Support two SPSC members - Jim Watson and - I, on trial for 'racism' on Wednesday April 27th and Friday April 29th in Court 10 of Glasgow Sheriff Court.
The effort by Zionists and their allies to conflate opposition to Israeli crimes and hatred of Jews is intensifying; having long ago lost the debate over the revolting crimes of the Israeli Government, the Zionists are openly lobbying in Scotland to criminalise those who respond to the Palestinian appeal for BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) against the Israeli State and complicit institutions. Cameron has called for local councils to be prevented from supporting the BDS call, and Justice Secretary Michael Gove has called for BDS to be classified as a hate crime. The College of Policing in England and Wales has openly claimed in advice to all police officers that anti-Zionism, i.e. a democratic political critique of the racist nature of Zionism, is a species of hate crime. This police advice followed consultations with the discredited Zionist CST (Community Security Trust) and the Zionist Board of Deputies of British Jews, many of whose leaders work overtime to smear supporters of the Palestinian people as Jew-haters. SCoJeC, the Scottish affiliate of the Board of Deputies, has a record of wholly inventing incidents of anti-semitism and having to backtrack when caught out in such flagrant dishonesty.
The last time I was charged with racism (yes, this is the second time!) the charges against five SPSC members were found to consist of saying the words "End the siege of Gaza!" and "Genocide in Gaza" in a public place. Farcical, no doubt, but also indicative of the desperation of our opponents, for that was the entire substance of the case against five of us. After almost two years and over a score of appearances in Edinburgh Sheriff Court the charges were thrown out and the procurator Fiscal ridiculed by Sheriff John Scott. The green light for this sinister farce, however, was given by then-Prime Minister Gordon Brown and current London Mayoral candidate Sadiq Khan. Since the current charges claim that we shout[ed] racist comments', we shall have to see exactly what the Glasgow PF considers to be a 'racist comment'.
There is a great irony in being charged with 'racism' for opposing a state, Israel, that is carrying out an ethnic cleansing campaign against the Palestinian people, and for opposing an ideology, Zionism, that is anti-semitic in its core assumptions and its actions.
(More recently, Al Jazeera TV film footage helped us defeat a malicious charge of 'assault' initiated by two CST employees during a successful protest against the racist JNF. Video footage was also crucial in forcing an apology from the police for illegal arrest and assault during a Gaza protest in Edinburgh in 2011
The Scottish Procurator Fiscal's office is back for another try and we are asking you to support us by attending Glasgow Sheriff Court on April 27th to show solidarity and express your refusal to be cowed by the current disgusting wave of attacks on Palestine supporters as racists. We should not forget the harsh prison sentences handed out to 22 mainly Muslim young men following protests against Israel's massacre of Palestinians in Sdecember 2008 and January 2009. The young men were isolated and vulnerable. The sentences were an attempt to terrorise other Muslims from opposing Israel's massacres.
We are organised and we WILL stand together to defeat the current attacks by Gove, Cameron and the like. "First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win", said Gandhi. But only if we stand firm at stage 3.
Please let us know if you intend to attend the court on Wednesday 27th by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or texting/calling 0795 800 2591. It may be necessary to ask for a larger courtroom.
Mick Napier
West Calder
17 April 2016
