‘Happy days’: Police Minister slammed for mixed responses on Newcastle Port protest

Yasmin Catley is under fire for giving mixed responses on the planned Rising Tide protest at Newcastle Harbour, initially endorsing peaceful action but later voicing safety concerns over expected crowd sizes.

The NSW Police Minister is facing criticism for giving contradicting responses regarding a planned protest at the country’s largest coal port.

Yasmin Catley suggested that Rising Tide’s demonstration at Newcastle Harbour would be acceptable if protesters remain “peaceful” and avoid unlawful actions, when asked by a reporter in Newcastle on Monday.

“If they are peaceful and they are not doing anything unlawful, then happy days,” she said in an interview with NBN Newcastle on Monday.

However, in a separate interview with The Daily Telegraph on Wednesday raised concerns about the safety risks due to the anticipated large turnout.

Her contradictory statements led Shadow Attorney-General Alister Henskens to slam Ms Catley, labelling her view as inconsistent.

“What concerns me is the fact that we have a Police Minister and a Mayor of Newcastle who do not seem to be respecting the decision of the Supreme Court, which found that it would be a risk to safety to police officers and the broader community if these protests go ahead,” he said to 2GB’s Ben Fordham on Thursday.

Police Minister Yasmin Catley said the decision by the Newcastle mayor to grant the permit would put the community at risk Picture: NewsWire / Damian Shaw

2GB’s Ray Hadley criticised the Police Minister for her inconsistent stance on the protests.

“This year, on (last) Thursday, the Supreme Court says the protest is prohibited. Five days later, on Monday, she says what she just said to an NBN reporter in Newcastle (Happy Days), and then yesterday, in the story (by The Daily Telegraph), she says the disappointing decision would put both police and community at risk,” Hadley explained during his program on Thursday.

“You’ve got more positions than an acrobat, the number of backflips we’ve seen from you on this one is breathtakingly stupid.”

PROTEST PERMIT SLAMMED

It comes after Ms Catley told The Daily Telegraph on Wednesday she was “disappointed” by the decision of the City of Newcastle to grant the protest at Camp Shortland on the shore near the Port of Newcastle next Tuesday.

“It’s disappointing the Mayor would undermine the NSW Police and the decision made by the Supreme Court — remembering that decision was based on community safety concerns,” she said.

“Police are experts when it comes to assessing risk, they don’t make these decisions lightly.

“This decision puts police, other emergency service workers, maritime and port workers and the community at risk.”

The Rising Tide Peoples Blockade of the port of Newcastle last year. Picture by Max Mason-Hubers

The permit was granted by the new Newcastle mayor Dr Ross Kerridge, despite a ruling from the Supreme Court on Thursday deeming the protest prohibited.

Dr Kerridge met with protest organisers on Tuesday, who gave assurances they would follow police directions and not enter the shipping channel.

The group had planned a 72-hour blockade of the Port of Newcastle from November 22 with protesters in an armada of canoes and small vessels blocking access to ships carrying coal.

A simultaneous event on the shore that Rising Tide has labelled as a “protestival” will involve a small-scale music festival with live music acts from Midnight Oil star and former federal environment minister Peter Garrett and artists John Butler and Angie McMahon.

Port of Newcastle chief executive Craig Carmondy said the mayor’s decision to grant the permit was “a direct and intentional disregard” of the Supreme Court ruling. He said Mr Kerridge at no point consulted any stakeholders on the decision and never asked the Port or government about the risks of the event going ahead.

Port of Newcastle chief executive Craig Carmody

“These individuals who have historically engaged in criminal behaviour by paddling in front of bulk carriers and blocking trains, who have a history of noncompliance with police direction, have now convinced the Lord Mayor they will behave,” Mr Carmody said.

“These individuals’, the majority of whom are not from the Hunter, are intent on creating mayhem and will occupy the east end, causing gridlock and chaos.”

Mr Carmody said despite assurances given to the Lord Mayor, and Rising Tide’s statement to the Supreme Court that they would wind back their protest period to 30 hours, the group took to social media to say they block the port for 50 hours.

Minerals Council NSW chief executive Stephen Galilee said it was unlikely Rising Tide would keep its promises to discourage people away from the water.

“Rising Tide have made a number of specific commitments to the Lord Mayor and given their track record it’s extremely unlikely that those commitments will be met,” he said.

“This will jeopardise the safety of more people at the event and will require even more police resources to be redirected from other duties.”

Climate activists blockading the Port of Newcastle in 2023.

The protests on land and sea were blocked by the Supreme Court on Thursday on public safety grounds.

Protest organisers had submitted a Form 1 or notice of intention to hold a public assembly in August, which the NSW Police rejected.

The courts ruled that both the land festival and water blockade would be prohibited for the safety of the protesters and other users of the port.

The ruling meant that should the protest go ahead, police will be able to use their full suite of powers to make arrests, as the action is not protected by law.

While the group now has a permit for their land protest from the council, it does not prevent attendees who break the law from being arrested.

A flyer for the Rising Tide protest at the Port of Newcastle. Picture: Supplied

Despite the ruling, City of Newcastle’s new mayor Dr Ross Kerridge said he had chosen to grant the group the permit to hold an event after being impressed by the event which he attended last year.

“I have today provided my formal support for the Rising Tide event occurring at Camp Shortland,” Dr Kerridge said.

“I did however stress my expectation that the event organisers take all reasonable efforts to ensure that any closure of the harbour is for the briefest possible time.”

Newcastle Lord Mayor Dr Ross Kerridge.

The mayor said he had received written assurances from the protest organisers that they would obey all police directions and warn participants that they would likely be arrested if they chose not to.

“Specifically, this includes directing people to remain close to the shore and not enter the shipping channel, nor make movements that suggest they are attempting to get into the channel,” he said.

“Lastly, Rising Tide committed to discouraging people from disruptive activities away from the harbour such as stopping coal trains.”

Dr Kerridge was expelled from the Labor Party after deciding to run as an independent in September’s local elections.

At the same protest last year, over 100 of the protesters were arrested after they infringed an agreed upon 30-hour limit.

NSW Police had yet to receive the permit on Wednesday afternoon.

Rising Tide organiser Alexa Stuart said the protest group was “thrilled” by the council’s decision to grant the permit and expected thousands of people to attend the event.

“The City of Newcastle showed it’s serious about climate action when it declared a Climate Emergency in 2019, and it’s great to see Council continue to be a leader here,” she said.

“As we discussed with the Lord Mayor yesterday, Rising Tide is committed to holding a safe and orderly event that provides the opportunity for our community to peacefully express their concern about the climate crisis. “

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Originally published as ‘Happy days’: Police Minister slammed for mixed responses on Newcastle Port protest