Watch our video featuring clips of the WDM activists, the baby stunt and the blockades.
Monday, 25 June 2007
Friday, 8 June 2007
Final day of protest
I wake up to another beautiful sunny morning as people begin to pack up at the camp. I offer my help at the kitchen and spent an hour or so helping with the huge piles of dishes with lively international company - a small gesture of help to what has been an excellently organised camp.
I then have time to head 15km by train to coastal Warmemunde, where there are white sandy beaches. The G8 leaders may have their own exclusive resort this week, but I can still enjoy this part of the Baltic coast. However, the temperature of the water (not surprisingly) leaves something to be desired!
I return to Rostock harbour for the final event of the weeks' anti-G8 activity, and enjoy music in the sunshine as we wait for the remaining blockaders to return from the fence, something that takes quite a while due to police hinderance. There are cheers as they arrive, and we hear speakers reporting on various aspects of the protests - from the camps, independent media centres, legal support and blockade organisers. The mood is a positive one as we celebrate what we have achieved - showing our strong opposition to the G8, and causing havoc to the smooth running of the summit. Support from local people has been really encouraging too. A group sets off from here to hold a vigil outsidde the police station where those still in custody are being held, and as I leave the harbour I pass a spontaneous demonstration in the street.
Towards the end of the day some activists from Berlin give me a lift to the capital, and as we leave Rostock they point out the military stationed at various points on the motorway to monitor movements around the city, something that is not allowed according the German law, although it seems that the police have instigated this activity in spite this fact.
This evening I will meet up with some WDM local group members who have also been at the protests to compare notes on our week over a beer or two. I'm quite exhausted after a action-packed week of protest in its various forms, but feel that I have done what I could to make my voice heard in letting the G8 know that what they do is not acceptable to a vast number of the people in this world.
I then have time to head 15km by train to coastal Warmemunde, where there are white sandy beaches. The G8 leaders may have their own exclusive resort this week, but I can still enjoy this part of the Baltic coast. However, the temperature of the water (not surprisingly) leaves something to be desired!
I return to Rostock harbour for the final event of the weeks' anti-G8 activity, and enjoy music in the sunshine as we wait for the remaining blockaders to return from the fence, something that takes quite a while due to police hinderance. There are cheers as they arrive, and we hear speakers reporting on various aspects of the protests - from the camps, independent media centres, legal support and blockade organisers. The mood is a positive one as we celebrate what we have achieved - showing our strong opposition to the G8, and causing havoc to the smooth running of the summit. Support from local people has been really encouraging too. A group sets off from here to hold a vigil outsidde the police station where those still in custody are being held, and as I leave the harbour I pass a spontaneous demonstration in the street.
Towards the end of the day some activists from Berlin give me a lift to the capital, and as we leave Rostock they point out the military stationed at various points on the motorway to monitor movements around the city, something that is not allowed according the German law, although it seems that the police have instigated this activity in spite this fact.
This evening I will meet up with some WDM local group members who have also been at the protests to compare notes on our week over a beer or two. I'm quite exhausted after a action-packed week of protest in its various forms, but feel that I have done what I could to make my voice heard in letting the G8 know that what they do is not acceptable to a vast number of the people in this world.
The blockades go on, but we have to go home
As the clock struck 11 yesterday evening, Tamsyn and I settled down in our couchette for another 7 hours sleeper train ride to Brussels. It was strange being back in a closed space to sleep, and I thought of all the thousands of activists that were still sleeping and staying at the gates of Heiligendamm that night. In fact, as I write this, the remaining blockaders are only now arriving back into Rostock for a final rally in the city centre before they head home.
Back on the train, we got chatting with our couchette cohorts, and spied a familiar face leaning over the top bunk. It was John, from People and Planet, who had only hours earlier facilitated a student meeting which I had spoken at. Finding our way to a seated carriage we deconstructed the weeks events, cobbling together the info we had from various friends and familiar faces we’d seen this week.
The overriding feeling seems to have been that we, as activists, had done what we went to Rostock to do. We showed solidarity with the thousands of activists protesting again the G8 in their own varied ways. We informed the alternative summit of all that we could and discussed in depth the path from where we are now- wheeling towards climate chaos at a terrifying rate- to where we need to get to- a sustainable society that put people and the environment first. And we shared our experience with people and media watching from across the globe.
