[Onthebarricades] Re: [The Eco Anarchist club] Conservation protests - whaling; Woodlark Island; Papuan wood
Steve Harris
burnitdown2012 at yahoo.com
Mon Apr 14 19:38:59 PDT 2008
Posted:
http://www.corrupt.org/transcendence/forum/YaBB.pl?num=1208227093
It's awesome how this has forced capitalist dogmatics
to back down from their destructive, socialized cost
inducing behaviors.
--- Andy <ldxar1 at tesco.net> wrote:
> * JAPAN: Sea Shepherd keep whalers on the hop
> * UK/JAPAN: Protest at embassy
> * AUSTRALIA/HOLLAND/JAPAN: Japanese upset by
> embassy protests
> * JAPAN: Activists injured by whalers' gunshots
> * JAPAN: Activists kidnapped by whalers, handed
> over to customs after long
> delay
> * PAPUA NEW GUINEA: Activists, scientists stop
> biofuels project on remote
> island
> * AUSTRALIA: Activists target retail giant over
> import of West Papuan wood
>
> Publicly Archived at Global Resistance:
> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/globalresistance
>
>
http://news.smh.com.au/protest-ship-keeps-whalers-on-the-hop/20080223-1u82.html
>
>
> Protest ship keeps whalers on the hop
> February 23, 2008 - 9:35PM
> Anti-whaling protest ship the Steve Irwin has the
> Japanese whaling fleet on
> the run again in the Southern Ocean.
> The Sea Shepherd's ship located the Japanese fleet
> about 6am (AEDT) on
> Saturday after returning to the Southern Ocean from
> Melbourne, where it made
> repairs and stocked up on fuel and supplies.
> The Steve Irwin's presence in the icy southern
> waters has effectively
> stopped whaling for the day, its captain Paul Watson
> said
> "The great Southern Ocean whaling ship chase is on
> again," he said.
> "I don't think any whales are going to be dying
> today. Our goal is to keep
> the harpoons quiet for the next three weeks."
> The Steve Irwin found the Fukuyoshi Maru No. 68 at
> 6am (AEDT), which tried
> to lead it away from the whaling fleet.
> Capt Watson said they continued on course finding
> other fleet vessels
> including the Nisshin Maru.
> The first Japanese vessel, which Capt Watson
> believes carries armed Japanese
> coast guard officers, then turned and began chasing
> the Steven Irwin.
> "It is believed that the Fukuyoshi Maru No 68
> carries armed Japanese coast
> guard officers," a Sea Shepherd spokesman said.
> "The Steve Irwin is now pursuing the Nisshin Maru
> and two harpoon vessels
> with the Fukuyoshi Maru No. 68 in pursuit of the
> Steve Irwin."
> Australian Protester Jeff Hansen, from Fremantle,
> said: "Seeing the Japanese
> whalers running like cowards from the Steve Irwin is
> a very satisfying
> experience."
> "I can't think of a place I would rather be right
> now," Mr Hansen said.
> Before the Steve Irwin had found the Japanese
> whalers, the protest ship
> chased another ship, a Namibian Toothfish vessel,
> the Antalles Reefer.
> "The vessel refused to give a fishing permit number
> and threatened the Steve
> Irwin by reporting that it was armed," a Sea
> Shepherd spokesman said.
> The spokesman said the Antalles Reefer captain
> claimed to only speak
> Russian.
> "The Steve Irwin has a Russian speaking crew member
> and during the
> conversation the captain said he would resist with
> force if there was any
> interference with his operations," the spokesman
> said.
> "Captain Paul Watson relayed the information to the
> Australian Customs
> vessel Oceanic Viking and reported that a suspicious
> toothfish fishing
> vessel was operating inside the Australian Economic
> Exclusion Zone."
> The 32 crew members on board the Steve Irwin include
> 15 Australians and
> volunteers from New Zealand, Canada, the United
> States, Sweden, South
> Africa, the Netherlands, Britain and Spain.
> The great Japanese whaling chase is happening about
> 80 miles north of the
> Shackleton Glacier, well inside Australian Antarctic
> Territorial waters.
> An Australian Federal Court ordered in January that
> Japanese whaling be
> restrained in Australian territorial waters.
>
>
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,23335670-663,00.html
>
> Japan fumes over London embassy protest
> Article from: Agence France-Presse
> Font size: Decrease Increase
> Email article: Email
> Print article: Print
> From correspondents in Tokyo
> March 07, 2008 03:25pm
> Anti-whaling protester storms Japanese embassy
> Japan's foreign minister says situation is
> intolerable
> Embassy security dramatically boosted
> JAPAN today voiced outrage and said it was boosting
> security around its
> embassy in London after an anti-whaling protester
> trespassed and chained
> himself to the balcony.
> The activist climbed to the third floor and strapped
> himself to the balcony
> where he lowered the Japanese flag to half-mast and
> unfurled a banner
> saying, "Stop Your Illegal Whaling,'' before being
> arrested.
