Amnesty calls on John Swinney to stand up to 'authoritarian' Donald
The Scottish Government has said plans are being put in place for the FM to meet Trump during his visit to Scotland between July 25 and July 29.
Amnesty has warned that the meeting will be a serious test of the Scottish Government's stated commitment to human rights, both at home and internationally.
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The letter said: "This meeting will be a major test of the Scottish Government's commitment to global justice, one which [you must] meet with a resolve to defend universal human rights and to stand against the authoritarian practices of the Trump Administration."
Amnesty noted that the Trump Administration's sweeping attacks on civic space, refugee and migrant rights, the rule of law, women's rights, racial justice, and LGBT+ protections have fuelled human rights crises and emboldened anti-rights leaders and movements.
It said the First Minister must be prepared to challenge those practices when the two meet.
(Image: Suzanne Plunkett/PA Wire) The letter goes on: 'You have said in recent days that it is in Scotland's interest for you meet with the president. It is in Scotland's interest that political leaders reject the president's anti-rights agenda and stand firm against authoritarian practices."
Liz Thomson, Amnesty International's Scotland programme director said if Scotland wants to be seen as a "principled global actor", Swinney's priority should be challenging the "serious human rights violations" of the Trump administration.
'President Trump's administration has fully embraced authoritarian tactics while furthering an anti-rights agenda – no UK leader should be rolling out the red carpet to welcome him," she said.
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'If the Scottish Government wants to be seen as a principled global actor, warm words on human rights must translate into action – especially in high-stakes moments like this.
'The First Minister's priority during his visit should be to directly challenge the serious human rights violations the Trump administration is responsible for, and to ensure that those who wish to peacefully protest are fully able to without fear of heavy-handed policing.
'This meeting will be a major test of the First Minister's commitment to human rights and international justice. In a moment of global crisis for these values, the question is whether he will rise to the occasion or remain silent in the face of authoritarian practices.'
The president is due to visit Trump International Golf Links Aberdeen and Trump Turnberry in Ayrshire during his stay.
Police Scotland has said it will require the biggest operation since the death of Queen Elizabeth.
There has been no official confirmation of where the president is planning to be on each day of his visit.
However, The Sand Bothy, a voluntary run facility operated by Belhelvie Community Trust, said it will not have access to Balmedie Country Park from July 28 to 30, suggesting Trump will visit his Turnberry golf course in Ayrshire first.
Multiple US military aircraft were spotted flying over Torry Battery at the entrance to Aberdeen Harbour on Tuesday.
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South Wales Guardian
7 minutes ago
- South Wales Guardian
Trump and von der Leyen agree EU-US deal on US President's Scotland visit
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The Independent
7 minutes ago
- The Independent
Rough deal: Social media roasts Trump's golf game after clip appears to show alleged cheating in Scotland
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Daily Mirror
8 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
MIKEY SMITH: 7 unhinged Donald Trump Scotland moments as he moans nobody thanked him for Gaza aid
Donald Trump is still in Scotland, for some reason using it as a base to agree trade deals between the US and other countries Donald Trump is still in Scotland, for some reason using it as a base to agree trade deals between the US and other countries. But at least we're all paying millions of pounds to ensure he can do that - and play some golf - without any pesky protesters bothering him. He welcomed Ursula Von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, to his Scottish White House - and very rapidly agreed a trade deal with her. Like, in less than an hour. And he, obviously, had another rant about wind farms. Here's everything you need to know about the happenings in Trump World: Scotland. Buckle up. 1. He went golfing with a motorcade of 27 vehicles - including one very special one back out on the course this morning for a chilly second morning of his golf holiday in Scotland. He was seen on his Turnberry golf course in South Ayrshire, being transported between transported between holes in a motorcade of 26 golf carts plus one curious vehicle. This thing appears to be an articulated, secret service golf buggy. Sort of a golf equivalent of the Beast. It has reportedly been dubbed "Golf Force One". His adult sons Eric and Don Jr were both with him on the course. 