Activists stage protest against Colombian "blood coal" at Amsterdam port
A group of activists staged a new demonstration on Friday at the Port of Amsterdam against the trade of "blood coal" from Colombia. The protest was organized by Kappen met Kolen, and they were joined by the expert center SOMO and peace organization PAX.
The latter two filed a complaint on Thursday alleging serious human rights violations connected to Colombian coal mining operations. The complaint was filed with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and was directed against storage company HES International and the ports of Rotterdam and Amsterdam, the destination of the Colombian coal.
The demonstrators planned to commemorate the victims of the blood coal trade at HES Bulk Terminal Amsterdam, a coal transhipment company. The commemoration was going to be marked a moment of silence and the symbolic marking of crosses. The demonstrators also want to block the rails of one of the two terminals in the port, so that cargo trains carrying coal shipments cannot depart. Four activists were arrested during the previous coal transport blockade on April 13.
The activist group, which has ties to Extinction Rebellion, has been demonstrating against the trade in coal at the Port of Amsterdam for some time, and has already blocked the railway at the port at least fifteen times. The demonstrators also recently blocked the road at the entrance gate to the Tata Steel factory in IJmuiden, and held a protest in Amsterdam's city hall.
Coal is mainly transported from the Port of Amsterdam to Germany. The activists want to continue their blockades "as long as the shipping, storage and further transport of coal is not stopped." Another blockade at Tata Steel is planned for May 1.
