Climate Chaos – Page 94

A busy week here in Mayo

Work continues in Glengad, but so does action resisting the pipeline. The Rossport Solidarity Camp is active and running, so please come and visit! Come and see what is happening with your own eyes, and bring whatever skills and talents you would like to share. Here is a five day update.

Wednesday 10 June

Belmullet Courthouse:
There was a packed courthouse in Belmullet on Wednesday with 31 Shell to Sea people up in court. The timing of this court date is undeniably political, considering 13 of the charges were from September 2008. Presumably court has been timed to coincide with the imminent arrival of the Solitaire. There was a new judge in place of Mary Devins, judge Denis Mclaughlan. Only one case was heard that day, and the rest of them had their cases adjourned until the 8th of July. The numbers on camp grew on Wednesday as many people who had to return for court remained on camp.

Truck blockade:
Around 5:30pm on Wednesday, locals and supporters attempted to block a convoy of four trucks along the road to the Shell compound. People moved plastic barricades into the road by the graveyard in Glengad, leaving enough room for cars but causing the Shell trucks to have to stop in the road up by Kilcommon Lodge. The trucks were carrying gravel and hardcore for building the causeway at the Shell compound on the beach in Glengad where the pipeline is proposed to come ashore. While the trucks were stopped, one person attempted to speak with the drivers, engaging in heated but civilised conversation with one of them. The main argument was that when people’s lives are at risk, it is no longer ‘just a job’. As this conversation was going on, the truck at the front of the queue started to move, and a protestor jumped onto the back of it and climbed into the bed of the truck. After the driver was informed that a protestor was aboard the truck he slowed down a bit but continued to drive until finally coming to a stop after about 100 metres. The protester sat on top of the cab of the truck until the gardai arrived and after about 10-15 minutes began to forcefully remove the protester.

As this was happening on top of the truck two people climbed underneath it. The gardai moved in and wrestled one protestor out from under the truck. As he was on the ground guards grabbed one of his feet and raised it above waist height, he was then dragged across the road in this position causing a considerable amount of pain. Several garda then climbed underneath the truck and violently dragged the other person out. Simultaneously four gardai were removing the person from the top of the truck, lifting him over their heads and sliding him down the side onto the road. Officer MY2 made a verbal promise to the protester that he would take down the details of the truck driver because of his reckless driving. Finally after 10-15 minutes of being pinned to the ground with his arm twisted behind his back, the person on the ground was brought to a standing position and arrested, though none of the gardai would explain what he was being arrested for when asked. He fell to the ground as he was being put into the police van, and had to be lifted into the van by several garda.

Though the person who had been on top of the truck was not immediately arrested, soon afterwards he was arrested under three charges: obstructing traffic, breach of the peace, and refusing to obey the orders of a garda. Both arrestees were held in custody overnight and brought to court in Westport the next morning before they’d recieved legal aid. The gardai attempted to have them both put on remand, which means they’d be put in jail until the next court date on 8 July. They also have begun asking for bail, from 100 euro to 500 euro, something which hasn’t been done at all in the past several years of the campaign. This seems to be a political move by An Garda Síochána in an attempt to repress the campaign. There is no reason to suspect people of flight risk, as there has never been a problem with people showing up to court in the past. When asked why they are doing this, the only explanation is that ‘this is the new policy’. However it is not clear whether this is the new policy for anyone arrested in Ireland, or whether it is something put in place strategically to deal with political protestors. The two truck-blockers were held until the next morning, and brought to court the next day. One of them was forced to go to Castle Rea prison to sign his 500 euro bail. He was released at 6pm on Thursday after being held for 24 hours for a simple breach of the peace.

Thursday 11 June

Sinking of the Chief’s boat- Definitive account from Pat himself:

Pat O’Donnell’s fishing boat was boarded by four masked men, two of whom were armed with guns, at approximately 2am on 11 June whilst out at sea laying pots. The two armed men held Mr O’Donnell and his crewman Martin McDonnell in the wheelhouse of the boat while another two went below deck for 20 minutes. These men returned to the deck and the two crew members were held for one and a half hours until the engine went out. At this point the masked men alighted onto an unknown vessel that took them away. None of the men spoke good English. Mr O’Donnell went down to the engine room and realised that the boat was sinking.The two fishermen put out a mayday signal and attempted to inflate their lifeboat. The inflation mechanism failed a number of times but eventually worked with only moments left to spare. Once onboard the lifeboat Mr O’Donnell and Mr McDonnell sent out a distress flare. They were rescued at 4.30am by the ‘Rachel Mary’, another boat owned by Pat O’Donnell and operated by his son, fisherman, Jonathan O’Donnell. He then rang the Gardai at around 6am to inform them of the incident.

Pat said “I was in fear for my life, is there no end to what these thugs will try to do? AIl I am trying to do is protect my family and the seas that are our livelihood. I told Minster O’Cuiv in April that I needed protection by the state, but he wouldn’t give it – now its time for the government to protect its people. I won’t be intimidated by this.”

Pat O’Donnell is a local fisherman with over thirty years experience in the waters off the coast of Ireland. It is assumed that Pat O’Donnell was targeted as he is one of the loudest objectors to Shell’s Corrib Gas Project. As a fifth generation fisherman his livelihood will be severely affected by pollution from the corrib project into Broadhaven bay. Determined to protect the waters for future generations of fishermen, Mr. O’Donnell has consistently refused to be paid off by Shell.

http://www.indymedia.ie/article/92657

Early morning water action:

At 4:30am, 14 kayakers set out to try and disrupt the works being carried out in preparation for the laying of the offshore pipeline in Broadhaven Bay. The gardai were quickly on the scene, and began arresting people under public order charges, failure to obey the instructions of a garda. Over the course of an hour, work was sucessfully disrupted and six people were arrested. The gardai confiscated the six kayaks of the arrestees, slashing five of the inflatable kayaks with knives. The gards have heightened their intimidation tactics, telling first offense arrestees that they may have to spend a week in prison simply for a breach of the peace violation. They are doing whatever they can to discourage people from doing further actions against Shell, attempting to put people on remand, charging disproportionate amounts for unnecessary bail, and arbitrarily attempting to get people ‘banned’ from Broadhaven Bay. Allegations that this early morning action kept rescue teams from responding to Pat O’Donnell’s distress signal are unfounded. The kayak action was unrelated to that incident, and is fairly unimportant compared to the seriousness of the attack on Pat and Martin.

Friday 12 June

Early Friday morning, a local bus driver was followed by the gardai on his bus route, then arrested in his own home after he had dropped the bus full of kids off at school. The gardai claimed to have video footage of him taking part in the removal of nets. The indcident happened in April when nearly 200 local residents and supporters went to take the nets down from the special area of conservation where the endangered sand martins nest. However the footage was unreliable and according to the person he was not even at the protest that day, so the gardai let him go without charging him. To arbitrarily arrest a person in their home nearly two months after an event without substantial evidence is plain terrorism.

