Report: Anti-Nuke actions in Berlin and Büchel

=> German version of this article in grünes blatt

Commemorating the tragedy of Hiroshima and Nagasaki

Anti-Nuke action in Berlin and Büchel
Some of you might have seen the flyer by "I CAN" or "Atomwaffen frei jetzt", I don't know if you, the reader, even supported the action or even went to Büchel to block a gate at the airport near the Mosel river... I hope many of you took time to think about what happened on the 6th and the 9th of August 1945 and maybe about the danger we still face today. I did, as I went to Berlin on the 2nd of the month already. I planed to fast there among the initiators and participants as I did in Paris 2012. On the 2nd, unfortunately, I missed the group as I walked around the Brandenburger Tor and the Bundeskanzleramt - it was damn hot that day! I decided to find them the next day. I met a friend of mine who was very skeptic about what I wanted to do, and we talked about it somewhat in the evening and later in the morning. He met Mathias Engelke and his wife who fasted for the 12th time this year. They "want" to prolong this action for one day each year till we succeed to dismantle and melt all bombs. My friend later signed our petition to demand a withdraw of the remaining 20 warheads in Büchel - this is held secret, but it's common sense among peace activists.

When we left the Bundeskanzleramt in Berlin, I interrupted my fast for two days because the Beluga (a Greenpeace Ship) came to Emden in Ostfriesland and I was supposed to help there. The hot weather and being busy outside for about ten ours let me do that and also it`s no good to fast alone.

On Thursday I took a train to Cochem and the Bus up to Büchel. It was already late when I got there and I had to prepare my sleeping place - a tent. The people who were there were partly fasting and partly preparing the blockade on Sunday. I said hello to Mathias and I think we held a first service at the main gate to the airport.

The services took place 3 times a day and were well prepared around a map showing uranium mines, accidents and test sites. A focus was on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, but Pastor Mathias Engelke always let space for anyone to additionally share thoughts, plans or just talks about nuclear issues. Another thing was that he played the guitar and we also had a flute we could sing along with during this ritual.

My condition was good when I woke up in the morning, the weather was always changing and it was a little wet, but it always got dry over the day. One man, offered a ride to a volcano lake nearby where you could swim. Mathias, one of his colleges and some others who also were fasting had a letter and tried to give it to soldiers driving in (I guess, I don't publish the content here, but for further information you probably can ask the Versöhnungs Bund if you find a contact. The intention was about making our demand clear and on the other hand offer help for those who want to stop the insanity too.). After the service and a little approach of soldiers and peace activists, I tried to help to build up the camp. Later I walked around a little bit to see where I'm and found a powerbox next to the street, I had wax crayon with me and started to paint it and I wrote "rhythms for peace" next to a dove...

Thursday: There was much to do and I was lucky to get a car, pick up some posters and flyers and distribute it with two girls. We drove to Cochem and met a musician of Lebenslaute at the railway station. I think this also was the day Rampenplan arrived. This group is from the Netherlands and brings a huge kitchen and makes three meals a day for your donation!!! Fantastic! Later that day I drove down into the city again where we held another service in public in front of the church in Cochem. It happened to be welcomed and respected and I successfully tried to get some signatures on our petition.

Friday: I went for a swim with some people. The camp got bigger, I saw groups like Bikers for Peace, IPPNW, Atomwaffen frei jetzt, Lebenslaute and some more coming up. Nina Hagen was supposed to come on Sunday and also Claudia Roth from the Green party in Germany. Still there was much to do, a little disappointment brought the fact that it took hours to build up all the compost-closets which later were full too rapidly and had to be transformed into quarantine zones - fortunately everything was well organized and I think nobody had a problem for a long time.

A woman with contacts in Japan showed us a support video of a women group who also remembered Nagasaki's destruction there. The press printed an article and this day again a conference was set up. There were really guys bringing up a direct satellite connection or at least they tried. An event-technique service next to the camp at the main gate supported us with electricity and a wireless-network. I could just check connections in the internet to get back on Sunday. This day the organizers asked everybody to come together for group finding and discussing aims and limits of the blockade. We also made a action training to eliminate the fear factor. The blockade team also provided official right support on the spot. Another thing I recognized was that the military pulled up the fences and there where territory questions between the authorities on sides of the police and the airport. American Soldiers also where there, but never contacted anybody...

One American on the other hand was on the camp and had stories to tell that made us wonder he made it there and he was joining Lebenslaute with his trumpet when he was not writing for nuclear watch (- it was nice to meet him).

The night I spent at gate two, because now we built up large tents in front of every gate, and there were things that better stay where they were supposed to stay. I had an eye on it together with an older man who had a lot of knowledge about the U.S. Military in Germany and who was disappointed that they didn't pay one cent for the memorial in Rammstein, what made him seemingly grief and assailable maybe (this is another topic, hopefully we'll work it out one day).

Sunday: When I woke up, I enjoyed a beautiful panorama with the sun coming up. We waited for the next shift and then went back to the main gate. The middle of the day was going to be the highlight. We broke our fast and now a stage stood where we first had our pavilion. Lebenslaute opened up the blockade with some classical music and I took a few pictures...

"U got to get your dollars on..." and that's why I had to leave before the real action started. Fortunately I heard at least the German soldiers were sent home for one day or had a day off. I have to pick up the pieces now, I want to know, what happened after I left and when the bullshit will stop and nobody has to take it serious any longer if an asshole threatens the world with a nuclear bomb. What I know now showed me how much I don't know, once again... What side are you on?

In solidarity with the Nuclear Heritage Network, Greenpeace, Sortir du Nucléaire and the 60 people who fasted in Paris this year, the people who look for (ward to) sustainable energy in Japan and the world and you, the reader if you know what I mean.

Onno Oncken