Remote control banner
We had another surprise for the World Energy Congress today - four remote controlled banners that unrolled from the ceiling of the conference hall with the slogan "ENEL: Do Not Export Nuclear Risk". [ Large photo. ]
ENEL is an Italian company currently completing two old Soviet-designed reactors at Mochovce, Slovakia. Their designs date from the 1970s and miss crucial safety components incorporated elsewhere following the Chernobyl nuclear disaster of 1986. The most glaring inadequacy is the plant's lack of “containment” - the solid structure above the reactor intended to prevent radioactivity escaping to the environment and to protect the reactor from external accidents such as an aeroplane crash.
Here's a report from the scene by Jan, one of our energy campaigners:
"Be the change you want to see in the world" - that is the quote that appeared on huge screen during opening of the last day at the World Energy Congress. Well then, we will try to follow this wise advice.During the speech of Fulvio Conti, director of ENEL utility, a banner suddenly dropped out from the ceiling, saying "ENEL: do not export nuclear risk". Police immediately surrounded my colleague Francesco and I, asking us to leave the hall.
We decided not to, because we had paid for registration and had not do anything bad or illegal. When the first wave of alarm cooled down, an ordinary rank and file policeman tried to explain me in Italian that he is happy that we raised our message, repeating " grazie, grazie!".
On Sunday, Romano Prodi praised the next generation of supposedly safe, clean and cheap nuclear power. We do not agree with him. Today we see ENEL - controlled largely by Prodi's government - investing money into building old style, unsafe Soviet reactors in Slovakia. What a way to make money.While in one corner of European Union, in Finland, construction of another reactors has been delayed because it was not able to prove that its double containment can withstand impact of large airplane, in Slovakia ENEL wants to build and run reactors that have no containment at all!
After our intervention, organizers announced a coffee break and fenced off the main hall while they removed our banners. They blocked it for half an hour. Sorry for next speaker, Pachauri, the head of IPCC, who was to present the IPCC findings. But I am guessing he appreciates our messages urging a change of direction. When I grabbed the today's edition of the World Energy Council newspaper, the headline on first page was, "COAL TO STAY KING".
Yes, there are still the same energy giants here sponsoring the congress, pushing on us their same old dirty coal and nuclear. The message is clear, and we raised it: Energy revolution now!
If you missed our first surprise, slideshow is here.
Comments
"Fool me once Shame on you. Fool me twice Shame on me." :)
Posted by: Simon | November 15, 2007 9:06 PM
Video? :)
Posted by: Simon | November 16, 2007 2:32 AM
There is a video here...
http://blog.libero.it/greenpeace/3593859.html
Posted by: Andrew | November 16, 2007 12:10 PM
There is a video here...
http://blog.libero.it/greenpeace/3593859.html
Not sure what happened to the activists. Of course they expected to be arrested, but I doubt they spent the night in jail. Probably either fined and released or got out on bail.
Posted by: Andrew | November 16, 2007 12:12 PM
The video on youtube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D0ZVTaHNZT0
Posted by: Oscar | November 16, 2007 1:45 PM
Two activists were arrested after the first event, they spent at police station less than two hours, released well before midnight to have a comfortable bed and well deserved rest.
Posted by: Jan Beranek | November 22, 2007 10:38 PM