Pirate's Cove

It’d be more fun if the law simply allowed citizens stuck in traffic from their cult protests to beat the snot out of them or throw nasty stuff on them

‘Anti-Gandhi law’: Italy seeks to target climate change protestors with prison time

Blocking a road to protest inaction against climate change could soon be punishable with prison in Italy as Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s hard-right government cracks down on demonstrations, even peaceful ones.

A new security law passed by MPs and facing final scrutiny in the Senate has been dubbed the “anti-Gandhi” law — after pacifist Indian independence hero Mahatma Gandhi — by critics for taking aim at demonstrations by people ranging from prisoners to climate activists.

It is specifically aimed at protests against two major infrastructure projects — a high-speed, cross-border Turin-Lyon railway to France and a mooted bridge over the Strait of Messina to Sicily — both championed by Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini.

Salvini, who also has responsibility for transport and infrastructure, is a defender of the combustion engine and crusades against “climate terrorism”, particularly the young members of the Last Generation, a climate group known for headline-grabbing protests.

Under the new law, blocking a road outside the authorized route of a demonstration could be punishable by up to two years in prison, up from the current penalty of a fine between 1,000 and 4,000 euros.

Personally, I think this is a little harsh. I’m all for a peaceful protest, no doubt about it. Maybe the law should start with putting those arrested to work doing public service, and escalate from there, unless they’ve blocked emergency service vehicles.

Obviously, the pro-climate nuts folks are against this law, because they want to create lots of problems for Other People. Do the nutty protests even help their cause?