After the prehistoric site of Stonehenge, the controversial environmental group Just Stop Oil targeted the on Thursday private jets on the tarmac at Stansted International Airport, near London, in the hope of finding the plane Taylor Swift. Around 5 am (4 GMT), two activists, aged 22 and 28, broke through the fence of the airport, located in the north-east of the British capital, to enter the area where many private jets are parked.
Once inside, the activists sprayed two planes with cans of orange paint before being arrested. Just Stop Oil said one of the planes parked in the area was that of American star Taylor Swift, who is performing in London on Friday and this weekend and who has already been criticized for traveling by private jet. According to the association, his plane had arrived at the airport a few hours earlier, but the star was not present at the time of the intrusion, police said. Two years ago, even before the start of her monumental ‘Eras’ tour, the marketing agency Yard had classified her as the “most polluting celebrity of the year”, with 170 flights in seven months. Essex Police said the activists were arrested within minutes of entering the site. “The airport and flights are operating normally.” The two are suspected of “criminal damage and of obstructing the use or operation of a national infrastructure”, reads the statement.
In a statement released by Just Stop Oil, one of the arrested activists criticized “billionaires who live in luxury and have the means to fly in private jets, without worrying about the living conditions” of millions of people affected by the consequences of the climate crisis. “Passengers using private jets are responsible for 14 times more CO2 emissions than passengers on a commercial flight,” the environmental group added. Just Stop Oil calls for an end to the exploitation of fossil fuels by 2030. Its spectacular and controversial actions, particularly in museums, sporting competitions or during shows, regularly earn its activists prison sentences. Two octogenarian women are due to appear in a London court on Thursday for damaging the glass case protecting a copy of the Magna Carta, the founding text of modern democracy, on display at the British Library in London. They were charged with “criminal damage” and released on bail pending a hearing. Last Wednesday, activists sprayed cornstarch-based paint on monoliths at the prehistoric site Stonehenge, known for its standing stones that form a series of mysterious circles. Wiltshire Police arrested two people “on suspicion of damaging the monument” and the action was condemned by all British politicians, including Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his Labor rival Keir Starmer.
The outgoing conservative government is in revolt against the actions of Just Stop Oil and has in recent years tightened laws regulating the right to demonstrate in an attempt to prevent the actions of these activists, without much success. The director of English Heritage, the association responsible for managing the site, told the BBC on Thursday that there appeared to be “no visible damage” to the monoliths, which were cleaned directly after the activists’ action. This action is “difficult to understand and we are deeply saddened by this vandalism,” added Nick Merriman. He also said the site is open to the public from Thursday to Friday for the solstice. The famous complex is aligned with the axis of the sun during the solstices and the event attracts thousands of curious and neo-druids every year on June 21st.
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Read the full article at
Leggo.it
