Greta Thunberg was fined in October for blocking the Swedish port of Malmö. (document)
London:
A British court on Friday dismissed a public order case against climate activist Greta Thunberg, with the judge criticizing the “unlawful” conditions imposed on protesters by police.
District Judge John Law dismissed the charges against the 21-year-old Swedish activist and four other activists on the second day of his trial in London.
He ruled police were trying to impose “unlawful” conditions during an environmental protest in the British capital last October when they were arrested.
Greta Thunberg, a global figure in the fight against climate change, was one of dozens of activists arrested for disrupting a major oil and gas conference attended by businesses at a luxury hotel.
She pleaded not guilty to breaching public order laws last November, along with two protesters from Fossil Fuel Free London (FFL) and two Greenpeace activists.
In his ruling, Law said the conditions imposed on protesters were “so unclear as to be unlawful”, meaning “anyone who fails to comply is not effectively committing an offence”.
Greta Thunberg came to worldwide attention at the age of 15 when she staged school strikes in her native Sweden, a demonstration she often took part in.
In October, she was fined for blocking the Swedish port of Malmö, months after she was forcibly removed from a demonstration against the use of coal in Germany.
She also took part in marches in southern England last weekend to protest against the expansion of Farnborough Airport, which is mainly used by private jets.
Demonstrators greeted October Forum attendees with chants of “Shame on you!” Some held placards reading “Stop Rosebank”, referring to a controversial new North Sea oil field approved by the British government in September.
Police said they arrested Greta Thunberg for failing to comply with an order not to block the street where the rally was taking place.
Greenpeace UK campaigner Maja Darlington hailed Friday’s verdict as a “victory for the right to protest”.
She added: “It is ridiculous that more and more climate activists are finding themselves in court for peacefully exercising their right to protest, while fossil fuel giants like Shell are allowed to profit from the sale of climate-destroying fossil fuels Billions of dollars in profits.”
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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