We had to go for it. At the crack of dawn today, a team of our activists began an occupation of the Central Plains Water (CPW) irrigation dam.
If you want to join us - we’re on Coxs Road, Springfield. Time is of the essence, and the more people who come down and support, the more powerful our message becomes - and the better the scene is set for September 14th!
It’s been a hectic few days. We've been busy finalising logistics for the 14th September peaceful protest that you’re registered for, but then CPW’s lawyers sent a letter threatening an injunction. They wanted to shut down any possibility of a protest before it had even started.
We were faced with a number of options. We could have backed down. We could have tried to argue it in court.
Instead, we just went for it and occupied their dam.
Follow the live stream here.
Preparation for the 14th September continues, but we couldn’t let this go unanswered.
What CPW don’t understand is that democracy is not a spectator sport. It’s messy, and it’s noisy and occasionally it involves ruffling some feathers. It involves peaceful protest. That is how women won the vote; it’s how New Zealand went nuclear-free. And it’s how we’ll save our rivers.
CPW is trying to restrict that, but in doing so, they underestimate what we stand for. We’re a movement of people. We’re me and we’re you. And we’re thousands like you. We won’t be silenced with legal threats. We won’t go quietly into the night.
And that really matters. New Zealand’s rivers are in crisis. Defending them is a job for all of us – that’s why we’re occupying the dam today. It’s why we locked down the irrigation scheme construction last month, and it’s why we need as many of you as possible to head down and join us here on Coxs Road in Springfield today.
It’s also why the peaceful protest on September 14th matters more than ever.
Together, we need to show government and the irrigators that we won’t disappear because someone turned up the heat. Shrinking democracy won’t stop us from saving our rivers.
So please, come on down today if you can. If you can’t come, you can see how it unfolds here on the live feed, share it on Facebook and Twitter to amplify our impact. And keep September 14th free. It’s going to be epic.
For the rivers,
Gen