Protesters arrested at climate change rally

December 13, 2009

Almost a thousand protesters at The Copenhagen Climate Change Summit were arrested yesterday for unruly conduct. Although most of the protests were peaceful, one group began destroying windows of nearby buildings. Tens of thousands of protesters held multiple rallies throughout the Danish capital. Marches have also formed in Australia, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Indonesia and the Philippines. One of the demonstrators, Nnimmo Bassey, of Friends of the Earth, summed the rallies with "Let's dance, sing and be happy, because power is in your hands,".

Protesters included actress Helen Baxendale, model Helena Christensen and former Irish president Mary Robinson. Baxendale was quoted "I think it's also important that people come and make their voices heard as well. I think, in the end, that's what will make real, positive change."

The Copenhagen Summit opened last Monday, and has representatives from nearly 190 nations to discuss caps on greenhouse gas emissions. A draft proposal calls for cuts in greenhouse gas emissions by 50–90% by 2050 and 25–40% by 2020 for developed nations.