The far-right Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ) has criticized the Austrian national public broadcaster (ORF)’s documentary program, Am Schauplatz and its producers, Ed Moschitz and Julia Kovarik, for their recent coverage of a protest against an Islamic centre in Vienna. The documentary, entitled “The Fear mongers,” follows a pair of right-wing skinheads who participated in…
A French debate on defining the values constituting national identity is sparking controversy amid warnings that the discussions are particularly targeting the Muslim presence. France is home to nearly seven million Muslims, the biggest Muslim minority in Europe. In early November, the French government started a three-month debate on French national identity. Some claim that…
The minaret ban in Switzerland has had a continentwide response. Even as European human-rights courts began attempts to block the Swiss amendment, extremist politicians across Europe were examining their countries’ laws to see if a similar referendum could be accomplished. Far-right leaders have emerged from the woodwork in places like the Netherlands to push for…
A French court of appeals fined far-right leader Jean-Marie Le Pen for discrimination, hatred or racial violence for anti-Muslim remarks he made in an interview in Le Monde in 2003. The National Front party leader was ordered to pay 10,000 Euros in fines and 5,000 Euros in damages to the plaintiff, the French League of…
A far-right party in the Austrian state of Carinthia, led by the notorious right-wing politician Jorg Haider, is trying to ban the construction of mosques and minarets. They’ve presented a draft law designed to prohibit “unusual” buildings that don’t fit in with traditional architecture. In the latest anti-Islam initiative by right-wing politicians in Austria, the…
