Greta Thunberg pleads not guilty over London protest arrest

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Greta Thunberg pleads not guilty over London protest arrest

Climate activist Greta Thunberg entered a not guilty plea on Wednesday to charges she violated a public offense order after she was arrested in a protest in London on Oct. 17 during a meeting of oil executives.
In Westminster Magistrates' Court on Wednesday, Thunberg, 20, entered her plea to breaking Section 14 of the Public Order Act 1986 for not leaving the highway. She faces a maximum fine of $3,116 if she is found guilty.

Thunberg was among the 29 climate protesters who refused to leave a highway leading into the InterContinental Hotel where the executives met for the Energy Intelligence Forum.

In a statement before her Oct. 17 arrest, Thunberg said she and other protesters had "no choice but to disrupt," because "our world is being swept away by greenwashing and lies."

Maja Darlington, a campaigner at Greenpeace U.K., defended Thunberg and the other demonstrators arrested.

"Our activists joined the demonstration to send a clear and peaceful message to the oil bosses attending the conference: big oil must pay for the damage they are causing to our planet and those who inhabit it," Darlington said.

"The arrests of Greta and other peaceful protesters are yet another example of this government's disturbing crackdown on peaceful protest, which is a core right in any free and functioning democratic society."