As Intellihub's Shepard Ambellas [6]writes, one-hundred and fifty heads of government, a.k.a. the elite, are gathering over the course of the next few weeks for a massive climate summit that’s anticipated to attract and indoctrinate over 40,000 visitors from around the globe. The summit, dubbed COP21, is sponsored by the United Nations (UN) and will reportedly focus on combating climate change. However it’s doubtful that geoengineering, which ironically is mostly to blame for current climate patterns, will even be a topic of interest to scheduled speakers. To boot any chance of that information making it out to the general public is limited as 24 activists have already been placed under house arrest."
He further observes that "emergency powers" declared in the wake of the recent Paris attacks - in the name of terrorism - and adopted virtually overnight, were extended for a period of up to 90-days by the country’s leadership allowing for such activists to be jailed in advance of the summit or at anytime within period.
France 24 confirms the "pre-crime" arrests [7], writing that twenty-four environmental activists have been placed under house arrest ahead of the Paris climate summit, using France’s state of emergency laws. Two of them slammed an attack on civil liberties. The order ends on December 12, the day the Paris climate summit draws to a close.
French security forces have been on edge since Islamist gunmen killed 130 people in a deadly rampage across Paris on November 13, in the country’s worst ever terrorist attacks.
The ensuing state of emergency, declared by President François Hollande and extended by lawmakers for three months, has given police sweeping powers to search homes, handcuff residents and place people under house arrest, without judicial oversight.
In other words, as of this moment, in France one doesn't have to actually do anything to get arrested - it is sufficient is for someone, somewhere in the chain of command to suggest any one individual is a potential threat, and they will be promptly removed from society for an indefinite period of time. As such, French "civil rights" have completed a full cricle and are now back to the infamous "Law of Suspects [8]" drafter orifinally by Maximilien Robespierre during the French Revolution.
On Thursday, one such raid in the western city of Rennes led police into an apartment shared by several unsuspecting flatmates.
“They entered the apartment with shotguns and assault rifles. It was quite violent. They pinned us to the ground,” said Amélie, a young barmaid who did not wish to give her full name. “It lasted quite a long time. We had no idea why they were there.”
Reuters also confirmed the arrests took place ahead of the summit and reported that the Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve, said the activists were suspected of planning violent protests at the talks which kick off on Sunday, a day ahead of the opening ceremony, and run until Dec. 11. "These 24 people have been placed under house arrest because they have been violent during demonstrations in the past and because they have said they would not respect the state of emergency,” Cazeneuve said in a speech in Strasbourg.
As Ambellas summarizes, "while authorities know that these people have no connection to terror movements they have still managed to silence their voices", which means that pre-crime, no longer a concept out of Steven Spielberg movie about a dystopian future, has become an all too real part of daily lives.
Furthermore, citing the heightened terrorist threat, French authorities have issued a blanket ban on demonstrations – including all rallies planned to coincide with the climate summit, which Hollande is due to formally open on Monday. Some climate campaigners have vowed to defy the ban, and as the following images from Paris today show, have indeed done so.
According to AFP [9], French police fired teargas Sunday to disperse climate change activists in Paris who threw objects at them during a demonstration ahead of key UN talks. Riot police took action after a small group of masked protesters in the Place de la Republique square began chanting "State of emergency, police state", referring to measures restricting protests that were introduced after the November 13 terror attacks in the city.
As RT adds [10], crowds gathered in the French capital on Sunday to attend a global march for the climate, despite the ban on gatherings enforced by French authorities. When one of the groups charged a police cordon, tear gas was deployed to push them back. "Huge amounts" of tear gas were fired at protesters near Place de la Republique in central Paris, according to witnesses’ reports on Twitter, with objects flying in the direction of security forces.
[11]
Sinon y a aussi des clowns qui dansent place de la #Republique [12] pic.twitter.com/7jJ5PfhMjS [13]
— Christophe Gueugneau (@gueugneau) November 29, 2015 [14]
Charge de crs au niveau rue du temple #Republique [12] lacrymos a gogo pic.twitter.com/RcriPoba3H [15]
— Christophe Gueugneau (@gueugneau) November 29, 2015 [16]
Sinon y a aussi des clowns qui dansent place de la #Republique [12] pic.twitter.com/7jJ5PfhMjS [13]
— Christophe Gueugneau (@gueugneau) November 29, 2015 [14]
Manifestation interdite à république, des éléments violents s'en prennent aux forces de l'ordre. pic.twitter.com/eWbqSah4VZ [17]
— Préfecture de police (@prefpolice) November 29, 2015 [18]
In photos, tension high as police and protesters clash in Paris
FOLLOW LIVE: https://t.co/OxluNBbgB5 [19] #Climat2Paix [20] pic.twitter.com/r7uAlPSe85 [21]
— Ruptly (@Ruptly) November 29, 2015 [22]
Tear gas and clashes at #COP21 [23] protest in Paris @Ruptly [24] pic.twitter.com/TN8uhe6TEa [25]
— Jon Scammell (@JonScammell) November 29, 2015 [26]
#COP21 [23] protesters march in Paris @Ruptly [24] pic.twitter.com/cXH24TSdzF [27]
— Jon Scammell (@JonScammell) November 29, 2015 [28]
The march, which was set to take place in dozens of cities around the world, was restricted in the French capital falling under the ban on gatherings introduced after the November 13 terrorist attacks in Paris.
La Republique metro station, closest to the scene, has been closed by authorities, citing security measures. The riot police repeatedly attempted to push back the activists, spraying the crowds with tear gas. Ahead of the summit, 24 green activists were put under house arrest, with police saying they were suspected of planning violent protests, according to Reuters.
A live feed from Paris shows the current state of the protests which has been dying down in recent hours
