Finland: Reclaim The Cape action week

From Nuclear Heritage
Revision as of 16:02, 19 April 2016 by ATOMI (talk | contribs) (updated)
Jump to navigationJump to search

In the end of April 2016 it will be a year since Fennovoima started to prepare areas of Hanhikivi cape for the new nuclear power plant construction in Northern Finland. At the same time the protest camp against Fennovoima celebrates its first anniversary. The camp was able to stay inside the construction area over five months and was able to slow down the construction works. During the summer, dozens of blockades took place and newspapers wrote about various sabotages. In September, after the eviction that lasted eight days, the camp moved outside the construction site to continue its activities with help of local supporters. Blockades and other activity against nuclear power did not stop at any point.

In the end of April we are going to return to the construction site. The aim is to paralyze the whole construction site, for a long time. With a big enough group we can reoccupy the area and stay there. We don’t only want to occupy the area back but also fill the surrounding areas with activities against Fennovoima, nuclear power, destruction of nature and capitalism, and by respecting the plurality of tactics.

This on-going camp/action is a big deal in Finland where people taking part in civil disobedience (and grass root level political work in general) are not so many. Solidarity and participation is welcome from other parts of Europe and all around the world of course. This camp(aign) and the activities around it have been able stall the nuclear power plant, and they will continue to do so. You don´t wanna miss being a part of it! Keep this in mind when planning your spring and summer:

Come and join us to make this possible. Come to share your knowhow in a workshop or to learn from the more experienced, and start your summer with numerous comrades in the middle of nature just awaking for the spring.

The event starts on Friday 22 April with a party continuing over the weekend. The following week will be filled with action and workshops, sharing knowledge and knowhow, getting to know new comrades along with action. On Tuesday 26 April it will be thirty years from Chernobyl accident – symbolically perfect moment to stop a new nuclear project. On Chernobyl Day various organizations will carry out their protests and we will also do our part. The event will climax next weekend to the First of May when the aim is to organize an all-time riotous First of May party of Northern Finland. In the nearby cities marches for First of May are also organize and we can join them too.

You can read about our activities and follow the planning of the event at

If and when you decide to join us, send us an email. Please let us know if you are also interested in organizing a workshop or other activities.



Program, instructions, camp background and event info

(the following information was taken from the website https://fennovoima.no.com)

Check back the organizer's website regularly: as the action week draws closer, we will keep on updating and adding bits and pieces of information as we go. Schedules, presentations, actions, legalities, accommodations – all that stuff will get a more and more detailed form.

For the participants of the action week! Please, remember to inform us beforehand about your arrival – and especially so, if you’re not coming with your own tent but need an accommodation in the communal sleeping places. By doing this, you practice solidarity in action – and make arranging all this lovely camp madness a lot easier for the creatures of the woods responsible for it. Thanks in advance! Drop your messages to: stopfennovoima AT protonmail DOT com[1]


What’s this action week all about?

Reclaim the Cape is a charmingly crazy and madly brave try-out to introduce slightly different methods of civil disobedience, difference-making and expressing one’s opinion’s to Finnish mental landscape. The anti-nuclear protest camp at Pyhäjoki brings in a full-blown action week and a classical day of action, with a just as classical case of mass civil disobedience to go with it. We are aware of the ways mass civil disobedience have been used in other corners of the world before; and even if we do say so ourselves, we do think that if it’s possible to flood a Belgian GMO field, a German nuclear missile base or hop over the fences of Europe’s biggest military exercise area – it should not be exactly impossible to take over a planned nuclear power plant construction site behind a one simple fence.

With all its added extras, Fennovoima-Rosatom’s nuclear project has from its part succeeded in on thing: it has drawn clearly just how limited an individual’s possibilities in making a difference through traditional, parliamental or juridical channels, are. The rising current in political discussion’s in Finland have underlined this notion from one comment to another. When one is facing massive companies, state-run departments or both, the theatrical nature of many of traditional methods of political activity get revealed fast. Luckily, we do have a great selection of empowering examples of useless mega projects that have been either delayed heavily or cancelled totally largely because of persistent civil disobedience and resistance – despite the political support these projects have been enjoying.

We respect and practise the diversity of tactics. On that field, the combination of an action week and one set act of mass civil disobedience provides an – well, in-built diversity. Whether you’re interested about an easygoing low threshold action for a first-timer or something more colourful for a well-running smaller affinity group, this week will provide you with a terrain for everything.

