The police arrested “a little more than 70” activists from the 269 Animal Liberation collective who occupied the Micarna slaughterhouse on Monday. A man was slightly injured in the elbow and a woman felt unwell. Migros filed a complaint.
Activists made their voices heard from the roof of the Micarna building. © Keystone
Published on 01.07.2024
The evacuation began around 1:30 p.m. The activists struggled and put up resistance according to police. Two activists had to be treated and taken to a hospital, namely a man injured in the elbow and a woman who felt unwell. A criminal complaint having been filed by Migros, of which Micarna is a channel, the police proceeded to identify and interview the evacuated demonstrators. The intervention ended around 5:30 p.m. The arrested activists are aged between 18 and over 60 and are mainly of French and Italian origin, the police said in a press release Monday evening. A perimeter ban measure was notified to them by the Population and Migrants Service.
Fribourg police spokesman Bertrand Ruffieux said during the operation that Migros “gave the demonstrators 10 minutes to leave the premises of their own free will. But when they refused to do so, the police proceeded with the evacuation, in particular by cutting the chains or removing the devices that the activists had used to tie themselves to the installations. Some had to be carried towards the exit.”
35 million chickens
In a press release, the movement points out that the Courtepin slaughterhouse slaughters nearly 35 million chickens per year. It accuses Migros, “the largest advertising investor” in the country, of having “a particularly significant influence on consumption.”
Courtepin: Anti-speciesist activists occupy Micarna
For 269 Libération animale, Migros “has shown on many occasions that its profits are worth more than animal lives and the respect of employees. Its model of intensive breeding and production pollutes and degrades the environment, opposing the perspective of a society that produces its food in an ecological and sustainable manner.”
Saint-Aubin: Associations will meet the population to fight against the slaughterhouse project
The anti-speciesist movement, founded in France in 2016, is calling for 26 blockades of slaughterhouses in Europe, the occupation of the headquarters of major agri-food groups and the “liberation” of more than 3,800 animals.