At 10am Friday morning, a local resident blocked Shell trucks from passing his house by parking his car in the road. His house has been damaged due to the heavy traffic from Shell’s trucks on a road unsuitable for haulage and after recieving no response from the Mayo County Council, he took action. The trucks turned around, promising that there would be no traffic for ‘a few days.’ The gardai were informed that this action was going to take place beforehand, and they did not try to arrest him. The local community has vowed to continue the blockade once the trucks start up again.

Sunday 14 June
Late Sunday night a group of 7 kayakers set out to disrupt the dredging going on in Broadhaven Bay, but were instantly met with a fleet of 9 motorboats. Work was stopped for about 15 minutes, and one kayaker was capsized by one of the security boats. They took the inflatable kayak into their motorboat and left the person swimming in the water. One of the security guards grabbed hold of the person by the neck of his lifejacket and dragged him through the water. When other kayakers tried to intervene, they were violently dealt with by the security boat who proceeded to take one kayaker’s paddle and abandon her there. Despite this aggressive behavior on the part of the Shell security, everyone made it back to shore safely. People are in high spirits here at the Rossport Solidarity Camp, and the resistance will continue as long as the work on this project does!

Greenwash Guerrillas confront the Guardian – Mon 15 Jun 09

Dateline: theguardian CLIMATE CHANGE SUMMIT 2009, Hotel Russell, London, UK, 08:30-09:30, Mon 15 Jun 09 – Despite climate criminal corporation E.ON’s efforts to bag billions of quid from the British State to build new filthy dirty coal fired power stations at Kingsnorth, north Kent and elsewhere, the Guardian still too

* theguardian MULTICULTURAL SUMMIT 2009, sponsored by the BNP?
* theguardian GEOGRAPHY SUMMIT 2009, sponsored by the Flat Earth Society?
* theguardian ABORTION RIGHTS SUMMIT 2009, sponsored by the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children?

The Greenwash Guerillas, London Brigade, Detection Platoon #1 could not let this obscenity go un-protested!

Vidz at YouTube

• Greenwash Guerrillas – 1. Action
» youtube.com/watch?v=NzEASynZxck

• Greenwash Guerrillas – 2. Interviews
» youtube.com/watch?v=M5A6NYpvArs

An excellent full colour spoof edition of the Guardian, using the newspaper’s own articles from the last year to expose the destructive role E.ON is playing in the UK’s fight against climate change, was available en mass for distribution to summit attendees, and a couple of plucky comrades infiltrated the venue early doors to distribute them.

Greenwash Guerillas actions work best without interference from the filth, but because this event had already attracted activist attention…
• Greenwash Alert – Guardian Climate Change Summit (17 Apr 09)
» www.indymedia.org.uk/en/regions/leedsbradford/2009/04/427737.html
…a Press Release was published in advance…
• Greenwash Guerrillas Targeting Guardian Climate Change Summit (14 Jun 09)
» www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2009/06/432268.html
…and sure enough Plod turned up mob-handed.

However… the cop-in-charge, a Sgt Saltmarsh – EK 10, was unlike any cop I’ve come across before – communicative, co-operative, open to compromise and negotiation, even charming, while at the same being controlling and coercive. As we donned our white ‘greenwash hazard’ suits in leafy Russell Square, he approached us and told us of the pen we’d be restricted to, on the opposite corner of a crossroads from the summit entrance to the Russell Rooms in the Russell Hotel, wherein the summit was being held. But… although he mentioned that our two infiltrator comrades were ejected from the venue, he said he’d made sure a copy of our spoof Guardian was on every attendees seat inside. Whether this was actually so remains unverified. And… I found it easy to negotiate freedom from being penned for media news gatherers (myself and a videographer documentary film-maker), such that when a couple of cop bottom-feeders tried to interfere with my recording the event on camera, I could say, “We’ve already secured a freedom arrangement for media workers with your sergeant – you need to speak to him,” which terminated their interference and put them on the defensive.

We initially occupied the wide pavement space outside the summit entrance, and lashed our TOXIC GREENWASH HAZARD banner to the railings flanking the Russell Rooms entrance. A hotel manager emerged and began taking it down – and in a later confab with Sgt Saltmarsh, got his smug grin wiped off his face (oh, for a sensitive rifle microphone!). While threatening us with arrests under Section 12, Public Order Act 1986, Sgt Saltmarsh agreed to compromise over the location of the protester pen, and got his underlings to drag crash barriers across Herbrand Street to opposite the Russell Rooms entrance. And two non-hazard-suited comrades were “allowed” to hand copies of our spoof Guardian to summit attendees as they arrived. But the modus operandi raison d’être of Greenwash Guerillas – consensually running e-scanners over arriving summit attendees, and interpreting the scanners’ “moop-moop-NEEK” noise as “TOXIC GREENWASH DETECTED”, as both a street-theatrical performance AND a serious conversation-starter – was completely negated by Sgt Saltmarsh’s impositions of Public Order Act conditions.

But… in conversations afterward, he intimated that his post-event intelligence report would emphasise how fluffy, peaceful, and (if only under the coercive threats of multiple Section 12 arrests) ultimately co-operative the Greenwash Guerillas were on this occassion. Who knows – maybe in future he’ll have no grounds for pre-judging our actions to entail a threat of “serious public disorder, serious criminal damage or serious disruption to the life of the community”, and we can protest without arrest threats? But I’m not holding my breath, so to speak – better by far to only send advance Press Releases embargoed until the action’s start time, or only send them at the action’s start time, so we’ve a higher chance of peaceful protest without ANY interference and obstruction from the filth.

Whatever Next?
I recommend another Government of the Dead protest production:
“New” Labour Zombie Lunchtime Lurch
• Date: Thu 18 Jun 09, 13:00 & lurching onwards to 15:00
• Rendezvous: “New” Labour Party HQ, 39 Victoria St, London, SW1H 0HA
• Shout Out: Brown barely survived the Parliamentary Labour Party meeting on Mon 08 Jun 09. Since he’s hanging on for grim death, we can look forward to a period of “Zombie Dead Man Walking” government in the run up to an election. Can we take the power to the streets? YES WE CAN!!
• Who-What: The Government of the Dead will be sending a whole lurch of zombies down there to “New” Labour Party HQ on Thu 18 Jun, from 13:00 lunchtime, when zombies could be hungry. Zombies are not known for their sense of direction, so they could head off to Parliament and Downing Street at a slow shuffle, or they might end up staggering across St James’ Park to Buckingham Palace, demanding to be dissolved and put out of their misery.
• Dress Code: this can be ordinary clothes, but torn up or bloodstained is a good look, especially with trendy blairite suits; on the other hand, why not go for the gothic?
• Makeup: green/white pale skin, good healthy look for a zombie, blood, wounds, sores all recommended; PVC glue gives good skin-peel effect.
• Locomotion: SLOW, gets there in the end.
» Location & Public Transport Map: tinyurl.com/NLZLL-map
» Facebook Event Page: tinyurl.com/NLZLL-FB
» Web: tinyurl.com/GotDead-future

World Naked Bike Rides UK (& Manchester Critical Mass)

Brighton:

In Brighton, organisers of the seven-mile ride were warned by Sussex Police last month that participants could face prosecution if officers received complaints about the nudity.

