Dozens of Czech, German and Polish activists gathered on Saturday at the gates of the Polish coal mine Turiv, near the Czech border, demanding an end to coal mining. Polish miners are against the closure, because it could lose their jobs.
The Turiv mine near the Czech-Polish border supplies coal mainly to a nearby power plant. The PGE group, which owns the mine and power plant, is the main employer in the area and plans to continue mining until 2044, and gradually expand the mine to 30 square kilometers along the road from Zhittau to Bogatyn.
For this reason, the Czech Republic appealed to the Court of Justice of the European Union, which in May last year ordered Poland to suspend work. However, Poles do not agree. But the organizers of the demonstration believe that writing open letters or online petitions is not enough to influence the situation. That’s why they organized a demonstration. According to activist Holzner, the goal is to support locals in the fight against mine expansion: “We want to support people from the border region who are afraid to speak out and organize any protests because of the threats of Poles.”
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