CORNWALL RACIST ATTACKS BULLETIN

The National Civil Rights Movement (NCRM) in the South West believes that the increasing problem of racist violence and abuse in Cornwall has been ignored by too many for too long. This bulletin is aimed at stimulating wider and essential public discussion on the reality of racist violence and abuse in rural Cornwall, and the misery and suffering caused to victims.


FRENCH STUDENTS ATTACKED BY YOBS
Plymouth Evening Herald - 19 April 2001

Two teenage French students were beaten up by drunken youths in separate and unprovoked attacks over the Easter weekend. The students, Remi Moulès and Jocelyn Pineau, were attacked in Saltash by different groups of young thugs who swore at them and shouted racist comments. Both sustained minor cuts, bruises and head injuries after being punched about the head, and were taken to Derriford Hospital for check-ups. The two were in Saltash staying with local families as part of a visit to Plymouth by a group of 34 French students.

Today group leaders condemned the attacks. Trip leader Jerôme Tillien said: "It is disgusting. We did not expect anything like this to happen. It was not necessary for there to be violence. "This is my first trip to England, as it is for many of the students, and I was not impressed." Assistant leader Céline Casaux added: "It is a horrible thing, but I think there are bad people like this everywhere. "The students were very angry at first, and upset, but we calmed them down." The group of teenagers, aged 14 to 17, from the Paris area, arrived in Plymouth on April 8. All are staying with host families until Friday as part of a paid visit organised through Cornish language school the School of Universal Languages, in Par, and a French company, Cap Monde. For many, it is their first time in England. But despite the attacks, both victims said they would come back. Jocelyn, from Paris, said: "This is my first time here, but I would come back to this country again, this did not upset me. Things like this happen in France too.

"These boys had been drinking and that was why I was attacked." The 16-year-old suffered a black eye, bruises and cuts after being attacked by two men in their early 20s as he walked his French girlfriend to her host family's house in Saltash. He said: "I was walking with a girl when two men shouted at our backs. I didn't understand what they were saying. "When my friend went into her house, they took me around a corner and punched me for about two or three minutes. I hurt my eye and my arm." Remi, aged 15 and also from Paris, was attacked as he walked through the centre of Saltash, with two French friends, at about 7pm the following day.

Three English boys, aged about 15, began taunting the French group, before verbally abusing them and shouting crude swearwords. Remi's two friends ran off, with the English youths in pursuit. He was attacked by the third member of the group, who he described as ‘quite short', with short, blond hair and wearing a blue jacket. He said: "We had bought cookies from the petrol station and the English boys came up and asked if we were French. "After we said yes, they spoke in English and we did not understand very well, so we made little gestures to say that. "Then they asked for cookies. We said no, and they became angry and grabbed us by our coats and were shouting and swearing and cursing the French. "My friends ran off, and one boy came and punched me. I ran off but the boy followed me and hit me again. I thought if I hit him back it would make more problems." Remi added: "English people are very nice, but in the evening when the young people are drinking in the street, they can become very different. I was not surprised, though, because I had heard English people could be dangerous when they were drunk."

Hundreds of young French students regularly visit Plymouth for language courses and exchange trips. Devon and Cornwall police spokesman Sergeant Alan Mobbs said the attacks were being investigated. He added: "We are committed to preventing assaults on any foreign students, and we also have Operation Columbus in force to help students visiting the area settle in, in an effort to prevent incidents like this."


HUNT FOR STUDENTS’ ATTACKERS GOES ON
Plymouth Evening Herald - 1st May 2001

Police in Saltash today launched a fresh appeal for information to catch drunken youths who beat up two teenage French students on Easter Monday. Remi Moulès and Jocelyn Pineau were both attacked by separate groups of young thugs. The two were in Saltash staying with local families as part of a visit to Plymouth by a group of 34 French youngsters.

