“Victory for the Independence movement” after council U-turn to allow use of Llwyn Isaf on Saturday

Local organisers of a ‘March for Independence’ in Wrexham town centre on Saturday have said they are ‘pleased’ with the Council’s review that has reversed a decision to ‘not permit’ use of Llwyn Isaf.

On Monday we reported how organisers of the All Under One Banner (AUOB) ‘March for Independence’ event on Saturday had been refused permission to use Llwyn Isaf as the council “would consider the Independent March a political march” and thus it contravenes a council protocol from 2011, and therefore was ‘not permitted’.

AUOBCymru describe themselves as a voluntary grassroots movement which organises marches calling for independence for Wales, noting they are “not affiliated with any other group or political party”, but “work closely with groups and individuals who share its core beliefs and goals”.

Yesterday the council reviewed the decision to ban the use of the Llwyn Isaf field, saying “We recognise the rights of freedom of expression and freedom of assembly and in the circumstances we will not be taking any action to prevent the use of Llwyn Isaf on Saturday”.

Aside from the operational statement from Wrexham Council, a political statement was also issued (full copy here) by the Administration councillors appearing to dissent from the original operational decision to ‘not permit’ use, despite officers following councillor enacted policy. Appearing to support Saturday’s event the senior councillors said they “…fully support everybody’s right to march and express themselves in a lawful and democratic way, and hope everyone who attends the event has an enjoyable day. We wish them well.”

Today local organiser Pol Wong reacted to the U-turn saying: ” Obviously we’re pleased with the re-thinking of the initial decision and this is a victory for the Independence movement against what was an undemocratic stance from the council.

“Human rights are of course universal, so we very much hope to see the council leadership review their current policy which as we have stated, we believe to be unlawful.”

“We’re looking forward to talking about the future of Wales and there is an open invitation for everyone who is interested in hearing more to come and join in the conversation.”

“It will be an amazing event, the police in particular have been a huge support and provided great guidance.

“We have speakers from lots of different backgrounds, Dafydd Iwan singing and lot’s of local business on the Indy market on Queens Square. It’s going to be a great day, we hope to see you all there.”

A spokesperson on behalf of AUOBCymru told Nation.Cymru they were “disappointed with the council’s initial position that our march for independence in Wrecsam on 2 July should not take place and we’re happy that common sense has prevailed”.

“Until now, we’ve been fortunate to work with really supportive stakeholders in every town that we’ve visited, and we’re glad to say that this is still the case,” they said.

“So many people have put in so much work, and so many more have been looking forward to visiting the north east – it’s great that everyone’s on board and we can now focus on making the AUOB march in Wrecsam the best one yet.”

“Seeing the news that Westminster is going to unilaterally repeal Welsh law just goes to show how fragile devolution is, and makes clear the need for independence. Get to Wrecsam, if you can, to make your voice heard.”

An ‘Indy Market’ is also being organised on Queens Square from 9:30am-4pm to coincide with the march, with over 20 stalls offering local food, drink and produce, and including Indy Wales merchandise.