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All you ever wanted to know
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iPage 2
"semantics." It is iiot "mere" Ipads'to Hitler-type genocide of
only
be
done
iii^
this
mattersemantics to say there, are people..Unfortunately this view
different, degrees of murder- is not even historicaUy accurate, and as importantiy, be,.S5en to
most'people would say that if a eg in Lenin's Russia abortion be done-wheh the right of
woman' kiUed a'man attempting was relatively safe and avaUable. independent appeal to a magisto rape here, then it. would be When StaUn came to power and trate on street march dedsions,
self-defence, and justified, or at the bloody purges began, this is restored. It is unfair to make
least more justified than a Uberal law was revened. Similar- the poUce jiidge and jury, as weU
murder for penonal gain or a ly abortion was made a capital as enforcers of the law, in this
.
murder of an •Innocent" penon offence in, Nazi Germany in case."
To
test
the way in which
by a "tenorfst" bomb. I would
1943-hardly eridence that the
regard some late-term abortions outlawing of abortion goes hand- actors in this City Square
and some infanticides as murder in-hand witha "respect for life." drama were manipulated, we
might ask why the govemment
in self defence or for survival of
I don't advocate the kiUing
the woman. (Although this is off of unwanted peoople for the introduced this measure. (Stujust an analogy and could not be sake of "racial purity"; I do dents of poUtics might agree
that it is- possible to rephrase
a precise legal defition.)
advocate the right of people to
that question: how would this
Ms Pingel is quite right in kUl themselves,. the right of measure serve the State Governpointmg out that if a busload of women (and men) to kUl in self- ment's interests?)
chUdren is kUled, there is an defence if necessary, the right of
I lived in South Africa for
r submit that it is not unreasoutcry:
people with feeUngs, people to kUl for survival, and
the fint 22 yean of my Ufe, so
onable
to argue fhat this change
experiences and self-conscious- the right of a woman to "kUl" a
when asked to,write an artide
in
march
permit procedtues was
foetus.
I
can
discriminate
ness of their own future have
on Uranium in South Africa, I
designed
to create a situation
between
these
"murden"-!
can
lost their life. In fact, there is
thought I'd be reasonably wdl
which
would
give a law and
very Uttie
outcry about draw the Une-and being able to
quaUfied to perform such a task.
order
focus
to
the next State
abortion in AustraUa except draw the Une is what being
On second thoughts I didn't
election
and,
in particular,
human
and
civiUsed
is
aU
about.
from people with great power
know much about uranium in
would thwart plans for an open
FinaUy,
I'm
always
annoyed
and
tradition
behind
them
with
South Africa. That's interesting
a vested interest in not allowing hy men who take up the "pro- expression of concem on the
in itself-I thought-never mind, Dear Editor,
women to control their fertility, Ufe" issue with such fervour and uranium question during the
In answer to David Orth and
I'll look up some information,
such
as the CathoUc Church, bUthely suggest that the answer national Uranium Morantorium
just a few figures. I drew several Susan Pingel (in a recent issue of
and those that arc duped by is adoption. Very often an Day on October 22. Even if
blanks until I came up against Gamut). Fintly, I'm interested
them. 26 per cent of women unwanted pregnancy is precisely these were not the reasons some
the 1948 South Africa Atomic that Mr Orth sees feminism as
who have abortions with that-a PREGNANCY that is government members supported
Energy Act which "prohibits the ''respcctable"-l hope he is also
ChUdren by Choice are CathoUcs unwanted. Perhaps Mr Orth the measure, it must be
disdosure of any fact relating to interested in trying to under-Catholics with their own would Uke to tie an eight pound conceded that it has these
uranium" by any unauthorised stand it, and to come to terms
watermelon around his waist effects.
minds.
penon. Far be it from me to with the issue of abortion.
for
nine months to experience
It is of incidental interest that
I agree the t'real issue is
The reason there is so little
mistrust the motives of the
just
how
enjoyable
and
the
two places suggested for
outcry is that foetuses, with no
South African government, whether or not to terminate/
"positive" an unwanted pregnan- open and pubUc discussion-the
murder
a
foetus"-but
it
must
be
self-consciousness, no independespedaUy one in existence
cy can be?
Roma Street Forum and King
ent developed being are having
before I was bom, I can but seen in the context of a woman's
George
Square-are subject to
their Ufe support terminated, ie
relate the growth of my penonal place in sodety. HistoricaUy it is
Radha Rouse Coundl, not State, jurisdiction.
when
women
are
considered
"murdered" if you wUl.
knowledge on the subject.
One can only hope that
1 would say that there is no
Surriving the South African human &eings on the same level
poUce
wUl use their union to
as
men
that
ahortion
laws
are
pubUc outcry because most
education system, includmg a
oppose
the way this change in
liberaUsed.
The
old
slogan
that
people support the concept of a
compulsory year in the miUtary,
the
law
puts a judicial function
"if
men
became
pregnant
the
woman's right to choose, at least
1 had a hcaUhy respect for
on
them
which makes them
abortion
laws
would
be
difunder special ,circumstances.
science, technology and, in
appear
the
viUians of the piece
Even in backward Queensland, a
particular, uranium. After all it ferent" StUl bean thinking
entirely.
Further,
one can hope
about.
McNair Anderson survey reveals
was the logical next step in the
that
ordinary
citizens-especiaUy
1 do not need to "justify" my
that 61 per cent of the populause of the world's energy rethose concerned about such protion support a woman's right to
sources, and as the scientists position on abortion by going to
found
issues as uranium and the
the legal system or the church
go to a hospital in this State and
said so, it was "good."
nuclear
society-wUl not be inhave an abortion within the fint
At the age of 22 1 left South for support-! have the courage
timidated
from expressuig fhdr
of
my
own
convictions.
I
gave
three months of pregnancy; and
Africa for England accompanied
views
as
they
should.
90 per cent support abortion if
by ray wife and daughter. On those examples only to point
Dear
Sir,
(Rev Dr) Noel Preston,
the woman's hcaUh would
my arrival I was hopmg to con- out that what I am advocating
As an observer in King
suffer.Ashgrove
tact conservation-minded people is not so different from what
George Square at the Civil
-as that had been a driving these institutions actually pracMs Pingel puts the number of Liberties Rally on September
force within me for some time. tice.
abortions in Australia at 50,000 22, 1 was strock by the fact that
The difference is that I, and
However, wherever I looked I
yearly. I would imagine the real both poUce and protestors
found articles discussing the erils other abortion-advocates, are
figure is more like 100,000. shared a common fate: both
of uranium-I couldn't believe U. more consistent.
However, if the Pro-Life Society groups were manipulated into
I mean, "uranium is good" I'd
Mr Orth says it does not
reaUy belieses that 50,000 confrontation.
Su-,
learnt that very weU.
matter whether one is flushed
foetuses are "murdered" every
In our society ordinary, relatyear, ie 150 per day, and that it
With reference to the recent
But I had suspicion, and that down a toUet or buried six
ively poweriess citizens, like
spate of marches over the
matten as much as the murder
was enough. If you can get foot under as both represent
rank and fUe police and
Uranium and Right to March
of 50,000. people, ie genodde,
someone sincerely to suspect the loss of life. And by the way, Mr
students, arc aU too often the
issues.
and StiU do as little about it
motives of the uranium pro- Orth, the concept of a "12victims of manoeuvres and manias they presently do, then they
ducen for long enough to read month old foetus" as you wrote
As a somewhat nervous
pulations by powerful interests
are a pretty piss-weak organisasomethmg, you've won. Verbal is a fairly mind-boggUng one for
moderate
I would like to point
from aU secton of the poUtical
tion. .
argument is seldom sufficient. It a medical student to come up
out
that
this
rash of marches
spectrum.
took me a long time to come with. However, point-scoring
may be Ukened to a premature
Mr Orth chooses to condemn
The
subject
of
the
Square
round to my present position-a aside: One must take into
me for using "the logic of mass- meetmg was the hasty, provo- ejaculation.
matter of more than a year. The account the reasons for the
Due to youth or immaturity,
murderers" which is always a cative and unjust amendment to
arguments for and against urani- murder and its drcumstanccs,
one tends to, respond over
useful
slur.
Pro-abortionist the march permit procedure.
um are both logical and forceful. and also ^vhat U is that is being
thinking is often slandered be- WhUe it is unreasonable..to sanc-ji eagerly to the impinging stimuThe dU'fcrence lies not in the murdered. Which brings me to ' cause it "ineritably" leads to
tion an unfettered right io lus. Over exdted arid over
arguments nor in the logic but Ms Pingel's argument about
euthanasia and that "inevitably" march in the streets, justice,.\^ll reacting, one tends, as it were, to
blow the big one. Not only does,
'this fritter ones ener^es, but
SCHOMai
1ST
encourages the object of one's
attentions to dismiss one as subAidrich brin^ it off by never
ject
to einotional disturbances
TWILIGHTS LAST GLEAMING
flinching from,the psychotic impliand influences so extreme as to
la phraJfi from the American
cations of the scenario. With an
be neurotic.
national anthem).
assortment of split-screen strategies,
Robert Aldrjch pulls out all the
The need is now to conserve
he reinforces the impression of
stops In this saga of generalised
response for later effect.
continual conniving. One not only
paranoia,'even going beyond the
Protesters, however, appear
cares about the characters but also
book In suggesting that the highest
to
be helplessly polarised
comes to feel their raw anger. At
authorities aro never to be trusted
any moment the anger can erupt
between the immediate impulse
under any circumstances.
into a cosmic explosion and Aidrich
to protest and the desire to bide
A persecuted highminded Air
makes us feel that he at least can
timp,
organise properiy and gam
Force officer (Burt Lancasterj
hear the clock tici<ing away.
numbers, in this situation,
seizes a missile Installation capable
Aidrich and his team, of script
power. Thus the cynical reaction
of firing nine "birds" that could
DOWEHAVETHE
writers have stated quite clearly
is to march at every convenient
start World VVar ill. The White
that they wanted the film version
, RJCHTTO KNOW?
House Is notified that the missile
opportunity.
to
have added poiitical significance
launch will begin If certain demands
Such impulsive and scattered
I and their additions work extremely
are not met-nameiy, a great deal
A CRUSADING GENERAL, WITH
protests hold as much fear for
, welt In giving sufficient motivation
of money, safe passage to a foreign
the Bandit Bjeike as the futUe
for the convicts to pull their coup.
9 TITAN MISSILES, CONFRONTS
sanctuary with the president as
yapping of a self conscious,
Tbe arguments for and against
hostage, and, most important of all.
A SCARED PRESIDENT, A CORRUPT
Open Government Ithe ' public's : perfumed and beribboned lap
release of a secret document that
SENA TE, A RUTHLESS MILITAR Y
,
right to control their own destinies • dog.
Incriminates a previous administra' and the Government's right to trust.
. AND AN IGNORANT AMERICA.
tion for Its brutal cynidsmln wagTo stiidents who. feel as
them) is a very topical Issue today.
ing a hopeless war simply to estat>Is 'TWILIGHT'S LAST GLEAMING'
strongly as-I do about Uranium
This film caused great controversy
llsh "crBdibility." The president
and Portest Rights, and who
THE END OF THE WORLD???
when released in Britain where "the
calls in his cabinet 'for a crisis
wish to make a cogent and
session of soulsearching resulting in
/jjj\
'In the best SUSPi-NSE Tradition' 'Imticate and. revelation on America's entry Into effective protest, may I tender
the Vietnam war" has, been cut
some of the greatest plecoi ot
foUowing revolutionary
SS/
liiHigiiinf!' 'One of the year's TI:N iil-:sr
entirely from their release print.., the
suspense seen in modern cinema
Alt the cast turn in excellent' ' •slogan:
which leads to the final showdoyvn
BURT LANCASTER RICHARD WIOMARK MELVYN DOUGLAS" ' performances and the script is high.Why yap Uke poodles when
and causes much controversy In
America. lighted by some biting commentary
you can bay like a hound?
Based on ttw novel-Vipefrby . WALTER W A G E R
portieularly the lines given to that. ;.\ SoUdarity,
DifKirt by ROBERT ALDRICH Music by JERRY GOLDSMITH
?talvwrt Richard Widmark.
Concerned,
RosaUe
Uranium and
South Africa
w the assumptions from'.whcrc
the
arguments
begin-tiie
attitudes and motivations.of the
mdiridual. Perhaps ther "single
strongest argument that kionvinced me was/is that it furthen the
centraUsation
of
economic
power. But there again centraUsation or decentraUsation-the
choice Ues in my attitudes,
a beUef or faith rather than a
conrindng argument.
The proof of the pudding is
in the eating-and beuig antiuramum my beUefs are constantly strengthened.by what I read
and hear. I can see only a
whittUng away of the position
ot the pro-uranium thinking
person-but. attitudes and faiths
change slowly.
.
The
enUghtenment
of
AustraUa has just begun.
.Andrew Martin
Radha responds
Sfage-Managing
a Cohfronlcition
Down at the
Demonstration.
Rev on Rights
.. and one from
Rosalie too!
^
mM.
raluris i i jflaVDs
LKili I'S tllSI
Page 3
This issue needs no editorial, the paper speaks
for itself.
This is the last multi-campus issue and will be
distributed to nearly all Queensland campuses, from
Townsville to Rockhampton, Toowoomba and Brisbane.
The multi-campus format as an exchange of
ideas and Information between campuses is, unfortunately, too centred on contributions from University
of Queensland students.
Whether this is a result of over-centralisation
or person power, is irrelevant.
What Is important is that this Issue coming out
at a time of intense political conflict transcends intercampus differences.
We go to press one day after the latest exhibition of the State's attitude to freedom,, five days before
the national mobilisation against uranium mining, and
three weeks before the State election.
A newspaper should be the expression of
people. It is the people involved who make the paper...
Nick Lindsley with his mammoth advertising
drive (nothing wrong with a bit of the old capitalism
eh?).
Greg Adamson for his patience, Janet Price for
love and brilliance, Radha and her exacting feminism,
David Brier and his scattered insight, Mark Hayes and
his committed intensity, Helen Dash and her soft, consistent presence, Phillip with his straw hat and cups of
tea.
David Tyrer for his "spanner" in the works,
Des Gallaghan and his gallant sharpeners, Janet and
her warmth, Michelle with good head for lines, Adrian
Cameron for his darkroom habits, Steve Clarry for his
dedication, Quentin Walters for his finger on the pulse.
Kerry Davies for her gentle efficiences, Peter
Walsh for his libelous licentiousness, 4ZZZ for their
tapes, support and music. Radio Times, Tim Low Terry
and even you Allvew . . . . and allthoseoccasional contributors that you too Beatson, not to mention Julianne,
and those latecomers that you too PJ who find themselves omitted (Oh space! —the editor's constant
conflict) — thank you, it's been good.
REFORM ABORTH)
The Trogedy
Continues
Last month a McNair Andeison survey revealed that 61 per cent of Queensianders
support a law in Queensland aUowing women abortions in the first three months of
pregnancy. At the same time several questions were asked in ParUament threatening
tiie harassment of a new abortion referral agency.
This year has seen a conservative backThe Hibernian Society presented
• lash at the gains women have inade since Federal Health Minister Ralph Hunt with
the rise of the feminist movement in the a submission urging a change to the situlate '60s. Tliis backlash is not from the ation whereby women can claim for their
general pubUc (as Ctiildren By Choice's abortions on Medibank. Mr Hunt says
survey indicates) but from those who he's looking into the matter.
hold power in society, ie those with a
OriginaUy the Soceity asked the
vested interest in the status quo.
Minister to permit the conditions of its
The first abortion referral agency, re^stration to be altered so that it was
Children By Choice, which has existed
not required to pay benefits for
unmolested for some years has also had
abortions. This was refused.
to contend with parliamentary attacks. It
The secretary of the Sodety Bryan
should be noted that criticism of ChUdren
Meere said, "To be fair to the Minister
By Choice does not come from the four
he pointed out tot the HACBS that
A victim of an unskilled abortion; abandoned when something went wrong.
thousand women councelled there in the
abortions were not always performed for
last year, or from the 35 per cent of aU
non-medical or voluntary reasons.
She died alone.
GPs who send women there. Attacks on
"It was thus implied that a refusal to
The ALP further subverted Uberal•ChUdren By Choice eminate from poli- pay benefits for all abortions could
isation
of the law when an attempt was In the Interests of money
ticians and professional moralists.
unfairly penaUse women in those fairly made to introduce a biU into the NSW
The reason women want the laws
An example of the latter is Des Dray- rare but nevertheless genuine situations
don. Mr Draydon is a former poUceman, where abortions were performed for vaUd ParUament. The attempt was foiled partly repealed is because the existing cUnics
by the intervention of cUnics who are aren't exactly idea. They are operated for
a barrister and censor. He is chairperson medical reasons." (CathoUc Leader Ocpresently making considerable amounts money and not in the interests of
of the Qld Film Borad of Review. He is tober 2, 1977).
of money under the current uncertain women's health.
notable- for his homophobia and cultural
What the Society now wants is the legal situation.
Population Services International is
conservatism.
introduction of a system which would
George
Petersen,
MLA
fu
lUawarra,
run
by a Dr Geoffrey Davis-nominated
In April of this year he urged the require by law that benefits be paid for
was
to
introduce
the
BiH
on
September
in
ParUament
by Senator Harradine as
Premier and Justice Minister to consider abortions only when a panel of doctors
introducing legislation against "agents for certified that the operation was clinicaUy 22. But it was withdrawn on September the "abortion king of Sydney." An
interstate abortionists." Mr Draydon necessary on medical grounds. One prob- 21. On that day Premier Neville Wran extract from Hansard of March 17 this
year reveals that Dr Davis is a director of
said Queensland people should be pre- lem wUh this sort of blanket legislation is received telegram's ur^ng its deferral.
The telegrams were from members of and subscriber to Population Services
vented from having "access to Southern that it wU! confUct with the varying state
murderers." (Courier-MaU April 2, 1977) legislation ou abortion-but no doubt the the Family Planning Association, the International (Australasia) Ltd and a
The perenial attacks from smaU "1" Fraser Govemment is able to get around Preterm Foundation, and Population dUector of and shareholder in Merlin Le
Services International, the latter two Fay Pty Ltd.
loonies Uke Rona Joyner and her Society this successfully (to the detriment of
bodies being the two main cUnics which
Dr David Uves in a mansion caUed
•To Outlaw Pornography seem to have women).
perform
abortions for NSW and Quecns- "the Abbey" in Sydney. "The Abbey"
.eased off in the past year. STOP and
' land women.
is Usted by the National Trust which
CARE (Campaign Against Regressive Law reform stagnant
Attorney General Frank-Walker in fact would like to buy it but cannot afford
Education) seem to be concentrating on
had taken it upon himself to contact the it. Davis owns a number of vintage cars,
The Abortion Repeal movement hasn't
keeping imaginative Uterature and fUms
Family Planning Association and inform several modern maseratis and in January
e^cactly
progressed
concretely
this
year:
out of QW schools. They're obviously
The AustraUan Labor Party at its con- them that George Petersen intend to of this year he acquired a vintage
. reaUsing that the way to solve the
present the Repeal BUl.
Mercedes Benz which newspaper reports
problem of unwatned pregnancies is to ference in Perth once again proved that
Wlaker told the FPA that he thought it estimated was worth $100,000 on the
prevent SEX-thereby the problem of women were expendible in the interests
was a politicaUy inopportune time to world market.
abortion doesn't arise. Ms Joyner's latest of a "unified party."
present the biU. Walker's motives remain
Davis has said that PS I has an annual
vigorously fought campaign was against
"Abortion law reform" said Donny
unclear-some have contended that he cash flow of about $1 miUion. PSI is a
the MACOS study course in Primary Dunstan, would "spUt the ALP." And he
attempted to roganise non-parUamcntary "non-profit"^ organisation and therefore"
Schools. She was disturbed by fUm of a added, CathoUcs "loyal members of the
pressure against the biU so he would not does not pay income tax or a divident.
female and a male herring gull rubbing party" would be forced to leave. But as
lose favor with some of the more con- However, as Senator Harradine points out
beaks. "It might start chUdren thinking: women delegates pointed out, what's the
servative
ALP parUamentarians.
"Those involved with PSI do not appeai
about sex," she said. Disturbingly, CARE use of being unified around the wrong
An equaUy plausible reason is that to be financiaUy disadvantaged."
seems to have won at least the first round poUcies?
Walker was concerned that the numbers
The laws must be changed to prevent
of the MACOS fisht.
The vote for the ALP to take a stand weren't there in parUament and he
this
situation. The resistance to abortion
was lost 25 to 18. The ALP's claims to thought it would be tacticaUy more clever
Withdrawing medical benefits
support women's issues are seen to be not to introduce a biU which woiUd be law repeal, as can be seen, comes from
poUtidans afraid of change and losing
rather hoUow when it comes to this lost.
The central danger to women's rights
votes
from people who a.-e poUtically
fundamental issue. Most ALP women's
at the moment has manifest Usdf in
Whatever his motives, the point is that and sexuaUy conservative, and from
groups have passed motions supporting once again pro-abortionists attempts to
powerful reU^ous bodies which lUce
a woman's right to choose. Obviously the get the law changed have faUed. Those members of the general pubUc who are
to. meddle m poUtics. Such bodies are
male hierarchy has no respect for their that helped it faU arc the very people denied access to information about
interested in making profits and spreadsexuaUty, contraception, abortion and
ing the message-and they have represen- -point of view. As one angry woman presently carrymg out thousands of h'eaUh care, especially the particular
delegate
said.
at
the
conference,
the
tatives in ParUament. An example is the
abortions each ycar-and making money needs of women.
abortion debate "at least divided the from it.
Hiberian Sodety-the CathoUc medical
Radha Rouse
women from the bojfs."
benefit body.
Page 4
ONLY 7 YEARS
T01984
IN QUEENSLAND there is no legal right to pro.
cession, despite the legal rhetoric that entrenches
this right as being fundamental to out society.
Former Governor-General J. Isaacs in Melbourne
Corporation v Barry, 1922, established the right to
innocently and unaggressively use Kings Highways
(presently the Queen's) in company on occasions
that frequently represent great and important
national, political, social, religions or Industrial
movements or opinions.
presSi
'.•"i"><
Australian Railways Union "support all Queensianders opposing
repressive measures introduced by the Queensland Government
— and pledge our assistance In the struggle to restore democratic
rights toall Queensland citizens."
12thOclober,1977
Eight hundred QneeBslasden cooceroed
with tbe plight of civU liberties in this
State attempted a protest march from
Queensland University campus on
Wednesday. October 12.
On the campus boundary Otey were prevented irom iH:t>ceeding further by some
SOOpoUce, blocking the roadway.
llie marchers, halting to consider their
tactics, decided to use their last avenue to
the city—the footpath.
The pdice permitted them to use the
footpath on condition that they walk in
"groups of one or two."
In directing the move to the footpa.th,
one of tbe march marshals, was aided by a
pubUc address system mounted In a small
truck.
Police immediately seized tbe vehicle,
and prevented continuance ot the broadcasting of dhrectlves to marchers.
Intrigulngly in this situation, the police
had just directed from their mobUe p ^
Uc "denouncer" system, to disband.
Equally amazing was lhat on converging upon the marchers, the police had entered the university campus. It is understood they did not have a permit from the
Vice ChanceUor.
Hie thh-d march of the day was
No guarantee could be given by the
attempted.
Coundl for avil Uberties' lawyers reKeeping within Uie square, the
garding safe exit from the square.
marchers sat down to continuously
address the poUce on issues of dvU libjsrt- , In ail eight people were arrested, (between 6 and 7.30 p.m.) and tak«i to dty
les.
watchhouse.
The protest^?' pubUc address system
was set up accordhigly, and two QueensGoundl f « CivU Uberties Lawyers,
land University lecturers, appealed to the
Terry O'Gorman and Wayne Goss, were
mtvalsoftheppUce.
After overwhebnlngly voting to attempt
allegedly not given access to the watchSuddenly a poUcs brigade swooped in,
a march to the executive buUding, the and wresting the speaking equipmott
house until 9.30 p.m.
marchers formed up in ranks and linked from the demonstrators, effectively todc
arms and moved to the steps adjoinhig away theirrightto free speech.
They were told by one of the attending
Adelaides!.
M^aphdhes were also forced from the officers to remove themselves from the
foo^th outside the watchhouse: as they
As on September 22Dd, the march was marshals,
with some concemed friends of the
At
6.30
p.m.,
uniformed
plahi
dothes
halted on the Adelaide Street side of the
and spedal branch poUce then surrounded arrested demonsbrators were creating a
square by tbe police.
pubUc disturbance.
the remaining protestors.
E i ^ t people appeared in couct.ln the
Protestor were address by police, to
Sedcing greater unity, the body of promorning
of Thursday, October 13 and were
desist in their advaiKe -^ as tliey would testers moved towards the square s t ^ .
form an Ulegal procession.
Special branch police charged into the remanded until October 27. V
The diarges laid were "Use of insulting
Ctxisultation by marshals with senior crowd foUowed by members of Qie Riot
words, resisting arrest, inciting to resist
Squad.
police (tff leers proved fruitless. '
A retreat was caUed.
The police were seen dragging a womaii arrest and assault"
Those arrested were: • laii Rtatouli,
The dvU libertarians retired in an screaming from the mass of demtmUewelyn RlntoiiU, Tony Muller, Craig
orderly fashion to consider, further action. stratws. .
. Once again a march was voted upon and
After an hour of addressing the poUce, a Davenport, Peter Swann, Hans Escatzle,
Trevtw White, and Peter Werthebn.
carried unanimously.
vote was taken to disband. .
The 800 marchers who raUied at King
Ge<K^e Square were constanUy under the
surveillance of approximately 700 poUce,
including Spedal Branch, Queensland's
poUtical pdice.
"Ilie protestors included an array ei
workers, churchpeople, blades, uranium
demoDstratws and otber mintHity groups,
groups.
Page 5
The Council for Civil Uberties re-states Us belief that
citizens Indtvldi^ally or collectively have the right to
use the public highway Is a peaceful manner and subiect only to such police directions as are necessary to
enable traffic to flow Fn a reasonable way. This right
has traditionally been accepted In countries of British
heritage for many hundreds of years.
New South Wales Teachers'
Federation "support your rally In
opposition to restrictions of the
right to organise and demonstrate."
Faculty of Law, University of New
South Wales. "Full support for
opposition to ban on protest
marches."
New Zealand Union of Students Association. "Pleased to see
reports of student moves to oppose B|elke-Petersen's fasciJsm."
"Western Australian Region of A.U.S. conveys Its support for
Queensland students tn thoir stand against B|eike-Petersen's ban
on street marches."
page 4
KAMKAZE COMMOS B U n POIKE BA10NS
Win MoreSheef^ Ma\fe Joh's Way
By Dan O'Niel
It is in the Courier-MaU that you can
keep informed of the great events of our
time dressed in their historical finery.
That's where you find that Joh has said
"The day of the poUtical street march is
over. Anybody who holds a street march
spontaneous or otherwise wiU know
they're acting iUegaUy." But it's in
rather more leisurely and loose-Upped
organis that you get the pathos and
humor. Hansard, for example. That's
where you find the great Charles Porter,
master of the mock-heroic, and his
satiric depiction of the "obscene
parasites" who are "out to destroy the
very precious fabric of equaUty for all
under the law" as they "inflame passions
. . . try to use the streets as battlefields."
And the even more cunningly witty
Mr Brian David Valentine Lindsay, the
Voltaire of Everton, who puts the matter
• in a nutsheU:
or series of demonstrations, with the
poUce meerging as the heroes and Joh as
the guardian of law, Order and the
Queensland way. But it was pointed out
that he doesn't NEED an issue Uke this
to win in a State that's gerrymandered to
the gonads and beyond. And then, also
if that's why he did it, why hasn't he
been crapping on with blather and
pomposity since the two or three marches
that have been attempted, with their
"violence" yeUing and general vehemence?
