It was not my intention to run for election to the Scottish parliament from a hospital bed in Caracas, but sometimes we have to take what life gives us.
I went to a clinic a week ago feeling dizzy and was immediately rushed to hospital. My heart rate was fluttering and below 20 bpm. I have since had an emergency procedure to fit a pacemaker.
Long-term followers of this blog (and readers of Murder in Samarkand or The Catholic Orangemen of Togo) know that I am dogged by long-term heart problems which I have to work through. I try to avoid hospitals because such is the apparent seriousness of my condition it is very hard to get out of them again.
In 2005 I was given three years to live with pulmonary hypertension, but I am still here and still fighting for good causes. Now with electronic enhancement.
I can’t however type much as both my hands look like this.
I am not withdrawing from the election, as I believe it is essential to give voters in Edinburgh Central the opportunity to vote for someone genuinely committed to Scottish Independence and who intends to do something about it.
You cannot believe both that Scotland is a nation with the right of self-determination and that London should have a veto.
London cannot afford to lose Scotland’s vast resources and will never agree. Independence will not be given to us, we must take it. When Independence comes, it will be in contravention of UK domestic law. Scottish Independence is therefore a revolutionary cause or it is nothing.
With opinion polls routinely showing a majority for Independence, the SNP will handily win this election on the pretence they will work for Independence. But they have no intention of actually doing so – still less have the neoliberal, Freeport-supporting Scottish Greens.
What will happen is that they will beg London for a referendum, which Starmer has made crystal clear he will refuse, and then they will claim to have tried. The SNP will then yet again forget Independence until the next election needs a slogan, while going back to pocketing their large salaries from the British state for running the colonial administration at Holyrood.
With US bombers taking off from British airports loaded with 2,000 lb bombs for the destruction of children in Iran, with the RAF giving targeting intelligence to the Israelis for the Genocide in Gaza, there is a moral urgency to breaking up the UK. Scotland needs at least some people in its Parliament who feel that urgency.
That is why I am giving people a chance to vote for me as part of the Alliance to Liberate Scotland – an umbrella group for all who support Independence, with other policy choices left to the individual. The party is precisely eight weeks old.
(I had intended to stand for Your Party, which decided firmly in favour of Scottish Independence, but it is not fighting these elections).
Were I able to campaign I would have a good chance of being elected. Scottish parliamentary elections are run under the D’Hondt system. This is a form of (not very) proportional representation in which there are FPTP constituencies, grouped into regions. The voter has two ballots, both marked with a simple X.
The first ballot is a standard FPTP constituent vote. On the second you vote for a party of your choice. This is used to make the regional vote roughly proportional, subtracting the constituency seats won from each party’s vote share, then electing individuals from a party ranked list.
It removes the individual voter choice you get with STV and is not as proportional.
The Alliance to Liberate Scotland commissioned a 2,500-person, properly weighted poll from Find Out Now. This found that – and this is an essential point – when prompted with the existence of Alliance to Liberate Scotland, 7% of voters across Scotland would vote for ATLS and 8% would vote for me, by name, in Edinburgh and Lothians (and similar for my friend Tommy Sheridan in Glasgow).
As I am number one on the list for ATLS in the Edinburgh and Lothians Region that figure would almost certainly see me elected.
BUT real voters are not prompted with the existence of ATLS, and of course the media will keep it that way. That is why an active campaign was so essential and it is so frustrating to be stuck here in hospital in Caracas.
I have not, though, given up. My colleagues are fighting a great campaign and I will get back to join in as soon as I can fly.
Finally, there is really interesting news about the Scottish judicial review of the proscription of Palestine Action, and I will post on that when able.
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Published by Craig Murray on behalf of the Alliance to Liberate Scotland, Oxgangs Road, Edinburgh EH10 7BD
A bit off-topic, but if the mods don’t mind: the Italian magazine L’Espresso is probably in big trouble for its cover piece on the abuse of an unarmed civilian Palestinian woman by a Zionazi soldier:
https://www.aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2026/4/15/italian-magazine-cover-of-israeli-settler-sparks-diplomatic-backlash
Note how the gun-toting Zionazi doesn’t just make sounds towards the unarmed Palestinians as if he is herding sheep. He specifically calls “Goy goy goy goy goy”. You can hear this distinctly in the video. For those who don’t already know, this is a racist hate term comparable to “n*****”, etc., often used (as it is here) to express the view that the targets are similar to livestock.
(Never mind Al Jazeera’s restrictive use of the term “settler”. “Israel” is a settler regime just like French Algeria. Almost all Jewish “Israelis” are settlers.)
https://www.reddit.com/r/chomsky/comments/1skp9lc/israeli_apartheid_settlers_have_been_harassing/
^ Clearer in the video here
Sorry to read about your medical problems. Get well soon.
@Rosemary MacKenzie
re: https://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2026/04/vote-for-the-alliance-to-liberate-scotland/comment-page-2/#comment-1097288
I’ll answer here, it seems to me there’s more chance for you to see it if I type it here.
