Scotland's Sturgeon Urges Independence Supporters To Be United In Bid To Hold Referendum

Scotland's First Minister and Scottish National Party (SNP) leader Nicola Sturgeon on Friday called on supporters of the country's independence from the United Kingdom to stay "focused and united" in their bid to hold a referendum on the matter while addressing SNP members and activists in the Scottish city of Edinburgh ahead of the UK's official exit from the European Union

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 31st January, 2020) Scotland's First Minister and Scottish National Party (SNP) leader Nicola Sturgeon on Friday called on supporters of the country's independence from the United Kingdom to stay "focused and united" in their bid to hold a referendum on the matter while addressing SNP members and activists in the Scottish city of Edinburgh ahead of the UK's official exit from the European Union.

Last December, Sturgeon asked the UK government to authorize the second independence referendum for Scotland, expressing the belief that the SNP's success in the UK early general election, held on December 12, contributed to a "democratic case" for Scotland's independence. As the proposal was dismissed, Sturgeon said that Scotland's authorities would decide on the next steps before the end of January and then ask Scottish lawmakers to back the referendum initiative.

"What we in the independence movement must not do is allow a sense of frustration - understandable though it is - to take us down dead ends or weaken our sense of purpose," Sturgeon said, as quoted by The Guardian newspaper.

The minister also said though obstacles on the way to independence had not disappeared, the supporters of Scotland's independence should not let the Conservative party "turn a positive, persuasive and invigorating discussion about the best future for our country into an arid and bitter argument about process and procedure.

"

"To achieve independence, a referendum, whenever it happens - whether it is this year as I want, or after the next Scottish election - must be legal and legitimate," she added.

Sturgeon also advised the supporters to focus their efforts on "building and winning the political case for independence" instead of staying frustrated with their previous failure.

As a next step on the way of holding the referendum, the minister will ask the Electoral Commission to check if Scotland should be an independent country.

The newspaper reported that anti-Brexit protests were held in several Scottish cities on Friday with SNP members and prominent independence campaigners joining a candlelight vigil outside the Scottish parliament on Friday evening.

During the 2014 independence referendum, 44.7 percent of Scots voted to leave the UK and become an independent country. However, independence aspiration has seen a new rise after the 2016 Brexit referendum, since the majority of Scots prefer staying in the bloc.