With his permission, I’m publishing Ken Mathieson’s comments regarding my recent post on Scotland being a de facto colony of the UK. He describes how Scots have suffered and continue to suffer cultural suppression under UK rule and recalls his education in the 1950s when children were punished with the tawse for speaking their native Lallans.
Yes, it would ordinarily seem a most urgent matter for any nation's courts and elites to examine and deal with numerous violations to its Treaties and Acts, and its Constitution; however, in a colonial society we should not assume that assimilated native elites are primarily interested in the matter of protecting the rights of natives, or national law, above the interests of the colonizer.
I think that Scotland is in reality a Colony of England. I was born just before the war so have the usual stories to tell of the attempts to stifle the sense of my Scottishness. I joined the SNP in 1965 when it had a little office on the corner of Bath St and Elmbank St.
But I would like to find out just how many in our Scottish electorate would say Yes to that question.
Alf Baird’s much-lauded book, Doun Hauden, is thankfully being mentioned/plugged quite often now (Caledon Radio).
I can’t recall the person who wondered if Alf would publish ‘a shortened version’, which would no doubt, help to educate/bring to mind for many Scots, that Scotland never has been in a so-called ‘union’, but has always been a subjugated Colony of England.
Extremely busy man that he is, it might be ‘a wee bit too much’ at the moment, given all the work related to Liberation Scotland etc.
Whilst I do have Doun Hauden, which unfortunately ‘rests’ in a dusty removal box, a published ‘shortened version’ would be both very informative and helpful to many, including myself.
I see phrases such as "take on the UK government" and "put pressure on Westminster" and my heart sinks. Especially when - as is often the case - such phrases are used in conjunction with some bold restatement of the sovereignty of Scotland's people. The contradiction is grating.
Think about it! What coul;d possibly be the purpose of taking on the UK government. To what end might we "put pressure on Westminster". What else but for the hopeful purpose of gaining the British state's gracious consent for and honest cooperation with, a Section 30 referendum. A consultative and non-self-executing plebiscite subject to whatever conditions the British state wishes to imose and whatever interference they wish to run. A referendum which cannot possibly lead to the restortion of Scotland's independence, no matter what the outcome. A referendum which nonetheless will be deemed to be the second referendum we had demanded. A referendum which cannot stand as the formal exercise by the people of Scotland of our inalienable human right of self-determination.
Look at that term 'self-determination'! Think about it! Who do you suppose is referred to by the bit that says 'self'? It refers to the people of Scotland AND NOBODY ELSE! It most certainly does not include the government or parliament of the neighbouring nation which has annexed ours. Why would it? How could it? The very notion is ludicrous!
FFS stop putting Westminster at the centre of your thinking on the constitutional issue! Put the British state out of your mind completely! It has nothing to do with them! They can have no rightful or lawful role in the process by which we exercise our right of self-determination.
It is certainly true that "Popular Sovereignty is the key to unlocking the UK prison". But only if and when we fully take on board what the sovereignty of the people truly means and act accordingly. Requesting a Section 30 order is denying the sovereignty of Scotland's people. It is an act of treachery. It must not happen again. It certainly shouldn't be normalised by language such as "take on the UK government" or "put pressure on Westminster".
I maintain that the people of Scotland are sovereign. I hold that the people of Scotland are the ultimate arbiters in all matters of public policy and the sole source of legitimate political authority. If our every utterance and action is not explicitly informed by the principle of popular sovereignty then we will never turn that key. We will never leave this prison. We shall never know liberation.
That's why, Peter, we must apply pressure on the SNP administration and our MSPs - while they still have power - to incorporate the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which the UK ratified in 1976 but hasn't incorporated into UK law, into Scots law. ICCPR Article 25 guarantees nations direct political rights such as the right to referendums. Giving the People political rights with which to exercise their sovereignty, also known as Direct Democracy - is the essence of popular sovereignty. Without them, popular sovereignty is meaningless. We can remind Swinney and MSPs that they've endorsed the principle that the Scottish People are sovereign and talk about it endlessly (https://www.gov.scot/publications/building-new-scotland-creating-modern-constitution-independent-scotland/#).
We know Holyrood CAN implement UN covenants into Scots law - they did it most recently for the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. But curiously, they've omitted ICCPR from their list of international covenants as has the Scottish National Action Plan for Human Rights (SNAP 2): https://www.snaprights.info/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/SNAP-2-March-2023-FINAL-PDF.pdf .
We need a campaign to get Scots to pressure their MSPs BEFORE the 2026 election to implement ICCPR. Unless we give the Scottish People the tools with which to exercise their sovereignty, I agree with you that nothing will change.
I totally agree that we must maintain pressure on the SNP. Or, to be more precise, the Scottish Government. This remains true regardless of whether we think this pressure will have any effect. We must do it because the Scottish Government (whtever party) is crucial to the process by which independence is restored.
I would go further. I would say we must apply what pressure we can on the whole of Scotland's political elite. Because they are all failing Scotland's cause. If there are any exceptions to this, they are not obvious. Which means they are not effective.
This leaves us with the problem of how to go about applying pressure. I offer a couple of thought-provoking quotes from Alexis de Tocqueville -
“In democratic countries, knowledge of how to combine is the mother of all other forms of knowledge; on its progress depends that of all the others.”
― Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America
“Without common ideas, there is no common action, and without common action men still exist, but a social body does not. Thus in order that there be society, and all the more, that this society prosper, it is necessary that all the minds of the citizens always be brought together and held together by some principle ideas”
"This right is therefore legally protected."
