Five environmental activists-including Roger Hallam and Daniel Shaw-have been convicted for their roles in the November 2022 M25 motorway disruption, according to the BBC. The protest, coordinated by Just Stop Oil, was intended to block the road and resulted in major traffic jams, accidents, and delays that lasted for almost four days. The financial costs of the event were estimated to be over 1.8 million pounds (Rs 19,47,28,935).

Hallam was sentenced to five years in prison, the other three to four years each. The protestors’ “intricate planning and the level of sophistication involved” on climate change activism were highlighted by the court. With regard to the new rules intended to quell disruptive protests, this is the longest punishment.

As per the news outlet, in the M25 protest case, Whittaker De Abreu and Gethin were arrested near the motorway dressed for climbing, while Lancaster rented a safe house and bought climbing gear for the activists.

Lancaster defended her actions as necessary due to the perceived failure of democratic methods, calling the climate crisis a critical issue.

Gethin stated the disruption was intended to be minimal and blamed those in power for failing to address climate change seriously. Hallam, who had previously rejected direct action for conventional campaigning, was disruptive in court, leading to three arrests and encouraging supporters to protest outside the court.

This resulted in the arrest of 11 protesters for contempt, but charges were later dropped. Hallam claimed the judiciary was corrupt and manipulated, framing his actions as necessary for climate justice.

The new law under which the activists were sentenced, introduced in 2022, criminalises direct action causing serious public harm. The judge emphasised the law’s intent to treat such actions severely, with sentences up to 10 years.

An image grab from a video released by the Just Stop Oil climate campaign group shows activists spraying an orange substance at Stonehenge in Wiltshire, southwest England, on June 19, 2024.
| Photo Credit: AFP

Climate activists of the ‘Just Stop Oil’ group sprayed orange powder on to the stones of Stonehenge, the prehistoric rock monument in Wiltshire, England, on Wednesday. The attack happened a day before the summer solstice (June 20) when crowds gather at the site. The monument, thought to have been built in several stages between 3000 BCE and 1500 BCE, was likely significant, historically, as a gathering place for rituals during the summer and winter solstices, as the position of the stones aligns in specific ways with the sun’s trajectory on these days.

Two people have been arrested in connection with the incident, the police said.

In a statement the group said two of its members had “decorated” Stongehenge to demand an end to oil and gas burning and extraction by 2030.

“Standing inert for generations works well for stones – not climate policy,” the group said.

The U.K.’s top leaders, normally at loggerheads with each other with a general election three weeks away, found common ground over the attack

“’Just Stop Oil’ is a disgrace,” Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on social media site X.

“The damage done to Stonehenge is outrageous. Just Stop Oil are pathetic,” said leader of the Labour Party Keir Starmer, who is the frontrunner for the Prime Minister’s post.

‘Just Stop Oil’ members have attacked a number of culturally significant objects. Two activists in their 80s – a priest and a retired teacher – had smashed the case around the Magna Carta in the British Museum in May. In January, two other activists threw soup on the Mona Lisa at the Louvre in Paris.