Bob Brown: M1 is an 'essential protest'

March 21, 2001
Issue 

HOBART — On February 24, Greens Senator BOB BROWN endorsed the May 1 (M1) protests against corporate tyranny. The protests will be held around Australia and target the Australian Stock Exchange. "M1 is a way of expressing the need for us to close the gap between rich and poor, end exploitation in the workplace, and defend the environment. It is a positive call for democracy in a world where corporate power has defrauded democracy and its central idea of one person, one vote, one value", Brown said. Green Left Weekly's KAMALA EMANUEL spoke with Brown. Picture

According to Brown, the September 11-13 (S11) protests outside the Melbourne meeting of the World Economic Forum were significant because of the issues that were raised and the process in which they were raised. "Societies where there is no protest are democratically unhealthy. S11 indicated a return to democratic health on the issue of disempowerment of people and the de facto world government by the corporate sector. A young generation of Australians and the Western countries feels pessimistic, disempowered and anxious about the future of the environment, about work and the lack of job security. [S11 was] an opportunity for the young generation to say, 'We reject this cultivation of pessimism'. It was positive, optimistic and a chance for people to say, in big letters, 'We are here'.

"M1 is an essential continuation of protest against this disempowerment. A lot of people thought s11 was a flash in the pan, but they were misreading the mood [of the people]. Because M1 is not focused [on an international summit], in some ways it is an even more gutsy determination to flag dissent in an economic rationalist world."

So who should take part in M1? "Everybody has a role to play", Brown told Green Left Weekly. There will be those who want to take part in the blockades and there will also be a role for those who want to show their solidarity, while not necessarily putting themselves in danger of arrest. And others will take part in the public debate in their workplaces and in the media."

Brown said that, "I hope M1 is a non-violent protest. I hope the authorities recognise that it should be on both sides". At S11, "I saw people I know being clubbed from behind by police for no reason. It was disgusting, a disgrace". When line after line of police took off their identification badges on the second day of the S11 protest, it was clear "it was not just overzealous young police" but that the orders had come down from on high, Brown observed.

Over the past week, M1 campaigners in Hobart have been collecting nominations for "corporate scumbags" to be announced in the week before M1. Brown said he would nominate North Forest Products, owned by Rio Tinto. "It owns the uranium mine in Kakadu and is woodchipping the Styx Valley. It is biggest forest destroyer in the southern hemisphere. Tasmania [is experiencing] the greatest rate of forest destruction in history, at the lowest prices in history, with the fewest jobs in history. Forestry Tasmania should also be nominated", he said, because, although it is nominally a "public" instrumentality, it is "a servant of the corporations".

To nominate a corporate scumbag or to get involved in organising M1 in Hobart, contact the M1 Alliance on 6234 6397. Meet at the Environment Centre, 102 Bathurst St, Hobart, every Thursday at 7pm.

You need Green Left, and we need you!

Green Left is funded by contributions from readers and supporters. Help us reach our funding target.

Make a One-off Donation or choose from one of our Monthly Donation options.

Become a supporter to get the digital edition for $5 per month or the print edition for $10 per month. One-time payment options are available.

You can also call 1800 634 206 to make a donation or to become a supporter. Thank you.