London mining Network member group Down to Earth organised a ‘Deadly Coal’ tour in Europe for activists from JATAM, the Indonesian network against destructive mining.
Siti Maemunah and Kahar visited Brussels, the Netherlands, London, Edinburgh and the Happendon Woods occupation in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, where climate change activists are working to prevent Scottish Coal opening yet another open cast coal mine in an area where communities already feel under heavy pressure from existing open cast mines.
Deadly Coal Tour
Two Indonesian activists visited Happendon Woods (Lanarkshire) as part of their ‘deadly coal’ tour. Siti Maemunah (Mai) and Kahar (Ocha) were made to feel very welcome- and a long and fruitful discussion took place about the extraction of coal around the world and resistance to the corporations and politicians behind the industry. Indonesia is the world’s largest exporter of thermal coal – supplying power stations and generating electricity in India, China, Europe and elsewhere around the world. Being global number one has brought wealth for a small number of the elite but for ordinary Indonesians living in the main coal mining zones of Kalimantan, the ‘coal rush’ means damaged livelihoods, ruined farmland and fisheries, plus health and social problems.
See http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2010/10/466930.html.
See Coal Action Scotland’s website at http://coalactionscotland.org.uk/.
See also:
From Crude Awakening to Climate Camp, direct action needs a new story
The climate protest movement can regain momentum by showing it’s worth getting out on the streets for the environment.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/cif-green/2010/oct/19/climate-camp-crude-awakening.
The Optimism of Uncertainty
In this awful world where the efforts of caring people often pale in comparison to what is done by those who have power, how do I manage to stay involved and seemingly happy? I am totally confident not that the world will get better, but that we should not give up the game before all the cards have been played. The metaphor is deliberate; life is a gamble. Not to play is to foreclose any chance of winning.To play, to act, is to create at least a possibility of changing the world…
http://www.commondreams.org/views04/1108-21.htm.