Ben Stewart remembers the day when he realised he was prepared to break the law to stand up for his beliefs.
His first ‘direct action’ for Greenpeace came in 2002 when he broke into the Cabinet Office and replaced the illegally logged wooden doors with a sustainable material. He was chased by the police and ended up on the roof.
When a radio was switched on he discovered the then Prime Minister Tony Blair was being asked about the illegal wood at Prime Minister’s Questions.
“I was looking down at the gardens of Number 10, across to the Houses of Parliament and I thought, ‘this works – I’m definitely doing more of this’. “
And more of this he did. In 2007 he was arrested with five other activists from the non-governmental organisation for scaling the smokestack and shutting down Kingsnorth power station in Kent, the site of England’s first proposed new coal-fired power station.
Accused of causing £30,000 of damage to the power station, the campaigners were acquitted by a jury. It was the first case in which preventing property damage caused by climate change had been used as part of a “lawful excuse” defence in court.
But it’s a recent “victory” in the Arctic which will be the focus of a lecture Stewart, now London-based head of media at Greenpeace, will be giving on February 13 in the first of this year’s Saturday Evening Lecture Series at Dundee University.
He was a leading campaigner to have the so-called ‘Arctic 30’ released following their arrest in Russia in September 2013.
His lecture, ‘Don’t Trust, Don’t Fear, Don’t Beg’, takes its title from the critically acclaimed book he wrote based on exclusive access to the activists, Russian sources, Greenpeace campaigners and high-profile supporters.
“If the sinking of the Rainbow Warrior by the French foreign intelligence services in New Zealand in 1985 was the biggest crisis to face Greenpeace in our 45 year history, then this was the second biggest crisis,“ Stewart told The Courier.
“The aim was to hold a classic piece of non-violent action with the aim of drawing attention to the first rig from the Russian state oil company that was to attempt to pump oil from the icy waters of the Arctic. We were concerned about a Deep Water Horizon style oil spill.
“But it quickly became clear the Russians were reacting differently to the protest than other national authorities had in the past.
“They pulled guns very quickly and the Russian coastguard fired a canon as commandos stormed our ship, the Arctic Sunrise.”
Stewart said the protestors expected to be released, as was normal in such cases, when they reached shore. But instead they found themselves in court and accused of piracy, an offence that carries a 10 to 15-year prison sentence in a country where 99% of people charged with a crime end up being found guilty.
“It was frightening for us but for the 22 men and eight women who were thrown in jail it was terrifying,“ he said.
“Our number ranged from 61-year-old captain Pete Wilcox, who had also been the captain of the Rainbow Warrior to 21-year-old Camilla Speziale. She was on a gap year from Argentina and suddenly found herself locked in a former mental asylum in Murmansk. They were thrown in jail with murderers, held in atrocious conditions. And yet strange relationships evolved with the mafia bosses inside who saw their imprisonment as a gross injustice. A shared solidarity developed against (Russian president) Vladimir Putin who had clearly ordered the imprisonment.”
After several months incarceration the protestors were eventually pardoned by Putin on the same day as Russian band Pussy Riot. When he heard the stories of captivity, Stewart was inspired to write his book.
The title, Don’t Trust, Don’t Fear, Don’t Beg, is an old Russian prison motto that some of the Arctic 30 were told by fellow prisoners when they were locked up. Using this and other techniques they managed to survive jail.
But Stewart believes the single most significant act to result from the horrors was the backing of 7.6 million people online to ‘Save the Arctic’ and the subsequent decision of oil giant Shell last year to pull out. It said it could not find enough oil.
Opponents, however, insist that the growing campaign against Shell’s Alaskan campaign had played a significant role and that, without it, the company would have persevered for longer before giving up.
The policies and objectives of Greenpeace have often been criticised over the years by various national governments, members of industry, former Greenpeace members, scientists, and political groups. The organization’s methods, such as the use of direct action, have also led to controversy and legal action. Some critics have described them as irresponsible and childish.
But in a week when shares in BP have tumbled, more job losses have been announced across the oil industry and record low oil prices continue, Stewart believes the oil industry is “in trouble” and that the Greenpeace mandate is justified.
“We believe the world is at an historic point. If electric cars can take off, and be made affordable on the mass market, then the need for oil will plummet and the world will change,” said Stewart, who has this week been discussing with international activists about what to do protect the Arctic next.
“Yes, the Russians could still drill and will probably keep trying. But it’s a difficult environment and not cost effective. The recent job losses and tumbling oil prices prove this. Our job is to keep oil exploration out of the Arctic and keep protecting the environment until affordable green technology arrives en masse.
“If I was the chief executive of an oil company, I’d be very worried about my future at the moment.”
* ‘Don’t Trust, Don’t Fear, Don’t Beg’ by Ben Stewart is on February 13 at the Dundee University Tower Building Lecture Theatre. Free tickets for all events in the 2016 Saturday Evening Lecture Series can be obtained by visiting www.dundee.ac.uk/sels, emailing events@dundee.ac.uk, calling 01382 385108 or from the university’s Tower Building Reception.