[Ts-09] MEDIA RELEASE: SHOALWATER - Last 2 Activists Arrested

[Peace Convergence]

MEDIA RELEASE: Last Two Activists Hand Themselves In at End of Exercises

You can call: Yulanji Bardon 0432036871 for further information

TWO ANTI WAR ACIVISTS remained for 11 days in the Shoalwater Military
Exercise Area until last Sunday, officially the last day of the joint
Australia-US exercises. The two, Yulanji Bardon and Emily Nielsen, turned
themselves in to Range Control and were escorted from the premises by
military police, under arrest for trespass.

The presence of Ms Bardon and Ms Nielsen and 5 other activists prevented the
live fire phase of the exercises from being reinstated. They were able to
meet their goal of staying till the end of the Talisman Sabre Exercises
which represented the largest training in Œinteroperability¹ between the US
and Australia. 

Emily Nielsen [19] said: "These exercises are not just a ten-day long game
of laser tag as Brigadier Bob Brown and the media would have us believe.
They represent Australia joining the United States in the illegal invasions
of Iraq and Afghanistan where thousands of civilians have been killed."

Ms Bardon and Ms Neilsen lived on rations and slept in a tent in the Western
and southern sectors of the area while Jim Dowling and Culley Palmer had
stayed in the Eastern area. Their presence posed a difficulty for the
military who were forced to limit live firing and conduct a Œquiet¹
invasion. They dodged helicopters, military dogs and avoided thousands of
military personnel refuting the idea of the Œall-pervasive security state¹.

"The ideas that the military offers protection and that terrorism can be
overcome with military means are in glaring need of revision. " Ms Bardon
said. "If two young women with a compass and limited Œtactical experience¹
can get away with sight-seeing in a military base over the course of eleven
days without detection, there may need to be an inquiry into just how
effective these training exercises actually are."

Yulanji and Emily entered the base on the 16th July with 5 other activists
in two groups: the Jaegerstatter 3 and the Grana 4.

5 of the group have been arrested and subject to charges of trespass with
notices to appear. Yulanji and Emily have bail conditions not to go near
military installations.

Bryan Law has a notice to appear in court on 7th August. Mark Palmer has a
notice to appear later in the month.

Jake Bolton appeared on Friday 24th pleaded guilty and was fined $200.

Jim Dowling and Culley Palmer were not arrested but walked out of the area
on Thursday.

Another 4 Christian nonviolent activists, Margaret Pestorius, Jarrod Saul
McKenna, Jessica Morrison and Simon Moyle [the Bonhoeffer 4], were fined
$2500 in an earlier action to stop the exercises. They were discovered by
men playing Œinsurgents¹.

Call Yulanji Bardon 0432036871 for further information

For an overview of nonviolent actions held in relation to Talisman Sabre
call: 

Margaret Pestorius 0403214422, Bryan Law 0403049566

**Online media stories from TS09 actions can be found at
http://www.peaceconvergence.com
**A reception for activists to be held in Brisbane. Contact Robin for more
details 0411118737




-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://lists.peaceconvergence.com/pipermail/ts-07/attachments/20090727/6922ff51/attachment-0001.htm 
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: not available
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 22310 bytes
Desc: not available
Url : http://lists.peaceconvergence.com/pipermail/ts-07/attachments/20090727/6922ff51/attachment-0001.jpeg