Two environmental activists attacked the original Magna Carta in the United Kingdom during a protest seeking to raise awareness about climate change.
The Rev. Sue Parfitt, 82, and Judy Bruce, 85, a retired biology teacher, were arrested after attacking a display case containing the historic document at the British Library in London on Friday, London’s Metropolitan Police said.
A video of the incident showed the pair of protesters from Just Stop Oil, a British-based environmental group, using a hammer and chisel to hit the box, causing minor damage. The Magna Carta emerged unscathed.
“Magna Carta is rightly revered, as it is of great importance to our history, our freedoms and our laws,” the duo said in a statement after their protest. “But there will be no freedom, no legality, no rights, if we allow climate collapse to become the catastrophe it now threatens.”
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Climate activists Reverend Dr Sue Parfitt, 82, and Judy Bruce, 85, smashed parts of the reinforced case containing an original Magna Carta text at the British Library in London, Britain, on May 10, 2024. . (Just stop the oil/via REUTERS)
The duo and their group seek to end the world’s dependence on fossil fuels.
“This famous document is about the rule of law and fighting the abuse of power,” Bruce can be heard saying during the rally. “Our government is violating its own laws against climate change.”
Sue Parfitt, 82, and Judy Bruce, 85, were arrested following their protest in London, Britain, on May 10, 2024. (Just stop the oil/via REUTERS)
In the video, Parfitt added: “As a Christian, I am compelled to do everything I can to alleviate the terrible suffering that is coming and that is already here. Whatever it takes, whatever it takes. So we must simply stop the Petroleum”. “.
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The library’s security team intervened and interrupted the demonstration, preventing further damage to the case.
The library said the Treasures Gallery would be closed until further notice.
The British Library said the Treasure Gallery would be closed until further notice. (Tolga Akmen/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)
The exhibition ‘Magna Carta: Law, Liberty, Legacy’ opened at the British Library in London, England, on March 12, 2015. (Tolga Akmen/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)
Magna Carta is a 13th century English treaty that stated that no one was above the law. It is considered one of the founding documents of Western democracy.
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Only four original texts of the document exist: two of them are kept in the British Library, one in Salisbury Cathedral and the other in Lincoln Castle.
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
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