The “Last Generation” organization, whose activists destroyed the Warsaw Mermaid monument, is renting an office in central Warsaw, with the rent heavily subsidized by Warsaw’s local authority.
The group is a climate activist organization whose members on Friday covered the monument of the Warsaw Mermaid with orange paint to draw attention to the “approaching climate catastrophe” on International Women’s Day. They shouted “Alarm!” as they daubed the monument with paint.
The Warsaw Mermaid monument pays homage to the legend of the Warsaw Mermaid from the Vistula River. It was erected before the Second World War and is seen as an uncontroversial piece of art and a popular site for family outings and photographs.
Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski, a member of Donald Tusk’s ruling party Civic Platform (PO), announced that after the police carried out their investigation the city authorities will proceed to clean and renew the monument, adding that concern about climate change could not excuse acts of vandalism.
However, it turns out that the climate activist organization responsible for the vandalism has for years been renting an office from the city authorities for next to nothing. Warsaw City Hall has been asked why the organization is renting a 160 square meter section of office space in a prime Warsaw location for less than €1,000, when the market rental value is estimated to be at least five times higher.
The office concerned is known as the “Nest of climate activism” and hosts a number of organizations, including “Extinction Rebellion” and “Youth Climate Strike.”
“Last Generation” is the organization that recently attempted to disrupt a gala classical music concert at the Warsaw Philharmonic.
