Greenpeace joins protests against gala Jeff Bezos wedding in Venice
A large banner against Amazon founder Jeff Bezos lies on the ground, placed by Greenpeace Italy activists along with others in St. Mark's Square. PHOTO: REUTERS
VENICE - Global environmental lobby Greenpeace added its voice on June 23 to protests against this week's celebrity wedding in Venice between American tech billionaire Jeff Bezos and journalist Laura Sanchez.
The event, expected to attract some 200 guests including US President Donald Trump's daughter Ivanka and son-in-law Jared Kushner, as well as scores of stars from film, fashion and business, has been dubbed "the wedding of the century".
But some locals see the celebration as the latest sign of the brash commodification of a beautiful but fragile city that has long been overrun with tourism while steadily depopulating.
Activists from Greenpeace Italy and UK group "Everyone hates Elon" (Musk) unfolded a giant banner in central St Mark's Square with a picture of Mr Bezos laughing and a sign reading: "If you can rent Venice for your wedding you can pay more tax."
Local police arrived to talk to activists and check their identification documents, before they rolled up their banner.
"The problem is not the wedding, the problem is the system. We think that one big billionaire can't rent a city for his pleasure," Ms Simona Abbate, one of the protesters, told Reuters.
Mayor Luigi Brugnaro and regional governor Luca Zaia have defended the wedding, arguing that it will bring an economic windfall to local businesses, including the motor boats and gondolas that operate its myriad canals.
Mr Zaia said the celebrations were expected to cost €20 million (S$29.65 million) to €30 million.
Mr Bezos will also make sizeable charity donations, including €1 million for Corila, an academic consortium that studies Venice's lagoon ecosystem, Italy's Corriere della Sera newspaper and the Ansa news agency reported on June 22.
Earlier in June, anti-Bezos banners were hung from St Mark's bell tower and from the famed Rialto bridge, while locals threatened peaceful blockades against the event, saying Venice needed public services and housing, not VIPs and over-tourism.
The exact dates and locations of the glitzy nuptials are being kept confidential, but celebrations are expected to play out over three days, most likely around June 26-28. REUTERS
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Times
22 minutes ago
- Business Times
Iran launches missiles at US bases in Qatar in retaliatory strike
IRAN fired missiles at a US air base in Qatar after promising it would respond 'proportionately and decisively' to President Donald Trump's weekend airstrikes on three of its nuclear facilities. Qatar said the barrage at Al Udeid base — the biggest such US facility in the Middle East — was intercepted and that there were no casualties. Al Udeid is the regional headquarters for US Central Command, which oversees the American military in the region, and is home to several thousand US service-members, though many staff had been evacuated. Oil prices fell immediately after the attack, with Brent dropping 3.3 per cent to US$74.48 a barrel as of 6.10 pm. The attack included at least six missiles fired toward US military bases in Qatar, according to a person familiar with the matter. The UAE and Bahrain closed their airspace as a precaution. Iran's missile strike on Qatar was telegraphed and had been expected by the US and its allies, according to another person familiar with western intelligence assessments who asked not to be identified discussing private deliberations. UK and US diplomatic missions advised Doha-based residents earlier in the day to shelter in place 'until further notice.' BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Iranian officials also suggested the move had a symbolic element. The number of missiles fired matched the number of bombs deployed by the US, and the Qatar strike 'poses no danger' to a 'friendly and brotherly country,' the state-run IRNA news agency said. A Qatari government spokesman said on X that the base had been evacuated earlier. The move comes after the US struck three major nuclear sites in Iran on Saturday night. Tehran vowed to retaliate for what it called a 'grave mistake' by Trump in joining Israel's attacks on Iranian nuclear sites, Abdolrahim Mousavi, chief of staff of Iran's armed forces, said in a video posted on social media by Iran's state broadcaster on Monday. Trump had previously vowed to meet any retaliation with force 'far greater' than the US strikes on the nuclear sites. He also floated the possibility of regime change in Iran, although US and Israeli officials Sunday stressed that isn't their aim. Israel had earlier ratcheted up attacks on various Iranian targets in the more than weeklong conflict, with the Israel Defense Forces warning residents of Tehran to expect further strikes in the coming days. The Islamic Republic fired several missiles of its own at Israel, suggesting no immediate plans to pare back the hostilities. Trump's decision to deploy bunker-busting bombs and cruise missiles on the country's three main nuclear sites on Sunday pushed the Middle East into uncharted territory and boosted risks in a global economy already facing severe uncertainty over his trade wars. The US operation — which targeted nuclear sites at Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan — marked Washington's direct entry to the war that began on June 13 when Israel unleashed attacks on Iran's nuclear and military facilities, and killed senior commanders and atomic scientists. US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said the strikes had a 'limited' objective, focused on destroying Iran's atomic programme. BLOOMBERG
Straits Times
44 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Portugal tightens naturalisation rules, doubles residency requirement
LISBON - Portugal's centre-right minority government, under pressure from the far right to reduce immigration, said on Monday it would double to 10 years the amount of time most foreigners need to be legally resident in Portugal before applying for citizenship. Cabinet Minister Antonio Leitao Amaro said other immigration rules, such as those governing the issuance of residence permits for families of legal immigrants, would also be tightened, and there would be a provision stripping naturalised Portuguese who commit serious crimes of their citizenship. The Iberian country of around 10.5 million people has experienced a significant increase in immigration in recent years and the tightening of requirements to obtain Portuguese citizenship was a central theme in last month's election, in which the far-right Chega became the main opposition party. The decree is yet to be sent to parliament, but it is expected to be approved with Chega's support. "We are significantly strengthening the requirements for access to citizenship, naturalisation, in line with the guidelines we were already included in the government's program," Leitao Amaro told reporters. He said that the 10-year period will apply to most foreigners, but immigrants from Portuguese-speaking countries such as Brazil, Angola or Mozambique will have a 7-year period. Under existing rules, aside from the five years of residency, foreign citizens must demonstrate sufficient knowledge of Portuguese, no previous sentences of more than three years in prison and must not constitute a threat to national security. Portugal will now require that they also show familiarity with Portuguese culture, the rights and duties of citizens, declare support for the fundamental principles of a democratic state, and have not served any effective prison sentence. According to economic data aggregator Pordata, in 2023, the last year for which final data is available, 141,300 foreigners were naturalized, 20% less than in 2022. The government said in January that more than 400,000 applications were being processed. The migration and asylum agency AIMA estimates that more than 1.5 million foreign citizens were legally residing in Portugal as of the end of 2024. Brazilians are the largest group, with over 450,000 legal immigrants. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
44 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Costa Rican President Chaves charged with illicit campaign financing
Costa Rica's President Rodrigo Chaves Robles delivers a speech during a plenary session at the third United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC3), which gathers leaders, researchers and activists to discuss how to protect marine life, at the Centre des Expositions conference centre in Nice, France, June 9, 2025. REUTERS/Manon Cruz/File Photo SAN JOSE - Costa Rica's attorney general's office filed illicit campaign financing charges against President Rodrigo Chaves and six other government officials on Monday, asking the Supreme Court to lift the president's immunity and put him on trial. Among the accused are Foreign Minister Andre Tinoco and Stephan Brunner, one of Chaves' vice presidents, the attorney general's office said in a statement. Chaves' office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The investigation, which began in 2022, found that two parallel financing structures were allegedly used to fund Chaves' presidential campaign and were not adequately reported, the statement said. The attorney general's office has already accused Chaves in a separate influence peddling case. Prosecutors in April alleged that members of his government awarded kickbacks to a top government ally using funds from the Central American Bank for Economic Integration. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
