Thunberg is suspended from the Norwegian strike

The struggle for indigenous rights, for human rights, for the climate is global. Greta Thunberg tells NTB Norway that there are many local examples where rights are being violated and when that happens you have to speak up.

She is one of the demonstrators in front of the Norwegian Ministry of Oil and Energy in Oslo against building a wind farm in a mountainous area. Greta Thunberg came to Oslo on Sunday night and then wanted to enter the ministry but was stopped by security guards.

– The decision was made because, from a security point of view, you do not want more protesters in the building, says responsible Espen Evensen to NTB.

The background is the sit-down strike that has been taking place inside the department since Thursday, carried out by Sami activists from Fössen, central Norway.

They pretend for the government to stop a large wind farm being built in a mountainous area that Sami have used for centuries to herd reindeer in the winter.

Already in 2021, Norway’s Supreme Court ruled that developments in the area are illegal and violate Sami rights. But even though 500 days have passed since Thursday’s ruling, nothing has happened and the 150 wind turbines are still standing.

Celje Karen Motka, the speaker of the Saami-Norwegian Parliament, says she expects the authorities to take their demands seriously.

Activists say they will not leave voluntarily until a decision is made to demolish the turbines. During Monday, they plan to lock down the entire building in which they are striking.

However, they have to do without Greta Thunberg, who had to content himself with speaking to activists through a side door on Sunday.