Feature story - 10 March, 2009
Three hundred and forty Greenpeace activists were arrested as they took their demand to "Bail out the Planet" to European Union finance ministers in Brussels.
Hundreds of activists were arrested as they demanded EU finance ministers "Bail out the planet."
Activists blocked the exits of the building where the ministers
were meeting, and demanded an answer on the climate funding
question. Swarms of uniformed officers, riot police and
plain-clothed cops descended on the activists as a line of black
armoured vehicles, police vans and busses moved in to block the
public view of the activist-guarded doors. Electric saws were used
to cut through the locks and police dragged activists face down
into the line of police vehicles. It took the police more than two
hours to remove all of the peaceful activists.
As the men and women of EU finance met to discuss the financial
crisis and the climate crisis, we asked a question: where is the
money to avert runaway climate change? Because it looks to us like
there's far more interest in bailing out banks then in bailing out
a planet headed toward a bankrupt future.
The decisions made today by EU finance ministers are important
because they will directly influence Europe's position at the
historic UN climate summit in Copenhagen this December. Richer
developed countries need to contribute at least €110 billion a year
by 2020 to make sure developing countries are able to reduce
emissions of greenhouse gases and cope with the already unavoidable
impacts of climate change.
Each country's contribution towards a climate bailout plan is
based on its ability to pay and its level of responsibility in
causing climate change. Based on this, the European governments'
share is €35 billion a year by 2020, the equivalent of just €1.30 a
week per European citizen: the price of a bus ticket. To help
raise these funds, we are supporting a new scheme that puts a price
tag on greenhouse gas emissions and asks rich countries to pay for
their carbon footprint according to their means and their
responsibility for causing the climate problem.
UPDATE: All of the activists have been released from jail and
their were no serious injuries sustained. View video from the
action here.
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