Rainforest protesters face prison

By Monique Choy

SYDNEY — Eight members of the Sydney Rainforest Action Group (SRAG) were convicted of unreasonable obstruction last week. The judge compared their peaceful protest last year to the Los Angeles riots.

Their rally outside the Malaysian embassy was attended by Democrat Senator John Coulter and NSW MP Richard Jones. "The purpose of this peaceful demonstration was to highlight the fact that to destroy the rainforests is to destroy the Penan, Kubu and Bateq peoples", said Jones.

"Nobody was hurt, nobody was shouted at, it was very peaceful and polite", added SRAG spokesperson Jenny Ryde, but magistrate Godfrey said he was considering giving the eight jail sentences. He said he "couldn't imagine a worse case" and was not interested in the issues of rainforest logging or freedom of expression. He implied that he would impose jail sentences if the defendants didn't apologise to the Malaysian consulate.

The consulate's only reaction to the protest was to call the police and politely accept a protest letter at the door. The protesters had built a small bamboo barricade, symbolic of those used by protesters in Borneo against logging trucks.

The protesters called for an end to annual Australian imports of around 200,000 cubic metres of Malaysian rainforest timber. The Penan, Kubu and Bateq peoples are completely dependent on the diminishing Borneo rainforests for their survival.

Jenny Ryde said she suspected the Australian government wanted to minimise protest to protect trade deals under negotiation. Industry minister John Button said in December that cooperation between Australia and Malaysia would be threatened if the Australian government restricted rainforest timber imports. Sentencing of the eight was deferred to June 18.

From GLW issue 55