He made civil disobedience his philosophy and the façade of Credit Suisse a scene of bloody hands. Judged this Tuesday in Geneva, Nicolas, a young member of the Breakfree collective, hopes that the controversial decision of the Lausanne court, which acquitted twelve activists on the grounds that the climate emergency could justify their good-natured intrusion into the bank’s premises, will inspire the same understanding on this side of Versoix. Nothing is less sure. The proceedings were held in a tiny room, no expert or specialist was accepted as a witness and the alleged crime – damage to property and not just a home invasion – complicates matters.
“An eco-anxious”
Nicolas, 23, has the emblematic profile of this generation invaded by the prospect of global warming. “A kind of pre-traumatic stress, an eco-anxiety that is found in scientists who preach in the desert and in young people,” said Laïla Batou, her lawyer. As a city boy, he started public protests very early. “I was 13 or 14 when I participated in my first event. It was in Lausanne, against trading. ” He signed many letters and petitions without ever receiving a reassuring response.
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