Climate protesters are taking action against Big Oil. UK courts are handing them prison terms akin to rapists and thieves | CNN

Climate activist Cressie Gethin and four others are serving four-year jail terms.

The sentences are believed to be the longest in the UK ’s history for non-violent protest.

They were delivered under two new controversial laws that supercharged policing powers to crack down on disruptive protests, even when they are peaceful.

The laws were purpose-built to target protest groups like Just Stop Oil .

There have been more than 3,000 Just Stop Oil activist arrests since the group formed in 2022 , according to the group.

Policy Exchange , which has received funding from ExxonMobil , called for the criminalization of the group in a report that heavily influenced the new UK law.

The Home Office did not respond to CNN ’s questions about whether the new Labour government will reevaluate the laws.

Just Stop Oil case amplifies the near erasure of legal defenses available to protesters who take part in disruptive demonstrations.

In a separate case in March , a London court ruled that environmental activists accused of criminal damage could not rely on their political or philosophical beliefs as a “reasonable excuse” In 160 environmental protest trials, Plan B found most verdicts resulted in not guilty verdicts or hung juries.