The G8 leaders, in contrast, have not done even one thing they claim to have wanted to do for the world’s poor. They have not agreed a single policy to stop climate change. The comments that ‘emissons need to be reduced and that they will strongly consider at least a halving of global emissions by 2050’ is a poor substitute indeed. The latest in a long history of pledges for aid money for various initiatives will come as little comfort to all those activists, across the globe, who know that without immediate action on climate change, action which takes into account the way that equating economic growth with development has undermined both people and planet thus far, we stand no chance of alleviating poverty.
So, was there a point to it all? Definitely! Looking back at our week I believe WDM can feel confident that we are part of a global movement that continues to grow, to learn and to strengthen its demands on our leaders. The successful blockading of many of the summit entrances must be heralded as a major achievement for the movement as it could not have been done without thousands of people staying strong and firm together. The fact that this group included all ages and types of people protesting in their own way is extremely good news.
And the fact that we all walked away with a feeling that another world is possible, and indeed is being brought forward by a mass movement, is nothing short of fantastic. Meanwhile the G8 leaders are being forced to make statements on issues they would rather ignore, and having to hide from their citizens behind thousands of feet of fencing whilst they do it. The G8 may not disband this year, or next, but it is hard to see how keeping this up, retaining their cracking façade of legitimacy and following their dogmatic free-trade ideologies, in the face of such opposition and resistance, can possibly go on much longer.
Back on the train, we got chatting with our couchette cohorts, and spied a familiar face leaning over the top bunk. It was John, from People and Planet, who had only hours earlier facilitated a student meeting which I had spoken at. Finding our way to a seated carriage we deconstructed the weeks events, cobbling together the info we had from various friends and familiar faces we’d seen this week.
The overriding feeling seems to have been that we, as activists, had done what we went to Rostock to do. We showed solidarity with the thousands of activists protesting again the G8 in their own varied ways. We informed the alternative summit of all that we could and discussed in depth the path from where we are now- wheeling towards climate chaos at a terrifying rate- to where we need to get to- a sustainable society that put people and the environment first. And we shared our experience with people and media watching from across the globe.
The G8 leaders, in contrast, have not done even one thing they claim to have wanted to do for the world’s poor. They have not agreed a single policy to stop climate change. The comments that ‘emissons need to be reduced and that they will strongly consider at least a halving of global emissions by 2050’ is a poor substitute indeed. The latest in a long history of pledges for aid money for various initiatives will come as little comfort to all those activists, across the globe, who know that without immediate action on climate change, action which takes into account the way that equating economic growth with development has undermined both people and planet thus far, we stand no chance of alleviating poverty.
So, was there a point to it all? Definitely! Looking back at our week I believe WDM can feel confident that we are part of a global movement that continues to grow, to learn and to strengthen its demands on our leaders. The successful blockading of many of the summit entrances must be heralded as a major achievement for the movement as it could not have been done without thousands of people staying strong and firm together. The fact that this group included all ages and types of people protesting in their own way is extremely good news.
And the fact that we all walked away with a feeling that another world is possible, and indeed is being brought forward by a mass movement, is nothing short of fantastic. Meanwhile the G8 leaders are being forced to make statements on issues they would rather ignore, and having to hide from their citizens behind thousands of feet of fencing whilst they do it. The G8 may not disband this year, or next, but it is hard to see how keeping this up, retaining their cracking façade of legitimacy and following their dogmatic free-trade ideologies, in the face of such opposition and resistance, can possibly go on much longer.
Thursday, 7 June 2007
At the blockades
As the day draws to a close, I'm quite content with the activities I've fitted in today, and indeed this past week.I began by attending the inspiring water workshop that Tamsyn spoke excellently at, then headed up to the town of Bad Doberan to join Leila at the nearby blockades where I was able to spend around seven hours in solidarity with the other blockaders, some of whom have now been there over 36 hours and will remain there until tomorrow.