But, after advice from civil liberties group Liberty, cyclists entered discussions with local police chiefs and resolved the impasse.

Brighton:

In Brighton, organisers of the seven-mile ride were warned by Sussex Police last month that participants could face prosecution if officers received complaints about the nudity.

But, after advice from civil liberties group Liberty, cyclists entered discussions with local police chiefs and resolved the impasse.

Co-organiser Duncan Blinkhorn said: “This is a fun if outrageous way to make the serious point that we should not have to tolerate roads, cities and a planet dominated by the brutishness of cars that routinely foul the air we all breathe, destroy lives and impoverish the environment.”

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London:

On Saturday 12 June 2010 the seventh London World Naked Bike Ride will return to the streets of the capital, allowing riders to see the city sights from the comfort of a bike or skates. The ride is easy and upbeat, and riders decorate their bodies and bikes with messages of protest against oil dependency and car culture.

Around 1200 riders turned out for the London World Naked Bike Ride on Saturday, completing a 10km circuit through some of the major tourist and shopping streets of the capital and as in previous rides creating quite a stir for the five minutes or so while they passed.

London police, also on pedal cycles but fully clothed, accompanied the cyclists and eased their passage through the traffic. Nudity is not in itself an offence and police allow the now annual protest to take place.

Crowds several deep lined the edge of the road in popular tourist spots including Trafalgar Square, and even many of the shoppers in Oxford St stopped consuming to watch, although from the many comments I heard, many were unclear about the purpose of the event.

Some riders did have slogans on their bodies, mainly about oil and traffic, and some bikes carried A4 posters reading REAL RIGHTS FOR BIKE and CELEBRATE BODY FREEDOM or had flags stating ‘CURB CAR CULTURE’ which made clear the purpose of the event to the careful onlooker, but for most people it seemed simply a spectacle of naked or near-naked bodies. Though of course also a rare treat for any bicycle spotters.

Riders rode in a variety of dress and undress. Apart from shoes – virtually essential on a bike – some wore nothing, while others added body paint, cycle helmets, hats, shorts or briefs, bras and often a camera; a few rode fully dressed. As on previous events there were considerably more men than women, something that isn’t fully reflected in my pictures. Although there were fewer women, more of them were in colourful body paint or otherwise stood out from the crowd.

This is an event that many – riders and watchers – enjoy and something that really does make thousands of people stop and stare, but as in previous years it seems to fail to get a clear message across, perhaps because those taking part do so for such varied reasons. This isn’t essentially a naturist rally and nudity alone just isn’t enough to get the point of the event across.

* London is the largest daytime WNBR event in the world. We had 1,200 participants on Saturday 13 June 2009!!! Previously we had 1,000 (2007 & 2008), 800 (2006), 250 (2005) and 58 (2004).

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Manchester:

The weather was perfect, the riders were exceptional and the starting point was lovely. We rode in joy and fun and lots of noise for almost the whole route and the crowds loved us. It all went a bit pear-shaped on Portland Street when some well-intentioned but sadly ill-informed constabulary stopped the ride and tried to make us get dressed. We undressed around the corner anyway, and we did get a lot of wonderful media coverage. It ain’t gonna happen again folks, we’ll make sure of that! Next year’s going to have the best ride ever!

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Sheffield:

There were 18 naked riders which was down from last year’s 27 participants, although the weather was just as nice and sunny with a warm gentle breeze. The golden sunshine and clear blue skies, made it a wonderful day for everbody. This year, as it was our second annual ride, we were hoping for around one hundred naked riders. However, as the London WNBR was held in the afternoon, this may have lowered the turn out as folk thronged to the London ride which had over one thousand riders.

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Southampton:

On a dry and ‘warm enough’ evening 150 riders attended. The convoy was led in fine style by a pair of Penny Farthings dating from the 1890s. We felt that these vehicles from a time before the internal combustion engine neatly debunked the foolish idea that roads are made for cars! Helped by the stately pace of the vintage bikes, the ride stayed closely bunched together which gave a sense of unity. We were greeted warmly by bystanders as we passed, and most car drivers were tolerant (though there were the odd few aggressive exceptions). Though numbers were about the same as last year, it seemed to me there was a greater show of nakedness this time, so hoorah for Southampton riders!

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York:

AN 87-year-old woman was among the participants in this year’s York Naked Bike Ride.

Margaret Dustman, who lived in Acomb for more than 50 years before moving to Mirfield, said she took part because she was against people’s devotion to petrol and fashion.

Mrs Dustman cycled off in the altogether, but others were there in various states of undress, wearing Indian headdress, bikinis and various slogans daubed on their bodies.

Other reports, photos and things at http://www.worldnakedbikeride.org/uk/

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The Critical Masses in Manchester have been attended by well over 100 people each month, for the last couple of years – hoorah!

Videos of May 2009 ride parts 1 2 3 4

See you there – every last friday of the month 6pm central library MCR

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Thugs Seek Jobs at Shell HQ

The main doors at Shells headquarters were closed to staff at 9am today, 12 June as protesters dressed as ‘thugs’ turned up for a job interview. Shell security locked all doors as protesters tried to enter the building for what they said was a job interview “we hear Shell are hiring thugs to sink ships in Ireland”.

Protesters tried to enter the Headquarters but the doors were locked as they went in. The doors remained locked for about an hour and a half, despite the various demonstrations the protesters gave of their ‘thugery’ skills even simulating how they coud hold a fisherman captive why sinking his boat.

One of the protesters Samantha Johnson said “Shell have been hiring hit squads to terrorise local protesters at their activities abroad, as with the Ogoni people in the Niger Delta. Now, they have imported these methods to Ireland. Indeed, last month a former Shell security guard was identified as one of the mercenaries employed in an assassination plot in Bolivia”.

This protest is in response to an incident in Rossport, Ireland at 2am yesterday morning where 4 masked men sunk a local fisherman’s boat, with the owner and a crewmember still on it. 2 of the men were armed and held the fishermen while the others went below deck to sink the boat.

One of the protesters today Sean Reilly said “This shows the extremes Shell go to, to get what they want. They are willing to put 2 men in hospital for vocally expressing opposition.

