A busy week for Nannas as one goes before the magistrate, many march on Australia/Invasion Day and others visit their MPs.
Newcastle Court
Nanna Bron was one of many protesters in Newcastle Court on Thursday for blockading the coal port in a kayak, during a Rising Tide action in November.
Magistrate Chicken declared he may have a conflict of interest as he played golf with the CEO of Waratah Coal. The Magistrate was told by the CEO that the protesters had little impact on the coal port as immediately after the 4pm curfew the police warned kayakers they would be arrested if they did not return to the beach and then proceeded to arrest those remaining on the water.
Magistrate Chicken was exceptionally sympathetic to the protestors and so was Magistrate Olischlager with the first batch on January 11th. Magistrate Chicken said the protesters had “genuine concerns for the climate and the earth”.
Nanna Bron received a Section 10A – conviction recorded but no further penalty due to the punishment already meted out – 8 hours in custody and onerous bail conditions. Very few people were fined.
The Magistrate signalled that protesters doing an arrestable action will receive a more favourable outcome if
- It is your first offence or have not had a conviction in recent years
- You attend the court
- The action caused minimal disruption to business and/or the public
- You are over a certain age
- Your actions were not for selfish reasons
- Good character references have been submitted
However, Magistrates have a great deal of autonomy, and we’ve seen that some have very different criteria from Magistrate Chicken.
A defense used by one of the accused was Climate Anxiety and how doing actions help. According to the Australian Psychology Society’s guide for Coping with Climate Change Distress, taking action is one of the things we can do to manage distressing feelings.
Visit to MP
Nannas Robin and Anne met with their local MP Trish Doyle, in the Blue Mountains on Thursday 25 January. Robin presented Trish with a beautiful koala brooch (see photo).
The meeting was informative and helpful to Nannas, and we are plotting our next steps. This will include working on briefing notes on our action topics for 2024 and arranging to meet with our MPs.
Invasion/Australia Day
Nannas braved the heat and stood in solidarity with First Nations people on Invasion Day. They took park in the loud and cheerful Invasion Day March from Belmore Park to Victoria Park for the Yabun Festival. Despite the heat, numbers appeared to be up on previous years and there were lots of young people. Although it was hot and sticky, it was an excellent gathering in Victoria Park with free water available from the Elders tent.
The Sydney Opera House was illuminated with portraits of four notable First Nations people by Indigenous artist Brett Leavy as part of the Dawn Service.
Online Events
Wednesday 31 January – Political Lobbying Webinar by #Our Democracy to help you write a submission to the Senate Committee inquiry into access to Australian Parliament House by lobbyists 7-8pm. Register here
Sydney Events
For more details see our Events Calendar.
Wednesday 7 February – Welcome Back NSW Parliament
11.30 to 1pm Cnr Martin Place and Macquarie Street. Key things we want to focus on at the Welcome are:
- Native forest logging in NSW
- Creation of the Great Koala National Park and Georges River Koala National Park
- Coal mine expansions not subject to independent approval process – 14 new mine extensions coming through the planning system
- Disclosure of Pilliga Gas fire damage
- Offshore gas project PEP 11- still on the table
- Environmental offsets system
Wednesday 7 February – Climate Coalition meeting at Redfern Town Hall, small meeting room upstairs.
Friday 16 February – Face to Face Meeting at Customs House
New group photo for social media – make sure you have your t-shirts plus hats, or whatever, handy.
Regional Events
Friday – Sunday 9 – 11 February – Rising Tide Retreat near Gosford
Wednesday 20 March – Climate Integrity Summit in Canberra Tickets
Contact Us
Any questions or suggestions please contact us.
To unsubscribe send us an email with REMOVE in the subject.