From: La Via Campesina 3/12/10
Subject: Danish Repression of social movements and the right to protest
To: Danish Ambassador
Dear sir/madam,
We are writing to express our concern at the decisions of the Danish government to bring charges against individuals arrested during the peaceful protests in Copenhagen during the COP 15 last December. The international movement for Climate Justice which organized the mobilizations in Copenhagen is composed of many hundreds and thousands of groups and individuals worldwide.
We strongly condemn the repression of the Danish state which aims to stifle dissent – dissent which is the basis of any functioning democracy.
We demand that the charges against Natasha Verco and Noah Weiss and the other climate prisoners are immediately dropped. Freedom of expression and the right to demonstrate are basic human rights, and we are astonished by the fact that charges are brought against people for the organization of legal protests in Denmark.
The actions of the Danish state not only threaten Danish democracy, but threatens to set a worrying precedent globally that dissenting voices must not be heard – repressing and criminalizing those who struggle for social justice, real democracy and human rights worldwide.
We urge the Danish government to take these voices into consideration and to make sure that the climate prisoners are immediately released– the world is watching.
The current climate crisis is a global emergency. In Copenhagen thousands of people protested against the UNFCCC that was imposing false business solutions instead of solving the problem. Today the struggle for climate justice is a duty, not a crime.
Yours sincerely,
Henry Saragih
Josie Riffaud
International Coordinating Committee
La Via Campesina