Indigenous anti-infastructure protesters murdered in crackdown on months-long blockade in Peru

For seven weeks tens of thousands of Amazonian Indians blocked roads and rivers across eastern Peru. They seized hydroelectric plants and pumping stations on oil and gas pipelines to try to force the repeal of decrees facilitating oil exploration, commercial farming and logging in parts of the jungle. Petroperu, the state oil company, had to shut a pipeline that carries 40,000 barrels of oil each day. Amid threats of energy rationing in eastern towns, the government of President Alan García this month ordered armed police to clear a stretch of road and retake a pumping station near Bagua, in Peru’s northern jungle

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THE BACKGROUND

Early this morning (June 5th), Peruvian police launched a violent attack on a nonviolent road blockade held by Amazonian indigenous protesters opposing 10 laws that would open up their territory to increased mineral, oil, gas and timber exploitation. Police opened fire with live ammunition, killing at least 28 people.

FMI:
http://www.rootforce.org/2009/06/05/peruvian-police-murder-indigenous-protesters-take-action/

WHY TAKE ACTION

The first reason to take action, of course, is simply out of solidarity with our fellow warriors in the struggle for a just and sustainable world. But why are we sending out this action alert as Root Force?

For nearly two months, thousands indigenous protesters have nearly paralyzed Peru’s Amazon region with blockades of critical transportation and mining infrastructure. They have sparked a national discourse over the limits to development and who owns nature, and have made it clear that they will not surrender any of their ancestral homelands.

At the heart of the issue are 10 laws passed by presidential decree that would greatly facilitate industrial exploitation of the Amazon. THIS IS CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE, intended to supply new raw materials for the global market. THIS IS ONE OF THOSE WEAK POINTS OF THE SYSTEM that we are always talking about.

The indigenous warriors fighting for their lives have pushed this issue into the global eye, and the Peruvian government has placed itself in a position of weakness by murdering unarmed protesters. Even before the recent killings, a congressional panel had already declared 2 of the laws unconstitutional, and only through procedural tricks has the president’s party been able to stall debate on repealing one of those laws.

This is one of those rare cases where SUSTAINED INTERNATIONAL PRESSURE COULD TIP THE SCALES. If these laws are repealed, it will be a major setback for infrastructure expansion plans in a truly critical region of the hemisphere.

HOW TO TAKE ACTION

You can email critical people in the Peruvian government through this link, provided by Amazon Watch:

http://amazonwatch.org/peru-action-alert.php

You can also organize protests at Peruvian embassies or consulates, or take other actions that you think stand a good chance of making it back to the decision makers in Lima.

Make sure to express your outrage at the government’s strong arm tactics — even before the murders, the government had suspended civil liberties in 5 provinces and was calling indigenous people “terrorists” — and demand the repeal of the Free Trade laws and any law further opening the Amazon to mineral, oil, gas, timber, hydroelectric or agricultural exploitation.

In Solidarity,
Root Force

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Recent reports indicate as many as 84 people killed and 150 arrested in clashes stemming from an early morning violent raid by police on unarmed protesters on June 5. Police are reported to be burning the bodies of the dead and dumping them into the river.

Astonishingly — but not surprisingly — the government is accusing the protesters of using tactics reminiscent of the 1980s internal conflict. Deploying racist imagery painting indigenous protesters as spear-wielding savages, President Alan Garcia has vowed a tough “response.”

Following the early-morning massacre, protesters took 38 police hostage at a pumping station for the national oil company, PetroPeru. A police raid to free the officers resulted in the deaths of nine of them. An Argentinian oil company, Pluspetrol, has halted oil pumping in one unit and will soon halt pumping in another due to the unrest.

The government has since issued an arrest warrant for indigenous leader Alberto Pizango (who was elected to represent the indigenous coalition by the leaders of 1,200 communities), charging him with “sedition.” Pizango has gone into hiding.

Please take action and urge the Peruvian government to halt the violence and repeal the controversial free trade laws that would open up indigenous land in the Amazon to increased development. Contact the US government and international agencies as well, and encourage them to place pressure on Peru. The Peruvian government is in a serious position of weakness right now and trying to cover it up with violence, and this is one of those rare cases where international pressure could deal a major setback to infrastructure expansion plans.

Read the full Root Force action alert on this issue here.

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Indigenous Leaders and Allies Call for an End to Violence on All Sides

BAGUA, Peru – June 8 – In the aftermath of Friday’s bloody raid on a peaceful indigenous road blockade near Bagua in the Peruvian Amazon, numerous eyewitnesses are reporting that the Special Forces of the Peruvian Police have been disposing of the bodies of indigenous protesters who were killed.

“Today I spoke to many eyewitnesses in Bagua reporting that they saw police throw the bodies of the dead into the Marañon River from a helicopter in an apparent attempt by the Government to underreport the number of indigenous people killed by police,” said Gregor MacLennan, spokesperson for Amazon Watch speaking.

“Hospital workers in Bagua Chica and Bagua Grande corroborated that the police took bodies of the dead from their premises to an undisclosed location. I spoke to several people who reported that there are bodies lying at the bottom of a deep crevasse up in the hills, about 2 kilometers from the incident site. When the Church and local leaders went to investigate, the police stopped them from approaching the area,” reported MacLennan.

Police and government officials have been consistently underreporting the number of indigenous people killed by police gunfire. Indigenous organizations place the number of protesters killed at least at 40, while Government officials claiming that only a handful of indigenous people were killed. Also the Garcia Government claims that 22 police officers were killed and several still missing.

“Witnesses say that it was the police who opened fire last Friday on the protesters from helicopters,” MacLennan said. “Now the government appears to be destroying the bodies of slain protesters and giving very low estimates of the casualty. Given that the demonstrators were unarmed or carrying only wooden spears and the police were firing automatic weapons, the actual number of indigenous people killed is likely to be much higher.”

“Another eyewitness reported seeing the bodies of five indigenous people that had been burned beyond identification at the morgue. I have listened to testimony of people in tears talking about witnessing the police burning bodies,” continued MacLennan.

At least 150 people from the demonstration on Friday are still being detained. Eye-witness reports also confirm that police forcibly removed some of the wounded indigenous protesters from hospitals, taking them to unknown destinations. Their families expressed concern for their well being while in detention. There are many people still reported missing and access to medical attention in the region is horribly inadequate.

The Organizing Committee for the Indigenous Peoples of Alto Amazonas Province issued this statement: “It is appalling that political powers have acted in such a cruel and inhuman manner against Amazonian Peoples, failing to recognize the fundamental rights and protections guaranteed to us by the Constitution. We express deep grief over the death of our indigenous brothers, of civilians and the officers of the National Police.”

The government expanded the State of Emergency and established a curfew on all traffic in the region from 3 pm to 6 am. Indigenous and international human rights organizations are worried about plans of another National Police raid on a blockade in Yurimaguas close to the town of Tarapoto where thousands are blocking a road.

President Alan Garcia is being widely criticized for fomenting a climate of fear mongering against indigenous peoples by drawing parallels to the brutal Shinning Path guerrilla movement of the 1980s and early 1990s, and by vaguely referring to external and anti-democratic threats to the country.

