It turns out the Occupy Reykjavík protesters do not have a permit to have tents up in front of parliament. However, they do have a Livestream set up, and have told Grapevine that they are optimistic that they will eventually be allowed to stay.
Last weekend, Occupy Reykjavík began, and they have been in constant confrontation with the police ever since. First, a large tent they were staying in was taken down, and then returned badly damaged. Today, after returning with smaller tents, they have been trying to get a permit to stay in front of parliament.
The park in front of parliament is owned by the city of Reykjavík. As such, city officials have referred the protesters to environmental committee members for a permit to keep their tents there overnight.
The environmental committee member overseeing the matter, Þórólfur Jónsson, said that issuing a permit would have been easier if the protesters had contacted him before the weekend.
Grapevine spoke to one of the participants in the protest, who told us, “We have sort of a verbal agreement with the city. We’re still taking the tents down at night, but we hope to be able to get this sorted. I don’t know who keeps calling the cops on us, but I can tell you it’s no one at city council.”
He also pointed out that Occupy Reykjavík has a Livestream, which you can view here.
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