Reykjavík Grapevine - 07.01.2006, Síða 21
Days before the January 7th gig,
the Grapevine spoke with concert
organiser and talent manager Grímur
Atlason. Typically reserved, Grímur
is known more as a quiet business-
man than as an activist, though he
is an active member in the Leftist’
Green political party. As he planned
the January 7th show, his political
beliefs came more to the forefront.
/// Is the January 7th show a
political concert?
– It is in a way. There are, of course,
in this group, extremists. There are
also more moderates. Everybody can
go without feeling uncomfortable.
We will have some propaganda and
some of it will be in a way extreme.
But you can buy Coca-Cola there,
too.
The group is against the policy of
the government. We think that the
majority of the Icelandic people also
are against what is happening in the
highlands. But we have been fighting
against a really good PR machine.
They spend millions and millions
every year on their PR campaign for
Landsvirkjun (the Icelandic National
Power Company). If you see what
the protestors have been doing, it’s
not really organised. It’s nice, but
it’s not for the vast majority of the
people in Iceland. The vast majority
don’t know the truth.
The main thing about this con-
cert is also to give people a chance
to come there and enjoy music and
also have a good conscience. I went
to this concert and I paid my respect
for that cause, for the country, and
for nature on the whole beyond a
national thing. In the world. I don’t
want it to be that I’m just thinking
about the nature of Iceland.
/// Can you explain to me and the
readers what the government’s
attitude has been toward this dam?
– We have have Siv Friðleifsdóttir,
the former minister of the envi-
ronment, and she sounds like the
minister of industry instead of the
environmental minister.
/// You’re suggesting that she cares
more about big business. But this
is nothing new. Can you speak to
the timing? Why are you acting out
now, two years after building on the
Kárahnjúkar dam started?
– Somebody asked me, they said Ká-
rahnjúkar is a done deal. It’s not Ká-
rahnjúkar alone. We have Þjórsárver
(Dettifoss) as well. In a couple of
weeks, that will begin. There will be
dams all over the country.
If you look at the goal for Lands-
virkjun, they’re going to build three
aluminium factories: Hvalfjörður,
Breiðafjörður and Húsavík. If they
do that, they will need to dam almost
every big river in Iceland. The plan,
as it looks like now, will have to in-
clude Dettifoss (the largest waterfall
in Iceland).
We [the opposition] are going
too slowly because the government
is doing its best to portray it as not
hurting nature. As though these are
just minor steps. They aren’t. It’s
really important that we get up and
stand up. We are a heavy industry
country destroying nature, if we take
those steps [that the government is
suggesting].
And that’s not talking about
all the economic factors, like our
foreign deficit because of our 26,000
new cars in the year 2005. That is of
course really negative, the money go-
ing out compared to coming in. This
has been going on for two years.
Someday there will be a pay day, if it
goes on for ten years. It’s like we’re
living on credit cards. We’re living
on the salaries of 2010.
/// Explain the Hætta plan.
– My agenda, the main goal is to
make a wave and let the wave go
on. The concert is a start. We’re not
doing it to raise money. Some money
will be put in a fund, but that wasn’t
the plan in the beginning. But there’s
going to be some money left. The
main issue is to get discussion again.
And not just some kids protesting on
Laugavegur and in the highlands and
having disputes with the police. But
in the Alþingi and at home. Talk
about it more than just stupid kids
and big industry.
We want to talk about the
pros, there are some, but there are
big losses, and not just sentimental
losses. That’s the big fight is to have
a cause which will be noticed, and to
carry on.
/// A concert like this even on
January 7… Is it difficult with such
big names? In the media, I’ve heard
nothing about the environment,
just about Björk and Damien Rice.
– When we made the posters and the
press releases there were no actual
headliners. I’m looking forward to
seeing HAM as well. We tried to
do it as a special thing. By getting
those big artists, it’s important for
the cause. You see there are artists
who are concerned and willing to put
their names to this cause. It makes
it more serious. And we know it’s
hypocritical to say everybody is the
same. For the cause, it’s really impor-
tant to say that Björk, Sigur Rós and
Damien Rice are there. The core
thing is not to get Björk on Kastljós
or on 60 Minutes, but more that she
is doing the concert and getting the
focus, and others can represent the
viewpoint. They are doing their end
by performing in the concert.
