CR: Anti-mosque demonstration fizzles
A gathering of supporters of the extreme right National Party in Brno to distribute leaflets warning against what the party termed as "Islamization" was dismissed as a media ploy in the run up to the October election.
Eight party followers met outside the Brno mosque just after 1 p.m. Aug. 29 to protest plans for the construction of a new mosque, though National Party official Jiří Gaudin denied there was ever meant to be a rally.
"There were never any plans for a march," Gaudin said. "We dispersed ourselves in small groups to the neighboring streets and distributed about 2,500 leaflets. The National Party followers responded to some biased and substandard questions from journalists and explained that no march was going to take place because it had not been called in the first place."
Munib Hasan, a spokesman for the Brno Muslim community, said last month that Muslims would like to have a larger building for prayer as the existing place of worship was no longer sufficient for their growing numbers.
"The Brno mosque has been here for years, and, now, we need a bigger space," he said. "There haven't been any problems so far, and I hope there won't be any in the future ... I don't see a reason why anyone should be against a new mosque. There are a number of Muslims living here peacefully. I believe that the National Party is attempting to catch the media's attention before the upcoming election."
There was no incident during the protest.
"We did not particularly notice any demonstrators," Hasan said. "It passed quickly and quietly. There was more media coverage than demonstrators."
(more)
Source: Prague Post (English)
A gathering of supporters of the extreme right National Party in Brno to distribute leaflets warning against what the party termed as "Islamization" was dismissed as a media ploy in the run up to the October election.
Eight party followers met outside the Brno mosque just after 1 p.m. Aug. 29 to protest plans for the construction of a new mosque, though National Party official Jiří Gaudin denied there was ever meant to be a rally.
"There were never any plans for a march," Gaudin said. "We dispersed ourselves in small groups to the neighboring streets and distributed about 2,500 leaflets. The National Party followers responded to some biased and substandard questions from journalists and explained that no march was going to take place because it had not been called in the first place."
Munib Hasan, a spokesman for the Brno Muslim community, said last month that Muslims would like to have a larger building for prayer as the existing place of worship was no longer sufficient for their growing numbers.
"The Brno mosque has been here for years, and, now, we need a bigger space," he said. "There haven't been any problems so far, and I hope there won't be any in the future ... I don't see a reason why anyone should be against a new mosque. There are a number of Muslims living here peacefully. I believe that the National Party is attempting to catch the media's attention before the upcoming election."
There was no incident during the protest.
"We did not particularly notice any demonstrators," Hasan said. "It passed quickly and quietly. There was more media coverage than demonstrators."
(more)
Source: Prague Post (English)
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