GB No. 1(16)/95

TESTING WITH A MAST

A friend in need is a friend indeed. That's true. Generally speaking, there are situations where it is possible to see WHO IS WHO.

For example. One of such tests for independence of ecological organisations from the government has been the protest against Czorsztyn dam, which is being built by the Ministry of Environmental Protection (MOŚ - Ministerstwo Ochrony Środowiska), which means - by the government. In the case of Czorsztyn the sycophants stayed still because they like to (and have to!) agree with the court. That is their job.

Another example, another test. What for? Think it up.

Hasty, procedure in the Parliament prevented us from acting in the official course. Thus we are compelled to make a protest. (...)

We kindly ask you for help. (...)

We live in the provinces in isolation. We lack help from competent people and institutions. Meanwhile, our signals and reasons for the protest are being muffled and distorted by some government media.

We ask you for help - the appeal comes from the committee to protest against rebuilding the aerial mast in Gąbin (to be precise - in Konstantynów near Gąbin). I hope this dramatic appeal was not left unanswered and representatives of all competent and professional ecological organisations and institutions from all Poland rushed to Gąbin. Which exactly institutions and organisations do I mean? I will mention just a few. The ones which come to my mind immediately are:

• Three Ecological Councils of the Highest Grade State Council for Nature Protection (PROP Państwowa Rada Ochrony Przyrody), State Council for Environmental Protection (PROŚ Państwowa Rada Ochrony Środowiska) and Ecological Council attached to the President of Poland (Rada Ekologiczna przy Prezydencie RP)
• Institute for Ecodevelopment (InRE - Instytut na Rzecz Ekorozwoju) and Social Ecological Institute (SIE - Społeczny Instytut Ekologiczny).
• a group of ecopoliticians from the former Ecological Faction (Frakcja Ekologiczna) of the former Democratic Union (UD - Unia Demokratyczna). The group is now in the Liberty Union (UW - Unia Wolności), which has a Secretary of Ecology, unless I am mistaken.
• Polish Ecological Club (PKE - Polski Klub Ekologiczny) and the League of Nature Conservation (LOP - Liga Ochrony Przyrody).

I hope that the Service Office for Ecological Movements (BORE - Biuro Obsługi Ruchów Ekologicznych) supplied Gąbin with ecological attention, too. Gąbin is not far from Warsaw.

That is all about hopes. But I have not received any information which could confirm my hopes So I will just propose a working hypothesis that the above mentioned institutions and organisations did not raise a finger when it came to help Gąbin. Naturally, this hypothesis can be refuted but only by facts. The mast in Gąbin is a test. A test for what ? Think it up.

Stanisław Zubek
Kraków, February 7, 1995

The quotations were taken from the documents (an appeal and statement) of the Protest Committee in: Zielone Brygady 1/95, pp. 1-2.

PS. And one more thing. By the way, I hope that various sponsors (and there are a lot of ecofunds and ecofoundations in Poland) had rushed to Gąbin before the Protest Committee filled in appropriate proposals.

reprinted from Zielone Brygady 3/95

The Address of the Protest Committee at the Highest Mast in Europe:

Stowarzyszenie Ochrony Życia Ludzi przy Najwyższym Maszcie Europy
Teresa Skurzyńska Topólno
09-542 Gąbin
tel. 63