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Six climate protesters have been charged after placing bike locks around their necks to secure themselves to temporary fencing in Brisbane’s CBD this morning.
Specialist police used bolt cutters and angle grinders to remove the Extinction Rebellion protesters who were chained to a metal barricade on the corner of Eagle and Creek streets.
One person had also glued themselves to the road.
Eagle Street was blocked on one side during peak hour traffic with city workers lining the streets to watch the incident unfold.
Extinction Rebellion spokeswoman Laura Harland said the group would continue to protest until something was done to address the “climate crisis”.
“We have been in a climate crisis for the past few years and it hasn’t been spoken about, we need this issue to be addressed as an emergency, which it is,” she said.
“We’ve been noticing that nothing seems to be changing.”
Some angered workers yelled to the group to “get a job”, but Ms Harland said many protesters were actually full-time workers who had taken time off.
She said two of the protesters today were disability and aged care workers.
Photo:
Police used bolt cutters and angle grinders to remove the protesters. (ABC News: Melanie Vujkovic)
While she empathised with disrupted drivers, the group was not trying to upset people “for the sake of it”.
“Business as usual cannot continue,” she said.
“People will get upset but they will channel that towards the Government … we’re simply here to highlight that this is an emergency.”
A 51-year-old man from the Gap, an 18-year-old from Newstead, a 29-year-old from West End, a 23-year-old woman from St Lucia and a 17-year-old girl were arrested and charged with one count each of obstructing a police officer and pedestrians causing an obstruction.
A 20-year-old man from Pelican Waters was handed an additional charge of wilful damage.
On Monday a woman suspended herself above Victoria Bridge in a makeshift tripod to protest climate change and was fined $1,050 after being arrested and charged.
It comes ahead of International Rebellion Week beginning on October 7.
Topics:
climate-change,
environment,
government-and-politics,
law-crime-and-justice,
crime,
activism-and-lobbying,
australia,
qld,
brisbane-4000
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