The Smell of Bacon Offends Muslims

A Muslim Neighbor Who Think He Can Impose his Views on other People’s Business

Planning officials acted against Beverley Akciecek, 49, after being told her next door neighbour’s Muslim friends had felt ”physically sick” due to the ”foul odour.”  [1] The fan has been in Beverley’s Snack Shack takeaway in the Shaw Heath area of the town for the past three years.  And the mother-of-seven whose husband Cetin, 50, is himself a Turkish Muslim work more than fifty hours a week buying, preparing and cooking hot and cold sandwiches and hot-pots for their customers.  But neighbour Graham Webb-Lee complained that his Muslim friends refused to visit him becase they ”can’t stand the smell of bacon.”  [2] And councillors at Liberal Democrat run Stockport Council in Greater Manchester ruled the ‘odours given off from the vent were unacceptable for neighbouring residents.’  [3] Mrs Akciecek who plans to appeal against the decision said, “I just think it’s just crazy. Cetin’s friends actually visit the shop, they’re regular visitors, they’re Muslim people, the come in a couple of times a week.” I have Muslim people come in for cheese toasties. Cetin cooks the food himself, he cooks the bacon.

When we go to a cafe my husband wouldn’t be offended by the smell of bacon. His friends are not offended by it, we have three visitors who come here for a sandwich, friends of my husband, and the smell doesn’t offend them at all. [4]

They just cannot believe how ridiculous and out of proportion this situation have become. “My brother-in-law doesn’t flinch if he comes and we’ve just taken out three trays of bacon.”  [5] The couple took over the take-away on Adswood Road in Cale Green, Stockport, in 2007 from the previous owner and replaced the exisiting extractor fan, which had been there for six years, with a new modern one.  They claim they received no complaints about the cafe which is open from 7.30am-2.30pm six days a week, until around eighteen months ago when they received a letter from environmental services to say Mr Webb-Lee had complained about the smell.  “We’ve never had a problem about the smell because everything is pre-cooked,” said Mrs Akciecek.  “We cook it in the oven so there’s no foul smell. It’s pre-cooked so the smell isn’t as strong when we’re frying it off. It’s like living next to someone who’s cooking a Sunday breakfast but it’s not constant it’s just in the morning.  “It’s been a sandwich shop for about eight years, cooking exactly the same stuff. The lady before me did double because they were actually building new houses across the road so she was really busy. She was here from 6am-4pm because they were so busy. [6]

They were there before me but they were also there when the lady who owns the business was here and she was doing double what we are. She had five staff, you can imagine how bust that shop was and they never complained at all. [7]

They say that Environmental services had been out to inspect their property after their neighbour complained about a foul odour last year, but they ruled that the smell was not causing a problem. “Environmental services said everything is ok. They kept coming back and guaging it and said there was no problem and because they didn’t take any action they complained again,” she added.  They replaced the ageing existing fan with no complaints. About 18 months ago Lib-Dem-run Stockport Council wrote to the Akcieceks after Mr Webb-Lee complained. Environmental services officers visited the cafe, but ruled there was no nuisance. Mr Webb-Lee continued to complain.  The couple were eventually caught out because they had not applied for planning permission to install the new fan. When they applied retrospectively they were turned down by Stockport Area Committee on October 14.  It is hard to understand why do so many members of the Muslim community expect the rest of the world to cater to their belief system? Just imagine if a Christian made a similar suggestion. People would be protesting in the streets and doing everything in their power to justify their death by hanging.  It hardly seems fair for one business to cater to the complaints of a small number of individuals. This sets a dangerous precedent where Muslims will think they can gain more control over the culture by crying their offended by this, that, and the other thing.  [8] They launched the appeal, taking their fight to the Government-run Planning Inspectorate.

They Finally Won their Appeal

Beverley Akciecek and her Turkish Muslim husband Cetin won on appeal and were able to keep the fan.  Taxpayers will have to foot the legal bill after a council cooked up a fuss following complaints by neighbour Graham Webb-Lee.  Last night Beverley, 49, said the new ruling was a victory for common sense over political correctness gone mad.  The mother of seven said:

This has taken it out of us as a family. “We were like robots, we did everything we had to do but it was always there and it caused us so much stress. Now we can just get on with being a normal family. [9]

She said even local Muslims were angered by the way their faith had been used. At the time she told reporters: “It’s crazy.”  It finally quashed the order. Beverley said:

It would have cost us a couple of grand to move the fan, which we just didn’t have. We would have had to shut down while they were doing it which would have taken a couple of weeks and it would have been a nightmare. [10]