The blockade, at the east gate of the $17 million fence, had a party atmosphere, and in the brilliant sunshine felt like a giant picnic. I was impressed by the organisation by the blockade organisers - there was plenty of food and, most importantly given the weather, water for everyone, toilets with soap and water, rubbish neatly bagged at the side of the road and someone had even signposted a route to the beach, only a few kilometers away for anyone who needed a break from the action. As I approached the fence I passed a "Children's autonomous blockade" where the average age must have been around two, and spotted resourceful protesters making hammocks from the plastic netting the police used to fence off the road.
The police looked hot, tired and bored, but were kept entertained by protesters who were drumming, line dancing, juggling and otherwise generally putting on quite a spectacle, and as the day drew on, they conceded to retrieve a beach ball that breached police lines in an animated game of volleyball, and one bemused officer accepted a big bunch of wild flowers from a thoughtful activist.
From the east gate I followed the fence for a while, and watching it disappear into the distance was almost reminded of pictures of China's great wall. It made me smile to see that Heiligendamm's "great fence" had in fact been breached, as somehow a series of photos depicting people's lives around the world had been installed in the rolls of razorwire on the other side of the fence.
I left the blockades to return to camp here in Rostock as dusk approached, but hundreds of the most dedicated protesters will be there throughout the night, showing the G8 leaders that their summit is not acceptable.
Everyone's gone to support blockades
UPDATE to Tamsyn´s wednesday blog:
Whilst Tamsyn spent the day representing WDM at the summit, I set off for Bad Doberan for the weeks final protest march, unsure whether to believe the rumours that all protests had been outlawed by the police, even those outside the´no protest´zone. We had heard that Block G8 had succeeded in holding key locations around the G8 compound all night, Bad Doberan being one, and on arrival, we were greeted by an activist organised 'info-point´ with a board of up-to-date information on how many people were still at each blockade- a means of deciding who should be aided first.
Given our experience at Camp Rostock this am, I had been fully expecting to be searched by police. As we wandered the small town looking for sign of a demonstation, no such presence was visible. Indeed, the local shops were open for business and citizens mingled amongst activists dozing in a park nearby. Attendees had only slight hope that the march to the fences would take place- after yesterday's police hostility- and indeed there was not a banner in sight. We were informed that the bloackde was ongoing and in need of support, so many people decided to head to the site of the blockade to see what was going on. As we neared the site, people were obviously tense. But soon the sound of samba eased tensions as we realised that the blockade was not only holding, but had grown into a huge mass thousands of colourful people of all ages and persuasions.
The blockade has settled at four distinct locations, where stretched out sleepy activists are being brought cheese, brot and water by their newly-arrived allies. The atmoshere is excellent, with all ages and types of attendee being enlivened and entertained by a pink fluffy samba band. And what a location for a blockade, the main road to the compound is lined with trees and surrounded by fields of barley. Wandering through the happy tranquil crowds, it is hard not to get heady and think that, with all these people united in the call for the end to this self-selecting summit, it cannot be long til these fences never even go up, let alone get pulled down.
So as we speak well over a thousand people are snuggled up on sleeping bags and bales of hay, right next to the fences of Heiligendamm. And we hear that even more people have gone to the other blockade bases and all around the fence. The police line appears bored but amused, clearly in no mood for hostilities.
But just in case anyone misread the situation, the blockaders at Bad Doberan have placed several cardboard signs at the feet of the police reading 'please, no fighting'. We hear that the other blockades are doing just as well, with 5000 people reported at one site alone.
And there they stay. Nearly 36 hours on I suspect there are more people blockading the routes to G8 HQ that there were in the beginning. Young and old seem to be looking to bed down there tonight as well. With such a minimal police presence, they might even manage it!
Whilst Tamsyn spent the day representing WDM at the summit, I set off for Bad Doberan for the weeks final protest march, unsure whether to believe the rumours that all protests had been outlawed by the police, even those outside the´no protest´zone. We had heard that Block G8 had succeeded in holding key locations around the G8 compound all night, Bad Doberan being one, and on arrival, we were greeted by an activist organised 'info-point´ with a board of up-to-date information on how many people were still at each blockade- a means of deciding who should be aided first.
