Volunteers light candles in front of Jaro Cathedral - sending a message supporting Iloilo people's demand to the Philippine government for a cleaner, safer, future powered by renewable energy.
At Pagbilao, we went into action to blockade shipments of coal.
The peaceful actions of our local activists and the crew of the
Rainbow Warrior helped secure commitment from leading politicians
to bring the Renewables Energy Bill to the floor of the Philippine
Senate. The bill has already been passed by the Philippine
Congress, but had been ignored by the Senate. Now we've secured the
support of influential senators, including the chair of the Senate
Committee on Natural Resources who said:
"I am one with Greenpeace in aiming for a coal-free Philippines.
The threat of climate change demands a shift towards a sustainable,
clean and low carbon future."
In Taguig City, we painted the Quit Coal message onto the
driveway of the Department of Energy. Head of that department is
Secretary Reyes, who as chairman of the Presidential Task Force on
Climate Change should have known better than to sanction the
construction or expansion of nine coal fired power stations in a
country with huge renewable energy potential.
In Iloilo City, we constructed a climate camp to show our
support for the residents of Iloilo City who are fighting to avoid
the construction of a new coal fired power plant. At events
organised with the Catholic Church and local civil society group
RISE (Responsible Illongos for Sustainable Energy) we brought home
the message that the Philippines is one of the countries most at
risk from global warming, and that burning coal is the single
biggest source of CO2 emissions and a major cause of climate
change.
Later we moved our camp to the site of the proposed coal fired
power station to bring our message to the local communities who
will be affected by the new power plant. Tensions ran high when
workers from Panay Power Corporation acting under orders from their
management tried to dismantle the camp and cut off the activists
from the outside world. Our response was to take our protest to
Metrobank, one of the largest banks in the Philippines and the
owners of Panay Power Corporation. This is just the beginning of a
grassroots campaign to put pressure on the financiers behind the
coal plant.
The tour concluded with visits to Antique and Boracay. In
Antique local governor Salvacion Z Perez declared her province coal
free saying:
"The earth has provided us with renewable energy. It is time to
harness this energy to generate electricity, and it is our aim to
drastically [reduce] and ultimately stop the use of fossil fuels
especially coal as source of energy."
In Boracay, we launched our "Save the climate, Save Boracay"
project, part of an initiative to enlist top island destinations in
South East Asia to reduce their carbon footprints. The people of
Boracay face inundation from rising sea levels, but are determined
to set an example to the world with their use of renewable energy
and efficient energy technologies.
The Rainbow Warrior carries the Quit Coal message on to Thailand
now, but work in the Philippines continues through our South East
Asia office and allies in civil society.
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