Saltash mayor Bryan Preston, who was away at the time, plans to write to the trip organisers and the boys' parents to apologise on behalf of the town. He said the attacks were not typical of the welcome the French youngsters had received in Saltash. "One group played football against the English lads, and one evening about 30 turned up at Livewire Youth Project at Waterside," he said. "They were allowed in free, were soon involved in a basketball match and afterwards I saw about 40 French and English kids walking happily up the hill together." Hundreds of young French students regularly visit Plymouth for language courses and exchange trips. Police spokesman Pc Stuart Elford said the attacks were still being investigated, and that inquiries are continuing even though no arrests have been made. Anyone with information should contact police on 08705 777444 , quoting crime number BS 01302 .


HORRIFIC ATTACK ON STUDENT
The Cornishman - 12th June 2001

Police have released details of a horrifying racist attack in St Austell in the hope that people with information which can help them will come forward. Seventeen-year-old Brazilian student Pedro Portella was the victim of a suspected racist attack by skinheads that left him unconscious in a St Austell street. If nearby residents had not made the attackers flee, the consequences could have been much worse.

Police are hunting three youths with shaven heads who leapt from a car to attack Pedro. He has now been released from the Royal Cornwall Hospital, Truro, and is back at home at Penwithick. Restormel mayor and local resident Joan Vincent said she was absolutely disgusted by the incident. "This sort of incident seems to be occuring more and more. It is nauseating to think that it is happening, especially here in Cornwall, which has traditionally been a laid-back community and very welcoming to people."


SHAMEFUL ATTACK ON STUDENT
Editorial in The Cornishman - 14th June 2001

The vicious attack on a 17-year-old Brazilian student that left him unconscious in a St Austell street is thought to have been racially motivated. If this does prove to be the case it is deeply disturbing. Pedro Portella suffered a fractured skull in the incident which could have had even more shocking consequences but for the intervention of a couple who came out of their home and forced the attackers to flee. Pedro was punched and kicked in the head by three skinheads who jumped out of a car and set upon him as he returned home after a night out with a friend. He was punched more than a dozen times and kicked in the head when he fell to the ground.

Like all of us, local councillor Joan Vincent was disgusted by the attack. "It is nauseating to think this is happening in Cornwall," she said. The sad fact is, however, that this kind of shameful incident is on the increase even in previously safe, laid-back and tolerant areas like Cornwall. Last month a group of French students were stoned on a beach at Charlestown by local youths who were arrested and cautioned. Earlier this year an inquest heard that Ugandan Richard Kisubi, 20, a student at St Austell College like Pedro, drowned himself at Penzance last November and that a previous alleged racist attack in St Austell may have been a contributory factor.

It is difficult to imagine a more cowardly and vicious assault than that inflicted on Pedro by these three thugs, who were thought to be aged between 16 and 19. It is equally difficult to understand the minds of young men who behave in such a violent way. The word mindless has become a cliché in describing such attacks, but in this case nothing could be more appropriate. They are a disgrace to society and when they are caught one can only hope that the full weight of the law is heaped upon them. It will be no justice and unacceptable to give them just a slap on the wrist.


GIRLS SUBJECTED TO RACIAL ABUSE
The Cornishman - June 15, 2001

Police are trying to get information relating to a racial abuse incident in Falmouth. Following a scuffle in Killigrew Street on Saturday, June 9, two black girls were pursued by three white girls, who had not been involved in the original incident. The three started chanting racial abuse and were then joined by another group who did the same for several minutes. Police are keen to hear from anyone who can help them get to the bottom of this incident and would particularly like to hear from a girl in a distinctive blue sequin top and skirt who acted as a good samaritan after the original incident. Anyone with information is asked to contact PC Andy Huddlestone at Falmouth or Crimestoppers, in confidence, on 0800 555 111.


BAD MEMORIES OF CORNWALL
Leader column from The West Briton 16th August 2001

One could not, in all honesty, be too surprised if the image of Britain abroad is not a particularly glowing one. Police are investigating allegations of assault - said to be unprovoked, at that - on two French students in Falmouth at the weekend. They are not saying the incident was racially motivated but other, similar, ones in Cornwall have been over the past few years.

