Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg was arrested this Saturday in The Hague, while she took part in a demonstration, organized by the environmental group Extinction Rebellion, against subsidies for fossil fuels. Greta Thunberg joined several hundred demonstrators, who left from downtown The Hague towards a field near the A12 motorway, linking The Hague to Utrecht.
The A12, one of the city’s main arteries, has already been the scene of several actions organized by the Extinction Rebellion (XR) group. Activists repeatedly blocked traffic before being dislodged by water cannons. This Saturday, however, dozens of police officers blocked protesters from accessing the motorway, warning that “violence could be used” if activists tried to reach the A12.
“The planet is dying!” »
Carrying flags marked with the XR symbol and signs reading: “Stop fuel subsidies now!” » and “The planet is dying!” “, the demonstrators were then blocked in a tense face-to-face with the police who had set up a roadblock. Some protesters, including Greta Thunberg, found an alternative route and managed to block a main road near the highway.
The Swedish activist had joined the group at the start of the demonstration and was chanting when demonstrators were stopped from advancing by police. “It is important to demonstrate today because we are living in a state of planetary emergency,” she told AFP before her arrest, while the police blocked the demonstrators. “We must do everything to avoid the crisis and save human lives,” she said.
Asked if she was worried about police action and a possible arrest, she replied: “Why should I? “. The protest was part of Extinction Rebellion’s actions to pressure the government ahead of a planned debate on fossil fuel subsidies in June, the organization said.
Although benefiting from majority support in Parliament and broad approval among public opinion, the plans to reduce subsidies for fossil fuels “will not be put in place before 2030 or even 2035”, regrets Extinction Rebellion. “The outgoing government acts as if we have all the time in the world, even though the crisis is here,” the group wrote in a message posted on the social network X, formerly Twitter.