Rainbow warriors: Dutch police blast eco-protesters with water cannons and drag them away as demonstrators shut major roadway for a seventh day
- Protests in The Hague against subsidies for fossil fuel using industries continue
- Dutch police deployed water cannons in attempt to dislodge activists
- Environmental activists globally plan for weekend of climate protests
Police in the Netherlands used water cannons in The Hague today to remove environmental activists that have been disrupting traffic for seven days.
Protesters, from groups including Extinction Rebellion, Greenpeace, and others, have been demanding that the Dutch government end subsidies to industries using fossil fuels.
Photos on Friday showed water cannons spraying protestors as they blocked the A12 through The Hague. Protestors carried signs reading ‘Stop Financing the Problem’ as police appeared to detain the activists.
The demonstrations followed a report published last week by The Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations that revealed that the Dutch government has been subsidising industries that use oil, coal, and gas to the tune of some €37.5billion.
Police were carting protestors out of the road, while activists sat beneath umbrellas as they were showered by water cannons.
Environmental protestors were blasted with water cannons on Friday as Dutch police tried to remove them from a key road in the The Hague
Protests have been ongoing for seven days against subsidies for industries that use fossil fuels
Activists in The Hague blocked the A12, a road that runs near to the temporary home of the Dutch parliament
Thousands have been detained since the protests began a week ago.
Last Saturday, some 10,000 were reported to have attended the demonstration, and over 3,000 protestors were detained over the weekend.
The protests in the Netherlands on Friday coincided with others held in dozens of other countries around the world as climate groups hoped for a weekend of demonstrations intended to conclude with a March to End Fossil Fuels on Sunday in New York, where leaders are gathering at the United Nations General Assembly.
The United Nations is hosting the Climate Ambition Summit on September 20.
Activists in The Hague have promised to stay put and return if removed until the Dutch government alters its approach to subsidies for fossil fuel consuming industries.
Environmentalists have staged several large protests in the Netherlands over the past several months. Activists also blocked the A12 which runs past the current temporary home of the Dutch parliament in May and March.
Thousands have been detained since protests began seven days ago
The Netherlands is preparing for elections in November 2023 and environmental activists have been calling for a quicker transition away from fossil fuels
Activists from Extinction Rebellion, Greenpeace, and other groups participated in the protests
While the Netherlands is often seen as an environmental leader, there are calls for further green measures to be put in place as the country moves towards early general elections in November.
Incumbent Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte, who has been in power almost thirteen years, has said that he will not stand for re-election. His coalition collapsed amid a dispute over migration policy in July.
The Netherlands wants to cut emissions of pollutants by 50 per cent by 2030 in what the government has described as an ‘unavoidable transition’.
The Netherlands wants to cut emissions of pollutants by 50 perc ent by 2030 in what the government has described as an ‘unavoidable transition’
Protestors were carted away by police in The Hague
The United Nations is hosting the Climate Ambition Summit on September 20