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CLIMATE MINISTER EAMON Ryan has said he supports Greta Thunberg and the right to protest in the wake of police detentions at a demonstration in Germany against the expansion of a coal mine.
Greta Thunberg was briefly detained by German police this week at the site of an open coal pit mine, where activists have long been pushing back against plans that mean a village will be destroyed to allow more lignite to be extracted.
Years of opposition to the demolition of Luetzerath in western Germany came to a head this week as police forced occupying activists to leave the area and protests attracted thousands upon thousands of supporters.
Responding to a query from The Journal while speaking to reporters today, the minister suggested that Ireland is not in a position to cast judgement on the German government while coal continues to be burnt here.
“Be careful that those without sin cast don’t cast the first stone. We’re burning coal in Moneypoint as we speak,” Minister Ryan said.
“We’re still burning coal in Moneypoint. That has to stop,” he said.
“It would be hard for us to start pointing the finger at other countries when we’re still burning coal. We will stop that in the timeline set out in the Climate Action Plan.”
Thunberg, who was among the demonstrators, was temporarily detained on Tuesday during a protest march when a group of around 50 ran towards the edge of the Garzweiler mine.
Police, who said they acted on the basis that the protesters were dangerously close to the edge of the mine, forcibly carried around 50 people away from it, including Thunberg.
Thunberg addressed the incident on social media, saying the group were released later that evening.
“Climate protection is not a crime,” the activist wrote on Twitter.
Minister Ryan said today: “I absolutely understand and support what Greta Thurberg was doing there.”
“I [believe] absolutely [in] the right to protest and the importance of us keeping it in the ground, cutting off fossil fuels at source,” he said.
“That’s why we have made changes in terms of peat extraction in this country, that’s why we do not explore for oil and gas. That’s why we have to switch off from burning coal in Moneypoint.
“But we need to do that and focus on that. The German government and my Green colleagues, who I have a lot of time for, they’ll manage their system. I’m keen to manage ours.”
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@Denis Patrick Gill: The IRA were those men and women who with the support of the majority fought for our Independence in 1919-21. Those that followed after are not nor ever will be patriots. They are Traitors to the Irish people. They have attacked and murdered servants of the Irish State ( Members of the Gardai and a Prison Officer) they have committed multiple crimes against the citizens of the Republic, from Kidnapping for ransom to Armed Robbery, from Drug Dealing to Extortion. No crime is beneath them even rape and paedophilia. Those that followed after the originals, Patriots!! No I don’t believe so, Thugs, Criminals, Murderers would be closer to the truth.
@Denis Patrick Gill: The patriots of 1916 would turn in their graves with vermin like those marchers and you commemorating them
@Denis Patrick Gill: whereas you only support the murder of journalists, aren’t you a saint
@Mick.: Couldn’t have put it better myself. Well said Mick!
@Denis Patrick Gill: another deluded dinosaur, time to come into the 21st century! This is 2019 not 1929. The days of running around with guns is OVER! Ffs grow up!!!
@Denis Patrick Gill: The so called IRA have murdered their fair share of born and unborn children
These are not real soldiers, and most certainly not representing the majority of Ireland. I believe in peace and dialogue The men of 1916 must be turning in there grave at the vermin that is trying to associate with them.. they can’t hold a candle to the men who fought in the 1916.
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