9:09am Thursday 18th March 2010
BOLTON’S Muslim community is being urged not to protest at the planned English Defence League rally on Saturday.
Bolton Council of Mosques (BCOM) has also advised mosques to ensure that they have “two or three people” to stay at the buildings on Friday and Saturday night to report any damage or disturbances to police.
It adds: “Do not confront any individuals or groups.”
Imams and elders are to reiterate the message to worshippers after prayers on Friday and Saturday.
The messages come because some members of the community fear they could become a target for groups who may attach themselves to the EDL protest.
Police are expected to step up patrols of mosques in the run up to the event and Muslims are being urged to report any hate crime, such as verbal abuse and assaults, to the police or the BCOM hate crime reporting centre on 01204 363680.
A spokesman for the BCOM said: “Do not get involved in any counter demonstrations; Past demonstrations have shown that it always ends up in violence and arrest.”
The EDL and Unite Against Fascism (UAF) will both hold demonstrations in Bolton town centre on Saturday.
Town hall chiefs and police have been working hard over the last few weeks on community reassurance and are this week writing to the parents of all secondary school pupils advising them not to let youngsters go into the town centre on their own.
An effort to get Home Secretary Alan Johnson to ban the rally looks to have proved unsuccessful. A cross-party delegation travelled to London on Tuesday to meet with home office minister David Hanson.
But deputy council leader Cllr Linda Thomas said that while Mr Hanson was sympathetic to their pleas, “there is nothing he can do to ban this rally at this late stage”.
Scores of town centre businesses are considering whether or not to open on Saturday, although police have said they will be doing everything to ensure people’s safety.
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