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Higher appeal for resisting eviction of camping in Durgerdam
leightoncooke@gmail.com - 22.04.2008 19:49
Thats about ystredays higher appeal. I'm glad that everything was said and the thruth revield- Griks
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
About the court case for defence the camping by Cookie Mouse
from :
 http://leightoncookie.blogspot.com/2008/04/durgerdam-tree-destruction-appeal-case.html
Durgerdam tree destruction appeal case in Amsterdam
It is against the laws of Amsterdam to cut down trees without permission. In the Amsterdam Court of Appeal on the Prinsengracht, it emerged yesterday, during the appeal hearing in a case against an environmental activist and protester, that the felling of over thirty mature trees in Durgerdam on May 2, 2006 was done illegally without permission from the local council, Stadsdeel Amsterdam Noord. The protester was convicted of "resisting arrest" when he climbed up one of the trees (risking his own life in the process) as the trees were being felled. Pepper spray was used against him to prevent him from continuing his protest. During the case one of the police officers that removed him from the tree said when giving evidence "the trees had to be cleaned," a polite euphemism for destruction. It was only during the summing up by the defence counsel, that a letter, sent by Stadsdeel Amsterdam Noord to Mr. L. Bergvoet of Success Parken BV, was produced in evidence. Not only was the felling of the trees done illegally, but it was also done during the time of year when birds were nesting in the trees, when the law requires that the birds be left in peace and quiet. Rubbish from the demolition was also dumped illegally on the ground, in particular the highly hazardous material asbestos, which has been banned in the EU as a building material. The sign at the entrance to the land still warns of the risk two years later. The letter from the Gemeente Amsterdam also points out that serious damage has been done to the natural environment, that will be costly and difficult to repair. All of this took place in an area that is of great natural beauty and value, a nature reserve for the many birds that use the waters of the Ijselmeer. It seems to me that the wrong person was in the dock yesterday at the Court of Appeal. How can the police assist an illegal demolition that is obviously a serious infringement of environmental legislation? The brave actions of two protesters (one of whom was later released without charge) have brought the folly of this case out into the open. It would be most unjust if this conviction was allowed to stand, when to this very day the real offenders have yet to face justice. Every day many small pieces of nature are destroyed, often illegally, and as a result little by little the natural beauty and stability of the earth is reduced. Today is Earth Day when we call those in power to account for the way in which the natural environment is not taken seriously in the political process. The Durgerdam case is one small example of many that need not have happened if more respect and care for the ecology of the natural world had been taken into account. Why was there no communication between the Chief of Police and the City of Amsterdam on the day that this illegal act took place? Why didn't the police ask the owner if he had permission to cut the trees down before they assisted in the eviction of the protesters?
Posted by Griks at 11:00 AM 0 comments
Labels: Amsterdam, eko, spirit of squaters, squatting
About camping according to Cookie mouse
From his blog : http://leightoncookie.blogspot.com/2008/04/what-is-better-trees-or-asbestos.html
What is better, trees or asbestos?
This seems a strange question to ask, which is why I was so saddened yesterday when I visited the village of Durgerdam, which is a part of Amsterdam North. The village is very picturesque, with lots of small houses and plenty of boats on the water. This is an area that is full of wildlife, especially birds. A couple of years ago I visited a small campsite near the vilage, where some friends of mine used to spend their weekends. Yesterday we went there on our bikes to take these pictures. It was so windy that sometimes we had to get off the bikes and walk.
There used to be over fifty trees on this piece of land, which was a refuge for many of the birds. Now all the trees are gone. Everyone staying at the campsite was evicted and all the trees were cut down. That was two years ago. While the buildings were being demolished asbestos was released onto the land, which is why the sign "gevaarlijk asbest" or "danger, asbestos" is on the fence. The demolition work was done illegally without permits and this Monday the appeal court of Amsterdam will be hearing the case against one of the protesters arrested during the eviction. He wanted to try to stop the trees from being cut down. All that is now left behind is this poisoned wasteland, which is why I ask the question: what is better trees or asbestos?
When will those in power learn to respect nature and not just destroy it? In this case two years later nothing has been done with the land, which was cleared and evicted on May 2, 2006.
On a more positive note, Earth Day celebrates the environment on April 22, and for the past ten years the part of Amsterdam known as "de Pijp" has held a gardening day to commemorate the occasion, so this Sunday we will all be digging up small parts of the streets and putting some plants in place of the concrete. Our young nine year old is very keen to take part, and she's been busy making lots of preparations today. It should be a pleasant Sunday afternoon's urban gardening.
Today I got lots of tomatoes and peppers at the organic market and plan to cook something colourful this evening. The sprouting mission has been postponed a few days as I'm waiting to see a friend of mine, who does it all the time, to get some tips before I start. In particular I want to know which seeds are the best to start with. The weather is getting a little warmer so I hope to be out and about more, and to take more trips to the country around Amsterdam, and do some foraging for food plants. There are lots of nettles and dandelion that are fresh this time of year. With food prices rising it seems to make sense to try to be as self-sufficient as possible.
 E-Mail: leightoncooke@gmail.com  Website: http://leightoncookie.blogspot.com/2008/04/
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