HUMZA Yousaf’s election as SNP leader, and expected nomination as Scotland’s first Muslim leader, has made headlines around the world.
From egregious spelling errors to international views of a “fractured” independence movement, here is how some of the world’s media reported the news.
Pakistan
Pakistani paper The Express Tribune used words from a news agency in its report on Yousaf’s victory, but focused the headline for its local audience: “Pakistan-origin Humza Yousaf wins race to become Scotland's first Muslim leader.”
Pakistan’s Daily Times also used agency words, under a very similar headline. At the time of writing, the story was top of the site’s “top stories” list.
The Daily Pakistan included the SNP election in a rolling banner on the top of its site with the headline: “Humza Yousaf set to become first Pakistani Muslim first minister of Scotland.”
The paper reported that Yousaf would become “the head of the Scottish Government and keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland”. It further noted that his father “Muzaffar Yousaf belongs to the town of Mian Channu in Pakistan’s Punjab province”.
As an aside, this paper proved it’s not only Western media that has a problem spelling Yousaf’s name, at one point referring to him as “Hamza Yusuf”.
The US
Manhattan-based outlet Bloomberg said in a headline that Humza Yousaf had won “after [a] chaotic race”.
This was also the focus of the copy, which stated: “Humza Yousaf won the contest to replace Nicola Sturgeon as head of the pro-independence Scottish National Party after a fractious battle that laid bare the scale of the challenge to unite the party and country.”
Bloomberg’s UK wing posted a video of the new SNP leader talking about his policy of returning Scotland to Europe. “We want to return to the European Union,” it quoted Yousaf.
"We want to return to the European Union" The Scottish National Party's new leader Humza Yousaf describes himself as "a proud Scot, and equally a proud European too" https://t.co/Cscdj6E80q pic.twitter.com/Yb1ilkIyks
— Bloomberg UK (@BloombergUK) March 27, 2023
A host of other US outlets, such as the Washington Post, leaned on words from the Associated Press (AP).
The agency reported: “Scotland to get first Muslim leader as SNP elects Humza Yousaf.”
It also described a “bruising five-week contest that exposed deep fractures within the pro-independence movement” in its top line, and in the second paragraph focused on the historic nature of Yousaf’s win.
“The 37-year-old son of South Asian immigrants is set to become the first person of color and the first Muslim to serve as Scotland’s first minister since the post was established in 1999,” AP wrote.
Spain
The Spanish paper La Vanguardia also focused on Yousaf’s Muslim heritage. Its headline read: “Humza Yousaf will succeed Nicola Sturgeon; he will be the first Muslim head of the Scottish Government.”
It further reported that Yousaf had “presented himself as the continuity candidate to maintain Sturgeon's progressive line”.
El Pais, another Spanish paper, reported that Yousaf had become the “new leader of the Scottish independence movement”.
Humza Yousaf se convierte en el nuevo líder del independentismo escocéshttps://t.co/Pf6b92CCsR
— Viva España (@VivaEspana_Off) March 27, 2023
Its reporter said that Yousaf’s election, as a Muslim man, was akin to Rishi Sunak’s election as Tory leader as a Hindu in that it was a “revolution” that had happened while “hidden under the cloak of tradition”.
However, El Pais further reported that Glasgow-born Yousaf was “Scottish to the core”.
France
French newspaper Le Figaro reported that Scottish independence supporters had chosen Yousaf to succeed Sturgeon, and that he had promised “to lead Scotland to independence this generation.”
It reported: “Aged 37, this close friend of Nicola Sturgeon inherits the delicate mission of reviving a losing independence movement which comes up against London's obstinate refusal to authorise the holding of a new referendum.”
Le Monde has used the same AP copy as the American outlets mentioned above, meaning the focus is a “bruising” contest and Yousaf’s Muslim background.
France 24 had a similar line, writing: “Scottish nationalists picked Humza Yousaf to be the country's next leader on Monday after a bitterly fought contest that exposed deep divisions in his party over policy and a stalled independence campaign.”
It added that Yousaf had said he “would concentrate on tackling the cost of living crisis and make a renewed push for independence”.
Germany
German newspaper Die Welt put out a relatively straight report on Yousaf’s win. It said: “Nicola Sturgeon's successor has been announced in Scotland: Humza Yousaf is to become the new head of government. As the governing party SNP announced on Monday, the members elected the regional health minister as the new party leader … ”
It further said that Yousaf is considered a “close confidant” of Sturgeon and “is likely to continue on her course”.
Der Spiegel also ran quite a factual account which focused on government, writing: “There is a change at the top of the Scottish National Party (SNP): Health Minister Humza Yousaf takes over from long-time First Minister Nicola Sturgeon. This is the result of a decision by the party base. A total of 72,000 SNP members were asked to vote on Sturgeon's successor.
“The new party leader is to be confirmed as ‘First Minister’ in the Scottish Parliament on Tuesday.”
The latter part of Der Speigel’s report heavily reflects Die Welt’s, suggesting they were leaning on the same wire copy.
Ireland
With the world reporting on the SNP race, The Irish Times did themselves few favours with the headline: “Hamza Yousaf to be Scotland’s new first minister after SNP leadership race win.”
Hamza Yousaf to be Scotland’s new first minister after SNP leadership race win https://t.co/w1qNnkmCIV
— The Irish Times (@IrishTimes) March 27, 2023
Luckily it has now been corrected, and the mistake was not reflected in the text.
It said: “Humza Yousaf has been narrowly elected as the new leader of the Scottish National Party and will replace Nicola Sturgeon as first minister on Wednesday. He says he hopes to make Ireland one of the first countries he visits after his election.”
It went on: “The 37-year old health secretary, who has promised to continue the socially liberal policies of Ms Sturgeon, held off a strong challenge from his more conservative main rival, finance secretary Kate Forbes. The bruising six-week campaign was marked by a series of bitter and highly-personalised exchanges between the pair.”
Other Irish titles, such as the Irish Examiner, used words from the Press Association.
India
The Times of India headline ran: “Humza Yousaf wins Scottish leadership race.” It focused on the incoming leader’s youth and Muslim background, saying he had been “charged with reviving a faltering independence movement after Nicola Sturgeon's long tenure”.
Other Indian media outlets, such as the Hindustan Times and India Today, have yet to report on Yousaf’s win.
Australia
Australia’s most popular news website, news.com.au, reported Yousaf’s victory under the headline: “New leader declared in the UK.” However, the copy itself on the Rupert Murdoch-owned website came from the Scottish Sun.
Other Australian papers, such as The Sydney Morning Herald and The Australian, have yet to report on the SNP leadership race.
