Sweden’s Legal Authorities have accused the environmental advocate Greta Thunberg of defying police orders during her involvement in a climate rally in Malmö in June, and are now pressing charges.
The authorities say Thunberg failed to heed police orders to vacate the area and, as such, could face up to six months of imprisonment or penalty.
“The crime is classified as defiance to law enforcement. The prosecutor states that the act was performed deliberately,” the statement further added.
Thunberg was part of a demonstration arranged by the activist group Ta Tillbaka Framtiden who were obstructing oil tankers in the port area of Malmö.
JUST IN: Greta Thunberg, an alleged climate activist, has been arrested once more following a protest against oil tankers in Malmo, a seaside city in Sweden, by Thunberg and other activists. pic.twitter.com/z7yfYFu6v9
— ADV. ASHUTOSH J. DUBEY 🇮🇳 (@AdvAshutoshBJP) June 21, 2023
Although Thunberg’s name was not explicitly mentioned in the statement, Annika Collin, the Swedish Legal Authorities’ representative, confirmed to CNN that Thunberg was indeed the person being referred to.
“Today, for the third consecutive day, young advocates from @tatillbakaframtiden have stopped oil tankers in the Malmö oil port. The climate emergency is already a matter of survival for innumerable individuals. We opt to not be observers but to physically interrupt the fossil fuel structure. We are recapturing the future,” Thunberg wrote on Instagram during the demonstration.
Irma Kjellström, Ta Tillbaka Framtiden’s representative, revealed that Thunberg was among several young people obstructing oil tankers. “After stopping the industry that is jeopardizing our future, we are now being accused of a crime. While we face accusations, the actual crime continues behind the gates we obstructed,” she told CNN.
It appears that this is not Thunberg’s first brush with law enforcement while protesting for environmental causes either – In January this year she was arrested at another climate demonstration in Lützerath Germany over proposed coal mine expansion and released later that same day.
Erica Carlin is an independent journalist, opinion writer and contributor to several news and opinion sources. She is based in Georgia.
