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The '''Khimki Forest Campaign''' was a failed effort by [[Environmentalism|environmentalists]] in [[Russia]] to stop the deforestation of Khimki Forest for highway construction in [[Timeline of Libertarian Socialism in Eastern Europe|2010]]. | {{Infobox_event|title = Khimki Forest Campaign|image = Khimki protest.jpg|date = 2010}}The '''Khimki Forest Campaign''' was a failed effort by [[Environmentalism|environmentalists]] in [[Russia]] to stop the deforestation of Khimki Forest for highway construction in [[Timeline of Libertarian Socialism in Eastern Europe|2010]]. | ||
== Events == | == Events == | ||
Revision as of 12:01, 7 June 2019
</image> <label>Performers</label> <label>Date</label> <label>Location</label> </infobox>The Khimki Forest Campaign was a failed effort by environmentalists in Russia to stop the deforestation of Khimki Forest for highway construction in 2010.
Events
Residents of Khimki discovered trees with red markings that the government planned to burn them down to build a new highway to connect Moscow and St. Petersburg.
On 14 July 2010, officials began to log the forest. Beginning on 15 July 2010, Yevgenia led her group, Defenders of Khimki Forest, out to the logging site and held a round-the-clock vigil in protest. One night during the protest vigil, masked men in favor of the construction of the highway attacked members of the Defenders of Khimki Forest. Several campaigners were transported to the hospital and treated. Campaigners engaged in property destruction, as well, when they stormed the Khimki Town Hall on 28 July. Wearing masks themselves, members set off petrol bombs, broke windows, and vandalized the building, writing messages opposing the deforestation in spray paint. Nobody was injured in the attack, and neither side engaged in such an attack again in the campaign.
Several campaigners, led by Yevgenia, held rallies in downtown Khimki to protest the plans of deforestation. Seeking international help, Defenders of Khimki Forest began an online petition on change.org to raise awareness of the issue. Eventually, nearly 20,000 signatures were recorded and French company Vinci, the private company contracted to head the project, found themselves up against an international audience. Famed musician Bono of U2 announced his solidarity with the movement during his tour through Moscow. Defenders of Khimki Forest organized a separate protest concert on 22 August 2010, Russia’s Flag Day.
Finally, on 26 August 2010, President Dmitry Medvedev announced on his blog site that he had halted the construction of the highway and asked for a period of further discussion. He noted that the large number of appeals to the construction influenced his decision. This announcement was seen as a victory for Defenders of Khimki Forest.
However, only four short months later, construction on the highway would resume, to be completed by 2014.