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Terracotta eco-warrior
Andrew Hough, Evening Standard15.10.07
An eco-protester breached security at the British Museum to put face masks on exhibits from the Chinese Terracotta Army.
The man jumped barriers to place the masks bearing the slogan "CO2 emission polluter" on two of the life-sized figures to highlight China's poor pollution record.
Security guards intervened after they were alerted by other visitors.
Martin Wyness, 49, was dragged away from the 2,200-year-old exhibits and has been banned for life from visiting the museum.
A Chinese official who travelled with the exhibits was inspecting the soldiers to see if they have been damaged.
Security has now been stepped up but Mr Wyness, 49, said he had no regrets about his actions yesterday. "I did it because I have got two children and I am very, very concerned about the global inaction over climate change, particularly what is happening in China."
My Wyness travelled from his Herefordshire home with daughters Sophie, 14, and Ruby, seven, and insisted he had not damaged the figures.
"It is a shame that I have been banned for life because I love the British Museum, all of their exhibitions are wonderful, but the future of my children is more important than my pleasure of visiting the British Museum.
"I know my daughters are proud of me. It was something I had to do to raise awareness of the problem."
Witness Amelia Hanratty, 47, a wedding shop owner of Chippenham, Wiltshire, said: "I saw the man climb over the barriers. He was totally calm and silent. None of the security staff had any idea what was going on.
"They only found out when a member of the public alerted them. Two dashed over and frogmarched him away. He could have damaged the soldiers but he didn't do anything to them except put on the masks."
Mr Wyness was arrested in May for aggravated trespass after chaining himself to a digger in protest at the building of a £12.5 million road in Herefordshire. Then in July he was arrested again after staging a protest at a meeting of Hereford county council during a campaign to save the remains of a Bronze Age footpath.
Sources at the British Museum said it was believed no damage had been caused.
A spokeswoman said: "The British Museum can confirm that an incident took place and that the gentleman was immediately detained by British Museum staff. Security measures have been further strengthened." Thousands of people have visited the exhibition since it opened last month.
On display are 120 objects on loan from China, including 12 life-sized warrior figures from an estimated army of 8,000 created to accompany emperor Ying Zheng into the afterlife. Ticket sale records have been smashed, with almost 200,000 pre-sold.
Reader views (13)
There are some tribal communities in India who are natural eco-warriors. For centuries, they were the protectors of our eco-system. Their customs and beliefs can hardly be classified as scientific, but they have a strange sense of the natural environment. We want to film their way of living, with some fantasy woven around.
You can download the concept of this film presented here as a short audio-visual.
http://www.4shared.com/file/46758970/e6a183da/TheConcept.html
Thank you
- Jay Patch, Bangalore, India
This man is expressing a hard truth - that climate change is more important than anything. It is, as both the US and UK chief scientific advisors have called it now, the biggest threat mankind has ever faced. Warren Michael may think it's all about tax but he should take it up with Stephen Hawking, Nasa, The American Academy of Sciences, the Royal Society, Harvard, Yale, Oxbridge all of whom agree that climate change is man made and is an overwhelming threat. Good on Mr Wyness. He is an example to us all.
- Matthew, London
I'm sure Martin Wyness is as much of a contributor than most of us. Climate change is just another tax, any changes have been happening naturally for many years, and will continue after we have gone.
- Warren Michael, Luton, UK
Well...I had no idea he was doing that. Martin is my brother and always surprises me with what he has to do to get the message across. I am seriously proud of his tongue-in-cheek protest and can assure you his actions can only come from the best possible place.
- Grant Wyness, Exmouth Devon
Albert, for someone who lives in a low-lying coastal city like Aberdeen, your dismissive optimism will prove your undoing. Climate change can and is being changed and measured in timescales much less than millenia - it's happening right now. You're right about one thing, though - CO2 is not the sole cause of climate change - methane is much worse.
- Austen, London
China emits around 3 tonnes of CO2 per person, per year. This is nothing compared to Qatar, who emit over 60 tonnes per person, per year.
China's biggest problem is their vast population aspiring to a Western lifestyle. The developed world have created and inspired that.
The world's greatest problem is out of control population growth meeting ever increasing consumption. Too many people consuming too much stuff. More for more.
The economic system is a subset of the eco system. We must always remember that and wake up to the fact that we can't afford to take more than is available.
Right now, as a global species, we are completely unsustainable, akin to cancer cells multiplying and destroying, at an ever increasing rate.
- Pete, Reigate, Surrey
Well done to Martin for making this very visible protest. Governments around the world are notoriously complacent about enacting measures to combat climate change. Soon we will all face the 'terror' of resource down-turn due to rapid climate change, and we will all be quite literally fighting over food. It will make fighting present day 'terrorism' seem a very hollow cause indeed. Governments are pledged (more-or-less) to total inaction, despite the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to Al Gore recently. It is up to us all, as individuals, to elect politicians who don't just speak a load of meaningless rhetoric about climate change and then do nothing (e.g. Blair's -now under Brown- is widening the M6 leading to further more rapid CO2 emissions). In conclusion, this was a very worthy protest, and badly needed.
- Gerald Dawe, Hereford, England
I totally agree with Albert, and at the same time acknowledge China is a problem. This thing I wonder is whether Mr Wyness is doing anything about his own CO2 emissions or trying to get his own country to do something about it? The Chinese believe it or not actually have very sound and good environmental policies, their problems are with implementation. And who can blame them, if you were offered a better life than you or your parents have had for the past 50 years I think you'd be trying to make your buck. You see the Chinese are also concerned about creating a better future for their children and families. Yes they need to raise awareness but it is hard when even the US won't do anything.
I suggest anyone else who wants to get on the blame China bandwagon things about what's going on in their own backyard first.
- Anon, UK
More Facts:
Climate change can only reliably be measured in millennia, take the last ice age as an example.
Throughout earth history there have been many "hot" periods. Some at least due to CO2 from volcanic eruptions. When dinosaurs roamed the planet the average temperature was much higher then it is today with no polar ice caps and yet life flourished.
Climate change is not due soley to CO2.
So it's all right for the developed nations to pollute the planet so long as we acknowledge it. Enough of the doom and gloom.
- Albert Swift, Aberdeen, Scotland
FACTS:
1.The amount of greenhouse gases in our atmosphere are one of the factors that make our planet habitable or inhabitable.
2.The warming effect of these gases is huge - 280parts per million results in the average temperature of the planet being about 14C (30C warmer than it would be if it was 0ppm.)
3.In the last 150 years we have added another 100parts per million to the atmosphere.
4.Every year we add another 2-3ppm.
5.The average temperature has risen (0.8C) and will continue to rise.
6.the effects of this could be very harmful- we are gambling with whether our planet will be habitable or not.
7.Wake up to this truth. Is it fair on your children to gamble with their future in this way?
- Nick, London
Well done to Mr. Wyness for carrying out a peaceful non-destructive protest action to draw people's attention to a serious issue. This is almost art, not protest! True, the USA is a far greater polluter, but China's pollution emissions are increasing rapidly are almost unregulated in many areas.
- Karlos, London, UK
What a twat! Serves him right to be banned for life. Silly man.
- Katrina, Berlin, Germany
That only goes to show how ignorant Mr Wyness is as the USA is by far the biggest polluter on the planet, especially when measured per capita. They are also the ones with the greatest infulence so may Mr Wyness would be better off putting a mask over Ronald McDonald.
- Albert Swift, Aberdeen, Scotland
