In Britain, three environmental activists who took part in a protest by sprinkling orange powder on Stonehenge have been found not guilty of criminal damage after citing human rights law in their defence.
Activists from the Just Stop Oil group acknowledged taking part in the protests but cited their right to freedom of speech and protest.
Salisbury Crown Court – which is located less than 14 kilometers (8.5 miles) from Stonehenge – found Rajan Naidu, 74, Niamh Lynch, 23, and Luke Watson, 36, not guilty of criminal damage and public nuisance over the June 2024 protest.
The trio targeted Stonehenge as part of the ongoing Just Stop Oil protest against fossil fuels a day before last year’s summer solstice – when about 15,000 people were due to meet at the prehistoric megalithic structure on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England.
Naidu and Lynch sprinkled orange powder on megalithic stones at a UNESCO World Heritage site, which caused no permanent damage.
What is the purpose of Just Stop Oil?
Just Stop Oil ended its protests earlier this year, saying it had achieved its initial aim of stopping the UK from approving new oil and gas projects.
Prosecutors said the display at the site was visited by millions of tourists each year and was the world’s “grossest and most obvious act of barbarism.”
“I just want things to be better, I just want things to be fair and right,” Lynch said after the jury’s verdict.
Watson said he was “happy” with Friday’s outcome, but felt his trial over the “last two weeks” was a “complete waste of public money”.
“It is a relief that the jury has decided to uphold the right to peaceful protest,” defense lawyer Francesca Cociani said. “This is a right that has long been and should remain an essential pillar of our democratic society, but time and again we are seeing that right being eroded.”
Edited by: Shawn Sinico