THE Aberdeen Independence Movement (AIM) has issued a statement condemning “efforts to incite harassment” towards one of its co-chairs.
On Wednesday evening, AIM held a rally following the Supreme Court ruling regarding indyref2.
In a post on social media they hit out at that the spread of “misinformation” about the event.
Writing on Twitter, AIM said: “We condemn in the strongest possible terms the deeply concerning efforts to incite harassment toward AIM co-chair, Fatima Joji from a group of extremists who claim to be supportive of our cause.
“We wish to confirm that anyone who volunteers their time with us has the right to be and feel safe. This is a matter we take very seriously.”
The statement continued by saying that “false claims” were made by an anonymous Twitter user about the organising of the event.
It added: “The consequence of spreading vitriol and misinformation has led to police involvement and action relating to a hate crime being pursued because of credible threats to Fatima’s safety.
“In an effort to dispel harmful misinformation we would like to publicly clarify two points due to the severity of this case:
“1. At no point was Fatima involved in any organising, processing, vetting or disallowing any speakers or attendees of the rally.
⚠️ PUBLIC STATEMENT following police advice: We condemn in the strongest possible terms the deeply concerning efforts to incite harassment toward AIM Co-chair, Fatima Joji from a group of extremists who claim to be supportive of our cause. 1/7
— Aberdeen Independence Movement (@AIMAberdeen) November 24, 2022
“This narrative is absurd and entirely untrue. As per a request from a particular individual, Fatima made an enquiry to the organising team regarding the availability for speakers on the evening of the rally.
“After sourcing that information, Fatima then relayed it to the individual who had initially enquired.
“The fact of this appears to have been misconstrued for reasoning we will not tolerate.”
The rally on Wednesday evening was one of a number which took place across both Scotland and Europe after the Supreme Court ruled Holyrood cannot legislate for a second indyref without Westminster’s consent.
The statement continued: “We have a team of organisers involved with AIM. Fatima is the co-chair for our organisation and is not a member of the organising team.
“We have a duty of care to Fatima and all members of our team. We do not tolerate any form of abuse, harassment, or any threat to their safety and will take police advice on this matter and any necessary steps going forward.”
A police spokesperson said: "Following a report of an alleged communications offence in Aberdeenshire, enquiries have concluded and no crime has been established."