The Amazonian indigenous peoples’ mobilizations have been peaceful, locally coordinated, and extremely well organized for nearly two months. Yet Garcia insists on calling them terrorist acts and anti-democratic. Garcia has even gone so far as to describe the indigenous mobilizations as “savage and barbaric.” Garcia has made his discrimination explicit, saying directly that the Amazonian indigenous people are not first-class citizens.

“These people don’t have crowns,” Garcia said about the protesters. “These people aren’t first-class citizens who can say — 400,000 natives to 28 million Peruvians — ‘You don’t have the right to be here.’ No way. That is a huge error.”
Ironically, Peru was the country that introduced the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples on the floor of the General Assembly when it was adopted in September 2007.

A coalition of indigenous and human rights organizations will protest in front of the Peruvian Embassy in Washington D.C. on Monday, June 8 at 12:30 pm.

Indigenous peoples have vowed to continue protests until the Peruvian Congress revokes the “free trade” decrees issued by President Garcia under special powers granted by Congress in the context of the Free Trade Agreement with the United States.

Among the outpouring of statements condemning the violence in Peru were those from Peru’s Ombudsman’s office, the chair of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, a coalition of 45 international human rights organizations, Indigenous organizations from throughout the Americas, and the Conference of Bishops of Peru. Also famous personalities including Q’orianka Kilcher, Benjamin Bratt, Peter Bratt, and Daryl Hannah and Bianca Jagger called on the Peruvian Government to cease the violence and seek peaceful resolution to the conflict.

AIDESEP, the national indigenous organization of Peru has called for a nationwide general strike starting June 11th.

Amazon Watch is continually updating photographs, audio testimony, and video footage from Bagua on www.amazonwatch.org.

Newly released b-roll at http://amazonwatch.org/peru-protests-highres-photos.php

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The broadening influence of the indigenous movement was on display Thursday in a general strike that drew thousands of protesters here to the streets of Iquitos, the largest Peruvian city in the Amazon, and to cities and towns elsewhere in jungle areas. Protests over Mr. García’s handling of the violence in the northern Bagua Province last Friday also took place in highland regions like Puno, near the Bolivian border, and in Lima and Arequipa on the Pacific coast.

“The government made the situation worse with its condescending depiction of us as gangs of savages in the forest,” said Wagner Musoline Acho, 24, an Awajún Indian and an indigenous leader. “They think we can be tricked by a maneuver like suspending a couple of decrees for a few weeks and then reintroducing them, and they are wrong.”

The protesters’ immediate threat – to cut the supply of oil and natural gas to Lima, the capital – seems to have subsided, with protesters partly withdrawing from their occupation of oil installations in the jungle. But as anger festers, indigenous leaders here said they could easily try to shut down energy installations again to exert pressure on Mr. García.

Another wave of protests appears likely because indigenous groups are demanding that the decrees be repealed and not just suspended. The decrees would open large jungle areas to investment and allow companies to bypass indigenous groups to obtain permits for petroleum exploration, logging and building hydroelectric dams. A stopgap attempt to halt earlier indigenous protests in the Amazon last August failed to prevent them from being reinitiated more forcefully in April.

…

The authorities are struggling to understand a movement that is crystallizing in the Peruvian Amazon among more than 50 indigenous groups. They include about 300,000 people, accounting for only about 1 percent of Peru’s population, but they live in strategically important and resource-rich locations, which are scattered throughout jungle areas that account for nearly two-thirds of Peru’s territory.

So far, alliances have proved elusive between Indians in the Amazon and indigenous groups in highland areas, ruling out, for now, the kind of broad indigenous protest movements that helped oust governments in neighboring Ecuador and Bolivia earlier in the decade.

In contrast to some earlier efforts to organize indigenous groups, the leaders of this new movement are themselves indigenous, and not white or mestizo urban intellectuals. They are well organized and use a web of radio stations to exchange information across the jungle. After one prominent leader, Alberto Pizango [who explicity links the struggles there to global climate change everywhere], was granted asylum in Nicaragua this week, others quickly emerged to articulate demands.

Two Fishermen in Hospital After Boat Boarded and Sunk by Masked Men in Ireland

The situation in Erris Co. Mayo has escalated into a sordid state of affairs, with two fishermen being held by force by two men in balaclavas at 2am on Thursday the 11th of June. The fishermen, Pat O’Donnell and Martin McDonnell, are both locals opposed to the controversial Corrib gas project which is currently being overseen by The Royal Dutch Shell Company.
The two fishermen were returning to Ballyglass pier, having been fishing out at sea, when their boat was boarded by four masked men. When Mr. O’Donnell and Mr. McDonnell had been rendered helpless, the boarders proceeded to move below decks and sink the ‘Iona Isle’, the trawler belonging to Mr. O’Donnell. Both men are now being tended to in Castlebar general hospital.

These attacks come shortly after roughly thirty Shell to Sea activists appeared in Bellmullet district court yesterday for assorted acts of civil disobedience relating to the proposed pipeline project. However a number of members of An Garda Síochanna were also summoned by the judge for possible acts of misconduct, misuse of authority and illegal behaviour relating to Shell to Sea protests.

The assaults carried out on the fishermen bear an uncanny resemblance to that which occurred almost a month and a half ago on local farmer and Goldman environmental prize winner Willie Corduff.

The recent developments here in Erris are becoming an increasing cause for concern for local people attempting to halt Shell’s work in order to defend their own livelihoods. Many families here are completely dependent on the local environment to produce a source of income. Having fishing grounds polluted by dredging work, or pipelines dragged through one’s fields is likely to evoke strong protest. Albeit most local people who oppose the project initially felt that there was little or no chance of the situation unravelling to the extent it would be so effortlessly comparable to the Ogoni saga in Nigeria.

More activists were arrested yesterday evening after they had assisted local men in barricading narrow choke points of road which lead to the Shell compound at Glengad, which is still devoid of the sufficient planning permission. One man had hoisted himself up onto the cab of a truck in an attempt to halt the illegal work, much to the surprise of local people and Garda present at the scene. The driver elected to accelerate down a steep hill with the man still on top of the vehicle. Two Shell to Sea activists were violently apprehended on the road and brought to Bellmullet Garda station where they’ve been held all night. They have been brought to court this morning without legal representation and the state is attempting to put them on remand. This means they will be held in jail until the next court hearing in July.

Also at half four earlier this morning fourteen people from the Rossport Solidarity Camp disrupted work whilst kayaking in bay where Shell are currently dredging. This resulted in the arrest of six people and police also slashed kayaks. Over the past ten days dredgers have been boarded on two occasions where activists climbed on top of diggers and stopped work. A number of injuries have been sustained during water actions injuries at the hands of the IRMS security, employed by Shell to triturate the campaign opposing the theft of billions of euro worth of gas.

The global pressure has been mounting significantly on Shell in recent times, with much media focus surrounding the Wiwa family lawsuits against them in New York. Shell was being sued for human rights abuses in the Ogoni region of Nigeria dating back to the early nineties, however Shell decided to settle out of court to the sum of $15.5 million dollars.

