Pro-Palestine protesters march to Scottish Labour conference

Marching for Palestine – thousands gathered as the massive protest yesterday.

By Democrat reporters

Thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrators marched through Glasgow to protest outside the Scottish Labour conference taking place in the city, calling for an immediate ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war.

The march started at George Square and ended at the Scottish Exhibition Centre where members were meeting.

Those marching waved flags for Palestine, getting to the conference just after 3pm. It comes after Scottish Labour agreed a plan on Saturday calling for the fighting to end.

She said: “Yesterday I addressed the Scottish Labour Party conference and gave a very clear message that the trade union movement will not stand by in silence and watch genocide take place.”

“And I was heartened to hear the message from the Scottish Labour leader, which unequivocally was a call for an immediate ceasefire now.”

When asked about what Sir Keir Starmer thinks about the war, she answered: “Let’s just call for a ceasefire now, let’s start to put the same pressure on Israel that our international leaders have been putting on Russia.”

“There is no difference here, we need to start to make sure that we are protecting human life.”

Scottish Greens’ Ross Greer, left, was also there supporting the rally.

He said told reporters: “Labour have been given countless opportunities to unequivocally support calls for an immediate ceasefire and help end this brutality.”

“Instead, Keir Starmer defended Israel’s illegal use of collective punishment when they cut off water and electricity for Gazan civilians, and his shadow foreign secretary provided a mealy mouthed justification for their bombing of a refugee camp.”

“Now Scottish Labour can’t even confirm if their two MPs will vote to support the ceasefire motion passed by their conference.”

Anas Sarwar, the leader of Scottish Labour, has stated that both he and Sir Keir Starmer want the fighting to stop right away.

In a vote in Westminster back in November, 10 Labour shadow ministers and aides didn’t follow the party’s official position on Gaza.

The SNP is planning to bring the issue up again in the Commons soon while also calling for an immediate ceasefire.

Brendan O’Hara, right, from the SNP, who looks after foreign affairs, said: “The time for warm words is over.”

“More than 28,000 Palestinian children, women and civilians have now been killed since Westminster failed to back a ceasefire in November.

“I urge Anas Sarwar to ensure Labour MPs don’t repeat the same devastating mistake they made when they opposed a ceasefire in November, he needs to show some leadership and whip them to vote in favour this time.”

On Friday, Sarwar tried to show there was no disagreement between him and Starmer.

Mr Sarwar mentioned that he is talking openly with Labour’s two Scottish MPs, Ian Murray and Michael Shanks.

He said: “We shouldn’t be stuck on the semantics because this is a really important issue of life and death for people right now in Gaza and in Israel.”

He also said: “The idea that this is about the semantics within one political party that’s in opposition.”

One comment

Billie says:

February 18, 2024 at 9:01 pm

Lets be clear. Labour and the SNP are right behind the war in Ukraine, right behind the war in Gaza.

It’s four months since Israel began its genocide in Gaza. During that time the UK military have run spy planes daily over Gaza collecting data, have provided military advice, have with the US put a ring of steel round Israel so that no one can intervene to stop the genocide and have provided the bombs to slaughter the men, women and children caught in the IDF’s genocidal onslaught.

Aye the time for warm words is over is it Mr O’Hara. The damage is done, and you dear sir, along with so many others supported the war aims.

We should all hang our heads in shame as to what our elected politicians do supposedly in our name

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