By Maurice Sibelle
BRISBANE — Five people were arrested on January 29 and 30 as a result of the Brisbane City Council's campaign to remove all political groups from the City Mall.
Three arrests occurred on January 29 after members of the International Socialist Organisation set up a stall to campaign against Kennett's attacks on Victorian workers. Two arrests followed on January 30 after the ISO set up another stall. Half a dozen sellers of Green Left Weekly were threatened with arrest if they did not stop selling.
These events follow the issuing of guidelines from the council which severely limit free speech in the mall. The guidelines, issued in a leaflet distributed to sellers on January 26, prohibit stalls, hard banners, amplification, the distribution of printed matter and the sales of political books and newspapers.
The Labor council was elected on a platform supporting freedom of speech. Despite this the council claims that its decision is based on the fact that city businesses pay a special rate for the upkeep of the mall. The council has set up a speakers corner in King George Square, which is not a particularly busy area of the city.
"It seems that the Brisbane City Council is in favour of free speech so long as no-one can hear you", said Susan Price, a spokesperson for the Democratic Socialists and their candidate for the federal seat of Brisbane.
"They pretend to support democratic rights, but in fact they are not different to the Bjelke-Petersen regime. They are using the same laws to limit our rights to free press. The sellers of Green Left Weekly and other newspapers do not present any threat to the mall traders. This is just suppression of our democratic rights."
The fight to distribute newspapers and hold stalls and rallies in the mall has continued for over a decade. When the Bjelke-Petersen government was defeated in 1989, that right was exercised by political organisations. Price continued, "Until now there have been very few problems with our activities in the mall. The council is setting up an unnecessary confrontation. If a law is unjust there will be resistance."
The campaign for free speech in the mall will begin at 5.30 p.m. in the Mall on Friday, February 5.