MRAG 21: The Church of Nv?

Nonviolence Today #11, November 1989

Wednesday, 27 September 
The minibus load of twenty-one activists arrived at Nurrungar base camp with
the setting sun.  There were approximately one hundred people gathered
around.  The activist handbook issued by the Anti-Bases Coalition   (ABC) had
detailed the method of decision-making; along with a few other vital
mechanisms.  The format was general camp meetings to raise issues and cover
logistics, then affinity group discussions over dinner.  These were to be
followed by a spokes gathering to decide on proposals.  This method did not
meet with unanimous approval.

The first meeting set the agenda for the evening spokes meeting.  MRAG
(Melbourne Rainforest Action Group) set up camp.  Every plant owned thorns,
which were generously embedded in passing humans.  Even Damien, the
leather-soled naturalist, had to don thongs.  The spokes meeting saw a
breakdown of the present decision-making structures.  Very little was
actually decided and the next day's actions were left largely to the morning
camp gathering to plan.

Thursday, 28 September 
The die was set with a dawn rising.  The camp gathering at 8 a.m. decided the
day's action would be a blockade of the shift change bus at 3.30 p.m. There
was a short debate about the use of secrecy in planning this action; MRAG
activists were the main opponents, but stood aside for the sake of group
unity.  We later decided to perform a supporting role.  The preset
decision-making process was scrapped and duly facilitated morning and evening
gatherings were set as the forum for discussion and decision-making.  How to
pay rent for the Kukatha aboriginal land our camp occupied was a hot issue on
the agenda, and one which never reached consensus from these early beginnings
until the camp was over.

Our group conducted a NVA teacher training workshop during the remainder of
the morning to empower our activists to assist with teaching in following
workshops.  During this workshop, at least three different heads popped into
our marquee to advise us that there was a new action happening at 1 p.m.,
starting with a gathering at the road and a march down to the gate.  We
hastily terminated the workshop, stuffed in lunch and got out on the road
with two hundred other activists.

The march proceeded the 1.5 kilometres to the gates: a long serpent of
colourful singing figures rising out of the midday heat haze of the endless
saltbush plains.  We arrived at the gate, (known hereafter as the first gate)
the perimeter of the buffer zone, and were there informed, by megaphone, of
the action.  Some activists would demand a people's inspection of the base. 
The activists easily entered the base and left the rest of us in general
confusion, baking in the sun.  A police car wanted to gain entry to the base
and some people decided to blockade the road until the activists inside the
base had been returned.  Further confusion and attempts to gain consensus on
what to do next were terminated by the arrival of the shift change bus when
everybody decided to do the originally planned action.

The bus arrived right on time to be confronted by a tightly knit collection
of activists blockading the gate.  There was a cattle grid, through which
many activists managed to entwine themselves.  The police pulled activists
out of the way.  Most blockaders clung desperately to each other, the grid,
the gate and the bus.  Much police sweat was worked up under the hot sun. 
The bus edged forward.  The police were not arresting, so removed blockaders
rejoined the blockade or formed a new blockade inside the gate.  The whole
blockade began to get violent as police and activists struggled with each
other.  There were some minor injuries.  Eventually the bus passed through
the gate to confront the activists blocking the road inside.  The police,
however, had had enough and brought a minibus alongside the other bus.  The
workers then proceeded to dash from the bus to the minibus.  The minibus then
sped off across the desert rejoining the road some distance away.  The
blockade quickly dissipated and after a big 'whoosh' outside the buckled
gates everyone went back to camp.

That evening, the general meeting was informed that the plans had been
altered by the media liaison people.  They didn't know what the group had
decided and needed to talk to the media at 10 a.m. in Woomera.  So they came
up with their own action to suit the media's deadlines.

Friday 29 September 
The theme of this day was solidarity with the traditional owners of the land,
the Kukatha people.  A morning workshop was held in which activists exchanged
their perceptions of the problems facing Aboriginal people.  An NVA workshop
was also conducted by the MRAG and attended by twelve activists.  The action
for the day was a symbolic rolling back of the fences, to liberate the stolen
land and return it to its original people.  The plan was to rally beside the
gate, cut the three strand plain wire fence and roll it back.  Secrecy and
property destruction.  Once again MRAG stood aside for the sake of group
unity and chose to fill a supporting role.

The gathering at the fence was a wonderful focus of positive energy, with
singing, dancing and theatre.  We were addressed by a Koorie from Moreton
Island, who had made the journey from Brisbane with a message from the
Federation of Aboriginal And Islander Research Action (FAIRA), "Take your
bases and go!".  With that a megaphone-wielding member of the ABC declared
the free for all on fence destruction and 150 eager protesters fell to
tearing down a fence.  The few police present mostly stood idly by.  With the
fence rapidly dispatched and nothing further having been planned it was time
once again for "spontaneity".

A mass trespass into the base resulted.  200 activists held hands and marched
in a wave across the desert.  The next fence was 1.5 kilometres away.  Most
activists were unsure of what to do and the line halted in front of the
second fence.  There were twenty or so Australian Protective Services
personnel fanned out on the opposite side of the fence, looking more than a
little agitated.  We stood at the fence for five minutes until a call went
out for a circle.  The circle never quite formed, as some activists became
involved in a scuffle with police.  This scuffle was highlighted by the
media.  Meanwhile the main body of the group decided to re-form at the gates
of the fence, sing some affirmation songs and return to camp.  These gates
became known as the second gates.  A great cheer went up when we were
informed by the ABC that this was as far as any protest at Nurrungar had ever
gone.

Saturday, 30 September 
Theme: International solidarity.  The action was planned Friday evening: 3
a.m. secret affinity group actions, 5 a.m. start, to avoid midday heat, 7
a.m. mass trespass first gates, 7.30 a.m. blockade shift change bus if it
arrives, 8 a.m. block second gate, head for the radomes, 10 a.m. general
meeting.

