At the ‘poor shoe’, XR enters the A10: ‘The symbol for billions in fossil investments’

A few hundred climate activists waited patiently along the guardrail on Saturday afternoon for the moment when the A10 was completely deserted, before they ‘occupied’ the empty highway while cheering under the watchful eye of dozens of police officers. The road was ‘crossed’ a few hundred meters further on after a group of fifteen people entered the road as an advance post, according to the police.

The climate activists had gathered the hour before at ‘de Schoen’, the former ING head office on the Zuidas. The fact that the bank has left there for years does not matter, according to Rozemarijn van ‘t Einde of It is the ‘poor shoe’ that tramples on the future.”

In recent weeks there were numerous “cute” local actions against ING, as a precursor to the occupation of the A10. According to XR, ING invests “two to three times as much” in fossil projects than any other Dutch bank. “Since the climate agreement in Paris, the bank has invested 60 billion in the fossil industry,” the spokesperson said. “What we are asking for is so basic, we want that bank to stop financing new fossil projects. We will continue with actions until they do.”

Motion in the House of Representatives

How successful XR can be with road occupations became apparent last September and October. For a month, thousands of demonstrators blocked the last stretch of the A12 dual carriageway in the center of The Hague every day. The activists demanded that the Dutch government stop spending billions on fossil subsidies. When the House of Representatives adopted a motion to phase out fossil subsidies at the beginning of October, XR stopped the daily occupation of the A12 and celebrated its success.

“That was also the trigger for us to participate,” says one of the oldest demonstrators present, 80-year-old Jan Haasbroek. “They have thought carefully about the strategy. And it is non-violent.” The former journalist does not climb over the embankment to the highway, but remains with a few dozen supporters at the bottom of the demonstration. Together with his wife, he attended a registration evening after the actions in The Hague and has since attended many of the XR meetings. “That’s the great thing, you can participate in all kinds of ways.”

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Wide movement

While there are several hundred demonstrators in Amsterdam, the extremely successful daily protests in The Hague sometimes had more than ten thousand participants. Thousands of people registered as supporters. But last month there was also criticism for the first time, when the largest climate protest ever in the Netherlands also demonstrated for the Palestinians.

What exactly the position of XR, which presents itself as a non-hierarchical organization, is on this depends on who you ask. According to one spokesperson, “the movement will meet at the beginning of January” to discuss this. According to Rozemarijn van ‘t Einde, these different goals are not at all contradictory. The Palestinian issue “fits within our principles and core values ​​such as limiting power structures,” she explains. “Everything is related, climate is also related to colonialism.” She emphasizes: “We want to be a broad movement.”

Occasional activist Jan Haasbroek agrees. “If something is bad for the climate, then it is war.” He refers to the major climate protest in November, where Greta Thunberg also spoke. Haasbroek: “Greta also thought it was good, she led the way. For me it’s all about the same goal, fighting inequality.”

The question then remains how XR wants to continue the success of 2023 next year. But the spokespersons cannot yet provide a strategy on this. “We are a flat organization, and it depends on who will come up with what initiatives.”

On Saturday, the banners on the A10 only contained slogans for the climate and against ING and the fossil industry. In addition, numerous local XR organizations showed their presence with flags. Protesters and police stood side by side, while police spokesperson Marijke Stor explained to one camera crew after another in the middle of the A10 that occupying a highway is “life-threatening” and can therefore never be allowed.

At a quarter past four, the police reported on its own live blog: “The evacuation of the A10 is going smoothly. Activists are calmly lifted and transferred to a bus.” In total, approximately three hundred people are arrested, the police reported early in the evening.

The road has now been cleared.

Addition (12/30/2023): This article has been supplemented with the number of arrests made by the police during the demonstration.

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