Isles petition gaining support
Five days after the Scottish Parliament published a petition calling for referenda to be held on the status of Shetland, Orkney and the Western Isles, organisers say they had been almost overwhelmed by support.
Open until April 28, the petition has already gathered more than 500 signatures.
It has been covered internationally by newspapers including the Washington Post, USA Today, Fox News, Yahoo News, and Business Week. “We have also received queries from Germany, Japan and China,” said Catriona Murray, secretary of Referenda On The Islands (ROTI).
The petition can be signed online by everyone who wants the Scottish Government to hold referenda on the islands’ status on September 25, one week after this year’s Scottish independence referendum.
If the petition is successful, islanders will be able to choose between independence and staying in Scotland. If the result of the Scottish independence referendum was “Yes”, they will also get the option of voting to leave Scotland and stay in the UK.
“We predicted that 1000 signatures, equivalent to 2% of the combined island electorate, would be sufficient for the Scottish Parliament to debate the issue,” said Mrs Murray.
“But if this momentum continues, we will get 10,000 or more. The Scottish Government will then have no option but to hold the referenda. The only things left to debate will be the details of implementation and which option will be best to vote for.”
“Islanders have literally never before had the chance to decide on the status of our islands. These are historic times indeed.”
The webpage for the petition is at: www.scottish.parliament.uk/GettingInvolved/Petitions/islandgroups