As people gathered on the road opposite camp, we heard of the peace commandos
who had managed to break into the inner compound and graffiti one of the
radomes.  Later we also discovered one person had managed to get to a control
panel and was attempting to turn off the surveillance system when
apprehended.

A beautiful sunrise heralded the beginning of the main weekend actions. 250
to 300 people set out and arrived at the first gates to find the fence
unrepaired, so flooded around the gates and continued on down the road. The
gathering at the second gate commenced with some beautiful songs.

Second, the group undermined an internal hierarchy that was attempting to
establish itself by way of megaphone decision-making.  Next we focussed on
the boom gate before us, formed into a wall and singing "Step by step" slowly
advanced.  We easily ducked under the booms where police began arrests.  The
group stayed together singing. Sixty-four activists cleared the gates and
police, and marched into the restricted zone.  Activists who had entered by
other means waved from the tops of nearby ridges and came to join the road
group. 300 metres from the inner radome compound a circle formed to discuss
the best method of entry.  Ninety-two activists made some quick decisions and
we headed for the far perimeter of the compound.  The group moved to the
fence together and were there bottled up by police and horses, and arrested.

About a 150 activists were held in the base's tennis court.  Upon arrival
each new activist was greeted with an affirmation tunnel and hugs.  A "group
sit" took twenty steps toward social justice.  A police video operator could
not contain his smiles after being the focus of a ninety person group hug.

A few people were charged with trespass, while the majority were arrested for
"breach of the peace" and released without charge.

The general meeting at 10.30 a.m. went ahead, regardless of the fact that
most of the arrestees were still being detained, because of information that
troops were landing at Woomera.  A blockade action was hastily organized for
1 p.m.  MRAG decided to send two representatives as observers to this
blockade, but otherwise ran a NVA workshop as planned. Some of us even
snatched a moment's rest; such decadence!  The army didn't use the road and
the blockaders returned to camp by 3 p.m., just in time for a general meeting
to plan the last major action.

MRAG had gone to Nurrungar with an action planned, to focus on the illegality
of the base under international law.  We had brought 600 indictments to serve
on the base commander and coincidentally Brisbane activists had brought 200
indictments for exactly the same purpose.  All week we had been thinking
through the action and in the absence of any other suggestions to this point,
had approached the facilitators of this planning meeting and organised ten
minutes to present our proposal.  The meeting however was given a time frame
of one hour and ten minutes, with twenty minutes to plan the main action so
people could go to a sunset concert.

Groups were allowed thirty seconds to put their proposals.  After hasty
discussions we were allowed two minutes.  The proposal included principled
NVA: including no secrecy, no property destruction and respect for police and
opponents.  It did not get very far.  Even the theme for illegality could not
reach consensus.  The twenty minutes allowed passed. as did the one hour ten
minutes, as did another one hour ten minutes.  The concert was re-scheduled. 
The debate on secrecy formed some very clear poles, with each extremes being
defended by small groups and most being unsure.  MRAG stood aside, again.

Although many of MRAG wanted to attend the concert, the secret debate flared
after dinner with a five hour discussion ensuing.  The result was a past
midnight roleplay of a completely new MRAG affinity group action adhering to
nonviolent principles.

Up before dawn again, two affinity group actions preceded the festival at the
gates.  A Christian communion at the first gates followed by a rising of nude
bods from the desert tundra, each with a letter painted on their back,
spelling out "We have nothing to hide, have you?"  The festival was a great
focus of energy and talent through song, theatre and inspiring addresses. 
There was a well-planned children's nonviolent action at the gate, which had
been organised at a workshop the day before.  The children wrote anti-base
messages on paper planes, which were flown over the fence.  The police were
invited to read them, and some accepted the invitation, but most were left on
the ground so the children jumped over the fences to retrieve their planes
and avoid littering the desert!

Two Philippino visitors told of the difficulties experienced in their country
with US bases.  The festival concluded with the MRAG "arrestable theatre" now
called 'Nonviolence Action Nurrungar'!  The police were given details of the
action.  Activists lined up and approached the gates one at a time to
announce their intention to arrest the commanders of the base, they tried to
convince the police to join them in apprehending the international criminals.
Each activist represented a particular international law.  The police did no
arresting at this gate, so activists continued on into the base in search of
the commander.

The arrival of a Kukatha Elder cut short proceedings as he addressed first
the crowd, then the authorities and proceeded into the base.  He invited the
crowd to join him on Kukatha land.  The crowd gathered before the second gate
where they witnessed a powerful moment as the Kukatha Elder approached the
police to request access to Kukatha land.  He was granted his request, and
allowed to walk past the police barriers.  Again he invited the rest of the
crowd through behind him, to proceed down the road to the radomes.  All MRAG
had been arrested before this - our twenty-four members were arrested forty
times altogether at Nurrungar.  Reporls have it that the police apprehended
all the activists, some in an unnecessarily brutal fashion, using mace.  Many
got to the outer fence.  Five or so got between the two fences, and one
person was seen to go into the inner compound.  The sixty troops were not
involved.

Again scenes of joy in the occupied tennis court, before activists were
whisked off to Woomera.  Once again "breach of peace" and trespass were the
main reasons for arrest.  MRAG had a circle in the Woomera prison cell and
shared feelings.  By lunchtime everyone had joined in the packing up. By 3
p.m. goodbyes were said and MRAG were on their way to four days recuperation
in Flinders Ranges.  The final feeling was one of extreme tiredness but great
empowerment at what had been an important set of actions.  The learning curve
for everybody had been very steep. 
Kali Hall
James Langley
Sandra Long