Greenpeace to end occupation

GREENPEACE has confirmed on Friday afternoon that they are to end their protest at the drill ship Stena Carron on Saturday after oil company Chevron served a court order on the protest group.

The interdict forces the eco warriors to come down from the anchor chain they have occupied since Tuesday, or to face huge fines or even custodial sentences.

One of the campaigners, Leila Keen, said they had no option but to end their protest against deepwater drilling.

“We have decided to comply with the court order. The cost of challenging the court order would be phenomenal and Greenpeace doesn’t have that kind of money.”

She confirmed that the group would bring down the bright yellow survival pod, suspended from the anchor chain, within the next 24 hours.

She added: “We are definitely waiting until Saturday and police are happy with that.

“We think that it is a shame that the court have granted the order because, clearly, it is based on some spurious facts.

“Chevron based it all on the fact that they may need the anchor chain to hold the Stena Carron in position.

“That is crazy considering that this ship is designed to go into the wilds of the Atlantic Frontier and hold position so that they drill for oil.”

She said the decision to comply with the court order and take the survival pod down would not mean that the protest against deepwater drilling was over.