Was it simply an almost absent-minded
expression of the reactionary essence of
the National Party mind? The dog barks,
the squid squirts ink, the Joh bans
marches? Or must we consider it as the
result of pressure by the police who have
their own reasons for not wanting
marches?
But this is aU a bit premature. If you
". . . in spite of increasing efforts by
look at the date of the election there ii
the lunatic fringe . . . no' matter where StUl the. possibUity that the target of tht
you go on the roads you can meet some- ploy is Ithe proposed uranium march ot.
body coming from the other direction.! October 22. Joh would have a good
That is an important point, I thuik, ui
week after it to bash away at the ALI>
the use of the roads. The roads are meant
for being tied up wUh the communists
to be used by everybody, by aU taxpay- behind the march etc. As to the National
ers, for travelling in one direction or the Party's not needing the law and orderother." "Or the other"-could it be put
issue, it can be said that, the less time the
more economically?
government has to spend defending its
seU out of Queensland resources, its
But, fmaUy, Hansard paUes on the
curious reader. It's \-ery short on expla- mismanagement of the economy, and the
unemploym«-.'. rate, the better it wUl feel
nations of just why the government
on the hustings. And as Hansard shows,
should have taken away the right to
there are few thuiE3 they talk easier more
march, and why NOW? So you are
thrown back on your own reserves. The heartfelt and .more confusing bullshit
about than keeping the motorist safe in
obvious account, and one widely given
his car. To say nothing of tbe ear
immediately after Joh's announcement,
Queenslandeis have developed for just
was that, to preface an early election, he
such rhetoric. It*s an art form- that is as
wanted to provoke a smaU group to
throw an easUy quelled demonsttation. highly prized as bingo.
Organic
fruit & veg
Cow & goat milk
Wholemeal breads
Dried fruit & nuts
Flour, grains,
& cereals
Then, as well, consider this. It's one
thing to win an election, but it's another,
and mroe important, to increase the
social and political hegemony of true
ideas, non-southern ideas Uke "reUgion"
"God" "being proud things are as good as
they are" and a lot of others. The
National Party is not satisfied to be
returned as a poUtical organisation. It
aspires to be a way of Ufe, a dynasty, a
reich. Blundering, unconscious, indirect it
may be but there's a sort of old mastadon
logic that whispers to Joh in his darkness that if a few kamikaze commos butt
the batons of the poUce in their unbridled
fury, more of the sheep wUl move his
way. And probably CaUaghan adds that
the general mind. wUl be just that bit
more sheeplike.
FinaUy, there's always the chance that
Joh wanted to produce his main effect
not on the streets but in the committee
rooms. Throw in a move on dvil Uberties
and see if you can get the State ALP and
the Federal crazies Uke Uran and others
at loggerheads, in time for the disarray to
reproduce itself in the State Party and
their campaign. See if various soft-headed
liberal Party members don't get out of
step with the gutless wonders at the top
of their party. After aU, it's a tricky
issue for everyone but the Nationals.
They never preteaded to beUeve in dvil
Uberties.
Then there's the question, whether
Joh has got uraiuum connections himself,
and so on and so on.
But speculation is idle, God created
the world. We're lumbered with it. What
happens from here?
This is being written one day before
the march planned for October 12. If
we're lucky it wUl be marginally bigger
Malt, molasses
ahd pastes
But what is equaUy dear is this. That
march wiU not be the end of the civil
Uyerties struggle. Either the bluster will
die away reveaUng that it was aU a shortUved gimmick on Joh's part, which k
unUkely. Or it wUl be necessary to keep
the present campaign going, and to
strengthen and widen it. This more
probably alternative wiU face the
mo'vemcDt with the question of what
predsdy to AIM at.
Should the aim be to change the
law back to the way it was? Or beyond
that, to seek a complete overhaul of the
law relating to assembly?
Should we forget that, as unachievable
in the proximate future and, by continual
attempts, secure a moral right that wiU
be a health crank
af
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OPEN 9.00-6.30 MON-FRI, 9,00-1.00 SATURDAY
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than the last march. But what seems
fairly clear is that, so far, although there
has been some involvement by workers
and representatives of other organisations
the movement is grasped in the pubUc
mind as a student movement against the
government. The October 12 march is
unUkely to change that. Nor is there
Ukely to be a march that wiU broaden the
perspectives before October 22. So that a
lot hangs on the uranium march. Whilt it
will not advance any slogans about civil
Uberties it wiU obviously be seen as a
testing of the ban on marches. Those who
march- wiU know that they are defying
the law, so that there won't be a person
marching who wiU not also be marching
impUcitly on the civil Uberties issue. It
is therefore crudal that it be as large and
as wide and representative a concentration of people as possible. An immense
gathering, seen in context with similar
immense gatherings aU around AustraUa
wiU do more than aU of the action up to
now to secure therightspresently denied.
fl)% DISCOUNT FOR STUDENTS ON PRESENTING THEIR CARD
The name CRANKS was chosen as it is a word which has
come to stand for those individuals who have the courage to pursue
a line of thinking against the general stream t)f orthodox belief
Herbal
remedies
Vitamins
Books on every aspect
of healthier living
farm eggs,
pottery, herbs
herbal remedies
dulcimgers
^
at least be unchallenged in practice?
Or should the main aim be to use this
issue to educate the pubUc and involve
the oppressed minorities and the working
class in seeing that theserights are denied
for very good reasons (.as they seem to
the ruling socio-economic groups) and in
the interests:of certain classes?. .
Or is it ipossible to. combine two or
more of these aims?
v
What is at least dear is that only a
relatively calm and cogent debate about
the role of civil Uberties in Queenshni
poUtics wiU ever initiate the needed
widening of the campaigns. These are ,
theory, poUcy, strategy and tactics. The
tone of the action-obsessed debate that
has occurred so far has been impatient of
distinctions and has invested urgent
agreement on tactics with such passionate
importance that it is difficult even to
get recognition of elementary differences
between poUtical friends arid enemies.
"He who is not (marching) with us is
against us" seems to be the emotipiial
background to every meeting and In the
upshot it proves that even some who
marched did not march- purely enough.
Or so it seems.
The sooner hysteria of this kind is
recognised and got rid of, the better.
' It seems to me that, in the Ught of
what happens on QctavM-ai, there is the
greatest need to set: about the task of
efthef vindicating' tEc success of a
massive exerdse of dvil rights or defending those rights against their repression
by the poUce and the govemment. To
this end it would be as weU to recognise
that the starting point in Queensland is
probably even further back than we
supposed. I mean that there are differences even among radicaUy unjust, unfree
sodeties. There are some where there is
at least a wide spectrum of people who
. have enough political culture to discuss
and evaluate erosions such as the recent
action of the Premier. Societies where
"respectable" opinion has enough forum,
enough guts, to shake together from law
sodeties or professional bodies or church
hierarchies or any other Sector of organised urban life, poUtical party branches,
whatever, a pubUc meeting, an official
repriment, a stand, wotnethteg rather
than nothing. But in Queensland that
infrastructure of normal poUtical decency
and pubKc integrity has yet to be buUt,
Not people to march even. Sunply the
constituencies who might be appealed
to for support, understanduig, defence.
I am not suggesting that the present
dvU Uberties activists should buUd up
this poUtical culture, or to put it at its
most rudimentary, these elements of a
genuine pubUc Ufe, 1 am merely suggesting that, sooner or later, soneone is going
to have to do it, some organising of what
is at present inchoate, diffuse, timid,
indecisive concern wiU have to go on;
and it wfll serve but Uttle to sneer from
the sidcUnes "bourgeois ideology!" and
other masterstrokes of poUtical wit.
Page 7
For it is only in the context of tbe slow
construction of a less reactionary climate
of opinion that it will become possible to
"SeUver the blows that are needed to
achieve the begiimUigs of radical change.
Even to have a dialedic whereby action
produces changes in consdousness there
has to be a consdousness there to change;
and a structured and embodied consdousness at that. The only thing at tbe
moment is spiritual peanut paste.
When I look at the present situation,
with the urgency of a few on the one
hand and the crushing total indifference
of the many on the other, I recaU
Gramsd's advice:
"It B necessary to create sober, patient
men who do not lose hope before the
worst honors and who are not excited by
rubbish." But then he only spent half his
adiUt life in a fascist prison. He didn't
Uve in this great pigswamp of self-activating slime. And then, even if Joh died
tomorrow, there's Russ Hinze. Russ
Hinze I
\
'_^
NAUONAI. HAI of MOBIUEATION
OaOBER U n d 1911
March & Redly
lOam
Speakers:
Kafii Walker - poet.
Judith Wiright- poet & conservationist.
Senator Rtith Co/eman-Labour, WLA.
Mal Edwards - Kelvin Grove C.A.E.
Tom Bwns - Opposition leader.
Xavier Herbert - writer,
Harry Huensehild-Pres. T.i.e.
Rev. lan Gillman" churchleader
say HO tmHmiAR WtHtt»
UBGRAUES
By Quentin Waters
Like a piece of Tliird Reich memoiabilia the Natwnal Party campaign slogan
"Keep Queensland Strong" smacks of the good time Hitler Youth motto "Strength
Tiirough Joy."
Its import suits the Premier's own
The antidemocratic nature of elections
peculiar bent as weU as the phUosophy
in Queensland is the biggest issue facing
the reality of Parliamentary democracy in
of his press secretary Alan CaUaghan who
this state, yet the campaign of aU parties
has made no secret of his admiration of
the techniques developed by Nazi wUl ignore this. Such is the power of the
National Party propaganda machine,
Germany propaganda minister Dr Joesph
people
wiU not be voting on this issue.
Goebbels. Yet the slogan as weU as the
Joh wiU, as he has done in the past, have
entire campaign advertising package are
working luncheons with the electoral
the creation of a Sydney pubUc relations
commissioners, who are and wUI continue
firm, despite the Premier's paranoia and
to in the future, be his own appointees.
suspicion of anything southern.
One is a grazier by the name of Archy
> .Nevertheless the slogan commends
Archer, another is an exposed National
itself more to winning elections than the
Civic Coundl stooge and well known
clumsy and unwieldy "It's a Great State.
Tory, Sir Douglas Fraser. The third is
an outnumbered, outgunned, career
Let's Get It Working Again" adopted by
pubUc servant.
Labor.
The election on November 12 can have
only
one result, no matter how weU the
The 74 slaughter
opposition could ever in the realms of
Joh in the last elections used the
poUtical possibUities ever poU Joh and the
slogan "Keep Queensland in Front."
National Party must always win.
Lampoon the ALP slogan after being
Johannes Bjelke-Petetsen puts it this
swept to victory on a 16 per cent swing,
way "We are not concemed with the low
he couldn't disguise his glee when he
percentage. We are only concerned with
pointed out "The Labor Party's slogan
seats. It is the tradition." (Bulletin, June
was 'Let's Go,' weU by goUy, they're
3, 1972)'
going now, by geez."
Alternatively as a general philosophy,
On that ^oomy day the 7th Decem- the Premier's immortal words are forever
ber 1974, the National Party bUtzkrieg
recorded in the ceUuloid of the Channel
annihilated the ALP, after a very fooUsh
Seven News in February of 1973 when he
opposition leader Mr Percival Tucker
dedared simply "It doesn't matter what
shook his fi^t at the Premier across the the people say."
floor of the ParUament and challenged
"Couc out into the hustings Joh and
A parlous state
n i slaughter you."
The election time this time around
Even poor old Perc lost his seat.
however, is not so much aimed at the
One could be forgiven in thinking that
now spent force known as the Australian
Percy was a very siUy man and that the
Labor Party but as against the Liberal
good citizens of Queensland had spontan- Party.
eously risen to embrace Bjelke-PetersenThe Labor Party's own ANOP comism, until one actuaUy examined the demissioned poU (which was subsequently
tails of poUing of that bewildering 1974
leaked to the press) showed that it can at
election.
the most hope to win back only 7 to 11
The bizarre nature of Bjelke-Petersen of the 22 seats it lost in 1974.
style democracy is such that the party
Despite the fact that it had three full
with the least pubUc support emerges
years
to put itself in shape it remams in
from the election with the greatest polithe
words
of Whitlam in a "Parlouse
tical power.
state."
Rank and file morale is at an all time
Electoral rigging
low. Membership is believed to be about
Blatant electorate rigging commonly
9000 although the Queensland Central
referred to as the gerrymander gives rises Executive isn't aU that sure since it's
to .some strange electoral mathematics. records aren't aU that up to date.
The Premier's own political party
The National Party daim to have
received less than 28 per cent of votes 40,000 fools suffidently deluded to have
but attained a m^"ority of 39 seats, the joined,. although the National Party
lap dog Liberals got 31 per cent but alas, signs up members m a fashion not unlike
it won only 30 seats and low and behold selUng raffle tickets.
the ALP which got 36 per cent won only
Such is the dynamo of the Labor Party
11 seats.
_
that it could not even muster sufficient
Tlie outgoing 41st parliament was not energy to reply to allegations by the
elected democratically and nor wUl the National Party Director Mich Evans that
next one he. At its worst, of the one the ALP was a "hick party," referring to
million one hundred thousand citizens the pathetic two foolscap submission to
going to the polls this time, it wiU take the electoral rigging commission outUning
34,000 votes to elect a Labor member,
11,000 to elect a Uberal and 7,000 to
elect a National Party member.
its proposals. In the Qayfield by-el
it couldn't even staff how to vote stands
at aU poUing booths. The Port Curtis byelection, the safest Labor seat in Queensland where, in the '72 election the Labor
candidate gained over 80 per cent of the
vote, is now a marginal seat.
Without a doubt alcohoUsm competes
/4morc so than lazines for the cause of
Labor's iUs.
Simple office management is another
serious problem with delays up to six
weeks in reply to correspondence if you'r
you're lucky enogh to get a reply. The
think tank campaign committee went for
up to 10 months without meeting this
year, and few people on it are aware U'
has since met. Most decisions if ever made
appear to be done so in the bars of the
Anzac Club opposite Trades HaU or the
Breakfast Creek Hotel opposite the QCE.
The saddest thing of aU is that Labor
for sure has more talent than the National
or Liberal Party, but these people are
hidden away in the branches and kepy&T
the outer by the Trades Hall buUy boy.,
and assodated party hacks. As for (this
campaign the QCE has decided to 'pay
someone else to do the work and handed
the campaign over to a pubUc relation
firm. The brunt of all the real hard wor
for the election and over the last thre
years has been borne by an industrious
opposition Leader Tom Burns and his
little band of loyal staff.
With a tired and gereatric caucus
Tom Bums, and Ids veteran press officer
Jack Stanaway, private secretary, and
research have fought vaUently but in
vain to withhold the stampeding fascism
of the Bjelke-Petersen government for
these last three'years.
Wilh typical hypocrisyTss attack on
the so-caUed anti-eoaUtion, anti-Joh
Liberals is supposedly excused by
blaming them as the disloyal partner to
the coalition because of the running of
Liberal candidates against sitting national
Party members.
One party govemment?
The prospects
PoUtical pundits say that Joh has one>
Enough of this sorry tale and on to the
final trump card to play and that is
action.
WUh the exception of Wynnum and rumors helped by Mike Evans boasting
Cook the National Party may be just quietly to journalists that there are four
luck enough to hold aU pre '74 Labor Liberal ministers prepared to defect to
held seats. If Labor makes gainst against the National Party.'
They say that Liberal Health Minister
the Liberal Party and takes back tradiLew
Edwards announced that he would
tional territory then Joh wiU come dose
to governing without the Liberal Party. campaign against Lbieral candidates who
The possibiUty exists that the axis powers chaUenged National held seats nearly let
of a National/Liberal Party coaUtion the cat out of the bag,
government may be at an end. Joh ' Why Joh woiild .want to govern as a
launched his campaign with an enormous one party govirnrhen't can be put down
to:
blast at the Liberals.
1 The ego,of'the man and his desire
"Elements in the Liberal Party are
riding on our coat tails while they are for total power;
2 The ambitions of wiz kids Sparkes,
prepared to cut our throats at the first
National Party president, and MUce Evans.
opportunity" he said.
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•H.
QUEENSLAND UBER ALLES (CONT)
The National Party is now or aboiit to
be at' the zenith bf its power in Queensland.
Joh's ego h^ deddcd to stay On only
so long as to beat Francis NickUn's record
10 years as Premier.
joh must retire within two years, and
when he does the National Party will
wane in influence.
Joh came to the executive as an
unknown backbencher. His style can't
be emulated. He is a freak but a successful one at that.
If the Liberals arc pushed out of the
coaUtion they have only themselves to
blame. Without Gordon Chalk, a man
who had the highest approval rating in
this history of AustraUan poUtics the
Liberals have become a spineless jeUy.
Bjelke-Petersen, even in coahtion has
come pretty close to total pow^. To
short circuit former Treasurer Gordon
Chalk he set up the priority review conlmittee which oversaw aU treasury
matteis.
Hence the Zaphu- prosecutions, the
Seamans Union/Utah dispute and general
union bashing. A 1976 poU showed that
65 per.cent of unionists voted for the
conservatives in the 1975 Federal
elections. When union membership itself
thinks unions are on the nose Joh can't
go wrong.
Continuous voter attitude polb and
surveys of the national party have since
the last elections been aimed at-.
1 Finding out how to hold those
swinging voters in seats won from Labor
in 1974;
2 How to get Liberal voters in
marginal Liberal held seats to vote
National Party.
'. This methodology caters for mediocricy, appeals to prejudice and in
Bjelke-Petersen's case invariably leads to
bigotry.
Propaganda is always more compelling
when it seduces the electorate's basest
instincts. And of course given our
sycophantic, alcohoUc and sublime press
corps our Premier can't go wrong.
Libs irrelevant
Subservient press
When the Premier banned our fundaNo.w under lacklustre Billy Knox, a
mental
right of free speech, expression
man. which wurveys shows has a. recogand
assembly
in one ruthless announcenition rating of 11 per ccntV the Liberals
ment
and
in
true McCarthy cold-war
have become poUticaUy irrelevant.
style defamed and maUgned innocent
The Parliamentary Liberal Party's total
citizens in ParUament, newspaper editors
subserviance to the Premier was patheticand journalists chose not to express total
aUy iUustrated when the very next day
outrage or even question his actions but
after the Liberal Party heads produced a
instead commented on his deftness, his
loophole in the Electoral Acts that they
acute sense of timing, and his skiU as a
said would prevent electoral rigging, this
crafty old poUtician.
time against the Liberals, they readily
One could tnvisage, if CaUaghan
voted with the National Party to abolish
handed out a press release tomorrow
U.
announcing the indefinite postponement
Consequently Liberal Party rebels and
of elections, how joumaUsts.up and down
upstarts who dared question the excesses
the State would be hammering out songs
of the Premier (eg BiU Hewitt and CoUn
of admiration on their typewriters.
Lamont) witnessed him carry out his
"In an astute political manoeuvre the
oft voiced threats in the jomt government
Premier
today abolished elections catchparty room and gerrymandered them out
ing
his
opponents
completely off guard
of their seats.
and winning the day yet again. What a
The onh parliamentarians game crafty old fox, what a clever man he is,"
enough to defend Bjelke-Petenen's attack the first par would read
on their party are too busy, scared,
Being conditioned to accept this
frantic and too preoccupied as they try
Couricr-MaU
type journalism-citizens wiU
to get back in the house.
. once again remain totally mis and unThere is little comfort for Labor in
informed of the real issues the November
this confUct. Experience has shown Labor
elections should hold.
never wins votes from internidne righting
'The,fact that the Electors! system is
among the conservatives. Witness the intense Clayfield by-election and Port rigged, the fact that the Premier and the
Pariiament are undembcraticaUy elected;
Curtis by-election in May 1976.
the fact that-a sizable mmority in.our.
Historical' parallels- postulating that a
communityi namely .the. Black >dtizen-is
split put Labor out'ih 7955 "arid only a
being'oppressed and persecuted by the
split in the coalitionwiU return them arc
bureaucracy and the police with much,
a little too optimistic, given the spent
the same, vigor Himmler pursued, the
conditfon of the ALP.
• Jews; the fact that 78 per cent of Queensland strategic resources are being conThe propaganda machine
troUed by and sold for a song by the
The National Party campaign strategy
government; and so on. (In Queensland
with aU emphasis based on Joy, and little
the list is endless.) These facts wiU be of
little substance or reality on poUing day.
mention of the National Party, at all, to
Even if they were Bjelke-Petersen under
,say nothing of the coaUtion, is the
the rigged boundaries must stiU win.
product of the most sophisticated
Such is the myth of democracy and the
'machiRe known to Australian poUtics.
This machine led by a junta of Joh/ -reaUty of the entrenched oppression of
the right in Queensland.
Sparkes/Evans/Callaghan is unparaUeUed
in this country for its ability through
connivance, conspiracy and provocation
Divine rule?
to reduce the nature of local poUtics to
If this was not enough on its own, the,
gut-level propaganda.
aU pervading and amazing arrogance of
They are very^much the masters of
our Premier enabled him to announce
manipulative politics. By harnessing the
to the world on AprU Fools Day 1972:
American experience of market research
'There is no question in my thinking.
and applying the concepts of business and
One seeks God's guidance and blessing"
poUtics they bring science to their task.
(The Age,Aprn 1,1972).
It is not, as most Joh haters imagine,
And his good wife to declare in
the innate fasd^m of the man that '^ves
unequivocal terms in 1977:
rise to tirades and diatribes against his
"God led Joh to his position, so wc
opponents but moreso the result of long
don't let what people say worry us."
range planning supported by intensive
(The Bulletin, October 1, 1977)
polling.
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;Page 9 -
A few months ago there was a minor
debr.te on Whether Queensianders Are
Different. Just Uke the middle age phUosophers trying to determine how many
angels fit on the head of a pin. Or
Norman Mailer's essay which discusses
whether shit has a soul.
It was reasoned-if that term can be
used lo edify the level of dlscussionthat any people which can elect BjelkePetersen is necessarily made up of inbred
hicks and obeisance-paying mice.
All this was of course promoted by
southern ABC left-wing intellectuals and
their Brisbane sycophants. Just go to
Melbourne and tell them you're a Queenslander: you arc looked at askance as if
you can, only be one of two things,
troppo or fascist.
The theory that we're all crazy just
because Joh is premier ignores the fact
that the Liberals poll higher than the
National Party but are too gutless to do
anything about it. On this basis Knox
should be premier and so according to
the intcUectuals we should all be like
second-rate accountants. Or, if you consider that the ALP poUs the highest of
the three parties, we should all be aged
boons like Tom Burns.
. Finally the great debate died after
Gough Whitlam decreed that Queenslanders weren't really different, they just
gotthe government they didn't deserve.
Reassured-that they were dinky, di. after
all, Queenslandeis breathed.. a.- sigh of
relief and the govenmient banned street
marches.
North Queensianders eyed this debate
with a grim irony. What the fuck were
the bloody southerners on about now?
This is the land of being troppo. and cane
toads and everyone knows that like the
cane toad, troppo is insidiously making
lis way south, just as The YeUow Hordes
were supposed to during our Menzies
chUdhood.
Troppo is, quite simply, a condition
that results from living in the tropics.
Characters from Conrad often have it and
Somerset Maugham's sweaty Malayan
stories are fuU of troppos. Troppo is
related to Henry Lawson's mulga
madness, or scrub happiness. It is
reputedly better than being "normal"
though not as bad as being mad as a
maggot. Hard to define, it is best described by way of example.
"Preacher" is troppo. He's just out of
jaU again. This last time for breaking
probation. He'd been picked up for a
minor offence and had done a brUliant
plea on his own behalf, teUing the magistrate that he was going to play it straight
from now on. He pointed.to his pregnant
girlfriend, ring through her nose, and told
his worship that he was going to join the
poUce force and settle down, maybe even
become, Preacher SM pretty soon. The
magistrate, bored to death by drunks and
druggies, had been lenient and had given
Preacher two months' probation.
Alas, the next week he was found
directing traffic at the main intersection
of Caims, deUberately snarUng it up. So
' he was sent to jail.
A few years ago he walked into
Woolworth's, grabbed the spruikers
microphone and announced, on behalf of
the management, lhat everything was free
for the next five minutes, then ripped the
microphone out of the waU. Police had to
be caUed.
The bloke who couldn't work out how
he'd been busted was troppo, too. He
sent a mate in Wdpa a telegram: "Arriving flight 241 with t\yo pounds.".
Or the two men in Cooktown who
decided that plastics were poison and
electridty the work of the devil. They got
the shotgun and blasted every bit of
plastic and every electrical appUance m
their brand new brick veneer.
Another couple left Cairns for Cooktown in their new yacht. Trouble was
they'd never sailed before and didn't
understand what a forty knot sou'-easter
was. They made it to New Guinea
though.
Troppo's have a fatal attraction to
yachts. An old man with a Master's
ticket left Cooktown wilh a young crew
who trusted in his certificate. He'd been
saiUng a desk for the last IS yean. First
the sextant was useless, then the radio
blew up. He packed on full sail and drove
north, finaUy hitting a reef. A quick
thinker threw the anchor overboard but
it hadn't been tied on at the other end.
They were rescued though. The gods
are kind to troppos.
The local pubUcan's not too together.
Creme de menthe in one hand, pool cue
in the other she has driven many a young
upstart from her domain. Maybe she
caught her dose off the local cop who's
lost four guns this year or the pathological Uar who told the pub gossip that he'd
sold his caravan park to the government
for an' aboriginal hostd. Two petitions
were circulating the next day.
The Uar. got his, though, when, an
.employee - told- him- licid • driven.-the
..liar's truck mto a swimming pooL-.They .
had to show him the truck upside down
under the water before he'd beUeveit.
Unfortunately a tin scratcher was. sort
of troppo too. He and his mate of 20
years had a minor argument so the tin
scratcher casual'blew his mate's brains
out;
C*i'*''t«.v
Troppo Mick's in jaU at the moment.
Arrested on a minor charge he'd met a
man named WUton in the Caims Watchhouse and dedded that, man, he was
just too beautiful a guy to be left in jail.
Sp Mick busted him out. WUton's stiU
free. He's wanted for murder.
Danny the Garbologist was caretaker
at a caravan park. According to Danny
he'd written "I've Been Everywhere
Man," "The Goondoowindi Grey" and
most other AustraUan folk songs. He
could sing them aU too. He kept
promising young hippie ladies a half of
his fortune if only they'd . , . When he
finally ran he left a pUe of debts that
Moss Trooper coddn't jump over. The
last of his amours was pretty crazy too,
in a nice gentle sort of way, but her
relatives turned her over to the siuinks
who attacked wires to her brain to make
her weU again.
"But" is the pub philosopher. He's
troppo and proud of it because he knows
that madness is universal and being
troppo is a pretty kind manifestation of
it when you look at other madnesses.
"They reckon we're bloody crazy,"
says But, "when 108,224 of them
bastards in Melbourne sat through the
Grand Final," here his voice reaches a
pitch of mcreduUty, "then the mongrels
go back and see It again. And they
reckon I'm crazy. Or Darwin, take
bloody Darwin, but. Where if you're
not drunk on Friday night you get
arrested for drugs."
But reckons the theory that people
are refiected in their leaders won't hold
much water. "Take South blobdy
AustraUa, but. Jeez, if aU them bastards
were Uke Don Dunstan . . .jeez!"
Steve Gray, Cairns correspondent
:Page lo
-rl
lSQLDSTRONG?\
l0St
Me Oreamfme
An Economic Record
The Budget
Non-Development In Queensland
The Government's own documents
reveal less money spent on spedal
employment creation , projects for
1977-78 than in 1976-77.
SSO million wiU be spend this year
compared to $69 last year, over 50 per
cent less taking inflation into account.
This occuis at a.time when a confidential
Reserve Bank report predicts record
unemployment this year.
As weU the Govemment froze the
PubUc Service level ahd slashed its pubUc
works labor force.
The Government's tax record is just
as scandalous. The coaUtion claims to be
a tax reform govemment but its record
shows otherwise. Of course its major
tax reduction is the aboUtion of death
duties in the 1976 budget.
