Scottish Greens vote to oppose UK government's proscription
of Palestine Action, citing concerns over impact on peaceful protest and human
rights
Members of the party overwhelmingly rejected the UK Government's designation of Palestine Action as a terrorist organization on Saturday at the party's fall conference in Edinburgh.
After the direct action group targeted two planes at RAF Brize Norton in July, then-home secretary Yvette Cooper introduced the embargo.
Anyone who supports or participates in the direct action organization is guilty of a crime that carries a maximum 14-year prison sentence.
More than 2000 people have been arrested nationwide, including in Scotland, as a result of Palestine Action's proscription. Palestine Action is the first protest group to be outlawed under UK terror laws.
MSP Maggie Chapman presented a motion at the Scottish Greens conference condemning the prohibition.
The motion opposed the “gross overreach by the UK state” and reaffirmed the Scottish Greens' opposition to Israeli apartheid and the genocide that has been inflicted on Gaza.
Introducing the motion, Chapman said:
"When the UK voted to proscribe Palestine Action as a so-called 'terrorist' group, it did not just criminalise activists: it criminalised conscience.
It sought to silence those who dare to expose complicity in war crimes, to disrupt the machinery that arms oppression, to stand up for human rights when governments will not.”
Chapman added:
"The proscription is about political convenience and about protecting this.
Palestine is not a crime scene but a call to our humanity and the people of Gaza and the West Bank deserve solidarity and not censorship. Let us reaffirm that anti-apartheid activism is a moral duty and courage in the face of complicity."
She called on Scottish Greens members to "proudly and defiantly" reaffirm that "anti-apartheid activism is not terrorism, it is moral clarity, it is courage in the face of complicity".
Chapman added:
“We demand the UK Government reverse this disgraceful proscription. We demand an end to military aid to Israel. And we demand justice, freedom, and dignity for Palestine, now and always.”
The motion was "overwhelmingly" approved, and nobody opposed it.
Although Chapman and other party spokespeople have previously opposed the proscription, the motion's passage by members makes it official party policy.
What are the legal arguments against proscribing Palestine Action?
It is argued that the ban violates Articles 10 and 11 of the
European Convention on Human Rights, both of which protect freedom of
expression and freedom of assembly. There is opposition to the ban on the
grounds that it chills legitimate protest and political expression,
particularly with regards to the humanitarian crisis occurring in Gaza.
Palestine Action's actions are targeted at property damage in the context of direct political protest, not violence toward a person, making the terrorism designation broad and questionable under the law.
It is also alleged that the Home Secretary did not consult with Palestine Action prior to their prohibition thus breaching the principles of natural justice and procedural fairness under UK law.