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Greenpeace activists board the carrier ship Clemenceau 50 nautical miles off the coast of Egypt, hanging a banner that reads “Asbestos carrier stay out of India.” Greenpeace is protesting against transit of the Clemenceau, which has been sent to India for decommissioning despite widespread outrage at the high levels of asbestos and other hazardous materials it contains.
Enlarge ImageOne of these activists, Sebastian, is up on that mast the second time in a month. On December 12th, the Dane had spent 23 freezing hours on his perch overlooking Toulon harbour in France.
And a French commando squad is, yet again, trying to get Greenpeace down from the mast, even as a military chopper circles overhead.
Update 17 Jan: The Indian Supreme Court has ruled that the Clemenceau be kept at a distance of 220 nautical miles from India’s Exclusive Economic Zone until 13th February, by which time all information pertaining to the Clemenceau must be submitted before the court.
Update 16 Jan: Our activists left the ship on Friday with Egypt still blocking passage through the canal. But over the weekend France negotiated passage through the canal. Now the Indian Supreme Court will take the next decision on the ship.
Update 12 Jan: While Greenpeace continues to occupy the ship, the government of Egypt has requested all certificates required within the framework of the Basel convention to approve the Clemenceau passing through Egyptian waters and the Suez canal. The same request is made to the Indian government. If Egypt does not receive all required documents, they will have to consider the sailing convoy illegal, subject to punishment under Egyptian law, and it will be ordered back to a French port.
The Clemenceau has been the subject of intense international debate, as the French Government stubbornly refuses to reconsider its decision to send the military aircraft carrier to India without prior decontamination.
We asked them politely, through the French courts. They manipulated evidence, and won the case.
We pointed out the hellish conditions at ship-breaking yards in India and Bangladesh, reminding this supposedly-civilised nation of the inevitable environmental and human impacts of dismantling a contaminated Clemenceau. They showed us that they didn't care.
We issued a less polite reminder on December 12th 2005, when our activists got past military security to board the Clemenceau and stand vigil on the ship . They paid no heed.
We took the fight to the doorstep of the French government in India, on 03rd January 2006. The French Ambassador responded only by echoing 'His Masters' Voice,' spinning the same old lies to an unbelieving Indian audience.
We've even heard the Supreme Court Monitoring Committee state explicitly that the ship will not be allowed to enter Indian territorial waters until it has been proven that the French have decontaminated it completely. But the ship continues to head towards India undettered, seemingly ready to risk the ignominy of being hounded out when it does approach us for permission to enter.
Together, we can stop it
Now it's up to us - you and Greenpeace - to take direct action to halt the ship's progress towards the beaches of Alang. Join us in our fight against the Clemenceau and help us tell the developed world that their arrogance towards developing countries must end now!
The one missing link in our fight against the illegal import of the Clemenceau, strangely enough, is our own government. Despite the strongly-worded proclamation of the SCMC, the Ministry of Environment and Forests has refused to take a stand against the ship, and seems to be waiting for the Supreme Court to tell it how to fulfil what should be a routine responsibility for the Ministry.
They'll be hearing from us soon. Meanwhile, if you'd like to get acquainted with the human cost of ship-breaking, click here to read our report. We warn you, the pictures are not pretty… but then, the truth seldom is.
Click here to participate in our cyberaction and remind the French Prime Minister that India is not a dumping ground for his country's garbage.