And there is also some amazing news that Mr. Murray will undoubtedly be pleased about, as it relates to freedom of speech on a global scale
First of all, thanks, Rosemary, I’m fine, I hope you and yours are doing well too.
Secondly
@craig
Mr. Murray, have you seen something incredible is happening – Elon Musk has launched machine translation on his X (Twitter). Now people don’t need intermediaries like journalists or media to find out each other’s opinions. They just read it all automatically translated ito their native language. People are communicating directly!
All week, people have been posting about this experience on our social media.
It’s changed everything so dramatically! They call it a new era. “Tower of Babylon in Reverse.”
We’ve already discovered that we have a lot in common with Brazilians. People from other parts of the planet are surprised why Russians are convinced everyone hates them. And the Japanese have discovered that Russians don’t mind pirating copyrighted content, and are threatening to pirate Dostoevsky to show us how it feels! In response, Russians provide links to sites where Dostoevsky can be read for free and are happy that someone is interested in our culture.
See what people say
https://x.com/Danielsalcan_/status/2045890466185367596
“What’s happening with machine translation is revolutionary. Americans are discovering that all of Latin America despises them, Asians are falling in love with Latin humor, and Russians have turned out to be great guys. Almost 70 years of Hollywood propaganda is crumbling.”
Elon’s Babel fish ? 🙂
🙂 sorry, I didn’t get it, Stevie Boy.
Look – that was the start
https://x.com/EdwardTheStern/status/2045642407333531726
and another person, referring to the picture, asks
“why everyone talks about Russians? Am I missing something? I see nobody from Russia in my feed”
https://x.com/Miriam_Junne/status/2045954456102015333
and gets over 200 comments, sending greetings from Russia, posting views of the cities. of nature and of course of the cats 🙂
comments like “hello, we’re here,” “well, you asked for it,” “would you like some Russians?” “now you have us,” “congratulations, you just called up the Russians,” “comrades, this thred needs a photo of borscht”…
Friendship of peoples in its purest form.
So you are not familiar with The Hitchiker’s Guide? Seriously?
“Elon’s Babel fish ? ”
One hopes not.
“
AmericansGringo citizens of the USA are discovering that all of Latin America despises them”.Fixed that.
If this goes any further, Elon can do a fascist salute with both of his arms simultaneously as he plays a video called “All the world’s happy people” on clouds. That will give the survivors of robotisation something to watch before they get chip-implanted.
I see your point, Brian, and I understand your feelings. My attitude toward what’s happening is positive, and here’s why:
1. I studied to be a translator, meaning I consciously chose a profession to help people convey meaning. So anything that facilitates communication is positive for me.
2. The fewer intermediaries in information transfer, the less distortion. The faster the exchange of information, the better, because information has an expiration date. So machine translation in social media is a good thing.
3. In the Russian accounting there’s a term called “primary documentation.” These include acts, invoices, financial orders etc Analysis is conducted and management decisions are made based on this documentation.
To draw an analogy, people’s posts are primary documentation.
Having reliable, accurate primary documentation will help you make the right management decision, unlike decisions based on altered, distorted, outdated, and irrelevant databases.
You see? You may meet unpleasant people, see them saying bad things. Still, you’ll be able to make right decisions, right conclusions about what is going on.
Dear Craig
It’s been a few days – please send some good news to your supporters if you can.
A few points
You wrote about hospitals. Just being a patient in them is bad for you. Sleep is written off, and all that goes with that The cognitively impaired will often get acutely confused – whether they have an illness or not.
Sorry to be blunt but what you had was life threatening. You have the dressings in the left infraclavicular area where an external pacemaker would be sited. An implanted one will likely follow. The point is, once you have a disease burden you really have to tailor your activities to that, For a driven man like you this is hard.
Please don’t be another ‘Salmond’ RIP. Alex.
You are welcome to medical advice from me, anytime, for free, just as your writings are free to the world to read and use.
My career advice is step back from the trenches, be a mentor, be an advocate from home, but don’t try and be that Scottish character – ‘Braveheart’
As that fine Scottish film reminds us ‘Choose Life’ (Transporting)
Craig has been posting updates on X, including his thoughts about the new revelations in the Alex Salmond affair.
https://x.com/CraigMurrayOrg/
https://xcancel.com/CraigMurrayOrg/with_replies
Thank you, Mods.
I don’t “do” Twitter but your link to ”Nitter” very rewarding. Craig obviously in good spirits but I hope he is not overdoing things!
O’ Regime, Regime.
Old liberties abandoned.
Cuckoos Sing this spring
“Francesca Albanese, the United Nations special rapporteur for occupied Palestinian territory, ended up in the eye of a storm after critical comments at a forum in Qatar organized by the Al Jazeera network.