> "This is intolerable. And if this was an organised
> crime then it is all the
> more intolerable,'' Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura
> told reporters in
> Tokyo.
> The protester was a Briton who is part of US-based
> environmentalist group
> Sea Shepherd.
> The foreign ministry said it was unclear how he was
> able to climb onto the
> embassy building, which is in an open area
> overlooking Green Park.
> "Upon hearing about the incident, the Japanese
> embassy in Britain has
> requested that local police bolster security and is
> increasing the number of
> security guards,'' a foreign ministry statement
> said.
> It said that another activist, who also identified
> herself as a Sea Shepherd
> member, entered the embassy grounds and shouted
> against whaling before
> leaving voluntarily after 15 minutes.
> Japan says that whaling is part of its culture and
> accuses Western nations
> of insensitivity.
> It kills up to 1,000 whales a year using a loophole
> in a 1986 global
> moratorium that allows "lethal research'' on the
> giant mammals, with the
> meat ending up in supermarkets.
> Only Norway and Iceland defy the moratorium
> outright.
> Sea Shepherd, which considers whaling barbaric, has
> constantly harassed the
> Japanese ships on their annual hunt in Antarctica.
> The group Monday hurled
> stink bombs at the mother ship, slightly injuring
> three, according to Japan.
> Japan also voiced anger about that incident and said
> it would raise it at
> the London meeting.
>
>
>
>
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,23106412-5005961,00.html
>
> Girl, 14, arrested in whaling protest
> Article from:
> Font size: Decrease Increase
> Email article: Email
> Print article: Print
> By staff writers
> January 25, 2008 09:55am
> A 14-YEAR-old British girl has been arrested after
> protesting against
> whaling outside the Japanese embassy in London,
> inspired by the work of
> Greenpeace in the Southern Ocean.
> Sophie Wyness and her father Martin were removed by
> police after tying
> themselves to a railing inside the embassy.
> The pair was charged with criminal trespass and will
> appear in court on
> February 6.
> "I honestly think that me having a criminal record
> is not a big price to pay
> when what the whales are going through is so much
> worse," Sophie said,
> according to the British Press Association.
> The teenager took action after watching a film about
> the Greenpeace vessel
> Esperanza - which is disrupting the activities of
> the Japanese whaling fleet
> in the Southern Ocean.
> One video clip which showed a whale being blown up,
> had "hit me hard", she
> said.
> The video pushed her to stage the hour-long protest
> because she felt it was
> wrong to wrong to "brutally murder" whales.
>
> "It's a very important subject at the moment.
> They're such amazing creatures
> and they deserve rights and love and a bit of
> respect," she said.
> "I have total respect for the Japanese people but
> not what they're doing out
> there with the whales."
> Direct action was the only way to focus attention on
> whaling, she said.
> It is not the first time the 14-year-old has been
> removed from a protest but
> it is the first time she has been arrested.
> She has previously campaigned against Australia's
> nuclear policy.
> Mr Wyness has previously been arrested for
> environmental actions. He was
> removed by security guards from the British Museum
> in October for a climate
> change protest in which he put face masks on two
> figures from the Terracotta
> Army.
> Japan has faced international condemnation over its
> plans to kill endangered
> whales in the Antarctic as part of its annual
> "scientific program".
> Earlier this month, the Japanese announced they were
> dropping plans to kill
> 50 humpback whales but were pressing ahead with the
> hunting of 935 minke and
> 50 endangered fin whales.
>
>
http://news.smh.com.au/diplomats-summoned-after-whaling-protest/20080304-1wpl.html
>
> Diplomats summoned after whaling protest
> March 4, 2008 - 1:13PM
> Advertisement
> Japan has called in the Australian and Dutch
> ambassadors in Tokyo to urge
> them to rein in anti-whaling protesters.
> The diplomatic move by Japan comes after protesters
> on Monday pelted a
> Japanese whaling ship in Antarctic waters with
> foul-smelling acid and
> "slippery" powder.
> The Australian government condemned the actions of
> protest group Sea
> Shepherd, which says it threw beer bottles
> containing butyric acid, found in
> rotten butter, at the whaling ship Nisshin Maru.
> Japan described the US-based Sea Shepherd as
> "terrorists" and has lodged
> protests with Australia, where the Sea Shepherd's
> Steve Irwin vessel last
> called into port, and The Netherlands, where the
> boat is registered.
> Japan summoned Australian Ambassador Murray McLean
> and Dutch Ambassador
> Alphons Hamer, urging them to prevent more clashes,
> the Japanese foreign
> ministry said.
> Japan complained that several crew members were hurt
> in Monday's clash, but
> Sea Shepherd denied anyone had been injured.
> "That was an inexcusable act to inflict
> unjustifiable damage to Japan's ship
> and to harm the safety of the crew who are operating
> legally in the public
> sea," said Japan's top government spokesman Nobutaka
> Machimura.
