To progress towards a better Tasmania, TAP into a Better Tasmania strongly recommends that the Local Government of Tasmania (LGAT) demand that the State Government’s planning review process be stopped to allow a full and proper input by the public and all Local Councils.
“We’ll be flying hundreds of black flags”, said Bob McMahon TAP spokesperson.
“The flags and the choice of black as the colour of the rally is to signify those dark days in March 2007 when the great betrayal of our democracy took place.
“That was when the Pulp Mill Assessment Act, the ‘fast track’ assessment, was rubber stamped through both houses of parliament by Labor and Liberal. The only dissent was from the four Greens in the lower house and a handful of honourable independents in the upper.
“Let’s be absolutely clear as to what happened back in March 2007. The legislation was substantially written by the company which it so obscenely favours – this they have never denied – and the bill was escorted through the corridors, bar, and chambers of Parliament by a squad of lobbyists, lawyers and heavies from Gunns, the CFMEU and the logging industry.
“It was tantamount to a coup d’etat.
“That Labor and Liberal politicians and their fellow travellers in the upper house were the willing patsies of this gross abuse of parliamentary democracy should never be excused or diminished in any way,” continued McMahon.
“It was one of the most shameful episodes, perhaps THE most shameful episode, in out political history. It demonstrated a breathtaking contempt for the institution of parliamentary democracy by the very parliamentarians whose sacred duty it was to uphold.
“The great irony is that it was all for nothing,” said McMahon. “There is no pulp mill. Not a single cent of investment money has been attracted to the project in six and half years. It remains, as it always was, a grand delusion. Yet unprincipled government has wasted vast sums of public money on it, money that should have been allocated to health, education, policing, aged care etc.
“The pulp mill is over. The nightmare of an uncompetitive, world scale resource gobbling industry for an island that is not world scale, has held Tasmania back for six and a half years.
“Let us get on with what we do best in Tasmania, establishing innovative, creative, small to medium business directed at the quality end of the market.
“The pulp mill has already destroyed two premiers. As sure as night follows day it will destroy a third unless she cuts herself free from the mill insanity and embraces and articulates a positive vision for Tasmania,” concluded McMahon.
RALLY SPEAKERS
Dr Frank Nicklason, Royal Hobart Hospital and a Gunns 20.
Peter Cundall, campaigner without peer.
Lucy Landon-Lane, Pulp The Mill.
Kim Booth, Greens.
Bob McMahon, TAP spokesperson.
CONTACT: Bob McMahon 0448 547290 or 63944225
Community Groups TAP and TPEHN join in condemning the ‘forest principle agreement’ because it is very specifically tied to the delivery of the Gunns' Tamar Valley pulp mill.
As reported in The Australian yesterday, Bill Kelty said ‘green’ groups must strike a deal on the Gunns' Tamar Valley pulp mill or miss out on permanent protection of 565,000 hectares of native forest.
“There you have it. This is what the ‘roundtable’ negotiations have been about all along,” commented Dr Alison Bleaney of TPEHN.
“From the point of view of Gunns and the Labor Party, the forest ‘roundtable’ was about delivering the Long Reach pulp mill. From the ENGO’s side it was about delivering protection to native forest. They were the two glittering prizes up for grabs and to pretend otherwise is misleading,” said TAP spokesperson Bob McMahon.
“In order for both sides to get what they wanted it was important to exclude the community first and foremost. Why? Because it was expected that the community would be opposed to any trade-off of the sort so bluntly expressed by Kelty”, continued McMahon.
“After all, the community was going to have to pay the price for the sort of deal the forest industry negotiators had in mind. The community had to be sidelined and kept in the dark. Thus the secrecy. We were the sacrifice."
“That the blatantly undemocratic, rigged and secret ‘roundtable’ negotiations and the ‘forest principles’ that resulted (including in principle support for plantations and ‘a pulp mill’) received the enthusiastic support of the ALP is no surprise."
“That the Greens have also been enthusiastic supporters of the undemocratic negotiations as constituted, and the ‘forest principles’ that resulted from the illegitimate process, is deeply distressing for the community and incredibly damaging to the Greens themselves,” said McMahon.
“Kelty has made it abundantly clear that the success of the Gunns/ALP pulp mill is dependent on the signing of the ‘forest principles agreement’,” said Dr. Bleaney.
“Therefore, both TAP and TPEHN, demand that The Wilderness Society, Environment Tasmania and Australian Conservation Foundation either refuse to sign the agreement as it exists or insist that the Gunns Tamar Valley pulp mill be specifically excluded from the agreement as a principle."
“We expect many other community groups will join us in making this demand”.
