Second Santiago Show & Movie Now Online

Our short documentary film Pulp, Poo and Perfection is showing this Wednesday, December 19, at the 2nd annual Surfestival Chile at Cine Arte Alameda, Santiago.

This film is also now available online as a free downloadable podcast at www.perrorata.cl, where you can download in English and/or Spanish. Click on the "Podcasts" link at PerroRata.cl and then go to the "PPP" podcast links to download. You are activism.

Please visit the site, download, and enjoy with your friends!

Environmental Espionage in Chile

The following is a letter written by my friend and associate Fernando Dougnac, known as Chile's leading environmental lawyer, the 2002 recipient of Chile's National Environmental Prize, and a member of CONAMA's Consulting Council (CONAMA is Chile's national environmental agency similar to the EPA in the United States but with even less regulatory teeth). He wrote this letter this week to CONAMA's Consulting Council regarding the recent news that the Chilean government is spying on national environmental groups. This "environmental espionage" has been a rumor in the national NGO community for several years, and now it's official.

Mr. Dougnac's letter (my English translation):

Esteemed Consulting Council: On page 26 of the Friday, December 7 edition of the newspaper "La Tercera," one can read a news article entitled: "National Intelligence Agency recruits expert to monitor environmental conflicts and NGOs." The text of the article leaves no doubt concerning the espionage and monitoring that the National Intelligence Agency (Agencia Nacional de Inteligencia, or "ANI") is realizing over environmental NGOs in Chile.

Furthermore, I must inform you that a few weeks ago FIMA held a day-long series of environmental legal workshops in Cobquecura for artisan fishermen and the local community. At the entrance of the building where we held the workshops, two government detectives installed themselves to register all persons that entered the meetings and they watched everything that took place in this community meeting.

To this I must add that three years ago, in another legal environmental seminar that FIMA held for fishermen in Puerto Aysén, southern Chile, a detective attempted to enter the meeting disguised as a fisherman; this individual had the bad luck of being recognized by our team as one of the detectives who had investigated the robbery of computers from our offices some eight months prior and he was refused entrance. This fact was made known to Mr. Egaña who at that time was the sub-secretary of the General Secretary of the Presidency of Chile, who subsequently treated this serious event with complete disregard and without taking any actions to clarify the problem.

Problems like these that were historically blamed on Chile's military government are still valid troubles, a fact that is intolerable. I request your support in this issue so that this campaign of harassment against environmental NGOs is cancelled; the Chilean and international NGOs targeted in this government espionage program are valid and professional organizations that loyally collaborate not only for our country's environmental protection but also collaborate directly with CONAMA and its Consulting Council.

Fernando Dougnac
President, FIMA
Fiscalía del Medio Ambiente
Santiago de Chile
Monday, December 10, 2007

And here is Mr. Dougnac's original letter written in Spanish:

Estimado Consejo Consultivo: En la edición del día viernes 7 de diciembre del diario La Tercera, página 26 se lee la siguiente noticia: "ANI recluta experto para monitorear conflictos y a ONG ambientalistas." El texto de ella no deja dudas respecto del espionaje y seguimiento que la Agencia Nacional de Inteligencia (ANI) está sometiendo a las ONG ambientalistas.

Debo decirles que hace algunas semanas FIMA dio en Cobquecura unas charlas de formación ambiental para pescadores y la comunidad en general. Pues bien, en la puerta del lugar donde se daban las charlas impúdicamente se instalaron dos detectives que chequeaban  las personas que ingresaban y estuvieron vigilando todo lo que se dijo en esa oportunidad. A lo anterior, debe agregarse que hace unos tres años atrás, en otro seminario que se dio en Puerto Aysén, para pescadores, ingresó un detective disfrazado de pescador, con la mala suerte para él que lo reconocimos como uno de los detectives que había investigado un robo de computadores que habíamos sufrido unos ocho meses antes. Este hecho se puso en conocimiento del señor Egaña que era en ese momento subsecretario del Ministerio Secretaría General de la Presidencia, quien tomó este grave hecho con una gran ligereza, sin hacer nada por aclarar el tema.

Como ven, los vicios que antes se le achacaban al gobierno militar están plenamente vigentes, lo que es intolerable. Solicito de UDS. su apoyo para que se ponga fin a esta campaña de hostigamiento en contra de las ONG, organizaciones que hemos colaborado lealmente con la causa ambiental de nuestro país así como con este Consejo Consultivo.

Fernando Dougnac
Presidente de FIMA
Fiscalía del Medio Ambiente
Santiago de Chile

I survived Fashion for the Ocean

Last Wednesday, November 28 we held "Moda por el Mar" (Fashion for the Ocean) in Santiago: a fashion show fundraiser for Save the Waves Coalition and Proplaya. We raised over US$3,500 with over 400 happy people in attendance. We also premiered the official Santiago launch of Pulp, Poo and Perfection and the Chile premiere of Quiksilver's Young Guns 3. The local reception for "Pulp..." was very positive and I am proud to be a creator of this short film. Thanks to Angel Marin for being the great editor and director that he is. You can now watch the entire film at Angel's website, PerroRata Producciones: www.perrorata.cl (subtitled version coming soon!)

