Was Greta Thunberg’s arrest in Germany a staged photo opportunity?
After being led away by police after a protest in Germany people on the internet were quick to leap to judgement of what was actually happening.
20-year old climate activist Greta Thunberg was arrested by German police yesterday. After attending a demonstration at the abandoned village of Lützerath, which is set to be demolished for a lignite mine expansion, Thunberg and others were bundled away by police at the edge of the mine.
Thunberg was released after having her details taken down by police.
Yesterday I was part of a group that peacefully protested the expansion of a coal mine in Germany. We were kettled by police and then detained but were let go later that evening.
— Greta Thunberg (@GretaThunberg) January 18, 2023
Climate protection is not a crime.#LuetziBleibt #LuetziLebt #KeepItInTheGround #ClimateJustice
Or was she?
Videos at the site of her arrest showed officers bumbling around as well as a swarm of photographers snapping pictures of Thunberg as she was carried away.
Climate strike week 230. We are currently in Lützerath, a German village threatened to be demolished for an expansion of a coal mine. People have been resisting for years. Join us here at 12 or a local protest tomorrow to demand that #LützerathBleibt !#ClimateStrike pic.twitter.com/hGrCK6ZQew
— Greta Thunberg (@GretaThunberg) January 13, 2023
People on the internet began to accuse the police of collaborating with Thunberg for a supposed publicity stunt instead of an actual arrest.
So what really happened?
Yes, she was actually arrested.
“We would never give ourselves to make such recordings,” a spokesperson for local police told the BBC.
In response to the video of officers waiting with Thunberg the interior ministry of the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia, where the village is located, told the BBC that the police officers and Ms Thunberg were waiting for logistical reasons.
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“They had to wait for a couple of minutes before they could bring her to a certain police car,” said the spokesperson.
They added that “the whole situation has been used by those with political motives and the real reason is entirely practical and mundane.”