Outside on the square there is a group of several dozen demonstrators that is growing by the minute. A large LED screen reads ‘Demonstrating at Schiphol Plaza is prohibited’. Despite this ban, a group managed to find out about customs, where they briefly took action against the frequent flyer program. This is a savings program to fly cheaply.
The demonstration behind customs, by an estimated 20 activists, started around 11 a.m. An hour later the first people were towed away. Singing is heard between the drags: ‘We’ll be back with much more, because it can’t go on like this any longer.’ On the ground, demonstrators sit on garbage bags, and there is brown liquid. “They pour out brown water, as if it were mud. Because of the extreme weather we are increasingly experiencing mudslides,” says a spokesperson for Extinction Rebellion.
Calm
In a livestream from Extinction Rebellion it can be heard that the activists who were inside are no longer allowed to go to the demonstration outside. Some were immediately arrested, others were taken away by bus. It is not yet known exactly how many people have been arrested. The atmosphere outside is calm at the moment.