Extinction Rebellion sub-group “Scientist Rebellion” chained themselves together and occupied the bridge for three hours before arrests were made.
Protesting the lack of action following the recent IPCC report, scientists from the Extinction Rebellion group “Scientist Rebellion” took non-violent action today by occupying the King George V bridge. After a three hour stand-off with the police, the protesters, of which there were 18, were arrested.
Speaking to The Glasgow Guardian, a member of Scientist Rebellion said: “We are here to protest the IPCC report; all of the members taking part are aware of the consequences, and the possibility of being arrested.”
Participants of the sit-in group had travelled from across Europe to participate. With scientists from Spain, France and Sweden participating, the occupation began at around 11.50am at which time official Extinction Rebellion channels put out a call to action for its members.
According to an eye witness, when the first protesters arrived, police lifted them from the road in an attempt to limit disruption. However when numbers increased and the protesters chained themselves together, this wasn’t possible.
In a statement from the police on Twitter, Police Scotland said: “We have facilitated a peaceful protest, but to balance the right to protest with public safety [and] rights of the wider community, our Protest Removal Team is safely removing protestors.”
One of the protestors made a speech prior to the arrests stating: “We are standing to give a voice to the voiceless, to ask the government to listen to the scientists. Science is the truth in this situation; not the money, greed or lies.”