The Treasurer at the time of the
announcement. Sir Gordon Chalk, said it
would mean high unemployment and
increased charges in other areas. In any
case'over 50 per cent of the death duty
savings wUl go to very wealthy estates.
The government's tax record must be
examined over the whole three year
period. The two non-election budgets,
1975 and 1976, had the foUowing effects.
The cost of buying a $20,000 home was
increased by $61 due to increased stamp
duty and Government charges. Stamp
.duty on a $2,000 hire purchase contract
was increased 50 per cent from $20 to
$30. People in both these categories arc
not the type who should finance the
aboUtion of death duties.
The State govemment charges in
running a standard six cyUnder car
increased by over $45 per year over the
three budgets.
People living in country areas were
severely hit. Freight rales were increased
by over 60 per cent. To quote an example
the cost of transporting a tonne of
general goods from Brisbane to TownsviUe rose by $41.40, that is, from $67.40
to $108.80. This means prices of goods in
major Queensland centres such as Longreach or Mt Isa are up to 15 per cent
higher than Brisbane.
All these tax hUces went to pay for the
aboUtion of death duties, and they wiU
probably hasten the death of the worker
anyway.
The economic circumstances in September 1975 were part of the reprehensive circumstances which Fraser then said
justified the blocking of supply. Prices
are now rising faster in Queensland
supermarkets than two yeats ago.
At the end of August this year in
Queensland there were 47,923 unemployed, the highest figure ever recorded for
that month. This is 23 per cent higher
than the level at August 1975. In fact, for
each consecutive month for the last
three years more people seek each job
opportunity in Queensland than in any
other State. At the end of August, 23
sought each job avaUable.
Among the unemployed were almost
1000 people looking for professional
jobs. Government strategies on both
State and Federal level wUl increase
unemployment to almost 70,000 in January next year, making it amost impossible
for graduates and school-leavers to get
jobs.
In September 1975 building society
borrowing interest rates were tied by
Government regulation to 11 per cent.
On April 12, 1976, interest rates were
increased to 11.75 per cent. In November 1976 the Government decided to
abandon regulation of interest rates to
aUow building societies to set their own.
Since then some societies have increased
th^u borrowing rate to 12.5 per cent,
this means anyone paying off a house is
paying up to $5 per week more in repayments. The Premier not only affects
BuUding Society rates but also contributed to increased bank rates. In July this
year Joh Bjelke-Petersen was the fust
State Premier to support Federal Treasurer Lynch in refusing the Labor
Premiers' caU for interest cuts.
A leaked Telex message from Lynch
to the other Premiers was reported in fhc
Telegraph of October 1,1977, as foUows:
"I have received the foUowing telegram
from the Premier of Queensland. 'I
refer to our telephone conversation with
riispect to the proposed July terms. In
view of the circumstances in which we are
now placed I concede the issue and concur with, the terms you propose.' "
The telegram indicates Lynch used Joh's
agreement as a lever to squeeze the other
Premiers into submission,
An Abysmal Record
The" States can only override the Commonwealth on the Loan Coundl in reducIn September 1975, the State Govem- ing mterest rates if they aU agree. Joh's
ment brought down its first budget after breakdown made it a futUe exercise.
it won the 1974 election. Since that time
The three basic indicatois of economic'
we were promises reduced inflation, less
prosperity-inflation,
unemployment and
unemployment and lower interest rates.
intierest rates-are now aU worse than in
To the 12 months to September 1975 September 1975. In that period there has
in Brisbane prices increased by 10.5 per been 22 , months of Liberal National
cent. To June 1977 (the latest avaUable Party rule in both Canberra and Queensfigure) prices, increased 13.2 per cent. land.
THe Premier ofiQueensbnd, Mr mm^^tmea
has toW ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^
opment bot M actually done very little. His inactijy ^ « ? * » / « « ^ ^ ^
^
aJe less job opportunities in Queensland than any other State w AurtiaBa,,
A t o r y of K statements linoe befo'^ the 1974 State tkct«m Is » ~
offalitues.
.,
•••:•:.•;.•.::.:.•
•
i
'
.
lit 1972 the massive Nebo coUog coal
In 1977 the propoail w«> l«d»ced*to
export project was annotmced expecting an ezplontion ptcject «i{fi«<| tA 1(3.6
to cost $250 mflllon.
miUion.
'iltieas Peabody Mitnti coal ooasortittm is uni«rtikbig preUminary explota- Ajuother jvoject where there bas been
tion, design andfafrastrocturefor both no aignifieent development »Ihe Mackay
open cut and underground mining at a Paper Ptdp MiQ usiag bagaate. It was
fast mootedfat197) to cost 470 mi^iotx
lite 200 km tooth west of Maduy.
Sbice 1972 the balue of tbe project and was hstod in 1975 »t $100 miHIoit
has been reported by the State Govern*
m«nt to have htaeased to $300 million The Aaaoctated Gtoap's YwmUi^
In 1974, $475 mOtion in 1976 and $470 antfatacity coal p n ^ t has sot gctm
oifllioninl977, ::
beyond the annoimeemant atage/Oui^
The Bail Cie^'I coking coal project wa8«stfanatedRt$2$mi^onrMngto|j^
100 km sooth w ^ of Mackay was also mfltionin 1977.
.
- '<
announced in 1972 with an estimated
^v^ . :,
.„ .
««
^f comae there is Iwasakl's "onH>ir
vahie of $140 miflion.
Haa Creek Assodated (a joint Tentnre »*«»«tion«l tourist ^twUnpatm at
consortiom consisting of AAR Coal Pty ^^^^'
2^^^
"^^^ «* *20
Ltd, CRA Services Ltd, lOL Coal Pty "«B^n mJ973 it« rcmrccted vahte^lft
Ltd, Marubeni Coip and Sumitomo 1977wa»$50mUaoa,
^ _ ,,_, ^
,V
^J' i,"'
Shorji KaJsha Ltd) commenced design of
tefiastnicture. ^
11ieli«lof»o«-project«B«Klfaw.>:f
Again the estimated value rose to
^^ *^^ ..« * «L'
$200 million ta 1973, $330 mSUon fat „ ^ « « v « *«»« $SO0 mUilOAl)*^
.1976 and $400 million fa 1977.
^ ^ ^J /"1"^*!SL?^5'^
Both; Nebo and Hail Creek project*. ™°»aran Coil and the MiirtaCmv.' .^
were, to su«>iy coal to Japanese steel
* > ^1''>L-,^^t*
mUb in the last mOs or early 1980s. ^J^?*^*? ^** Co*ly**^^y!<^^^^'
NeUhCr project has commenced or
is^^'^.^'H^^''^^]^}^:*^^
Ukely to commencefathe near futaie.
<f^ i"T fa 1976 by fiS ftjlghi j u ^ ^ .
tioos andvfa 1977 by Ut«h%f«feBBl,^fo
Naturally there is no foreseeable go ««goyAu8tiallMse|^^
^
- V
ahead on the Aiimkun bamdte mining Next year if will bt
t»jmmii^^\
and alumina tefioery project,
millicausfagdelaya. - r \ ^-^^^^:%
^
^ "*^'"J - ' ' C * <n
By-1988 we: are promiRid the< „
consttuctkin of i township and port" l^tett «>«* vasJth« Q«w»ff i8tto6d<%^
Corp, Biffiton Alumfaium (Aust), BU and Of course there Wan t^Vtiw<iWOre'^
Ahunlnliim Peduaey HohUngs Pty Ltd, «"«fa8 «wS pri^ect^at^a^trfiBlal^^tSrn e Value of thk project alsofacreaaedJ™n> the «a38l?^.*f^75Q0 ^miBlfa^t
dramaticaay from $250 millloQ fa i972GJ«^«n« Oii ««^ the coittillQweaaaiid
to $500 milponin 1975.
.
«ra»fam «ntkhment phmtiv i< .\,^v^> ' '
Joh also backed the Geoisc Stevens. Wial happened tpithB^Jl^^j
tourist complex at Currumbfa, a projfwt "^Fovementa to theBxia^aiMft«ii|Mrat«4^
esthnated at $135 miUion.
the$18 njJlUoflforT0W«i!0fi>t'-M^'<^5^
rhere IS no mention of thia develop'
* .>.'%> ^w ^S^Z ,
ment iface May 1974.
^ fetb»pi the ihO»tv iMnnIc, aoh^mtt # » ^
the PetesKn^Sancodc plana Sot M vtpifi^,
, Every couple of yearn we are promised Atwtralia tall Ifak with aa$o^^«d; irt**!^^.
the immediate go-ahead for the Glsdatone*»'ks, petrochemical plants at ei(h«it<
' ./
^ *'"*v
^K^«rv> "^>v.^ v^-<>< >
alumfafam smdter.
In 1972 a $100 miflion shale o0 and -|<,j, u^"-^ ttm^ttan of »<m««.t«l « t ^
pemonide pUint was proposed at i ^ ^ & m X c ^ 2 ^ ^ ^ ^{^"
Creek ^eral«lhyIiUa«llndj«rMW » W J J , ? ? o ^ ^
Pty L i d ^ jofat wntwe of CSR ltd •ndfie^ggT^V^fe^Sa a H S H M t ^ S I
" " S l t S ^ S ^ ' C ^ *" *?^; ^i^??**^A
the on ShaleCorofAnstV ^
"Tir»"
The Democrats: . how TO mokQ your
party swjnc
If there were a rational, honest alternative to the endless fund-raising and
poUcy-forming barbecues, the AustraUan
Democrats would be debatuig it now, but
with less levity than it is debathig the big
uranium questk>n, first on its priority
list.
Michael MackUn, the Queensland
Chairman of the AustraUan Democrats
may get tired of the wine and cheese
nights, but his enthusiasm for a rational,
honest and conciliatory government is undaunted.
"Our position on.uranium says no one
knows what wUl happen in the future. It
is an energy source fraught with
problems.
• "PoUtidans think they can. gain more
votes, not through conciliation and
discussion . . . but through .confUct, for
short-term poUtical gam. .
','iit the long-run, 1^ so\ys the.seeds to
reap iii years to come,'* he said.
IB?
If the Democrats have their way,
perhaps the people of AustraUa wiU be
given the choice of what future crops
they wiU reap from the present seeds of
the lu'anium questk>n.
Smce 1975, when former cabmet
minister Don Chipp was given a chair
right at the back of the Liberal backbench, where the press gaUery saw him
scowling down on the whole of the
Federal ParUament, there have been
moves to form a "central" party.
In his resignation speech in March
this year, the 52-year'Old former Liberal
"trendy" suggested that, the ordfaary*
voter might be yearning for "a thhrd
poUtical force, representing middle of the
road poUdes which would owe aUegiance'
to no outside pressure group."
Brian Costar, a senior tutor fa the
Government Diepartment at Queensland
University, was less optimistic about the
ordfaary voter's yearnings. .
.
He said, "The two major parties in
AustraUa occupy the nfiiddje ground
already, and each have a core support of
at least 30 per c e n t , . . even when Labor
did disastrously, in the '66 and "75
elections, it stiU had about 40 per cent of
the vote.
"No one denies that the AustraUan
Democrats' idea is a laudible aim, but it is
a conflict-oriented engme that drives the
parUament . .. institutionalised conflict,"
Brian Costar said.
Although the Democrats' candidates
have been told not to engage in attacks'
-on other parties, they are getting together for a fuU-scale attack at the
coming Queensland election.
Michael Macklin said that iney were
contestmg 15 seats from Czluc to Surfers
Paradise, and west to the Darlmg Downs..
The AustraUan Democrats are also putting up candidates m aU seats of the
Federal House of Representatives, and afuIl Senate team in aU States. With two new branches openmg every
week, that is a lot of barbecues and wme
and cheese nights, and perhaps Mr Chipp,
a former profesdonal runneri may be
carrying more than the weight of responsibUity.
Brian Costar suggested that the poUtical weight of the Australian Democrats,
depended on how they distributed and
received preferences from the major
parties; an issue which the Democrats
have not yet dedded.
•"If they can't disdpUne their preferences, then the voter would think 'I
can't be sure of getting anyofae elected."'
The Democrats have published a
iStatement of Intent for Queensland. In
large print at the end of the paper, the
words NOW IT IS UP TO YOU have been
underUned.
The Democrats' have been actively
seeking out minority groups in the
community to soUdt viewpoints and
opmions, but ther^ has been Uttle success
in fund-seeking.
. '
."We agreed," Michael Macklui said,
"that aU funding would be made pubUc,
and this has effectively stopped most of
it."
Bringing tilings out iiito the open,
Uke' the workings of. parliament, the
impUcations of the'uranium mining, and
• barbecues, is a basic part of the AustraUan * Democrats' phUosophy. But
AustraUa, which has aheady embraced
the open-air barbecue, and is how fa the
wine and cheese era, may not be ready to
back the middle .way! bd«s Grange
Hermitage go with sausages and sauce?
-
Helen Dash
sPage 11
• ^ ->.>.
V.Vv. •'.•.'.••
The following is an edited transcript of an mterview between Barbara Bowers of
4QR, and BUl Knox, Deputy Premier and leader of the Parliamentary Liberal Party.
It was broadcast on August 5 this year.
....
• Barbara Bowers: Mr Knox the Liberal
Party has never led the Government in
Queensland, whereas Labor with the
exception of a three year period, was in
power continually from the end of the
first world war to about 1956 and since
then the National Party has been the rul'
ing party. In the next State election do
you expect the situation to change and
why?
BiU Knox: No, I don't expect the situation
to
change.
The CoaUtion
Goveriunent of which I am the leader of a
partner in it wiU contmue and I imagine, I
thmk that aU the signs-are there that it
wiU. continue with the same basic relationship that exists now, and that is that
the National Party wiU be the major party
m the Coalition and the Liberal Party wUl
be the mmor party. But bear in mind that
wc work as equal partners in the Coalition.
Won't this bring about a bit of a prob'
lent now, for example with the Liberal
Party machine, they desperately want.to
win power-this came out, particularly in
the past two conferences, and some
would say that the fact that they have
now opted for three cornered contests is
virtually a last ditch stand to wrest the
power from the National Party, still
maintaining the Coalition but for the
Liberal Party to be the senior partner.
. . . . ..• .;•. . . . • . ' . .
But how does the Liberal Party stand
now, for example in the rural areassome people would see the Liberal Party
as not having a rural pohcy as it were, for
example now when Senator Woods
retires and his replacement came from
Brisbane-the north west and northern
areas of Queensland were very disappointed that there wasn't a greater representation from a rural area.
I thmk that's a conect interpretationthey were disappofated and it does give a
bad impression and it's a pity because
naturaUy the party was pickfag the man
rather than the geographic areas to be
represented and the others who submitted the names of many worthy people,
the party dedded, the party people
dedded, that the candidate who was
selected was the best of them. Now,
agreed, that this, creates poUtical
problems of lack of geographic representation. I do thfak the Liberal Party does
have this problem. You're quite right,
assessment of the electorate is that the
Liberal Party is the, a city party. But in
fact, of course, the Liberal Party holds
federaBy the territories which people are
claiming are not represented by Liberalsfa fact quite a lot of the Liberal Party
Federal Members hold areas which fadude large sUces of rural country.
Mr Knox, the most recent survey indiYes, weU the Liberal Party can earn its cated that the electorates saw the leaderright to be the senior party and has had • ship battle, in other words, who would
plenty of opportunities to do it. To lead the Government or who would lead
become the senior partner, if they're the opposition, has been between Mr
lookfag at it that way, when they have to Bjelke-Petersen and Tom Burns. J think
they havemore seats than we have, so the figures were something like Premier
that to wm the seata you have to wfa 38 per cent, Tom Burns 31 per cent and
them off the Labor Party, that's what yourself 11 per cent. Wouldn 't this seem
the National Party did. The National to indicate that the people, the voters in
Party won seats off the Labor Party and fact, don't really see the Liberal Party as
the Liberal Party did not and therefore being distinct and separate enough from
they have more seats than we have, wo (he National Party.
that the situation for the Liberal Party is
That is correct. They don't see us as
quite a healthy one, but at the same time
they have to run for a lot more seats than distfact nor do they see the National
they're cunentiy runnfag jfw. We will Party as befag distind from the Liberal
have to run very vigorously fa aU the Party. What those poUs revealed quite
seats that the Labor Party holds, at the clearly is what I've always been say fag.
The contest fa this election as far as
moment we're not, so that this makes it
very difficult for us to wfa Govemment. leaders are concemed is between the
"in terms of a partnership fa the Govem- Premier who is the Leader of the Govemment which I support and of which I'm
ment, we're aU out to wfa the seats.
Deputy Premier and the opposition led
Some would say that you are disadvan- by the ALP leader who has got the probtaged to a great extent in two ways, lem of an extreme left wfag support
around him-now that's the contestfirstly, you have the weighting of the
there's no contest as far as Knox is conrural electorates away from you. You
can't possibly win iii' tiiat drea and, cerned fa this election. Uhmmm, and the
Liberal Party's role fa this election is to
secondly, the ALP must gain after their
kst electoral disaiter-in other words wfa its seats.and to be an fafluential and
they have to. swing back and I think stable element fa the CoaUtion govemthey're saying in the area of something ment-if it wins enough seats it wlU have
like 43 per cent of the vote, which the major role.
means they're going to take back a lot of
Doesn't that bring you into a problem,
the urban seats that they lost and won't firstly, you're virtually saying that there
this eat further into one ofthe political, is little or no difference between the
parties, perhaps predominantly the Liberal Party and the Natiohal Party
Liberal Party, which is virtually an urban [Mr Knox interjected and said "that's
party?
correct} but doesn't it show from your
No that's not true. The situation is conferences that the Liberal Party
that probably the swfag is between 8 and machine would beg to differ with you
10 per cent; from the gaUup poUs that •extremely strongly foh yes, interjection
were held, which suggests that the Labor by Mr Knox} and they feel that there is a
Party must be very despondent about Liberal Party identity and that in essence
this. They have just finished a survey by being so closely allied to the National
which cost them enormous amounts of Party that the Liberal Party in Queensmoney, which shows that they can't wfa land is in danger of remaining forever the
back aU. the seats that they lost m the last junior partner,
State ciection. In fact, I'm quite confi. It wiD remifa forever the junior
deiit that a lot of people who won the partner for as long as they are not preparLabor seats, both from the National
ed to contest the seats that are available.
Party pofat of view and the Liberals, are
Now, it's the wfanfag of seats which
going to hold those seats safdy, regard- determines whether we become the
less of ledistiibution-it's got nothmg to
senior partner, not the winnfag of votes.
do with redistribution-it's simply "And this is so vital to the strategy fa this
because people have suddenly discovered
particular operation. Unfortunately, a lot
that Liberal candidates, or Liberal Mem- of people in the Liberal Party who thfak
bets and National Party Members perform this is the way to wfa Government are fa
better fa the dectorate and that they
fact causfag us to retreat from the situahave a .better^ rapport with Government tion which we ought to be ih.
than they've ever had, and the response
from the electorate is magnificent. I've
been to many of these electorates and I
People might ask though what then is,
can teU you now that many of these and perhaps you can tell us, what is the
members who won these difficult-scats difference between the Liberal Party and
are gofag to hold them.
_^
the National Party if you're asking people
to vote one way or the other.
WeU as far as censorship laws fa this
State are concemed, they have the
It is indistfaguishable-it is indis- complete support of the Liberal Party
tfagutshable, but poUcies are similar, we and are part of the Liberal Party phUohave virtuaUy no difference of policy-if sophy and poUcy. As far as the dmg
you saw us fa the one room you wouln't scene is concerned, the Liberal Party is
be able to teU which are Liberals and very hard on the drug scene es it should
which are National Party and this has be, and the Govemment is too-and
been one of the great success stories of that's Liberal Party poUcy. But if some,
CoaUtion govemment fa this country. people fa the community thfak Liberal
means smaU "1" Liberal, weU they better
The same applies of course to the Federal iffad another home for their votes becoaUtion. It is what has made it so strong cause that's not what has been the
and it's why it is gofag to contfaue m tradition of the Liberal Party fa this
State and it's never gofag to be because
office.
its poUcy is printed and decisions of
From what you've just said it sounds Conventions are set for every year, fadias if you're fairiy ready to accept the fact cate quite clearly it is not a trendy party
that you may in fact never be Premier of and it's not mterested fa way out situaQueensland.
tions. It is faterested fa providmg people
Not at aU. You see, it's not a question with good government, govemments are
of wfanfag debates fa pubUc that determ- there to govem; it's also interested fa
faes whether I become Premier or not, it's ensurfag people have the minimum of
a question of whether our Party has the faterference from Govemment, therefore
resources, the sustainfag abUity to wfa the bureaucracy level has to be lowered
electorates and this is so difficult for fa the community aU the time. It is very
people to understand. In this area where much fa favor of the mdividual being able
I'm sittfag at the mc-nent, it is regarded to do his own thfag without interferfag
as blue ribbon territory-if we got every with anybody else. And it certainly besfagle vote fa this electorate of Toowong Ueves that there should be community
FederaUy fa Ryan, if we got every sfagle standards in which those thfa^ should be
vote, it would be a prettyfaipressivevote aUowed to develop.
but it wouldn't wfa us an extra seat.
Finally, Mr Knox, out of the most
Mr Knox, when people look at the recent two Liberal Party conferences,
Liberal Party, they tend to expect Liberal what do you see going into the next eleC'
policies. Liberal in terms of small "l" tion as the best vote catcher for the
Liberal if you like, meaning Liberal. Liberal Party in that Slate election.
[Mr Knox interjected, "I hope not."}
I thfak the best-we don't reaUy look
• This is whaj I was going to say to youyes, the critics say it is not the Liberal at elections as vote catchfag situationsParty but in essence it's quite a conserva- but as far as gettfag the confidence of the
tive party and that one shouldn't look to people is concemed, the Liberal-Party is
the Liberal Party for the so-called pro- very very strong fa providing individual
gressive policies. Now how do you feel job opportunity fa the community and
about that as the Leader of a Liberal that's virtuaUy what it was based on,
founded on, and it's very strong on
Party.
support for the little people in the
WeU, if you mean progressive policies community, the fadividual family, the.
meanfag trendy poUcies, weU they're not smaU busfaessman, the community as a.
part of the poUcy of the Liber?! Party or whole is very strong and comes out of
the poUcy that I support.
pur conferences fa the last few years,
What about civil liberty, you know in very much so. Look at the education-,
gettfag back to basics of education rather
the area of a person's ability to do what
they want to do so long a it doesn't than gettfag into way out education
methods, is also of concern to the Liberal
infringe upon the rights of others.
Party, more emphasis is on the three Rs.
TTiat's part of the Liberal Party poUcy
There's a tremendous feeUng amongst
of course, but if you mean civil Uberties
Liberal Party people that left wfag
meaning close to anarchy which certafa
maiupulation of the trade union movecivU Uberties groups are proclaimfag weU
ment is to the detriment of the communithat's not on as far as we're concemed.
ty and to the fadividual-somethfag's got
/ think possibly when people talk to be done about it rather dramaticaUy,
about our present censorship laws and and this is a very very strong fecUng m
our State's approach for example to the the community and the Liberal Party,
current debate on marijuana and a and we aire gofag to do somethfag about
number of other things.
it both in the State and nationaUy.
The Imenfoffy dead^
The physically deocf,
Th&'near dead:
A review of the State Parliamentary
by Peter Walsh
If f told you that there was a glossy
covered expensive lookfag book circulatfag at ParUament House which fa spite of
its "respectable" cover, was fuU of vivid
color photographs of men and women fa
strange positions, with plenty of flesh
and lots of expUdt description, you
might thfak this a work of pomography.
If I then told you that the photographs are of Queensland poUtidans, fa
positions to which they were supposedly elected and that the flesh is mostly
spUlfag over enormous strafaed collars,
you might see no reason to change your
mind.
Whatever your opinion, the first
edition of the Queensland ParUamentary
Gygar, Terence Joseph
Handbook is out, and I suggest you jofa
the excited queues at your local MLA's
officer, so that the fasdnatfag document
This historic pubUcation was suggestcan take a place of pride fa your own ed to the ParUamentary Library Com•
Ubrary of treasures.
mittee by Mr T.J. Gygar, member for
Handbook
Stafford, and former Semper Floreat
(Gamut) correspondent.
Through his position as columnist for
"On the Left" fa those darker, more
shameful days of Semper Floreat, Mr
Gygar was regulariy permitted to advertise his ignorance of contemporary
affairs.
These days he can be seen givfag perfect demonstratfans of this pecuUar habit
from the floor of the Queensland Legislathre Assembly, where his speeches draw
admirfag applause from the elder statespersons of the House of Ignorance.
The fact that Gygar suggested the
pubUcation isfaterestfag.He was elected
to the august assembly fa the 1974 antiLabor avalanche. He knew that he would
probably not be returned.
Doubtless he reaUsed that^ fa Queensland, he would be assured of an enviable
place fa the State's contemporary history,
by haging his photograph appear fa the
UC
« . _ « ^ . . « , - ^ . ^ _ Page 12
little book which he suggested: : .' ..
Fortunately, readers may take solace
from the fact that this is Mr Gygar's
first and last ..appearance in the book.
Even under the old boundaries, Gygar
would have had a difficult time tryfag to
retafa his scat. The recent wicked redistribution however has effectively
vaporised thi tenuous security, along with
his seat. Mr Gygar is history. Bad luck
Terence. He may have to make another
appeal to the Law Faculty and become
a. student agafa.'
Look at the pretty pictures
The most cursory look at the photographs and captions fa the Handbook wiU
assure that if truth is beauty, and beauty
truth, neither wUl be aUowed to mterfere
with poUticians fa Queensland's ParUament. This is the rogues' gaUery.
The first portrait is that of EUzabeth
the Second, by the Grace of God Queen
of Australia and Her Other Realms and
Territories, Head of the Commonwealth.
No lepubUcans here, no.
This Is.foUowed by a reaUy curious
photo of His ExceUency, Governor
Ramsey,
His Excellency Commodore
Sir James Maxwell Ramsay
C.B.C., D.S.C.
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Frenchman Bernard
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Peugeot's 10th in the
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"^
There is a photo of Liberal Dr
Crawford, lookfag very sinister. I could
. mention that this surreal speciaUst has
advocated lobotomy for homosexuals,
believfag that just a Uttle nick fa the brafa
wiU guarantee permanent happfaess.
I could say that either he, or the only
other possessor of tertiary quaUfications
fa the Qld ParUament, Dr Scott Young of
TownsviUe, also beUeves that you can get
big breasts through smokfag marijuana. I
could say both these thfags, but, because
Dr Crawford has left the Liberal Party, I
.
won't.
•
C Y C L E S PEUGEOT
Distributed by:
Thomes Attkens
C Y C L E S nUSTRRLIFI
PROPRIETARY LIMITED
^ -Mr Tom Aitkens, kntiwri around the
House as the •T)emoh Dotard," and
rival with Mr Ch4ries Porter as.champion
mudsUnger fa the House, Usts goeid music
't>? one ,bf his faterests. This, claim is
Violentiy contradicted by anyone who has
.iieard the'walkfag antique madly waiUng
at thc'walls as he wonders dazed around
the House.'
aiiSi^Page*l3
Charles Robert Porter
Mr Porter is in friendly competition
with Mr Aitkens for the position of leading lackey to Joh-a sort of siipersycophantic aU time lowly one (Bill Knox
is runnmg a dose third). .
When Mr Cory (National Party) resigned his seat complafaing that he was
not prepared to do the "crawUng and
backbitfag" necessary to gafa a Cabmet
position, Mr Porter was outraged." The
nerve of him" he thought. "Why if anyone deserves a Cabmet position for
that, it's me! I've been doing it for 20
years!" And he's right of course. In fact,
Mr Porter, member for Toowong,
deserves our very special attenrion.
