More than 200 activists arrested in Schiphol demonstration
The Marechaussee arrested more than 200 people at Schiphol in connection with climate actions at Schiphol-Oost, according to a spokesman for the Marechaussee. "They have all committed a criminal offense," he said.
According to the spokesman, the detainees were being "registered and identified one by one," after which the Public Prosecution Service (OM) will decide what will happen to them. A spokeswoman for the OM expects to be able to say something about this only after the weekend.
The arrested demonstrators were transferred to, among other places, the Queen Máxima barracks and other locations at or near Schiphol. In various tweets, Extinction Rebellion reports that the care of the arrested activists left much to be desired. For example, the organization tweeted the activists were in overcrowded buses without ventilation and were not given any food or drink.
The spokesman for the Marechaussee said he was not aware of this, but emphasized that the "handling is done in a neat and humane way." He did say that the process of registration and identification is slow, because there were so many detainees.
The Greenpeace and Extinction Rebellion activists arrived on Saturday afternoon after sawing through the fence with a grinder to the Schiphol-Oost site, where business and private flights with small aircraft are handled. Some of the activists chained themselves to aircraft, while others cycled around on the platform. The Marechaussee said they were surprised by the action.
Earlier on Saturday, there was also a climate action at Schiphol Plaza, the shopping area of the airport. Demonstrators there demanded with a loud protest that Schiphol become more sustainable.
The two organizations say they are proud "of everyone who took peaceful action today against unnecessary luxury flights with private planes. This action shows that people are no longer accepting that aviation is not being restricted," said a Greenpeace spokeswoman.
The demonstrations at Schiphol were held in view of the annual international climate summit (COP27), which starts on Sunday in Egypt.
Reporting by ANP