One of the French students was pushed to the ground, kicked and punched. Not content with that bit of Saturday night "fun", the assailant later assaulted the other French visitor, which suggests the two were stalked and deliberately targeted. But for what reason? Simply because they were French, presumably. If that was the case, the message it will be sending to friends and relatives of the victims is not one which the Cornish tourist industry (or, indeed, any right-thinking Briton) would want to hear. A couple of months ago, a party of Germans was abused in the Penwith area, and there have been other attacks on "foreign" students over the years. The mentality of those involved is not too far, surely, from that of people who mete out far more drastic violence on members of other ethnic groups.

The attacker in Falmouth is described as white and "English", which means he, too, could have been a visitor to this county. If he was from outside Cornwall, the message is clear - we don't want him or his kind here; if he is Cornish then one would hope, albeit without too much expectation, that he would be ashamed of himself in the cold light of day. Neither of which is of much import now; the fact is that, so far as these particular French students are concerned, their abiding memories of Britain in general, and Cornwall in particular, won't be of the friendliness of the vast majority of the locals, the beauty of the beaches or the rich diversity of culture, but of fists and feet raining down on them.


ALARM AS MUSLIM IS ATTACKED
First published on Friday 26 October 2001

Muslims in Truro were alarmed this week after an Islamic teacher was beaten and robbed in the city. The 18-year-old religious teacher, visiting Truro from Bangladesh, was rushed to hospital after he was punched in the face and head, as he walked along Highertown on Thursday night. He was left with severe injuries to his nose and jaw and had to have a number of stitches. His mobile phone, glasses and a small amount of money were also stolen. Police are describing the attack as racially motivated and have asked for him not to be named.

Members of the Muslim community in Truro now say that they are "very edgy" as a result of the attack, which they believe is linked to the tense atmosphere following the terrorist attacks in America. Muslim businessman Tipu Choudhury, who employed the victim to teach Islam at a community centre in Truro, said: "We have all been very edgy since September 11. At the back of our minds we were always expecting something to happen sooner or later. "The police have been very good, making calls and making sure everything is OK, but the September 11 attack has blown everything out of proportion here. I have lived in Truro for 17 years and my children grew up here, but now I feel very edgy." Mr Choudhury added that he had seen a man taking photographs of the community centre the following day, but when he asked what they were for he was told, "it's none of your business."

Police are now appealing for witnesses to the attack, which took place between midnight and 12.45am on Friday morning, near Highertown Post Office. No description of the attacker is available, but police have described the victim as 5ft 4ins tall, of slight build, wearing a blue fleece jacket, white shirt and fawn cotton trousers. A man was seen running away from the scene towards the Malabar estate as ambulance crews arrived. Anyone with information about the attack is asked to contact Truro CID on (08705) 777444, or Crimestoppers on (0845) 555111
Source:  http://www.thisisthewestcountry.co.uk/the_west_country/archive/2001/10/26/TRURO_NEWS_NEWS09ZM.html


MONUMENT MARRED BY VANDAL’S SLOGAN
Plymouth Evening Herald - 29th November 2001

Police and community leaders today condemned a vandal who defaced a monument in South East Cornwall. A two word racial slogan was found sprayed in grey paint on the chimney stack at Kit Hill, near Callington, which stands on an ancient monument. The same slogan in the same grey paint was later discovered on a road sign to Luckett, 400 metres away.

Police believe the same person was responsible for both incidents, which they are not linking with damage to a road sign in Stoke Climsland. Cornwall County Council has looked after the hill since Prince Charles gave it to the people of Cornwall to celebrate the birth of his son William. The towering chimney, once used to draw fresh air into a labyrinth of mineshafts below, stands on a scheduled ancient monument cared for by English Heritage. But unlike the regular defacing of the English rose symbol on brown signs in Cornwall, in which the ‘English' symbol is often replaced with the black-and-white Cornish St Piran's flag, this graffiti is not being linked with Cornish nationalism.


METHODIST MINISTERS SENT RACIST MAIL
BBC News Online – 12th February 2002

Two Methodist ministers in Cornwall have been targeted by racists. The man and wife were sent a leaflet anonymously in the post a few days before the Holocaust Memorial Day in January. The Reverend Roger Greene, the superintendent minister for the Launceston area, and his wife, Liz, who is the minister at Coads Green Methodist Chapel, said they were horrified by the material. The couple have contacted the police about the literature.

