Western Australia Forest Blockades

Blockade planned in Western Australian forests
During the last few weeks things have been really hopping here in Western
Australia.  The Wilderness Society suggested a forest blockade to the Western
Australian Forest Alliance, which has been working solidly for over a year to
highlight the problems associated with the woodchipping of native forests,
with not very much success.  Although there has been reasonable media
coverage, the Government is going full steam ahead with its plans to chip old
growth forests.

Despite a rather sudden announcement of the plans for the blockade, in early
July, some experienced nonviolent activists have become involved in the
coordinating committee, which is now meeting twice a week, and voiced
concerns about the campaign  being based on the principles of nonviolence. 
The need for training has been accepted and is now part of the format for the
blockade meetings which occur once a week.

At the last blockade meeting we talked about the use of nonviolent
principles, and demonstrated an affinity group in a fishbowl, to give people
some idea of how they might work together.  We also offered three
simultaneous introductory workshops for the weekend of 24 to 26th June, two
in the metro area (one residential) and one run by Paul in Denmark (in
south-west Western Australia eds.).  The blockade will begin with a festival
in Walpole on the weekend of July 2nd and actions will follow.

There is a lot of enthusiasm and energy for this - people are turning up who
were involved in the Wagerup occupations fifteen years ago!  In fact I met a
young woman who was a babe-in-arms in one of the photos taken on the
Courthouse steps when the first Wagerup occupiers were acquitted.  It is very
exciting also as the media appears to be taking a little more interest in the
"new generation" of activists.

We would like to invite trainers to help in the programme which is being
planned for new arrivals at the blockade, and have set in place billeting
households in Perth (for arrivals and departures) and Denmark in the
South-west for people needing a bit of "time-out".  I live near the airport
and train station and the Great Eastern Highway and welcome activists ready
to become involved.  This may be just the moment for your visit to Western
Australia.

Bulletin 2 - 5 July 1994
To call a moratorium on all logging and roading in Australian Heritage
Commission listed forests, especially the four blocks which CALM (W.A. Bureau
of Conservation and Land Management? eds.) plans to log during this winter:
Hawke, Giblett, Rocky and Sharpe blocks.

The blockade started last week with a festival in the forest at Giblett
block.  On Monday the blockaders reclaimed Giblett block as a public park and
on Tuesday, as CALM has decided not to log those blocks while activists are
present, the others were also declared public.

The beginning of the blockade followed a flurry of meetings with groups
involved, such as the police and the executive director of CALM, Mr. Sid
Shea.  We had a two hour meeting with the latter which was very amicable and
constructive, though we all had to hold our breath and bite our tongues at
some points.  The liaison with police during the last weeks has definitely
paid off, with a high trust level established through previous negotiations
over Project Sandcastle (which opposed the sand-mining of D'Entrecast-eaux
National Park).

The nonviolent action working group, of myself, Sonja, Brenda, Tony and
Adrian did some thinking about possible processes at the blockade camp, to
prevent the difficulties which might arise.  Rob Burrowes' article1 on his
work in the south-east forests campaign was very informative.  Sonja told me
about the process, where affinity group reps and the coordinating group meet
about 5.30 p.m. in the evening to evaluate the day, then the coordinators sit
in a fishbowl to plan the next day's possibilities, then expand to check with
the reps; when it's sorted out, affinity groups meet, and feedback in the
morning before the whole camp plans for the day are announced in a big
circle.

There has been a lot of nervousness expressed from the police and CALM about
"bringing people over from the East".  Bob Brown arrived today and the
publicity from that is fairly extensive.

The concerns at the moment are from the misinformation being circulated by
the Forest Protection Society which is attempting to whip up enough anger to
cause an outbreak of violence.  The insistence about training is a vital one
and as the agreement was one of the first made, as well as clear agreements
with the police that no damage to vehicles or spiking of trees would take
place.  The police are very concerned about our safety and are keeping close
contact.  They are told of the planned action for the day, including
location, time etc.

From what I've heard some good defusing of potential trouble spots has been
happening, and planning is now taking place about opening negotiations with
different local community groups to listen to concerns.  The emphasis on
listening in these meetings has been a lesson to me in how little time we
actually give to treating people, especially those in "authority" as human
beings.  It was wonderful to tell Dr. Shea that there was, in my belief, an
intrinsic value in old growth native forest, and he agreed.

This first stage of the campaign of direct action will finish on July 31,
with a continuation of the community consultation process.  

One of the statements made by the Western Australian Forest Alliance is "to
highlight to the government and the public the real alternatives for the
South West and for the timber industry.  A socially, ecologically and
economically sustainable wood products industry is possible if it is built
around existing and future agro-forestry and plantation resources."

We hope to come up with a way forward which many different groups will have
input on and have particular needs expressed.

If a moratorium is not declared further direct action may become necessary,
following the community consultation process.

It gives me great joy to hear of the KADS  campaign in Queensland and the
work in Melbourne and around the country.  It really is very exciting as our
experience and expertise spreads.
Patsy Molloy
Footnote:
1. Forest Campaigns: a case study of East Gippsland 1993-1994 / Robert J.
Burrowes. -  Nonviolence Today  no. 38 (May/June 1994)