Bushfire Victims Outside Parliament House Have Asked The Government To Cut Ties With Coal
They are pushing the government to cut ties with coal, and created a "trail of destruction" from Parliament House to the mining lobby to make their point.
The Coalition loves coal.
They proved it in 2017 when Scott Morrison bought a lump of it into parliament and they are proving it now as they continue to support the industry’s expansion, despite evidence that doing so is driving our destructive weather.
Yesterday a group of protestors who have felt that destruction first-hand pushed wheelbarrows full of bushfire debris from Parliament to the office of a mining lobby group, demanding the government cut ties with the coal sector.
Bushfire victims gather outside Parliament House demanding Australia cut ties with coal mining sector and lobbyists. @SBSNews #auspol pic.twitter.com/kPD2qQZWOO
— Tom Stayner (@StaynerThomas) February 10, 2020
Mike Bowers was out the front of parliament this morning where bushfire survivors are holding a protest, asking politicians to cut ties with the coal lobby They brought debris from what was left of their homes pic.twitter.com/eDmZXKF3pe
— 💛💧MormorLady 🔥 (I Don't Hold the Hose Mate) (@mormorlady) February 11, 2020
The wheelbarrows were full of what remained of their homes after they were destroyed in the recent bushfire disaster. They embellished them a little by sticking the names of different mining companies to each one.
The march ended at the Minerals Council building, where they also delivered an invoice for $1.3 billion — the estimated cost of the bushfire disaster so far.
The protest comes after the government announced it would be spending $4 million on a feasibility study into a new coal-fired power station in Collinsville, north Queensland.
Protestors are pushing for coal-fired power to no longer be subsidised, and for an end to political donations from the coal sector.
Last financial year $1.89 million was donated to Australian political parties by fossil fuel companies. This doesn’t include an additional $83 million from Clive Palmer’s Mineralogy company, which was donated to his own United Australia Party.
Thank you for doing this. We cannot let this issue slip. I am so sorry for the terror you have been through and what you have lost. We all must do what we can to turn the tide of climate change.
— Annette (@Annette4Change) February 11, 2020
All strength to you – survivors taking action – and please take care of yourselves, your minds and bodies and relationships. Seek care when you need it.
— MAPW Australia (@MAPW_Australia) February 11, 2020
Protestors are also pushing for the Minerals Council of Australia (MCA) to look at transitioning towards renewable energy.
The MCA CEO Tania Constable told SBS News a thriving minerals sector focused on pragmatic climate action is “essential to mobilise the solutions required to address climate change”.
