Cornish National Liberation Army

The Cornish National Liberation Army (CNLA) was a short-lived Cornish nationalist organisation that threatened to carry out acts of vandalism and arson against commercial targets that it considers to be English, in Cornwall.[1]

History

In 2007 an email claiming to be from the Cornish National Liberation Army, threatened celebrity chefs Jamie Oliver and Rick Stein. The following month a 36-year-old man was arrested for making the threats.[2]

It has been described by the Cornish political party, Mebyon Kernow, as a 'pseudo-terrorist group'.[1] Dick Cole, spokesman for Mebyon Kernow, released a statement[3] to various London papers, as part of an effort by mainstream Cornish political groups to balance some of the sensationalist[4] commentary in the media.

The group also opposed the flying of the English flag in Cornwall, and has threatened to destroy all English flags in the region.[1]

There is little evidence as to the size of the CNLA other than an August 2007 interview in Cornish World Magazine in which Stuart Ramsay claims they have thirty members.[5]

Cornish Republican Army

In November 2007, Per Svenssonn, a writer for the internet periodical Ciudadanos Europeos, successfully gained an email interview with a member of the CRA through the Cornwall24 website's forum.[6] As well as confirming the name change, the interview outlined (among other topics) the structure of the organisation, confirmed official CRA attacks and suggested future plans.

When questioned on forthcoming events, the CRA spokesperson answered:

"2008 promises to be an interesting year for the English occupying forces and their establishment. Beyond that, no comment."

A hoax took place in March 1974 when students from Plymouth Polytechnic styled themselves the 'FCA' (Free Cornish Army) as part of a Rag Week stunt and convinced some of the Fleet Street press that Cornwall had declared independence.[7]

Arrests

The police arrested three people in Cornwall, accused of having some connection with the CNLA. None of those arrested were formally charged.[8]

The Celtic League wrote to the Chief Constable of Devon and Cornwall Police to protest the arrests, describing those arrested as members of the League's Kernow Branch, and expressing 'alarm' at the arrests.[9]

Footnotes

  1. 1 2 3 Morris, Steven (2007-06-14). "Cornish militants rise again – and this time they're targeting celebrity chefs". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 2007-06-18.
  2. ↑ Sturcke, James (2007-06-14). "Man arrested over threats to celebrity chefs". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 2007-07-10.
  3. ↑ Cole, Dick. "Letter to London Press from Cllr Dick Cole concerning CNLA coverage". Mebyon Kernow (party website). Archived from the original on August 20, 2007.
  4. ↑ "Ooh-arr on Cornish Terror". The Sun newspaper (online). Archived from the original on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  5. ↑ "CNLA: the writing on the wall" in Cornish World Magazine, Issue 53 (August/September 2007) pp.50–53.
  6. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20071123223533/http://www.cornwall24.co.uk/module-pnForum-viewtopic-topic-2867-start-0.htm
  7. ↑ Part One – How to create your own nation state (the real story of the 1974 Cornish revolution) Archived 2007-08-12 at the Wayback Machine.
  8. ↑ http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/245741/Ooh-arr-on-Cornish-terror.html%5Bdead+link%5D
  9. ↑ League, Celtic. "CELTIC LEAGUE: GENERAL SECRETARY 'ALARMED' AT EVENTS IN CORNWALL". Cornwall Police Watch. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
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