A German court has allowed an indictment of a group of people who committed crimes in the supposed interest of the global climate as a criminal organisation.
Yesterday, a spokeswoman for the Regional Court of Potsdam near Berlin confirmed that the judges had given the go-ahead to a suit brought by the prosecutor’s office in Neuruppin against five former members of the climate activist group called Last Generation.
The prosecution – which had filed the suit in May 2024 – is accusing the activists of “forming a criminal organisation whose aim was to commit crimes”, a charge punishable by up to five years in prison pursuant to section 129 of the German Criminal Code.
This is the first time that German court has allowed such a charge to be brought.
According to legal experts, the main question for a prosecution of the activists as a criminal organisation will be whether the purpose of the group was to commit criminal offences continuously and whether it posed a “significant threat to public safety”.
The prosecution is accusing the activists of a number of crimes, including acts of sabotage and destruction.
In the spring of 2022, they allegedly illegally occupied parts of a refinery in Schwedt in north-eastern Germany and shut down the oil supply.
In November 2022, they allegedly glued themselves to the tarmac at Berlin’s main airport, shutting down operations for two hours and causing delays for thousands of passengers.
In October the same year, some of the accused allegedly tried to destroy a painting by the Impressionist painter Claude Monet that was on display in Potsdam. The activists threw potato puree at the picture – valued at €111 million – which was luckily protected by a sheet of glass.
The activists claimed their actions were a necessary wake-up call for German politicians who they said ignored the mortal dangers of global warming.
In January 2025, Last Generation split up into two new movements, New Generation and Resistance Collective.
Both movements have since allegedly committed more criminal acts to further their activism, such as spraying the buildings of a dairy company with blue paint or graffitiing Tesla cars in Berlin and letting the air out of their tyres.
Yesterday, Last Generation members told news agency dpa: “The opening of the main proceedings highlights how criminal prosecution is increasingly being used as a means of dealing with unwelcome political protest.”
One of the accused told dpa: “This trial will be brutal. The five of us are sitting there on behalf of everyone who is committed to a vibrant democracy.”
More trials may be on the horizon. Several other prosecutor’s offices, including those in Munich and Flensburg, are also investigating the activists.
