Tuesday 23rd July 2024, London - Global Witness condemns the harsh sentences
imposed on five climate defenders on Thursday and calls on the new Labour government
to urgently scrap laws criminalising peaceful protest.
The “Just Stop Oil” protesters were among the latest to be charged under one of the country’s draconian new anti-protest laws.
Over 7,000 people have been arrested for climate activism since 2019, drawing condemnation from the United Nations. Nearly 900 people have been arrested for “slow marching” alone since it was made an explicit offence last year.
The two draconian laws enabling many of these arrests – the Public Order Act 2023 and the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill 2022 – have vastly expanded police powers and undermined the right to protest.
Hanna Hindstrom, Senior Investigator at Global Witness’ Land and Environmental Defenders Campaign said:
“Worldwide, peaceful protesters are being unjustly silenced and imprisoned for trying to avert environmental catastrophe and urge decision-makers to act.
“The harsh sentences handed down today in the UK—a nation that prides itself on democratic freedoms—should alarm us all.”
Roger Hallam, Daniel Shaw, Lucia Whittaker De Abreu, Louise Lancaster and Cressida Gethin were remanded in custody since being convicted earlier this month. They were charged with public nuisance under the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act for discussing plans to disrupt the M25 on a Zoom call.
Despite setting out an ambitious climate agenda to make the country’s electricity clean by 2030, Labour has yet to commit to protecting the right to protest. In the past, Labour has called for a nationwide ban on protests outside oil infrastructure.
Hindstrom added:
“Punishing those who engage in peaceful civil disobedience with prison
sentences is a profound injustice, not only for the defendants and their
families but also the future of our planet.
“We stand in solidarity with these activists and commend their courage amidst this severe crackdown on civil liberties.”