As leader of the derrier guarde known
as the "Ginger Group" fa the Liberal
Party, Mr Porter looks longingly back to
the Springbok days, as a sort of Golden
Era, when poUce couls bash protestors en
masse, and be congratulated for it up and
dowii the State. How he misses the way
we were. Nowadays when PoUce Commissioners see their faspecton viciously
flaiUng women students they actuaUy
order an mquiry! What sort of attitude
is that? Did she have a permit? I am
sure that Commissioner Lewis has provided him with at least some consolation.
Mr Porter is an Englishperson, probably one of the troublemakers whom Ian
Sinclair so detests. Like Mr Gygar he is
best known for his impersonations of
UNDER
H^yN
Jim KUlen, yet'even this ignomfaious,>
ambition seems too much:for him.
A failed Cabfaetaspirant Mr Porter has ,
been educated fa the Readers \)ip!<'
school of profound thought and rp^rds
himself (as KiUen probably doef^oo) as
somethfag of an arbiter eleg^tiae. This
concept must set Petroniu^"spfanfag fa
his grave"-one of t h e / j w memorable
phrases of Gerald Ford (does anyone
remember him?) commentfag on Nixon
Ukening himself to Lfacoln.
Mr Porter Usts his interests as "art":
I have it on good authority that this is
true-on the wall of his lounge room are
two pictures of those green Chinese girls,
with the eyes that foUow you around the
room.
Mr Porter prides himself on befag a
real "individual." Happily, this is also
true. There are, after aU, few people, let
alone poUticians, who could hope to
Hon. Thomas Guy Newbery
attafa fa one lifetime the kind'of elaborate stupidity that Mr Porter gleefully
Mr Thomas Guy Newbery, PoUce
acknowledges as his very own, finest
Minister, has a reaUy worried look. Tliis
quaUty.
is probably because the photographs were
taken just after the Cedar Bay atrocities.
jff'':^&^
Lookfag twice at
the stunnfag portrait I am fastantly
remfaded of WiUiam Cowper's desk
calendar aphorism: A mind quite vacant,
is a mfad distressed.
Hon. Russell James Hinze
I suspect that the portrait of Mr Russ
Hfaze is at least 10 years old-it may be
a black and white one which has been
cosmeticaUy colored. It could even be an
unearthed lithograph. Either way, for
some reason, Russ is missing the famiUar
third double chfa, which when he wears a
fez, combines so effectively for his
impersonations of Signor Ferrari (Sidney
Greenstreet) of Casablanca.
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bicycles, accessories, and
Vincent Patrick Lester
Vincent Lester, member for Belyando,
is an ex-baker who firmly beUeves (in
the 2Qth century) that "city people" owe
their Uves to "country people." How
wise. Mr Lester has recently been defending the meat pie and was pictured on the
front page of the Courier MaU with gravy
dribbling from the corner of his mouth.
There are many dying horses in his
electorate. He Usts his interests as;
"helpfag people, representfag my electorate, and travel-when feasible." All of
which means that the horses of Belyando
and the two human members of his
electorate are deffaitely going to receive
a copy of the stimulating handbook.
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Hon. Johannes Bjelke-Petersen
Surprisfagly enough Joh BjelkePetersen's entry in the handbook is
reaUy duU. He Usts his faterests as rural
pursuits-I thought he was a farmer. In
fact I'm sure it means that he is a farmer.
Certafaly not an animal lover.
He also Usts "physical culture."
CaUaghan must have been working overtime tryfag to dignify the names of the
most borfag, unfaspirfag, and simple
faterests (perfectly suitable for Joh) that
the world has known.
What the man .
does fa his spare time is stiU a mystery.
We know that he does not like reading"No, no, 1 Uke more practical thfags."
Hon. William Edward Knox
Blinky BiH Knox is allegedly the
Leader of the Liberal Party. This is why
he says: "There is an alternative Premier
in the Queensland parUament-he is the
leader of the Opposition, Tom Burns."
Real independent stuff. Mr Knox, a
Queen Scout, is President of the Outward Boudn Movement. 1 suspect that
after the next election he wiU be presented with opportunity to do a bit of
outward bounding. Mr Knox Usts his
faterests as debatfag-perhaps he debates
the latest Abba records with his kids over
the tea table. Certafaly he displays no
such interest in Cabinet meetfags. In fact
Joh apparently ffads Knox's Mickey
Mouse approach to the National Party
profoundly endearing.
This handbook contains portraits of
the physicaUy dead (Ivor Brown, Keith
Hooper), the"mentaUy dead"(Cabfaet),
and the'near dead''(Aikens). To be fair,
Aikens deserves to share the second
category with Cabfaet. Given this, if the
Law Reform Commission actuaUy fastitutcs the reform that "when the brafa
ceases to function" someone is legaUy
dead elections wUl have to be held
immediately. No doubt a doctor wiU be
urgently despatched to the Queensland
ParUament with a great wad of such
certificates. It may even be necessary to
empower the good medico to date them
retrospectively. No other legislation could
so effectively reduce the numbers fa the
House of Ignorance except perhaps the
Prevention of Corruption Act which
exists in India. Anyone who has visited
the House when it is sittfag (a rare
privUege-it has the lowest sitting record
of any Legislative Chamber in the
Western worid) could not faU to notice,
that when the Speaker says "I ask aU
Honorable Gentlemen to return to their
seats" no one moves.
The corruption issue highlights one of
the real paradoxes of government fa this
state. We actuaUy have no right to caU the
National/Liberal group in power, the
government. Whilst we elect them to
actively govern, rather than just preserve
what has existed, they leave the tedious
and unconvenient task of government to
the pubUc servants. MeanwhUe they
electioneer-they
are
professional
electioneers, spending most of their time
and a lot of our money runnfag three
year election campaigns. They are
reluctant to take any goveming initiatives
because they actuaUy regret that Governments exist to take what Uttle taxes they
pay anyway.
However, the one great area of adventure and mitiative is fa corruption. 19th
century Uberals (like Jim KiUen, who is
horrified to ffad hunself fa the 20th
century and refuses to acknowledge this)
are fond of quotfag Lord Acton's most
famous dictum: Power tends to corrupt,
and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
There are two ways of reactfag to a
review of this gatherfag of men and
.women who arc supposed to "represent"
us-a disgustfag thouglit indeed.
One is anger. It is clear that parUamentary democracy, not religion, is now
the opiate of the people. Voltaire, reflecting upon his own corrupt and uncaring
CathoUc Church fa the 18th century,
said "Tear it down." Lookfag at the
disgraceful coUection of entrenched manipulators fa this handbook, I am tempted
to say the same of the Queensland
ParUament.
Another reaction? There is dways
despair. Queensland politics is a niglitraare from which I am trying to awake.
Page 14
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•AUSTRALIA'S NUCLEAR
FUTUfiE
Nuclear Dump of the World
(LEGAL ACTION BEGINS
AGAINST THE URANIUM
PRODUCERS FORUM ADS
# WHY THE NUCLEAR FUU.
CYCLE THREATENS OUR CTWL
LIBERTIES
SOLAR ENERGY AND JOBS
Solution to Unemployment?
'page 2 5 5
Editorial
This special edition of The Cane Toad Times is being published, as the
Uranium Producers' forum would say, in the public faterest. The articles in it
contain the most up-to-date and wide rangmg mformation on the perils of a
committment ot the mining and export of uranium. It also contains information on
energy alternatives.
We regard the Fraser Government's decision to export uranium as being
hasty. The document published to justify this decision, "Uranium -Australia's
Decision" is , in our view, a remarkably unimpressive pastiche of flimsy
aiguments • (Read the artkrlc below, written by a former Research Officer to the
Ranger Enquiry.)
The Fox Report proposed two strategies to the Govemment. Either to precede
with the gradual and carefiil development of uranium mining, or a moratorium on
mining until the nuclear industiy is more able to solve the vast technical and social
problems it creates -the disposal of radioactive waste, the threat of nuclear
proliferation, the threat of nuclear terrorism, the problem of reactor failure and
the environmental release cf radioacth^ity. We support the Moratorium, but
believe as well that the development of altemative energy sources is an urgent
prwrity.
The publishers'would like to thank all the members of the collective who
produced this issue. It was a truly altruistic production.
IMuion l*«ll
The Uranium Producers Forum has again sought to mislead the Australian people.
They claim that two tWrds of the community are in favor of uranium mining but
they rigged the questions to show an upswing of support for their attitude.
The conservative "weekly, the Bulletin, reported poll findings which refute the
Forum claims. On August 10 the journal said:
Public support for the mining of uranium is falling. Now only 47% of people are
still in favor of mining, a drop of 3% compared with the result obtained from the same
question asked just prior to the ALP national conference in Perth.
The Morgan Gallup Pol! referred to recorded the following results:
Develop uranium
Leave uranium in the ground
Undeckled
197S
JUNE
1976
JUNE
1977
JUNE
1977
JULY
62
25
13
58
29
13
SO
33
17
47
36
17
FRASER MISREPRESENTS FOX REPORT
P2
TECHNOLOGICAL PARADISE VS THE REAL WORLD P3
•—a chronology of accidents
IS ANY RADIATION SAFE
P4
RADIOACTIVITY IN THE FUEL CYCLE
P5
AUSTRALU'SROLE
we re in for the entire fuel cycle
WASTE DISPOSAL
THE MEANEST MARCH
nuclear proliferation
P^
OO IT YOURSELF ATOMIC BOMB
P6
P^
P7
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON NUCLEAR POWER P8
how much do you know?
WHY NUCLEAR FUEL THREATENS CIVIL
PIO
LIBERTIES
noted British Civil Liberties lawyer GeoffRobertson explains
Pll
LEGAL ACTION AGAINST THE URANIUM
PRODUCERS'FORUM ADS
NEEDS AND WANTS
P12
energy resources, energy usage, energy efficiency
JOBS AND ENERGY
P13
SOLAR POWER IN AUSTRALIA
SMALL IS BEAUTIFUL
obituary E.F. Schumacher
WHAT CAN YOU DO
P14
P15
P15
FKAKEK AIISKGPKGSEaiTS
1
niX lUiilHHn
ment of May 24 and again last Thursday,
The former research officer to the Ranger Uranium Environmental Inquiry, Dr
the Government has seriously misrepreHugh Saddler, discusses the.govemment's misrepresentation of the state of the nuclear
sented another crucial findingin the First
industry and the findings of the Ranger Inquiry in supporting Its decision to mine and
Report of the Ranger Inquiry. The
export uranium.
Government's proposed system of bilateral and multilateral treaties to prevent the
Dr Saddler was research officer to the Ranger biquiry from November 1975 till
misuse of Australian uranium will only be
May 1977. He is now a Research FeDow in the Centre for Resource and Environeffective to the extent that IAEA promental Studies at the Australian National Unh^eisity.
cedures to detect diversions of nuclear
press ahead regardless. In any case, the
material are effective. Mr Sinclair called
There are two general reasons for conpolicy is seriously flawed in that once a
these procedures "the second cornercountry has obtained spent reactor fuel,
cern about the Government's decision to
stone of the Government's policy." Yet
proceed immediately with mining and
containing plutonium, it does not need a
the Ranger Inquiry found that they were
commercial reprocessing plant,, costing
export of Australia's uranium. Firstly, in
gravely defective (sec First report- pp
arguing that Australia must start to
hundreds of millions of dollars to extract
I48-49) and the IAEA itself has made
export as soon as possible in order to help
the plutonium to make bombs, but can
similar admissions on many occasions
do it with a laboratory scale plant costuig
prevent the spread of nuclear weapons
during the last two yearr, including one as
and to meet urgent energy needs, the
a few tens of millions of dollars.
recently as last May. . .
government has gravely misrepresented
The question of reprocessing also
the state of the international nuclear
exposes a very serious contradiction in
Urgent need?
power industry and ignored several key
the Government's whole position on
findings of the Ranger Inquiry. Secondly,
waste disposal, which 1 would be happy
I now want to say something very
with respect to control over the uranium
to amplify later.
briefly about the second reason given by
industry in order to protect the natural
The Prime Minister has also stated that
the Prime Minister in his polky speech
and social environment of the Alligator
an immediate commitment to export
tor his Government's decision-the sup-r
Rivers region, the Govermnent has
uranium is essential if Australia's voice is posed need of other countries for Austraclaimed that it has either adopted the
to be heard in international discussion on
lia's uranium. This is in coipplete contrarecommendations of the Ranger Inquiry
preventing nuclear proliferation. I find it
diction to the finding'of the Ranger In-,
or adopted alternatives that will achieve
hard to believe that, if the Governments quiry "that it is incorrect to suggest that
the objectives of the Inquiry; I believe
of potential customer countries need
there are energy impoverished nations
this latter claim to be incorrect in respect
AustraUan uranium as urgently as the which need Australian uranium for
of several crucial decisions.
Prime Minister :and Mr Anthony claim, survival" (p'164). Since that was written,
those Govemments would not welcome about 12 months ago, there have been
Australian participation in discussions dramatic downward revisions of the
Weapons proliferation
with the aim of unproving the situation capacity of nuclear power stations
Turning first to the international
to the point where Austraiia felt justified likely to be operating in 1985 throughaspects and the question of controlling
in exportuig.
out the world (excluding the Communist
nuclear weapons proliferation, the
That such a situation has not yet been countries) froin about 44Q;0QO megaGovernment's argument
that
this
reached
can readily be demonstrated. In watts to about 240,000 megawatts, fe to
objective would, be furthered by the
his
statement
Mr Sinclair referred to little more than half.
export of Australian uranium seems to
Those few countries. which' do not
Australian.
obligations
under the Nondepend chiefly on the fact that this is in
Prolifecation Treaty and stated that "it already have firm contracts for all the
accord wilh the policy announced by
would . . . be a fundamental error to uranium they will need up to that thne
President Carter on April 7 last. The aim
suppose
that uranium export and the should have no difficulty at all in obtainof this policy is to discourage countries
objective of iion-proliferation are incom- ing it without turning to Australia.
from turning to repro?cssing of speiit
patible." However, in its first Report the Nobody would suffer if Australia delayed .
fuel and the fast breeder reactor, that is
'
Ranger Inquiry stated that there were real its decision to export a few years.
to the plutonium economy, by providing
To summarise my points so far. •
conflicts in the aims of the Treaty and
adequate and timely supplies of uranium.
Both in the Ministerial statement on
were "a serious threat to the viability of
So far this policy has been notably
IAEA and NPT safeguards." Nothing has August 4 and ui the Prime Minister's
unsuccessful. None of the countries with
happened since those words were written speech August 28 the Government has
a commitment to achieving reprocess. tried to present the. options as either'
to alter the situation.
ing and fast breeder technology have said
In formulating Its safeguards policy as iinmedlate mining or.a permanent refusal
they would consider renouncing it;
explained
in the Prime Minister's state- to supply. I believe that a third option,
most have said quite plainly that they will
a moratorium for several years, which was
extensively discussed in the Ranger
Inquiry Reports, would be far more likely
to achieve the objectives of reducing the
risk of nudear weapons proUferation,
without causing any hardship to countnes
which may wish to buy Australian
uranium.
Sequential development
The Inquiry recommended that mines
in the AlUgator River region should be
started sequentiaUy. There were a number
of reasons for this-to ameliorate the
effect on the aboriginab by controlling
the build-up of white people in the region
to a slow rate; to avoid excessive pressures on the very limited social and
economic resources of the Northern
Territory; to reduce cumulative environmental impact. Qearly, to be effective in
achieving these aims, the sequential
development would have to be spread
over some years. The Government has
completely overturned tliis recommendation. The unplanned type of sequence it
has referred to might involve intervals of
only a few months, and this certainly
seems to be the view of the mining
companies according to press reports I
have seen.
The Inquiry also recommended that
tbe Noranda project at Koongarra not be
allowed to proceed at least for the time
being and stressed repeatedly the need to
confine mining for some time to come to
the Magcla Creek catchment, thereby
excluding Koongarra, the site of which
would become part of the National Park.
The Government's policy completely
overturns this very important"recoimmen:
dation by excising Koongarra ftom the
Park and placing it on the same basis as
the other, proposals, with shnply a sUght
handicap.
.
Two other areas where I believe the
Government has seriously misrepresented
the findings and recomihendations of the
Inquiry concern the employment generat. ed .by a uranium mining industry and the
use ofthe Atomic'.Energy Act for the
grant of an authority to the Ranger
Company to mine uranium.
••^"•—JL: ' ' . t ,
^ i ^ ; * » . > ' . H . •-•«-?
page3=s;
Hie Kesil Wiiriil
The Australian Atomic Energy Commissioif has confirmed fhat a former
employee died in April this year from
leukemia. The Commission admitted
liability, and compensation has been
granted to the man's family. The man's
name has been withheld. A Sydney newspaper rerpotcd that the man had died of
leukemia after being accidently exposed
to radiation at the Commission's nuolpar
reactor site at Lucas Heights, south of
Sydney. The general manager of the
Commission said the, employee's job
"involved exposure to low levels of
radiation," but denied that any accidental exposure had occurred. Professor
D.W. George, the Commission's chair-'
man, claimed he had not been told of the
compensation payments.
At least two cases of genetic abnormality have occurred in children of
Lucas Heights workers, writes Dr R.
Peers of Brunswick (Age, July 27, 1977).
.\ man who worked at the Mary
Kathleen Uranium (MKU) mine for 12
months in 1976-77 now has terminal lung
cancer, Labor MP Barnett told the WA
parliament. In a statutory declaration,
Mr Bill Webb said his work involved
sorting uranium and working in the
yellowcake drier. He became ill on the
job, and lost more than six kilograms in
weight. An Inland Medical Service doctor,
who was summoned by the company,
diagnosed "bronchitis bordering on
pneumonia," but said he was well enough
to continue work. The illness continued.
When Mr Webb left MKU in March this
year, he had a final medical examination
and x-ray and was passed as fit. But tests
carried out on Mr Webb at the Royal
Perth Hospital in July showed he had
cancer. Doctors told him he has three
months to live. In the declaration, Mr
Webb said the company had repeatedly
refused to return his medical records to
him.
The biggest disposal area in the world
is at Hanford, Washington. It encloses a
stretch of the Columbia River and a tract
of country covering 650 square miles.
The radioactive liquid vyastes are kept
in tanks constructed of carbon steel
resting in a steel saucer to catch any
leakage. They are enclosed in reinforced
concrete and the whole construction is
buried-in the ground„\yith only.the.vents
showing. Each tank lias a million gallon
capacity.
The liquid boils from its own radioactivity so there must be a continuously
maintained cooling system in each tank.
In addition, the vapors generated in the
tanks have to be condensed and scrubbed;
otherwise, radioactive gas would escape
from the vents.
More than half a million gallons have
leaked from the storage tanks at Hanford,
with the more recent leaks being the
larger ones-70,000 gaUons three years
ago and 115,000 gallons last July.
Tlie tanks themselves are 20 to 30
years old, and a report from their civilian
contractors in conjunction with the
Illinois Institute of Technology states
that "the self-boiling tank structures are
being stressed well beyond accepted
design limits."
for
APPLIANCES for
Self-.Sufficiency
Contact Hans Schwabe
Toowoomba Ph (076) 30 3192
They also postulate the life span of the
tanks at 30 to 40 years at the outside.
The 500.000 gallon leak, nearly
one-third of the 29-year old tank's
contents-was not discovered for several
days and released pluconium, strontium90 and cesium direclly into the ground.
Despite the AEC's assurances to the
contraiy, there has been contamination
of the Columbia River partiaUy resulting
from Hanford's practice of dumping
diluted waste directly into the water. A
1969 study showed that eating half a
pound of duck from the Hanford reservation would result in an exposure three
times the present permissible federal
limit.
People who swim, sunbathe or waterski on the Columbia could obtain a dose
of 53 mUlirems-10 times the dose the
AEC says it will put into effect as a
standard for nuclear power plant workers
sometimes this year.
Edward J. Gleason was a dock worker
living in Cliff wood Beach, New Jersey.
On January 8, 1963, while he was handling a shipment at the Eaior Express
Trucking Terminal in Jersey City,
Gleason noticed that one of the boxes in
the shipment was leaking, lie had handled
leaky shipments before, so without
thought he simply tilted the box onto a
handcart and took it to the loading dock.
When the leak began forming a puddle,
Gleason turned the^box over; as he
grabbed it wilh his bare left hand, the
liquid came into contact with his skin.
The dripping ceased and, at the suggestion of the terminal manager, Gleason
covered the puddle with sawdust. The
shipment, originating from the Nuclear
Materials and Equipment Corporation
(NUMEC) plant in ApoUo, Pennsylvania,
had been improperly packaged, improperly transported, and improperly
labeled. It was not untU much later that
Gleason learned that the box he had
handled contained a glass jug of a
solution of chemicals contamuiated with
plutonium.
Three years later Edward Gleason
developed cancer on his left hand, which
finaUy required amputation. Doctors then
had to amputate his arm and shoulder m
successive attempts to arrest the cancer.
Cobalt treatments were initiated, but the
cancer continued to spread, and in
February 1973 he died. The medical
evidence is "overwhelming" that Edward
Gleason was kiUed by plutonium.
• in January 1961, three young
servicemen
John
Byrnes,
Richard
McKinley, and Richard Legg had been
detailed to reassemble the control rod
drives after the reactor had been shut
down for some work on instrumentation.
The function of the control rods are to
either shut down or reduce the rate of
nuclear fission. Later investigations into
the accident suggest that the control rods
got
stuck
and
Legg
and Byrnes tried to heave them up
manuaUy, and tliey came too far out of
the reactor core. The result was catastrophic. The reactor core went supercritical, the fuel fried itself, and the
resulting steam explosion blasted a
virtually soUd plug of water at the roof of
the reactor. The reactor vessel rose three
metres, right through the pile cap.
Legg and McKinley were killed instantly. McKinley's body was impaled in the
ceiling structure. Byrnes was cul down
by a withering dose of radiation. The
radiation dose metres were reading off
scale. Recovery of the bodies was carried
out with remote handling gear. All three
bodies remained so radioactive that 20
days elapsed before they could be
handled for burial. They were buried in
leadUned caskets in Ic'adlincd vaults.
Meanwhile back at the accident site it
was to be many months before radiation
levels were low enough to allow investiIn one incident in the States damage gation into what had happened.
to fauna from radium could be traced 50
miles down river from the Durango
uranium mill, Colorado. The radium had
On March 22, 1975 a meltdown was
come from the liquid and sUme milling barely averted at the Browns Ferry twin
wastes. Radiation levels were 500 times nuclear reactor in Alabama.
greater than the background level. 30,000
An electrician and liis assistant were
people live along the banks of this river checking air flow through wall penetrathere and use the water primarUy for tions for cables, by holding a candle next
drinking and irrigating their farms. to the penetration. The candle ignited
Radiation accumulates in the food chain some foam plastic packing. The electriand flora and fauna in the area were cians could not extinguish the fire but the
found to contain uranium concentrated plant operator noticed the temperatiu-e
100 to 10,000 times that found in the rise and flooded the room with carbon
water. The farmers crops which were dioxide. It didn't help. The fire was
irrigated
with
the
radioactive spreading along the cables into the
waters of the Animas river were found to reactor building. When erratic readings
have radium concentrated in the order of began to appear on the controls the
100-fold and this is passed on to plant operator pressed the manual scram
lifestock, then inevitably to us as we have button which shuts down the fission
the honored end of the food chain. reaction in the reactor. Tlie fire raged
You can't smeU it, see it, or taste it, for seven hours and knocked out aU five
and it has no qualms about entering the emergency cooUng systems on unit one.
food chain.
It was potentially the most serious incident in the industry's history.
• The Japanese government spent nine
years and $50 miUion on a prototype
nuclear powered cargo vessel. She was
christened Mutsu after her home port.
Local fishermen were oeeply suspicious, and afraid that radioactive
discharge from the Mutsu would damage
their fisheries.
Although the Mutsu was ready for sea
trials in 1972, pubUc opposition prevented her saUing. For two years the
opposition stopped the Mutsu's trial.
On August 25 a typhoon forced the
blockade of 250 smaU fishing craft that
were keeping her prisoner to run for
shelter, and the Mutsu was able to sUp
out into the bay under auxiliary power.
Once on the high seas, the reactor was
brought to criticaUty; but as power was
increased a radiation leak w ^ detected,
relatively minor, but nevertheless a leak,
and it occurred when it was operating at
only 2 per cent of its capacity. Efforts
were made to plug the leak firstly with
, bailed rice mixed with boron and when •
that was unsuccessful, old socks caihe to
the rescue and were used in the repair
attempt. Because of pubUc opmion the
crew feared for their safety if they
attempted to return to port with the
leaking reactor housing, it was .45 days
before they were aUowed to retum to
an isolated northern harbor. Oovernment
attempts to seU the ship have failed. They
are now considering giving the ship away,
most likely to Saudi Arabia or Brazil.
* The Fermi plant 30 miles from
Detroit suffered a "partial cote melt"
in the last '60s. "A month foUowed
during which no one knew whether
Detroit would have to be evacuated."
It took more than a year to dismantle
the core.
* In the fhst four months of 1976 there
were 56 accidental releases of radioactive material from commercial reactors.
On October 5 1977 a road accident U't
Colarado USA scattered 19 tonnes of
powdered uranium oxide along the
highway. Two truck drivers were taken to
hospital to sec whether thye had been
contaminated.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission
said the uranium had been in 50 steel
drums that were pierced or crushed in the
accident. Emergency steps were taken
around the scene of the accident to prevent dispersion of the uranium.
The team removing the uranium
powder with hand shovels had to wear
protective clothing. Mechanical shovels
could not be used for fear of spreading
contamination. The material belongs to
the Exxon Corporation and was bcin^
shipped for processing.
I page
Is aiiY rsidisif iiHi safe ?
An increasing body of scientific thought believes there is no
such thing as a'safe dose of radiation.
Since the beginning ofthe 'Atomic Age' radiation levels have
increased markedly. As each new reactor becomes operational,
routine releases of radiation into the biosphere pose an
increasingly serious threat to public safety.
It has been estimated that in the U.S. alone, up to 1.5 million
radiation induced fatalities would x>ccur if the public was
exposed to the internationally recognised 'safe' dose.
Originally
"acceptable" radiation
safety limits were set up by the US
Federal Radiation Council in 1959 with
Uttle experience and without adequate
weU-developed statistical data.
Studies of the survivors of the atom
bomb blasts at Hiroshima and Nagasaki
havfc raised doubts about radiation safety
standards adopted throughout the world.
Survivors now show a much lower
incidence of diseases of all kinds than
the population of Japan as a whole. This
indicates that they are geneticaUy tougher
than the average-the reason they r'^
survived the holocausts.
Health studies of these people have
been the major source of inforlhation
about radiation effects on humans and are.
the yardstick by which standards of
safety are set.
If the survivors turn out to be more
resistant to the effects of radiation than
the average person it means that what
have been regarded as acceptable levels
are set too high and the health impact of
radiation has been seriously underestimated.
Prof. J. Rotblat, a leading radiation
physicist, compared the survivors with
rescue workers who entered Hiroshima
and Nagasak after the blasts. They were
exposed to lower levels of radiation left
in the areas-induced radiation and radioactive dust.
His findings strongly suggest the higher
incidence of leukemia in this group com-,
pared to the survivors of the direct dose.
The results imply a sensitivity in the
general population five times that of the
bomb survivors on whom the exposure
standards are based.
The whole concept of a "safe" level of
radiation is in doubt. No one has ever
produced evidence that any specific dose
of radiation wiU be without harm. The
nuclear manufacturing industry, the
electric utility industry and government
agencies lead us to believe there is a safe
dose of radiation.
Dr Gofman (inventor of processes of
plutonium separation) and Dr TampUn
both internationaUy known for their
research into the effects of radioactivity
on the environment and especiaUy
humans, in their book Poisoned Power
smash this idea.
Both were assigned by the US Atomic
Energy Commission in 1963 to assess the
cost in human disease and death for pro-'
posed nuclear energy programs, they
estimated that there would be an excess
fo 32,000 cases of fatal leukemia and
cancer (each) every year if the average
exposure of the US population was the
legaUy "safe" dose of .17 rads per year
.'-.0: >.0c H?Jr^
^ !
aiscase. The real genetic hazard problem
extends between ,50-100 per cent of aU
causes of death.
