Article by IBON
Article by IBON
The 21st Conference of Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) opened today in Paris, where the world’s leaders are expected to come to an agreement on actions to solve the climate crisis.
The 21st Conference of Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) opened today in Paris, where the world’s leaders are expected to come to an agreement on actions to solve the climate crisis.
From La Paz (Bolivia) to Manila
(Philippines) and to Fiji (Pacific Islands), hundreds of thousands of people
have participated in various People’s Climate Marches all over the world in the
last two days to step up the pressure on the world leaders to agree on a
meaningful outcome for the Paris Climate Summit.
However, the COP 21 also takes place amidst
a backdrop of a state of emergency in Paris, following the terror attacks of
November 13 that left more than a hundred dead and many more injured.
Protest is currently banned in
Paris. This means any outdoor gathering of more than two has been strictly
prohibited, and anyone taking part in an illegal demonstration could face
penalties of USD 3,972 or up to two months in prison. Clearly, this was meant
to quell dissent, because while the French government has continued to allow
Christmas markets and trade fairs to be held, it has put a number of climate
campaigners under house arrest. As such,
yearlong efforts by French and international civil society and social movements
to mobilize 100,000 for the Paris Climate March had to be cancelled.
Today, in the French capital, around
20,000 pairs of shoes were laid out in the Place de la Republique to symbolize
marchers that were not allowed to exercise their right to peaceful
assembly. Afterwards, an estimated
10,000 people formed a human chain spanning several kilometers along the
sidewalk, with banners that called for ‘system change, not climate change’, ‘no
to false solutions’, and chanting ‘l’etat
d’urgence, c’est le climat (‘the state of emergency is the climate).
But things got ugly in the
afternoon, when French riot police came down full force on hundreds of people
gathered at the Republique. The anti-riot police fired tear gas canisters at
the people, and quickly the air was filled with smoke that stung the eyes and
skin. Some sought refuge at nearby cafes and restaurants, while the others
tried to assert their right to assemble and express themselves. The police
swooped down on everyone out in the street at the Republique, and filled the
buses with around 200 people they arrested.
Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite (Liberty,
equality, fraternity) – the ideals that propelled the French Revolution – are
these for all women and men, or for the corporations and elites at the Le
Bourget, site of the COP 21? (### Tetet
Nera-Lauron)
Photo by: Alejandro Barrios Noya
Photo by Tetet Nera-Lauron
Many thanks for this great article. Here in Brussels, we were also denied the right to march, so we also did a human chain with many inspiring citizens already implementing the transition !
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