April 28, 2021
Child spy op shows protest hurting
One of the organisers of school strikes for climate change wants to see law changes to protect the rights of peaceful protesters.
Luke Wijohn from Te Rarawa was one of those caught up in the surveillance by spy firm Thompson and Clark on behalf of Austrian state-owned oil explorer OMV, which has been exposed by journalist Nicky Hager.
He says during a joint action with Greenpeace in Taranaki two years ago aimed at disrupting OMV’s preparations for its drilling rigs, the students encountered a German-speaking man calling himself Martin who was asking questions about their activities – and who appeared to pass the false tips they gave him on to police.
Mr Wijohn, who is now a first year student at Victoria University of Wellington, says the politicians who have said the school strikes were inspiring should now take action against the firm.
"Thompson and Clark, this private spy agency, have done this time and again to Māori activists, to climate activists and now to children, and that is not acceptable. We need it really engrained in our laws, the right of out people to protest for these things," he says.
Mr Wijohn says OMV’s actions show the actions of the schools strikers were effective, not just in disrupting their operations but in raising public awareness of the
ir business and its impact on the planet.
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