Thus radiation standards were set with
an linder-cstimation of genetic hazard by
SO to 100 times.
_. It has been wrongly assumed that
there is a hazard threshold under which
radiation levels are safe, ie wUI not cause
cancer, genetic damage, etc. "Legally
permissable" has been confused with
"safe" by the industry and the public.
Mi<;—..>,
r
What is of concem is the amount of
radiation in the ecosphere. Normal
functioning of reactois will add significantly to the effects.
The Producers Forum taUcs of the
safety of sitting next to a nuclear power
plant but ignores concentration in the food
average (the US Federal Radiation
The linear theory of radiation hazard
-Council guideline).
is generaUy accepted by scientists
The Gofman-TampUn estimate of concemed with radiation-ie if 100
genetic deaths from exposure to "allow- rad produces 10 cancer deaths then 10
able" doses of radiation is 150,000 to rads wUl produce one death.
1,500,000 extra deaths per year for a
Because radiation concentrates in the
population of 300 miUion people.
food Cham and is cumulative any mcSince the standards were set it has crease in the amount of radiation to
been discovered that most of the major which we are exposed is dangerous. The
kiUing diseases of humans have a genetic human population already receives .130
component. OriginaUy when radiation rads from natural background radiation
hazard levels were,set the kinds of genetic and .118 rad from artificial sources
injury that cause death were though to be (especiaUy medical equipment), and this
only the smgle gene diseases such as estimate ignores radioactive faUout from
hemophiUa, gactosemia and other rare atmospheric testing.
diseases. It is now knovvn that most major
Natural and medical radiation produce
kUling diseases of humans have a multi- cancer and genetic harm, in direct pifiporgene component, eg coronary • heart tion to the dose received
Organic fruits, veges. nuts,
grains, beans.
Macrobiotic goods.
Wholemeal bread, cakes,
lentil pies, fruit juices
Spices, herbs & teas
Distilled H2O
Sprouts & sprouting fars
Goats Milk & free range
Grinders & hand juicers
•
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HEALTH FOODS
rtutlt
f/oh«^^ mdassas
cold pressed oils; soya cauce
Incense sticks, oils;
Indian shirts, yoghurts.
. home male garlic spr&td
and tofii. vegegarlm cheese •
New Age books imagaztnes
Even if releases at the perimeter of a
reactor were at the AEC permissable
value, radionucleides that can go through
the forage to cow to milk to humans
results in enormous multipUcation of
radiation dose in humans. Similarly water
effluent at release point from a reactor
may make the water "drinkable" by
NRC standards at 500 mUlirem, but the
fresh water to fish pathwav can concentrade radioactivity lOOO-fbfl or more,
therefore fish from this water cannot be
eaten
without
grossly
exceeding
"tolerance" levels.
These dangers do not even take into
account (as the NRC doesn't) significant sources of exposure-accidental
reactor releases, accidental release during
transport, releases and accidental releases
at fuel reprocessing plants, releases from
low and intermediate level waste releases
and burial in, the .environment, releases
from storage, .burial or other final
disposal of the astronomic level of wastes
left after fuel reprocessing and accidental
releases through sabotage at any step in
the entire fuel and waste cycles.
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Energy and LIFE AlfernafWes
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*
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During the normal operation of nuclear reactors of the conventional
(thermal) variety certain radioactive gases
and volatUe radioisotopes escape or are
released directly into the environment,
according to the "standards" for permisable concentrations.
These releases cannot faU to exacerbate the number of deaths caused by radiation.
Dr Irwin Bross of New York State's
anti cancer research faciUty has completed studies showing that low level
radiation causes genetic damage to workers at nuclear power pla nts-preconception damage occurs at dosages inside the
NRC's permissable range-a dose workers
are exposed to.
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• S page 5;
KSMlUtacttvitv III tlic Cycle
Radioactivity is nothing new on this
planet. We are constantly being bombarded with natural "background" radiation.
There are tlu-ee different kuids of radiation.
1 Alpha radiation which is emitted
from soil and rocks. The most dangerous
manufactured sources is the nuclear
reactor fuel plutonium. Although these
electrically charged radiating particles
can't be absorbed through the skin, if
they are inhaled or ingested they can
cause fatal damage to tissues.
2 Beta radiation,-again it is emitted
from the earth, from minerals such as
uranium, thorium and their radioactive
daughters, These rays are also emitted
from television monitors and can be
stopped by a sheet of metal put in their
path.
3 FinaUy there is gamma radiation,
which is by far the most penetrating
radiation. It has no problem penetrating the human body. Its major source is
the sun, umnium, thorium and their
daughter products. People also contribute to their exposure to gamma rays
by the use of medical and dental x-rays.
However in such cases we have decided
that the benefits outweight the risks of
exposure.
Humanity's present use of radiation
does not negate the fact that ALL
RADIATION IS POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS, Of all animals on this earth-,
humans are the most sensitive to the
effects of radioactivity. The human fetus
is 50 times more sensitive than its
parents.
Radiation does its damage by emitting
highly charged particles that tear electrons from other atoms rendering them
unstable. Its effect on human cells is that
it tears into molecules that make up the
DNA which is the genetic material that
controls the functions of the ceU. In
damaging the genes instead of getting
two daughter cells when the cell reproduces the ceU goes haywire and produces
billions of cells which become a tumor.
We know this frightening phenomenon as
cancer. The mutant cells are extremely
virUe and the cancerous tumors they form
cause very painful deaths.
It has the same effect on .the genetic
material in the sex celts, the controllers
of the creation of a human life. Damaged
reproductive cells (ovum and sperm)
don't affect you but they produce deformities in your children. Through
modem medicine these deformities are
preserved to be passed on through the
generations, and remain in the gene
pool, thus continually increasing the
proportion of mutants in the population.
Natural background radiation with its
gene mutating potential, along with the
"survival of the fittest" principle has been
responsible for determining'evollition. We
have survived in spite of it', not because of
it. We have evolved with a-tolerance'to
natural levels of radiation, although it is
thought that background radiation is
ah'eady responsible in whole, or in part,
for the majority of non-accidental deaths
in the United States (eg leukemia and
cancer).
Now we are proposing nuclear power.
This poses serious, very serious, threats
to tolerable radiation levels. The imminent danger that our TVs, electric can
openers and toothbrushes may black
out, we demigod human beings have
decided to risk our lives and future
generations to keep the technological
wizardry buzzing. To the crazies who
hold the power, the solution lies in the
nuclear fuel cycle. I want to now put
before you a picture of the fuel cycle
and the potential dangers to the environment and ultimately human beings.
Uranium mining
• First you dig the uranium out of the
ground, this is known as- uranium 238
and along with it coines radon gas. If in
the normal course of breathing you inhale
some radon gas, and a speck lodges in
your lung, a microscopic speck is
enough, sometime in the next 15-40 years
you may surprise yourself by coughing
up blood. This is the first you wiU know
that you have lung cancer. The cause Ues
dormant for 15-40 years.
We know from Hiroshima, something
of the pattern. The bomb was droppitd
t=
^and nothing happened to many of those
who survived for about five years. Then
leukemia began to emerge. Leukemia
increased five times over the normal
proportion. Doctors now go to Hiroshima to study leukemia and cancer.
Fifteen years later cancer started to
appear as soUd tumors in breast, bowel
and lung. It is now 30 years later and the
number of cancer victims is rising year by
year. The number still has not peaked.
From the time of irradiation we don't
know what maximum time is needed to
produce the maximum amount of
cancers. The incidence of cancer in
Hirosliima has doubled and is stiU growing.
In America some years ago, men were
mining uranium underground. Radon gas
is heavy and unfllterable and accumiUates
down mines. Studies showed that one
man in five died of cancer.
In a Canadian mine where the concentration was particularly high one man in
two died of cancer. Every second man.
"All miners should wash their hands
and faces before eating,"
How weU does this safety precaution
work?
"Ah well it takes a long time to teach
the men these things" is the management's reply.
.
Dr Helen Caldicott, and AustraUan
pediatritian with a special interest in
radiation, spoke to the men at Mary
Kathleen. At first they were hostile,
having never been informed by a doctor
as to the potential hazards of radiation.
When she had finished speaking miners
lined up for two hours to ask questions.
Three men resigned, three others discovered that they have high levels of
radiation in their urine.
It is farcical to think that by "encouraging miners to wash hands and
faces" you are insuring their lives
against cancer and leukemia.
defects Ul babies bom in the area and 50
per cent increase in congenital anomolies.
It is estimated that at maximum it
wiU cost $35 miUion doUars to correct
the situation. Federal assistance is $5
miUion.
At Port Pine in South Australia
about a year ago it was discovered that
dumps of taiUngs were radioactive.
Sixty acres oi the stud. Meanwhile the
children in the area saw potential in the
area so built themselves a cricket pitch
on it. They also had a good game of
rolling around inside barrels that had
contained thorium.
Enrichment
Uranium as it is mined (yeUowcake) is
mostly uranium 238. By a process caUcd
"enrichment" the concentration of
uranium 235 is increased from 0.7 to 3
per cent to make it a usable fuel. After
enrichment the remainder of the material
is waste and continues to give
radon
gas for thousands of years.
Reactors
The next step in the nuclear cycle is to
M
. -1 \
In Australia, mining companies such as
Con-zinc Riot into and Ranger Uranium
Mining maintain that the open cut
uranium mine proposed wUl be safe from
radon gas problem as the wind will
disperse it. But radoii is heavy and wiU
hang around in the bottom of trenches.
You'd have to mine in a cyclone to
minimise the danger!
Radon has a half Ufe of 3.8 days. That
is to say if you have 1 kg of radium, in
3.8 days you wiU have .5 kg of radon and
in another 3.8 days you wUl have .25
kg of radon and so on until it becomes
negUgible. However its potency and
damaging potential doesn't alter. Remember even a microscopic amount is carce
carcenogenic.
Radium is a radioactive daughter of
uranium 238 and settles in the dust
raised by mining. It has a half Ufe of
1602 years (do your own sums) and if
swaUowed can cause leukemia—again
only a microscopic speck is needed to set
it off.
Leukemia is a. disease that causes
bone marrow to go berserk and produce
excessive white blood ceUs. The white
blood ceUs invade your blood system,
supersaturates it with their presence and
you die.
At Mary Kathlecn-an open cut
mine-there is a government poUcy to
ensure the miners* safety against accidental swaUowing of radium:
(prtienc
Dl*p««ltian)
Milling
This is the second step in the nuclear
fiiel cycle where the mined uranium is refined and muchof theextranious
matter is removed. The waste products
are a sand Uke material caUed taUings,
liquid wastes, and a mud Uke sUme. The
liquid and sUme are disposed of ui nearby
streams.
Uranium breaks down into:
Thorium, with a half Ufe of 76,000 years
Radium with a half Ufe of 1602 years
Radon with a half Ufe of 3.8 days
Lead 212 with a half Ufe of 21 years.
All these elements are present in the
taUings. The radium is sometimes 100
times more than is found in ordinary
rocks. The taUings are coUected in large
piles open to the elements.
At first it was thought that taiUngs
were safe. At Grand Junction in 1966
environmental consciences in true recycling style lead them to use taUings as fUl.
Over IS years preceding 1966 about
3300 homes had taUings on or around
theh: foundations. The Atomic Energy
Commission (AEC) knew and approved
of the use of the taUmgs. The taUing were
also made into brick for homes, sheds
and hospitals. There has been a 50 per
cent increase in cleft lip and palate
pack the fuel into the reactor rods. The
rods are surrounded by systems of
coolant gas or Uquid. The cooling water
absorbs the thermal radiation and returns
to its river, or ocean. It is estimated that
within 30 years the electric power
industry wiU be producing such megawattage of electricity that wiU require the
disposal of about 20 miUion billion
British Thermal Units of waste heat per
day. To carry off that heat by way of
natural waters would caU for a flow
through power plants amounting to about
a third the daily fresh water runoff in the
Unhed States.
The Federal water pollution control
administration has declared that waters
above 93°F are uninhabitable by aU fish
in the United States except a few southern species. Therefore the heat expelled
from nuclear power stations of the sizes
proposed wiU be such that it wiU seriously interfere with many aquatic environments making many uninhabitable. The
commercial use of this heated water is
uneconomical and poses practical problems.
The reactor stage that produces the
thermal radiation problem also produces
the most toxic carcenogenic lethal
substance known-plutonium. The inhalation of even 3 miUionths of a gram can
cause cancer. It represents an inhalation
hazard, weight for weight 100,000 times
more lethai than potent chemical
carcinogens now known. The fact that it
has a half Ufe of 24,000 years makes it
one of the deadUest elements on this
planet. (It is not a naturaUy occurring
element.)
One pound of plutonium is enough to
place a lethal dose in the lung of every
man, woman and child on this planet.
Each nuclear power plant produces
500 pounds of plutonium.
By the year 2000 the international
community wiU have produced a projected 3 milUon tons of plutonium.
Plutonium is non-biodegradable. It is
active and dangerous for half a million
yeats.
' It has to have a container that wUl
remain inert for half araUiion yeare. At
the present time it is stored in stainless
steel and concrete containers-, which
have leaked. Radiation can escape
through the minutest crack.
In the States they openly admit they
haven't developed a safe method of
storage.
Plutonium with its intensive alpha
emissions has another diabolical characteristic in that it concentrates in testicles
and ovaries. There it damages genes. Dr
Joshua Lederberg, a Nobel laureate in
genetics, says that with present federal
radiation standards-which are too lenient
-genetic defects may increase by 10 per
cent.
page 6
Enrichment
Queensland's Premier is pushing hard
for an enrichment faciUty in Queensland.
The faciUty would cost S200 miUion, and
it is unclear who would provide the capital. In the US the Federal government
owns aU enrichment plants and, in effect
heavily subsidises the nuclear industry by
providing enriched uranium at cost to the
industry.
It is a massive investment with a
total socially redeemable factor of ISO
jobs (see energy and jobs section,
)
Enrichment plants are heavy poUuters.
One problem with enrichment plants is
that only a fraction of the uranium that
goes into the plant is used as fuel. For
every pound of uranium that is fed into
an enrichment plant, less than onefifth comes out as fuel. The rest becomes
tailings which are depleted in U-235.
These taUings arc analogous to the piles
around mills, but at the enrichment
plants they are stored as soUd UFg in
drums. These tailings wUl be stored until
some "future uses" for them can be
found.
The centrifuge process proposed
requires about one thenth the energy as
the old gaseous diffusion process. However, this StiU involves a vast amount of
energy. Highly poUuting coal burning
energy faciUties wiU be needed. Further,
1500 acres of land would be required by
the plant.
The diffusion enrichment faciUty in
Ohio, for example, consumes 10 per cent
of the State's electricity-more than
the entire city of Cleveland (which is
bigger than Brisbane). Even 10 per cent
of this amount is a staggering concept.
It is likely that the enrichment faciUty
proposed would be larger in capacity than
the Ohio plant-as it would be
supplying enriched uranium to a large
overseas market.
The race for AustraUa to enter into
enrichment is, of course, not new. It has
been reported that the late Rex Connor
was seeking his S4000 mUUon loan to
finance just such an operation!
Enrichment is the concentration of
the U235 proportion of yeUowcake to
2-3 per cent for fabrication into fuel
rods. Weapons grade Uranium 235
can easUy be produced by these plants
(enabUng Australia, potentiaUy, to enter
the nuclear weapons game).
After enrichment the uranium is
packed into fuel rods, ready for use in
nuclear power plants. There has been
some intense lobbying for AustraUa to
move further into the nuclear business.
(After aU wc have been investing around
$20 mUUon a year in the AEC which
equips us with the necessary technocrats.)
Australia is in for alm(»t the entire nuclear fuel cyde. If present trends continue
Australia wHI mine, enrich, and reprocess uranium as well as store nudear waste. We
will, in effect, be into everything but the power produced. Well have, in effect, everything BUT the energy.
Reprocessing
and National CivU Liberties Committee
are worried about in England.
The pubUc utiUties producing the
electricity only -want the plutonium for a
short rime. They just want to lease it
and send it back to the reprocessing
plant. British Nuclear Fuels have a
proposed reprocessing plant at Windscale
in England where Australian uranium wUl
be sent. They have already stated that
they wiU insist that ownership not Ue
with them in any contract they sign with
suppliers. So where does it go when it
becomes unwanted? Back to the owner.
So Australia may find' that the daughters
of our uranium may one day be ours
again and that it is a matter of
contractual law,
The first agrumcnt put forward as to
why AustraUa should move into the enrichment and reprocessing business oddly
enough is a moral one.
It was advanced by Prof Stewart
Butler in the book "Uranium on Trial."
He is now Head of the Atomic energy
commission at Lucas Heights. He argues
that AustraUa has a moral involvement
with what happens to its uranium once it
leaves our shores.
We have a moral responsibUity to take
back the spent fuel and set up reprocessing plants so that we can seU plutonium
enriched fuel for nuclear power stations.
Forgetting about the moral argument for
the moment it is certain that from an
economic point of view commercial Storage of waste in Australia
sectors wiU be lobbying for reprocessing
Radioactive waste is so dangerous that
plants before long. Given these grounds,
waste storage sites that meet the stringent
moral and commercial, Australia wHl no constraints which would be necessary for
doubt go to a' later stage in the cycle and anything doubtfully "safe" are very few.
invite the security problems and their
It turns out, that withinUhe necessary
resultant civil liberties incursions that
constraints (see waste disposal article,
the International Commission of Jurists
bdow) AustraUa's interior deserts appear
to be the only sites that even approach
the necessary geological stabiUty, technological backup, and poUtical stabiUty.
A study performed by Dr Keith
Crook, department of geology, AustraUan National University in Canberra
comes to the conclusion that "only three
areas on earth appear to meet the specifications for waste disposal: parts of
SaheUan Africa, eastern Namibia, and
central AustraUa, and even so their past
cUmates are uncertain. Data in Mabbutt
(1967) and WeUs (1969) detaU this uncertainty. Political problems and lack of
technological backup are likely to rule
out the African locations, but the AustraUan area remains a prospect." Crook
puts forward the foUowing scenario, in
terms
of
AustraUa's intornational
responsibUities.
"Australia wiU not scU its uranium.
It wUl fabricate reactor fuel elements to
specifications provided and wUl lease
them to users.
"AustraUa wiU supply uranium only to
signatories of the Nuclear Weapons NonProUferation Treaty, as inspection of civil
nuclear instaUations by IAEA officers is
guaranteed under the treaty,
"Spent fuel elements will be returned
to Australia for rcproeessinR. thereby
limiting the dispersal of toxic wastes: and
the possibiUty of clandestine stripping
and stockpiUng of plutonium for miUtary
purposes.
"Reprocessing wastes wiU be disposed. p
of in Australia under condidons which
ensure their remaining isolated from the
biosphere untU they are no longer dangerous."
Full nuclear cycle'for Austraiia
The environmental hazards and
technological problems involved in the
above processes are enormous. As the
AustraUan reported on September 14:
"America has acknowledged it stUl
faces serious problems in the safe disposal
of radioactive nuclear waste."The acring administrator of the
Energy Research and Development Ad-,
ministration, Mr Robert Fri, said storage
of such waste 'is truly a narional problem
with international significance.'
"He told a Congressional-hearing in
Washington: 'Its solution.wiU depend on
co-operative participation by aU.'"
We are not only fighting the minuig of
uranium in AustraUa-we.are iip against
plans for the entire fuel cycle in massive
proportions here in Australia.
After all, it would be sUly for AustraUa to possess aU stages of the fuel cycle
and not go into nuclear power generarion
for itself, wouldn't it?
subducted beneath, the trench the waste
The first three factors cat) be stated
containers wUl be transported downwards simply. The waste must remam isolated
to depth suffirient to prevent escape of
from the biosphere so long as it is toxic,
the waste.
;
which may be more than 1 mUUon years.
5 Icecap disposal. The waste is Thtjteost of: .waste disposal must add no
morfe^hflp^j'K«7Kftjecnt to the cost per
deposited on the icecap in the interior of
Ihe Prime Minister's bland assurance that proven technology exists for the Anjartica and aUowed to melt its way to
kWh of electridty generation, if,.nuclear
permanent disposal of high level waste is utterly fake and almost daily under attack by bedrock. Angino et al (1976) discuss
power is to be ecMpmic (Kubo, 1973).
concemed sdentists.
The' htafflux';and'cheniicalreactivity of
some variants of this method.
Tn March 1976 US scientists engaged
6 Space disposal: packing the wastes the waste must be accommodated. These
1 Storage in stamless ^ steel tanks
in the development of this technology
facets of waste disposal are well recogunder constant surveiUance. This is a into rockets which are then fired into the
uidicated that:
nised, but one aspect requires discussion.
short-term measure, pending ultimate sun.
Present storage/disposal proposals
7 Nuclear transmutation. This option
1 the development phase of repro- disposal. An alternative storage method
envisage soUdification of the radioactive
cessing technologies would not be com- has been proposed by Winograd (1974): requires the treatment of wastes in a
pleted before 1979.
canisters of vitrified waste would be nudear reactor so as to produce shorter- materials in vitreous boro-siUcate ceramic
2 the earliest commercial operation
packed in gravel at the bottom of holes Uved isotopes from the actinides. The contained in stainless steel canisters 30cm
drUled many metres into dry bed-rock of method is expensive and energy-consum- diameter by 3 m long. The steel casing is
for any reprocessing would be 1983.
not durable, particularly in the presence
3 high level waste storage pilot plants surficial materials which form zones, ing. It reduces but does not eliminate the
of water. Leakage of radioactive comwould begin construction in 1984.
unsaturated by water, from 100-600 m toxidty of wastes.
ponents from the ceramic is currently
All of these options are earthbound
In September 1916 the UK Flowers
thick above • the water-table in semiCommission on Nuclear Power and the
arid areas; de-actiniding of wastes is except fbr the disposal by space rockets; beuig intensively studied, principaUy by
experimental leaching with water. Cateat present this latter cannot be fuUy
Environment found that it had not been
required before their emplacement.
demonstrated that:
2 Melt in situ disposal: Pladng the assessed and its cost ahd safety are open gorical assurances that leaching rates wiU
be sufficiently low to cause no hazard
a method exists'to ensure the safe
wastes at a deep level in the cnist, and to question.
cannot now be given (Winograd, 1974;
containment of long-lived, highly radiotheir subsequent melting as a resuJt of
Ewing,1976).
active waste for the indefinite future.
their mherent heat flux so that the The proposed solution
And to quote the Ranger Inquiry,
molten material wiU sink through the
. Devitrification (returning to Uquid
The present international consensus
. . .- there is at present no generally
crust.
form)
of the ceramic is likely to enhance
appears to be that a complete solution
accepted means by which high level
3 Mine disposal: Disposal in a mine can be provided by soUdificatlon of the leaclOng. What mechanism of devitrifiwaste can be permanently isolated from
constructed in sandstone, shale, salt or wastes into vitreotis ceramic or some cation is appropriate as a model to guide
the environment.
crystaUUie rocks. The disposition of the other "stable" form (ERDA, 1976) research, is controversial. If radiation
Looking into the technological options
waste containers is determined by foUowed by their burial in natural rock- damage is the cause of devitriflcation,
for disposal of nuclear waste involves
thermal considerations and by the re- salt bodies weU below the surface. I am leaching of intensely irradiated ceramic
severe constraints, and poses difficult and
quirements that the waste be inspected not satisfied that this solution is proven, (equivalent to a 100,000-yr dose) can be
unsolved technological problems.
and if necessary retrieved. used to predict future behaviorvlf on the
for reasons stated below.
4 Ocean disposal (see Nielsen et al
Any disposal program-that envisages other hand, hydration by absorption of
The constraints on waste disposal [1974] for discussion.) The waste is en- a waste repository on Earth must take . water (in Uquid form or from air) is the
cased hi stainless steel or other durable account of several factors: the integrity ' cause, as is the case for natural volcanic
options
containers and deposited in the deep of the repository, the cost of the glass (Friedman et al, 1966), irradiation
Kubo (1973), Kubo and Rose (1973)
oceans. One variant of this envisages program, the dynamic nature of the alone wlU be a poor guide.
aijd ERDA (1976) review, the various
disposal in deep ocean trenches assodated
A further aspect' is the propensity of
opertions available for waste disposal; with a Benioff (subduction) Zone. It is waste, the dynamic nature of the Earth,
the
ceratnics to crackhig (formation of
and
the
expectable
Uf
time
of
human
Further references may be found in
assumed that as the oceanic crust is institutions. '
perUte)
beciause this repeatedly provides
Winograd(1974),
Waste IKsspoKal
Inadequate understanding of Earth
dynamics creates further Umitations.
111113, it is known that presently essential aseismic):ontinental mar^s, such as
the estem margins of North America and
AustraUa, can be transformed into highly
seismic margins Uke the Andean margin
of South America. This change is effected
by a change in the direction and rates of
relative movement of the Uthospheric
plates that make up the Earth's crust. But
the origin of changes in plate movement
patterns' and the response time of a
previously aseismic continental margin
are unknown. Probably the response time
is less than 10° years, in which case
repositories should not be located near
continental margins.
Much the same problem appUes to
repositories located in the downgolng
slabs of Uthosphere in deep ocean
threnches
(subduction
zones).
Subduction of Uthosphere may npt
persist for sufficient time to take the
waste to a safe depth. In any case the
waste may not be carried to great depth
because most of the sediment, in which
the waste would be located, may be
scraped off the Uthosphere as it descends
uito the trench. This sediment is acreted
on to the waU of the ocean trench opposite the descending slab (Karig &
Sharman, 1975). The accretmg mass is
strongly sheared, and disruption of waste
canisters would be Ukely.
But there is a more important consideration here, which I regard as sufficient to mle out this type of repository.
The AleaiicKt Alarcli
the international nuclear industry, urani
um sales under these conditions would
effectively remove Australia's control
over its uranium.
Tresh surfaces for hydration during
devitrification. Some volcanic glasses, but
not aU, have this property, for reasons
• that are not understood. The date of
Friedman et al (1966) indicate that, if
perUtic cracking occurs, the 30 x 300 cm
ceramic rods wjU totaUy devitrify in less
than 10° years by simple hydration.
Given that radiation damage wUl be
co|nbined with the hydration, my guess is
that total devitrification wUl occur in
lO-'-IO'* years, even in "dry" environments, leaving the material potentiaUy
leachable.
The two remaining factors which
influence waste-disposal options, geological dynamism and human fnHty, are
less weU appreciated. I regard them as
the most critical and I indeed the Umiting
factors for any disposal program.
Geological stability
The duration of toxicity is greater
than the duration of stabiUty of many
geological environments. This is weU
recognised for earthquake-prone regions,
where significant change at any point can
be expected in less than 10^ years. But
it appUes less obviously elsewhere.
Gross climatic changes from peak iceage conditions to present conditions, and
perhaps to total deglaciation, can occur
within 10"* to 10^ years. This is sufficient
to mle out any program of disposal in
ice-caps or in permafrost. It also rules out
disposal in bed-rock in any situation
where ground water now exists or could
accumulate under future cUmates; for
one must assume that, if grouiid water,
gains access, the repository wiU leak.
MetastabiUty of geological environments must also be considered. Salt
deposits.are particularly unattractive as
repositories in this respect, as they
display three kinds of metastabiUty.
First, they are soluble. Second, they are
an economic resource, Uable to extraction by man before enclosed wastes are
detoxified but after aU memory of their
use as repositories has been lost. Third,
saltbedsis are dynamicaUy metastable,
being less de'nse than overlymg Umestones,,sandstones and shales. (This explains their propensity to diapirism, the
formation of salt domes.) The introduction into bedded salt of a long-duration
heat source of appreciable intensity wiU
tend to upset the metastabiUty of the salt
deposit. To rule out future diapuism that
would destroy the integrity of the repository, a complete understanding of the
stress regime in the salt and overiyijig
strata wiU be needed. Sufficient understanding may be unattainable because of
theterogeneities in the body of the rock.