Following her speech, four European governments, namely those of France, Germany, Austria and Italy, all unconditional supporters of the Israeli genocide in Gaza, demanded Albanese’s resignation for calling Israel a common enemy of humanity.
The Italian government, which has so far supported Israel’s genocide in Gaza, has never expressed support for Francesca Albanese, who holds Italian nationality.
In October last year, Italy’s government even challenged the impartiality of the UN Special Rapporteur following her report dubbed ‘an international genocide’.”
Albanese ( a brave soul) rightly said the below.
“I am afraid the West has entered an unprecedented time of decadence.
I don’t even know what Western values really are today.”
Republicofscotland:
Thanks for posting this, I was not aware.
Francesca Albanese is a guiding light who we would do well to follow.
You’re welcome.
Talking of guiding lights, these nations may lack a few in this department – as Germany wants to raise the age of military reservists to 70 years of age, Finland isn’t far behind with the age raised to 65 years.
Phew, 70 year old Opas with pot bellies learning to shoot again, whatever next? Kanzler Merz at the frontline in Ukraine?
thanks Odin, that counts me out.
The real disturbing thing is that Albanese never made the comments she’s accused of making. Bits of an interview she made on Al Jazzera were spliced together Panorama style by a pro-Israeli group to make it appear that she described Israel as the “common enemy” of humanity.
But Israel IS the common enemy of humanity. Whether she said it or not, it’s still true.
The English government continues to reject an inquiry into Israeli influence at Westminster.
“The govt rejects the petition signed by 114,216 people to hold a public enquiry into pro-Israel influence in Britain.”
But he’ll never reject this.
“Keir Starmer is now sending a MQ-9 Protector drone from RAF Akrotiri on Cyprus over Lebanon/Syria near-daily
It undertakes a 12 hour intel-gathering mission
Context: Starmer ran a spy-for-Israel programme over Gaza for a year
This one went Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday this week”
https://nitter.poast.org/kennardmatt/status/2047614517329252453#m
https://www.declassifieduk.org/israel-lobby-funded-half-of-keir-starmers-cabinet/
A form of bribery from the colonial admin in Scotland – (SNP) – to try and keep them in power – so they can continue to grift taxpayers cash, and answer to their London masters.
“Every young Scot will be given £200 to spend on cultural pursuits on their 18th birthday if the SNP are returned to power in the May elections, the party has pledged.”
That’ll be a good downpayment on a camper van.
Lets not forget Peter Murrell’s top of the range F-Type Jaguar.
This reminds me of London ads for flats to rent, in the 1970’s – No Scots, No Irish, No Dogs, notice how dogs were the least desirable.
“Landlords across London and the south-east of the UK have been illegally advertising properties exclusively for Muslim tenants, in an apparent breach of Britain’s equality laws, according to an investigation published by The Telegraph on Wednesday.
Listings on Facebook and Telegram posted across multiple groups were found to include phrases such as “Muslim only,” “only for Muslims,” “for 2 Muslim boys or 2 Muslim girls,” and “suitable for Punjabi boy.” Some adverts also demanded Punjabi or Gujarati speakers, or tenants from specific Indian regions.
As noted by the outlet, the postings appear to violate the UK’s Equality Act 2010, which explicitly prohibits discrimination based on religion or belief, race, and other protected characteristics. Landlords can face civil action and fines of up to £7,000 ($9,445) for discriminatory listings.
The Telegraph found the adverts posted across multiple parts of the British capital. The outlet contacted several landlords, all of whom refused outright to consider non-Muslim tenants. One man, advertising a room for £850 ($1,150) a month, told reporters to “go away.””
“This reminds me of London ads for flats to rent, in the 1970’s – No Scots, No Irish, No Dogs, notice how dogs were the least desirable.”
That’s interesting. Source?
My parents saw “No Blacks, No Dogs, No Irish” signs put up by landlords in the 1950s, maybe also the very early 1960s, in Brixton.
Worth remembering that this is the kind of thing that the disgusting racist Enoch Powell spoke against a law banning, in his famous “much blood” speech, which far from being a wonderful piece of oratory is best read aloud by an actor with a knotted Union Jack handkerchief on his swastika-tattooed head.
I would vote for you Craig if you were standing in my constituency. My choice involves two horrors – Kirsten Oswald, SNP and Jackson Carlaw, Conservative.
I would too, if the election was democratic.
Jackson Carlaw – a Scottish Conservative and Unionist Member. A time when an acronym is called for.
Haven’t you got the Workers Party on the ballot?
George Galloway has flipped to support Scottish independence.
As one who succumbed to heart failure in late 2023 and had a pacemaker implanted in August 2024, I am disappointed to learn that this awful thing has also happened to you, Craig. It’s no fun at all. I hope that when you have recovered from the operation, you will be able to resume business as near-to-usual as possible. I live in Edinburgh, and you will certainly be receiving my list vote. I very much hope you, Tommy and the others from ALS who are standing will be elected. Scotland needs you!