Students stage ‘die-in’ climate protest in German parliament

BERLIN – Students have disrupted a youth event in the German parliament, lying down in the chamber in a “die-in” to protest the government’s climate policies.

About 20 of the students attending the “Youth and Parliament” event Tuesday lay on the floor in front of parliamentary speaker Wolfgang Schaeuble, while others held up a makeshift banner reading “Your Climate Policies=Catastrophe.”

Germany’s dpa news agency reports that activist Maximilian Reimers said the stunt was meant to draw attention to how drastic the situation is and to put pressure on the government.

Schaeuble, Germany’s longest-serving lawmaker, was unfazed, telling the students: “Feel free to keep lying down. However, I have to say that tomorrow at noon I have to open a parliamentary session, and by that time you’ll need to have left.”