‘There was no way I could defend myself against him .. I was afraid’
Extinction Rebellion activists say the real reason one of their own threw a punch at a man during a Gold Coast march at the weekend was ‘heroic’.
Southeast
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A Brisbane climate change protester feared for her safety at the weekend after a man went on an alleged violent rampage through an Extinction Rebellion march in Surfers Paradise on Saturday afternoon.
Brisbane XR activist, 33-year-old Keri Okanik, said a man jumped into their protest and starting yelling abuse at the group.
“He was calling us f…wits and using other demeaning language. Telling us we were idiots,” Ms Okanik said.
“He was weaving in and out, swearing and yelling at us .. everyone was feeling pretty threatened.”
“Then I think because he didn’t get us to react he escalated and he started grabbing people’s signs and he punched through a sign and then he set his eyes on me. I saw his hands went into fists and he started running towards me.”
Ms Okanik said at that point another climate change protester, 48-year-old Gold Coast man Shawn Cunneen, stepped in front of her to stop the attack.
“I’m a very small person. I weigh all of a hundred pounds,” she said.
“I am very confident he was going to hit me if it wasn’t for the man right behind me jumping in and throwing a punch to stop him (the attacker).”
“Personally I don’t advocate for violence. If it had been up to me I would have preferred that man did not intervene … I would prefer to take the hit as I am all about the principles of nonviolence.”
Ms Okanik said within seconds of Mr Cunneen punching the other member of the public the police had arrested both men.
“In that moment, when the man was coming at me, I was afraid I was going to be physically injured. There was no way I could defend myself against him and I was quite afraid.”
Ms Okanik said the group trained for nonviolence and while “I am really anti-violence I was really scared. I don’t know how I would have felt had I been hit. I don’t know if I would have wished for someone to step in and help me.”
“I think right now it was an unfortunate situation. What is important though is that we are in the midst of a climate crisis. We need to be challenging the systems and fighting for really strong climate action now.”
“I think if people knew that this fellow had jumped into our crowd and was targeting women they might have a different view of our guy stepping in and protecting us.”
“I was the immediate target and I am grateful that I walked out unharmed.”
Ms Okanik said the group understood that not “everyone shares” their point of view but “what is important is that there is decorum and respect around how we have these conversations”.
“Most people support people’s rights to protest … we were doing a very traditional march, there was no law breaking …for that incident to have been so severe at a very traditional protect action was very surprising.”
“If there’s people who don’t support the protest it’s important they have their voice but there is no reason to be violent. There needs to be respect.”
“We are very happy to answer people’s questions and explain our philosophy and why we are using the methods we are using. This is not an ad hoc thing – we are following social change theory about the most rapid way to create social change and that is always going to be controversial.”
“Most people didn’t support the civil rights movement but now those movements are put on a pedestal.”
In a press release the Gold Coast & Hinterland Extinction Rebellion group said a man, wearing the group’s mascot, was subjected to “pushing and punching” by a member of the public in his 20s.
The man, “in his 20s”, went on to “attempt to smash a camera before throwing punches at random members of the crowd including women, children and the elderly”.
“He engaged in this behaviour for what seemed like minutes … given the increasing threat to a diverse and vulnerable crowd, one of the Gold Coast and Hinterland members reacted by putting himself in the firing line to defend those present,” the statement says.
“The heroic member was charged with a $400 fine and later released.”
Mr Cunneen said he watched the member of the public punching at the group’s mascot for minutes but when the man “punched an elderly (XR) man in the stomach, walked back and then started to come again I didn’t wait I gave him a bang”.
“I wanted to stop him punching anyone else. We might be nonviolent but we are not a punch bag for anyone,” Mr Cunneen said.
The Gold Coast activist said he was “up for” verbal abuse but as soon as the man “started striking men, women and children” that was it.
Mr Cunneen said he was fined $400 for public nuisance.
“I do look back and I think would I have done something differently but I don’t think I would. I think something seriously could have happened if I didn’t step in,” Mr Cunneen said.
“Maybe next time my action might be to get the police to do something but in the heat of the moment that guy was out to do whatever he wanted, he didn’t care. He was kicking the sign and then he punched the elderly man next to me in the stomach and that’s when I gave him the ding.”
“I was very disappointed to see it escalated but this guy wasn’t just inciting us, he was physically punching us.”
Mr Cunneen said he felt being part of XR was the only action available to him to stand up for the planet as he had written to every politican for years without any results.
“I am 100 per cent aware that we need to transition away from fossil fuels and that it can’t just stop tomorrow but drilling for oil in the Great Australian Bight and opening up the Galilee Basin to oil and gas is absolutely immoral,” he said.
He said a 2009 CSIRO report on the interactions between climate change and fire conditions predicted a 300 per cent increase in severe fire dangers by 2050.
“What’s happening now is only a pilot light according to the government’s own scientific experts” Mr Cunneen said.
“Extinction Rebellion is our last hope.”
The CSIRO modelling, undertaken by a CSIRO-led multidisciplinary team of scientists in consultation with State, Territory and Commonwealth agencies, showed a “5-65 per cent increase in the incidence of extreme fire danger days by 2020”.
One of the key findings called for greater research into the impacts of elevations in carbon dioxide levels on vegetation production and fuel loads.
Organisers said the event was “organised by Extinction Rebellion Gold Coast and Hinterland with members of the Australian Defence Forces, Rural Fire Volunteers, #Stop Adani, Sea Shepherd, concerned private citizens and various Politicians all in attendance to stand up for our democracy and were offered an open microphone to speak”.
Queensland Police confirmed the men were not charged as formal complaints were not lodged but fines were issued.
A QPS spokesman said a 27-year-old man and a 48-year-old man were arrested and issued with an infringement for public nuisance.
The fines were $400 and $800 but the spokesman could not confirm the amount each man was fined.
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