One Ocean Summit: NGOs remain unsatisfied and denounce "blue washing"
Audio 01:11
A few hundred environmental and union activists gathered on Friday February 11 in Brest to denounce “a blue washing operation”.
© Geraud Bosman-Delzons/RFI
Text by: Géraud Bosman-Delzons Follow |
Jeanne Richard Follow
3 mins
End of the One Ocean Summit in Brest, to which around twenty heads of state responded, physically or remotely.
This Friday morning, a small group of environmental activists led by Greenpeace repeated their message of warning about the decisions that are expected at this summit, which opens a year of major meetings on the preservation of the oceans
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From our special correspondents in Brest,
A hundred militants, two gendarmes on duty on the other side.
The gathering, operated by a small group of NGOs including Greenpeace and Pleine Mer, shone less than the sun which was gradually rising over the harbor of Brest.
But the fundamental messages, hammered home upstream of the One Ocean, have been tirelessly repeated: no to overfishing, no to the exploitation of the deep sea for their mineral resources.
At the end of a red carpet rolled out on the ground, a statue of Emmanuel Macron parodied as the king of hypocrisy.
And at his feet, Gaëlle, who came with her family.
“
I wanted us to demonstrate and be present to show that we do not agree with this anti-social and anti-environmental policy.
We exploit nature, the environment, the planet without thinking about tomorrow.
As a result, I am very worried about the future of my children.
"His son Ronan, 14, is also mobilized with a sign "Save our oceans": "
The oceans are one of the largest ecosystems on our planet and if we can't protect it, there will be plenty of disasters.
I don't know what to expect and I'm a bit worried about the future, so
we move a little there.
»
Further on, activists wave banners to denounce Emmanuel Macron's "blue washing".
A lot of “
blah-blah
” also denounces François Chartier, in charge of the Oceans at Greenpeace, who judges this Oceans summit very disappointing.
Important subjects were carefully avoided during this summit, he believes, in particular the question of the exploitation of the seabed and their strategic mineral resources.
On the question, he denounces the double discourse of France, a confusion under the cover of research.
“
These seabed exploration contracts, issued by the International Seabed Authority, are used
[par la France, NDLR]
such as mining exploration licenses aimed at evaluating deposits.
The government actually presents it as scientific missions.
In reality, we understand that exploration licenses aim to prepare for exploitation.
We support public scientific research, which is not intended for industrial activities but for knowledge.
»
Greenpeace supports, like other NGOs but also the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the European Parliament and large companies, the need for a moratorium on exploration for exploitation of the deep sea sailors.
► Read also:
One Ocean Summit: so many challenges for the big blue
Another point of contention, "
forgotten
" from the Brest summit: small fishing... and big fishing.
“
There is not a single artisanal fisherman who has been invited to this summit,
laments Thibault Josse, coordinator of the Pleine Mer association which brings together citizens and artisanal fishermen
We bring together multinationals, governments but not those who live off the sea. Yet scientists tell us that overfishing is the biggest impact on marine biodiversity today.
However, this is a topic forgotten at the summit.
»
Emmanuel Macron, host of the ocean summit in Brest, pleaded shortly after for the conclusion at the WTO of an agreement against public aid for overfishing and illegal fishing, a subject under discussion at the Organization. world trade.
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