ALL Under One Banner (AUOB) have announced plans to go ahead with an independence march in Glasgow next year, despite the chief organiser being reported by Police Scotland over this year's march.
The announcement comes after the chief organiser of their march, Manny Singh, was reported by Police Scotland to the Procurator Fiscal over the timing of Saturday’s event.
The group released a statement after being reported to the procurator fiscal by police stating that Singh will fight his prosecution “all the way”.
Yesterday the group lodged their application for another march and rally in Glasgow for Saturday, May 2, 2020.
READ MORE: WATCH: Flags fly high as All Under One Banner march for independence
39-year-old Manny Singh was visited by police officers at his home on Monday, and was reported under Section 65 of the Civic Government(Scotland) Act 1982 which states that anyone convicted of holding a procession that does not comply with the relevant council order can be sentenced to imprisonment for a period of up to three months.
Singh, 39, was the named organiser for Saturday’s march and rally, with police saying around 40,000 people took place.
Ahead of the march, he was told by Glasgow City Council to start the rally could start at 11am instead of the 1.30pm start he had advertised.
The council has refused to comment on the issue saying it is inappropriate to comment on an ongoing police matter.
READ MORE: All Under One Banner organiser reported by police over Scottish independence march
A petition was started in support of Singh but the hosts, the 38 Degrees organisation, took it down because it concerned a police investigation, though not before 3000 people had signed it to ask that charges against Singh be dropped.
In a statement online, Manny Singh said: “I worry about a lot of things that can go wrong and how to deal with them if any such situation was to arise. I have a dedicated volunteer stewards team, First Aid etc that make my life so much easier.
“Now, I always knew that the unionist Glasgow City Council could push for this. I evaluated the risks to myself and only myself about what would happen if I defied GCC and their ridiculous demands to keep numbers low.
“Worst case? A heavy fine and three months custodial sentence. That is nothing compared to others not just in Scotland but worldwide who endured death, torture, jail to make their nations free.
“The truth is Police Scotland have had orders from above to arrest me, and we can all guess who pushed for this.
“Police Scotland used emergency powers and facilitated the march that took place on May 4. A new historical record was set beating the previous one set in Edinburgh of 100k. They made sure a peaceful march took place. The Chief Inspector, Audrey Hand, and the Police Liaison officer worked well with me. They helped me get the M8 and other road shut down. This is not an easy task as some may think.
“The march on the 4th of May speaks for itself. A fun, family-friendly people marching to make their country free from oppression. No arrests, no violence, no property damage etc.
READ MORE: All Under One Banner organiser releases statement after being reported by police
“The reputation of the independence movement was upheld and broadcast across the world.
“Now this goes to the procurator fiscal's office who will decide if it serves public interest in taking me to court. That decision won't be up to the PF but will come from high up.
“I always have said when trying to fight the British Empire you can bend a knee and sell out. Or you do what is necessary to make your country free without harming another.
“You win the hearts and minds with knowledge, love and with a vision for a new Scotland 30 year plan through 2030, 2040, 2050."
This article was originally reported in our sister paper, The National.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel