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Monday 12 April 2021, London, UK: Seven people – including two Extinction Rebellion co-founders – charged with £25K worth of criminal damage at Shell’s London HQ will appear at Southwark Crown Court in London for a jury trial. [1] Dubbed the ‘Shell 7’, this is the second jury trial of an Extinction Rebellion related case and comes almost two years to the day since Shell was the focus of non violent direct action when Extinction Rebellion’s April Rebellion in 2019 began.

During the protest – which lasted over 24 hours – activists poured fake oil, glued themselves to the windows and blocked the doors. They cracked several windows, climbed onto a roof, dropped banners and painted the exterior with ‘Shell Knew’, ‘Climate Criminals’ and ‘Lies’.  The activists also sprayed ’Stop Ecocide’ and ‘For Polly 💗’ on the wall of the building. Polly Higgins was founder of the Stop Ecocide campaign and passed away six days later. [2]

With the case expected to take at least 5 days, six of the defendants are pleading ‘not guilty’:

• Jane Augsburger, 55, from Stroud, a single parent and carer who looks after vulnerable people, including her father who died last year. 
• Simon Bramwell, 49, Extinction Rebellion co-founder, from Stroud, a bushcraft instructor who is looking after his terminally ill mother. 
• Ian Bray, 53, from Holmfirth who is a father of two, Quaker, a salvage and repair worker and Extinction Rebellion Co-founder.
• Senan Clifford – 60, from Stroud who is a former teacher now working as a carpenter and a father of three with two stepchildren and two grandchildren.
• David Lambert – 62, from Stroud, father of three, a self-employed landscape consultant.
• Sid Saunders – 41, from Stroud, a father of two and a sustainable builder.

Katerina Hasapopoulous has decided to plead guilty. Katerina is a 43 year old home educator with four children who runs a small business providing vegan meals.

Farhana Yamin, Paris Agreement negotiator and lead author on three of the five IPCC reports, was arrested in the final hours of this protest for gluing herself to Shell HQ and was subject to investigations but the police decided not to bring charges. [3]

There have now been over 3,600 arrests for Extinction Rebellion UK actions since April 2019. Nearly 2,000 (possibly more) have resulted in minor charges (mainly Section 14 offences and Obstruction of the Highway), with around 1,000 prosecutions still in progress. Of those cases that have concluded, more than 900 have resulted in convictions. [4 – Figures are estimates based on available information] 

The defendants, Shell 7’s solicitor Raj Chada at Hodge Jones and Allen, environmental lawyer Farhana Yamin, JoJo Mehta (Stop Ecocide International), Jonathan Porrit (Forum for the Future), journalist and author George Monbiot plus Tim Crosland (Ex Barrister and Director of the charity Plan B.Earth) will all be available for interview.

Notes to editors

[1] For more information:
Email: press@extinctionrebellion.uk, ronan.mcnern@gmail.com;
Phone:  +44(0)7479234522 / +44(0)7918165046
Shell 7 assets: Facebook | Instagram | Twitter |Photos and videos for Shell 7 plus more here.
#Shell7 #ExtinctionRebellion #StopEcocide

[2] https://extinctionrebellion.uk/2019/04/15/extinction-rebellion-turns-up-the-heat-on-shell/

[3] Stop Ecocide (https://www.stopecocide.earth/), co-founded in 2017 by barrister, the late Polly Higgins and current Executive Director Jojo Mehta.

Polly Higgins obituary – https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/apr/25/polly-higgins-obituary

[4] https://www.democracynow.org/2019/4/17/extinction_rebellion_climate_activists_glue_themselves 

ABOUT EXTINCTION REBELLION

Time has almost entirely run out to address the ecological crisis which is upon us, including the 6th mass species extinction, global pollution, and increasingly rapid climate change. If urgent and radical action isn’t taken, we’re heading towards 4˚C warming, and the societal collapse and mass loss of life that that implies. The younger generation, racially marginalised communities and the Global South are on the front-line. No-one will escape the devastating impacts.

Extinction Rebellion believes it is a citizen’s duty to rebel, using peaceful civil disobedience, when faced with criminal inactivity by their Government.

Extinction Rebellion’s key demands are:

1. Government must tell the truth by declaring a climate and ecological emergency, working with other institutions to communicate the urgency for change.
2. Government must act now to halt biodiversity loss and reduce greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2025.
3. Government must create and be led by the decisions of a Citizens’ Assembly on climate and ecological justice.

What Emergency? | Extinction Rebellion in Numbers |This Is Not A Drill: An Extinction Rebellion Handbook 

Get involved

• In the UK, come to one of our events, join the Rebellion Network and let us know how you can help out.
• Start a group where you are: in the UK or around the world.
• Find your local group.
• Check out the International XR website, with links to the French, German, Italian and UK websites.
• And while your time and energy are of most importance, if you are financially able to donate money, see our crowdfunder.

About Rising Up!

Extinction Rebellion emerged from the Rising Up! network, which promotes a fundamental change of our political and economic system to one which maximises well-being and minimises harm. Change needs to be nurtured in a culture of reverence, gratitude and inclusion while the tools of civil disobedience and direct action are used to express our collective power.