{"id":30947,"date":"2015-11-30T14:21:26","date_gmt":"2015-11-30T03:21:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nofibs.com.au\/?p=30947"},"modified":"2019-04-16T13:31:18","modified_gmt":"2019-04-16T03:31:18","slug":"climate-justice-demanded-of-world-leaders-at-cop21-reports-takvera-from-paris","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.nofibs.com.au\/climate-justice-demanded-of-world-leaders-at-cop21-reports-takvera-from-paris\/","title":{"rendered":"#Climate justice demanded of world leaders at #COP21 reports @takvera from Paris"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"IMG_5694-march-for-climate-feature\"<\/a>
\nToday I observed and sometimes joined a peaceful human chain for a climate of peace on the Boulevard Voltaire in Paris. Organisers estimated about 10,000 people participated in one way or another. <\/p>\n

This event took place because Parisians and visitors to Paris were denied the freedom of speech and assembly to march down the street under the state of emergency provisions.<\/p>\n

These provisions were enacted by the French state after the terrorist attacks on November 13<\/a> which resulted in 130 deaths and over 300 injured. It caused a dark cloud to hang over the climate conference. Just the fact that national leaders focus was redirected on security and terrorism has detracted from the much needed focus on resolving the climate change issue, which activists have highlighted as the Climate Emergency. <\/p>\n

When I left Australia I was expecting to attend two huge people’s climate mobilisations in Paris: one on November 29 and another on December 12. I was expecting to march with hundreds of thousands of people down the Boulevard Voltaire to send a strong message to the leaders and diplomats attending the UN Climate conference, COP21. <\/p>\n

After the attacks, there was doubt whether France should continue with the climate conference, but those doubts were quickly dispelled. <\/p>\n

\"IMG_5702-600w\"<\/a>In France a state of emergency was declared and extended. Mass street protests were prohibited<\/a>. That meant the months of work put into the two planned mobilisations, part of global peoples climate marches, was all for nothing. The Government would not even consider protest organisers compromise suggestion of a static rally in a stadium where security could be supervised. Yet the state has allowed football matches to proceed, and Christmas markets to continue. A double standard to soften if not dispel the voice of the public in Paris on climate change while diplomats decide our future.<\/p>\n

So activists vowed to mobilise<\/a>, but through more creative forms of protest<\/a>, that perhaps push the limits of the prohibitions. <\/p>\n

Hence the visual metaphor of 4 tonnes of shoes, 22,000 pairs, in the Place de la Republique, in recognition of all the 400,000 marchers that had been expected but could not march and were silenced by the state of emergency provisions. Even the Pope and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon donated shoes to the visual installation.<\/p>\n

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Ban Ki-moon donated his shoes to stand in solidarity w\/ people of Paris unable to join a #climatemarch<\/a> today. #COP21<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/38JGGTqvOj<\/a><\/p>\n

— United Nations (@UN) November 29, 2015<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n