New Delhi – Teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg said on Thursday that “hatred” and “threats” would not stop her from speaking out in support of thousands of Indian farmers trapped in a standoff with their government. Thunberg fired back online when police in India launched an investigation citing his tweets, which sparked an online vitriol reaction.
“I still #StandWithFarmers and support your peaceful protest. No amount of hatred, threats or human rights violations will change that. #FarmersProtest,” wrote the young Swedish activist on Twitter.
Indian police have begun the process of investigating what the government labels “propaganda” for “vested interest groups” that try to “mobilize international support against India”.
The investigation may cover a series of social media posts, including some shared by Thunberg, in support of farmers’ protest for months.
Delhi police quoted their tweets in a First Information Report (FIR), the first stage of the investigation process under Indian law, which alleges a “criminal conspiracy” and an attempt to “promote enmity between different groups for reasons of religion. , race, place of birth, residence, language … and acts harmful to maintaining harmony, “according to Indian news channel NDTV.
Earlier on Thursday, Thunberg shared a “toolkit” in a Twitter post that advises people on how to show support for the protesters.
Delhi police said on Thursday that their investigation into an “overseas conspiracy” was not against Thunberg, but against the “toolkit” she tweeted, which they say originated from a Sikh separatist group.
Thunberg expressed solidarity with farmers for the first time after the pop star Rihanna drew global attention to its protest against three controversial new agricultural laws. Demonstrations have been simmering since November, with occasional violent clashes in Delhi.
Altaf Qadri / AP
The Indian government faced celebrities on Wednesday after its tweets attracted global attention, dismissing social media messages as “hyped” and “neither accurate nor responsible”.
“The temptation of hashtags and sensational comments from social media, especially when used by celebrities and others, is neither accurate nor responsible,” India’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
Several other public figures, including American activists and politicians, also tweeted in support of farmers.
“It is no accident that the oldest democracy in the world was attacked less than a month ago and, as we speak, the most populous democracy is being attacked. That is related. We must ALL be indignant at the closure of the Internet in India and the violence paramilitary against the agricultural protesters “wrote the niece of US Vice President Kamala Harris Meena Harris.
“The events taking place in India are worrisome. As a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, I am monitoring the situation closely. The right to peaceful protest must always be respected,” wrote US Representative Jim Costa, a California Democrat who serves on both the Foreign Affairs and Agriculture Commissions.
Hundreds of thousands of farmers in India have been locked in a challenging stalemate with the government since late last year because of three agricultural reform laws passed in September.
The government insists that the reforms will give farmers more access to the market and greater flexibility. But farmers say the measures will help large companies and destroy small farmers’ livelihoods. They are demanding the complete repeal of all three laws.
Eleven rounds of negotiations between the leaders of the agricultural protests and the Modi government have failed to resolve the impasse.
India’s agricultural sector contributes almost 15% to India’s $ 2.9 trillion economy and employs almost half of the country’s 1.3 billion people.
The Indian government on Wednesday reiterated its justification for the reforms and said that only a “very small section of farmers in parts of India” “has some reservations about these reforms”.
The government insisted that the laws were passed after “thorough debate and discussion” in parliament.
Stalemate in the capital
Indian police have stepped up their efforts to prevent protesting farmers from entering the capital again, before a call for a second national stoppage this weekend in support of the protest.
Farmers threatened to block roads across the country on Saturday in protest at what they call harassment by government officials, including cutting water, energy and internet services to protest camps.
Manish Swarup / AP
Internet services were shut down earlier this week at three main entry points on Delhi’s highways, where farmers have been camped out for more than two months.
Various Indian media reported that the police had placed iron spikes, barbed wire and concrete walls at various points of entry into the capital.
Human Rights Watch asked the Indian government to drop the lawsuits against eight journalists who were arrested after their reports on the January 26 protests and clashes.
MONEY SHARMA / AFP / Getty
“The Indian authorities’ response to the protests focused on discrediting peaceful protesters, harassing government critics and prosecuting those who report the events,” said HRW South Asia director Meenakshi Ganguly.
Notice to Twitter
The Indian government warned Twitter on Wednesday that it could take unspecified action against the social media platform for its initiative to “unilaterally” unblock more than 250 accounts that it suspended on Monday at the request of the government on the use of a controversial hashtag related to farmers’ protests.
The government labeled the tweets with the hashtag, which accuses the authorities of planning a “genocide” of farmers, part of a “motivated campaign to abuse, ignite and create tension in society for unproven reasons”.
“Inciting genocide is not freedom of expression; it is a threat to law and order, ”the government insisted on its warnings for the social media company to comply.