The review by Gera (1975) and Langer's
(1976) studies of salt ductUity are pertinent. I am yet to be satisfied that the
perturbation in stress fields caused by
excavation and the emplacement of a
heat source wUl be UmUed to relat'vely
small volumes within the salt.
4 Multilateral efforts
There are both immediate and continuing problems with the multUateral
efforts announced by US President
Jimmy Carter to strengthen safeguards.
•Whether or not the breeder reactor is
used, enough plutonium is produced in a
100 megawatt American built reactor, for
example, to make up to 25 nuclear
weapons a year. The spread of plutoruum
and of nuclear weapons capacity wUl not
be stopped by the Carter plan.
As weU, AustraUa's posUion is weaker
page 7;
The very existent of UtJfdspheric subduction as a process is disputed by a
smaU but significant school of geodynamicists. Although the growth of
oceanic crust by acretion at mid-ocean
ridges is almost univetsaUy accepted as
proven, the loss of crust by subduction
involves the assumption that the Earth's
radius is substantially constant with time,
which is a matter of continuing dispute
(Carey, 1975).
Thus geological dynamism severely
restricts the possible sites for disposal on
Earth.
Human irailty
The possible sites are further'
"restricted by consideration of human
frailty. The Ufc-time of human
insritutions is, in historical terms, of the
order of 10^ years, as Toynbee showed
in his classic work A Study of History.
For times longer than this, societal breakdown, loss of records and technological
capacity, and consequent cessation of
surveUlance, must be expected (see
Weinberg, 1972), Furthermore, the lifetime of a sophisticated technology, such
as generation of electricity by nuclear
fission, is probably of the order of 10^ to
10^ years. These lifetimes are of the same
order as the toxicity lifetime of deactinided wastes. They arc three orden of
magnitude smaUcr than the toxicity Ufetime of actinide-rich wastes.
than that of the US. The AustraUan
government would aUow the extraction
of plutonium from used reactor fuels,
with the possibiUty of its recycle mto
reactors or weapons.
Even if all existmg governments
supported the Carter plan, how could
it be enforced with future govemments,
as yet unknown?
In summary:
Nuclear safeguards proposed by the
government to "protect" AustraUan
uranium, and to prevent the spread of
nuclear weapons can not work. They
either have a record of past faUure, or
seem lUcely to faU in future.
INi it YonrscK* Atomic lUiiiiili
According to the AustraUan govemment, uranium exports would be covered
by a safeguards poUcy with four "cornerstones."
But these "cornerstones" are already
in ruins. Tliey can not prevent the use of
Australian uranium or its byproduct
plutonium in the manu&ctiire of nuclear
weapons.
ITie four foundations of the government's strategy to prevent the spread of
nuclear weapons are:
1 Non-ProUferation Treaty.
2 International Atomic Energ>' Agency safeguards.
3 BUateral agreements.
4 Multilateral efforts to strengthen
safeguards.
But, can any of these be rcUed on?
1 Non-Prollferatlon Treaty
The obvious weakness of the NPT is
that major nations either owning or obtaining nuclear reactors, and in some
cases fuel reprocessing plants, are not
parties to this Treaty. Such countries
include: India, Spaui, Pakistan, Argentina, BrazU, China, France, Israd, Egypt,
South Africa. Several of these countries
have refused to sign the Treaty on the
grounds that it is wrong and unsound for
a monopoly of nuclear weapons in the
the hands of some powers, notably the
USA and the USSR, to be maintained by
theTreaty. .
This criticism draws attention to a
second faUure of the NPT-the faUure of
the nuclear powers to disarm. The Treaty
caUs for nudear disarmament, but, as the
recent US development of the neutron
bomb clearly demonstrates, the superpowers are contuiuing the arms race,
unrestraUied. A major loophole in the
NPT is its provision that signatures may
legaUy withdraw from the Treaty with
three months notice. Almost immediately
after withdrawing, a nation could have a
useable nuclear weapon avaUable.
2 international Atomic Energy
Agency safeguards
According to the Ranger Inquiry's
fust report, defects in the present safeguards arrangements, taken together, "are
so serious that existing safeguards may
provide only an Ulusion of protection."
(p 147)
Among the weaknesses of these
arrangements are the foUowing:
* the fact that many nuclear faculties are not covered by safeguards;
* . the existence of loopholes in safeguards agreements regarding their appUcation to "peaceful" nuclear explosions,
to materials intended for non-explosive
miUtary uses (nuclear submarine power
wource) and to the retransfer of materials
to a third state;
* the absence, in practice, of safeguards on uranium before it has been
processed for use in a reactor (eg "yeUowcake");
* the absence of reUable sanctions to
deter the diversion of safeguarded
material.
3 Bilateral agreements
The first point to be made about
bilateral agreements is that they are ah
attempt to overcome the weaknesses and
limitations of IAEA safeguards.
The second point is that these agreements rely on the same kind of gopdwiU
and are subject to the same kinds of
weaknesses as NPT and IAEA agreements.
The only way of "effectively" enforcing the bUateral safeguards proposed by
the AustraUan govemment is that the
USA control the flow' of uranium by
handUng its enrichment.
Such a poUcy would place AustraUa's
uranium marketing under US control'.'
Far from Riving AustraUa a strong voice in
In May 1976 the blueprint for an "The important thing tc me is how much
Atomic Bomb was drawn up. It was not
solid information he could get so easUy,
prepared by a nuclear physicist with years
and in such a short time."
of research experience. It was not
The case showed that a massive proprepared in secret by a government ject involving dozens of experts is no
defence agency with unUmited resources.
longer necessary to build an Atomic
It was prepared by a 21-year-old student
Bomb. Given.the knowledge explosion
at Princeton University, USA, as a pro- and pubUcly avaUable documents,
ject in his physics course.
amateurs CAN design crude but effect. This disturbing fact is made more ive atomic bombs.
The first report of the Ranger Urani-worrying because he found most of the
necessary information readily avaUable in um Envkonmental Inquiry, headed by
books from the university Ubrary. The Justice Fox concluded that " . . . a
student, John PhiUips, bought about terrorist group could use reactor grade
$10 vvorth of pubUcly avaUable US plutonium to make a bomb with good
Government documetns as a supplement. prospects of giving a yield of several
Some essential infonnation was stUI hundred tonnes of TNT . . . An explosclassified though, and this contained the ive yield of a few hundred tonnes of TNT
key to one of his most puzzUng prob- might be sufficient to destroy a very
lems-which detonator would be most large skyscraper with severe lo'ss of Ufe.
suitable to trigger the A-Bomb's uncon- The ionising radiation released and the
troUed nudear reaction? He obtamed the subsequent faU-out would also kUl and
answer on the telephone from an explo- iiy'ure many people." (p 154)
sives expert at the Du Pont Company.
Every nuclear reactor produces about
This infonnation effectively completed 200 kg of plutonium each year. Only
his design. It had taken him only four about 8 kg is needed to make a crude but
months working alone.
deadly nudear bomb, (source; The
The physicist, Freeman Dyson, who National Times, AprU 25-30,1977)
supervised PhUlip's project said later.
Why Knclcar Fuel
Threatens Civil Liberties
Following are extracts of a talk given gy Geoff Robertson, a fonner Rhodes Scholar
who is Australian bom but has been woricing England for seven years. He is a QC and
was coundl to the British Coundl of Civil Liberties of which he was an executwe
member at the Windscale nuclear power statkin inquiry.
Unfortunately one of the problems of
civil Uberties around the world is that it
can't be confined, can't be seen as purely
a fascist state, purely a communist state
or Queensland problem. You have to look
at civil Uberties on a world scale. This is
partly because of countries' increasing
commitment to nuclear power. One of
the aspects of the debate which has not
reaUy surfaced in AustraUa is the consequences of civU liberties once a country
goes nuclear. There are civil Uberties
consequences for AustraUa even if it
'doesn't go nuclear, even if it simply does
no mote than mine uranium.
The debate so far over nuclear power
has been shared by people wUh very
expert and very sincere views, nuclear
scientists, anthropologists and environmentaUsts, who have really a sincere
point of view, often conflicting. What has
a lawyer as I am got to do with a debate
which ranges across such cosmic speculation?
- WeU I think that civil Uberties lawyers
hold the key, because we are able to look
forward and see what the Ukely scenario
is once uranium is put into the nuclear
power cycle. If we commit ourselves in
any way to the nuclear cycle we may be
signing away some of our civil Uberties.
This concem is being expressed increasingly by even the most conservative
lawyers in Britain and America. It has
lead to the international commission of
jurists, a group originaUy funded by the
CIA, and by no means a pUlar of estabUshed protest, being ranked amongst the
objecters. at an inquiry as to whether to
estabUsh a reprocessing plant at Windscale
in England. They were objecting on
civU liberties grounds.
Risks
The argument agamst nuclear commitment based upon the dvil Uberties angle
hangs on three propositkins.
1 Any country using and transporting
plutonium wiU have to take precautions
agamst serious terrorist threats.
2 Such precautions wiU involve substantial erosion of civil Uberties of individuals.
3 These precautions wiU be seen in
AustraUa, even if AustraUa does no more
than mine uranium.
Plutonium, the size of a cricket baU
can be incorporated into a tenorist bomb
capable of destroying a large city centre.
The threat of tenorist access to plutonium' is mainly at the reactor stage, or the
reprocessuig stage of the nuclear cycle
during transportation of plutonium waste
to disposal areas. What is the risk? is
terrorist activity a credible threat?
Some years ago a 20 year old undergraduate working ...solely from pubUshed
materials managed to construct a tiomb
which
according
to distinguished
scientists would work as soon as plutonium was placed in it.
The Ftowera Report, the Royal
commission's report Into the environment and nuclear power which reported in Britain in October, states that:
"Plutonium offers, a unique and
terrifying potential for threat and blackmaU agauist society."
The Ranger Report
The Ranger InquUv in Chapter 14 in
reference to terrorism states:
'The weight of evidence suggests that
a tenorist team could construct a very
destructive device from reactor plutonium." Ranger goes on to say that no
matter how well guarded a reactor is,
given the element of surprise three weU
armed men would be difficult to thwart.
The nuclear industry takes the view
that they can safeguard uranium. This is
nonsense. No one can safeguard plutonium. No one can guard against conuption
inspired by greed or blackmaU within a
nuclear power plant.
In 1973 the DUector of the Atomic
Energy Commission in America was
discovered to have a quarter of a million
doUars worth of gambling debts-he was
immediately sacked.
Twice parts of America have been put
on miUtary alert when people have
highjacked planes and threatened to
crash them into nuclear power stations.
In Argentina two years ago, GueriUas
actuaUy invaded a nuclear power plant
and occupied it for several hours successfully. They painted slogans on the waUs
then left. Evidence in the States now
shows that 1 per cent of plutonium and
bomb-grade uranium has gone missing.
Terrorism
Let me quote a news story from the
AustraUan recently.
'The US government admitted that it
has no idea what has happened to four
tons of closely guarded uranium and
plutonium it has used in the past 30 years
to make atomic weapons."
Souvenir hunters have already been
prosecuted for theft of weapons-grade
uranium.
So how can the nuclear industry hope
to satisfy us that it can guard against
determined poUtical or criminal tenorist
\ attack.
Now we have to consider what the
security measures are going to have to be.
You can't make plutomum safe, and you
can only make it relatively safe by
invading dvil Uberties.
The cost of poor security is hundreds
and thousands of people dead or
damaged. With that at stake most of us,
no matter where we stand on paper
would be happy to see the police and
security services possess draconian power
that in the past they have only possessed
in time of war.
fn fact in Britain, a special constables
act was passed in 1976 which set up a
group of 400 armed poUce ofHcers who
were responsible not to the poUce force
but to the British nuclear industry. It
has the right of "hot pursuit" which is
the right to shoot dead a peison
suspected of an offence. It is an act that
goes right against the English grain of
controUing poUce and not having armed'
poUcemen.
The future scenario set out by the
Royal Commission for Ufe hi the nuclear
state concluded that the threats to civil
Uberties of the nudear economy were so
serkius that Britain should not go ahead
no matter what the comforts and profits
,. were unless there was no reasonable'
altemative
Secret Seiivlce
An , interestinJB extiact
Flowert Report reads:
from
the
"An effective security organisation
could not merely be passive, sunply
reacting to events. It would need to have
an active role that is to infiltrate potentiaUy dangerous organisations and
monitor the activities of nuclear employees and members of the public and generaUy carry out clandestine operations. It
would need to have powers of search and
powers to clear whole areas in an emergency. Such operations might need to be
conducted on a scale greatly exceeding
what othenvise would be required on
grounds of national security in democratic countries."
Monitoring of the employees of
nuclear power stations wiU consist of
thorough. vetting of the individual and
his famUy and friends before they are
employed. But it wUl go much wider in
that scientists who have displayed radical
leanings in their university days probably
won't get employment. Anyone coining
into contact with plutonium, which wiU
invdve thousands when you consider the
transportation truck drivers, dockworkers, etc, wiU aU have to be vetted.
Their union leaders wUl have to be carefuUy scmtinised. Strikes wUl doubtless
be outlawed.
The press wiU not be aUowed to report
the buildup of plutonium and uranium
stocks in any- meaningful way for pubUc
- debate. D Notices arid offidal secrets acts
wiU ensure that doesn't happen. .
There is the possibility of poUce being
given general powers of search i^nd an
army takeover where there is a suspected
terrorist threat. .
Informera wUl .be used to infUtrate
organisations that are suspected to be
potentiaUy dangerous. Often the evidence returned by an informer is tainted
with greed, tainted with maUce, or
tainted with a desire to i^ve his control
what he wants.
We are talking about a security service
which is impossible to vet. There is no
legal remedy for people who have been
defamed -in dossiers. You cant have legal
remedies when the security service is not
responsible to anyone in parliament who
wUl answer questions. Time: and again
when, questions have been asked in
ParUament the responsible minister says
"secret services are secret and therefore.
I can't answer." So there is no Parliamentary responsibiUty and. there is no
legal responsibUity.
. . -;
So if you accept that given the existence of iilutonium in a coimtry requires
struigent security conrols, "What then is
the hnplication for Australia.
Power Junkies
The arguments put forward to pacify
the critics by the advocates in the AustraUan nuclear debate is that we tie only
mining. The plutonium production
happens in other countries which smacks
a bit of the moraUty of the opium poppy
grower who knows his product has medicinal value but also knows that most of it
wiU end up as a death inducing substance.
Even if we do no more than mine we
StUl have a potential boomerang affect on
our hands with the problem of ownership. The pubUc utUities producing the
electricity only want the plutonium for a
short time. They just want to lease it and
send it back to the reprocessing plant.
British Nuclear Fuels have proposed a
reprocessing plant at Windscale in
England where AustraUan uranium wiU be
sent. They have already stated that they
wUl insist that'ownership not Ue vrith
them. in any contract they sign with
suppUers. So' where does it go when it
becomes unwanted? Back to the
owner. So Austraiia may find that the
daughters of our uranium may one day
be OUIS again and that is a matter of
contractual law.
We buy waste cooking
oii
Free, clean 44 gal drum supplied
withfunnel.
Pree regular collection from all
retailers.
20 litre minimum.
Contact LEQ PARKER
Phone (07) 399 6007
24 hour service
.
^,5 •
•
There is an Atomic Energy Act in
AustraUa, a piece of cold war legislation,
which was passed in 1953 when Atomic
weaponry was being tested, and classifies as "restricted" any information about
uranium^ the movement of uranium, the
production of uranium, persons involved
in the movement of uranium, etc.
Now if you are found to give any of
this information to a journaUst you can
be jaUed for 20 years and so can the
journaUst (maximum sentence). And the
poUce are given complete power in the
Two actions against the Uranium
. Producers Forum for their
advertising in thdr recent public relations
bUtzkreig have been taken to the Trade
Practices Commission.
We've all seen the ads on TV, and read
them in all our newspapers. They've been
disguised as educational broadsheets and
made up to- resemble pages of the various
newspapers in which they've appeared,
especially in the infiuential. National
Times and the Financial Review, right
down to the typefaces and headline types
used. They cost at least $1000 each and
are presented to the pubUc as an educational service.
Last December we learned that the
Uranium Producers Forum, a conglomerate of uranium mining companies
formed to lobby the Federal and State
Governments and to convince the Australian public that uranium mining was a
good thing, were gearing up for one of
the most intense and expensive advertising campaigns ever seen in Australia. Yet
the product was sometliing that no
AustraUan would ever be able to buy in
the supermarket, or indeed would
probably ever see; uranium. The Forum
had already hired a top PR firm, International Public Relations, to design the
campaign and had commissioned public
opinion poUs to discover how effective
the ads planned would be. The estimated
cost of the drive varied from $500,000
to close to one miUion doUars, with
$600,000. being the most common
estimate.
Dari{ Clouds
course ot policing this act. They may
'•One must consider .'the great increase
enter; search and sieze without a warran^ iA' dossiers ,i and security, survcUance
They may take a man and^tgjAure; hUSIo'-'; which must come about as a result Of
death under this act, and-thereis jio legal;" portest against uranium mining, and berecourse because Sectiori 53 of this Act cause plutomum is so dangerous.
says that no action either civil or criminThere has been the greatest co-operaal can be brought against a poUce officer tion between the poUce forcse of the
who is doing his duty under the search worid in pooling information on organisaand siezure powers of the Atomic Energy from ASIO on what steps were bemg
Act.
taken to monitor potential subversives!
So the public wUl never have access to
It ought not be on the books. It has
never been used. But now AustraUa has information to enable it to debate the
begun mining and miUing, it is theoretical
uranium question on civil Uberties
threat to civU liberties.
grounds.
llniiiiiiiiilhiidiicers
niniiiiAds.
., ,
• '
• : page U ;
tions' and individuals regarded as security
threats. The London Group is made up
of secret poUce from several Commonwealth countries who meet to exchange
information. If you have a dossier on you
.in AustraUa there is no guarantee that it
wiU not go to other countries and affect
your fortunes overseas.
The crowning irony of it aU is when
the Ranger inquiry having pushed strongly for maximum public debate, moved
into a closed session to consider terrorist
threats so U could receive information
"The Uranium Producers Forum has
pointed out that the ads are presented as
a pubUc service. But Mr KcKay, who's
the chairman of the Forum pointed out
also in a letter to the Melbourne Age
that the public has the final protection
from misleading and dishonest advertising
througli the Government Trade Practices
Act. And that is the basis on which we've
asked the Trade Practices Commission to
investigate the matter," Dr Mosley said.
Both organisations had been told by
the Trade Practices Commission that the
matter was on the thrshold of the jurisdiction of the commission and that a
decision would be made on the jurisdiction of the Commission soon. That
was eariy August, and at time of writing,
the Commission had not made its decision. But, if the ads are an educational
service and not properiy advertising, then
most advertisers, who regard their work
as educational, would probably want to.
operate under Senator Carrick, the
Minister for Education, and not under the
Minister for Commerce and Industry,
Senator Colton.
After 1 caUed the ACF and the
Scientists, I rang the Uranium Producers
Forum in Melbourne and Sydney and was
told that they would not comment on the
action before the TPC.
Inconsistancies
nuclear power, does in fact produce
pollutants which are released directly into
the atmosphere from normally operating
nuclear power plants. Gasses like krypton
85, iodine 131, and argon 41 are radioactive waste gasses which are released
directly into the atmosphere from
normaUy operating nuclear power plants.
That is an incorrect statement by the
producers."
By eariy July, then, the AFR's ad
writer Valerie Lawson could report that
the UPF was claiming that pubUc opinion
was in favor of uranium mining, largely
through the ad campaign. But there were
dark clouds gathering, for, buried away in
a footnote to the July 5 article in the
AFR was the note that the ACT branch
of the Society for Social Responsibility in
Deaths
Science had taken action against the UPF
in the Trade Practices Commission. An
'The first statement says thaf *in over
innocuous enough note, but one which
2000 years of reactor plant operation, in
has enormous implications for the UPF
19 countries there has not been a single
and the entire advertising industry. ,
death or injury from nuclear causes.
The story remained a.^leejper'for pv?r''; Now, this statement is. mislead ing. in its
a month, until Lawson again 'writing Iii'/, own right, but it's contradicted by
., the AFR of
August i;^y/po)t<(ii;tlg^ another statement which appears in a
the Australian Conservation .Foundatjqh' table which shows a decrease in average
had approached the Trade Practices Com- lifetime from various causes. Nuclear
mission with similar complaints. The power plant operation in 1970 gives the
. story appeared in the Melbourne Age but decrease in expected Ufetime as being
nowhere, else. The next day, 1 rang the less than one minute. For a projection to
. ACT spokesperson for the Society for the year 2000, they give an estimated
Social ResponsibiUty in Sdence, CSIRO' decrease in Ufetime as being less than 30
V. scientist Dr Mark Diesendorf.
minutes. If this table were to be con"Any person selling soap or fiyspray sistent with the earUer statementi that
can say that their ads are put out as a there had been no deaths, then there
' pubUc service. There's nothing to stop should be a zero decrease in average
• people doing that, but I think that niem- lifetime."
. bers of the public are somewhat more
Dr Diesendorf went on to explain that
realistic. They know that people who such statements were misleading in their
advertise generaUy stand to make a lot of own right. By saying that the decrease in
money from seUing their product. I feel average lifetime was less thbn one minute,
that the Uranium Producers have under- the UPF are saying that the only risk
mined their own credibUity by pubUshuig faced by the public was a minute off
such grossly misleadmg information," Dr one's Ufe. This, he said, was entirely
Diesendorf told me.
untrue. One of the main risks of radiaThe basis of the society's complaint tion is the UkeUhood of cancer, and if
to the TPC was that some of the material someone gets cancer it may mean years
in the ads was factually incorrect, other off their life. What the UPF had done,
parts of the ads were grossly misleading, according to Dr Diesendorf. was to pool
and that at least two of the statements this figure with the niU decrease in lUc
expectency in the event of no radiation
were mutuaUy ccmtradictory.
The society picked out four specific and arrive at the loss of Ufe-time by
statements in the Forum's ads as the basis 2000 at 30 minutes.
That action from the Society for
. o f their complaint.
. "There is a statement which says that, Social ResponsibiUty in Science would
. H when it's referring to uranium, 'it is an have been worryuig in itself had it not
energy rich fuel which does not poUutc come. wUh a similar action from the
:the atmosphere,." Dr Diesendorf said. AustraUan Conservation Fourfdation.
Both actions before the Trade Practices
"Now,-this is an example of an incorrect
Commission
have been downplayed con•statement. Uranium, when used for
siderably in the press, and the story
which interested mc^on August 11 was
buried on page 22 of the AFR for that
day. After speaking with Dr Diesendorf in
Canberra, I rang Dr Geoff Mosley, the
chairperson of the AustraUan Conservation Foundation in Melbourne. He was
interested to leam that the Canberra
organisation had simUariy contacted the
TPC, for my call was the first he'd heard
of the Canberra action. What was even
more interesting was that the ACF were
concerned with four different parts of the
UPF advertising than the scientists'
organisation.
"One of the claims in the advertising
is that the spent fuel rods from the
reactors will be reprocessed in a particular type of plant. Our infonnation is that
there is no such plant in operation in the
USA, and the design for that plant is at a
standstiU," Dr Mosley said.
'There is also a claim that there have
been no deaths from nuclear power
plants. We have infonnation that there
has been a death in the United States.
We've also told the TPC that the Australian Atomic Energy Commission, has
recently accepted responsibility and paid
compensation to a widow of a former
worker at Lucas Heights who died of
Lukcmia."
Then there was the launching of an
action against them in the Federal Court
of Australia.
The action was brought on September
26 by Robert Pehlps, the organiser of the
Campaign Against Uranium Mining
against the Forum seeking an injunction
to prevent the Forum from continuing
its advertising campaign. He was seeking
an order from the court to the Forum
asking them to show cause as to why they
should not be^ restrained from continuing the campaign. It was brought under
sections 52 and 55 of the Trade Practices
Act. The legal situation for this action is
complex, and the case, before Mr Justice
Franki was adjourned twice for preliminary hearings to decide whether Phelps
had locus standi (whether the plaintiff
had the appropriate legal standing to
bring such an action before the court),
and whether the Forum were engaging
in trade and commerce under the Act.
The legal situation may mean that an
individual bringing an action like this may
have to show that he has the right to
apply for an injunction if he is not
directly connected with with the
Attorney-General or the Trade Practices
Commission.
The hearmg proper may not take place
untU next year, and in the interim, the
The most important Umb of the Prime Forum may relaunch their advertising
Minister's case for Uranium mining and campaign dependent on the strategy used
export is that there have been found safe by the Federal Government to seU the
places to store transuranic and high-level idea of mining to the AustraUan people.
radioactive waste. Consequently, the UPF The campaign had been suspended for
ads stressed that there have been found reasons unconnected with the recent
solutions to the waste problem. But the attacks on it by conservation and responsible scientists organisations.
ACF disagreed.
If nothing eke is gained by the actions
"There's also a claim in the advertisein
the courts against the Forum other
ments that radioactive wastes wUl be
than
experience of using the courts for
stored in saU mines. Scientific opinion is
by no means agreed that this can be done action against uranium mining, then that
satisfactorily and we have pointed out to experience wiU be put to good -use m
the TPC that a planned waste depository future actions. Overseas, the German
at Carlsbad in New Mexico, in salt, has courts are blocked by anti-nuclear power
not been licensed because of the insta- actions coming from thousands of groups
throughout the country. The Americans
bility of the salt mine.
"The fourth claim which we think is have had long experience in the courts
quite misleading is the claim that Austra- against nuclear power, and have won
lian uranium wUl be refmed only to the some significant victories. AustraUa is
yeUowcake stage. This, of coutse, pre- lagguig behind the rest of the worid in
supposes a decision by the Common- legal action against nuclear power and
wealth government which has yet to be uranium mining, but if present trends
announced. It is quite Ukely that uranium continue, we'll be catchmg up fast.
Mark D. Hayes
will be exported in the enriched stage,"
— p a g e 12=
EuerjiY
llssHie
An analysis of the world energy needs
leads to the conclusion that there is no
need to mine Australian uranium.
Necik sHiil Wsiiitss
/ . * - ^ t-T- "^^ ,*-"-'^
•^rT&r''^S-.
'V-..
D ^..'-...^r;;./...
World energy use
Energy use in a country like Australia
now corresponds to about 6 kilowatts
per head continuous, That's equivalent
to every man, woman and chUd continuously driving a mini at 50 mph.
Our whole way of Ufe is dependent on
intense use of energy, eg U takes about
three times as much energy to wrap,
pack and transport a loaf of bread as it
does to produce the wheat from which it
is made. Our energy use is about 50 times
greater per head than that of Third
World countries.
The most important abuse of our
energy use is the massive scale of the
waste. Thirty- per cent of the energy we
use is lost in the conversion from one'
form to another. The efficiency with
which we use fuel has been getting
steadily worse over the last 20 years, eg
in the US in 1950 the fuel economy of a
car was 13 mpg. Today it is a scarce 8
mpg. The United States wastes more
energy than any other nation in the
world. US would be able to double its
economy in 30 years without increasing
the per capita consumption of energy if
it became as efficient in its energy usage
as Sweden or West Germany are now.
This information has led the American Institute of Architects two years ago
that a modest retro-fitting of buildings
over the next 20 years would save far
more electricity at less investment cost
than could be produced by nuclear
power.
Use levelling off
The trend has been towards increasing
waste of energy up untU the 1973 OPEC
oU embargo-the price of oU quadrupling
overnight. Up tiU that time world energy
use had been doubUng every 10-12
years. Since 1973 world energy use has
been static. In fact it has dropped a bit
since 1973, in fact U's down to about
the 1972 level in mdustriaUsed countries.
Total energy used in the UK in 1975
was less than it was in 1970. Whether
drop in consumption was due to moral
qualms or the economic benefits of saving energy (insulation etc) the fact
remains that in the UK and subsequently
in other mdustriaUsed nations energy use
has levelled off.