2. Some British fans came to see him at the golf course. And by some we mean three There was no sign of anti-Trump protesters outside the golf course this morning - three British Trump fans were out on the hill next to Turnberry. They wore Make America Great Again hats, waved small US flags and held a sign that read "Don't trust Starmer". Trump waved and blew a kiss towards the fans before he took his shot. Tom English, one of the group who had travelled from Blackburn, said: "I can't believe we're the only ones, to be fair. I thought there'd be more people." Asked why he'd travelled so far to support the leader of another country, Mr English said: "I've just loved him from day one when he ran. I like the way he speaks, his personality, the comedy gold he comes out with. "He had me at Rosie O'Donnell to be honest with you." Ms O'Donnell has been the target of a long running campaign of abuse by Trump, who earlier this month threatened to revoke her citizenship. "I've supported him all the way through. It's just because he'a not one of them, basically. He came in, said he's going to drain the swamp, end the deep state and that's what he's trying to do." 3. One Brit said he'd totally sussed out Trump's plan for the Epstein files "I can see what's happening," said Tom English, who travelled from Blackburn to see Trump in the flesh. He said he was not bothered by the scandal - here's why. "If you follow Trump from day one, and you know how he works, and you've read his book, The Art of the Deal, and you know he's studied the art of war, then you can see the tactics he's using." Asked what the tactics he's using are, Tom said: "The Dems don't want it releasing. You've got judges and people in congress who don't want the Epstein files releasing for years on end now. "So he says, it's all fake. It's fake news. The Democrats are making it up. "All of a sudden it's the Republicans that are blocking it and the Democrats are voting for it to be released." Still with us? Good. He went on: "Now what will happen is he'll order the MAGA lot to reverse the vote, and they'll be Trump won't be in there. "But his adversaries will. That's my prediction." So, to recap, the whole of the last few weeks, where Trump has been pulling out all the stops to divert attention away from discussions about the Epstein files, has been a massive red herring. It's a sneaky ruse to trick the Democrats into releasing the files - because it's only them who will actually be damaged by them. This seems like a high risk strategy to us, especially considering the weight of evidence and reporting that contradicts every element of it. 4. He threatened to have Beyonce prosecuted Trump posted a massively unhinged rant on Truth Social, during which he threatened to have Beyonce and Oprah Winfrey prosecuted over things that never happened. It comes down to a baseless, evidence-free nonsense conspiracy theory posted online by people who made it up out of thin air, which claims Beyonce charged Kamala Harris $11m for her endorsement, and Oprah claimed £3m for expenses. Trump wrote: "I'm looking at the large amount of money owed by the Democrats, after the Presidential Election, and the fact that they admit to paying, probably illegally, Eleven Million Dollars to singer Beyoncé for an ENDORSEMENT (she never sang, not one note, and left the stage to a booing and angry audience!), Three Million Dollars for "expenses," to Oprah, Six Hundred Thousand Dollars to very low rated TV "anchor," Al Sharpton (a total lightweight!), and others to be named for doing, absolutely NOTHING! These ridiculous fees were incorrectly stated in the books and records." Not a word of the above sentence (and yes, it is one sentence) is true. He went on: "YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO PAY FOR AN ENDORSEMENT. IT IS TOTALLY ILLEGAL TO DO SO. Can you imagine what would happen if politicians started paying for people to endorse them. All hell would break out! Kamala, and all of those that received Endorsement money, BROKE THE LAW. They should all be prosecuted! Thank you for your attention to this matter." Nobody did any of this. It was made up. 5. He moaned that he didn't get enough thanks for sending food to Gaza Speaking ahead of his negotiations with Ursula Von der Leyen, Trump admitted he was "not in a good mood." He fumed about America not getting more credit for sending humanitarian aid to Gaza. "We gave $60 million two weeks ago and nobody even acknowledged it, for food," he said. "And it's terrible. You know, you really at least want to have somebody say thankyou. No other country gave anything. We gave $60 million two weeks ago for food for Gaza and nobody acknowledged it." He went on: "And nobody said 'Gee, thankyou very much'. And that would be nice, to have at least a thankyou." Get Donald Trump updates straight to your WhatsApp! As the world attempts to keep up with Trump's antics, the Mirror has launched its very own US Politics WhatsApp community where you'll get all the latest news from across the pond. We'll send you the latest breaking updates and exclusives all directly to your phone. Users must download or already have WhatsApp on their phones to join in. All you have to do to join is click on this link, select 'Join Chat' and you're in! We may also send you stories from other titles across the Reach group. We will also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose Exit group. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. 6. In case anyone didn't know already, he explicitly gave away why he hates wind turbines so much In his extended disco remix rant ahead of a relatively brief negotiation with Von der Leyon, Trump somehow managed to weave onto talking about wind farms. At length. Again. But in case you were wondering why the subject was on his mind, he gave the game away: "Today, I'm playing the best course I think in the world. Turnberry. "Even though I own it, it's probably the best course in the world. "And I look over the horizon and I see 9 windmills at the end of the 18th. I say, isn't that a shame?" 7. He insists he didn't rush through the EU trade deal to distract from the Epstein scandal We actually kind of believe him on this one. This seems to be a fairly natural reaction.
