Labor’s crackdown on protesters causes unrest within party
First it was unions, now there are fears of other tensions erupting at this weekend’s Labor conference in Brisbane, with some saying a recent State Government policy turn goes against the party’s tradition.
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TENSIONS over Annastacia Palaszczuk’s crackdown on climate change warriors are threatening to boil over at Labor’s State Conference amid concerns the proposal will erode the party’s tradition of defending the right to protest.
The laws have been condemned as returning Queensland to a “police state”, but the Government has said they are necessary to protect the safety of the community and emergency services.
A senior Left source said there were serious concerns about the Palaszscuk Government’s “tactics” describing protesters as “extremists”.
Protesters arrested during climate change action in Brisbane CBD
“The ALP has a proud tradition of defending the civil liberties of ordinary citizens to protest, this is a dangerous erosion of those liberties, it’ll be trade unionists protesting against government that will be stopped and searched next,” they said.
They said they were anticipating a resolution at the conference.
Coal mining looks set to be discussed several times this weekend, with members to vote on a motion that the ALP commit to maintaining Queensland’s status as a mining powerhouse.
The Courier-Mail can reveal the Maranoa and Groom branches of the party have also mooted a motion calling for the monitoring of Adani’s coal mine after the Government signed off on its environmental approvals in the wake of the May federal election drubbing.
The motion calls for the party to continue to monitor Adani’s ongoing mining activities to ensure the company employs local workers, limits the use of 457 visas, invests in local infrastructure and “pays their fair share of royalties and taxes owed to Queenslanders”, among other things.
The Courier-Mail has also obtained what appears to be a guidebook for would-be protesters.
The five-page document lists steps on how activists should talk to media and how to shoot video during protests.
The document references Extinction Rebellion, but the group yesterday denied it was theirs.
The document urges protesters to not talk about action plans to the media and to not share personal criminal history “that is not related to civil disobedience”.
It also talks about road protests, stating, “It would never be our intent to disrupt emergency services. Our actions are focused on reducing harm to people and society. We have given warning that disruptions will occur and emergency services deal with disruptions on a daily basis”.
It also says, “We acknowledge those who are willing to be arrested are often in a privileged position and that this avenue can be inaccessible to people for a number of reasons. Being arrested is a small but important part of the rebellion, there are many other ways to contribute your time.”
It encourages protesters to talk slowly to the media while avoiding saying climate change or global warming — instead saying climate emergency.
“The history of disobedience is a really important message to get out to normalise and rationalise your actions,” it reads.
“Film the police but avoid repeating what they say. This can incriminate you later on.
“Don’t worry about being professional — be you, it’s much more interesting”.
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