One of the questions asked by that Market Metrics mob, who were doing the survey on behalf of Essential Media on behalf of the Kimberley Land Council, was “How believable do you find the following people or organisations: State Government, Federal Government, Woodside, Shire, KLC, environmental groups”? etc. Let’s have a look:
Here’s Premier Colin from Cottesloe, the most senior politician in the State, in Broome last week:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rLD05mTaZOI&feature=youtu.be
50 square kilometres of dead sea bed, constant dredging to keep the deep-water channels clear, thousands of shipping movements a year? “The whales will not be impacted.” Unbelievable!
How about the folks over there at Murdoch’s Australian (yes Paige Turner Taylor, that means you and your mate Barrass). This story linking a so-called “chemical attack” with the anti-gas movement was published was published two days after the Shire acknowledged that they knew who was responsible and that it was unrelated to gas protests. Unbelievable!
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/chemical-attack-misses-premier-colin-barnett/story-0-1226160703299
Surely we can trust the constabulary: ever copped that response about “all our officers are busy right now – we’ll get someone out there as soon as we can”? Funny how they can have a vehicle manage to spend 40 minutes waiting to escort a three vehicle Woodside convoy through the Manari Road Blockade and Information site. Unbelievable!
What about the KLC? Thanks to Ms Coles, all the way down there in Bendigo, for pointing out the following in the Executive Summary of the KLC’s Indigenous Impacts Report in the SAR http://www.dsd.wa.gov.au/documents/Appendix_E-2.pdf
"The Traditional Owners of James Price Point did give their consent to the Heads of Agreement for the establishment of an LNG Precinct. Their consent was informed by detailed information and advice in relation to legal and other options open to them, and in relation to agreement terms offered to them by the State and Woodside in negotiations. However that consent did not conform with the principle of Indigenous Free Prior Informed Consent (IFPIC) because:
· Traditional Owners faced the threat of compulsory acquisition by the State in the absence of an agreement and so their consent was not given freely. (On 2 September 2010, the Western Australian Government announced that a compulsory acquisition had been commenced);
· Traditional Owners and the KLC were required to negotiate within severe time constraints, and as a result insufficient time was available to negotiate certain issues fully with the State and Woodside and for Traditional Owners to fully understand the ramifications of certain components of the Heads of Agreement;
· Traditional Owners and the KLC faced the threat of loss of State funding to support any further participation in relevant processes if an agreement was not concluded;
· Traditional Owners lacked adequate information about important aspects of the proposed Precinct, including its design, the location of associated facilities, and its likely environmental impacts (Section 4)."
The KLC and its TONC went on to negotiate an agreement they were happy to hear the Premier describe as the “greatest act of Aboriginal self-determination since the 1967 referendum”. Furthermore, their director and spokesman Wayne Bergmann described Traditional Owners protesting under a banner quoting the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People as “rebels running amuck.” Unbelievable!
Woodside anybody? It’s not enough that they have provided written responses stating that the air pollution impacts will be maintained within the industrial precinct, it’s not enough that they insist Hostile Environmental Services provide health and safety services (?), now they are trying to equate the pearling industry with the oil and gas extraction and processing industry! Unbelievable doesn’t even come close.
Then there’s the Shire Council – apparently one of the Councillors standing for re-election has circulated material stating that the Nowhere Else But Here team will stop vehicle access to Cable Beach if elected, even though he knows that is not true. He also knows that the Shire no longer has that power, following the establishment of the three-party Coastal Park Management Committee. This Councillor is running on a ticket touting “Integrity” and “Respect”. Unbelievable!
Well, I’m over it! I’m sick of the lies! I’m sick of the misinformation, the spin and the manipulation of the truth! I’m sick of being treated like an idiot! And I’m obviously not the only one; that’s why we have “Occupy Wall Street” spreading across the USA and across the world. That’s why we have calls for people the world over to rise up on October 15, take back the streets and take back the truth. Unity for Global Change!
Here in Broome we are better placed than anybody to make a difference on October 15 – we have an election. We have the opportunity to change a government that has failed to represent us, the community, as they meekly roll over in the face of big business and bigger government. “We can’t do anything about it anyway” they mumble. Well we can! We can vote them out, and put in place a talented and diverse team that is prepared to listen, to communicate and to share the Community’s vision for Broome, not the vision of the resource industry and a dictatorial State Government.
So rise up, everybody! Get down to the Shire offices today, tomorrow, Thursday, Friday or Saturday and make a real difference! Vote for the Nowhere Else But Here team (all four of them) for a better future for all of us.
World rEVOLution now!
Rant over.
Photo Damian Kelly
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