Mining conference delegates tell of abuse by climate change protesters
Delegates attending a mining conference respond to abuse from climate protesters.
Conference delegates have told of being abused by protesters on their way into International Mining and Resources Conference at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre on Tuesday.
Some attendees, which included thousands of global delegates, reported being chased by individual protesters filming delegates entering amid shouts of “shame” and “murderer”.
Victoria Police have now arrested 50 people at the protest outside the conference with Acting Commander Tim Tully saying police have “shown a hell of a lot of discretion, a hell of a lot of tolerance”.
Commander Tully said the majority of offences related to obstruction of the footpath or obstructing an emergency service worker.
Newcrest Mining chief development officer Mike Nossal said he was one of those abused as he ran the gauntlet of protesters.
“I got the ‘shame’ and ‘aren’t you ashamed?’ It made me think, ‘I’m not ashamed, but I think it’s a huge shame that people aren’t looking at the benefits that mining brings in developing countries’,” he told reporters.
“We’re sitting here as a country that has got to be one of the richest in the world largely on the back of natural resources. And we’re trying to export that thinking to places like PNG, to places like Ecuador, and give some of those advantages to those countries. And then there are those people that don’t think that’s a good idea – obviously by definition I don’t think we agree with that.”
Commander Tully said two people had slapped a police horse in the face.
He said he was aware of capsicum spray being deployed twice but the police officers at the time were “surrounded by protesters and in fear for their safety”.
“The actions have been more than justified,” he said.
“I’m more than happy with the actions taken by our members today.”
Police getting out the battons to try and get #climate criminals into #IMARC #mining conference @akaWACA @blockadeIMARC19 pic.twitter.com/LAcQhR5WLT
— Sam Cossar (@samcossar) October 28, 2019
He said the police’s conduct was appropriate and in line with their training.
Some protesters have claimed police used batons against them by Commander Tully said he was unaware of any incident with a baton.
One protester is in hospital after being allegedly injured by a police horse and Commander Tully said police were investigating the incident and whether it should be looked at by professional standards.
“[I’m not sure] whether she was trampled or kicked,” he said.
Earlier, Commander Tully said four police officers had been injured while making arrests with three taken to hospital for injuries including a dislocated finger and minor head injuries.
One woman was taken to hospital after she allegedly was injured by a police horse and a man was treated at the scene for a minor cut to his head.
“The police operation is ongoing,” Commander Tully said.
“However Victoria Police would like to state that any action taken by officers this morning has been in response to the protesters’ activity and in accordance with training.”
From 6am, activists from 11 different groups began blocking entry to the conference amid a heavy police presence. Clashes erupted between police and the protesters who held up signs calling for mining to be “shut down” as they tried to push back the police line.
“We have the right to demonstrate, this is not a police state,” the activists chanted. Protesters also blocked Clarendon Street at Southbank.
One police officer received minor injuries during the arrests and was transported to hospital for treatment. A protester was also taken to hospital in a stable condition after she was injured by a police horse.
Capsicum spray was fired into the crowd, with officers yelling at protesters to “get back” as attendees attempted to enter the conference.
The activists picketed at multiple entrances to the centre, chanting “land rights not mining rights, shut IMARC [the conference] down” and “blood on your hands” as they pushed back against a police line.
Just after 7am, police deployed horses to protect the entrance to the conference. Two people were arrested in relation to cruelty to animal offences for assaulting a police horse. These are summary offences.
Horses in action again as police try to break the protester line @sunriseon7 pic.twitter.com/B52m19jFU2
— Nathan Templeton (@nathantemp7) October 28, 2019
Protester Emma Black from the Blockade IMARC Activist Alliance said the police tactics had been quite aggressive. “There’s been very little communication from the police when they would like to move us,” she said “They’ve just been storming us, pushing us.”
Ms Black said she had been hit with a police baton on her right arm which was extremely swollen. She said her arms were raised and was trying to get out of the way when the officer hit her. Ms Black said she didn’t witness the alleged attack on a police horse but said she couldn’t understand why the protesters who were generally aligned with animal rights would target a horse.
She said the point of today was to get the message of the protest which was to stand up against “ecocide and for human rights’’.
“It was always going to be impossible for us to shut down the whole thing without having tens of thousands of people,” she said.
More than 7000 delegates from about 100 countries are attending the three-day conference and organisers say the protest action is based on misconceptions about the mining industry.
Among them is Craig Ian McGown, chairman at Pioneer Resources, who said he had a bottle of water emptied over him, had been pushed and forced to walk 40 metres with a woman next to him shouting “shame”.
“I’m just very confused by people having too much time off,” he said. “I’m just in attendance at the conference because my company is involved in major projects that can help the country move forward.”
The conference organisers said in a statement: “There is a misconception that as an industry mining does not operate with sustainable principles in mind”.
Mining was vital for the production of electricity, solar panels, electric car batteries, pacemakers and medical apparatus and public transport, they said. This year the conference will consider the importance of battery minerals, used in the emerging electric car market, and the growing importance of ethical investment for resource companies.
The mining and resources conference is scheduled to run for three days. Protesters plan to disrupt all three days of the conference and will be joined by Victorian Greens Leader Samantha Ratnam on Tuesday and federal Greens MP Adam Bandt on Wednesday.
Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack described the protests as “disgraceful, absolutely disgraceful”.
The Extinction Rebellion group ran a week of climate protests early in the month and Victoria Police acting commander Tim Tully predicted on Monday that activists would ramp up their methods this week.
“We expect to see heightened tactics by the protest groups,” he told reporters in Melbourne.
“Our intelligence would suggest that the protesters have been planning, and are well co-ordinated, to undertake different tactics to what we saw, or very similar tactics to what we saw, in the recent protest activity.
“We are well prepared to respond.”
Victorian opposition leader Michael O’Brien said people should be allowed to go about their business without being confronted by “constant demonstrations”.
“It’s turning Melbourne into a joke and unless the premier starts giving the police the powers they need to do with it, it’s just going to continue and go on,” he said.
With AAP
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