Yes, it would ordinarily seem a most urgent matter for any nation's courts and elites to examine and deal with numerous violations to its Treaties and Acts, and its Constitution; however, in a colonial society we should not assume that assimilated native elites are primarily interested in the matter of protecting the rights of natives, or national law, above the interests of the colonizer.
Which is precisely why the People need to take over from these native elites.
I think that Scotland is in reality a Colony of England. I was born just before the war so have the usual stories to tell of the attempts to stifle the sense of my Scottishness. I joined the SNP in 1965 when it had a little office on the corner of Bath St and Elmbank St.
But I would like to find out just how many in our Scottish electorate would say Yes to that question.
Alf Baird’s much-lauded book, Doun Hauden, is thankfully being mentioned/plugged quite often now (Caledon Radio).
I can’t recall the person who wondered if Alf would publish ‘a shortened version’, which would no doubt, help to educate/bring to mind for many Scots, that Scotland never has been in a so-called ‘union’, but has always been a subjugated Colony of England.
Extremely busy man that he is, it might be ‘a wee bit too much’ at the moment, given all the work related to Liberation Scotland etc.
Whilst I do have Doun Hauden, which unfortunately ‘rests’ in a dusty removal box, a published ‘shortened version’ would be both very informative and helpful to many, including myself.
There is a shortened PDF version. I can email it to you.
Thank you so much, Leah and thank you indeed to the estimable Alf Baird, for providing such a helpful, shortened version.
With kindest regards.
Helen
I see phrases such as "take on the UK government" and "put pressure on Westminster" and my heart sinks. Especially when - as is often the case - such phrases are used in conjunction with some bold restatement of the sovereignty of Scotland's people. The contradiction is grating.
Think about it! What coul;d possibly be the purpose of taking on the UK government. To what end might we "put pressure on Westminster". What else but for the hopeful purpose of gaining the British state's gracious consent for and honest cooperation with, a Section 30 referendum. A consultative and non-self-executing plebiscite subject to whatever conditions the British state wishes to imose and whatever interference they wish to run. A referendum which cannot possibly lead to the restortion of Scotland's independence, no matter what the outcome. A referendum which nonetheless will be deemed to be the second referendum we had demanded. A referendum which cannot stand as the formal exercise by the people of Scotland of our inalienable human right of self-determination.
Look at that term 'self-determination'! Think about it! Who do you suppose is referred to by the bit that says 'self'? It refers to the people of Scotland AND NOBODY ELSE! It most certainly does not include the government or parliament of the neighbouring nation which has annexed ours. Why would it? How could it? The very notion is ludicrous!
FFS stop putting Westminster at the centre of your thinking on the constitutional issue! Put the British state out of your mind completely! It has nothing to do with them! They can have no rightful or lawful role in the process by which we exercise our right of self-determination.
It is certainly true that "Popular Sovereignty is the key to unlocking the UK prison". But only if and when we fully take on board what the sovereignty of the people truly means and act accordingly. Requesting a Section 30 order is denying the sovereignty of Scotland's people. It is an act of treachery. It must not happen again. It certainly shouldn't be normalised by language such as "take on the UK government" or "put pressure on Westminster".
I maintain that the people of Scotland are sovereign. I hold that the people of Scotland are the ultimate arbiters in all matters of public policy and the sole source of legitimate political authority. If our every utterance and action is not explicitly informed by the principle of popular sovereignty then we will never turn that key. We will never leave this prison. We shall never know liberation.
That's why, Peter, we must apply pressure on the SNP administration and our MSPs - while they still have power - to incorporate the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which the UK ratified in 1976 but hasn't incorporated into UK law, into Scots law. ICCPR Article 25 guarantees nations direct political rights such as the right to referendums. Giving the People political rights with which to exercise their sovereignty, also known as Direct Democracy - is the essence of popular sovereignty. Without them, popular sovereignty is meaningless. We can remind Swinney and MSPs that they've endorsed the principle that the Scottish People are sovereign and talk about it endlessly (https://www.gov.scot/publications/building-new-scotland-creating-modern-constitution-independent-scotland/#).
We know Holyrood CAN implement UN covenants into Scots law - they did it most recently for the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. But curiously, they've omitted ICCPR from their list of international covenants as has the Scottish National Action Plan for Human Rights (SNAP 2): https://www.snaprights.info/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/SNAP-2-March-2023-FINAL-PDF.pdf .
We need a campaign to get Scots to pressure their MSPs BEFORE the 2026 election to implement ICCPR. Unless we give the Scottish People the tools with which to exercise their sovereignty, I agree with you that nothing will change.
I totally agree that we must maintain pressure on the SNP. Or, to be more precise, the Scottish Government. This remains true regardless of whether we think this pressure will have any effect. We must do it because the Scottish Government (whtever party) is crucial to the process by which independence is restored.
I would go further. I would say we must apply what pressure we can on the whole of Scotland's political elite. Because they are all failing Scotland's cause. If there are any exceptions to this, they are not obvious. Which means they are not effective.
This leaves us with the problem of how to go about applying pressure. I offer a couple of thought-provoking quotes from Alexis de Tocqueville -
“In democratic countries, knowledge of how to combine is the mother of all other forms of knowledge; on its progress depends that of all the others.”
― Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America
“Without common ideas, there is no common action, and without common action men still exist, but a social body does not. Thus in order that there be society, and all the more, that this society prosper, it is necessary that all the minds of the citizens always be brought together and held together by some principle ideas”
― Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America