Earlier in this month dedicated to remembering Madiba and the principles he held dear, The Green Connection handed over the verdict statement – as deliberated by an esteemed jury, at its Oceans Tribunal in September 2021 – to the Presidential Climate Change Commission.

After numerous court actions to halt Shell’s seismic surveys off the Wild Coast Eastern Cape (in search of offshore oil and gas), on 24 May 2022, small-scale fishers from the region called on local traditional leaders to do better at fulfilling their responsibilities as custodians of communal land extending to the ocean, in ways that best serve the interests of local communities in the affected areas.

With little more than seven (7) years till 2030 – by which time the world should have dramatically curbed its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, as part of a global effort to keep global warming below 1.5°C – The Green Connection says that it will continue to oppose government’s worrying offshore oil and gas aspirations.

The Green Connection says that Minister Gwede Mantashe’s excuses and blame shifting about the terrible state of Eskom and the country’s failing energy systems are unacceptable.

Following President Ramaphosa’s Youth Day speech last week – which mostly focused on the unprecedented high unemployment rate and lack of opportunities – young small-scale fishers, along the coast, say they are concerned that government does not recognise their value as South Africans who are self-employed and trying to create sustainable livelihoods for themselves and their communities, from the ocean.

It has been two years since The Green Connection, under its Who Stole Our Oceans campaign, started working with coastal communities whose livelihoods are being threatened by offshore oil and gas projects. The initiative is focused on protecting the oceans, particularly through opposing offshore oil and gas.

Since the announcement of Shell seismic surveys on the Wild Coast in the Eastern Cape last year, outraged communities and environmental organisations took the company to court following a flawed Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and failed community consultations. On 28 December 2021, the Makhanda High court ordered Shell to stop this seismic survey.

Since the announcement of Shell seismic surveys on the Wild Coast in the Eastern Cape last year, outraged communities and environmental organisations took the company to court following a flawed Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and failed community consultations.

In the run-up to next week’s highly contentious court hearings to stop Shell’s seismic surveys and any further bids to explore the Wild Coast for offshore oil and gas, communities in the Eastern Cape are speaking out against traditional leaders who, at the end of April, following secret meetings with Minister Gwede Mantashe (in February 2022), agreed to support oil and gas developments. However, the communities, who are applicants in the case, were not consulted.

Today 25 May #AfricaDay2022 in Cape Town, The Green Connection launched its public awareness and information sharing campaign – which is part of a bigger initiative, called Who Stole Our Oceans – in a bid to stop further government investment in fossil fuels, particularly offshore oil, and gas.