Given our experience at Camp Rostock this am, I had been fully expecting to be searched by police. As we wandered the small town looking for sign of a demonstation, no such presence was visible. Indeed, the local shops were open for business and citizens mingled amongst activists dozing in a park nearby. Attendees had only slight hope that the march to the fences would take place- after yesterday's police hostility- and indeed there was not a banner in sight. We were informed that the bloackde was ongoing and in need of support, so many people decided to head to the site of the blockade to see what was going on. As we neared the site, people were obviously tense. But soon the sound of samba eased tensions as we realised that the blockade was not only holding, but had grown into a huge mass thousands of colourful people of all ages and persuasions.
The blockade has settled at four distinct locations, where stretched out sleepy activists are being brought cheese, brot and water by their newly-arrived allies. The atmoshere is excellent, with all ages and types of attendee being enlivened and entertained by a pink fluffy samba band. And what a location for a blockade, the main road to the compound is lined with trees and surrounded by fields of barley. Wandering through the happy tranquil crowds, it is hard not to get heady and think that, with all these people united in the call for the end to this self-selecting summit, it cannot be long til these fences never even go up, let alone get pulled down.
So as we speak well over a thousand people are snuggled up on sleeping bags and bales of hay, right next to the fences of Heiligendamm. And we hear that even more people have gone to the other blockade bases and all around the fence. The police line appears bored but amused, clearly in no mood for hostilities.
But just in case anyone misread the situation, the blockaders at Bad Doberan have placed several cardboard signs at the feet of the police reading 'please, no fighting'. We hear that the other blockades are doing just as well, with 5000 people reported at one site alone.
And there they stay. Nearly 36 hours on I suspect there are more people blockading the routes to G8 HQ that there were in the beginning. Young and old seem to be looking to bed down there tonight as well. With such a minimal police presence, they might even manage it!
The last day of the alternative summit
Today was the last day of the alternative summit - and Leila and I had the special privilege of both having workshops at 9am this morning. We both had got to sleep after 1am and given the camp is 40 mins walk away from our workshop venues it was a struggle to get up. After a cup of tea and some oats we starting trekking to the venues, proudly on time - however after only 10 minutes we were confronted by police who were checking everyone coming past, apparently on the look out for 'violent people' on their way to join the blockades. Passports were swiftly taken off for checking, and we were given full body searches and our bags were gone through in an incredible amount of detail - that said, I think the police were really quite bored with the papers/banners/toothbrush they found in my bag, and amused themselves by looking at photos in my wallet. Having lost 30 mins of our time we dashed to our respective venues.
I then headed off with other WDMers (see photo below) to watch the closing plenary session in the main venue, while Leila went to take part in the demonstrations.
We now have only a few hours left in Rostock before we inevitably have a mad dash to the train station before making the journey back home. I wonder what the G8 leaders will actually decide while I am on the train, it does not seem like they have done much yet...
I presented alongside 4 others at a G8 and global water struggles workshop that we had co-organised. It was a well attended event, and was one of the rare ones that had two-way English/German translation meaning that everyone could participate. I focussed on the international context of the global water crisis whilst others gave perspectives from Kenya, Italy, Germany, and Europe. Unfortunately there was minimal time for discussion as the closing plenary session was directly after, but it was great to be actively involved in the only water event.
I then headed off with other WDMers (see photo below) to watch the closing plenary session in the main venue, while Leila went to take part in the demonstrations.
We now have only a few hours left in Rostock before we inevitably have a mad dash to the train station before making the journey back home. I wonder what the G8 leaders will actually decide while I am on the train, it does not seem like they have done much yet...
Wednesday, 6 June 2007
All kinda protest going on
What a difference a day makes. I knew the eerie silence that had surrounded Rostock couldn´t last.
At around six am we could already hear the mumbling of activists up and about, readying for action. Getting up at seven, we felt veritably lazy as we noticed that most people were already off site. As we headed off to join the workshops of the alternative summit, Tamsyn and I took note of the latest info-posts at the entrance: blockaders were to be at various regional locations, conveniently close to the G8 HQ, by 8am; blockaders were to change meeting points as the local supermarket had been surrounded; anyone left at a loose end was to go to the prison for support.
