Staff Writer
Greta Thunberg, a Swedish climate activist, was fined on Monday for defying the law at a rally last month, but she insisted that the global catastrophe forced her to take such action.
The 20-year-old made an appearance in court on Monday about 11 am (0900 GMT) in Malmo, a city in southern Sweden.
According to the charge sheet obtained by AFP, the activist “took part in a demonstration that disrupted traffic” and “refused to obey police orders to leave the site.”
When asked about the accusation against her, Thunberg responded in court, “I want to deny the offense. It’s right that I was at that location on that day, and it’s correct that I received an instruction that I didn’t listen to.
Thunberg claimed she acted irrationally, noting the need brought about by the “climate crisis”
After the trial, the climate activist told reporters, “I believe we are in an emergency, and therefore my action was justified.”
The court ultimately decided that she was still responsible for her acts after a brief trial and ordered her to pay a fine of 1,500 kronor ($144) in addition to an additional 1,000 kronor to the Swedish fund for crime victims.
Although the maximum term for the offence for which she was found guilty is six months in prison, most of the time these kinds of charges result in penalties.
The protest march, which was organized by the environmental advocacy group “Ta tillbaka framtiden” (Reclaim the Future), attempted to block the Malmo harbor’s entry and exit opposed to using fossil fuels.
not giving up
Thunberg responded that she was “definitely not going to back down” when asked if she would be more cautious going forward after receiving her fine.
The activist stated, “We know that we cannot save the planet by playing by the rules because the laws need to be altered.
It is ludicrous, she continued, that those who follow science and oppose the fossil fuel industry are the ones who suffer as a result.
When she began her “School Strike for the Climate” in front of Sweden’s parliament in Stockholm at the age of 15, Thunberg catapulted to international prominence.
She launched the Fridays for Future campaign with a small group of young people.
swiftly spread over the world.
Along with her climate strikes, the teenage activist frequently criticizes politicians and government officials for failing to adequately address climate challenges.
Reclaim the Future believes that it will not back down from its resolve to oppose the fossil fuels sector in the face of legal pressure.
“If the court chooses to see our action as a crime, it may do so, but we know we have the right to live and the fossil fuels industry stands in the way of that,” the organization’s spokeswoman Irma Kjellstrom told AFP.
She announced that six members of the group will testify in court in Malmo.
“We young people won’t wait; instead, we’ll take action to put an end to this burning industry.”She explained the group’s plans for continuous civil disobedience and said, “We are prepared to risk our lives.