Copies of the professionally-produced leaflet arrived in separate envelopes, one addressed to Mr Greene and the other to his wife. "The whole thing is atrocious," said Mr Greene. "The postmark was Norwich and both envelopes were in the same handwriting. "Someone somewhere is targeting Methodist ministers." He hopes that the mail is just a very nasty one-off. "It is particularly offensive. It is really quite damaging. "You feel powerless to track it down with the devious methods being used," he said. The minister said he had decided to go public about the material in the hope that more information comes to light about who is behind the publication. Rachel Lampard, secretary of political affairs for the Methodist Church, said she was not aware that any other clergy have received the same material. "It is very saddening there are people with such twisted views," she said. "You don't want to give this stuff more credence than it deserves, the bin is the best place."

Harvey Kurzfield, the chairman of the Jewish community in Cornwall, said: "It is appalling they should be sent this material. "It breeds rumours that could spread. It is something we should put a stop to. "The normal reaction is to tear something like this up and bin it. But I do think the police should be sent this literature so they can see it," he said.
Source:  http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/1815753.stm


BRAZILIAN ATTACKED, COURT TOLD
The Cornishman - 19th March 2002

A brazilian student was beaten up in a Cornish town after he gave a "two-fingered salute" to a passing car on his way home from a nightclub, a court heard yesterday. Pedro Portella, 17, of Penwithick, St Austell, was punched and kicked in the head in an incident involving three youths, Truro Crown Court was told. Mr Portella, who was treated in hospital for extensive cuts and bruising, later picked out Leigh Knowles at an identity parade as one of his attackers. Knowles, 19, of Trewoon, St Austell, admitted assaulting Mr Portella and causing him actual bodily harm.

Judge Geoffrey Rucker, told that Knowles had three previous convictions, imposed an 18 month community rehabilitation order and extended his 9pm-6am curfew on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights for a further three months. He warned Knowles that if he breached any condition of the order he would receive an 18-month custodial sentence. Judge Rucker told Knowles: "You are a selfish, self-centred, immature near 20-year-old acting as a 14-year-old. "You have never been really employed and if you go on like this you will be unemployable." The judge, referring to Knowles' victim Mr Portella, said: "There was some provocation. Anyone stupid enough to stick up two fingers to a car with three young men in it is taking an awful risk. "You were not the initial aggressor. There is some evidence that at first you tried to stop the assault and you are somewhat unlucky to find yourself alone in the dock."

Last June, Devon and Cornwall Police issued a public appeal to find three shaven-headed youths, saying it was being treated as a suspected racist attack, but no evidence to that effect was given in court. It was also stated last summer that Mr Portella had suffered a fractured skull. The court heard he had made a full recovery from his injuries.


RACIST ATTACK
First published on Thursday 07 November 2002

A racist attack on a Helston household at the weekend has shocked people living in the usually quiet residential area. Bricks were hurled through the windows of a property in Vyvyan Place and the terrified occupants, thought to be Asian, subjected to racist abuse during two incidents in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Investigating officer Dc Alan Barnsley said one person had been alone in the house at the time of the first incident, but had been joined by two others when the second attack took place around an hour later. "We believe the same people were responsible for the two incidents," he said. "Obviously it was very serious for the people who were in the house.

No-one was injured, but they were very frightened and feared for their safety." Dc Barnsley said racial incidents were rare in Cornwall and almost unheard of in Helston. "The racial element is quite unusual," he said. "It is the first incident I am aware of and hopefully the action that will be taken will nip it in the bud." Vyvyan Place, off Trengrouse Way, is a quiet residential road which sees a flurry of activity twice a day with people going to and from St Michael's School. Tommy Johns, chairman of the Trengrouse Way Area Residents' Association, said he was shocked and surprised to learn of Sunday's incident. "We have never had any problems like that before so it is quite a shock," he said. "The residents' association is trying to promote community spirit and usually everyone lives together very happily. It is disgusting to think something like that could happen in Helston." Anyone who can assist the police with their enquiries is asked to contact Dc Barnsley at Camborne CID on 08705 777444 or anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555111. Five people have been arrested in connection with the attack and released on police bail pending further inquiries. They are due to return to Camborne police station on December 4.
Source: www.thisisthewestcountry.co.uk/the_west_country/archive/2002/11/07/CORNWALL_NEWS_NEWS03ZM.html


