At a demonstration in downtown London last year, climate activist Greta Thunberg was given a “final warning” by police to relocate to a designated protest area before being detained for refusing to leave, a UK court has heard, reports RTE.
Following his weekly protests in front of the Swedish parliament in 2018, the 21-year-old gained international attention as a campaigner. On October 17, 2023, he was arrested during a demonstration in front of the InterContinental Hotel in Mayfair, where leaders of the oil and gas industry were gathering for the Energy Intelligence Forum.
Two Fossil Free London (FFL) demonstrators, two Greenpeace activists, and Ms. Thunberg all entered not guilty pleas to violating Section 14 of the Public Order Act 1986 in November and were set to go on trial at Westminster Magistrates’ Court.
In court, it was revealed that demonstrators began to assemble outside the hotel at approximately 7.30 am, and that police had conversations with them over the public’s access, which was “impossible” at the moment, reports RTE.
Just before 10.30 am, according to prosecutor Luke Staton, a few demonstrators managed to get onto the roof and ‘were gently abseiling down the side of the structure’.
Ms. Thunberg, dressed in a grey jacket, grinned at the cameras before entering.
The testing continues, with a two-day duration anticipated.
Should she be found guilty, her maximum fine would be £2,500 (€2,929), reports RTE.
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