Together with communities in Crete and Italy, the residents of Gavdos have reacted angrily to the plans fearing that the mission could pose a grave threat to the island and the surrounding marine ecosystem. Responding to what they see as perceived indifference on the part of Greek, EU and UN authorities, the residents have announced that they will abstain from the European elections (link in Greek) in protest.

Currently chemical weapons are being transported out of Syria via sea to the Italian port of Gioia Tauro. Once all of Bashar al Assad’s chemical weapon stockpile has been removed from  Syria, about 500 tonnes of the more dangerous chemicals will be transferred to the US Navy’s MV Cape Ray. This specially equipped ship will transport the chemicals to international waters southwest of Crete where it will neutralize them using the method of hydrolysis.

When this will occur is unclear as there have been delays and accusations of foot-dragging on the part of the Syrian government in moving the WMD’s out of the country. It is highly likely that a June deadline for the chemicals’ destruction will be missed although, the OPCW says that there is an ‘increasing pace’ in removing the weapons. The Syrian government has issued a revised deadline stating that all relevant chemicals will be removed from its territory by 27 April 2014.

According to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), the international body responsible for overseeing the mission, at no point will any chemicals be released into the sea or air. However that is not enough to reassure concerned residents of Crete and Gavdos who fear a potential accident.

Below is the statement released by the islanders of Gavdos:

“Gavdos, located in the middle of the Mediterranean that is threatened by the indifference of the Memorandum government and the movement of Syria’s chemical weapons to international waters next to us, is protesting and contributing to action to stop this transfer.

The Threat

For Gavdos, Crete, the Peloponnese, Malta, Italy and the entire Mediterranean it is a criminal action to ‘experiment’ with hydrolysis at sea of exceptionally dangerous substances which in the event of an accident will be released in our seas and will destroy every living thing including ourselves.

Culpability

And all of this is happening with the support of the UN which is using the classification of international waters to act on the behalf of interests, politics and economics, as if the international waters, which are nothing more than lines on a map, are not at risk of potential catastrophe. And all of this in violation of international law which states that the destruction of chemical weapons must take place exclusively on land within the borders of the country that produced them, or on land in the territory of a country that has purchased them.
And with the indifference of governments and European bodies which are indifferent to the environmental consequences, but hound the people with greater austerity and greater profits for the financially wealthy.

The Questioning

Portugal and Albania refused to participate in this degenerate game of political and financial interests.

What we propose

It is their chemicals, it is their war, let them take the effluent to their countries.
Those who made them and those who bought them must take them to their own countries.
The questions of MPs and MEPs must be answered. And finally governments need to take a position, mindful of human life, taking into account that the votes of the people do not bestow upon them godlike powers to play with our lives.

Gavdos

Gavdos is an active participant in action against the implementation of this illogical and dangerous decision. A petition with the signatures of its residents will be sent to the relevant authorities. We will hang a banner of protest on Europe’s Southern Lighthouse. We are turning our back on a Europe that is indifferent to its people and has decided to boycott the elections for the European Parliament.”