XR activists vandalize Colombian diplomatic missions (VIDEOS)
Extinction Rebellion has targeted Colombian diplomatic missions across several EU countries, including France and Italy, demanding that the nation address deforestation, coal mining, and indigenous peoples’ rights.
The hard-line climate activist group staged simultaneous protests outside several of Colombia’s diplomatic missions on Tuesday, calling on Bogota to protect biodiversity and stop deforestation. It also urged the country’s government to take action against the El Descanso open-pit coal mine, which is said to be threatening the Yukpa indigenous people.
The French branch of the activist group targeted the Colombian Embassy in Paris, vandalizing its entrance. Footage from the scene shows activists dousing the mission’s entrance in black paint, while plastering placards over its walls.
Action de @xrFrance a l’ambassade de Colombie à #Paris pour dénoncer l’inaction du gouvernement Colombien pour la protection de la biodiversité et des peuples indigènes. pic.twitter.com/1hpf3vVxK4
— Xenia (@XeniaReports) November 16, 2021
XR members then chanted slogans, lighting flares that emitted thick pink and black smoke. At least one activist was seen bathing in fake blood.
🔴Action d’Extinction Rebellion (@xrFrance) devant l’Ambassade de #Colombie à #Paris pour dénoncer l’inaction du gouvernement Colombien à protéger la #biodiversité de leur pays et les peuples indigènes qui les défendent comme les Yukpa. #DrummondDevuelvaTerritorioYukpapic.twitter.com/tz6gnvSCW6
— Charles Baudry (@CharlesBaudry) November 16, 2021
Another protest held outside Colombia’s consulate in Milan, Italy, saw that mission vandalized too. The building’s entrance was covered in fake blood, with a pile of a black substance, which looked like charcoal or coal, left by its doors.
#ATENCIÓN| Así se vive la Minga Internacional en el Consulado de Colombia en la ciudad de Milán, Italia, donde defensores del medio ambiente alzan su voz por el respeto a la vida y del territorio ancestral del Pueblo Yukpa.📲 Ver transmisión 👉🏽 https://t.co/3BGguiMzQhpic.twitter.com/eq7DKrX2z9
— Organización Nacional Indígena de Colombia - ONIC (@ONIC_Colombia) November 16, 2021
Demonstrations also took place outside Colombia’s missions in Germany’s capital, Berlin, as well as in Madrid, Spain. Those protests appeared to be more civil, with activists rallying outside of the missions without vandalizing them.
✊🏽✊🏼❤In anti-national solidarity with the indigenous #Yukpa who face immediate threat by coal extraction in Colombia.#Tripods for #ClimateJustice⚒#DevuelvanLaTierra#EndFossilFascismpic.twitter.com/e6T5DWt7m5
— Ende Gelände International #ZADRheinland (@ende_gelande) November 16, 2021
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