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In May 2003, the results for the Scottish Parliament Elections elected the largest number of representatives ever on a platform of independence for the Scottish nation. These were not all from the same party: some were not even from any party. They did not all agree on details of policy. But, in the spirit of consensus where it could be found, they did agree that the best future for the people of Scotland was that they should be sovereign in determining that future themselves. Such a principle is not confined to politicians. Many people across Scotland with no political leanings, still more with no civic involvement, want a more direct say in the direction their country should take: its economy versus its society; how it treats its environment through its development; how it deals with its friends and its neighbours. This is not just about how Scotland is governed but about what it means to be Scots, what we want to become and how we can best take our place on the world's stage in the post-colonial era of the 21st century. |
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History of |
The Convention |
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The Independence Convention began as no more than an idea that summer of 2003. At the SNP conference in Inverness, a fringe meeting drew such a large audience that dozens were turned away from the packed room that had people leaning in the windows to hear and ask questions. Enthusiasm was high; media coverage was favourable and the idea seemed to rise above the ruck of party politics. This was followed up by meetings in Edinburgh attended informally by representatives of the Scottish National Party, the Scottish Socialist and the Scottish Greens, as well as people with no political affiliation beyond an interest in Scottish independence. The party affiliates took reports back to their colleagues who then passed separate resolutions that their party should investigate this co-operative venture. Momentum was starting to build and a political consensus showed this was more than idealism. The Interim Forum for an Independence Convention (IFIC) was a working group from among those who expressed an interest. Their task was to prepare the ground for the launch of a nationwide convention proper in the course of 2005. In the autumn of 2006 the forum agreed the constitution which appears on this website. At the same time the forum became the council of the convention which is now engaged in a campaign for an independence referendum. If and when the referendum succeeds the convention will move to the next stage, which will be to assist in drawing up a constitutional blueprint for an independent Scotland |
No man has a right to fix the boundary of the Charles Stewart Parnell (1846-1891) |
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