PRESS EUROPEAN

Denmark

Own choice

DENMARK is lowering the age of abortion without parental consent from 18 to 15, Gender Equality minister Marie Bjerre announced on the 50th anniversary of the law granting women the right to terminate a pregnancy. “We want young people to choose whether or not to involve their parents,” she said.

The Netherlands

Too darn hot

A GROUP of people with Dutch citizenship living on the Caribbean island of Bonaire, part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, have asked the government to protect the island from global warming. Failing to do so would result in a court case along with Greenpeace, the islanders said.

Belgium

Riot act

LEFT-WING political parties and unions in Belgium are opposing a proposed law banning ‘rioters’ from protests. The new legislation could be misused to curtail the freedom to participate in protests and strikes, they said, voicing doubts shared by the High Court and the Federal Institute of Human Rights.

Germany

Climate crims

GERMAN police swooped on the homes of climate activists from the Last Generation environmental group in Hesse, Hamburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Saxony, Bavaria, Berlin, and Schleswig-Holstein. They are charged with having organised a campaign to raise funds that would have been used to finance ‘criminal actions’.

France

Fizzled out

BORDER police in Le Havre destroyed 35,000 bottles of a bright orange soft drink called Couronne Fruit Champagne originating in Haiti but destined for consumption in France. Only sparkling wine products from the French Champagne region can use the word, according to a ruling accepted by 121 countries.

Norway

Spy whale

NORWAY’S Fisheries Directorate asked the public to protect a friendly beluga whale living in the inner Oslofjord from accidents or injury by limiting contact with him. Hvaldimir became famous in 2019 when he appeared wearing a camera harness, suggesting that he was trained by the Russian military.