To accompany that, we have a growing selection of presentation’s and workshops. Check back to get the latest news every once in a while.


Fennovoima-Rosatom nuke stuff: what’s that all about?

So. There’s an anti-nuclear protest site and an action week taking place. Why and against what, exactly? To put it all in a simple nutshell:

Fennovoima is a Finnish nuclear power company established in 2007 by a consortium of Finnish power and industrial companies thinking it’s a mighty good idea to put up a nuke plant at Pyhäjoki, a small municipality at the west coast of Finland. The project nearly faced its much wished-for doom when German energy giant E.ON, the main investor of the project at that time, decided nuclear power is bad business and withdrew its money in 2012.

Rosatom is Russian state corporation: it’s the only vendor in the global markets that offers the nuclear industry’s entire range of products, both civil and weapons. It’s led in an authoritarian manner by a nine-person strong supervisory board, elected single-handedly by President Putin – and naturally, famous for projects riddled with mafia connections, massive delays and accidents.

Fennovoima-Rosatom was born when Rosatom marched in to save Fennovoima: after E.ON left, it was the only investor willing to participate. Fennovoima needed a financial saviour – and Rosatom aimed to polish its reputation with a project in the west. It’s all about the geopolitics, you know: it doesn’t hurt Russia to place a geopolitical footprint to a region close to NATO favoured NEAT military test area in northern Sweden and of that much-talked about Arctic oil.

The Pyhäjoki protest camp saw daylight on April 2015, when first clear cuts started at Hanhikivi peninsula. While legally shady ”preparing works” advanced, the camp held its ground at the very construction site for five months, blocking the works, causing the local police complaining they haven’t got the resources anymore to deal with the protestors. At the same time newspapers were filled with news of sabotage and general mischief. In September 2015 the eviction of the camp took place, taking full eight days to get the last climber out. After the eviction the camp relocated to a site offered by a local land owner, roughly 4 km outside the construction site. Direct action and general mischief – still in program.

We know its a bit of a madhouse here, as you get to face with one go the whole current Russian administration, NATO-West, a nuclear energy giant, private security firms and the Ministry of Employment and the Economy of Finland. But hey, ho told not to aim high? On April 2016 the camp holds its first anniversary – and it’s time to pump up the gear. To be mad enough to bring the concept of mass civil disobedience to Finland in this scale. The goal is simple: to flood the construction site with people – and hold it as long as possible. May the nearby regions also be filled with all sorts of anti-nuclear, anti-capitalism, pro-all-things-good actions. We tip our hats to diversity of tactics – and summon all of you ecofreaks, antimilitarists and others to join us.


Schedules and infobits

22nd of April – 1sth of May: the action week itself.

Locations and routes: Pyhäjoki is accessible by public transportation, hitch-hiking and cars: check the directions] or contact us for details.

Food and accommodation: we cook vegan. Accommodation mainly in big heatable army tents – but if you have a tent on you, bring it in! Remember to dress warm. Likely there will be indoor accommodation arrangeable for some, but please – do contact us well beforehand to make that possible.

Practicalities: Solidarity is a verb: we encourage folks to drop in a voluntarily donation for food and such. Yes, you’ll be able to wash up: but it’ll be chilly. Before arriving we’d love you to drop us a message beforehand, stating roughly when and with or without your own tents etc. you’re coming.

Questions will be answered at: stopfennovoima AT protonmail DOT com[1]

22th-23th of April: Opening party! Music! People! Fun!

26th of April: Chernobyl memorial day – and the big action day. Along the week other activities possible.

1st of May: You get the drift. We bet you do.

For the whole week there will be workshops, presentations and skill sharing stuff to keep you busy. More details will be updated along the way: check back every once in a while! So far we will release the following presentations:

Lectures and discussions: additional workshops will be published on the camp's website

  • Russian nuclear engineer and environmental activist Andrei Ozharovski: The past and present of Rosatom
  • researcher Maarit Laihonen: The politics and backgrounds of Fennovoima's nuclear project
  • researcher and writer Olli Tammilehto: The history and timeline of failed nuclear projects
  • biochemist Jari Natunen: Fennovoima and nuclear waste

Also: please, let us know if you are interested in organizing a workshop or other activities.

Printable flyers can be found on the material-page.


Partners and co-organisators


More information about the camp


Learn more


  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 For protection against automatic email address robots searching for addresses to send spam to them this email address has been made unreadable for them. To get a correct mail address you have to displace "AT" by the @-symbol and "DOT" by the dot-character (".").