Thousands demonstrate in Switzerland for climate action
Several thousand have marched in Swiss cities, notably the capital Bern, calling for more climate protection measures.
The demonstration in Bern, coordinated by the Swiss Climate Strike movement, assembled some 3,500 people, estimated the Keystone-SDA news agency.
Participants marched through the city centre before gathering on parliament square, where speakers took to a makeshift stage to read out demands aimed at Swiss and international leaders.
According to the homepage of the climate strike movementExternal link, these demands include the declaration of a state of climate emergency, the attainment of net-zero carbon emissions by 2030, stricter regulation of the financial sector, and a “system change” to make all this possible.
Ahead of next weekend’s COP26 climate conference in Glasgow, the demonstrators also demanded more “climate justice” through a better inclusion of voices from the global south and from parts of the world most affected by climate change.
Events also took place in other Swiss cities on Friday, notably Basel, Bellinzona, Biel/Bienne, and Geneva, where 2,000 gathered in front of the United Nations building. Similar protests also took place abroad, notably in Berlin.
It’s the second day of climate demonstrations in Switzerland in the past month; on September 24, thousands took part in a day of protest instigated by the international “Fridays for FutureExternal link” movement.
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