RACIST THUG SENTENCED TO 21 MONTHS
First published on Thursday 22 May 2003

A judge told 39-year-old Graeme Fitzgerald at Truro Crown Court last week: "Prison may not do you much good but it is a punishment, and while you are away you cannot get at the bottle or drugs and no-one else will have to put up with your vile behaviour." Fitzgerald, of College Street, Camborne, gave a sardonic laugh as he made an offensive comment to Judge Jeffrey Rucker as he went down to the cells to begin a 21-month jail sentence. Earlier he had pleaded guilty to using racially aggravated threatening and insulting words to WPC Sarah Moret intending to cause her harrassment, alarm or distress.

Held on the ground by customers in the British Heart Foundation shop in Camborne because of his abusive behaviour, Fitzgerald was screaming when handcuffed by officers and led to a police vehicle, revealed prosecutor Ron Ede. He was so offensive towards WPC Moret that she asked to be relieved of the normal procedure of booking him into the police station. A man with 40 previous convictions, including for assaults on the police and public order offences, Fitzgerald spoke on his own behalf after dismissing his barrister. He said he had been very drunk at the time and apologised for his abusive behaviour. He had over reacted when arrested.

Judge Jeffrey Rucker said he had no doubt Fitzgerald's tragic and difficult childhood had been taken into consideration may times by the courts. "It is a bad record which shows intolerance towards authority," he declared. "You were thoroughly drunk well before midday when you started causing trouble in the shop." Referring to Fitzgerald's abuse of the officer, the judge commented: "This was racial hatred by a man out of control saying whatever came into your head. I give you credit for your guilty plea but that is your only mitigation. You have an appalling record and have totally failed to respond to any form of non- custodial sentence."
Source: www.thisisthewestcountry.co.uk/the_west_country/archive/2003/05/22/CAMBORNE_REDRUTH_NEWS_NEWS04ZM.html


TWO ACCUSED OF MURDER ATTEMPT
The Cornishman - 13 June 2003

Two 21-year-old men have been charged with attempted murder after a car was allegedly driven at two people in North Cornwall on Sunday night. The pair, from Truro, have also been charged with unrelated firearms offences and racially aggravated public order offences, police said. Two people in the Perranporth incident suffered broken limbs as a result.


MEN REMANDED
The Cornishman - 26 June 2003

Joshua Morgan, aged 21, of Henley Crescent, Mount Hawke, and Jason Coad, aged 21, of Malabar Road, Truro, appeared before Truro Magistrates last week. The men are jointly charged with attempting to murder Neil Carmichael and Matthew Burrell, and causing racially or religiously aggravated harassment, alarm or distress. They were remanded in custody.


FRENCH STUDENTS ATTACKED
BBC News Online – 9th July 2003

Devon and Cornwall Police say they are treating an attack on French students in a Cornish village as "very serious". A group of exchange students was set upon by local youngsters in St Blazey on Monday night. One of them suffered a broken foot and another sustained severe bruising. The students say they were assaulted with a baseball bat.
Police say around 20,000 international students visit the force area each year and they are taking specific steps to combat intimidating behaviour towards them. People in the village say they are shocked by the attack.

Some residents say there have been several incidents of intimidating behaviour in the area. John Robertson who lives in Polgover Way says he has surprised the attack happened so near to his home. "It was on my doorstep, I can't understand why anyone would pick on them." One of the community wardens patrolling the area, Andrew Vivian, is surprised by the apparent severity of the attack. "It's very unusual to hear a baseball bat was involved," said Mr Vivian. "I haven't seen that in the nine months I have worked as a community warden. "But you never know what could happen here really." Anyone able to help police with their inquiries is asked to contact them.
Source:  http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cornwall/3052135.stm


STUDENT ATTACKS RUIN SAFE IMAGE
Western Morning News - 10 July 2003

A language school owner says yobs who attacked two French students with a baseball bat in a Westcountry village are ruining the region's safe image. Devon and Cornwall Police have launched an investigation into the vicious assault in St Blazey, Cornwall, which left a 15-year-old boy with a broken foot and a 16-year-old boy with severe bruising.