> Japanese authorities said they were still
> investigating a substance in
> envelopes thrown by Sea Shepherd protesters, said to
> make the Japanese
> ship's deck so slippery that the crew could not
> work.
> Sea Shepherd head Paul Watson said he was
> disappointed Australian Foreign
> Minister Stephen Smith had condemned the
> anti-whaling group's actions on
> Monday, and again disputed Japanese claims four
> crewmen were injured.
> "If you hold up a picket line and say `stop killing
> whales' they (Japanese
> whalers) will claim injuries. They didn't show any
> evidence," Mr Watson said
> via satellite phone from aboard his ship.
> "I have been disappointed with everything the
> Australian government has been
> doing since the election. Every single promise was
> just posing and posturing
> and making sure they don't upset the Japanese.
> "Instead of condemning us he should condemn the
> Japanese for what they are
> doing."
> Mr Watson said Sea Shepherd had no plans for further
> confrontations soon.
> Instead Sea Shepherd would follow the Nisshin Maru
> and was confident it
> could stop Japan killing another whale this season.
> Sea Shepherd head Paul Watson said his ship, the
> Steve Irwin, had enough
> fuel to stay with the Nisshin Maru for about two
> more weeks.
> "We have enough fuel on here to be about here for
> another ten to fourteen
> days at this speed because we're burning a lot
> chasing them but I think that
> we can effectively make sure they're not going to
> kill any (more) whales,"
> Mr Watson told ABC Radio.
> The hunting season ends around the middle of this
> month as the winter
> weather sets in across the treacherous Southern
> Ocean.
> "They're going to have to get out of here because
> the weather's changing and
> becoming nastier," Mr Watson said.
> "I think we can shut them down for the rest of the
> season.
> "There'll be at least five hundred or possibly six
> hundred whales that will
> have been spared this season because of our
> interventions."
> Western nations, led by Australia, strongly oppose
> Japan's whaling.
> Japan, which kills up to 1,000 whales a year, says
> whaling is part of its
> culture, and accuses anti-whaling countries of
> insensitivity.
> It harpoons whales using a loophole in a 1986 global
> moratorium on whaling
> that allows "lethal research" on the giant mammals,
> although the meat often
> ends up on Japanese dinner plates.
> The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT)
> said Mr McLean held
> discussions with the Japanese government on Monday
> but had not been formally
> summoned over the whaling incident.
> "The Australian Ambassador was not formally summoned
> over the incident," a
> DFAT spokeswoman said.
> "He did have discussions ... with the Japanese
> government in Tokyo over the
> incident as part of his normal liaison with relevant
> Japanese officials."
>
> http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/03/393165.html
>
> Sea Shepherd activists injured as Japanese military
> open fire
> UK Indymedia Features | 07.03.2008 12:37 | Animal
> Liberation | Ecology |
> World
> A clash between the crew of the Sea Shepherd vessel
> Steve Irwin, who is in
> the Southern Ocean to fight the ongoing Japanese
> whaling slaughter near the
> Antarctic, turned violent when the Japanese Coast
> Guard began to throw flash
> grenades at its crew. Captain Paul Watson of the Sea
> Shepherd ship was
> struck by a bullet in the chest. Fortunately, the
> bullet was stopped by his
> Kevlar vest.
> Other injuries were sustained by crewmembers
> Australian Ashley Dunn and
> Ralph Lowe. Dunn suffered a hip injury as he tried
> to get out of the way of
> the exploding grenades. Lowe received bruises to his
> back when one of the
> flash grenades exploded behind him. Japan is denying
> that any bullets have
> been fired, saying "warning devices" were thrown
> after their ship was
> attacked. According to the Japanese foreign ministry
> their coastguard on
> board on of the whaling ships had thrown a
> "baseball-sized device, which
> exploded near the activists' ship emitting a loud
> noise". However, the Sea
> Shepherd Conservation Society has posted a video on
> their website, clearly
> showing devices being thrown from the whaling ship
> exploding and a bullet
> being recovered from Paul Watson's jacket. One UK
> activist (from Nottingham)
> is also onboard the ship, but it has not been
> reported he suffered any
> injuries.
>
>
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23064648-601,00.html
>
> Oceanic Viking to end high-seas drama
> Font Size: Decrease Increase
> Print Page: Print
> January 17, 2008
> AN Australian customs ship is preparing to transfer
> two men held on a
> Japanese whaling vessel in the Southern Ocean as
> soon as possible.
> The Australian government has agreed to let the
> Oceanic Viking customs
> vessel assist in the transfer of Benjamin Potts, 28,
> of Sydney and Giles
> Lane, 35 from Britain from the Yushin Maru No. 2.
> Foreign Minister Stephen Smith told reporters in
> Perth the government would
> use the Oceanic Viking to transfer the pair back to
> the Sea Shepherd
> Conservation Society vessel the Steve Irwin.
> "We would like the transfer to be expedited as soon
> as possible but people
> should understand it is a difficult operation," Mr
> Smith said.
> He said the risky high seas operation required the
> cooperation of the two
> vessels, the two captains and the two men.