Since the levclUng off was mainly due
to the increase in the price of oU, and
since no one anticipates it wUl ever
decrease in price, we may weU be seeing
the beginning of a permanent era of
stable energy use.
There are serious projections on paper
that suggest that energy use is going to
continue to double every 10 or 12 years.
The potential for expanding people's use
of energy in industriaUsed nations is very
limited since 80-90 per cent of people
already have their own major energy consuming hardware (washing machines,
ovens, etc). There has come a point where
people arc not using their money to buysuperfiuous electrical goods (electric
toothbrushes etc).
The Third World
Suppose the Third World is gomg to
increase its energy use to something Uke
that 6f industriaUsed countries.
There are a number of points against
going nudear to meet this demand.
The scale of nuclear technology is
totaUy inappropriate to the sort of energy
or domestic system that exists in aThird Worid country even if they had the
electrical grid to support a nuclear power
station and convert to usmg energy
mostly in the form of electricity. The
minimum economic size of a commerdal
reactor system is 500-1000 megawattsa quarter to half the total generating
capacity of Queensland and this is so
large compared to the electridty consumption of a typical thud worjd country
that it is just not compatible with the sort
of system that they have.
The. construction and maintenance
and operation of nuclear power stations
assumes a substructure of very sophisticated technology to produce stainless
steel; Uquid sodium and control electronic equipment needed to produce and
maintain nuclear power systems. It is not
at all evident that nuclear power is the
answer to the energy problems of the
Third Worid. There are answers (sec
E.F. Shumaker-intermediate technology
) but they must be oriented around
the fact that at the moment the scale of
technology in the Third World is small.
They must be oriented towards the provision of smaU local sources of energy and
not very large centralised systems that
would require several times the gross
national product of the country simply to
build a distribution system to get the
energy to where it is wanted.
CiicniY
Kcsoiii'ces
EiieriiY Eftit'icncY
Energy Efficiency and waste
Jimmy Carter has stated:
"Our energy waste in transportation is
85 per cent; in generating electridty, 65
per cent. Overall, SO per cent of our
energy is wasted."
Energy can be wasted during generation, during transmission and at end use.
The process of transforming coal, gas or
oil to electricity results in the waste of
about two-thirds of the energy in the
fuel. Conversion of uranium to electricity is even more wasteful. Using coal to
make synthetic fuels involves tbc waste of
about one-third of the coal's energy
content.
Energy is wasted when it is sent out
over long transmission lines, espedaUy
over power Unes from nuclear power
plants which for danger reasons the
government has decided must be located
far from large concentrations of people.
Energy is wasted when appliances and
machines are not buUt to perform at the
best possible efficiency levels. Energy is
wasted when heavy automobiles wUh
"high performance" engines guzzle fuel
to propel the vehicles a few miles per
gaUon. And energy is wasted when it
is simply allowed to leak-through
ceiUngs, waUs, pipes, hot water heaters
and industrial processes, due to uiadequate insulation and design.
Energy is also wasted when it is not
matched in "quaUty" to the intended
task. This occurs, for example, when
electricity is used for heating buUdings
and water, and for cooking, Electridty is
a very "high quaUty" and expensive
form of energy, most suited to and most
econonuc for special tasks such as raU
transportation
and some exacting
industrial processes. When water is heated
by electricity, for example, it is after
water at a power plant has already been
boUed by the fuel. This fuel, whether
fossU, nuclear or solar, has had to boU
water to make steam to turn turbines to,
generate electricity-and in each stem
there is considerable loss of energy. It is
quite apparent that there is a wasteful
"mismatch" when nuclear fuel is used to'
achieve a temperature of several thousand
degrees in an expensive and complex
reactor in order to boU water to aeate
steam-something which occurs at 212
degrees F.
The best approach to energy sufficiency, economic prosperity and jobs
is that which combines increashig energy
efficiencies with a variety of diverse and
safe energy-fiupplying technologies. Each
energy-producing technology should be
used to do what it does best, and should
be matched hi scale and energy quaUty to
the way in which its energy will be used.
And the more the fuels for these new
energy systems are renewable, the better.
This approach is not "anti-technology," as sometimes is aUeged by the large
energy .interests. In fact, technological
innovation wiU be a key to achieving
success with this approach . . . but the
technologies involved need to be ones
which can be controUed by the American
people, not ones so elaborate and
complex that people have to be kept far
away from them or from decisions concerning them.
And this is not a "no growth"
approach, or one which advocates a
return to drudge labor. To the energy
industry, "growth" has always meant
growth in energy production in order to
satisfy its own needs, no matter the
consequences for the rest of society. But
to others, "growth" means a national
poUcy of futt employment, improved
standards of Uving, improved job safety
and pubUc health, expanded opportunities for leisure activities and the development of rewarding relationships with
other people.
Denis Hayes has calculated that for the
next quarter century, the United States
could meet aU its new energy needs
"simply by unproving the efficiency of
existing use."
The American Institute of Architects
(AJA) has calculated that by 1990,
12.5 mUUon barrels of petroleum per day
(equal to one-third the current national
energy use) could be aved just by
employing energy-efficient systems in old
and new buUdings.
An energy study commissioned by the
City of Seattle influenced that city not tb
buy into Oregon's nuclear power plants.
The study convinced dty officials and
Seattle dtizens that with appropriate
energy efficiency measures, no new
electricity generating 'capacity would be
required for Seattle through 1990. And
the cost per kUowatt hour of electridty
would be 1.3 cents cheaper without
buUding new energy faciUties.
A Dow-Midland study indicated that
by using waste industrial steam to generate electricity-as is done hi Sweden and
West Germany-energy savings equivalent
to 680,000 barrels a day of oU could be
saved by. 1980. By 1985, this "co-generation," as it is caUed, could replace the
equivalent of 50 large nuclear reactors.
The CaUfonria Energy Commissron has
determined that the potential for cogeneration in that State alone could be as
much as 140 biUlon kUowatt hoius per
year, the equivalent of the total amount
of electricity consumed in CaUfornia
bi 1975.
The AustraUan Academy of Sciences
recently published a study of the world's
energy resources. The study showed a
comparison of energy resources with consumption in 1970.
The known coal reserves^ provide lOO
years of total worid use at 1970 rates.
The worid's known oil reserves are about
20 years of 1970 use. The worid's natural
gas reserves are just under 20 years of
1970 use. The world's uranium reserves
are just under seven years of 1970 use
equivalence.
In other words, compared with coal
and oU and natural gas, the known reserves of uranium are a quite-smaU energy
resource, less than a tenth of the coal.
Indeed you can argue that the coal
reserves are Ukely to be much more. With
a hundred years of reserves already
known there is very Uttle incentive to go
out and look for more coal. But as we've
seen there are ample economic incentives
to go out and look for uranium, indeed
so great that the companies involved are
prepared to spend half a million doHars to
persuade people that we should mine and
export uranium.
In AustraUa, our coal reserves are
equivalent to about 4000 years of total
AustraUan energy use.
There are of course other sources;
for example the Academy of Science
estimated that solar energy could provide
up to 25 per cent of AustraUa's^ energy
needs by the year 2000.
It is often said when you point, out
how smaU the uranium reserves are that
the fast breeder reactor wUl be developed
which wUl be a much more efficient user
of -uranium and therefore the energy
reserves wiU "spin out" into.the distant
future.
.._J]1?.,.R2X?LJG2"'™^^^°" °" EnvironmentafPoUiltion in the UK chaired by Su
B^n.Fjowers^^(former chief government
scientist, pairt-tiine member of the board
of the UK Atomic Energy Authority)
concluded that the fast breeder reactor
cannot be a major contributor to a power
program untU the processes underiying
the change of geometry are weU understood.
The commission noted that in
attempts to build fast breeder reactors
there have been two partial meltdowns
which luckily were contained. The
Floweis report commented that an
uncontained meltdown would be incredibly serious in its consequences.
There is an extensive research program
in the field, but it is not yet clear whether
it wUl prove possible to design fast
breeder reactois as to rule out the possibUity of a sudden increase in power that
would be so great as to rupture any
feasible container.
In other words, tbe Flowers committee says it is not yet clear whether it is
possible, even in prihdple, let alone in
engineering practice, to design a fast
breeder reactor that wiU work. If the
proponents of nuclear energy wish to
persuade us that uranium is a large energy
source, what they, need to show is that
impartial experts with a background in
atomic energy Uke Siir Brian Flowers, are
wrong in thoir assessment of the
probabiUty of breeder reactors coming
"on stream,"
"
• — — — ^ - ' ^ - « — • — — ' p a g e 13;*^
Introduction
Corporate energy interests, along with
most industriaUsts and some agencies of.
the government, are vigorously urging the
rapid expansion of energy production.
The energy systems they are promoting
are large in scale, technologicaUy, ^
complex, costly, wasteful, environmental-',
ly destructive and dapgcro^s to "energy'
industry empl(iy«cSand thepiibliC'
The, increased enefgy ,offi'cfency plus
sola/ energy.choice cdn provide sufficient
energy for a prbsperous economy. In fact,
such a solution to the nation's energy
problem actually leads to a more stable
economy and to more jobs than does the
large-scale system scenario. It docs so
with less poUution, less disease, less
social disruption, and less mterference
with community, labor union and mdividual rights.
Decisions on the nation's economic,
energy and employment fdtures are being
made now. Wrong decisions today wiU be
irreversible: if the nation decides to pin
its hopes on inefficient, large-scale energy
systems, such a vast quantity of resources
and money wiU be consumed and so
much havoc wiU be generatedithrough all
levels of society that energy and job
options for the future wiU be choked off.
laborers
in
the ' installation
and
maintenance of solar and wind systems.
Union President Angelo Fosco has said:
"F.xperts estimate the annual market
for installing solar systems and convert.<''
ing existing structures to solar systems
, A'tnove to alternate, decentralized energy systems'would has a potential of S77 biUion alone . , .
not including maintenance. . . . That
boost small business and actually solve the western economictranslates
into a goodly number of jobs
malaise of high unemployment.
for construction workers in our jurisdiction."
>M^j
Energy efficiency and jobs
Energy and the economy
The latest recession is the sixth since
Worid War 11. It is the most severe. Total
real unemployment is between 8 and 10
per cent. Wonien, minorities and young
people are out of work in even liigher
percentages. In the last year, incomes of
three miUion additional Americans feU
below the "poverty Une," Rural poverty .
has increased. The nation's largest cities
have been experiencing severe financial
crisis, and have cut back a broad range of
vital human services. Industry has been
operating at less than full capacity, and
inflation has cut deeply into most wage
increases of the past decade.
Americans have long been told that
ever-increasing energy production was the
key to national economic well-being and
jobs. It seemed enough to note that as
energy production expanded over the
years, so did economic growth and total
employment. Many in government and
indastry-^in the Energy Research and
Developmerit Administration (ERDA),
in the Federal Energy Administration
(FEA), in Congress, at the Edison Electric
Institute, the Atomic Industrial Forum,
the oU companies-are therefore advising
that unemployment can be ended only by
stepping-up energy 'development to the
greatest degree possible, and with the
largest systems possible.
Yet,- current high unemployment,
along wUh a succession of economic
crises, have been taking place while
national energy use has been at an
all'time high, and increasing.
In aU, the major energy-producing and
energy-using industries consume one third
of the nation's energy. Yet they directly
provide only about 10 per cent of the
, :
nation's jobs.
Energy growth and prosperity:
the myth
It is for good reason that the pubUc
has been led to believe that energy
expansion has been tho springboard to
economic growth, the "good life," and
jobs.
Industry has been able to replace
human labor economically with energy
purchased at very tow rates from an everexpanding energy industry which has
been accumulating ever-increasing profits.
The sniaU consumer has been picking up
the tab; industries traditionally have paid
less than individual consumers for each
unit of, energy used. In addition, by
bearing most of the environmental and
disease costs associated with energy, and
by permitting substantial government
assistance to energy companies, the
pubUc has actually been subsidising
industrial use of cheap energy to replace
human labor.
Solar energy and Jobs
'The potential for solar energy seems
virtuaUy unlimited. With widespread
adoption of solar power, Massachusetts
citizens could cut their coUective fuel
bills by SI20 million annually by 1985.
Furthermore, solar energy has vast
potential for new job opportunities,
especially in the plumbing, construction
and research and development areas . . .
It's safe to say that by 1985 more jobs
could be available from solar power(directly and indirectly) than from offshore oil and new nuclear construction
combined."
There would be jobs for sheet metal
fabricators, sheet
metal instaUers,
asbestos workers, carpenters, plumbers
and pipefitters.
The Laborer, a journal ofthe Laborers
International Union (AFL-CIO). found
that jobs for its members in the solar
energy field "could weU mount into the
hundreds of thousands." The union has
begun a course in San Diego to train
pfovitles tttterMtive tteetfs
* SOLAR HOT WATER SYSTEMS
* EQUIPMENT FOR THE ORGANIC FARMER
* NATURAL PESTICIDES AND FERTILIZERS
* MEDICINAL AND CULINERY HERBS
^
* PIONEER AND POT-BELLIED STOVES
* NATIVE PLANTS
* AGENTS FOR NATURAL PEST CONTROL
OPEN/NG- 24th Oct-1977
37 Bangalla Street Torwood Brisbane
Phone: 371 4341 or 202 6590
A BonneviUe Power Administration
Study has found that^
"High impact conservation pro-.^ams
create more jobs than would be created
by buUding new power plants to generate
an equivalent amount of energy."
Amory Lovins has testified to the
Senate Select Committee on Small
Business that conservation programs
which include shifts of investments from
energy wasting to social programs create
from tens of thousands to nearly a
million net jobs per quadrillion BTUs of
energy saved.
A preliminary analysis of the FEA
provides specific breakdowns of some
energy conservation techniques, costs and
resulting employment. This report
examined the prospects of Umited energy
efficiency increases in 34,372 private
homes. The technical work caUed for was
simply the installation of ceiling insulation and .-"iitomatic thermostats, and the
retrofit or replacement of furnaces.
The analysis concluded:
"By 198.S, natural gas supply would be
increased because of the saving of 1212
biUion cubic feet. This is the equivalent
of the gas to be obtained from the major
discovery at the Alaskan North Slope, It
is also about the equivalent of the output
of 39 one-thousand megawatt electrical
thermal power plants. Consumers in these
34,372 would save Sl.7-$2.3 billion in
heating costs.
"The work would cost S7-$10 biUion,
compared with $I7-S20 billion for 39
large fossil fuel power plants; 487,000
jobs over seven years would be created:
122,000 in manufacturing, 366,000 in
local instaUatJon."
The report also stressed that employment associated with energy conservation
techniques is local, low- to moderatelyskilled, and concentrated in or near
urbanised areas which are experiencing
the most acute unemployment problems.
In contrast, centralised, expensive energy
production complexes usually have to
bring in highly-skUled labor from outside
the construction area. (These transients
create a large amount of disruption:
temporary housing and many services
must be supplied to meet the problems
temporary worken; create. In many of
the energy "boom towns" of the Western
United States, crime, alcohoUsm, family
break-ups are well above average. Serving
the needs of transient labor ends up being
a drain on the local economies the
transients are supposed to be stimulating.
Tlie FEA Project Independence Task Force fount that 3 to 4 miUion personyears of direct jobs would be needed in
solar energy development and operation
by 2000. This figure is probably an
underestimation, since FEA's 1974
"accelerated" rate of solar development is
thought by analysts today to be too conservative. Among other things, it is based
on oil seUing at SI I per barrel when it is
now seUing for as higli as SI6-and going
up; also, some of the solar technologies
were considered for only certain parts of
the county ie the Southwest, which
many beUeve .an unnecessary limitation.
Dr Jerold Noel, for example, a physicist
al MobU-Tyco solar labs, has stated:
The roof of an average house around
Philadelphia could produce enough
energy to supply the needs of a home,
with enough energy left over, say, to
charge an electric car.
The job mix for the various technologies is different. Nuclear energy utilises
fewer tradespeople per professional
scientist or technician than docs solar
energy: for nuclear the radio is about 2 to
I; for solar it is 9 to I. In addition, a
broader array of skiUs are necessary for
buUding and maintaining solar systems
than for building and maintaining nuclear
plants. And, as an ERDA report stated:
"Solar systems provide much more
room for small business and gcographicaUy dispersed businesses and workers
than do some of the more complex
systems."
vmxmi
:page'l4i
!K
IHMH'IV tiiiMlcil hi Ai^nilK
Now that the latest "spate" of pubUcity of solar energy has dissipated and the
promised $10 mUUon injection of funds
into AustraUa's lagging solar energy program, voiced surprisingly by Mr Anthony
(April 17) has been well and truly forgotten, it is Umcly to look at what has been
.said and done in a critical fashion. What
sort of contribution can solar energy
ad its renewable non-polluting "natural
energy" counterparts make in this forthcoming energy crisis? Is the significant
use of these renewable non-poUating
energy sources really so far away as to
justify the use of nuclear technology as
a stopgap measure
Solareiectrictty
Poorly funded
Let us first take a look at the current
status of solar energy research in Austraha. From being a world leader in
this research just over a decade ago
Australia now spends less than S2 miUion
on research.
Tlie Australian Research Grants Commission is Ukely at present to spend a
meagre 5500,000 in the next three years
supporting solar research. Including the
$1 million that the NSW government will
spend on Messel's project in Sydney we
have a grand total of SI .5 milUon for the
next three years.
This compares to over S300 nuUion
in the USA, SlOO miUion in Japan and
$30 million in foggy france for 1976-77.
On the other hand Australia has for 20
years supportcd-for reasons of national
prestige and miUtary preparedness-an
Atomic Energy Commission which at a
cost of several hundred million dollars
is yet to produce a single killawatt of
useful power.
Poorly funded, iU-equiped and understaffed research groups are working on
more than 20 separate and completely
independent solar energy programs in aU
six capital cities. Scientists in Melboume
know Uttle of the work being done in
Sydney. Indeed membeis of the research
group at the University of Sydney know
even less about their Sydney colleagues
only a few kttoraetrcs away (National
Times April 11). AustraUa is not even a
party to the recent Solar Co-operation
Pact signed by 13 nations.
The anri-nuclear lobby while rightly
condemning export of our uranium
naively concentrates its energies on a
totaUy negative way by condemning one
source of energy and not actively pushmg
for the acceptable altemative. Australia
wiU run out of oU in 15 years and will
face an import bUl of S2500 railUori a
year.
technology exists now
The technology for a solar energy
exists now. We are not waiting for
some incredible scicnUfic breakthrough.
A look at the patterns of energy use
in Australia shows lhat solar collectorsheat water or provide low temperature
heat or steam could make a tremendous
conce"pti-".,.^ass production of sola;
devices shouii'make.,them alinost. immediately cost competitive.'"--,,, _
contribution in a short time. Around 40
per cent of the energy we use isof this
low grade heat type, for a wide variety
of industrial processes and to heat and
cool homes and office buildings. In
particular the economics of using solar
hot water systems in many parts of
AustraUa are acknowledged, eg. a
housing and construction department
estimate shows that the total cost of
using a solar system in Darwin/AUce
Springs over 15 yeare is about half that
of using an electric unit for.the same
time.
In March last year directors of
industry leaders BHP, ICl and PhiUips
wrote lo the Federal Government, with,
their own conclusion that the use of solar
heat appUcations in industry can'make a
significant contribution within a reasonably shorl time but only, they stressed,,
if some incentives are gjven to those
wUling and able to develop a production
capacity.
The collectors can easily be manufactured using existing technology. All
that is really needed is for some "proof
of concept" plants to bft estabUshed to
prove their efficiency and marketabilitv
There are solar cooUng and heating
devices already on the .market which
would no doubt profit from the wide-
SOilk fa(X>6 i^lies
Ulk hefAiyk Mils
spread use of collectors. Arkla in the US
has just released a new solar air condirioner, and the Japanese firm Yazaki
markets a solar cooler available in AustraUa. There are numerous examples of
solar heated and cooled homes throughout the worid; in fact an experimental
solar air-conditioned house is already
operating at MoggiU Farm, Brisbane, to
provide more than enough "proof of
.
" -<
As wcU as providing-energy for heating
and cooUng the solar source can also
produce electricity. This, concept has
been used throughout the US space
program and is even used for Telecom's
remote radio receiver stations. The
problems arei not technological, although
breakthroughs are stUl occurring, but
economic and social.
The most common method of producing solar electricity is with photovoltaic
cells. Pure sUicon is "grown" in laboratoriesand sUced into paper thin wafers. The
cost for a 5kw cell isj34000 enough for
an average AustraUan household. Bearing
in mind energy conservation practices
tha.t must be developed soon and the
fdct'tHaV-rtiuiili bf the demand for electricity is for;Jiot water household heating
and cooUng which would be supplied by
direct solar devices this figure would
decrease. The major factor effecting
price is of course production scale. The
cost must decrease markedly, eg in the
case of sUocon transistors the cost per
unit decreased by a factor of 100 when
the volume of production increased by a
factor of 1000.
There are also new methods for
making cells which will make them cost
competitive, eg a West German firm
believes that with development of a new
polcrystaUine silicon ceU it is weU on the
way to achieving $1 per watt. Another
promising breakthrough has been the test
production of • sUicon ribbon which
theoretically makes solar ceUs cost
competitive now.
Hydrogen provides one of the means
of storing solar energy, a problem which
uninformed cynics usuaUy use to dismiss
the use of solar power. Solar energy can
also be stored in batteries, flywheels, or
hydrogen fuel cells which have been
tested as 75 per cent efficient and would
be virtuaUy non polluting.
CHOSING AN ALTERNATE FORM OF TRANSPORT
IS COMMENDABLE, BUT EASY-THE CYCLE
WINS HANDS DOWN.
SELECTING THE RIGHT BIKE SHOP IS THE REAL TRICK!
LOOK FOR:
Quality
If you have never heard of the brand, chances are you won't be for
much longer either. A warrantee is worth nothing if you can't find the
,_., j...-,; ;,;;i--ni li-^l
company or the shop next year!
Specialists'
.
..v-.:.y .^ ^U.ti.ri. ^
Service facilities, trained staff and spare parts must be on the premises.
The best product jn the world will need maintenance sometime.
Variety '
A selection of high quality brands and models is essential. No one brand
makes the best of everything, so a "one brand" shop is really admitting
that they« don't know enough to help you sort the wheat from the
chaff.
Exclusivity
Finally, try to deal with a shop that sells only bicycles. They are the
true,experts, not just "retail traders." Would you buy a car from a
grocer shop? A parachute from an undertaker?
Presented in the interests of your cycling safety, by
Bulk Food Cooperative
oPif^ tMe^/yA l^or) \X''(>f,» plies I'X-Spm6 ^ Ho^qrc^^^^ tei.j U>g$r£A)D. ,
MO\JO
THE OTHER ALT ERN ATI VE
StOCKLISTS OF * PEUGEOT * RALEIGH * GITANE * ASHBY
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Phone 356 7364 (24 hours)
—•^»"'————————page I S d
SSAIALIi IS BEAntlFIIL
Oliifiiai/; G.F.Scli»iiiachcr
EF. Schumacher, who died early this
month, was to have visited Australia later
this year, to lecture and speak in much the
same way as he vished the U.S. in March.
There, lecture halls across the country
overflowed and Newsweek ran a threequarter page story on his visit. Schumacher
met with Resident Carter, but his visit had
no impact on the establishment of American
capital. "Fritz" Schumacher was a German
by birth, and emigrated to England prior to
World War Two. There he studied
economics at Oxford University, and was
interred as an undesirable alien at the onset
of war. He worked as a farm labourer, but
continued his studies sufficently to impress
John Meymard Keynes', then the guru of
international economists. Keynes pronounced Schumacher a genius, and quietly
expropriated some of his ideas for himself.
APPROPRIATE TECHNOLOGY
The fifties found Schumacher working
for the Bristish National Coal Board, an
enormous, burgeoning bureaucracy which
crystalised in him some of the ideas of size
which later propelled his work on smallness.
While an advisor to the Burmese and Indian
governments, he developed his ideas on
appropriate technology, and intermediate
technology. Fritz was an intensely practical
man. His own life carried the marks of his
conclusions on economics to the extent to
which he ground his own wheat, made his
own bread, and grew his own organic
vegetables on his 4 acre farm 20 kUometres
outside London. His health was failing in his
later years, and his only concession to
technology was an electric wheelbarrow,
tabled as bcine appropriate technology for a
66 year old man with a bad back.
{& published iputput wu small, but
immeasurably hifluential. In 1973, his fint
book "Small is Beautiful: A Study of
Economics as if people mattered" was
published, foUowed in 1975 by a little
pamphlet titled "The Age of Plenty: A
Chrisrian View." A third book, "A Guide
fbr the Perplexed" was just finished before
he died m Switzerland oo September S. It
was published io London last month. But he
also wrote regularly for a little known
altemative lifestyle magaane from Wales
caUed "Resurgence".
Writing in this paper in March 76,
Schumacher said what he beUeved, "we
have been told that we are expected to use
our talents, whether they are few or many,
and shall be counted 'good and faithftd
servants' as long as we produce a surplus —
so that we do not simply live and work for
ourselves but also serve the rest of creation
and even the least of our brtatheren... and
also that 'my yoke is easy and my burden
ii^t.'" And he conclude "All this I beUeve
to be true."
THE ECONOMICS OF
SURVIVAL
For Schumacher, the rich were called to
serve the poor. Simplicity was his message,
and he presented that message simply also.
The absurdity of shipping biscuits from
Glasgow to London and from London to
Glasgow, so that the trucks passed
eachother on the Ml, was to him so obvious
that it should be clear to al]. What was the
point of buUding a cement plant in Delhi
which would produce 100,000 tonnes of
cement.a day. when smaU plantCan.orer'IodUi ptododng p^haps OIK' ttetie a. day
would be^of mticn more use to the people
who.iisol'the ktuff. The logical follow on
from those ideas wu to put them into
practice.
So he and some coUegues formed tbe
Intermediate Technology Group, based in
London. From there they helped poorer
nattons develop appropriate technolo^ fbr
their local needs. He was not Luddite about
tediiiology, but called and worked fbr
technology to become once more responshre
to the needs of the people and not to some
economic theory or centralised planner's
idea of what was right. Thus solar energy
and waste recyclfaig systems for small
oommunities became the logical outworkingc of what Schumacher called the
Economic of Survival.
THE BATTLE FOR THE
FUTURE
At bas, he saw many of the Western
World's problems lying in the phenomenon
of Giantism. Technology had become a
self-petpetuating growth which placed the
stress oh human technique to tfie almost
exclusion of people. This giantism led to a
worid-vicw which placed people in tow
camps. "The battle ofthe fiiture," he said
in "Sniall is Beautiful", vnU be between two
groups of mnovaton whom we might name
'the people ofthe foreward stampede' on the
one side, and the 'homecomers' on the
other. The former always talk about
breakthroughs — a breakthrough a day
keeps the crisis at bay — and those
breakthroughs almost invaribly imply more
violence to nature and a greater, more
constant, more inescapable subjugation of
man under the requirements ofthe system'.
The Homecomers, he said, "will require
more creativity. Any intelligent fool can
make things bigger, more complex, and
more violent. It takes a touch of genius —
and a lot of courage to move in the opposite
direction." In 'Small is Beautiful' he
developed the Mea ofthe homecomer to its
lo^cal conclusion. "The case for hpe rests
on the fact that ordinary people are often
able to take a wkler view, and a more
'hmnanistk' view, than is normally being
taken be experts. The power of ordinary
people who today feel utterly poweriess does
not lie In starting new forms of action but in
placing their sympathy «nd support with
mmority groups which have already started."
Critics of Schumacher, like the British
Govemment spokeman who dismissed his
ideas ten years ago as beuig "up the creek"
argued that he did not provide detailed
plans for the implementation of his ideas.
