environmental protests

The right to demand protection for Australia's iconic, irreplaceable environment is a liberty that must be preserved at all costs. But if the Tasmanian government has its way, soon environmental protesters could be punished with a mandatory minimum of three months in prison.

It sounds like something out of a fantasy novel, but it's true: Tasmania's Lower House has passed a law that could see three-month minimum prison sentences imposed on environmental protesters. The new laws would also include fines for those who incite and encourage protests.

The laws will impose a $2,000 fine for someone who is found "invading or hindering" a business. However, the penalty will increase to $5,000 if it goes to court with a subsequent guilty verdict. And a second offence will see protesters jailed for a mandatory three-month term, with a potential two-year maximum.

Activists fear that the law will mainly be used to target those trying to rescue Tasmania's ancient forests, many of which are in peril of being destroyed by major lumber companies.

Australians should be able to nonviolently stand up to save their homes without fear of being thrown in jail. Tell Tasmania's Upper House to reject the law and protect every citizen's right to protest!

Original source of article was the "Care2" petition site. Whilst petitions tend to be ignored by our governments, which ignore our will most of the time, this is a way to publicise what is happening. We need to keep bringing these examples of the growing legal repression in our society to the public and to try to organise to combat this road to devastation and a prison planet. Environmental and democracy activists should also consider educating themselves about alternatives to the current financial system for funding protests and bringing people together, such as crowd funding and bitcoin. The Australian system of land-tenure and population settlement severely disorganises ordinary people but there is some hope that they can reorganise outside the traditional financial system. See http://candobetter.net/?q=node/3919 and and on 'crowdfunding".