> The foreign minister said the Oceanic Viking was
> currently trying to contact
> the two vessels to enable a transfer as soon as
> possible.
> Mr Smith said the two men were reportedly safe and
> well. "The formal advice
> from the Japanese authorities is the two men are
> safe and well."
> Mr Smith would not comment on possible motivation of
> the parties involved in
> the stand-off, but he said having called for
> assistance he now expected full
> cooperation from the Sea Shepherd crew.
> Mr Smith refused to discuss the legalities of the
> two men's actions but said
> he did believe "restraint has been lacking". He said
> he would not condone
> any unlawful activity.
> "I not only don't condone it I absolutely condemn
> it."
> This afternooon Prime Minister Kevin Rudd called on
> the Japanese government
> and environmental activists to exercise restraint to
> allow the safe return
> of the men.
> Speaking in Brisbane, Mr Rudd said Mr Smith was in
> constant talks with
> Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda to procure
> their immediate safe return.
> Mr Smith said the Oceanic Viking, a customs vessel
> steaming south from
> Fremantle, was already within sight of the Japanese
> whaling ship Yushin Maru
> 2 and he was considering what action to take.
> Greenpeace meanwhile has spotted Japan's floating
> whale processing factory
> Nisshin Maru also on its way to the scene of the
> drama.
> Mr Rudd called on activists and those on board
> Yushin Maru No. 2, to
> exercise calm.
>
> "I have concerns about the safety of all people
> involved with the operation
> ... therefore I would again urge restraint on the
> parties, full cooperation
> on the part of those involved to ensure the safe
> return of these two
> individuals," he told reporters.
>
> Mr Rudd said the Australian government still
> remained committed to ending
> commercial whaling.
> Mr Smith said the Oceanic Viking could be used to
> pick up two detained
> anti-whaling activists.
> "Obviously one option in rendering assistance is the
> use of the Oceanic
> Viking and that is one of the options we are
> currently considering," Mr
> Smith told reporters in Perth.
> The government dispatched the Oceanic Viking to
> Antarctic waters last week
> to monitor Japanese whaling and gather evidence for
> a possible international
> legal challenge to end the annual hunt.
> "I can advise the Oceanic Viking is currently within
> sighting distance of
> the Japanese whaling vessel," he said.
> Australia's role as an intermediary in the return of
> Australian Benjamin
> Potts, 28, and Briton Giles Lane, 35, has been
> accepted by both Japan and
> Sea Shepherd.
> The Japanese whalers have been adamant that the Sea
> Shepherd Conservation
> Society agree not to interfere with Japan's whaling
> operation as a condition
> for their crew members' return.
> But they have left open the option for the Oceanic
> Viking to act as an
> intermediary and pick up the two protesters if the
> conditions were not met.
> "If Sea Shepherd don't comply (with Japan's
> conditions) it would be
> acceptable if the Australian government used the
> Oceanic Viking to act an as
> intermediary," a spokesman for the Japanese whalers
> said.
> "It would be quite acceptable for the Australian
> government to come up
> alongside and collect the two men if they really
> want them and give them
> back to the Sea Shepherd.
> "You must understand the reluctance of the Japanese
> to lash their vessel up
> to the Steve Irwin -- it's just not going to happen
> like that," said Glenn
> Inwood, spokesman for the whalers.
> The skipper of the protesters' vessel Steve Irwin
> told The Australian that
> there was no way the conservation society would give
> into the demands of
> "terrorists".
> In an online audio interview today, Captain Paul
> Watson ruled out protesters
> using arms and boarding the Yushin Maru No 2 to free
> his two crew members.
> But he was considering manoevering his vessel in
> front of the Yushin Maru No
> 2 to block it from moving as a means to force it to
> return the captive crew
> members.
> He said the whalers had demanded that the Steve
> Irwin remain at least 10
> nautical miles away from the Japanese vessel, and
> send a small boat to pick
> the men up -- something Watson rejects as too
> dangerous.
> "Apparently the Japanese government has told the
> Yushin Maru No 2 to give
> our crew members back and yet we still don't have
> them on board. So we want
> to know why they haven't been released.
> "They (the Yushin Maru No 2) are making demands of
> us and holding two of our
> crew members hostage.
> "That's extortion and we have no interest in
> negotiating with criminals.
> They are out there breaking the law."
> Greenpeace meanwhile says the Japanese whaling
> factory - Nisshin Maru - was
> on its way back to the hunting zone in the Southern
> Ocean, the scene of a
> tense standoff between whalers and environmental
> activists.
> Expedition director Karli Thomas, on board
> Greenpeace ship Esperanza, said
> the Nisshin Maru turned back towards the rest of the
> fleet in the whaling
> waters on Tuesday.
> The Esperanza has been following the Japanese ship
> since it located the
> whaling fleet on Saturday.
