Is this our last chance to Save Stonehenge?
Submitted by Andy B on Thursday, 26 September 2002 Page Views: 1065
StonehengeIn early October, British government ministers will seal the fate of the world-famous sacred site at Stonehenge by making a decision about what kind of road to bulldoze through it. That's "What kind of road shall we bulldoze?", not "Shall we bulldoze a road or not". Certainly not: "Hang on, should we be building a road here at all?" Once they make this decision, they are unlikely to change their minds.Our inside information suggests they will opt either to build a short cut-and-cover tunnel (gouging a huge deep trench through the WHS and then adding a roof) or a short bored tunnel (theoretically not disturbing the surface). Both of these would involve massive construction work *inside* the WHS; both would result in the construction of a massive new four-lane highway passing right through the WHS; both would damage a site held sacred by millions of people and protected under the World Heritage Convention. These are facts, not opinions.
The British government continues to pretend that this is an "exceptional environmental" scheme that will somehow benefit Stonehenge. When the government ministers announce their decision, they will do so in a fanfare of crass publicity. Their spin doctors will attempt to convince the British public and the rest of the world that building four lanes of new road through a World Heritage Site is somehow a benefit. In reality, their plan is an attempt to build a massive new highway around a pesky, troublesome monument that just happens to be in the way. In reality, they don't give a stuff about Stonehenge.
To proceed with this plan, the government vitally needs the support of a British charity called the National Trust that owns the land around Stonehenge. The National Trust gained that land in the 1920s after launching a major public financial appeal: "We have not two Stonehenges, and our generation will be vilified by all posterity if we allow the surroundings of this monument, the frontispiece to English history, to be ruined beyond repair". As we write to you, the National Trust's ruling council and its executive director, Fiona Reynolds, seem likely to approve selling off "their land" -- the very same land that people gave money for them to preserve -- to the roadbuilders. Not for the first time, the National Trust is completely out of touch with public opinion on this issue.
So now we need YOUR help! We need you to DELUGE the British government and FLOOD the National Trust with your letters. Write them from the heart, write them with passion, write them with hope, write them in anger. Write them however you like. You may not get the chance to write them again: their ears will be closed to everything except the sound of traffic. If you need inspiration, take a look at the heartfelt things people have been writing on the Save Stonehenge message board.
You don't need to write pages. Just "I object to your plan to build a new road through the Stonehenge World Heritage Site" on a postcard would do.
Here are the addresses you need. Please write one letter and send copies to the other people.
Rt.Hon. Tessa Jowell MP
Secretary of State
Department for Culture, Media, and Sport
2-4 Cockspur Street
London SW1Y 5DH
United Kingdom.
Rt. Hon. Alastair Darling MP
Secretary of State for Transport
Great Minster House
76 Marsham Street
London SW1P 4DR
UK
Fiona Reynolds
Director General
National Trust
36 Queen Anne's Gate
London SW1H 9AS
United Kingdom
Fax: From UK: 0207-222-5097
From overseas: International code +44 207-222-5097
Please don't send emails; they just ignore them!
Please write IMMEDIATELY -- by October 1 if you possibly can.
Any other action you might like to take is up to you :o)
THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH for your support!
Save Stonehenge!
Website: http://www.savestonehenge.org.uk/
General: [email protected]
Media: [email protected]
We would like to know more about this location. Please feel free to add a brief description and any relevant information in your own language.
Wir möchten mehr über diese Stätte erfahren. Bitte zögern Sie nicht, eine kurze Beschreibung und relevante Informationen in Deutsch hinzuzufügen.
Nous aimerions en savoir encore un peu sur les lieux. S'il vous plaît n'hesitez pas à ajouter une courte description et tous les renseignements pertinents dans votre propre langue.
Quisieramos informarnos un poco más de las lugares. No dude en añadir una breve descripción y otros datos relevantes en su propio idioma.