NORWAY: Greta Thunberg, an environmental campaigner, was detained twice during a demonstration to support indigenous rights in Oslo. On Wednesday, the police started removing her and other activists, first from the finance ministry and then later from the environment ministry.
Thunberg was carried away by the police officers. She was holding a red, blue, yellow, and green Sami flag when she was carried from the finance ministry.
Thunberg reported right before she was removed from the spot, “We want to be absolutely clear that the true criminal in this situation is the Norwegian state for breaching human rights.”
Demonstrators including Thunberg were later removed again from the entrance to the climate and environment ministry while they were protesting.
The Norwegian Supreme Court ruled in 2021 that the turbines installed on two wind farms at Fosen and a section of Europe’s largest onshore wind power complex infringed Sami’s rights. Although continuing to be in effect more than 16 months later, these rights were in violation of international agreements.
On Monday, Thunberg joined the protestors who called for the removal of 151 turbines from reindeer pastures that are used by Sami herders in the heart of Norway. The main claim of the protests is that the transition to green energy should not come in the way of ensuring indigenous rights.
Entrances to some of the government buildings have been obstructed by the demonstrations, putting the central-left minority government in an acute dilemma as well as compelling Terje Aasland, Energy Minister, to cancel an official visit to Britain.
The turbines, according to the energy ministry, showcase a legal dilemma in spite of the supreme court ruling and would soon find some stability. On Tuesday, activists said that they had raised close to $100,000 in the last few days to aid individual demonstrators to pay police fines.
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