A group of around 400 demonstrators participate in a protest by burying their heads in the sand at Sydney’s Bondi Beach November 13, 2014. (Reuters/David Gray)
Hundreds of protesters buried their heads in the sand of Australia’s most famous beach in a climate change demonstration. They wanted to send a message to Aussie PM Tony Abbott and G20 leaders ahead of the 2014 summit.
About 400 people gathered Bondi Beach, a popular beach near Sydney, for the event dubbed Bondi Salutes G20, aiming to raise questions about climate change.
They dug holes in the sand, plunged their bodies in head first and stayed there for several minutes. Some of them even managed to perform handstands with their heads in the sand.
“You have your head in the sand on climate change,” said the organizers from 350.org Australia group, addressing Prime Minister Tony Abbott.
The protesters said they were mocking the Australian government’s reluctance to put the issue of climate change on the agenda of the G20 summit, which is scheduled for November 15-16 in Brisbane, the capital city of Queensland, Australia.
“Obama’s on board, Xi Jinping’s on board, everyone’s on board except one man,” activist Pat Norman, 28, bellowed into a megaphone on the Sydney beach.
With world leaders arriving for the G20 Summit in Brisbane, Eden Tehan said, “We want to tell world leaders coming for the G20 that Tony Abbott does not represent the view of most Australians who want to see urgent and global action on climate change, and for Australia to contribute a meaningful share towards reducing global emissions.”
In July, the Australian Senate voted to scrap the controversial two-year old carbon emission tax, signaling a major victory for Abbott. Australia became the only country to reverse action on climate change.
Carbon emission has seen a long-running debate among politicians. The Liberals claim it penalizes business, while the Labor Party says it helps combat climate change.
Australia, the world’s 12th-largest economy, has one of the highest per capita fossil fuel emissions among industrialized nations.
