International campaign by Extinction Rebellion against the suppression of climate activism in Norway

Unceded Coast Salish Territory (Vancouver BC) - On the 4th of March at 11 AM, Extinction Rebellion Vancouver demonstrates at the Norwegian Consulate at 1188 W Georgia St in downtown Vancouver. At this action, the group will ceremonially present the Norwegian Consul General Randall James Kaardal, and Vice-Consul Elisabeth Løkke Øwre with the Nobel Prize of Climate Hypocrisy.

Norway is often credited with being a fair and democratic country, but Norway is in fact one of the biggest polluters in the world. With its small population of 5 million people Norway covers 2 % of the global demand for oil and 3 % of the global demand for gas. When taking into account the emissions involved in the export of oil and gas, Norway is the 7th biggest exporter of CO2 to the atmosphere. As such Norway is not in any way keeping with its obligations under the Paris Agreement.

At the same time, the Norwegian government is suppressing climate activists who resort to civil disobedience by arresting everybody involved in such protests, putting them in isolation for 10 to 15 hours and giving them extraordinarily high fines (approximately 1600 Euros). This arguably violates Article 11 of the European Human Rights Convention, guaranteeing the right to peacefully assemble, which is the reason why other European countries show much higher degree of tolerance for demonstrators using civil disobedience.

The demonstration at the Norwegian Embassy is a part of an international campaign, in which similar demonstrations are happening simultaneously in over 20 other cities (see list of cities here). See the pictures of demonstrations that have already taken place

Norway prides itself with respecting international law. We demand that Norway either abides by its obligations as signatories under the Paris Agreement and the European Human Rights Convention, or is held accountable by the international community as one of the richest countries on earth with a disproportionate responsibility for the climate crisis.

Extinction Rebellion Vancouver: https://xrvan.ca Extinction Rebellion Norway: https://extinctionrebellion.no/

For Extinction Rebellion Vancouver: Susan Bibbings 778 840 9229

For Extinction Rebellion Norway: Dag Kolstø 0047 90806445