Glasgow preparing for far-right rally as fears grow of Scottish rise of neo-nazis

The Guardian by Severin Carrell | Friday, 13 November 2009 | Click here for original article

Police in Glasgow are preparing for angry confrontations tomorrow between anti-racist campaigners and supporters of the far-right English Defence League as fears grow of a rise in activity by Scottish fascist groups.

Tensions over the activities of racist and neo-nazi organisations have surged after the British National party won its best result so far in a Scottish election, coming fourth in Glasgow North East with only 62 fewer votes than the Tories.

The BNP's result, which saw them lose their deposit by just 20 votes, came as anti-racist groups, mainstream party leaders, trade unions, and religious and community groups prepared for a major protest rally and march in Glasgow tomorrow.

The English Defence League, which has orchestrated violent confrontations with Muslim groups and anti-racist groups in England, is staging its first rally in Scotland near Glasgow central mosque under the name "Scottish Defence League".

The "Scotland United" counter-demonstration will be lead by Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland's deputy first minister and MSP for the Glasgow Govan, which has the country's largest Asian community, Annabel Goldie, the Scottish Tory leader, and the UK's first Muslim MP, Mohammed Sarwar, the Labour MP for Glasgow Govan.

Sturgeon said: "Scotland is rightly proud of its multicultural diversity. A place where people from all backgrounds – irrespective of their race, faith, belief and place of birth – feel respected.

"As the far-right Scottish Defence League prepares an anti-Islamic demonstration in Glasgow on Saturday, it is important for the whole nation to send a clear message condemning all forms of bigotry and discrimination."

Anxieties increased this week with the conviction of Christopher Miller for the racist and unprovoked murder of an Indian naval officer, Kunal Mohanty, in the Gorbals earlier this year. Miller celebrated with a friend after he killed Mohanty by slashing him across the neck.

The BNP has yet to win any councillors or MEPs in Scotland, but its candidate Charlie Baillie claimed his performance on Thursday gave the BNP a platform for the Scottish parliamentary elections in 2011.

Baillie said last night that the BNP result "shows us to be a credible alternative. This one footstep will be the springboard for further success for the Holyrood campaign."

The party could win a Holyrood seat if it can win more than 7% of the vote across Glasgow, but Glasgow MSPs believe that remains highly unlikely. The BNP has shown no signs of replicating its performance in Glasgow North East elsewhere and Sturgeon believes its gains yesterday are tiny. The BNP won 4.9% of the vote, but took 4.4% in the European elections in the area and 3.2% in 2005.

Alex Salmond, Scotland's first minister, believes the BBC and other media are partly to blame for Baillie's increased vote, after the BNP leader Nick Griffin appeared on the BBC's Question Time and newspapers highlighted fears of a BNP surge in the byelection.

Salmond's sentiments are privately shared by senior Tories, who claim Labour helped generate publicity about the BNP in Glasgow North East to mobilise its supporters.

"I bitterly regret the irresponsibility of the BBC and others for generating the ridiculous and wholly unwarranted volume of publicity the BNP received in Scotland," Salmond said last night. "Yet they didn't come third, they didn't save their deposit, and they were resoundingly rejected by the people of Glasgow North East."