Climate activists arrested in Germany after completely halting Munich airport activity - JURIST
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Climate activists arrested in Germany after completely halting Munich airport activity
Ten climate activists were arrested in Germany on Saturday for completely halting aircraft activity at Munich Airport. The protesters had glued themselves on an airway, thus making it impossible for around sixty departures and arrivals to happen. The protest was orchestrated by Letzte Generation(Last Generation), a climate activism group which is known in Germany for its disruptive activities.
According to the police, the group had entered the runway at about 5 am, via cutting the security area fence. The blockage lasted until around 7:15 am.
The disruption was severely condemned by Nancy Faeser, Germany’s Federal Interior Minister. Faeser stated that actions like this are damaging to climate protection because they only incite misunderstanding and anger. Furthermore, the Interior Minister applauded Germany’s Federal Police and encouraged the security measures to be upgraded by the airport.
Germany’s Transportation Minister Volker Wissing tweeted that the protest was not legitimate but criminal. Moreover, Wissing stated that human lives are being put at risk and economic damages caused, highlighting the necessity of harshening the Aerial Security Act (Luftsicherheitgesetz).
Letzte Generation blamed the country’s government for subsidizing the airway industry while the train transportation system is being left behind in poor condition. According to the group, the government finances the airway industry yearly with more than 12 billion Euros.
In April, Germany’s parliament approved an amendment to its Climate Protection Act after the Federal Constitutional Court rejected an objection by a lawmaker. The amendment removes some greenhouse gas emission targets for individual sectors.
Related Knowledge Center: Climate diplomacy
Talks are well underway in preparation for the next major international meeting on climate change, 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28), scheduled to begin Nov. 30 in the United Arab Emirates.
Much like last year’s COP27, finances — specifically, aid to developing nations — will be at the center of conference deliberations.
The conference faces an even greater sense of urgency brought on by the Sept. 8, 2023, release of the first global stocktake, which calls for accelerated action to meet the goals set in the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement (COP21).
Climate diplomacy: COP 27 | Climate diplomacy: COP 28 | Climate diplomacy: COP 29