Members of Extinction Rebellion were taken to the police station after a demonstration in the provincial house in Haarlem. Five protesters climbed the fence and hung a banner on the landing urging the province to close Tata Steel.
Demonstrators of Exctintion Rebellion hang a banner on the provincial government – NH Nieuws
While the five protesters on the platform chant slogans with a megaphone, a second group of protesters stands in front of the fence. “Tata must be closed,” says Josée van der Veer of Extintion Rebellion. “The company makes many people sick. Now it is being investigated whether the groundwater is contaminated with chromium. It is going from bad to worse.” When asked whether these kinds of actions make sense, protester Roland van Hell responds in the affirmative. “Sometimes people need to be shaken awake.”
“Let those people go to work!”
Some passers-by reacted critically to the demonstration. “Closing Tata is a bad idea,” says a senior on the bike. “At least 9,000 people work there. A total of 20,000 people in the area are connected to it. What are we talking about? That something has to change, that’s something else. But just let those people go to work.” A lady watches the demonstration from across the street. “My father used to work at Tata, my mouth was fed with it. But the pollution that is going on there is not good either. So yes, I support this demonstration.”
Province says it will not comply with demand
A spokesperson for the province says in a response that the province cannot comply with the Extinction Rebellion demand: “Environmental deputy Jeroen Olthof also spoke to protesters at the provincial government last month. He then explained that the province was not meeting the wishes of the province. Tata has a permit and as long as they comply with the agreements we cannot withdraw it. However, we are constantly working on tightening up the requirements, and therefore reducing emissions. up.”
Police drag protester away
After two hours, the police decide to intervene. A police bus is waiting in front of the gate. Four officers then approach the five protesters on the platform. After a short conversation, one demonstrator is dragged from the platform by two officers. The rest of the demonstrators are more willing to be removed. “Terrible that they are towed away,” says Josée. “These are people who are concerned about the climate and the living environment and they are now being towed away. That is actually not possible. The one that needs to be towed away is the government.”