> With AFP and AAP
>
> http://de.indymedia.org/2008/01/205247.shtml
>
> Protests stop PNG island oil palm project
> Diet Simon, sourced on Rettet den Regenwald
> 17.01.2008 08:38 Themen:
> Weltweit Ökologie
> Massive local and international protest has stopped
> a Malaysian company's
> plan to grow oil palms on nearly all of a pristine
> Papua-New Guinean island.
> The PNG agriculture minister, John Hickey, who first
> approved the plan has
> now confirmed that it's been dropped. The palm oil
> was to be exported for
> agrofuel production.
>
> The Malaysian Vitroplant Ltd. had intended to clear
> away 60,000 hectares of
> rain forest on the island of Woodlark, which lies
> about 280 kilometres from
> Papua New Guinea and has a total area of about
> 85,000 hectares.
>
> The 6,000 islanders would have lost their culture,
> their hunting grounds and
> their lands for growing food. The palm plantation
> would have destroyed
> almost all the still intact flatland rain forest of
> the island and with it a
> breathtaking biodiversity. Marine life along the
> island's coasts would also
> have been destroyed by wastes produced by the palm
> oil project.
>
> Almost without exception the islanders resisted the
> plan, backed by pressure
> from environmental activists around the globe.
> Almost 8,500 people sent
> protest letters just through the Germany-based
> "Rettet den Regenwald" (Save
> the Rain Forest) website (
> http://www.regenwald.org).
>
> Rettet den Regenwald has started another protest
> campaign asking for letters
> to demand that the European Union give up its plan
> to mandate 10% agrofuels
> in transportation by 2020.
>
> Even the EU's Environment Commissioner, Stavros
> Dimas, conceded in an
> interview with the British Broadcasting Corporation
> on 14 January 2008: "We
> have seen that the environmental problems caused by
> biofuels and also the
> social problems are bigger than we thought they
> were. So we have to move
> very carefully."
>
> A draft internal report gives the EU Commission a
> scathing assessment of the
> European agrofuel plans and warns of devastating
> ecological and social
> problems resulting from them.
>
> On 23 January 2008 the Commission intends to present
> a climate and energy
> package of which the agrofuel quota is a core
> element.
>
> For more on the devastation caused by palm oil see
>
http://sydney.indymedia.org.au/story/protest-against-palmoil-german-candle-production.
>
>
http://news.mongabay.com/2008/0212-hance_woodlark.html
>
> How activists and scientists saved a rainforest
> island from destruction for
> palm oil
> By Jeremy Hance, mongabay.com
> February 12, 2008
> Saving an island: analysis of Woodlark Island's
> victory over palm-oil
> development
>
> How Woodlark Island's plight went from local to
> global
>
> In mid-January, Mongabay learned that the government
> of Papua New Guinea had
> changed its mind: it would no longer allow
> Vitroplant Ltd. to deforest 70%
> of Woodlark Island for palm oil plantations. This
> change came about after
> one hundred Woodlark Islanders (out of a population
> of 6,000) traveled to
> Alotau, the capital of Milne Bay Province, to
> deliver a protest letter to
> the local government; after several articles in
> Mongabay and Pacific
> Magazine highlighted the plight of the island; after
> Eco-Internet held a
> campaign in which approximately three thousand
> individuals worldwide sent
> nearly 50,000 letters to local officials; and after
> an article appeared in
> the London Telegraph stating that due to
> deforestation on New Britain Island
> and planned deforestation on Woodlark Island, Papua
> New Guinea had gone from
> being an eco-hero to an 'eco-zero'.
>
> The endemic Woodlark Cuscus is safe for now. Photo
> by Tim Flannery
> Except for the article in the London Telegraph, the
> issue of Woodlark Island
> was largely ignored by mainstream western media. For
> many involved this was
> disappointing, since the plight of Woodlark Island
> so perfectly presented
> the wholesale destruction palm oil plantations have
> been causing in Asian
> and Pacific forests for years. Dr. Glen Barry,
> founder and director of
> Ecological Internet, referred to the situation as
> the "epitome of ecological
> evil" since this "incredibly diverse island would be
> turned over to a
> monoculture crop". Although the issue barely touched
> mainstream media, it
> still found its way from local protestors to
> scientists to global
> organizations, eventually putting international
> pressure on the
> decision-makers.
>
> Mongabay first learned of the plight of Woodlark
> Island from a blog entry by
> the conservation organization EDGE (Evolutionary
> Distinct and Globally
> Endangered). The organization had been contacted by
> researchers on the
> ground. After receiving help and information from
> Alexander Rheeney, an
> environmental journalist who covered the issue
> locally, Mongabay sent word
> to various campaign organizations. Dr. Barry's
> Ecological Internet took it
> on, setting up the campaign to flood Papua New
> Guinea's government with
> e-mails from around. In the meantime, island natives
> continued to pressure
> the government and the London Telegraph picked up
> the story. It appears that
> the combined protests and negative attention were
> enough to sway the
> government to drop the project.