In the past few years, a number of assaults on foreign students have been made in the Westcountry, including Exeter, Exmouth, Torbay and parts of Cornwall.

Christopher Retallack, of SUL Language Schools, said yesterday that the unprovoked assault on Monday evening had frightened all of his students, aged 11 to 16. "They were picked on just because they were French by people who are probably unhappy in their own lives and who probably bullied people at school," he said. "It wasn't just that the boys were bashed up, but that it has frightened the whole group of 30 students. I want the police to catch these people and show them that they can't get away with something like this. "The Westcountry sells itself on being a family-friendly place with none of the troubles associated with big cities but when this happens, will people still come?"

The students were staying with families in the St Blazey, Par and Tywardreath area. Police believe that their two assailants, who were riding motor scooters and were thought to be aged about 16 or 17, were from the local area.

A spokeswoman for Devon and Cornwall Police said: "We have launched an investigation because it was quite a vicious attack. At the moment, we do not know if they were attacked specifically because they were French." She added that about 20,000 international students visited the region each year and steps were being taken to combat intimidating behaviour.

Police patrols in Exmouth, Devon, were stepped up last month after a spate of verbal and physical attacks on German and French students. Meanwhile, a 15-year-old Russian boy was punched and robbed of a mobile phone in Torquay at the beginning of June.
In April, foreign students visiting Exeter were warned to keep clear of groups of youths and secluded areas after two similar attacks on French teenagers. There have also been attacks in Charlestown, near St Austell, and Marazion, near Penzance.

Cornwall-based SUL Language Schools holds classes in Exeter, Plymouth, Tavistock, Bideford, St Austell, Truro, Camborne, Falmouth and Penzance, as well as around the UK. Mr Retallack, who has run the firm for more than 25 years, said there was an incident almost every other year, although most were not serious. "The whole idea of language schools is to bring in young people to stay with families and to generate goodwill and long-term friendships. When someone gets attacked like this, it sets us back 500 years."

One of the attackers was white, about 17 years old, 5ft 8in, of stocky build, wearing a white top and baggy trousers. The second, who was also white, was younger looking and taller. Anyone with information should call 08705 777444 or 0800 555111.


IN COURT FOR RACISM AND THEFT
The Cornishman - 14 August 2003

A Pendeen man who struggled with a store detective - a British Asian, who caught him shoplifting, pleaded guilty to racially aggravated harassment at Truro magistrates court. George William David Hood, aged 19, whose address was given as Portherris Terrace, Pendeen, also pleaded guilty to stealing property from Safeway, Penzance, assaulting Wayne Sadiq, and burglary at his mother's home in Pendeen.

Anita Kennett, prosecuting, said that Mr Sadiq had confronted Hood after seeing him concealing items from shelves about his clothing. Hood ran off when challenged, but Mr Sadiq caught hold of his clothing, only to be punched twice in the face.

During the struggle Mr Sadiq received cuts and bruises and his right ring finger was broken. The burglary at Hood's mother's house occurred at a later date when Hood got in and stole £25 in cash and some cigarettes. The case was adjourned to August 20 for reports.


INCIDENT IN LANE CATALYST FOR RACIALLY ABUSIVE CALLS
The Cornishman - 28 August 2003

An alleged road rage incident over which police decided to take no action had triggered a series of racially aggravated telephone calls, Truro magistrates heard when James Arscott, aged 18, of Trennick Mill, Malpas, was before them. Arscott pleaded guilty to causing racially aggravated harassment between March and April this year.

Simon Jones, prosecuting, said that after the alleged road rage incident Arscott had made a number of telephone calls to the Harazi family which were received by Jacqueline Harazi whose husband was of Iraqi-Yemeni extraction. Made in the early hours of the morning, they included threats to "export" her husband, whom they described as a "Paki", to blow him up and to burn him in a fire. On one occasion Arscott had been with a number of cars which drove up to the Harazi family's house, in an isolated situation, the occupants shouting abuse.

