Back in 2021-2023, many South Cost residents joined a global campaign to stop Shell from conducting seismic surveys and setting up offshore oil and gas mining operations off the Wild Coast. Although the court case has continued, with various appeals and counter-appeals, Shell has been unable to set up shop in our ocean.
Now citizens across Africa, with support from the global community, are coming together to stop Total from doing further damage to African land, water and human communities.
According to the event organisers, “TotalEnergies is a key feature of a global order built on plunder. Across the continent, it drills and destroys, dispossesses and displaces, pollutes and profits. From the oil-slicked creeks of the Niger Delta to the militarised gas lands of Cabo Delgado, from the EACOP pipeline in Uganda and Tanzania, to the threatened fisher communities off South Africa’s fragile coasts – Total’s footprint is marked by violence, livelihood loss, environmental destruction, exploitation and harm. Enough is enough.”
TotalEnergies has been given exploration rights in block 5/6/7, a 17,581km2 area located offshore between Cape Town and Cape Aghulus.
The Green Connection and others have been contesting this operation and are joining other African communities in a week-long campaign (August 18 – 22) to raise awareness and protect all African communities. This week, peaceful protests have taken place in Johannesburg (Tuesday), Uganda, Tanzania, Mozambique, Nigeria, Senegal, Benin, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Togo and the DRC, alongside global events.
We encourage South Coasters to take part in this campaign, not only in solidarity with African communities already devastated by Total’s activities, but also to protect our West Coast and other waters. During the Shell campaign, residents gathered on their beaches with posters and banners, and many created messages in the sand; and some picketed outside Shell service stations.
If you hold a ‘Total Out of Africa’ event in your community, please post pics on The Green Net’s Facebook page.
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