>
> Opposition in many forms
>
> There can be no doubt that the most important part
> of the opposition to the
> deforestation of Woodlark Island was the courageous
> citizens of Woodlark
> themselves, who decided not to allow the government
> and Vitroplant Ltd. to
> devastate the island's ecology, resources, and way
> of life for short-term
> monetary gain. Mongabay had been in contact with one
> of the leaders of the
> local opposition, Dr. Simon Piwuyes, from early on.
> He had this to say when
> the government pulled the project: "This is
> fantastic. It is important that
> the livelihood of the Woodlark Islanders and the
> eco-system that surrounds
> them is maintained. Woodlark Islanders live
> care-free lives in the midst of
> the ocean and their rich forest land. The forest and
> the animals play an
> irreplaceable importance in the lives of the
> islanders. It is a great relief
> to learn that the government has spared rare species
> that our earth
> desperately loves to keep. I, on behalf of the
> Woodlark Islanders, salute
> the government for the decision." When asked why he
> thought the government
> changed its position, Dr. Piyuwes stated: "Number
> one: pressure from the
> landowners, number two: pressure from the NGOs, and
> number three: pressure
> from international organizations and individuals".
> He added, "On this note I
> salute all organizations and individuals for signing
> up for this great
> issue. Our earth needs such cooperation."
>
> The cooperative efforts also included scientists and
> researchers. Dr.
> Kristofer Helgen, a mammalogist who focuses on
> species in the Papua New
> Guinea and its neighboring islands, stated, "I think
> that this is very good
> news. Woodlark Islanders loudly objected to major
> oil palm development on
> Woodlark. Their campaign to prevent this action
> involved contacting
> international researchers to attract attention to
> their cause, which is how
> I came to be aware of the situation." Researchers
> and scientists proved
> instrumental in spreading the word and providing
> continual context and
> information. Without them the issue would never have
> made it to a variety of
> media sources.
>
> Forests.org, part of Ecological Internet, was the
> largest organization to
> take on the issue. Ecological Internet asks online
> members to send out
> protest letters regarding various environmental
> issues. When asked why he
> decided to set-up a campaign for Woodlark Island,
> Dr. Barry expressed a
> personal link to the region: "[Ecological
> Internet's] efforts began with
> Papua New Guinea. The country is near and dear to my
> heart. I married a
> woman from Papua New Guinea, and my wife and
> daughter are there visiting
> now." Dr. Barry also felt positive about his
> organization's ability to make
> a difference in this situation. "I was quite
> confident," he says, "given the
> secrecy of this project with the shady Malaysian
> company that once we
> exposed it we could either halt the project or delay
> it long enough for
> further scrutiny and oversight". Dr. Barry describes
> the power of his
> organization as 'the boomerang effect': the issue
> goes out to his over
> 100,000 members worldwide-living in almost every
> nation-and then boomerangs
> back to the local nation involved. Carly Waterman,
> project coordinator for
> EDGE, believes that the victory for Woodlark Island
> "really highlights the
> power of the Internet, where one person's voice can
> turn into millions
> overnight"
>
> Map modified from Google Earth
> At the time of the protest by Ecological Internet
> there was an opportunity
> to remind Papua New Guinea of its previous
> pro-environmental statements,
> namely its desire to receive funds for preserving
> its forests to mitigate
> climate change. Papua New Guinea even made headlines
> during the Bali
> conference on climate change when one of its
> members, Kevin Conrad, had the
> courage to stand-up to the world's super-power. "I
> would ask the United
> States, we ask for your leadership," Mr. Conrad
> said, "but if for some
> reason you're not willing to lead, leave it to the
> rest of us. Please get
> out of the way." His comments were met with applause
> from leaders worldwide
> and shortly thereafter the U.S. caved to
> international pressure. The article
> on Woodlark Island in the London Telegraph alluded
> to this very moment in
> its observation that Papua New Guinea was not truly
> an 'eco-hero' but an
> 'eco-zero' due to its willingness t engage in
> deforestation. Dr. Barry also
> grasped the opportunity: "You were leaders of
> rainforest conservation, now
> you are going to allow an island with endemic
> species and people living in
> harmony with their rainforest to be essentially
> mowed down." There is no
> question that the comments made during the Bali
> conference, and in previous
> arenas, came back to haunt the government of Papua
> New Guinea.
>
> What the decision protects: the singularity of
> Woodlark Island
>
> Papua New Guinea and its surrounding islands is a
> region of ecological
> wonders. Woodlark Island alone possesses at least
> twenty-four endemic animal
> species; the island has been only partially surveyed
> by biologists; each new
> expedition usually turns up a species unknown to
> science. Most famous of the
> endemic species is the Woodlark Cuscus, an arboreal
> marsupial. Islanders
> occasionally hunt and eat the Cuscus, but this has
> not affected its healthy
> population. If Vitroplant Ltd. had been allowed to
> go ahead it is quite
> conceivable that many of Woodlark Island's species
> would have become
> endangered. Dr. Helgen noted that "for animal
> species unique to Woodlark
> Island, including the beautiful Woodlark Cuscus, the
> island's forests are
> their only home. The decision not to destroy those
> forests is a clear
> victory for everyone interested in the long-term
> survival of all of Papua
> New Guinea's unique wildlife species, which have
> fundamental cultural and
> ecological importance in this island nation of
> ancient and beautiful
> forests." The very ecological systems of the island
> would have been affected
> as well. Dr. Dan Polhemus stated in a previous
> article that supplanting
> forest with palm oil greatly degrades local water
> systems. As well, it was
> believed that chemicals and fertilizers used on the
> island would end up
> contaminating the surrounding coast, eliminating the
> fish supply that
> islanders depend upon.
