Climate activist Greta Thunberg has been fined for resisting state violence. She and other activists had blocked tankers in Malmö port in June and refused to open the road.
Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg has been fined for not following police instructions at a protest in her home country. As the Swedish news agency TT reported from the courtroom in Malmö, she was sentenced to 30 daily rates of 50 Swedish crowns (equivalent to around 4.30 euros) for resisting state authority. She also has to pay 1,000 kronor (about 86.50 euros) to a fund to support victims of violence.
In June, Thunberg took part in a multi-day climate protest at the Malmö oil port, in which, among other things, tankers with oil were prevented from leaving the port. She had reported the protest herself on social networks and included a picture of herself in front of a truck, holding a sign that read “Jag blockerar tankbilar” (“I’m blocking tankers”).
Other activists charged
At the hearing in Malmö District Court, the 20-year-old admitted to taking part in the protest and ignoring police instructions. However, she denied that it was a criminal offense. The climate crisis is an emergency that she has responded to, she said, according to TT. However, the court did not want to follow this line of reasoning.
In addition to Thunberg, other activists were charged. They had also refused to leave the street, despite repeated requests from police officers to do so. “We don’t just want to watch, we want to physically stop fossil fuel infrastructure,” Thunberg wrote on Instagram at the time.
As a 15-year-old, Thunberg began sitting in front of the Swedish Parliament in Stockholm during class time on Fridays to demonstrate for more effective climate protection measures. Within a few months, their weekly action expanded into the global protest movement “Fridays for Future”.