A worrying legal climate ...
[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent="yes" overflow="visible"][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type="1_1" background_position="left top" background_color="" border_size="" border_color="" border_style="solid" spacing="yes" background_image="" background_repeat="no-repeat" padding="" margin_top="0px" margin_bottom="0px" class="" id="" animation_type="" animation_speed="0.3" animation_direction="left" hide_on_mobile="no" center_content="no" min_height="none"]Are environmental campaigners really some of the worse criminals we have, committing appalling crimes? Some of the bail conditions being imposed on climate change protestors seem to suggest so. Four members of the group Climate Rush, who glued themselves to a statute inside the House of Commons last week, were released on bail on the condition that they did not communicate 'directly or indirectly' with each other before the 16th June when they are due to return to a police station - not court - a police station. This is the sort of condition put on defendants in serious domestic violence cases by a court and seems a tad onerous - to say the least. But perhaps even more disturbing are the bail conditions imposed on the 114 environmental protestors who were arrested before planned demonstrations at the Ratcliffe on Soar power station - a number were given strict bail conditions preventing them from venturing near powers stations anywhere in the country. And let's be honest, protestors at the Kingsnorth coal fire power station actually had a point - and one which effects all of us - we have to somehow stop polluting power generation sooner rather than later - something even the Government acknowledged in the last budget), making Kent police's embarrassing actions at Kingsnorth and the shameful actions of (some) police officers at the G20 summit rather topical. These actions, onerous bail conditions and the police's pre-emptive arrest of campaigners are hopefully going to form part parliament's joint committee on human rights on the policing of lawful and peaceful protests - something the UK's population seems to be loosing the right to enjoy.See our earlier blog on Kingsnorth - 'Bring on the clowns'.Wild side of the law
Whilst on the subject of human rights - and it may sound far-fetched, but a powerful tool to combat climate change is giving nature legal rights too. See this interesting article at
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/may/04/climate-change-law[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]