„Save the environment from the profit system“

On the ICOR and ILPS joint day of struggle, in at least 45 large and smaller towns all over Germany rallies, demonstrations, action- and information stalls took place. In spite of the stormy and very cold rainy weather hundreds participated with contributions at open microphones, with music, street theatre scenes, drumming on „nuclear“ steel drums. There are many environmental initiatives in Germany: against constructing new coal power stations, for the shutdown of all nuclear power plants and against the transport of nuclear waste, against the so-called „fracking“, a method for extracting gas from rock, for which highly toxic substances are used etc. But often these initiatives are hardly connected with each other, limited at a local or regional level.

„It is a minute before twelve“ - with this proverb for highest priority for saving the foundations of human life on this planet, there was substantial progress in uniting the manifold individual initiatives on this world climate day. In fact the top officials of the large environmental associations and of bourgeois parties pointedly distanced themselves from supporting the world climate day this year. But in a number of big cities (Munich, Stuttgart, Frankfurt, Essen, Berlin and Hamburg) intensive efforts proved successful in forging united actions without regard for political affiliation. Besides activists of environmental initiatives numerous migrant organizations, the MLPD and its youth league REBELL, individual representatives of the Leftparty and the party Alliance '90/Greens took part. Almost everywhere groups of the women's association Courage and the internationalist relief organization Solidarity International were present.

Often – as in Essen or Dortmund – centers of big energy monopolies were chosen as starting points for militant rallies, in order to target those primarily responsible for the environmental destruction. In Hamburg, Munich or Gelsenkirchen male and female workers from big enterprises rejected the demagogic juxtaposition of „either jobs or environmental protection“ and proved the material preconditions for production and for generating energy in an ecologically compatible way to be given already for a long time.

While at the world climate conference in Durban, South Africa, those responsible from big corporations and governments proved their complete inability and unwillingness to call a halt to the rapidly progressing climate catastrophe, all over the world people courageously and unselfishly are bracing themselves against the environmental crimes of the international finance capital, which more and more call the foundations of nature and human life into question.

This year's characteristic was: in more and more countries this was done in full consciousness, that they are participating in building an international front of resistance for this cause. Wherever MLPD or its youth league took part in the activities, they also made known the joint campaign of ILPS and ICOR for the the shutdown of all nuclear power plants. That was met with large interest and readiness to lend a hand.

Anna Bartholomé