As we arrived in town, amid constant distant sirens and chopper sounds, it was hard not to feel that we were missing the action. But moments later we spy about 40 inconspicious people wallking casually with their towels under an arm or over a shoulder. Sensing something afoot, Tamsyn and I decided to pursue them. Presently, we arrived at the harbour to find the group carrying a giant polystyrene baby into the sea. Sabrina from Canada explained: "We created a giant black baby to symbolise Africa and now we, as white rich people, are going to go and clamber all over it. We want to make it into a short film". A bit abstract maybe, but her group, Dropping Knowledge, are a multi-media network formed around the G8 who believe in ´copy-left´ knowledge-sharing who want to tell the stories of G8 exploitation in a unique and creative way, "Every seven seconds an African baby dies, and yet the G8 still claims to be helping."
It certainly caught my imagination- especially when, as the activists jumped into the harbour to begin their theatre, the poor child´s head came off and its body split in two, making a truly macabre, perhaps even more powerful statement.
All this before 10 am!
A morning of enthusiastic plenaries followed, interspersed with updates from the ensuing blockades, as they moved ever nearer to the fences of Heiligendamm (or ´the evil empire´ as blockaders call it) We hear from some South-West London WDMers that they have successfully blockaded a major route into the compound, along with 1000 other colourful and spirited activists. One said: "As we neared the target road, police tried to intimidate us, and began using tear gas and water cannons. It was really tense and people dispersed but we followed specific flags that led us through fields so we could reform and push on. In the end we stayed in the road all day, the police didn´t seem to be arresting much at all" Organisers have claimed 10,000 protestors succeeded in blockading the meeting from all sides at various points in the day.
Once again, WDM has succeeded in being both part of challenging the illegitimate G8 talking shop and the envisioning another world through strengthening the alternative ideas. Now surely that calls for a beer!
At around six am we could already hear the mumbling of activists up and about, readying for action. Getting up at seven, we felt veritably lazy as we noticed that most people were already off site. As we headed off to join the workshops of the alternative summit, Tamsyn and I took note of the latest info-posts at the entrance: blockaders were to be at various regional locations, conveniently close to the G8 HQ, by 8am; blockaders were to change meeting points as the local supermarket had been surrounded; anyone left at a loose end was to go to the prison for support.
As we arrived in town, amid constant distant sirens and chopper sounds, it was hard not to feel that we were missing the action. But moments later we spy about 40 inconspicious people wallking casually with their towels under an arm or over a shoulder. Sensing something afoot, Tamsyn and I decided to pursue them. Presently, we arrived at the harbour to find the group carrying a giant polystyrene baby into the sea. Sabrina from Canada explained: "We created a giant black baby to symbolise Africa and now we, as white rich people, are going to go and clamber all over it. We want to make it into a short film". A bit abstract maybe, but her group, Dropping Knowledge, are a multi-media network formed around the G8 who believe in ´copy-left´ knowledge-sharing who want to tell the stories of G8 exploitation in a unique and creative way, "Every seven seconds an African baby dies, and yet the G8 still claims to be helping."
It certainly caught my imagination- especially when, as the activists jumped into the harbour to begin their theatre, the poor child´s head came off and its body split in two, making a truly macabre, perhaps even more powerful statement.All this before 10 am!
A morning of enthusiastic plenaries followed, interspersed with updates from the ensuing blockades, as they moved ever nearer to the fences of Heiligendamm (or ´the evil empire´ as blockaders call it) We hear from some South-West London WDMers that they have successfully blockaded a major route into the compound, along with 1000 other colourful and spirited activists. One said: "As we neared the target road, police tried to intimidate us, and began using tear gas and water cannons. It was really tense and people dispersed but we followed specific flags that led us through fields so we could reform and push on. In the end we stayed in the road all day, the police didn´t seem to be arresting much at all" Organisers have claimed 10,000 protestors succeeded in blockading the meeting from all sides at various points in the day.
Once again, WDM has succeeded in being both part of challenging the illegitimate G8 talking shop and the envisioning another world through strengthening the alternative ideas. Now surely that calls for a beer!
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