>
> It is not only the ecology of the island that has
> been preserved by the
> government's decision, but the islander's unique
> culture as well.
> Deforestation of 70% of the island would have
> drastically changed a culture
> whose subsistence relies on the island's ecology, an
> ecology that has been
> shaped by the islanders as much as the islanders
> have shaped it. Dr. F.H.
> Damon, an anthropologist who has been studying the
> Woodlark Island for over
> thirty years, says that "there remains on the island
> something of a unique
> example of a regional social and ecological system
> that supported human and
> other life for 2000 and more years." Employing
> gardening, small-scale
> hunting, and pig-herding the islanders have built a
> sustainable way of life
> for themselves and the island's other species within
> a mere 80,000 hectares
> (the size of New York City).
>
> It is easy to list off what is being preserved by
> not developing Woodlark
> Island, but it's more difficult to fully comprehend
> the agglomerate richness
> of a place like Woodlark Island in its global
> context. Dr. Barry describes
> Papua New Guinea as "one of four remaining areas of
> rainforest wilderness-in
> terms of size and contiguous intactness." He says
> that "as well as Papua New
> Guinea, the other three areas are the Amazon, the
> Congo, and the Guyana
> Shield. Unlike Europe, China, or the United States,
> where all habitats are
> small and fragmented, it is very important not to
> let these last four
> remaining areas become fragmented."
>
> Still not safe: the future of palm-oil
>
> Unfortunately such fragmentation may still occur in
> Papua New Guinea. Most
> people involved with Woodlark Island believe that
> the island is still not
> safe from palm oil plantations or other forms of
> destructive development.
> "It is very likely this issue will appear again in
> the near future," Dr.
> Barry said, "any rainforest is never truly
> protected." Dr. Damon agrees, "In
> the scheme of things this is a small decision amidst
> massive movements which
> may yet overwhelm the island's ecology and culture,
> a culture that has been
> being eroded for 150 years. Yet the people of the
> island said no to one
> possible direction for their future. That is a
> courageous act." Dr. Simon
> Piyuwes is aware of the danger. He said that while
> the islanders welcomed
> the government's rejection of the project they
> stilled demanded the
> company's official withdrawal. "This is because the
> land lease has been
> granted to the company," Dr. Piyuwes explained, "we
> would like the lease to
> be nullified." It seems the future of palm oil
> remains strong, even though
> this 'green' biofuel is no greener than gasoline.
>
> A recent study of biofuels and carbon sequestering
> has proven that virtually
> all agricultural biofuels actually increase
> emissions that drive climate
> change. This report has received worldwide
> attention. In a comparison with
> various biofuel crops, palm oil proves to be the
> most environmentally
> damaging, especially as it is usually produced on
> cleared rainforest and
> peatlands. According to the study, it would have
> taken Woodlark Island
> eighty-six years for the palm oil plantations to
> make-up for the amount of
> carbon their development released in the atmosphere,
> and yet the lifecycle
> of a palm oil plantation is around thirty years,
> meaning that it could never
> overcome its carbon debt and would be a net source
> of CO2.
>
> Despite these reports, scientists believe that
> biofuels, and in particular
> palm oil, will continue to threaten Papua New
> Guinea's forests. Both
> Malaysia and Indonesia, the kings of palm oil, have
> felled so many forests
> and peatlands for the crop that few places remain
> for expansion, which is
> one reason why Papua New Guinea is suddenly under
> great pressure to cave
> into the palm oil industry. "I am sure that palm oil
> plantations will
> continue to expand in Southeast Asia and Papua New
> Guinea, at least as long
> as global demand for palm oil remains high," says
> Dr. Helgen. "This demand
> is linked to strong interest in... 'biofuels' as
> alternative and inexpensive
> sources of energy, and especially by demand for
> biofuels in the rapidly
> growing economies of China and India." In addition,
> Dr. Barry points out
> that the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, Michael
> Somare, never commented
> on the government's decision to pull Vitroplant out
> of Woodlark Island.
> Barry says that Prime Minister Sumari's "interest in
> logging and bad
> environmental record has shown him to be a
> hypocrite. I have seen this
> happen in Uganda, a minister cancels a project while
> the Prime Minister does
> not comment on it. It means that it will be likely
> that palm oil production
> and logging will be seen again in Papua New Guinea."
