Climate activists in Invercargill join nationwide protest
Monday, 7 October 2019
Members of the southernmost branch of Extinction Rebellion held brightly coloured placards and carried a wooden boat throughout Invercargill to join in on global protests for climate action.
The group marched from the Invercargill Water Tower to ANZ to protest against the bank's investment in fossil fuels.
Extinction Rebellion Southland organiser Raylene Carston says the Southland group was formed three months ago and has 60 members.
The focus of the group at the moment is to increase its advocacy and membership, Carston says.
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The group is peaceful and non-violent but is prepared to do direct action, such as block roads, if necessary, she says.
'We are willing to do what it takes to make the Government sit up and listen because change needs to happen.'
The goal of the protest was to create awareness of the climate crisis and for ANZ to create policies away from the investment of fossil fuel industries.
'We are already in the world's sixth mass extinction but it's not exactly extinction, it is more like an extermination.'
At a regional level, the group would like to see Environment Southland declare a climate state of emergency, Carston says.
Extinction Rebellion Southland organiser Alastair Carston says the reason ANZ was chosen for the protest was because it is a franchise they could spread their message nationwide.
An ANZ spokeswoman says ANZ supports the goals of the protesters.
ANZ New Zealand's lending to fossil fuels is less than 0.25 per cent of its lending book and declining. Most of that is in gas and it does not lend for oil exploration, the spokeswoman says.
ANZ are committed to funding and facilitating at least $15 billion in environmentally sustainable solutions by 2020 which it is close to achieving with $14.6 billion already invested, she says.
The activist group are holding protests nationwide to mark the one of year anniversary of Extinction Rebellion forming.