Number xxiii • LughNasadh summer 2016 EarthON THE FRONTLINESFirst! OF ECOLOGICAL RESISTANCE News THE FIGHT AGAINST THE OCTOPUS IN CHILE by Cicada Chile is an extremely biodiverse country with one of the highest levels of endemic flora and fauna in the world. The country stretches 2,653 miles north to south along the Pacific Ocean and averages only 110 miles in width from east to west. Its elevation reaches 22,615 feet, where the active volcano named “Eyes of the Salty One” lives within the Andes mountain range on the east. Some of the major threats to Chile’s ecosystems include mining and deforestation: It is the biggest copper producer in the world, has the world’s largest radiata pine tree farm, and is home to some of the world’s most endangered native forests. Industrial fishing, 92 percent of which is owned by just four companies, is also a major threat and has been linked to the current toxic red tide which has caused multiple deaths and massive marine die-offs. A state of emergency was declared in June and mass protests have taken place throughout the country due to government inaction. As is too often the case, the powerful elite that control the media and government are also directly tied to the extraction industries, so in a country with a brutal history of violence—including outright massacres—actions like lockdowns and treesits don’t hold as much weight as we like to believe they do in the US or Canada. Instead, folks take to the streets, some setting fires while others bang on pots and pans, ...CONTINUED ON PAGE 11 NEWS FROM THE ECO -WARS Feb-May—UK: Hundreds of Animals March-Present—Peru: Mining Mar 26—Germany: Fox Freed from Rescued from Farms Resisters Occupy Plaza, Activists on Captivity From the ALF communiqué: “All of Hunger Strike The ALF freed a fox and set a hunting the animals liberated now have homes Thirty people from Apurímac have tower on fire at a hunting dog training for life where they can live out their lives been occupying the space in front of facility. free from pain, fear, abuse and murder. the Public Defender’s office in Lima in These actions are dedicated to all our an attempt to have a dialogue with the Mar 29—Italy: Oil and Gas Company prisoners and those suffering repres- mining corporation MMG about ending Vehicles Sabotaged in Milan sion around the world and for lost com- the Las Bambas mining project. The From the communiqué: “Ten EN- rades who will never be forgotten, Gilly occupation is in conjunction with a JOY cars had their tires slashed and and Marion.” Along with hundreds of hunger strike and protests by members bodywork destroyed. Sabotage ENI, battery hens, the group claimed to have of 47 communities. The group doesn’t sabotage the war.” ENJOY is a vehi- rescued turkeys, rabbits, guinea pigs, want MMG to continue with the Las cle-sharing service provided by ENI, a and ducks. Bambas mining project. multinational oil and gas company. ...CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Mar 30—Mongolia: Thousands Protest Foreign Mining Apr 11 or 12— More than 2,000 demonstrators gath- Canada: Log Loader ered in Ulan Bator’s Freedom Square Sabotaged and demanded Parliament be dissolved and a new government be formed. The A gate on company prop- demonstrators claim that Mongolia’s erty in BC was cut and a mineral wealth, which accounts for 94 person placed a rock on percent of exports, has been exploited the controls of the machine, by foreign firms with few benefits going which then drove itself to the country’s three million people. over a bank. The vehicle belonged to Western Cana- Mar 30—Paraguay: Residents dian Timber Products, and Sabotage Mining Company Property according to a statement by Over 600 people from Paso Yobái and the company, the loss hurt surrounding neighborhoods broke the them greatly. windows of Latin American Minerals Paraguay buildings and shot company vehicles. The firm has been operating in the area for over ten years. the two AC units inside each, as well. Apr 18—Canada: First Nations Block With axes we cut the cables to the an- Indigenous Affairs Office Apr 1—Philippines: Three Dead after tennas’ electrical device as well as wires Seven people set up tents in front of Police Fire on Farmer Blockade to the distribution substation that pow- the Saskatchewan office four days af- In addition to the three killed, six were er the antennas [translated].” This was ter a protest occurred at the same lo- wounded, many hurt, and dozens went done in solidarity with political prison- cation. They are upset with the way missing when security forces and police ers and in protest of Earth-destroying the office has been handling housing, bombarded the protesters with water