In the face of one of the world’s biggest multinational corporations backed by the state and a team of security, many of whom are known fascists and mercenaries, the community still stand strong in defence of their environment and livelihoods. The Rossport Solidarity Camp is providing active support to the community, please come and help!

Plane Stupid stage ‘Corporate Takeover’ at London City Airport

June 10th: 5 eco activists have shut down operations at London City Airport. The group, who are wearing pinstriped suits and bowler hats entered at 2.30 am today.

June 10th: 5 eco activists have shut down operations at London City Airport. The group, who are wearing pinstriped suits and bowler hats entered at 2.30 am today. They cut through the perimeter fence and formed a human wheel clamp around one of the airport’s business jet fleet at the west end of the runway. The need to avoid sparks around highly flamable aviation fuel could meen that the normal process of cutting them out of their armtubes could be severely hampered.

Check out the photos on our Flickr photostream.

Video

The ‘eco-takeover’ puts the spotlight on the selfishness of private jet use:

“Because of their low passenger capacity, small jets emit between five and 10 times more carbon per passenger than commercial flights,” said spokeswoman Nancy Birch. “In an age where we face potentially catastrophic climate change, this is no longer an acceptable form of transport. It’s time that private jets were grounded for good.”

Until the downturn, the private jet business was the fastest growing segment of the aviation sector. Over the last ten years it has expanded by almost 50%.

“This is yet another example of the insane rush towards massive airport and flight expansion,” Birch concludes. “The aviation industry seems to think it can pollute its way out of climate change. But anyone with half a brain will know that this is just plane stupid.”

London City airport blights the lives of some of the poorest people in London. Newham has been known to experience air pollution levels which regularly exceed EU safety limits for hightly toxic chemicals such as Nitrus Oxide and has the highest levels of mortality in under 30s in the UK from asthma, a matter that AsthmaUK are currently investigating.

While it seems the group have successfully shut down the private Jet centre part of the airport, locals are reporting that public flights started running from City from 7am. No one is claiming that the protesters have yet been arrested or removed, which suggests that the Airport are breaching health and safety by continuing operations in this restricted area. If the five are still in position then they will have been locked on for 7 hours and a half hours now…

——

Police cutting teams weren’t sighted in the area at the time the press team were forced to leave. Acsess roads have now been shut down, and the woman with the phone in the armtube can’t take calls anymore, so it’s difficult to get any news of what’s going on. More photos are available on the Plane Stupid website, check out the flickr stream.

——

Notes to the editor

A total of 27 local and regional airports around the UK are currently seeking to expand their activities.

London City Airport recently received local authority permission to expand its commercial flights from 80,000 to 120,000. The airport aims to increase this total to 170,000 by 2030.

Activists targeted London City Airport because it is one of the key drivers of the private jet business. The airport currently sees an average of 170 movements (take-offs and landings) per week. The airport’s Jet Centre predicts this figure will increase to more than 530 a week by 2030.

London City Airport was closed at the time of the eco-takeover. Security was given two hours’ warning before the first flights of the day.

The airport’s Jet Centre comprises a mixture of privately-owned jets and a for-hire business jet operation run by PrivateJet.

——
8:30am update & local group press release:

Locals are confirming that flights started from city airport at 7am. While the private Jet Centre where the group are locked on does apear to have been sucessfully shut down, it is alarming that the airport is prepared to disregard health and safety regulations and continue to run flights in the area. There have been no reports that the group have been arrested or removed so far. If they are still there then they have been locked on for 7 hours now…

For the local campaign group perspective see below-

PRESS RELEASE FIGHT THE FLIGHTS – LONDON CITY AIRPORT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 10 June 2009

FIGHT THE FLIGHTS RESPONSE TO PLANE STUPIDS ACTION AT LONDON CITY AIRPORT

Fight the Flights is not a direct action group, but we fully appreciate the frustration that the climate change activists feel in getting their voices, and concerns heard on aviation expansion, and how aviation is one of the fastest growing sources of CO2 emissions.

It is no wonder that some campaigners feel they are being pushed into taking non violent direct action because the system is failing people of their democratic rights to protect their communities, futures and their environment from harmful ‘runaway’ airport and flight expansion.

Just under a 100,000 residents in east and south east London will be affected by the increasing excessive noise levels from London City Airport upon expansion, and yet less than 10,000 were claimed to have been consulted by the London Borough of Newham. Most will not be entitled to any noise insulation. They will have to live with the consequences every day of their lives, each time a flight takes off and lands. The majority do not have the option to move, and many lived in the area long before the airports creation.

Benefits?

In just over 20 years the airport has only managed to directly employ 120 Newham residents out of the 406 directly employed staff the airport claim to employ.

London taxpayers have also paid £24million for the airports security provided by the Metropolitan Police over the past 5 years, which the airport refuse to pay.

In addition the air quality above London City Airport exceeds EU directive levels by 50% and was termed as ‘toxic’ but this was not acknowledged by the London Borough of Newham. In a borough which has the highest level of mortality in under 30s with asthma in the whole country, Newham should be focussing on improving air quality, not adding to the pollution by approving further expansion at this residentially situated airport in the most densely populated area of England.

Eroded Democracy

Residents have been constantly thwarted and ignored by this government and the London Borough of Newham when providing evidence against the expansion. Requests for a public inquiry into the planned 50% expansion of flights at London City Airport was refused by Hazel Blears, Secretary of State in 2008, whilst the London Borough of Newham showed no concern that 100s of homes in Greenwich will now be in the crash zone and failed to address the risk to residents and communities who live, work or travel through the crash zone in both Newham and Greenwich. However in contrast the government and council appear to consistently listen to the aviation at the expense of the communities: this is expansion at any cost.

With a government that does not listen to local concerns on the effects of expansion on third party safety, increasing pollution levels, the effect on residents health and children’s development, and the contribution to climate change, it is no wonder that we are seeing actions such as this more frequently.

The Pirates of Broadhaven Defeat Shell’s Armada (& contractor’s addresses)

For the second time in three days a Shell dredger has been boarded and occupied by a Shell to Sea protester. As a result all the ships working in the bay have ceased work and returned to harbour. Reports confirm that work has been abandoned due to the action of the protesters!

A group of 11 kayakers set out at 5:30am on Friday, meeting instant resistance on the water from Shell security boats and safety boats. After avoiding the Shell private security boats that were attempting to capsize the kayaks, one protester managed to board the dredger ‘Rezende Bol’ owned by Van Oord, who is subcontracted by Shell to do the dredging. This vessel along with another and multiple support and security boats were digging a trench in the seabed in preparation for the gas pipe-laying ship Solitaire. Work in the bay has been continuous 24 hours a day since Monday evening only stopping due to the previous dredger occupation by Shell to Sea protesters which lasted 10 hours. During the attempts to board the dredger several protesters were able to climb onto the side of the vessel. Excessive force was used to prevent them from boarding; one protester had his thumb bent backwards by a security guard and later was taken to the hospital where tests revealed damaged ligaments. Another protester who got on board the ship was violently pushed from the deck by two security guards injuring his back, and fell over six feet from the deck into the water. Shell security were kicking and stamping fingers of protesters on the near side of the vessel, all the while one protester managed to board the ship on the other side and climb up onto the same crane his friends had previously occupied just three days earlier.

