Déjà vu: from Famatina via Orissa and Dakota to Groningen
Whenever I see pictures of the people in the Dutch province of Groningen whose houses are collapsing because of gas extraction and who, even if they wanted to move somewhere else, would never be able to sell them, I can't help but think of all the people worldwide who have been experiencing the same problems, sometimes for decades. Every time I see the anger and powerlessness of the people of Groningen, the comparison to the many people we have been working with for many years in many parts of the world comes to my mind.
Not only in Groningen, but in the whole world, normal people are resisting oil and gas extraction, mining, dam construction and other large-scale projects that are being carried out ‘in the common interest’. While the Netherlands is often directly involved in the development of large-scale projects throughout the world, there is little attention or understanding for the struggles these people are engaged in. We like to see ourselves as the country that brings development and can easily close our eyes to reality in far-off lands, as we ourselves are not often confronted with the consequences of such economic activities.
It is difficult for us to really feel anything when we see images of indigenous people in brightly-coloured clothes resisting the Dakota Access Pipeline or the Belo Monte Dam. Or to really understand why women and men risk their lives to ensure that a hydraulic power plant is not built in their territory. Or why thousands of people in India and Indonesia, in Argentina and El Salvador, protest against the arrival of large mining companies if they will provide so many jobs?
But now, what people have to deal with on a daily basis in the rest of the world is suddenly happening here, in our own country. In Groningen, people are protesting against the injustice they have had to put up with for so many years. What is going on now in Groningen around gas extraction has many similarities with the struggle of indigenous groups in the US or Brazil, the women’s resistance in Honduras and the anti-mining protests in Indonesia.
Groningen shows us in close up how normal, patient and reasonable people are first ignored, then palmed off with formalities, forced to resort to the courts where one ruling after the other is in their favour, but any real action is simply put on the back burner. It shows us how they ultimately have no other choice than to express their displeasure in public, in the hope that this will increase the pressure on politicians.
Now that the public debate has erupted with full force and they finally have a podium, the duped people of Groningen are understandably no longer as patient and reasonable. As a consequence of the complete lack of respect they have endured, they now express their anger on public television, directing it for example at the Prime Minister, who has become a symbol of what they have been put through. And the ruling class in the Netherlands responds promptly, just as everywhere else in the world where people desperately fight to save their livelihoods, by declaring that it is ‘most indecent’ to rant and rave against their democratically elected leaders.
Groningen also shows that the suffering of people who fight against large-scale developments goes much further than material losses alone. It is about much more than earthquakes and subsiding houses. People are frustrated; for many years, they have not been taken seriously, their problems have trivialised and every solution is brushed aside or discouraged.
Fortunately, there is hope for the people of Groningen. Thanks to their persistence, they now have the support of the whole country. And thanks to the way our country is organised, they can conduct their campaign without fear of their lives, and there is a lot of solidarity with their cause. They are not a minority of indigenous people or women, who can easily be ignored. They are not intimidated or murdered if they stand up for their rights. Their protests are finally heard and there is a good chance that they will receive compensation for their material losses. And this is of course the way it should be.
This, however, is not the case in many other countries. Including countries in which the Netherlands invests and does business, but looks the other way when people – with good reason – oppose mining, dam projects and paper production plants. It is high time that we took not only the people of Groningen seriously, but also all those people in the world who – often due to the activities of the Netherlands – are in the same situation, and made sure that Dutch involvement abroad leads to a better life for everyone, both here and there.
Read more about this subject
-
Blog / 25 November 2016
Celebrate countervailing power!
This is the text of the speech given by Danielle Hirsch on the 'Nacht van de Tegenmacht' (Night of Countervailing Power)
-
Blog / 19 September 2019
A forgotten opportunity worth 1.5 billion euros
Reward high-risk international business projects investing in a green future and stop support for the international fossil industry
The climate is 'hot'. Everyone is talking about it. 'Everyone needs to do something' calls the government in its recently started public campaign. Good plan. Let's really do something. For a start, we can stop supporting international trade in fossil energy by our own multinationals. That would free up 1.5 billion euros which we could use to combat climate change on an international scale and at the same time give our own innovative businesses a boost. Today's Vergeten Klimaattafel (Forgotten Climate Roundtable) will discuss the opportunities for the Netherlands to have a real impact. And those opportunities are enormous. Because our big money and our influence lie beyond our borders.
-
Blog / 12 June 2012
Rio+20 lacks audacity
Rio+20 lacks audacity -
Blog / 30 January 2013
The empty words of the president of the World Bank
The empty words of the president of the World Bank -
Blog / 11 July 2016
She is just around the corner…
She is just around the corner… -
Blog / 31 August 2013
Green value for money
Green value for money -
Blog / 17 May 2013
Deafening silence
Deafening silence -
Blog / 16 January 2012
'Letter on Water' Good news for extremely poor?
'Letter on Water' Good news for extremely poor? -
Blog / 4 July 2013
Behind the scenes of a ‘growth-economy’
Behind the scenes of a ‘growth-economy’ -
Blog / 29 January 2019
Make the climate debate a part of our foreign policy
The climate debate in the Netherlands is bogged down in what we can change at home and does not touch on our actions abroad. And that is a missed opportunity. Precisely because our international trade model is both so influential and, at the same time, such a widespread cause of pollution, changes in that policy can have an immediate effect.
-
News / 7 October 2018
Our Director ranking 52nd on Dutch ‘Sustainable 100’-list
We are very proud that our director Daniëlle Hirsch has been included again in the ‘Sustainable 100’ (an annual ranking list published by Dutch newspaper Trouw), and has gone up more than 40 spots compared to last year! Danielle was included in the list because of the many things she does with her organisation as a whole, but she got the higher ranking for the way she combines her criticism of the destructive role of the Netherlands as a trading nation and large cause of CO2 emissions in the world (often supported by the Dutch government), with a constructive attitude when it comes to finding alternatives and solutions.
-
Publication / 10 July 2019
-
Blog / 17 October 2014
‘Africa Works’ with decent finance
‘Africa Works’ with decent finance -
Blog / 18 April 2014
We want value for climate money
We want value for climate money -
Blog / 9 December 2013
'The winner takes all'
'The winner takes all' -
Blog / 20 November 2013
“Zombie Treaties” cripple international trade
“Zombie Treaties” cripple international trade -
Blog / 21 October 2013
Minister of Trade and Aid chooses fresh head wind
Minister of Trade and Aid chooses fresh head wind -
Blog / 8 August 2013
Summer time
Summer time -
Blog / 10 April 2013
My world deserves better!
My world deserves better! -
Blog / 19 March 2013
Eraser for Minister Ploumen's charcoal sketch
Eraser for Minister Ploumen's charcoal sketch