Interview with Karsten Smid

Karsten Smid, Greenpeace activist and one of the organisers of the demonstrations against the G8 summit in Heiligendamm, shared with RT the protesting groups' plans for the coming week.

Russia Today: Can you tell about the mass march planned for the evening?

Karsten Smid: We have two starting points: one at the main station here and one on the road. The people will meet together here at the harbour in the afternoon. We expect 100,000 people. We will have famous speakers at the main demonstration, like Rolland Hip from Greenpeace, leaders of environmental groups, peace groups, and disarmament groups. They will speak here at the end of the demonstration.

RT: 100,000 is a big number. Are you sure that many people will come?

K.S.: Yes, we expect 100,000 people. The trains have arrived, the busses are arriving, and I'm pretty sure that we will have here a pretty big and powerful and peaceful demonstration against the G8 summit.

RT: Keeping the protest peaceful is one of the major concerns for German police. Will the demonstration not get violent?

K.S.: I know many of the organisers, and we said in the team organising this demonstration that we will have a peaceful picture come out of this demonstration, I think that's what will happen.

RT: What kind of logistics is going on behind the scenes? How do you co-ordinate everything and make sure it runs smoothly?

K.S.: Rostok is really a very small town. And the demonstrators are coming from Hamburg, form Berlin and so on by busses, trains, and they need facilities for camping. We expect thousands to stay over the week. There's a lot of organising: camp, nutrition, everything else.

RT: Climate change is topping the summit agenda? What would you like to see come out of the meeting?

K.S.: Climate change is a real issue, it's a real danger. We have more storms, heavy rain events. We have to act, we have to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Industrialised countries have to start doing it. They promised it ten years ago, but it didn't happen. We wand Ms. Merkel to go forward and say: Yes, Europe starts reducing emissions and it's impossible for Mr Bush to block this UN initiative and he's not the man we have to look at.