoked their approval in February 2021.
The construction work took a hit for some time. The happiness of the local Korean community was short-lived as the Muslim ‘landlords’ won the case in court in December 2021. To add salt to the wound, the top court upheld the decision of the lower court in September this year.
Appeals made to district officials to ‘relocate’ the mosque have also failed to bring favourable outcomes. Forced by circumstances, Koreans have been trying to physically obstruct the construction of the mosque in Daehyeong-dong.
The tactics ranged from parking vehicles at the entrance of the mosque site, putting up severed heads of pigs (considered haram in Islam) in the alley, cooking pork in the open to playing loud music at the time of Namaz.
Several banners have also propped up in the neighbourhood. “Islam is an evil religion that kills people,” read one poster. Another poster read, “We strongly oppose the construction of an Islamic mosque.” Others included ‘Korean People Come First’, ‘a den of terrorists’ and so on.
Despite the opposition from the locals, the construction of the mosque has reached 60% completion. It is expected to be operational by the end of 2022.
A reflection of South Korean culture: Anti-immigration leader
Lee Hyung-oh, the leader of the anti-immigration network ‘Refugee out’ has spoken about the matter to The New York Times. “Their rules on the hijab alone are enough reason that they should never set foot in our country,” he said.
Lee continued, “We may look exclusionist, but it has made us what we are, consolidating us as a nation to survive war, colonial rule and financial crises and achieve economic development while speaking the same language, thinking the same thoughts.”
“I don’t think we could have done this with diversity. We are not xenophobic. We just don’t want to mix with others,” he concluded. South Korea had its own tryst with Islamism.
In 2007, the radical Islamist outfit Taliban took 23 South Korean aid workers hostage and killed a Christian pastor.
Man Who Stabbed Belgian Cop To Death Was On Terror Watchlist
The knifeman who fatally stabbed a Brussels police officer before being shot and arrested was already on a watch list maintained by Belgium’s terrorism monitoring agency, federal prosecutors said Friday.
Investigators told reporters that the suspect “Yassine M.”, who was born in Brussels in 1990, had shouted “Allahu Akbar” — “God is greater” — as he lunged at two officers in a patrol car on Thursday.
One of the policemen, identified only as 29-year-old Thomas M., was stabbed in the throat and died shortly afterwards. The second 23-year-old officer has been operated on for wounds to the right arm and will survive.
The federal prosecutor has referred the case to an investigating magistrate as an alleged “murder and an attempted murder committed in a terrorist context”.
A second police patrol intervened during the incident, which took place near the Belgian capital’s Gare du Nord station in the early evening, and the attacker was shot and wounded and is detained in hospital.
Earlier in the day, the suspect had presented himself at a Brussels police station making what the head of the Brussels prosecutor’s office, Tim De Wolf, described as “incoherent remarks”.
“He spoke of hatred against the police and asked to be taken care of psychologically,” De Wolf said.
Yassine M. was taken by officers to the psychiatric emergency room of a Brussels hospital, but was not arrested or detained as he did not, the officials said, meet the criteria for a involuntary committal.
“He was voluntary,” De Wolf said, explaining that police had left the suspect at the hospital under the care of nurses.
“Later, the police contacted the hospital again to check whether the person had been kept under observation. It turned out that he had left the hospital,” the Brussels prosecutor’s office said.
Yassine M. had been imprisoned between 2013 and 2019 for “common law offences” but was also on a list drawn up by the Belgian terror observatory the Coordination Unit for Threat Analysis (OCAM), which monitors extremism.
Brussels is currently holding the trial of those accused of involvement in the 2016 Islamic State group attacks that killed 32 people at the city’s main airport and in a crowded metro station.
The trial is the largest ever held in front of a Belgian jury, with 960 civil plaintiffs represented and the sprawling former NATO headquarters converted into a high-security court complex on the edge of the city.
Between 2016 and 2018 Belgium saw several fatal Islamist terror attacks against the police or military.
The last attack classified as a terrorist offence took place in the city of Liege in May 2018, when a radicalised attacker shot dead two policewomen and a student before being gunned down by officers.
https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/man-who-stabbed-belgian-cop-to-death-was-on-terror-watchlist-3512550