YLE: Extinction Rebellion protest a bit of a conundrum for the Greens

THE GREEN LEAGUE and Extinction Rebellion Finland may share the goals of preventing biodiversity loss and combatting the climate crisis, but the party does not approve of the approach the environmental movement took last week to draw attention to the

By: helsinkitimes.fi

Oct 01 2024
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THE GREEN LEAGUE and Extinction Rebellion Finland may share the goals of preventing biodiversity loss and combatting the climate crisis, but the party does not approve of the approach the environmental movement took last week to draw attention to the environmental cost of peat extraction, reports YLE.

“The Greens’ goal is to combat biodiversity loss and the climate crisis, and my impression is that this goal is shared by Extinction Rebellion Finland,” chairperson Sofia Virta said on Sunday.

“That’s what gives rise to the linkage that’s created in people’s minds. The Greens is a political party that doesn’t engage in civil disobedience, and that’s the difference between the party and the movement.”

Extinction Rebellion Finland continued to court controversy last week with a stunt where protesters daubed red paint on the columns of the Parliament House in Helsinki. The objective of the protest was to highlight that a Finnish majority state-owned company is continuing and expanding peat extraction in Sweden.

Virta on Sunday reiterated her disapproval with the protest in conjunction with the opposition party’s party conference in Espoo. Extinction Rebellion Finland, she stressed, has to adhere to the same rules as other associations and movements in the country.

“What’s illegal is illegal, and the offenders have to accept responsibility for their actions.”

“At the same time,” she added, “I naturally hope that the message that Extinction Rebellion Finland is trying to bring up, in my view with thoughtless means, is taken seriously at the level of lawmakers. Many young people and people of different ages are concerned about what will happen as the climate crisis moves forward if no action is taken. I hope that the message is taken seriously, that measures like these aren’t needed to amplify it.”

YLE on Sunday reported that rank-and-file members of the opposition party are unsure what to make of the latest protest, with some voicing their support for civil disobedience and others calling for more measured actions.

“We do advocate the same things, but it feels like these [activists] are slightly frustrated with the political system and don’t want to participate in this activity themselves,” Pyry Mustajärvi, a member of the youth wing of the Green League, said to the public broadcasting company in Espoo.

Oona Tchitcher said the protest was clearly effective given the extent of debate it kindled, including on the cause of the protest. “But was it right? No permanent damage was apparently caused, so maybe in these times, when the world is burning, there’s a time and a place for these kinds of stunts.”

“I’m sure that we at the Greens have members of Extinction Rebellion Finland. If you think about where the Greens come from originally, civil disobedience is at the core of the Greens,” she added.

Aleksi Teivainen – HT