/// Are any politicians helping out?
– No. There are some politicians
who bought tickets, but ... in all
parties in Iceland there are people
who are pro-Kárahnjúkar, and there
are some who are against. There are
environmentalists in every party. The
people mostly come from the left,
but... this is not party political in any
way.
But mostly we are coming to
enjoy and to get power. This is an
energy concert. It’s going to fill us
with positive energy to carry on. If
things are going this direction, we
have to at least be able to say our
feelings. Say I don’t want to. The
way Landsvirkjun has played it, if
you’re against their project and you
say it out loud, then you’re a stupid
kid throwing skyr or sabotaging. But
it isn’t like that. There are normal
people who are opposed. Our thing
is that come to this concert and you
can see that it’s okay to be against
damming the nation.
Bringing the Masses into Dissent
Interview with Grímur Atlason
by Bart Cameron
07|01|2006
Margrét Vilhjálmsdóttir is an
award-winning actress (Falcons,
The Seagull’s Laughter) who has
been working mostly in the Icelan-
dic theatre for over ten years. More
recently, she was approached by the
environmentalist group Hætta (Stop)
to help organise one of the largest
benefit concerts in recent memory,
featuring such acts as Björk, Damon
Albarn, and Damien Rice.
/// What made you get involved in
this project?
Margrét Vilhjálmsdóttir: I was given
the opportunity to take part in this
from the Hætta Group, and I was
honoured to accept it. As an Ice-
lander, it’s something I was naturally
interested in.
/// So you think most Icelanders
are concerned about environmental
issues?
Margrét Vilhjálmsdóttir: Yes, I think
that for an Icelander, caring about
the natural world comes easily. It’s
typical of our childhood to travel
around the country, seeing such
wonders as some isolated fjord, or
the mountains and rivers. You grow
up with a sense of love and respect
for the environment.
/// I didn’t think there was that
much of a consensus on the subject,
considering.
Margrét Vilhjálmsdóttir: There are
of course money-minded people, but
I think that’s a part of the human
condition. You have to be careful
with greed, and getting caught up in
just taking care of the here and now.
This issue matters for the future; it
goes much deeper than just today.
The fact is, the damage that could be
done by the dam is irreversible – it’s
a glacial river, which means that
there’s a great deal of sediment in the
water that will eventually fill up the
reservoir.
In a recent Gallup poll, 75%
said that they want to see more land
preserved and protected. This project
literally goes against the will of the
nation.
/// When you began organizing this
event, what was the general reaction
of the musicians you spoke to?
Margrét Vilhjálmsdóttir: People
were just really pleased to be tak-
ing part in this. No matter who I
phoned, whether it was a big name
musician or a relative unknown, they
were always very thankful for being
invited to take part in this. In terms
of the audience, we didn’t really
advertise this at all, but it sold in
record time.
/// Do you think such a concert can
influence the way government acts?
Margrét Vilhjálmsdóttir: The whole
idea of this concert is to make a
point, asking them to reconsider
their position, because aluminium
smelters aren’t the only way to make
money. But the government hasn’t
really given us the opportunity to
be involved in the discussion. The
people need a venue to make their
voices heard.
I also want to emphasise that
this is just the beginning. We have
to follow it through. It doesn’t mean
anything if we have this concert and
then do nothing else. We need to get
more information out to the public.
A recent study came out that showed
glacial rivers, upon reaching the
ocean, can help reverse the green-
house effect. This information isn’t
reaching the public, and it should.
This isn’t a hippie thing anymore
– this is about the future.
/// So you don’t think there’s been
enough interaction with the public,
on any side of this issue?
Margrét Vilhjálmsdóttir: No. People
need information, and they need
to be able to communicate. Maybe
more ideas will come. There needs to
be more interaction between every-
body, no matter how they feel about
this issue. This concert is just the
beginning. And we’ll keep fighting
until we win.
“Caring About the Natural World Comes Easily”
Interview with Margrét Vilhjálmsdóttir
by Paul F. Nikolov