930 mile walk in South Africa against Canadian oil firm ReconAfrica

from Extinction Rebellion Global Newsletter #48

Okavango Delta: The 930 Mile Walk for Justice FEB 1  , South Africa

 Photo: First Peoples Southern Africa

 In our last issue we reported how Canadian oil firm ReconAfrica obtained drilling rights in the nature reserves of the Okavango Basin that spans Namibia and Botswana, and how a protest movement was forming against it.

 Now an indigenous-led group of ten people, mainly from the local Khoe and San communities, have begun a 930 mile walk across South Africa to the Namibian embassy in Capetown, where they are going to deliver a petition and formal objection against the drilling.

 The walkers are covering an ambitious 60 km per day, with some choosing to go barefoot. On the way they are informing locals about the drilling and collecting signatures against it.

 The walk was organised by First Peoples Southern Africa along with other groups, and is being covered by XR in an ongoing series of live stream interviews with experts and community leaders. The ReconAfrica drilling site. Photo: Frack Free Namibia & Botswana 

 Namibian activists fear the situation will play out just like Shell’s ruinous plundering of the Niger Delta, and their concerns seem more than justified. ReconAfrica began drilling its first test well in January with a multi-million dollar rig from Texas and a local activist press release revealed that a pond for wastewater from the drilling doesn’t appear to have a water-proof lining.

 Without proper lining, the toxic wastewater can leach into the groundwater - endangering local wildlife, crops and people. In an in-depth report by National Geographic (which triggered ReconAfrica to threaten legal action) the oil company was criticized for not physically assessing the environment and relying on paperwork to plan the drilling.