infrastructure such as the TAV. water rights, and mental health issues cannons and then opened fire with live throughout Canada. The office ended ammunition. The group, including chil- Apr 5-6—France: Climate Resisters Stop up closing for the day. dren, was blockading the Cotabato-Davao MCEDD Deepwater Oil Conference highway, demanding rice as relief from a About 500 climate activists disrupted Apr 18—Germany: Unknown People drought that had dried up their fields. the first day of the conference by blockad- Free Animals from Circus ing the entrance to the venue for at least An unknown number of people Apr 1—Australia: Narrabri Coal Mine nine hours despite being teargassed. sneaked onto circus grounds overnight Shut Down Others infiltrated the conference and and opened the doors to a trailer hold- Two warriors with Front Line Action on locked down to chairs onstage. On the ing ostriches and a goose, all of whom Coal locked to a coal conveyor to stand second day, activists locked themselves ran into the dark. Since one of the two up against the Whitehaven coal mine de- to the gates of the hotel where delegates ostriches were found, it may have to be stroying a critically endangered forest. were staying, and to their vehicles and killed, because German laws state the parking lot gates, while over 600 people ostriches have to be kept in pairs. The Apr 1—Iran: Peaceful Animal Rights surrounded the venue with arms linked. circus enslaves over 80 animals. Demonstrators Arrested April 1 is Nature Day in Iran, usually Apr 11—Mexico: Forest Defenders’ Apr 18-20—Fighting Against Natural celebrated by having outdoor picnics. Camp Destroyed by Soldiers Gas Escalates Protest in New The group was originally supposed to Grupo Higa, contractors responsible England protest in front of Parliament in Teh- for destroying the Otomi forest, arrived On the 18th, Burrillville residents and ran but, facing security forces, went with 800 heavily armed Mexican mili- people from across the state stormed to a nearby park instead. They were tary police to the community of Xoch- the RI Office of Energy Resources and attacked and beaten by plain-clothed icuautla to evict the camp. During this demanded that Commissioner Marion agents, forced to give up their phones time, machinery continued the illegal Gold revoke her support of Invenergy’s and passwords, and thrown in an un- construction of the Toluca-Naucalpan fracked-gas power plant. Two banners marked van and taken away. highway which would destroy a large were dropped from the fourth floor of portion of the forest. the building and residents held a sit- Apr 2-3—Spain: Communication in. The next day, 15 people sat in at RI Antennas Sabotaged Apr 12—Indonesia: Protesters Cement Governor Raimondo’s office with a ban- From the statement: “... we ap- Their Feet in Front of State Palace ner showing the local and global im- proached two antennas in the road Nine women protested the develop- pacts of the fracked-gas plant. On the between Iruña and Irurtzun (Nafarroa) ment of a state-owned PT Semen In- 20th, a group of Boston area residents and with the help of pliers we opened a donesia cement plant in Rembang re- delivered an “Annual Report”—detail- breach inside wire mesh that surrounds gency. The activists oppose the plan ing the failure of the company to pro- the antennas. With wooden-handled because of the environmental problems tect their community—to National Grid Earth First! News Earth First! mallets we destroyed the electricity me- it would cause and the threat to farm- at their North American headquarters. 2 ters inside both antennae and we broke ers’ earnings. Apr 19—Pipeline Opponent in VT Apr 22—Farm Defenders Occupy the curities and Exchange commission, 3 Scales Tree, Halts Land Clearing Gill Tract Again to Halt Construction adding that it “did not anticipate being News Earth First! An individual occupied a platform The occupation occurred on the four- able to develop Conga for the foresee- thirty feet high in order to stop crews year anniversary of the first farm occu- able future.” from clearing a route for a pipeline in pation and was attended by around 30 Addison County. Adversaries to the farm defenders. The group released a Apr 30—Canada: Hundreds of Mink pipeline say it will become a major list of three demands: stop the develop- Released from Fur Farm emitter of greenhouse gasses over the ment, preserve the land for sustainable Over 500 mink were released from coming decades. For two weeks the agriculture, and create a community their cages at Willow Pond Farm in On- treesitter managed to delay construc- process for design and stewardship of tario about six months after undercov- tion of the fracked-gas pipeline.