UN expert slams government crackdown on environmental protest
IndependentJan 23
UN Advisor 'Distressed' by UK Crackdown on Environmental Protesters
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The Facts
Michel Forst, the UN's special rapporteur on environmental defenders, released a two-page statement Tuesday claiming that UK politicians are unfairly cracking down on environmental protesters, putting them at risk of "threats, abuse, and even physical attacks."
Forst visited the UK from Jan. 10-2 to meet with government officials and environmental activists — including nongovernmental organizations, climate protesters, and lawyers. He said he received "extremely worrying information" about "severe crackdowns on environmental defenders" in the UK that infringed on their right to peacefully protest.
The Spin
Left narrative
The UK's conservative government has been infringing on the basic right to peaceful protest, and thankfully, the UN is calling out this undemocratic behavior. Using government force and passing laws to criminalize protests is always wrong, but particularly in this case because it stops activists from speaking about the climate crisis. Climate defenders are heroes fighting on behalf of everyone, and they should be protected instead of being prosecuted.
Right narrative
Unhinged protests from groups such as Just Stop Oil have erupted throughout the UK, and hard-working Brits have had enough. While left-wing elites may try to paint these radical and polarizing demonstrations as "peaceful," they're anything but. These protesters instigate clashes with ordinary citizens and police, and do all they can to ruin public events. The UK allows and promotes peaceful protests, but these climate extremists are beginning to infringe upon the population's basic right to live undisrupted.
Nerd narrative
There's a 50% chance that greenhouse gas emitted globally in 2030 will be at least 43 gigatonnes of CO₂ equivalent, according to the Metaculus prediction community.