Revealed: Greta Thunberg was given paltry £112 fine for disobeying cops at oil terminal protest because court put her wage at ‘£3.75 per day’ – as furious critics insist she has won millions from eco-prizes
- She has to pay £112 to the court plus £75 to the Swedish fund for victims of crime
- Critics said Thunberg was being dishonest about her income due to the low fine
It has been revealed that Greta Thunberg was only given a £112 fine for disobeying police officers at a protest because the court reportedly put her wage at £3.75 per day, but furious critics have insisted that she has won millions from eco-prizes.
The 20-year-old appeared at Malmo District Court yesterday morning, Thunberg, who inspired a global youth movement demanding stronger efforts to fight climate change, had admitted that she had disobeyed the police order at a protest in Malmo in June – but pleaded not guilty, saying she had acted out of necessity.
After a short trial, the court found that she was liable for her actions and sentenced her to pay a fine of £112 (1,500 kronor) plus an additional £75 (1,000 kronor) to the Swedish fund for victims of crime, with the total amounting to £187.
She was sentenced to pay the minimum possible fine of £3.75 (50 kronor) per day for the duration of 30 days due to the climate activist having ‘no income’, the Telegraph reports.
Politician Henrik Sundstrom, from the Moderate Party, which is part of Sweden’s ruling right-wing coalition, said on Twitter that Thunberg had received ‘millions in various public awards alone, but she apparently still has no income and receives daily fines at the minimum level’.
Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg was lifted away by police after taking part in a new climate action in Oljehamnen yesterday hours after a hearing for a previous protest
Climate activist Greta Thunberg smiled as she arrived at court yesterday to discover if she will be jailed after being charged with disobeying a police order
Asked if she would exercise more caution in the future following her fine, Thunberg said she and other activists would ‘definitely not going to back down’
Many agreed with him on social media, saying it ‘doesn’t look pretty’ Thunberg wasn’t being ‘honest about her income’.
‘My actions are justifiable,’ Thunberg told the court, according to the Sydsvenskan newspaper.
‘I believe that we are in an emergency that threatens life, health and property. Countless people and communities are at risk both in the short term and in the long term.’
‘It is absurd that those who act in line with science should pay the price for it,’ Thunberg told reporters in the court.
Asked if she would exercise more caution in the future following her fine, Thunberg said they would ‘definitely not going to back down’.
‘We know that we cannot save the world by playing by the rules because the laws have to be changed,’ the activist said.
‘It is absurd that the ones acting in line with the science, the ones blocking the fossil fuel industry are the ones having to pay the price for it,’ she added.
Climate activist Greta Thunberg pictured waiting at the District Court in Malmo, Sweden, July 24
Thunberg (left, yesterday) was carried away by police after blocking the road and putting out a sign which read ‘I block tanker trucks’
Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg protests on the street on the day of a court appearance at the Malmo District Court, in Malmo, Sweden July 24
Greta Thunberg, centre, and other activists block the entrance to an oil facility in Malmo, Sweden, Monday, July 24
Thunberg and other activists were detained after they stopped traffic in the oil terminal of the port in Malmo, southern Sweden, on June 19.
The June rally, organised by environmental activist group ‘Ta tillbaka framtiden’ (Reclaim the Future), tried to block the entrance and exit to the Malmo harbour to protest against the use of fossil fuel.
Thunberg was charged earlier this month because she had refused to comply with police orders to leave the scene during the protest, according to Swedish Prosecution Authority spokeswoman Annika Collin and a statement from prosecutors.
Just hours after her court appearance yesterday, Thunberg was pictured at a protest nearby, sitting on the road leading to an oil terminal at a Swedish port as part of a new protest.
Thunberg was later carried away by police after blocking the road and putting out a sign which read ‘I block tanker trucks’.