> Dr. Damon adds a
> further warning for the future: "until we devise new
> energy sources and
> models of the human good, [palm oil production] is a
> track to destruction.
> Monocrop agriculture is not a viable future but so
> many things have to
> change before we have a realistic alternative that
> it is almost hopeless to
> think about a different future."
>
> Some scientists believe there are ways to counter
> the current biofuel rush.
> "I think that part of the solution to countering the
> 'blitzkrieg' expansion
> of palm oil plantations into former rainforested
> lands across Asia and
> Melanesia is getting the word out globally that the
> global biofuel
> industry," says Dr. Helgen, "especially those parts
> of the industry that
> involve massive tropical deforestation, involve
> catastrophic losses of
> biodiversity... and may have a huge negative impact
> in worldwide efforts to
> counteract the acceleration of global climate
> change." With more attention
> placed on biofuels by researchers and
> governments-the EU has already taken
> notice-it is possible the palm oil industry will
> begin to wan in South East
> Asia. Dr. Barry sees hope in current trends, "I
> think the kind of unfettered
> growth that we have seen in the last few years as
> biofuels and oil palm were
> heralded as climate savior is being legitimately
> questioned." He adds that
> "as we approach 7 billion people, countries will
> have to choose between
> adequately feeding and adequately transporting
> themselves." Such choices
> will hopefully lead to further research studies and
> a greater focus on more
> effective ways to fight climate change.
>
> The necessity of celebrating victories
>
>
> Beginnings of an oil palm plantation. Courtesy of
> UNEP
> While Woodlark Island is still threatened, while so
> much of South East
> Asia's forests have succumbed to palm oil, and while
> every year more and
> more effects from climate change are seen, some
> might believe that claiming
> any victory is premature. However, Dr. Barry who has
> seen both victories and
> disappointments in his organization, says, "I don't
> know how else to sustain
> a movement and grow a movement than celebrating
> positive developments." Such
> celebrations, whether of preserving Woodlark Island
> or ending the use of
> rainforest wood to make New York City's benches, are
> important "to sustain
> ourselves, and give ourselves hope... We live to
> fight another day." Dr.
> Barry concluded that for environmentalists, "A lot
> of this is fighting a
> defensive action. When the moment comes where the
> world finally begins to
> focus on the necessity of large-scale ecological
> renewal the seeds of
> habitat will remain to make this restoration
> possible."
>
> For Dr. Piyuwes, and the inhabitants of Woodlark
> Island, there is no
> question that this is a victory. When asked what
> advice he would give to
> those participating in future struggles for
> conservation, he had this to
> say: "We need to preserve our forest from
> deforestation. There are other
> alternatives to development. There are many
> organizations and individuals
> nationally and internationally who are willing to
> support you on the issue
> of deforestation. My advice is to engage the
> international organization and
> media to battle the issue." Dr. Piyuwes is now able
> to imagine a much more
> celebratory future for his native island than anyone
> could have a month ago.
> "Number one," he says, "we will demand the
> Government to give back the land
> to the islanders (woodlark is state land). Number
> two, declare woodlark as
> protected land. Number three, encourage
> eco-tourism." Only the victory over
> Vitroplant allows such happy plans to be realistic.
>
>
http://www.times.co.nz/cms/news/2008/04/art100019881.php
>
> Protestors picket retail giant over kwila wood
> products
> Wednesday, 09 April 2008
>
> By CAMERON BROADHURST
>
> . Howick and Botany Times
> COLOURFUL street theatre protests took place
> outside Manukau's Harvey
> Norman store recently to highlight illegally logged
> kwila wood products on
> sale.
>
> KWILA CONTROVERSY: A chainsaw attempts to cut down a
> kwila tree while
> watched by a bird of paradise at a protest outside
> Manukau's Harvey Norman
> store. Photo supplied.
> The small protest at Ronwood Avenue was held by the
> Indonesian Human Rights
> Committee.
> Spokeswoman Maire Leadbeater says: "Virtually all
> kwila is coming from West
> Papua and virtually all of it is illegally logged."
> The wood is popular in outdoor furniture in New
> Zealand, but many retailers
> have stopped selling it.
> Concerns about the wood include that it's becoming
> extinct, as forests in
> West Papua and Papua New Guinea are denuded by
> illegal logging and that
> indigenous Papuans are being adversely affected by
> the tree removal.
> The committee worked together with Greenpeace to
> produce a report rating
> outdoor furniture retailers, some of which have
> already changed policy since
> it was issued a month ago.
> Ms Leadbeater says the protesters, a few dressed as
> birds of paradise, were
> able to get their point across and even march
> through the store to talk to
> the manager.
> A manager for Harvey Norman says the company uses
> suppliers and does not
> import anything directly. He refuses to comment
> further.
> Ms Leadbeater says the committee is considering
> protesting at the Four
> Seasons store in Botany, which is selling kwila and
> has an E rating on the
> chart.
>
>
>
> ------------------------------------
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