Defend our rights to oppose genocide
On Monday, 25 August, one of SPSC’s organisers, Moira McFarlane, was summoned to present herself at St Leonard’s police station in Edinburgh to be charged under section 13 of the Terrorism Act 2000 for wearing a t-shirt with the words ‘Genocide in Palestine, Time to take action’. The demonstration outside the police station from 9.30 am brought together 45-50 people who came along in solidarity with Moira, to oppose Israel’s intentional killing of the Palestinian people and destruction of Gaza, and protest Police Scotland's targeting of peaceful campaigners.
During the demonstration, we heard news about Israel’s bombing of Nasser Hospital in Gaza, killing at least 21 Palestinians, including medics and five journalists. Screenwriter Paul Laverty read out a message he received from a friend of Mariam Abu Daqqa, one of the journalists murdered by Israel. The news was heartbreaking; another day and more killing of Palestinians by a state that enjoys impunity and protection by our governments and institutions.
By 12noon, Moira had been charged, final speeches were made, and the crowd began to disperse. Soon afterwards, dozens of police officers on foot, uniformed and in plainclothes, in marked and unmarked vehicles, followed Paul Laverty and dragged him away in a police van and back to St Leonard’s police station. As evidenced by a video published later in the afternoon and by witness accounts, the police acted aggressively toward Paul and witnesses who filmed the arrest and did not appear to follow proper procedures in their detention/arrest of Paul.
Paul was present throughout the demonstration earlier in the morning, which meant that at any moment, the police could have stepped out to arrest him or informed him that they wished to question him. Instead, Police Scotland has once again wasted public-funded resources and made fools of themselves by their arrest of a peaceful campaigner. Paul was also charged under section 13 of the Terrorism Act 2000 for wearing a t-shirt with the words ‘Genocide in Palestine, Time to take action’.
While the terrorist state of Israel continues their genocide of the Palestinian people with the full support of Starmer’s government, with inaction by the Scottish government and institutional and corporate complicity, the state is targeting those of us who are working to highlight their crimes and to stop the genocide. Our task is to boycott and isolate the state of Israel while we pressure those complicit through boycott and divestment campaigns.
We must also stand firm to defend our rights to protest. That is why we are joining with Defend Our Juries on 6 September at Queen Elizabeth House in Edinburgh to challenge and defy state repression of the Palestine solidarity movement.
Learn more about how you can join or support the actions on September 6
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I am ashamed that Scotland is still affiliated to a fascist State.
We need to recognise Genocide and its perpetrators.