To Hell with Shell!
SWC goes to court with Wild Coast Communities to say no to seismic exploration for offshore oil and gas.
Johan Lorenzen tells the story very well of how many different individuals and organisations collaborated to bring the case to court and successfully halt the seismic survey with a successful urgent interdict in December 2021. Read here.
Download the full court papers here.
The court case and protests were a big wakeup call to South Africans to protect their oceans and land from environmental threats. The judgement has encouraged activists both in South Africa and globally, to keep working for positive change away from fossil fuels and destructive extractivism. The protests against Shell on December 5 along the East Coast of South Africa were collectively the biggest and most diverse environmental protest in South Africa, including urban and rural communities of all races.
There was massive media coverage of the case both nationally and internationally. Read The Guardian article here.
A great celebratory video featuring commentary from Siyabonga Ndovela and Sinegugu and edited by East London resident Mark Roach: Not a good day for Shell!
One of the most significant aspects of the court case is that it helped to focus attention on the ways in which the South African government is corrupt and not honouring our constitutional democracy. Read Mail & Guardian article.
The case also resulted in scientists coming together to publicize their concerns about seismic testing. The first group to do so was a group of the most prominent marine scientists from different organisations and academic institutions. The second group is The Scientific Advisory Group on Emergencies (SAGE), part of the Academy of Science of South Africa, which issued an advisory warning that seismic surveys create noise pollution and pose a threat to marine life. They want government to rethink the legislation that governs the marine environment. Read News24 article here. Read Daily Maverick article here.
The appeal against the interim interdict was heard on February 10. Shell Throw a Heavy Book at Wild Coast Appeal
Good news on February 17th is that the interim interdict is upheld.
The Review Case vs Shell was held in Gqeberha on the 31 May and 1 June.
On September 1, 2022 the Eastern Cape High Court ruled that exploration rights granted to Shell was unlawful, thus putting an end to any seismic surveying off the Wild Coast. Article about the Judgement.
Deutsche Welle
Siyabonga and Sinegugu were interviewed by Deutsche Welle (DW) which is Germany’s international broadcaster
Wild Coast Warriors
Contemporary Film Productions has told the story of the Shell Court case in “Wild Coast
Warriors”. Watch the trailer and read more about the making of the movie here.
This is a short video of the first screening of the movie, dubbed into isiMpondo, at komkhulu (traditional court) in Amadiba.