“It is not too late for the Greens to redeem themselves either”, confirmed Bob McMahon. “They will have to stop the doublethink and unequivocally withdraw their support for the ‘forest principles’ as they stand and the illegitimate roundtable process which produced them. It is not good enough for the Greens to say they do not support the Tamar Valley pulp mill while supporting a process designed from the very beginning to deliver that very same pulp mill.
“Dr Bleaney and I want to put this bizarre chapter of Tasmanian history into context. This is a monumental issue of social justice. Should the environment groups sign up to the ‘forest principles’ deal as it currently exists it will be viewed as a great betrayal of current and future generations of Tasmanians, whose social, economic and environmental horizons will be severely diminished and restricted by the demands Gunns mill will place on our basic resources of land and water and of the huge public subsidies the mill will need in order to compete against cheaper producers in developing countries.
Contact:
Bob McMahon 0448 547290 TAP
Dr Alison Bleaney 0417 302549 TASMANIAN PUBLIC and ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH NETWORK
When 1pm Wednesday 19 December
Where George Town Council offices, 16 Anne St George Town.
The agenda includes the motions passed at the 27 November pulp mill public meeting and also details of the pulp mill elector poll. Unlike the 11 December council AGM, public questions period will be limited to thirty minutes.
It appears that Gunns will address the George Town Council in a closed meeting of the council the day before, on Tuesday 18 December.
When:6pm Tuesday 11th December. Perhaps get there by 5:45PM to be sure of getting in the door.
Where : George Town Council offices 16 Anne St George Town (i.e. same place as the ordinary monthly council meetings).
If you are a George Town Municipality elector, we think it would be very advantageous for you to attend the George Town Council annual general meeting where you will be able to voice your opinion and if you want, hand in a submission on the day.
We realise the meeting hasn't been advertised as widely as many electors would expect (i.e. in fact not very much at all).
TAP succeeded in increasing the number of anti mill councilors on three councils at the expense of pro mill candidates in October 2007 elections.
Launceston City Council
Of the 7 Aldermen elected to the LCC, Norton, Shipp, Ball and Nott were endorsed by the Voter's Block for being anti-mill. Jeremy Ball tripled his primary vote from last time. The others elected were Waddle, Peck and Dean. Waddle and Peck had reduced no 1 votes and only got in with preferences.
TAP Voter's Block endorsed Mayoral candidate (van Zetten) got up, as did the TAP endorsed Deputy Mayoral candidate (Armitage). There were two anti-mill mayoral candidates and their combined vote completely trounced pro-mill Ivan Dean 61% to 39%. The balance in the LCC has definitely shifted with a majority against the mill.
Public meeting to discuss the impact of the proposed pulp mill.
The meeting was called as the result of a rate payer petition.
Where: George Town Memorial Hall
Submissions: the Council will receive written submissions for or against the issue up to 5pm Wednesday 21 November
Email submissions to kayee@georgetown.tas.gov.au
Mail submissions to: General Manager, George Town Council, PO Box 161 George Town 7253
Report by Independent MLC Ruth Forrest following visit to the Nueva Aldea Mill in Chile, South America.
Ruth Forrest took 24 hours out of the official pulp mill tour to independently speak to local fishermen, wine growers and others near the Nueva Aldea pulp mill. Her report highlights significant differences between the official company view and what is happening on the ground to the local population.
Download Ruth Forrest’s report below.
Legislative Council
Michael Aird
Level 9 15 Murray Street Hobart 7000.
Kerry Finch
One Civic Square Launceston 7250.
Ivan Dean
One Civic Square Launceston 7250.
Ruth Forrest
PO Box 104 Wynyard 7325.
Greg Hall
PO Box 361 Deloraine 7304.
Paul Harriss
Parliament House Hobart 7000.
Norma Jamieson
Shop 3 Lauriston Arcade 126 Best Street Devonport 7310.
Terry Martin
353A Main Road Glenorchy 7010.
Doug Parkinson
Parliament House Hobart 7000.
Tania Rattray-Wagner
16c King Street Scottsdale 7260.
Sue Smith
PO Box 179 Ulverstone 7315.
Allison Ritchie
Suite 3/90 Clarence Street Bellerive, 7018.
Download submissions made to the Launceston City Council by rate payers re the proposed pulp mill for the June 07 meeting at the Albert Hall, Launceston. Note the large size of the file (1.93 mb).
TAP is a non-party political movement. Voters who have added their names to the Voters Block have pledged not to vote for a local, state or federal candidates who support Gunns proposed pulp mill in the Tamar valley. The Voters Block has over 23 700 names and has surpassed the original target of 22 000. The number is growing daily and the new target is 28 000. Send an email to tapcontact@gmail.com for further information about the Voters Block.
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