Some placards made ready for #Occupy Nigeria, Occupy DC march
By SaharaReporters, New York
STATEMENT:
What: Protest in Solidarity with Occupy Nigeria outside World Bank USA headquarters
Who: The 99% and the press
When: January 9, 2012, noon-1 p.m.
Where: Murrow Park, 1818 H Street, NW, Washington, DC
Why: To show solidarity with our Nigerian allies who are risking their lives in taking on Big Oil and the 1%
A new oil disaster is harming Nigerians. On New Year's Day, 2012, the Nigerian government announced and immediately implemented price hikes on fuel for domestic consumption, a policy that has long been advocated by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. As a result, Nigerians are now paying 2 to 5 times what they paid last year for fuel. Meanwhile, the big oil companies that have ravaged the Niger Delta continue to reap huge profits and Nigerians living in the Delta's oil-producing communities are confronting the impacts of a series of large December 2011 oil spills, including one by Shell that is reportedly the largest in over 10 years. These spills are occurring after decades of oil spills by foreign oil companies that have yet to be cleaned up. Much of this oil extracted from Nigeria is destined for U.S. markets.
The 1% of Nigeria's elite have spent decades siphoning off Nigeria's oil wealth from the impoverished Niger Delta region, leaving nothing but pollution, death and destruction in their wake. Now, despite record oil prices, the Nigerian government claims there is not enough money to pay for basic infrastructure in the country. At the urging of the World Bank and IMF, Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has jacked up the price of oil by over 150% in order to pay for this infrastructure. Yet the 99% of Nigerians who live on less than $2300 per year can't afford to pay this price for oil, and have taken to the streets in protest. One protester has been killed so far by police.
U.S. activists plan to hold a demonstration in solidarity with Occupy Nigeria, the Nigerian "We The People" coalition, and Nigeria's organized labor sector, all of whom have called for a general strike in Nigeria to protest the soaring price hikes for oil on January 9, 2012. The U.S. solidarity demonstration will take place from noon to 1 p.m., Monday, January 9, outside the headquarters of the World Bank in Washington, DC, at Morrow Park, 1818 H Street, NW. For those who can arrive earlier, meet at the Occupy DC encampment at 11 a.m. at 15th and K Streets, NW, to march together to the World Bank.
For more information, contact Emira Woods at Institute for Policy Studies at: 202-787-5232 or emira@ips-dc.org
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