West Gate climate protest: Extinction Rebellion activist Joseph Zammit apologises after woman was forced to give birth at roadside: ‘Hate for it to happen to my wife’

A climate activist has issued a public apology to a new mother after his selfish actions forced her to give birth to her second child on the side of a busy highway in the middle of a major traffic jam.

Anti-climate change protesters brought traffic to a standstill on Melbourne’s West Gate Bridge during morning rush hour on Tuesday.

The Extinction Rebellion protest included a truck blockade that blocked three lanes in the city and caused a 30km traffic jam all the way back to the Princes Freeway at Hoppers Crossing.

Roshni Lad was in labor and on her way to the hospital when she, husband Bhairav ​​​​and a family friend got stuck in a traffic jam.

The couple stopped where two passing motorists also stopped and helped Mrs Lad deliver a healthy baby boy before paramedics arrived.

Three protesters were arrested and each pleaded guilty to two counts of public nuisance by obstructing motorists and obstructing police and emergency responders.

One of the protesters apologized to Ms Lad hours after he was granted bail.

“I’m very sorry this happened… I would hate for it to happen to my wife,” Joseph Zammit told ABC Melbourne on Wednesday.

‘It’s just a shame.’

He added that the group’s intention was not to disrupt emergency services or prevent patients from accessing medical care.

The delays extended to Hoppers Crossing on the Princes Freeway and the Deer Park Bypass on the M80 Ring Road.

“Our intention is to drive home the message that we are in a climate crisis,” Zammit said.

‘We do what we can with the best intentions.

‘Things don’t always go perfectly. It’s a shame for this lady and I’m very grateful that the baby was, you know, born good and happy and I saw the picture of the mother with the baby. They looked great and I’m grateful for that.’

Ms Lad was not the only one caught in the chaos on her way to hospital.

Another woman told the ABC that her granddaughter had missed an appointment for an electroencephalogram as a result of the protest.

Zammit called on the federal government to do more on climate change.

“Yes, we are pushing the boundaries to try to make things happen,” he said.

‘We are very sorry that (roadside birth) has taken place, but we are also very sorry that we have to push the boundaries and take these rather extreme measures just to be heard.’

Hours earlier, Zammit, 68, defended the group’s actions outside the Melbourne Magistrates Court.

“What they (motorists) suffered today is nothing compared to what will happen in the future,” he told reporters.

“What we’re actually doing is a service to the community.”

Zammit was granted bail to appear in court again on April 16. He has agreed not to participate in unlawful protests.

The two other protesters, Deanna ‘Violet’ Coco, 33, from NSW and Bradley Homewood, 51, from Williamstown, were sentenced to 21 days behind bars.

CoCo, 33, was previously sentenced to 13 days in jail over similar protests at the Sydney Harbor Bridge. She was the first person to be jailed under NSW’s now invalid anti-protest laws.

“The government must choose which side of history it will be on,” she said in an Extinction Rebellion statement released after Tuesday’s protest.

‘Australia is the world’s third largest exporter of fossil fuels, making it one of the biggest contributors to the global death project that is already killing people through floods, fires, drought and famine – especially in low-income countries such as those in South America. Africa. East Asia.’

Victoria’s Police Minister Anthony Carbines branded the protesters “idiots”.

“It is clear that these individuals intend to cause mass disruption that could jeopardize the safety of themselves and others in the community,” he said.

He added that Victoria’s anti-protest laws “strike the right balance between ensuring police have the resources they need to maintain law and order while protecting the rights of citizens to protest peacefully.”

Extinction Rebellion has promised to cause more disruption next week.