POLITICIANS have spoken out after social media posts showed a number of campers setting up at the Commando Memorial in Spean Bridge.
The memorial in Lochaber is a Category A listed site and remembers the officers and men of the commandos who lost their lives during the Second World War. The sculpture overlooks the training areas of the Commando Training Depot, which was set up in 1942.
The site and its attached Garden of Remembrance are used for memorial services, and many families scatter the ashes of loved ones who belonged to contemporary Commando units there to this day.
Last night a Police Scotland spokesperson said officers were aware of complaints about a group camping at the memorial.
They went on: “Officers attended and spoke to the group. Advice has been given and the group have advised they will move on in the morning and will clean up after themselves.”
The SNP’s Westminster leader Ian Blackford, who is the MP for Ross, Skye and Lochaber, posted to Twitter: "With restrictions being lifted folk can come to the Highlands, however we expect those coming here to respect our communities and places like the commando memorial that mean so much to so many.
I am aware of images circulating tonight of people camping at the Commando Memorial. That is unacceptable and disrespectful. The Memorial should be respected; it is not a campsite.
— Kate Forbes MSP (@KateForbesMSP) July 3, 2020
“This is not the way and I am glad they will be moved on in the morning."
And Kate Forbes, Finance Secretary and MSP for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch, said she was aware of social media posts about the campers.
“That is unacceptable and disrespectful,” she commented. “The memorial should be respected; it is not a campsite.”
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