Months after her detention in Germany, Greta Thunber was removed by Norwegian police from a protesting site on Wednesday. The videos of her detention have gone viral on social media with many accusing her of orchestrating a fake detention

Environmental activist Greta Thunberg was detained twice during a demonstration supporting Indigenous rights in Norway. The twenty-year-old joined the protest against 151 wind turbines that were erected at the reindeer pasture lands used by the ‘Sami’ indigenous community. The visuals of her arrest have gone viral on social media and convinced many that the act was staged.

Many Twitter users mocked the way in which which the Norwegian authority was lifting and removing Greta Thunberg from the protest site. Many questioned how conveniently the media persons were able to record the whole detaining act. One Twitter user even called the young activist a fraud and drew attention to Greta getting detained with a smiling face.

"LOOK at the SMILE on her face as she's getting FAKE arrested AGAIN! Greta Thunberg, "How DARE you!" You're a FRAUD!," wrote a Twitter user.

In one of the tweets, the user mocked Greta's arrest and demanded an Oscar award for her acting. “⭐️#GretaThunberg gets “arrested" in Norway. !!! Sooner or later, she shall be given an honorary Oscar for such a smooth act @GretaThunberg" tweeted the user.

Another Twitter user shared the video of Greta Thunberg when she was detained by the German police in January. “Oh, I see Greta Thunberg got fake arrested again.Here's a friendly reminder...." tweeted the user named Kurt Schemers.

Greta Thunberg and other campaigners were detained by German police on 17 January. The group was protesting against the demolition of the coal village of Luetzerath, Germany. However, the entire group was released later in the day, reported Reuters. At that time as well, Greta Thunberg was criticized on social media for staging fake arrests. But the German police denied these claims of the fake arrest.

“Greta staged another arrest… "wrote another user with a Twitter handle named ‘Amused’ while sharing Greta Thunberg's video.

Amid a wide range of tweets calling the protest staged, there were some who supported Greta Thunberg for her climate activism.

“The word staged is trending because Greta Thunberg got arrested again. The people accusing her don't realize that's what happens to most protesters if they get in the way. Allowing themselves to be arrested instead of fighting back is a form of non-violent protest," wrote another user.

Greta Thunberg has joined a protest against wind farms

It may seem strange to see Greta Thunberg protesting against wind turbines, but this week the Swedish climate activist has joined Indigenous and environmental groups in Norway to do just that.

Dozens of protestors, including Thunberg, have blocked access to Norwegian government buildings in Oslo to protest against two windfarms built on Sámi reindeer grazing grounds.

On Wednesday morning, 10 people including Thunberg were removed by police from the entrance of the ministry of finance, according to a spokesperson for the Oslo police district.

The Sámi people, the only recognized Indigenous group within the European Union, say their centuries-old tradition of reindeer herding is jeopardized by the windfarms in the Fosen region in Central Norway. Among the largest onshore wind farms in Europe, they are made up of 151 wind turbines that stretch 285 feet high.

“The constructions are stealing the reindeer’s grazing land,” Maja Kristine Jåma, a reindeer herder and Sámi politician, told CNN. The reindeer are also affected by the infrastructure around the turbines, including roads, she said. “It disturbs them a lot.”

Jåma and others are calling for the turbines to be torn down and the reindeer grazing lands restored.

“Indigenous rights, human rights, must go hand-in-hand with climate protection and climate action. That can’t happen at the expense of some people,” Thunberg told Reuters on Monday.

The fight over wind turbines has been long-running.

In October 2021, the Sámi people secured a legal victory. Norway’s Supreme Court ruled that the wind farm permits were invalid because the turbines violated the protected cultural rights of the Sámi people by infringing on reindeer grazing lands.

But nearly a year and a half on, the turbines are still operating.

“So far, the government has not even acknowledged the Supreme Court’s ruling on the violation of human rights or offered an apology to the Reindeer Sámi,” Eirik Larsen, Political Advisor to the Sámi Parliament in Norway, told CNN.

The Norwegian government said it is assessing how to secure the Sámi’s rights in Fosen. “The Supreme Court has considered that the permits that have been granted are invalid, but it does not follow from the judgment that the wind turbines must be taken down,” Elisabeth Sæther, State Secretary in the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum, told CNN.

Sæther added that the government has been consulting with reindeer herders and the Sámi Parliament to find solutions “that make it possible for reindeer herding and the wind turbines to operate side by side.”

What’s happening in Norway is part of a growing conundrum when it comes to the green transition: How to implement climate policies without riding roughshod over Indigenous rights and the environment.

Wind energy is an important plank in Norway’s green energy transition. The country’s electricity generation is already almost completely renewable. In 2020, more than 90% of its electricity was generated using hydropower and wind, which has increased 10-fold in the last decade, accounting for 6.5%.

Norway, which remains a major oil and gas producer, has pledged to reduce its levels of planet heating pollution to 55% below 1990 levels by 2030.

“But you cannot have a green shift that violates human rights or Indigenous rights,” said Jåma. “These constructions threaten our way of living and our way of engaging in our culture as reindeer herders.”

Jåma calls what’s happening “green colonization,” a term the Norwegian government told CNN was “misleading and incorrect.”

Steve Trent, CEO and Founder of the Environmental Justice Foundation, told CNN: “The Sámi did not cause the climate crisis, and their traditional ways of life - which they have practiced for millennia - should not be jeopardized by efforts to resolve it.”

“Our efforts to roll back global heating must be equitable and fair,” he added.

The Sámi people, whose traditional lands – Sapmi – span northern parts of Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Russia, already live on the frontline of the climate crisis.

The Arctic is warming as much as four times faster than the rest of the world and the temperature changes are making it harder for reindeer to feed, as increased rainfall means layers of ice freeze over their food.

“Indigenous Peoples are asked to give up their lands for the wind industry, mining, and other purposes to save the world from a crisis mainly created by others,” Larsen said.

References:

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