Activists from the Last Generation movement are known for attaching themselves to roads in traffic-blocking protests in Germany. Reuters
Activists from the Last Generation movement are known for attaching themselves to roads in traffic-blocking protests in Germany. Reuters
Activists from the Last Generation movement are known for attaching themselves to roads in traffic-blocking protests in Germany. Reuters
Activists from the Last Generation movement are known for attaching themselves to roads in traffic-blocking protests in Germany. Reuters

Germany's Last Generation activists: From climate stunts to the ballot box


Tim Stickings
  • English
  • Arabic

Best known for gluing themselves to roads and defacing the Brandenburg Gate, hardline German climate activists are now competing at the ballot box.

The Last Generation movement has been approved to put up a list of candidates at elections to the European Parliament in June.

It is promising a campaign that "will not look like that of a traditional party", as it bids to become the EU's "fire alarm", warning politicians they are heading for climate disaster.

"We have a plan – and we will make ourselves known with more daring actions. We can tell you that much," it said in an email to supporters.

The Last Generation is similar to the Extinction Rebellion and Just Stop Oil movements in other European countries.

Its tactics of blocking roads and airports and defacing public artworks have been divisive in Germany. Chancellor Olaf Scholz last year called them "nutty".

There was dismay last autumn when Berlin's Brandenburg Gate, a symbol of German unity, was graffitied with spray-paint that proved tricky to remove.

Climate activists last year defaced Berlin's Brandenburg Gate with spray-paint that was difficult to remove. Getty Images
Climate activists last year defaced Berlin's Brandenburg Gate with spray-paint that was difficult to remove. Getty Images

Federal police say they do not classify the Last Generation as extremists, though its members are suspected of hundreds of criminal acts.

Mainstream Green party politicians have distanced themselves from the group, saying it does the cause of climate action more harm than good.

Last Generation activists, in turn, say the greens, social democrats and liberals in Mr Scholz's coalition have not done enough to tackle global warming.

"We do not want to enter the European Parliament because we've suddenly become well-behaved," said one of its candidates, Theodor Schnarr. "Instead, we want to mix things up in the parliament and make a noise.

"When we started our European election project two months ago, many thought we'd never manage it ... why shouldn't we surprise people a second time by entering the European Parliament?"

EU elections give small German parties an opening because they do not need a minimum 5 per cent of the vote to win representation, as they do in national elections.

In 2019, long shots including the Animal Protection Party, pan-European movement Volt and the eclectic Pirates Party each won a seat from Germany.

Last Generation activists say Olaf Scholz's government is not doing enough to tackle climate change. Getty Images
Last Generation activists say Olaf Scholz's government is not doing enough to tackle climate change. Getty Images

A new Turkish-linked party with connections to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is pledging to fight for "people with foreign roots" in this year's campaign.

The Last Generation is running 12 candidates, led by spokeswoman Lina Johnsen. Germany, as the EU's most populous country, has 96 out of 720 seats in the parliament.

The German climate movement says the EU elections are particularly significant because "trend-setting decisions" for European climate policy are made in Brussels.

The EU parliament has less power than most national assemblies but its approval is often required for central planks of climate policy.

A new EU executive to be appointed after the June elections will have to set an emissions target for 2040 that is sure to prove controversial.

In Germany, ministers have a net-zero target for 2045 and recent figures forecasting a 64 per cent fall in emissions by 2030 gave hope it can still be achieved.

Mr Scholz's coalition has brought in policies to promote the use of wind and solar power, hydrogen and gas-free boilers to lower Germany's emissions.

However, the war in Ukraine and cost-of-living fears have frustrated its efforts, at one stage forcing Germany to place disused coal power stations back on standby to keep the lights on.

