Council of Europe declares Belgium "racist"

[pete2]

Yes the Council of Europe is at it again folks, this time branding an entire country "racist". The Council of Europe (via 'independent' quango outfit ECRI) has a pop at every institution going in Belgium from civil service to police and education concluding that Belgium is "racist". Who knew?

Some brief details here
Council of Europe highlights xenophobia in Belgium | Policies | Justice | Rights | European Voice

with the reports for Slovakia, Germany and Belgium
Council of Europe- European Commission Against Racism and Intolerance

This report is somewhat suprising considering the Belgian political establishment are no slouches when it comes to combating political extremism. So I wonder what ECRI hope to achieve by calling for massive political censorship in the media and online of legal political parties..

The report makes some interesting allegations about 'institutional racism' but strangely has no actual definition of terms for its accusations. What is racism to the ECRI? It is rather telling that the ECRI claims immigration (in one of the few places its mentioned) provides "cultural enrichment" Perhaps Belgians do not see immigration in this way? Why should anyone be forced to see it the ECRI way?

I do wonder what the EU will do should Belgians, Netherlanders, Austrians, Bulgarians or France put the far-right in government. The EU appear to have been quite silent so far on the Northern League in Italy and Berlusconi's get tough policy on illegals/'asylum seekers'. The 'rape law' and the recent turning back of illegals have to be quite glaring instances of racism (certainly upset the UN) so why is the EU silent?

[Lidl_Shopper]

The Council of Europe is not the EU. Two completely different organizations.

[FoxPerignon]

powerful and compelling diatribe, somewhat weakened by the fact that the report comes from the Council of Europe which is wholly unrelated to the EU...

[pete2]

Ahhh the 5 minute edit window didnt save me that time

[ibis]

Ahhh the 5 minute edit window didnt save me that time

An argument for checking facts before posting...some might even say before making up one's mind.*


*[SIZE="1"]I'm joking, of course - half the discussions on this site would never happen.[/SIZE]

[The OD]

Well they make some damn fine beer so thats always going to be a plus as far as I am concerned?

[Horace Horse]

An argument for checking facts before posting...some might even say before making up one's mind.*


*[SIZE="1"]I'm joking, of course - half the discussions on this site would never happen.[/SIZE]

And that never stopped you from posting tripe.

[cactusflower]

It never stopped Pete2 from posting links and assuming people won't read them. The report of course does not say that all of Belgium is racist. It says that there is institutional racial discrimination in the police force and other agencies. It also says this:

The activities of neo-Nazi groups in Belgium are contributing to a climate of xenophobia, leading to a “persistence of incidents of racist violence”, the Council of Europe, Europe's top human-rights body, concludes in a report published today.

The report highlights the well-publicised racist attacks by Hans Van Themsche, who shot dead a two-year-old child and her Malian nanny in October 2007 and who attempted to kill a Turkish woman in Antwerp in 2006.

But it says the cases brought before the courts appear to be “the tip of the iceberg”. Non-governmental organisations claim that people who contact them following attacks do not want to report the incidents to the police, the report says, urging the Belgian authorities to monitor the extreme right-wing groups behind racist attacks.

Are you for, or against, neo nazi thugs, Pete2 ?

[pete2]

It never stopped Pete2 from posting links and assuming people won't read them. The report of course does not say that all of Belgium is racist. It says that there is institutional racial discrimination in the police force and other agencies. It also says this:



Are you for, or against, neo nazi thugs, Pete2 ?

Against obviously Would you be against those who deny the Holocaust yourself?

Of course it says Belgium is racist! As for people not reading the links/reports I post thats up to them. I must admit to still being confused on the hairsplit on EC/EU because as they say themselves

[FONT=Verdana]I[/FONT]n general, the Council of Europe and the European Union work in parallel and on a complementary basis.http://www.coe.int/t/dg3/romatravell...n/CoEEU_en.asp