On November 29th Jan was sentenced to 6 months in prison for his role in causing disruption to the M25 motorway as part of a Just Stop Oil action. Whilst deliberately disruptive, this and similar actions have not caused any harm to any living being – they merely disrupt traffic to draw attention to the far greater disruption caused by the climate crisis. His imprisonment suggests a major erosion of civil liberties in this country which we are deeply concerned about. Protest is a human right and it must be protected. Jan is not the only political prisoner in the UK, but he is the first person to be prosecuted under the new statutory offence of ‘causing a public nuisance’ enshrined in law by the draconian Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts (PCSC) Act which passed through Parliament this year. Our government and police institutions appear far more interested in prosecuting and imprisoning peaceful protesters than in dealing with the significant existential problems that we face as a planet relating to climate change, ecological crises, and social justice. He is clearly being used to send a signal to other protestors. Jan took this drastic action to raise public awareness of the climate crisis. He has now lost his liberty and his family are facing Christmas without him. Please show your support and solidarity for Jan and his family at this really difficult time.