The Swedish activist Greta Thunberg today joined a demonstration against the construction of a highway in the southwest of France, which environmentalists oppose.
The 21-year-old activist arrived in Saïxm, near the city of Castres, along with the international delegation of which she is part, to participate in the protests planned for today and tomorrow, the AFP news agency reported.
It is crazy to maintain this project that will endanger the quality of life of the inhabitants. Precious resources are lost, and it will not only destroy nature, but also viable land,” said Thunberg, quoted by the Chilean site Emol.
Activists are opposing the controversial ongoing construction of the A69 motorway between the cities of Toulouse and Castres.
The project, which aims to promote the connection of a rural area, divides the political class and has encountered firm opposition from environmentalists, who have demonstrated at the site on several occasions in recent months.
The organizers hope to gather between 500 and 1,000 people this weekend, to participate in workshops, round tables and concerts.
But the rainy weather and the intervention yesterday by the security forces lowered expectations.
The protest action takes place on private forest land, which is the subject of litigation regarding its expropriation due to the construction of the highway.
Yesterday, local authorities banned weekend demonstrations, citing “risk of major public disorder.”
Shortly after, when the activists were preparing these days, a hundred police officers were deployed near the area, where there were arrests and repression with tear gas.
The A69 motorway project has received an unfavorable opinion from several environmental control bodies, which consider that the socio-economic interest of the motorway does not compensate for the damage to the environment, as there are other alternative routes.
For two years, several environmental associations have maintained periodic protests against the project, whose construction continues despite everything because the central and regional governments maintain their interest in its conclusion.
Source: Ambito
