Activists say their voices are stifled by increasing rules and restrictions at COP28 climate talks

By LUJAIN JO and SIBI ARASU
Associated Press

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — This year’s United Nations climate talks may have seen record numbers registered to attend, but activists who have spent years demonstrating at the annual event say their space to voice their demands is shrinking year on year. Held in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates — where broad laws tightly restrict speech — climate activists have been protesting at COP28’s Blue Zone, which is considered international territory. Demonstrations this year have been limited in the number of people allowed to participate and which climate issues they’re allowed to address on any given day. It’s a stark contrast, activists say, to the growing presence of the fossil fuel industry, where those linked to the industry number around 1,400, according to an Associated Press analysis.