THE PETRO STATE PROTECTS ITS OWN
German Police In Nationwide Raids Against Climate ActivistsBy AFP - Agence France Presse
May 24, 2023
German police on Wednesday carried out raids across seven states targeting climate activists of the "Letzte Generation" (Last Generation) group, which has sparked controversy with street blockades involving protesters glueing themselves to the asphalt.
The raids were ordered in an investigation targeting seven people aged 22 to 38 over suspicions of "forming or supporting a criminal organisation", said a joint statement by Bavaria's police and prosecutors.
Fifteen properties were searched, two accounts seized and an asset freeze ordered.
The suspects are accused of "organising a donations campaign to finance further criminal acts" for the group via its website.
At least 1.4 million euros ($1.5 million) had been collected in the campaign, said the authorities, adding that "these funds were according to current information mostly used for the committing of further criminal action of the association".
The authorities did not specify the "criminal action" it was referring to but said two of the suspects are alleged to have tried to sabotage an oil pipeline between Trieste, Italy, and Ingolstadt, Germany, deemed a "critical infrastructure" in Bavaria.
Dozens of climate activists from the group have found themselves before the courts in recent weeks over their traffic blockade actions.
The controversial tactics of Letzte Generation, from hunger strikes to throwing mashed potato on paintings in museums, has resulted in the group being described by some German politicians as "climate terrorists".
The activists argue however that their protests are vital in the face of inadequate action taken by the government and society in general to protect the environment and prevent catastrophic global warming.
© Agence France-Presse
German police on Wednesday carried out raids across seven states targeting climate activists of the "Letzte Generation" (Last Generation) group, which has sparked controversy with street blockades involving protesters glueing themselves to the asphalt.
The raids were ordered in an investigation targeting seven people aged 22 to 38 over suspicions of "forming or supporting a criminal organisation", said a joint statement by Bavaria's police and prosecutors.
Fifteen properties were searched, two accounts seized and an asset freeze ordered.
The suspects are accused of "organising a donations campaign to finance further criminal acts" for the group via its website.
At least 1.4 million euros ($1.5 million) had been collected in the campaign, said the authorities, adding that "these funds were according to current information mostly used for the committing of further criminal action of the association".
The authorities did not specify the "criminal action" it was referring to but said two of the suspects are alleged to have tried to sabotage an oil pipeline between Trieste, Italy, and Ingolstadt, Germany, deemed a "critical infrastructure" in Bavaria.
Dozens of climate activists from the group have found themselves before the courts in recent weeks over their traffic blockade actions.
The controversial tactics of Letzte Generation, from hunger strikes to throwing mashed potato on paintings in museums, has resulted in the group being described by some German politicians as "climate terrorists".
The activists argue however that their protests are vital in the face of inadequate action taken by the government and society in general to protect the environment and prevent catastrophic global warming.
© Agence France-Presse
German police conduct raids on climate activists as impatience mounts
Geir Moulson
AP
A police officer enters a house during a raid in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, May 24, 2023. Prosecutors in Germany say authorities have raided 15 properties across the country and seized assets in an investigation into the financing of protests by the Last Generation climate activist group.
(Christoph Soeder/dpa via AP)
BERLIN (AP) — Authorities raided 15 properties across Germany on Wednesday and seized assets in an investigation into the financing of protests by the Last Generation climate activist group, prosecutors said — a move that comes as impatience with the organization’s tactics mounts.
Munich prosecutors said they were investigating seven people, ranging in age from 22 to 38, on suspicion of forming or supporting a criminal organization. They launched the inquiry following numerous criminal complaints from the public that they received since mid-2022.
BERLIN (AP) — Authorities raided 15 properties across Germany on Wednesday and seized assets in an investigation into the financing of protests by the Last Generation climate activist group, prosecutors said — a move that comes as impatience with the organization’s tactics mounts.
Munich prosecutors said they were investigating seven people, ranging in age from 22 to 38, on suspicion of forming or supporting a criminal organization. They launched the inquiry following numerous criminal complaints from the public that they received since mid-2022.
Police officers carry a cardboard box to a vehicle during a raid in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, May 24, 2023.
Christoph Soeder/dpa via AP
Police officers use hammers and chisels to remove a climate activist who has glued himself to a road during a climate protest in Berlin, Germany, Monday, May 22, 2023.
AP Photo/Markus Schreiber
Prosecutors in Germany say authorities have raided 15 properties across the country and seized assets in an investigation into the financing of protests by the Last Generation climate activist group.
Members of Last Generation have repeatedly blocked roads across Germany in an effort to pressure the government to take more drastic action against climate change.
In recent weeks, they have brought traffic to a halt on an almost daily basis in Berlin, gluing themselves to busy intersections and highways. Over the past year, they have also targeted various art works and exhibits.
In recent weeks, they have brought traffic to a halt on an almost daily basis in Berlin, gluing themselves to busy intersections and highways. Over the past year, they have also targeted various art works and exhibits.
APTOPIX Germany Climate Protest
A climate activist shows his hand, covered with asphalt, after policers remove is hand with hammer and chisel from a road in Berlin, Germany, Monday, May 22, 2023.
AP Photo/Markus Schreiber
Their tactics have drawn sharp criticism. On Monday, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said he thought it was “completely nutty to somehow stick yourself to a painting or on the street.” Leading figures with the environmentalist Green party, which is part of his governing coalition, have said the group’s actions are counterproductive.
The Bavarian inquiry adds to an investigation launched last year by prosecutors in Neuruppin, outside Berlin, over actions against an oil refinery in eastern Germany. That investigation is considering suspicions that Last Generation activists formed a criminal organization, a label that some conservative-leaning regional officials also are mulling.
Munich prosecutors said the people under investigation are accused of organizing and promoting a campaign to “finance further criminal offenses” by the group and collecting at least 1.4 million euros ($1.5 million). Two of them also are suspected of trying to sabotage an oil pipeline that connects the Bavarian city of Ingolstadt with the Italian port of Trieste in April 2022.
Wednesday’s searches — accompanied by orders to seize two bank accounts and other assets — aimed to secure evidence on the membership structure of Last Generation and on its financing. There were no arrests.
Last Generation has acknowledged that its protests are provocative, but it argues that by stirring friction it can encourage debate within society about climate change.
In a Twitter post on Wednesday, the group wrote: “Nationwide raid. #completelynutty.”
“Searches of lobby structures and seizures of government’s fossil money — When?” it said.
Another climate activist group, Extinction Rebellion, voiced solidarity with Last Generation. It contended in a tweet that the main aim of conducting raids on the grounds that it was a criminal organization was “to distract attention from the true criminals.”
No comments:
Post a Comment