Democracy works!!!
A bold divestment decision was made this evening in Denmark. At the general assembly of a major pension funds association, it was decided (761 for, 569 against, 4 blanks) to divest pension funds from fossil fuel companies. The decision means that all shares in the 100 largest coal companies will be sold as soon as possible and no later than 2018. The decision also encourages the administrators of the pension funds to engage in a critical dialogue with oil and gas companies with an aim of “avoiding high risk investments in tar sands, deep sea drilling and arctic exploration.”
The pension fund association has about 100,000 members and a total capital of 39 billion DKK ( ~ 5 billion Euro). This democratic decision is a follow-up on a similar decision made by the pension fund association of Danish architects on Tuesday evening.
The debate ahead of the vote brought forward a wealth of good arguments from ordinary members, grandmas, hipsters, conservatives and business people alike. A true victory for a democratic divestment campaign.