The kayak support team prepared for similar shifts as Tuesday, anticipating a long-term occupation. Four kayakers remained on the water to keep an eye on the protester while the rest went in to regain energy. The reaction of the security and safety boats was very hostile, attempting to capsize kayaks and separate people from each other. The driver of the Galltee (Shell’s private security boat) repeated his threat to sink kayaks, driving extremely aggressively with no regard for the safety of the kayakers.

After the dredgers were towed away, the Garda arrived and boarded the ship in addition to the Shell security already on the ship. They threatened the protester on the crane arm with forced physical removal. Fearing for his own safety the protester jumped from the dredger arm onto the deck and dived into the water. The two supporting kayakers who were still in the water were arrested despite their efforts to comply with the Gardai’s instructions. In the water the crane protester managed to avoid capture by the Gardai and Shell security and get to the shore where he scaled a cliff to evade capture. His whereabouts are now unknown but he is safe and well!

Shell claimed that they stopped working in the bay due to a ‘swell’ but sources at Ballyglass pier confirmed that Van Oord, the subcontractor running the dredgers were unwilling to work with ongoing protest activity and the excessive use of force by the IRMS (Integrated Risk Management Services) .

Today’s actions are proof that resistance rocks!

Come to Mayo!

—-

Van Oord are involved as a main contractor on the Limerick Tunnel project, which they’re happy to tell you about on their website, but there’s no mention at all of their involvement with the Corrib Gas Project. Maybe their greenwash is important to them somehow, and maybe they don’t fancy negative publicity. Why don’t we give them some then, eh?

Van Oord’s website homepage:
http://www.vanoord.com/gb-en/index.php

Head office postal address for general mail:
Van Oord Dredging and Marine Contractors BV
PO Box 8574
3009 AN Rotterdam
The Netherlands

Visiting address:
Van Oord Dredging and Marine Contractors BV
Watermanweg 64
3067 GG Rotterdam
The Netherlands
T 31 10 447844
F 31 10 4478100
E info@vanoord.com

This is a contact for their ‘newsroom’, i.e. Media and PR:
A.G.M. (Bert) Groothuizen
Manager Marketing & Public Relations
T 31 10 4478234
F 31 10 4478100
E info@vanoord.com

On their ‘agenda’ page there is mention of this following event. Maybe they are keynote speakers at this conference, or that they will have a large trade exhibition presence there. Details from the conference website are sketchy, so more research is needed. There are other events for later in the year at which they’ll either attend or participate in, but I think the event at the end of this month may be a place where Van Oord can be shamed publicly about its involvement in Shell’s destruction of Broadhaven Bay.

The Flood and Coastal Risk Management Conference 2009 – 30 June 2009 – 02 July 2009
The International Centre, Telford, UK
(Telford is in Shropshire, west-central England, I think. Nearish to Birmingham anyway. The risks in coastal management must be enormous these days, if this conference has to be held in a place as far from the sea as you can get on the island of Britain!)
http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/102626.aspx

Allseas are the company that own the Solitaire. The Solitaire is expected to arrive within the next month. It would be good if people could also put pressure on them before they get here:

http://www.allseas.com/uk

Allseas UK Limited
Address: Knyvett House The Causeway
City: Staines, Middlesex
Postcode: TW18 3BA
Telephone: +44 1784 898038
Fax: +44 1784 898030

Shell security breached and work stopped in successful action at sea

On Tuesday, after the afternoon confrontation in Broadhaven Bay which resulted in one man’s arrest and a couple hours of halted work for the dredgers, the Shell to Sea fleet of kayaks headed out on the water a second time around 6pm and two protesters managed to board one of the dredgers, climbing on to the neck of the c

Shell has been continuously dredging in the area since Monday evening, interfering with protected fishing areas for local fishermen, defiling what was once a pristine marine habitat full of dolphins, whales and other marine life, and disturbing sleep for local residents. They have buoyed off an ‘exclusion zone’ in the public waters, with boats patrolling the area to make sure no one crosses into it. There is a diverse assortment of vessels occupying the once pristine bay; the majority of these are either carrying out or assisting in the current dredging and surveillance operations. An Garda Siochana (police boat) have also been patrolling the work zone along with two black RIBs; The Laura Emily accompanied by its twin the Galltee, both brimming with men dressed in black military fatigues and video cameras for filming protesters. Other smaller motorboats accompanied the Shell crew, including ‘safety boats’ and a large white motor launch. There were tugboats for moving the dredgers, barges for holding the sand being removed from the seabed and, of course, the massive dredgers themselves.

A group of twelve Shell to Sea protesters in eight inflatable kayaks, two hard kayaks, and two rubber dingys set out on the water at 6pm for the second time in one day on Tuesday 2nd June. Three of the kayaks managed to evade the security boats and get close enough to board one of the dredgers. One protester began to climb the ladder from her boat while another kayaker blocked a security boat from grabbing her. The other protester used the tires on the side of the dredger to board the deck. Once on the boat, both protesters were climbing onto the crane within seconds. They slid down into the neck of the crane making it impossible for the crew to remove them.

Loud cheers were heard from ashore where people were gathered at the Rossport Solidarity Camp, and the mood on the water was extremely positive. ‘Shell to hell’ chants were abounding, and there were even some playful exchanges between Shell to Sea kayakers and a couple of motorboats. There were varying attitudes on different boats, but not all of the gardai or safety boats were unfriendly. Both inflatable kayaks which had been left in the water where the two protesters had boarded the dredger were quickly recovered. One was towed out of the ‘exclusion zone’ by a Shell to Sea protester, and one was brought on board the gardai boat and placed back in the water outside of the exclusion zone. The rest of the Shell to Sea kayakers remained on the water to ensure the protesters were not going to be dangerously removed, then began taking shifts to stay close to them and provide support.

In a surprisingly honest conversation between the kayak protesters and a worker on one of the boats, the worker stated that he ‘admired the persistence’ of the local community and supporters who are resisting the pipeline. He also said he thought the pipeline plan was ‘relatively safe’ and asserted that sometimes risks have to be taken. Unfortunately with a kill zone of up to 200 meters and the uncertainty of never having built such a high pressure pipeline through a residential area, the risk is high. This is why resistance to the pipeline is so strong; as one of the two protesters who occupied the dredger later stated, “Today we took this action in solidarity with the local community and to try to protect this beautiful area from being ravaged by Shell.”

