More than 100 arrested during anti-coal protest in Newcastle Harbour as shipping movements paused
More than 100 arrested during anti-coal protest in Newcastle Harbour as shipping movements paused
NSW Police say they've arrested 138 protesters in Newcastle Harbour for allegedly blocking the shipping channel in the world's largest coal port.
In short:
NSW Police have arrested 138 people for allegedly defying directions not to enter the shipping channel in Newcastle Harbour.
The Port Authority has temporarily paused shipping movements due to safety concerns.
What's next:
A police operation on the harbour is continuing.
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Good on Rising Tide, another protest at Parliment House
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-11-27/rising-tide-protest-arrests-parliament-house/104654756
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Something not being talked about is the fact that it's actually been extremely difficult to get arrested, so a whole lot more people would have been out there at the time.
I've spoken to friends still in Newy and many are just towed back in and released, only to paddle out and have it repeated.
I was one of the three arrested yesterday, we actually had a fair few more come out with us. Some were arrested then released without charge, one kayak was towed back in something like 8 times and not arrested at all. It was absurd.
I think we were arrested because we made it the furthest out and actively fought against the jet ski cops. We had them spinning in circles so they couldn't bring us back into the so called "safety zone."
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These little reports are awesome. Keep up the great work.
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Thanks for your kind words! 💚💚💚
I'm afraid I'm unable to offer much as of now as my bail conditions required me to leave Newcastle until my court date.
For the most part it should all be over now, but who knows, many people are frustrated that the actual blockade was only a few hours long so we may yet see some more arrests.
All I know at this stage is police have been confiscating paddles and things to stop people coming out onto the water, which is probably an overreach of their powers as it's perfectly legal to be on the water.
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Thank you and good luck!
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💚💚💚
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The article has been updated to reflect the new count of 170 protestors arrested!!!!
We're getting near to doubling last year's 109 (I think?)
Edit to add some new info I've received:
- 5000 people in attendance
- 2840 news articles
- 170 arrests is the largest civil disobedience action in Australian history
- Flotilla was on the water for 50+ hours
I won't be providing details but we had a number of children arrested. We'd all like to highlight the fact that this is a fight for our survival, and that everyday Aussies are turning up en masse to build a better tomorrow. If anyone is considering getting involved with local activism and wants guidance, please reach out at any time, I'm always happy to help. No need to be arrested or anything, there is so much you can do within the law and so much support to be provided to those who break the law, including numerous roles you might not think about.
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- 170 arrests is the largest civil disobedience action in Australian history
By what measure? Just by the number of arrest?
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Yeah, number of arrests. Civil disobedience means disobeying laws and orders. Not necessarily the largest protest in Australia as that would be by number of participants. There's probably been larger protests for Palestine, the weekly Melbourne one regularly attracts around ~3000 from what I've heard
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Counting arrests is an interesting measure. One one hand, it's a loose indicator of how disobedient it was and the perceived threat of it. Not all protests are effective even if they're unlawful.
On the other hand, a well-planned action will often tactically minimise arrests, because they make further actions more difficult (cops often target key figures intentionally. Some friends say they saw photos of public-facing organisers on the walls of the police station they were processed at the Botany ZIM protests. Many aren't allowed to go anywhere near the port terminals anymore.).
But for a mass protest, most people won't be getting arrested (and often we want people not willing to risk arrest to be welcome and secure in participating), there is an element of safety in numbers sometimes. So there's more to civil disobedience than arrest count, but the arrest count is a real indicator of the bourgeoisie and their level of concern. So-called 'eco-terrorism' hits wallets directly, so you'll see the guards much more aggressive there than during poloce-sanctioned anti-war marches.
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Copying a comment I made in another thread:
This will probably be my final update for the Newcastle action, thanks so much for your words of support, I've passed them on to those still at the camp and they're very grateful. Keep an eye on the news for further protests in Canberra over the coming days, share news articles you see with friends and family as this is how we get our message to the government. Our voices will be heard! ✊
Property seized by police has been returned, this included items belonging to Rising Tide as well as personal property of some activists.
The protest has gone global in some sense. A group in Rotterdam Holland blocked a coal train in solidarity with everyone at Rising Tide's People's Blockade. I love those people so much, solidarity is our strength and we are full of it now.
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Climate change, looking more likely to collapse civilisation, so what do we do? side line green politcans, arrest climate change protestors and keep destroying the world.
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Well of course it's going to sound negative when you put it like that, but you have to take the positives from it; like, now share prices won't dip. In the end that's what really matters.
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Legends. The article kind of annoys me though:
NSW shadow minister for police Paul Toole has labelled the protesters "numbskulls".
While Paul Toole is an expert at being a numbskull, he's no expert at identifying them. No idea why the ABC thought about taking his opinion on the matter.