PRESS RELEASE – For Immediate Release

15 August 2007, 17.00

CLIMATE CAMP PROTESTERS OCCUPY BUDGET AIRLINE

Activists from the Camp for Climate Action have blockaded and occupied the
offices of xl.com, an airline responsible for removing or deporting
people, including children, to the Democratic Republic of Congo.

At 16.30 ten climate campaigners occupied the offices of XL.com airlines
near the south terminal of Gatwick airport. One of their number has locked
themselves to a stairwell in the building. Others handed out leaflets to
employees detailing how XLco ntributes to climate change by its flights,
as well as deporting refugees back to the repression and torture they
risked their lives in fleeing.

At 16.50 police removed all protesters except the locked-on one from the
building, and they are currently outside displaying a banner proclaiming
‘cheap flights… cheap lives?!’.

Protester Allannah Currie explained, ‘environmental refugees outnumber all
other kinds combined, and climate change will make that get a lot worse.
We in the wealthy countries have welfare to protect us from climate chaos,
but the world’s poorest have nothing to help them except us taking
responsibility. Our carbon emissions threaten to take the essentials of
life from the poor of the world, it makes a mockery of our concern about
aid and debt relief’.

The action at Gatwick comes a month before the No Borders group hold an
action camp similar to the Camp for Climate Action at Gatwick against
migration controls.

Already this week climate campers have blocked the transport of an Airbus
A380 wing in Wales, blockaded exectuive jet airports at Farnborough and
Biggin Hill, and this morning blockaded the Department of Transport in
London.

A mass direct action involving hundreds or even thousands of people is set
to take place at Heathrow on Sunday and Monday.

At 17.10 police removed the locker-on and they were arrested and taken to Crawley police station. There were no other arrests.

01293 497 7000 is there direct phone no..

Thank you for occupying XL .
In a letter to NCADC they emphasized they were not operating the flight to DRC on the 30th August - may have something to do with previous bad publicity, after deporting children and families to DRC? They denied they operated the 'Ravel Charter flights' to Afghanistan but did not mention the 'AardvarkCharter flights' to eastern Europe, so we can assume XL are operating Aardvark.

... we really are!

Excellent solidarity action. We hope that even more 'climate campers' can get involved with supporting further action against the Aug 30th deportation flight to DR Congo. And not forgetting No Borders Camp against the new deportation centre being built at Gatwick airport (and much more), taking place 19th-24th Sept.

Full info about Gatwick camp is at:  http://noborders.org.uk/

The person arrested has been charged with aggravaqted trespass and is due in court this morning (saturday).