The rotating shifts of support continued on through the night, with small groups of kayakers keeping an eye on their friends long after the gardai had left around 12am. Once it was dark and the gardai had left, the mood at sea changed. The Shell security and the safety boat for the dredger were the only ones left. The Shell security RIBs became increasingly aggressive towards the kayakers. They made multiple attempts to capsize them, and used intimidation techniques such as turning their lights off until they were up close then suddenly shining floodlights, disorienting and frightening them. One of the kayak crew reported feeling seriously concerned that the situation would escalate. A security guard even stated his intention was to sink the boats, a plausible threat given the recent vicious attack by IRMS on Willie Corduff. It was reported that the ‘safety boat’ also seemed concerned for the safety of the kayakers, and may have been their only protection in the situation.

By 4am, the two protesters on the dredger were feeling very cold and tired, and felt as if they had achieved a significant victory. They voluntarily climbed down from the crane, and were illegally detained by IRMS security and brought to Ballyglass pier where they were arrested and charged with loitering in a public place.

Despite the severe difficulties encountered throughout the night the mood across the camp from the kayaking teams and all the support crews was jubilant. Having breached Shell’s security and made such a significant stop to dredging work people at the solidarity camp remain in a defiant mood: watch this space for more resistance to the devastation at sea and on the land.

Kingsnorth construction firm invaded by climate activists!

One of the companies bidding for the contract to construct a new coal fired power station at Kingsnorth has been targeted by climate campaigners. Three people have locked on inside and two are up on a ledge outside having dropped a banner.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

5th June 2009. 10.30am

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

5th June 2009. 10.30am

For more information, interviews and photographs contact 07932 096677 or press@climatecamp.org.uk

CLIMATE CAMPAIGNERS INVADE KINGSNORTH CONSTRUCTION FIRM

Major building contractor BAM Nuttall targeted due to potential role in controversial coal power station

[Photo and filming opportunity at: BAM Nuttall Head Office, St James House, Knoll Road, Camberley, Surrey, GU15 3XW]

This morning, thirteen people invaded the offices of Surrey-based building firm BAM Nuttall. They have locked themselves to furniture, glued themselves to desks, and are asking to speak to Chief Executive Martin J. Rogers about the disastrous implications of building more coal-fired power stations. Several protesters have also occupied an exterior ledge above the building’s entrance, with a banner reading: “No New Coal: Build a Greener Future”, and staff and passers-by are being given leaflets and information about the protest.

The campaigners, from Thames Valley Climate Action [1], are targeting BAM because the company is bidding for the contract to build a new coal power station at Kingsnorth in Kent, for the giant energy company E.ON [2]. This would be the first new UK coal power station for 30 years, and would produce around 7 million tonnes of CO2 per year, equivalent to the entire emissions of a country like Ghana [3]. According to a new report from Kofi Annan’s Global Humanitarian Forum, climate change is already killing 300,000 people per year, and will get much worse unless we urgently reduce our CO2 emissions [4].

One of the protesters, Xavier Perez, said: “BAM Nuttall point to the introduction of low energy lighting and improved heating at their head office as examples of how they are reaching their sustainability goals. This conveniently overlooks the fact that they are hoping to construct a power station reliant on the filthiest fossil fuel in existence. This would be laughable if it were not for the fact that millions of lives, livelihoods and species could be lost.” [5]

The Government and E.ON are claiming that a new Kingsnorth power station would eventually include “carbon capture and storage” (CCS) technology, to catch 25% of its emissions and store them underground [6]. However, the campaigners inside BAM Nuttall point out that this is unproven technology that is still being tested, and won’t be available until at least 2020 [7]. Climate scientists say we need to make sharp carbon cuts long before that date [8]. Even if CCS is one day installed, and works as planned, the plant would still produce more CO2 than a gas power station [9].

The Government’s other favoured justification for building new coal power stations – that the emissions would be included in the EU’s “carbon trading” scheme – has been widely and heavily criticised [10]. Critics say that this scheme is a complex and unworkable distraction from real climate change solutions, that isn’t reducing net emissions, and essentially hands control of the climate over to the same bankers, brokers and private traders responsible for the global financial crash [11].

Another of today’s protesters, Sasha Goodwin, said: “After last summer’s Climate Camp at Kingsnorth, thousands of people pledged to take direct action to stop this power station, and there is a huge wave of public support for the campaign. Today’s action shows how people are ready to act on their words. Any companies thinking about getting involved in the Kingsnorth project should remember the road protests of the 1990s, which cost contractors millions of pounds and prevented many proposed road projects from going ahead.

“BAM Nuttall say they need this work because of the recession, but this completely misses the point. If we keep burning coal, then we’ll lose a lot more than just our jobs – people’s homes, health, food supply, and the stability of our society are all at risk from climate change. Instead, we need to build a sustainable society, powered by renewable energy from the wind, sun and tides, which will lead to better ways to live and work. We need to make sure that this transition is a fair one, actively involving workers from the energy industry. We’re hoping to have some interesting conversations with BAM staff today about all of these issues!”

ENDS

Notes to Editors

[1] TVCA is part of the Camp for Climate Action network, which set up a week-long protest camp at Kingsnorth in August 2008 – see www.climatecamp.org.uk. Today’s action is part of a national campaign, supported by the Camp for Climate Action, called the E.ON Face Off – see www.e-onf-off.org.uk. Previous actions have included the occupation of E.ON’s UK head office by protesters dressed as Santa Claus, and actions at E.ON stalls at University recruitment events which led to the company abandoning their graduate recruitment drive.
[2] BAM Nuttall is a construction and civil engineering firm owned by the Royal BAM Group
[3] Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center: http://cdiac.ornl.gov/
[4] http://www.ghf-geneva.org/
[5] Royal BAM Group Sustainability Report
[6] http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/8014295.stm
[7] http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/georgemonbiot/2009/apr/23/carbon-capture-and-storage-coal
[8] http://www.tyndall.ac.uk/publications/briefing_notes/bn17.pdf
[9] Generating electricity from coal produces about twice as much CO2 per KWh than generation from gas. Therefore, a 25% reduction would still leave coal about one and a half times as polluting as gas.
[10] See for example http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/environment/article5257602.ece, http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20227046.200-carbon-trading-wont-stop-climate-change.html and http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/cif-green/2009/may/28/carbon-trading
[11] http://www.carbontradewatch.org/

Thames Valley Climate Action

—

Latest – 10:30

Four cop vans, an ambulance (to deal with the person superglued to the front door) and a police helicopter now on the scene. Passing Conservative councillors milling about expressing their outrage that the boys in blue are doing this rather than catching burglars.

—

1 arrest so far – 11:50

One person inside arrested for aggravated trespass – not given the option to leave of his own accord… Those locked on/glued/perched on ledge still going strong.

—

Several arrests, including one passer-by who wandered over to talk to the people up on the ledge and promptly got nicked.