Date published: 2007/07/29
The BBC says:
The owner of Heathrow, BAA, wants to ban 15 campaign groups from taking part in an eight-day protest "camp" at the airport next month.
Top of its list are the organisers of the Camp for Climate Action itself, who are planning 24 hours of "direct action" against the airport - and its passengers - at one of the busiest times of the year.
Also included are 10 other groups such as the National Trust, the RSPB and the Woodland Trust.
They have been listed because of their membership of umbrella organisation, Airport Watch, which unites green bodies and community groups opposed to the expansion of the aviation industry.
Not all of these groups are comfortable with the idea of direct action.
In previous protests, camp activists have occupied buildings and blocked roads.
Spokeswoman for the camp Anna Jackson said: "It's likely there will be some disruption for people going to the airport.
"I can't say exactly how much because that will be decided by the protesters themselves at the camp."
She said there would be no attempt to access runways, but insisted that causing problems for ordinary holidaymakers was justified.
"150,000 people die each year around the world because of climate change.
"Those people have a right to life more than people here have a right to fly.
Jackson sounds just like the anti-abortion nutters in the US (and elsewhere), which is not very surprising, given that fundamentalists everywhere think they have a right to be above the law and do what they want because they are "saving" the world. And unfortunately for Jackson's argument, flights are not even close to being the number one source of climate emissions. Far, far worse is people having children. Population is the real problem. And you have to wonder how many protestors in these camps have (or will have) children. The second biggest climate change issue is that rich people produce more emissions than poor people. Since these protestors are middle class, they are much more a cause of the problem than they are the solution. Perhaps someone should go and picket their homes in protest at their excessive consumption and lifestyle.
Of course peaceful protest should be allowed. And BAA seems to be reacting over the top. But if these protestors cause any damage or interrupt operations or harass either employees or passengers, then they should be held directly financially and criminally liable. Let them be responsible for their actions, for once. Unfortunately when the middle class misbehave, they are considered heroes by the media (especially the BBC) and let off by the courts. When the working class behaves this way, they are called hooligans and sent to prison or given ASBOs.
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