Arscott told the police he admitted making the calls with the intention of harassing the family, and that he had asked friends to make similar calls. He had also instigated the arrival of cars outside the house.
Jeremy Leaning, for Arscott, said he was a person of impeccable character, a balanced young man who was a credit to his parents. "What caused him to behave in this offensive way was the road rage incident on February 2," he told the magistrates. It took place in a country lane near Truro after which Arscott alleged Harazi had head butted him with such force that two of his upper teeth were badly chipped. Harazi denied headbutting him and the police had decided not to prosecute. The magistrates adjourned the case to September 22. Arscott was given bail.


ANGER AFTER YOBS' BRUTAL ATTACK ON FOREIGN STUDENTS
First published on Thursday 04 September 2003

A language school organiser has expressed her disgust after local yobs ripped a foreign student's arm out of its socket. The woman, who does not wish to be named, said groups of Spanish and French students had be-come targets for verbal and physical abuse since arriving in Falmouth in the spring to attend language schools. One young student was attacked so severely - in Killigrew Street at 9pm - at night, his arm had been wrenched from its socket. The boy, from France, was sedated for six hours while doctors tried to reset the limb.

The woman told the Packet: "From March to September many Spanish and French students come to Falmouth, bringing quite a lot of money to the town, staying with local families, learning English ways. "Why oh why must English youths disrupt them, nag, annoy, shout abusive words, ending up in poking, kicking them up to the point of pulling a child's arm out of its shoulder socket? "What have these students done to warrant this treatment?" The woman, who organises accommodation for foreign students attending the SUL language school, based at Falmouth Marine College, Killigrew Street, had reported the incident to police.

PC Andy Hocking said the incident was being investigated as a racial assault. "When we receive a complaint from a foreign student it's immediately treated as a racial incident and that means we investigate it very seriously," he said. This was as a result of a force-wide contingency plan called Operation Columbus, he said.

Although there was a history of foreign students being harangued by locals, this was the first such incident this summer. "It's local youths, aged between 15 and 20. We're actively trying to identify them and deal with them accordingly. "The investigation has not come to a close."

Falmouth mayor Maureen Davies offered the student an apology on behalf of the town, where he had been welcomed like any other student. "I am very, very sorry this attack has happened and I make a public apology on behalf of the town. "The students come to the town to improve their use of the English language and I think they deserve as much respect as our own students. "I don't know what sparks off such attacks. "They are here to improve their language skills, to learn about the culture. "Some of them may be looking to come here to study at Falmouth College of Arts or at the university, therefore we should encourage them."

Source: www.thisisthewestcountry.co.uk/the_west_country/archive/2003/09/04/CORNWALL_FALMOUTH_NEWS_NEWS11ZM.html


MAN ADMITS TO RACIST ABUSE
Cornish Guardian - 11 September 2003

On the morning his Truro Crown Court trial was due to begin, 52-year-old Philip Chapman pleaded guilty on Monday to an allegation of racially aggravated use of threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour in the Bash Baagan Indian restaurant in Wadebridge in July of last year. Chapman, of Trevarner Way, Wadebridge, changed his plea after watching a video of his behaviour at the Newquay custody centre following his arrest.

Defence counsel Ramsay Quaife explained that Chapman, at one time a Metropolitan Police trainee, was aghast at seeing the way he had behaved. Piers Norsworthy, prosecuting, said that Chapman was at first friendly to the manager and staff at the restaurant, who had on a previous occasion called an ambulance when he was taken ill. But on July 21 he was under the influence of alcohol and following a dispute in which he alleged he had already paid the bill he racially abused staff and swung punches at them. A holidaying police sergeant from the West Midlands arrested and restrained Chapman, who claimed he had been a police officer for nine years.

Mr Quaife said that Chapman was not in the best of health and he had previously had problems with alcohol which re-surfaced that day. He was currently registered disabled but working in a major Cornish store. On leaving the police force he joined the Merchant Navy and worked as an engineer on fishing vessels out of Newlyn before moving to Wadebridge.

Judge Graham Cottle told Chapman he wanted to know more about his health, drink problem and personal circumstances before passing sentence. He granted him bail to await the preparation of a pre-sentence report but warned him that all options, including custody, were open to the court.

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