It's a miracle I'm still singe in this beautiful country.

Honda Motors Chile title-sponsored the event to promote its global-warming-fighter, the Honda Civic Hybrid. They lent me the car for two days, and it's awesome! To conserve more fuel it shuts itself off when stopped and then starts itself immediately when you take your foot off the brake. But the best part about the car is its silence and lack of engine vibrations... and knowing that you're getting 50+ miles per gallon.

Valentina says, save the wave!

All of the money raised in this event goes directly to Save the Waves Chile Program and Proplaya's programs for Chilean beaches. Thanks very much to QUIKSILVER and ROXY for the clothes, and to all the sponsors for making this event a great success.

Victor Jofre plays a song from the soundtrack of Pulp, Poo and Perfection.

Fashion for the Ocean on November 28

Moda por el Mar 2007 is on! Mark your calendars, start your engines, book your airfare, get your bus ticket, take your sick leave, and put on your dancing shoes to support us at the Ex-Oz (Cerro Bellavista) in Santiago at 10pm on Wednesday, November 28, 2007. The evening will feature live music by Victor Jofre, short activist cinema, an epic surf film, long-legged ladies walking the catwalk and the best of DJ Siddartha and DJ Pool Musik into the whee hours of the morning.

This event is the official Chile launch of our film Pulp, Poo and Perfection along with Quiksilver's Chile premier of their new surf movie Young Guns 3, as well as a benefit fashion show by Chile's top fashion models and national surfing athletes, including Ramon Navarro. All of this will benefit the Chile conservation programs of Save the Waves Coalition and Proplaya. Advance tickets will be available soon for 3,000 Chilean Pesos at Surfers Paradise Surf Shop, Avenida Apoquindo, Las Condes, Santiago.

WHERE: EX-OZ * CERRO BELLAVISTA * SANTIAGO DE CHILE
WHEN: 10 PM * WEDNESDAY * NOVEMBER 28 * 2007
WHY: TO RAISE FUNDS FOR SAVE THE WAVES AND PROPLAYA





A photo from last year's event.

Letter from Pichilemu

Photo: Nico. Surfer: Arnoud


The following is a letter from Pichilemu's surfer activist Nicolas Recordon, regarding the town's victory against a sewage pipeline:

"On August 20, 2007 the water company ESSBIO filed an Environmental Impact Study (SEIA) project entitled, Treatment Plant for Pichilemu's Waste Water (you can read the entire project in Spanish at the link). This represents an extremely important milestone for the community of Pichilemu and for the country of Chile in general since this project replaces the insensible project entitled "Underwater Outlet" which was nothing more than a pipe emptying the town's untreated sewage directly into the ocean shoreline at the country's leading surfing destination and an artisan fishing center.

"This sea change in the project came about because the local community did not accept the proposal that was bound to sink the town's health and its future. Citizen actions were numerous, massive, creative and peaceful. Nonetheless, this movement would have been lost in the Southerly coastal tradewinds if not for the ample media coverage given to the issue. In name of the coastal peoples of the community of Pichilemu and the youth of our country we thank you deeply for your serious work on the issue."


This is the Original Letter in Spanish:

Estimados Señoras y Señores, el 20 de Agosto recién pasado, la empresa ESSBIO ingresó al SEIA (Sistema de Estudios de Impacto Ambiental) el proyecto Planta de Tratamiento para las Aguas Servidas de Pichilemu.   
 
Esto representa un hecho extremadamente importante para la comunidad de Pichilemu y el país en general ya que esta planta reemplazará al inconcebible proyecto anterior llamado "Emisario Submarino" que no era otra cosa que vaciar directamente al Mar y sin tratamiento alguno, el alcantarillado de la ciudad. Y no de cualquier ciudad, de la que posee las mejores condiciones del continente para la practica del surf y deportes nauticos y dónde existe una activa y promisoria pesca artesanal.
 
Este cambio de proyecto se produjo porque la comunidad local no aceptó "el golazo" que pretendían hacerle y se manifestó. Las acciones ciudadanas fueron numerosas, masivas, creativas y pacificas. Sin embargo, todas esas demostraciones de rechazo hubieran sido esteriles y se hubieran esfumado con los surazos de la costa, sin la amplia y valiosa cobertura de los medios de prensa que ustedes representan. Es por ello, que en nombre de la gente de Mar, de la comunidad de Pichilemu, y de la juventud de nuestro país les agradezco infinitamente vuestro serio trabajo. Les saluda atentamente, Nicolas Recordon M.