German activist Jens Loewe, 36, being looked after by Filipino Pam Palma and New Zealander Debra Gay Pristor after being beaten by personnel of Masinloc coal power plant in the Philippines. The beating occurred during a peaceful protest against coal power plant that is fuelling global warming.
"Greenpeace condemns this violent attack to a peaceful protest,"
said Greenpeace Southeast Asia Energy Campaigner Red Constantino.
"It is disproportionate to the nature of the protest which is
peaceful, non violent protest.
"We're disappointed that the Filipino plant personnel prefers to
protect the interests of a power plant that brings more harm than
good to people. Coal is the culprit here, not peaceful
protest."
Greenpeace activists were at the plant to draw attention to
Australian and Japanese backing of the expansion of climate
changing coal dependency in Asia. "The Masinloc power plant
displays the very worst excesses of the Philippine and Asian coal
industry," said Constantino at the plant site. "Masinloc's
environmental impact has never been publicly scrutinised and yet
funds from organisations like the Asian Development Bank and the
Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) are being
earmarked for a 50% expansion of the plant's power capacity at
a time when there is considerable controversy surrounding the
financing of its privatisation sale. Worse still, it is primarily
coal from Australia that will feed the planned expansion.(1)
"Burning coal is the main cause of global warming. Australia and
Japan are underwriting climate change at a time when the
Philippines and Asia are facing the likelihood of devastating
social and economic instability from climate change precisely when
the country and the rest of Asia are least able to deal with its
impacts.(2) The expansion of coal in the Philippines and Asia must
stop. Greenpeace calls on the Philippine Senate for an inquiry
into Masinloc's expansion plans," said Constantino.
"It is no surprise that countries like Australia refuse to join
the Kyoto Protocol and then talk of secret climate pacts," said
Greenpeace International's Athena Ronquillo on-board the Greenpeace
flagship the Rainbow Warrior. "It is the world's biggest coal
exporter, it has Asia on an addictive drip of climate changing coal
and it plays dirty," said Greenpeace International's Athena
Ronquillo. "Japan is equally as hypocritical. It is a signatory to
the Kyoto Protocol yet continues to be far and away the biggest
funder of dirty energy projects in Asia."
Clean alternatives to fossil fuel power in Asia are widely
available. In the Philippines enough wind power potential exists to
produce 7 times over the country's current energy demand. In the
Chinese province of Guangdong there exists sufficient wind power
potential to meet the equivalent of the current energy supply in
Hong Kong.(3)
"Time is not on our side. We have to cut global greenhouse
emissions by at least half by the middle of this century to avoid
catastrophic climate change. That means that global emissions must
peak within the next 10-15 years, not 25 or 30 years from now,"
concluded Ronquillo.
Greenpeace is an independent campaigning organisation that uses
non-violent creative confrontation to expose global environmental
problems to force solutions that are essential to a green and
peaceful future.
Other contacts: In the PhilippinesRed Constantino, Greenpeace SEA Energy campaigner, +63 917 524 1123Athena Ronquillo, Greenpeace International Energy Campaigner + 63 9178131 562Michael Kessler, Greenpeace International Communications + 63 915 945 0066Lea Guerrero, Greenpeace SEA Media Officer, +63 917 374 4969In EuropeGina Sánchez, Greenpeace International Communications, +31 627 000064
VVPR info: John Novis, Greenpeace International Photo Editor +31 6 53 81 91 21
Notes: (1) In July this year Greenpeace's flagship the Rainbow Warrior shutdown the world's largest coal port in Newcastle. Coal exports from the port are set to increase some 50% in the coming years. Australia is the largest coal exporter in the world and is aggressively planning to increase its exports from 220 million tonnes to 300 million by 2010. (2) .Crisis or Opportunity: Climate Change Impacts and the Philippines, see www.asiacleanenergy.org(3). Wind Guangdong, see www.asiacleanenergy.org