MEDIA RELEASE

For immediate release 2 May, 2007

Attn: Community & political reporters

May 1st – 300 years of English Rule of Scotland

Yesterday Clann Albainn repeated its infamous 1996 renaming of Cumberland St (250th anniversary of Culloden) by renaming Union Street to “Sràid na Saoirse” (Scots Gaelic for “Street of Freedom” or “Freedom Street”) to mark the 300th anniversary of the Act of Union yesterday.

For most of their histories Scotland and England were separate countries with separate sovereign parliaments. Scots people had the right to choose their own government and monarch. However, in 1707 the Act of Union merged the Scots and English in dubious circumstances leaving the Scots with no control of their own destiny.

This has meant that the Scots have been unable to control of their own financial policy, or to choose the people who represent them and make their laws, or choose not to participate in the invasion of foreign countries in their name. It has meant that despite electing only a single Conservative majority since WWII, Scotland has still been ruled by Conservative policy for the majority of this time. This breeches the United Nations charter right for peoples to have self-determination.

In recent times Scotland has regained a new parliament. However, while this is a step in the right direction – and may even be a model for a fair federal system between Scotland and England – it is not the same parliament it once had with equal rights as the English parliament. It is more of a powerful local council. The Scots struggle for self-determination continues.

Clann Albainn open the challenge to others in the many areas of the world with Union Streets also named after the Act of Union to do the same – especially those in Edinburgh.

On behalf of Clann Albainn,

ends

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