Sami rights activists in Norway charged over protests against wind farm affecting reindeer herding
ABC News
A lawyer says some 20 activists have been charged after they blocked several entrances to Norwegian government offices over a wind farm that they say hinders the rights of the Sami Indigenous people to raise reindeer
COPENHAGEN, Denmark -- Some 20 activists have been charged after they blocked several entrances to Norwegian government offices over a wind farm that they say hinders the rights of the Sami Indigenous people to raise reindeer, their lawyer said Friday.
The exact charge was not known. The VG newspaper said they were charged because they did not accept the fines they had been given after having been forcefully removed by police. They face trial in March in Oslo.
At the center of the dispute are the 151 turbines of Europe’s largest onshore wind farm, which is located in central Norway’s Fosen district, about 450 kilometers (280 miles) north of the capital, Oslo.
The activists say a transition to green energy shouldn’t come at the expense of the rights of Indigenous people.
They have demonstrated repeatedly against the wind farm’s continued operation since the Supreme Court of Norway ruled in October 2021 that the construction of the turbines had violated the rights of the Sami, who have used the land for reindeer for centuries.
