About 20 Greenpeace members protested outside Armidale’s Commonwealth Bank branch on Saturday morning, urging the bank to stop investing billions of dollars in coal mining.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The community action was one of dozens of similar protests that took place around the country on the weekend.
Maria Rummery was the local Greenpeace member who organised the Armidale protest and she spoke to the Express on Saturday morning:
Ms Rummery said Greenpeace had already targeted banks before.
“We’ve already been successful in getting Westpac to stop funding (coal) companies, so I think public pressure is really going to help,” she said.
Saturday’s protest included collecting signatures for a petition to be forwarded to the bank, as well as Greenpeace members dressed as jellyfish to raise awareness of the threat to the Great Barrier Reef from mining.
Ms Rummery said there would be more protests around the country in coming weeks aimed at the bank.
She said the local branch, which does not open on Saturdays, was unaware their protest was taking place on the weekend.
The Armidale Express contacted the Commonwealth Bank, and a spokesperson said they were aware of the protest at the local branch.
“We believe people have the right to express their views as long as they do so in a peaceful manner in compliance with the law and common standards of courtesy,” the spokesperson said.
“As a major bank we support nearly every sector in the economy. Strict environmental, social and governance standards are incorporated into our business-lending decisions and we will only fund projects that meet these standards.”