2010-12-16
The City Court of Copenhagen ruled today that the all the mass arrests during the Copenhagen Climate Summit in 2009 were illigal and the police have to pay 9.000 DKK in damages to the protestors, who have complaint so far. The verdict declares that all the preventive arrests from 11t-16 December 2009 were illegal, and so the actions of the police during the COP15 is not accepted by the court.
Nearly 2000 people were preemptively arrested last year during the COP15 Climate Summit in Copenhagen. 250 of these people have complained and have sued the police for unlawful arrest and detainment. The case can set important precedence in Denmark, and has been going on since spring of this year.
Knud Foldschack, the lawyer for some of the complainers that were arrested on the 12th of December, said:
“The events on the 12th of December 2009 have damaged the reputation of Denmark abroad. A lot of internationals came to Denmark to demonstrate with an expectation that Denmark was a country where you don’t have to fear the police. They were deeply disappointed.
Today the Copenhagen city court condemned the actions of the police. Knud Foldschack says:
“This verdict is a clear signal to the Danish Parliament that they should stop degrading legal rights in Denmark, in order to comply with international conventions such as the European Convention on Human Rights.”
The verdict is a relief to those people who were preemptively arrested during the Climate Summit. Nina Liv Brøndum, who was arrested the 12th of December said:
“This is a really important outcome, it means that people don’t have to fear getting randomly arrested when they go to demonstrations, which many of us experienced during the Climate Summit. It was a very rough experience, not only because we were treated cruelly but because we were denied our most fundamental rights.”
Questions about the appeal and verdict should be sent to:
Klimakollektivet
media@climatecollective.org
Tlf: (+45) 50 27 19 86
For more information and statements, please contact the office of the laywers Foldschack and Forchhammer at (+45) 33 44 55 66
If you were preemptively arrested during the Climate Summit in Copenhagen in 2009, but never complained, please contact the Danish legal group RUSK. If they win the court case, then there might be a possibility to get compensation as well, even though you were not part of the lawsuit. Email kontakt@rusklaw.org(please specify name, address, nationality, and date, place and time of the arrest)
Background:
Nearly 2000 people were preemptively arrested during the Climate Summit COP15 in December last year. At the demonstration the 12th of December, which garthered more than 100.000 people, almost a 1000 people were arrested in the biggest mass arrest in Danish history. One of many to criticize this has been Amnesty International, which in an annual report criticized the excessive abuse of power by the police. Now 250 people from Denmark, Sweden, England, and France have complained about the preemptive arrests and the behavior of the police.
Danish police commanders order the police to assault the press during the COP15
Recordings from Danish police radio communications show that a Danish police commander encouraged police officers to assault members of the press during the COP15 Climate Summit in Copenhagen outside of the conference center on the 16th of December 2009.
The radio communication between the police was recorded and is now part of a Danish documentary about the COP15 protests which premieres today on Danish television station DR (http://www.dr.dk/pirattv/nyheder/). The film follows the
two climate activists Stine and Tannie, who acted as spokespersons for Climate Collective and Climate Justice Action. Last month they were convicted of planning to disrupt the public order and violence against the police as part of these demonstrations.
Read about their case here:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/nov/25/copenhagen-climate-activists-found-guilty
According to the recordings
(http://politiken.tv/nyheder/indland/ECE1143276/indsatsleder-i-hugger-bare-til-dem/,
English translation here: http://www.climatecollective.org/post/165), the police were instructed to take control of one of the demonstrations’ vans on which people gave speeches and spread information to the protestors.
Beat up the press
The cops were repeatedly told to beat up the press:
“I know that there are a lot of press in the front, but they are at the risk zone, it's their problem...”says the police commander
Later the message is even more clear.
“There are media between the cars – they will get the same fucking treatment”
Both The Danish Union of Journalists and Amnesty International are heavily criticising the statements by the police.
The Danish Union of Journalists
Press Contact: http://www.journalistforbundet.dk/sw48335.asp
Amnesty International
Press Contact In Denmark: http://www.amnesty.dk/side/pressekontakt
For further information, contact the Climate Collective’s press group:
Phone: (+45) 50 27 19 86
E-mail: media@climatecollective.org
Background:
See photos of the demo here:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/gallery/2009/dec/16/reclaim-power-march-copenhagen?INTCMP=SRCH
And video here:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/video/2009/dec/17/copenhagen-climate-change
Critical articles about police behavior from COP15:
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=2348634 ,
http://www.cphpost.dk/news/international/89-international/49071-amnesty-blasts-denmarks-cop15-policing.html