The specs

Engine: 4-litre twin-turbo V8

Transmission: nine-speed

Power: 542bhp

Torque: 700Nm

Price: Dh848,000

On sale: now

The specs

Price, base / as tested Dh135,000

Engine 1.6L turbo

Gearbox Six speed automatic with manual and sports mode

Power 165hp @ 6,000rpm

Torque 240Nm @ 1,400rpm 0-100kph: 9.2 seconds

Top speed 420 kph (governed)

Fuel economy, combined 35.2L / 100km (est)

FA Cup fifth round draw

Sheffield Wednesday v Manchester City
Reading/Cardiff City v Sheffield United
Chelsea v Shrewsbury Town/Liverpool
West Bromwich Albion v Newcastle United/Oxford United
Leicester City v Coventry City/Birmingham City
Northampton Town/Derby County v Manchester United
Southampton/Tottenham Hotspur v Norwich City
Portsmouth v Arsenal 

The years Ramadan fell in May

1987

1954

1921

1888

The Lost Letters of William Woolf
Helen Cullen, Graydon House 

MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW

Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman

Director: Jesse Armstrong

Rating: 3.5/5

Essentials
The flights

Return flights from Dubai to Windhoek, with a combination of Emirates and Air Namibia, cost from US$790 (Dh2,902) via Johannesburg.
The trip
A 10-day self-drive in Namibia staying at a combination of the safari camps mentioned – Okonjima AfriCat, Little Kulala, Desert Rhino/Damaraland, Ongava – costs from $7,000 (Dh25,711) per person, including car hire (Toyota 4x4 or similar), but excluding international flights, with The Luxury Safari Company.
When to go
The cooler winter months, from June to September, are best, especially for game viewing. 

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SPEC%20SHEET
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The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting

2. Prayer

3. Hajj

4. Shahada

5. Zakat 

While you're here
What%20is%20Dungeons%20%26%20Dragons%3F%20
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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So what is Spicy Chickenjoy?

Just as McDonald’s has the Big Mac, Jollibee has Spicy Chickenjoy – a piece of fried chicken that’s crispy and spicy on the outside and comes with a side of spaghetti, all covered in tomato sauce and topped with sausage slices and ground beef. It sounds like a recipe that a child would come up with, but perhaps that’s the point – a flavourbomb combination of cheap comfort foods. Chickenjoy is Jollibee’s best-selling product in every country in which it has a presence.
 

Company profile

Date started: December 24, 2018

Founders: Omer Gurel, chief executive and co-founder and Edebali Sener, co-founder and chief technology officer

Based: Dubai Media City

Number of employees: 42 (34 in Dubai and a tech team of eight in Ankara, Turkey)

Sector: ConsumerTech and FinTech

Cashflow: Almost $1 million a year

Funding: Series A funding of $2.5m with Series B plans for May 2020

Drishyam 2

Directed by: Jeethu Joseph

Starring: Mohanlal, Meena, Ansiba, Murali Gopy

Rating: 4 stars

Sole survivors
  • Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
  • George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
  • Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
  • Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Singham Again

Director: Rohit Shetty

Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone

Rating: 3/5

Fighting with My Family

Director: Stephen Merchant 

Stars: Dwayne Johnson, Nick Frost, Lena Headey, Florence Pugh, Thomas Whilley, Tori Ellen Ross, Jack Lowden, Olivia Bernstone, Elroy Powell        

Four stars

MATCH INFO

Rugby World Cup (all times UAE)

Final: England v South Africa, Saturday, 1pm

Infiniti QX80 specs

Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6

Power: 450hp

Torque: 700Nm

Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000

Available: Now

The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting

2. Prayer

3. Hajj

4. Shahada

5. Zakat 

The Florida Project

Director: Sean Baker

Starring: Bria Vinaite, Brooklynn Prince, Willem Dafoe

Four stars

The specs

Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel

Power: 579hp

Torque: 859Nm

Transmission: Single-speed automatic

Price: From Dh825,900

On sale: Now

Company%20profile
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Mrs%20Chatterjee%20Vs%20Norway
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F1 The Movie

Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem

Director: Joseph Kosinski

Rating: 4/5

The specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylturbo

Transmission: seven-speed DSG automatic

Power: 242bhp

Torque: 370Nm

Price: Dh136,814

SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20IPHONE%2015%20PRO%20MAX
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Muguruza's singles career in stats

WTA titles 3

Prize money US$11,128,219 (Dh40,873,133.82)

Wins / losses 293 / 149

Updated: April 01, 2024, 12:04 PM`