12 December 2009
Contact: 0045 5066 9028 (International)
0045 4129 4994 (Danish)
media@climate-justice-action.org
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COPENHAGEN POLICE ACCUSED OF VIOLATING HUMAN RIGHTS AT UN CLIMATE SUMMIT
Danish police have indiscriminately arrested hundreds of climate justice activists during a climate change protest made up of 100,000 people that took place today in Copenhagen. Questions have been raised about the fact that the arrests occurred in a different time and place to where some trouble had momentarily flared earlier in the day. Journalists have been restricted from reporting at the site of the arrests since 1800hrs.
It’s estimated that 100 people are still being held on the road in extremely cold weather, cuffed and forced into seated positions in lines (1). They have expressed severe physical discomfort and have no access to water, medical attention or toilet facilities since 1530hrs. Many activists are reported to have urinated themselves while detained on the ground.
An estimated 200 have been removed from the site and taken away in coaches. Several people are reported to have fainted around 1945hrs.
Helga Matthiassen, who was detained for an hour before being released due to an injury she had recently sustained, said, “Of course we’re angry – people all over the world are angry about being lied to by governments who are making a corporate deal at the climate talks, and now when we try to protest against this on the streets we are randomly held by police.
“Not only have we been denied the right to protest, but our basic human rights have also been ignored in this ludicrous, staged police exercise. It seems Danish Police have a new motto: why just criminalise protesters, when you can dehumanise them too?” (2)
ENDS
Contact: 0045 5066 9028 (International)
0045 4129 4994 (Danish)
media@climate-justice-action.org
_______________________________________
NOTES TO EDITORS
(1) http://twitpic.com/t7dts
(2) See Helga interviewed on TV2 News, 2015 broadcast
http://news.tv2.dk/?channel
Comments
Hide the following 5 comments
futk the pigs
12.12.2009 22:22
ACAB
it will
12.12.2009 23:27
i bet they are saying it happened because of "trouble causers"?
typical.
it really is orwellian now, seriously.
all coppers are bastards
astounded friend
no surpise there
13.12.2009 00:41
anon
arbitrary arrests
13.12.2009 08:10
What they indicate to the casual viewer is that there is a connection, ie after = BECAUSE OF, whereas is is true to say the arrests took place SOME TIME AFTER. but now the connection is made and to the casual viewer those arrested 'deserved' it.
You would hope by now that the mainstream media would question why innocent people are arbitrarily arrested. Fat chance.
The police get new toys to play with, new powers of 'preventative arrest', and what do kids do when they get new toys? They can't wait to play with them of course. They know that the Danish government will allow them to do whatever they want during the Climate Talks, and will deal much later with the Human Rights abuses and the resulting money pay-outs of those abused. This is an acceptable cost to the state to show they are 'in control', (and it's only tax-payers money after all).
The pictures are shown around the world, as a way of putting off people going to Copenhagen, as you can be arrested just for being there.
Also the police know that the subservient media will accept their version of events, and when people are provoked into fighting back, the media will have the riot porn pictures they crave. The truth will come out months later, but the media will not spend any time reporting that.
Remember the media story that was being established after G20 in London, pictures of windows being broken at the bank, and they reported without question the police line that the death of Ian Tomlinson was through 'natural causes' and he had no contact with the police. This only changed after an independent video came to light that showed the cops hitting him and pushing him over, and only then did this become a story. But not one mainstream media reporter bothered to question the police line before the video came to light.
Remember you innocents who were arrested, an INDIVIDUAL took the decision to use mass arbitrary arrest in which you were caught up. So go after that individual, name rank number etc and WHY they took that decision. If we can get to the individual concerned and they are outed, and shamed, lose their job or demoted or whatever, other individual high ranks may be less willing to do the same and carry the can in the future.
So hey you media reporters, WAKE UP and seek the truth! Do the words 'Fourth Estate' mean anything to you? You could be helping to bring the powers that be to account instead of cravenly accepting their spin. But your expense accounts and warm beds mean more to you than reporting the truth.
Solidarity with those arrested, now and on the future.
observer
prisoner exchange
14.12.2009 09:26
if they have committed violent acts against the people - kangaroo courts are good enough for us, they can be good enough for them
fight back, untie you other arm, resist
... or die
shalit