Danish police have been ordered to pay tens of thousands of pounds compensation to hundreds of climate protesters, after a court ruling today. The unprecedented ruling coincides with the release of an audio recording from the policing of a protest outside the UN climate talks in Copenhagen last December, which allegedly shows Danish police ordering officers to beat activists and journalists.
A year to the day after the Reclaim Power protest outside the Bella Centre, where the talks were being held, a Danish judge called "illegal" the actions of police – who pre-emptively arrested nearly 2,000 people during the summit – and ordered them to pay £500-£1,000 to 200 protesters. They may have to compensate a further 800 , meaingthe final bill for the police could potentially run to £1m.
The lawyer Christian Dahlager, part of the team who brought 200 of the complaints to court, said: "The other people who formally complained may well have cases for compensation."
This is the biggest verdict of its kind ever in Denmark, he believes. "In the past we have had cases like this of just a couple of people and the police are only ordered to pay a couple of hundred pounds. But this is a turning point for Denmark. We've been travelling down a certain road for a long time and now finally the courts have stepped in and said that the police have gone too far."
The verdict has coincided with the release of a film through the national Danish broadcaster which contains a police radio transmission that appears to include orders to hit protestors and media. According to a translation posted on activist website Climate Collective, the officer speaking tells his men "I want to see that stick in use," and adds: "There are media between the cars. They will get the same fucking treatment. Now's the time to fight."
The verdict and the film have electrified Denmark. The minister of jjustice, Lars Barfoed has issued a statement promising to look into the issue, and has been questioned about it by the political opposition, with Line Bafod of the Red-Greens saying: "It is completely unacceptable for a senior police officer to urge violence against journalists on the job. This does not belong in a democratic society."
The president of the Danish Union of Journalists, Mogens Blicher Bjerregård, said it is "appalling that an incident commander can give such orders. It becomes very dangerous for journalists to do their job."
"It feels as if we're finally beginning to get to the truth of what happened last year," said Helen Medden, one of the two film-makers of a documentary called Climate Crime. "I started to make the film as a positive one about young Danish people campaigning about the climate, but halfway through it turned into something completely different, and became a film about police behaviour."
The Guardian has been unable to reach the Danish police for comment on the trial, but the Copenhagen police director, Johan Reimann, said: "When the media chooses to mingle with demonstrators, we are not able to differentiate precisely ... But when the media identifies itself with a press card, we of course respect that." Asked if he thought the language used by his officer was too "bombastic", he replied: "When you are out there on the edge, the language used is different than when you are just standing there and having a chat."
The police are appealing against the ruling.
No comments:
Post a Comment