Secular Muslim Ehsan Jami again Threatened

Ehsan Jami, Chairman of the Committee of Former Muslims, has submitted a complaint with the police after being insulted by three travelers on a tram in The Hague. His government-provided personal security guard prevented him from being beaten up. In August Jami was beaten by three attackers when leaving a supermarket. One of the three attackers has confessed; the other two claim they were only onlookers. Jami is a member of the municipal council in Leidschendam-Voorburg, where he was initially elected as a member of the Labor Party, a party he was forced to leave.

www.trouw.nl/laatstenieuws/laatstenieuws/article893716.ece/
Ehsan_Jami_belaagd_in_Haagse_tram

Syrian Grand Mufti Claims that Wilders will be Held Responsible for Bloodshed

The Grand Mufti of Syria Ahmad Badr al-Din al-Hassoun, during a speech in the European Parliament, said that, if the planned film on the Quran by Geert Wilders, the leader of the Dutch Freedom Party, results in violence or bloodshed, Wilders will be held responsible. This will be even more serious if the Quran is burned or torn up in the movie. The mufti added that it is the responsibility of the Dutch people to prevent Wilders from doing such things. Wilders’ recent statements have led to major worries in the Dutch cabinet. Police in a number of major cities are already preparing for possible riots once the movie is shown.

www.nrc.nl/media/article894709.ece/
Kritiek_van_media_op_belastingdienst_moet_kunnen

Right Wing Radicalism on Streets and in Schools on the Rise

Right wing radicalism on the streets and in the schools is on the rise and the Dutch extreme right is dangerous. This was announced by Jaap van Donselaar, an expert on right wing extremism at the University of Leiden and the Anne Frank Foundation. He added that minor race riots involving extreme right wing youngsters have become a weekly occurrence.

www.parool.nl/nieuws/2008/JAN/15/bin3.html

“Smart Card” Ticket doesn’t Increase Public Transportation Safety

In 2002 a plan was developed to increase safety in public transportation. One measure was the introduction of a “smart card” ticket. A report by Price, Waterhouse Coopers has concluded that the planned “smart card” hardly increases safety and possibly even decreases it.

www.trouw.nl/hetnieuws/economie/article893309.ece/Ov-chip_maakt_openbaar_vervoer_niet_veiliger

Tax Authorities Threaten Boycott of Critical Media

The tax authorities have threatened to boycott, either partially or entirely, several media which have published articles critical of them. Sources at two leading publishers, PCM and VNU, have confirmed that such threats have been made in recent months. The Deputy Minister of Finance de Jager, speaking in, Parliament denied that this was the case and said that he regrets that such an impression was created.

www.nrc.nl/media/article892594.ece/
Belastingdienst_dreigde_met_reclameboycot

www.nrc.nl/media/article894709.ece/
Kritiek_van_media_op_belastingdienst_moet_kunnen

Increased Authority to Listen in to Mobile Phones

The government is proposing a change in the Telecommunications Law which would give various authorities more possibilities to track the position of mobile phones, to listen in to them and to interrupt conversations. If this law is passed, it will allow use of this procedure not only after a major crime has been committed, but also as a way to prevent such a crime. Nowadays authorities are allowed to listen in only if they have special permission from the Attorney-General’s office.

www.nrc.nl/binnenland/article892921.ece/
Mogelijkheden_afluisteren_mobiel_uitgebreid

Freedom Party: Joyous Reactions on Dutch Moroccan Website about Killing of Dutch Soldiers

The Conservative Freedom Party (PVV) has asked the government to take measures against the largest Dutch Moroccan website – Marokko.nl, after there were joyous reactions on the site to the killing of two Dutch soldiers by friendly fire in Afghanistan. Already in March 2007 the PVV had raised questions in Parliament about this site when it carried threats against the Dutch Moroccan writer Naima El Bezas. PVV has also mentioned that the website indirectly gets a government subsidy of 135,000 Euro.

www.trouw.nl/laatstenieuws/laatstenieuws/article892241.ece/
PVV_feest_op_Marokkaanse_site_na_dood_militairen