Labour Council bans exports to PNG

By Sarah Harris

WOLLONGONG — The South Coast Labour Council on November 2 imposed a ban on goods being shipped from Port Kembla to Papua New Guinea.

The ban will not be lifted until the PNG government lifts the blockade against Bougainville, allows medicine to be shipped to the island and agrees to unconditional access by an Australian parliamentary and trade union fact-finding mission.

Faye Campbell, vice-president of the SCLC and a member of the Labor Party, told Green Left Weekly she had been particularly disappointed with the failure of local federal Labor MP Colin Hollis to take a stand on the issue, despite assurances that he would do so.

Campbell has been keeping Hollis informed on the Bougainville situation by faxing him regularly with information from the Solomon islands. On November 1, Hollis met with Campbell and agreed to back the ban on exports to PNG. He also met with representatives of Amnesty International, who have been very concerned over human rights abuses in Bougainville.

On November 2 Hollis released a media statement supporting the Keating government's policy of denying any Australian responsibility for the war on Bougainville.

The Illawarra Mercury on November 5 quoted SCLC secretary Paul Matters as saying, "It is with genuine anger that the South Coast Labour Council has severed its relationship with Mr Hollis due to his failure to take a stand with the trade union movement and the people of Bougainville".

The council has requested a meeting with foreign minister Gareth Evans, but no reply has been received. The ACTU is also yet to respond to the SCLC's call to extend the ban to other ports.

Campbell points out that the annual conferences of both the waterside workers' union and NSW Labor Party this year called for the blockade on Bougainville to be lifted. The wharfies are backing the SCLC ban.

From GLW issue 122