Schumacher said, in typical lye fashion,
that he didn't bother his head about it." He
had fsdth in the vitality of the people to
strive for smallness and appropriateness for
themselves to meet their own needs in their
own situation. That faith has made his ideas
some of the most powerfully subvershre in
out time. That President Carter has taken
him seriously enough to want to meet him is
some indication of the interest felt at high
govemment level. Govenor Gerry Brown of
California, a long time fan of his, has
established an Office of Appropriate Technology in the most profligate, affluent state
of the Union. His visit created enormous
interest in his ideas, as people searching for
gukiance out ofthe emptiness of consumerism and the worid of bigger, better,
brighter, looked to him for a way. But he is
no guru.
At the Conference for Appropriate
Technology held in the Bali; Beach Hotel in
August this year, he came over as being
arrogant. In the midst ofthe airconditioned
and plastic splendor, surrounded by the
South-East Asian technocrats who has come
to hear him, all he could think of was his
chUdren and his organic vegetables in
London so far away. Just a month later he
was dead, taken by a heart attack on a Swiss
train.
what you can do
1. Join a group organised to fight uranium mining and re! ated issues.
POSSIBLE
SUGGES-nONS
• Friends of the Earth
C.A.N.P.
235BoundarvSt.,
147 Ann St.,
West End. Ph. 441766
Brisbane Ph. 2210188
• C.A.N.P. (Toowoomba)
C.A.N.P. (Rockhampton)
C/o Hans Schwabe
Sean Mitchell
MS 224
P.O. Box 795
Withcott via HeUdon
Rockhampton
• C.A.N.P. (Gold Coast)
C.A.N.P. (Sunshine Coast)
Penambler Court,
P.O. Box 104
Benowa
Maroochydore. 4558
Gold Coast
P.O. Box 5115
C/o Debbie Otto
Townsville. Ph. 716226
5 Schuman Lane
Gympie. 4570.
There are also a series of groups—at least 60 who give their support to a uranium
• moratorium. It's often more effecthre to join an existing group because you have a
network of contacts already built-up—and more plans can be carried out—with extra
person power. This does not negate other suggestions.
X * Ring and harass your local member of parliament.
• TYy to get articles on the issue in your local paper, and write letters to the editors of
the mam newspapers.
• Srt op dspbqrs for the local Ubrary. A good suggestion for this is to do it on big
cardboard boxes—so they can easily be taken places,
• Ekicoonge the local library to buy good books on nuclear power and energy issues.
WORLD ENERGY STRATEGIS
by Amory Lovins
RED UGHT FOR YELLOWCAKE
by Falk. Barrett, Hayes.
NUOEAR POWER
by Walter Patterson
GIVE ME WATER
by residents of Hiroshima
NUCLEAR ENERGY
byRalphNader
• Tty m d get a discussion group going at ymtyfotk place or sdiool.
• S i ^ i t Unk)n uranium bans—write to the Anti-Uranlimi Lobby.
Trades Hall.
Upper Edward St.,
Brisbane.
• Read the Fox Report on uraniuiii mining—find out what the media didn't mention.
• Tdl others about the danger of uranium — its social, political, environmental
effects—seU stickers—obtainablefromF.O.EOTC.A.N.P.
• EipUn to people about the implications of workingfermajor iuraniiun mining Go's.
CR. A. an^ Mary Kathleenare the main ones.
• Leaki: Ifyou hear of any informatkm that maybe regarded as at all useful by the
anti-uranium campaigners — especially incriminating infonnation -— spread ft
around. Let F.O.E know about it.
• Write songs, leaflets, slogans, posters. DO STREET THEATRE. Some of these
types of actions will probably get lost in the pipeline, some won't; the more joy you
get from an action the more efftctive it's likely to be!
3. CAMP CONCERN [Dirwin] and THE A'TOMFIIEE EMBASSY [LocasHdgfatf,
Sydn^j are tow groups of people who have set up residental protest at strategic places
—to bring attention to the uranium issue. They also keep the proponents of uranium
under surveillanc^_
____
Conflict between speciai branch police and demonstater at King George
Square on October 12th 1977
Those people who want uranium
mining to go ahead at any cost, the
government and the uranium companies,
also want to prevent the expression of public
opinion that October 22 stands for.
The Queensland premier has attacked
uranium protesters. He has refused the
normal democratic right ot hold rallies and
marches. He has used pariiamentary
privilege to launch personal attacks on
people who have even dared to apply for a
march permit.
The Australian Prime Muiister has
openly stated that dossiers arc being
compiled on opponents of uranium mining.
He has called on the state police to give
infonnation to the Commonwealth police on
demonstrators.
The Australian Government wants to
use the Atomic Energy Act to control any
opposition to uranium exploitation. Under
this Act, heavy fines and prison sentences
wiQ apply to any .workers refusing to handle
uranium, and to any people who criticise
uranium mining. This act is a step towards a
police state.
sayfiP to a nuclear world
NATIONAL MOBILISATION
OCTOBER 2 2
RAUXMARCH
10 am
KING GEORGE SQUARE
™ ^ page 16™'
Atom Hants K|ire;ul.
^—""WfiW*?—"i"**
J>
••ifm.t,^
I.
I-
i.i'nn
Ml I II, I I III w i n . i i H F . w M < l l — l ^ « i ^ l » » — ^ — — ^ i ^ g i ^ f c ^
More than assisted by Gerard Lee, John iiggens,
Edited by Maik Wolff Published by Planet Press Printed by Warick Daily NcwS Special artWork by Matt Mawson
Mark Hayes, fjick lindsley..David Brier, Bob Phelps Leacniqg Exchange.C.A.N.P.
;;• Av ;\K'
188 Bany Pde., Valley. Phone 52 7828
1
:Pag*15'
PROJECT JONAH
By Joy Lee
Whaling Referendum ?
The Fraser Government's faUure to
respond to the caU for AustraUa to end
its participation in whaling may yet come
back to haunt it. The Save the Whale
Campaign organised by Project Jonah has
received massive pubUc support, yet has
been .unsuccessful in convincing the
Federal Government that it is conducting
a poUcy that is not acceptable to the vast
majority of AustraUans. A recent newspaper poU in Westem AustraUa showed
that 73 per cent of the population would
like to see whaUng stopped. Project
Jonah estimates that in other states the
percentage would Ue between 85-90 per
cent. A referendum on the question of
ending whaUng would pass overwhelmingly.
Project Jonah has coUected over
100,000 signatures on petitions and Mr
Sinclair the Minister responsible for whal*irig poUcy received over 10,000 personal
.letters in June as well as countless telegrams and telephone caUs. Project Jonah's
campaign has foUowed aU the rules that
arc supposed to lead in a democracy to a
poUcy change. A massive pubUc educational campaign has been conducted
through the mass media and educational
kits distributed across the nation. In the
past four months Project Jonah has
processed over 40,000 letters requesting
information and has developed massive
grass roots support for whales.
Why does Mr Fraser choose to ignore
this le^timate poUtical lobby? Why does
he refuse to set aside time to meet with
representatives from Project Jonah to
hear arguments put forward by scientists
not associated with the kiUing of whales,
and to accept the petitions containing
over 100,000 signatures? Uncritical
acceptance of Mr Sinclair's advice could
help lead to his party's defeat in the
next election. Alienation of hundreds of
thousands of voters is not usuaUy considered wise poUtical strategy.
whaUng poUcy from Mr Sinclair's department. Mr Fraser appears to be missing a
golden opportunity to win the thanks of
hundreds of thousands of AustraUans by
simply announcing that because of
pubUc change of attUude, AustraUa vriU
no longer participate ui this activity.
Project Jonah is an educational organisation that beUeves that because in past
whaUng has brought about the destruction of most of the great whale stocks,
and because the new information on
whale inteUigence, behavior and social
organisation is so remarkable, that these
animals should not be kUled for trivia!
reasons. Synthetic substitutes are readily
avaUable for aU products and far more
wealth wUl be gamed by studying these
animals to learn new technologies from
their adaptations than wiU ever be gained
by a handful of whaling companies
slaughtering them for fertUiser, stock
food and oil.
Joy Lee
Mr Sinclair in tum accepts the advice
given him by the Fisheries Department
which up until recently was headed by Mr
Arthur BoUen who was chairman of the
International WhaUng Commission. This
department fUters out information related to neurobiology, new substitutes and
changes in pubUc attitude. Mr Sinclair
also seems not to be famiUar enough with
biological information to comprehend the
significance of arguments based on'
evolutionary history so that he pubUcly
states that there is no difference between
kilUng cattle, pigs and whales. He also
pubUcly refuses to debate the issue or to
consult with scientists associated with Uve
whale studies.
Mr Sinclair's lack of sympathy for
whales and his refusal to accept the
democratic rule that politicians should do
what the pubUc wants them to, could
cost Mr Fraser dearly. It would make
poUtical sense to remove the control of
BRISBANE GAlfiHHniR- ,^ ^
.^..
MIM CBMPUTHI CENTRE The Good Oil
Spreads
TWO LOCATIONS:* Campus Shoppe,
University House,
Griffith University.
Phone (07) 275 7420
• THE ELECTRONIC CIRCUIT,
SUIT 414,4TH FLOOR,
20 DUNCAN ST., FORTITUDE VALLEY. 4006
PHONE (07) 52 8455
So the oU drUlers are after, the reef
again; It's the solution to the oil crisis,
didn't you know?
WIDE CHOICE OF BRANDS:
The twsted logic of the oil industry
became aU too apparent at a symposium
held in Brisbane recently on 'The Future
of the Great Barrier Reef."
As is becoming increasUigly clear,
AustraUa 'wiU face a Uquid fuel supply
crisis by the mid 1980s. Our own oil
deposits
be exhausted and we wiU
TEXAS INSTRUMENTS"''^*^^^^^^'*''^'''*^^ be placedwiU
in the costly, and pbUticaUy
vulnerable position, of dependence on
BEFORE EXAMS SPECIALS:
imported ofl. The oil industry was
particulariy keen to push this point home
TEXAS INSTRUMENTS - SR40 @ $37.00 -SR51-2@$68i]0
to the symposium partidimts. And they
-SR56@ $95.00 - SR52 @ $252.00
pushed theksolution-more exploration- TI57 @ $79.95 - PCIOOA^ $252.00
even harder. It seems like they're prepared to screw Australia for every last
- Tf58 ^ $125.00 - TI59 @ $279.00
•SHARP - E L81155 @ $33.95- PC1001@ $154.95 drop of bhck gold they Can Und, the
- EL5801 @ $35.95 - PC1002 @ $194.95 Barrier Reef being no exception.
In 1970 the Royal Commission into
-EL5000@ $49.95
oil drilling on the Great 'Barrier Rfsef
And other Spea'als avaihUte on request
recommended an indefinite mOiatoriuni
(sound farhiUar?) on reef drilling. The
"PLEASE CAiL AND INSPECT OUR FULL RANGE'
Commission also made clear the need for
Limited Offer — Phone Orders Accepted
properly conducted long term experiments to determine the effect of oil
spiUs on the Reef ecosystem. No drilUng
should occur unttt such experiments had
determined that to do so would be
"safe." The Liberal Govemment of the
day accepted the Commission's recommendation and no driUing has occuned.
As yet no long term experiments have
been conducted.
However the oU industry is convinced
the Reef wiU eventually be driUed. In a
recent move the industry persuaded some
Canberra bureaucrats that a seismic
survey of the reef would be a good idea.
By R. Skenes
The survey would have shown how much
oU exists in the Reef area. The proposal
was squashed, at least temporarUy, but it
remains to be seen how much muscle
the oU industry can wield as the crunch
gets closer. It seems pretty obvious that
conservation of the Reef is not going to
be the top priority of either govemment
or industry.
The irony of it ,iU is that, whUe the
discovery of oU reserves on the reef might
postpone the "crisis," that is all it wUl do.
A few years later, and after a few more
milUon doUars to BHP, Esso etc, we'U be
faced with the very same probleoi. And
what of the reef?
Compucorp Canon
I Windmill Gourmet
I
Ddicatessan
Now situated at Softies*
Discount Centre
Beaudesert Rd
Acacia Ridge
We specialize In Asian Foods
and cater for all needs:
• of your.rlce table (Sultan's
Choice Products included)
* of your cooking
We also have souveniers and gifts
from all over the world.
Come and have a look around.
ContactJ.F. &A.B. Holweg
phone 277 4869
-'" •-
The recent State Govemment approval of three new and generous parks in
Queensland
mdicates that BjelkePetersen's election stand for conservation
is likely to be based primarUy on national
parks.
This is quite ironic, as the state of
national parks in Queensland is extremely
poor-.? per cent of Queensland's land
mass is under national park, compared
with, for example, 3 per cent in New.
South Wales, nearly 7 per cent in Tasmania and the United Nations recommendation of a desirable minimum of 5 per
cent. Furthermore, about half of our
national park area in Queensland consists of the economically bankrupt
Simpson Desert.
In fact, if the Queensland Government
continues to proceed at the rate they
have over the last seven years, it will take
374 years to achieve the 5 per'ce.nt
minimum goal.
This situation is certamly not a result
of lack of suitable areas but a combination of factors including lack of funds to
the Queensland National Parks and WildUfe Service, totaUy inadequate drive on
the part of tiie NPWS itself, and tiie over-
———^———^irfrP^fi»--iA^
Another factor of serious concem is
riding powers of other departments,
specificdiy Mines, Forestry and Lands. the high percentage of native, forests
The NPWS itself should be standing up under, private ownership which are not
to the opponents of conservation in these protected by environmental legislation.
departments. Instead, we have the This also makes it extremely difficult and
extraordinary situation where the service costiy to acquire suitable National Park
recommended Strategy B of the Heath areas in some cases.
Report (sandmining) of Moreton Mand
in its submission to the Moreton Island The "new" proposals
Inquiry, while the Department of Primary
Industries opposed it. As another ' The Queensland Government's attiexample pf the service's poor record, we tude towards National Parks is evident in
find it actively expending scarce re- its approach to the recent park proposals
sources in managing populations of intro- for Cape York, Scenic Rim and the Brisduced deer, a potential environmental bane Forest Park.
hazard. (At the same time, there is no
Queensianders were told, tint these
such thing as management of native parkswould double the State's area under
fauna
- in
this
state.)
National Park. On closer inspection
Recreational use of natural areas is however, it appears that the State
increasing rapidly so that the smaU areas Government intends to declare these
of National Park that we do have are areas as multi-use parks, with the long
overused and inadequately managed. It is term intention of reserving them as
estimated, for example, that over 200- National Parks.
. 000 people visited Miala and Tambourine
This is quite inconsistent with the
National Parks last year. One must now
definition of a National Park as accepted
book months ahead to camp at Giraween
by Ministers responsible for National
and Carnarvon National Parks.
Parks in aU AustraUan States:
The effects of this intensive recrea''. . . a National Park is a relatively
tional utUisation are becoming increasing- large area set aside for its features of prely severe. Carnarvon is a fine example of
dominantly natural landscape, flora and
destruction of vegetation caused by too fauna, permanently dedicated for public
many visitors. The Cassowary populaenjoyment, education and inspiration and
tion at Lake Eachum has been seriously
protected from all interference other than
depleted by the increasmg flow of traffic essential management practices, so that
to the park.
its natural attributes are preserved."
In addition to this, not a single
Report on the National Estate 1974, p7S
management plan exists for any National
An area cannot be "predominantly
Park in Queensland. The inadequacy of
unspoUed" if, prior to its declaration as a
this situation is reflected by developNational Park, it has been subject to inments in Cooloola National Park where
compatible land uses such as mining,
unplanned buin-offs are conducted and a
forestry and farming. Yet this is what the
pipeUne bas been constructed through the ' Government is proposing.
park.
Cape York
The proposal to declare Cape York a
"wUdemess" and wUdUfe area" has at
present no meaning, as the term has
never been defined under legislation. The
premier made an almost identical statement in June 1976 and predictably no
action has occurred.
The four proposed National Parks in
Cape York-Jhidine River, bon Range,
Weymouth and Possession Island-are not
new. The details of the parks were first
announced by Mr Tompldns, the Minister
for Lands, Forestry, National Parks and
WildUfe Service, in November 1975,
and in June 1976 tbe gazzet:^ of these
parks was said to be "imminent." We are
stUl waiting.
The integrity of Cape York is already
threatened in a number of ways. Comalco
is developing heathlands in the Jardine
River catchment for pastoral purposes;
sandmining is operating on the perched
dunes of Cape Flattery and over 2000
square kilometres of bushland at Aurukan
were recently aUenated for bauxite mining. Large areas of land are being cleared
in the lowlands north of Cooktown for
cattle and a road is being pushed through'
virgin lowland ramforest north of Cape
Tribulation.
Is this development an indication of
the type of "wilderness", the Queensland
premier is proposing?
/•
This' issue hi^ilights the complete
subservience, of the Queensland Government to wealthy landholders 'and multinational companies, there will be no real
conservation progress in Cape York
Peninsular. whUe tUs poUcy contbiues.
The rainforest of the Datatree River
lowlands, for example, continue to be
despoiled by the Dutch mUUonain Ame
Fedeisen. National Parks wUl only be
declared by the Queensland Govemment
in parts of Cape York where they do not.
conflict with these interests, and where
there is no opposition from Mines and
other departments.
The most appropriate means of ensuring that Cape York Peninsular receives
adequate protection and management is
the establishment of an independent and
pubUc inquiry into the conservation
needs of'the region. The present ad hoc
development should not be aUowed to
continue.:
Brisbane Forest Park
A similar situation exists with the
proposal for the Brisbane Forest Park in
theD'AiguUar Ranges.
Brisbane Forest Park wiU not be the
biggest National Park surrounding an
AiutraUan- capital, despite the Premier's
claim to the contrary.
"COCA'COiA" ANb "COKE" ADE REOISTEREO TRADE MARKS WHICH tDEKTIFY THE SAME PRODUCT DF THE COCA-COU COMPANY.
0IS-S943
NATIONAL PARKS IN QLD
In a meeting with Mr Tompkins,
representatives from the Queensland
Conservation CouncU were ^ven the
impression that the park was essentiaUy
a "zomng category"-a particular area of
land bemg set aside for recreation, rather
than a weU planned and managed
National Park.
The draft legislation for the Park
aUows the present landholders, the Brisbane City Council, the Forestry Department, and the National Parks and WildlUe Service to maintain control over their
sections of land. Hence, the park wUl be a
multi-use park and wiU not be equivalent
in status to a National Park.
It appears obvious that forestry
activities wUl be permitted to contmue in
the park. It is relevant to note that most
of the area in question is State Forest and
there is no reason to believe that in
future, for example, large areas of the
D'AiguUar's could be cleared and planted
with pine.
Scenic Rim
The Scenic Rim proposal epitomises
the pubUc relations exercise involved in
the State Government's national park
poUcy. WhUe the Scenic Rim (between
Cunningham's Gap and the hinterland of
the Gold Coast in the Great Dividing and
McPherson Ranges) is'an area weU worth
of National Park status, it appears that
this has been approved mainly as a pat on
the back for the Premier. TTie Scenic Rim
Association has spent much time and
effort "ov^r a long period, pushing for
their proposal, yet most of the pubUcity
it has gained has concentrated on the
Premier's token visit to the area-to
symboUse. his "active" conservation
mterests.
The park would entaU a strip of 300
metres aaoss the rim wUh larger sections •
of park in particular sigiuficant areas. The
premier, however, continuaUy taUcs of a
"forest and recreation park" (not a
National Park) stating also that it would
not interfere with freehold land. It is to
be hoped that we won't see a narrow strip
of National Park along the rim with pine •
plantations and intensive forestry
continuing down the sides of the rangethis is actuaUy possible within the proposal.
There Is for example, environmentaUy
significant areas of forest in the Mistake
Mountains and other parts of the Rim. If
the Premier is sincere in his desu-e to protect the environment of the Rim, he
should include larger areas of these
natural forests in the national park.
Conondale Range
The Queensland Premier appears to
recognise the aesthetic appeal, wUdemess
and recreational value of the Scenic Rim
area-it is close to Brisbane and because
of its proxunity to the Gold Coast, the
area is popular for tourism and has
immense potential in the future.
However, there exists a similariy situated area in the hmteriand of the
Sunshine Coast-the Conondale Range.
This area has both unique and important
scientific, recretional, and watershed
values which draerve at least equal recognition to the Scenic Rim.
The Queensland Conservation Council
has submitted a detaUed proposal for a
31,000 hectare National Park including a
high priority wilderness reserve in the
area. This has been supplemented by a
detaUed proposal by the WUdUfe
Research Group (Queensland) and Save
Conondale Range Committee.
Yet the proposal continues to receive
negative responses from the National
Parks and WUdUfe Service. The area is at
present ControUed by the Forestry
Department and is used extensively for
selective logging. It's popularity as-a
recreational area is increasmg rapidly and
this means that its integrity is endangered
by lack of proper management.
The area also contains some unique
fauna, and an extensive mosaic of vegetation types which must be protected
from mining, woodchipping and softwood plantation mterests, which constitute very serious and imminent threats
to the area's future.
A 1700-hectare park has recently been
declared in the Conondales but this is
totaUy inadequate.
<• Evolution im a small industrial creek.^
..>*t>^\\^^.^i.\»^>'^^'''-^-*i^v«^*-"'-'^v
* Commonwealth Aluminium Corporation Pty Ltd
* Alcan Queensland Pty Ltd
* Tlieiss Peabody Mitsui Coal Pty
Ltd
* Utah Development Company
, • Metals Exploration Qld Pty Ltd
. '* Freeport Queensland Nickel Inc
Other exemptions under the Act are
not even pubUshed. Section 27 (2) aUows
the Water QuaUty Council to grant an
exemption to a poUuter for conditions in
a permit under "special circumstances"
which are not defined further m the Act!
SmaU wonder Queensland's waterways
have shown such a clear deteriorktion
over the past few years. Data fron\ the
Water QuaUty CouncU's own annual
reports shows 73 per cent of streams and
rivers measured in 1976-77 faUed to meet
the Council's own criteria for dissolved
oxygen levels on at least one occasion.
Quite an increase over the 61 per cent in
1974r7S.
Levels of bacteria originatinB from
human excreta are disturbingly high in
many Queenslan(^ waterways. 76 per cent
of sampled rivers and creeks exceeded
thtr safe level for contact sports one or
more times. The greatest culprit was
Oxley Creek with a maximum of
1,000,000 faecal coUforms (bacteria)/
100 ml. The recognised desirable level is
200! Brisbane River was not far behind
topping at 10,000,000. SalmoneUa, the
food poisoning bacteria has been isolated
from numerous waterways around Brisbane. Other disease causing bacteria and
viruses are sure to be present, but the'
Water QuaUty Council has never tried to
find out just what, and how many,
pathogens are present. Maybe the State
By R. Skenes Government wouldn't be too happy to
Water QuaUty CouncU has only three receive the hard information on the
uispectors to police the whole of Queens- health risk associated with recreational
land, it's hot surprismg that polluters are use of Brisbane's waterways.
hard to track down. During 1976-77 only
Pesticide and heavy metal contaminahalf of the 478 Ucensed premises received
tion is widespread. PeUcans in the Briseven one visit (374 poUutuig days in a
bane River have DDT readuigs of up to
year...).
24 ppm. This is considered "significantThe CouncU has practised a role ly high." Oil readuigs range from 100 to
somewhat akin to an intelUgence service. 300 parts per miUion-quitc enough to
Licences are negotiated in secret and the make you sick if you felt incUned to eat a
pubUc are completely excluded from any peUcan!
participation. Under the existing conWith the present abysmal attitude of
ditions of government secrecy the pubUc the State Govemment, and the enormous
has no assurance that industries are not deficiencies m the Clean Waters Act, it's
simply being given Ucences to continue hard to see any great improvement
poUuting. Many potential poUuters are occuring in the area of water quaUty.
members of the Water QuaUty Council Increasing population levels and industri-.
(surprised?).
aUsation can only lead to a worsening of"
A number of notable companies arc the situation. But reserve some of your
completely exempt from profisions of the ire for the Fraser Government. In its last
Clean Waters Act, supposedly because budget, funds for the National Sewerage
they happened to- have entered into Program were cut to ZLUtO. Compare
agreement acts whh the Queensland this with the 53,648,000 allocated by the
Government prior to 1971. They in- (lie
Whitlam
Government
during
clude:
1974-7.S.
B76.
LEGAUSED POUUTION
posedly "An Act relating to the preservation, restoration and enhancement of the
quality ofthe waters of the State and for
purposes connected therewith." Since
the; Act's inception no persons or company Imve been prosecuted, although the
Act provides for fines of up to S 10,000
for first offences writK an extra $1000 for
each and every day duruig which the
offence continues. The Government
claims it has a poUcy of "co-operation"
Strange claims by a man who earUer with industry, and that prosecutions are
unnecessary under such a happy arrangethis year declared the Govertiment would
puU out - the stops and crack down on ment.
Strange that the Water QuaUty CounpoUuters;
cil, who administer the Qeaii Watera Act,
wanted to prosecute four polluters earUer
"The honeymoon can't be expected to
this year. Cabinet apparently, knocked
hut forever. . . We have been lenientperhaps too lenient-in enforcing the Act. back the proposal. The Water QuaUty
. . . companies should have had more than CouncU are the only ones who can
enough time to comply and to realise
institute court proceedings-ordinary
their obligations." .v'
citizens have no legal statiis-and even
• .'
Sunday Mail, March 3, 1977
for the council it's a tough battle. Section
47(5) of the Act provides an exemption
against prosecution if discharges arc
The Queensland Clean Waters Act
came mto existence in 1971. It is, sup- shown lo be accidental! Given that the
"One- can only speculate as to whether
the critics who advocate prosecution as
the answer to achiement in the field of
water poUution controls support the
concept of prosecution when ft Comes to
illegal street marches.
"I would suspect that they wouldn't."
Ministerial statement by the Minister
for Local Govemment, Mr R. Hinze,
m ParUament house, September 22,1977
a^Page 17
posed pubUc discussion untU Cabinet has
made a decision whether or not to accept
them.
The case for sandmining is primarily
based, on the economic benefits that
would be derived from employment
opportunities and State revenue. Recent
investigations of the economic aspects of
sandmining throw these claimsinto the
realms of pure guesswork.
The value of Moreton Island is a
wUdemess and recreation area, through
its declaration as a National Park,
thoroughly outweighs any short-term
economic gains (and even these are in
question) that may come from mining..
Its close proximity to Brisbane, relative prisine condition and its non-freehold
status provide an exceUent opportunity
for the Queensland Government to
acquire a national park of world heritage
status on Moreton Island.
Hoever, it has been suggested that the
Government wiU completely ignore the
recommendations of the committee of
inquiry and proceed with an unUmited
mining poUcy. The consequences of this
Moreton Island
action would be abominable, both
WhUe the premier has been busy enwronmentaUy and poUtically.
The people of Queensland have a right
sprouting about his great park proposals,
to
know the intention of the State
he has remained significentiy sUent re-"
Government
before the forthcoming
garduig a decision on Moreton Island,
State
election.
Bjelke-Petersen must not
using such inane statements as "there's no
be
aUowed
to
carry
out this sinister plan
hurry on this matter", "Moreton Island
to completion.
has been there a long time" and "Now is
Furthermore, the Queensland people
the time for pubUc discussion."
must
be told of the real state of national
The Committee of Inquiry into the
parks
in Queensland and be able to assess
future land use of Moreton Island has
theu adequacy through this knowledge.
recommended 6.4 per cent sandmining on
The Queensland Government must not be
the North-east coast of the island m an
permitted to continue this misguiding and
area described as "degraded dunes."
completely false pubUc relations exercise.
Their recommendations, released in
June thif year have been open for sup-
Page 111
the book nook
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'Page 19.
-r-r
- . * \ . ix.^'aw -'v • >'•»*-•:''
•,1
PRINCE OF WALES
•ISLAND
•
CAPE-YORK
[LOCKERBIE
SHELBURNE
8^
m crisis
NVILLE
Cape York Peninsula is an aesthetic experience
never to be forgotten-it is a wilderness of outstanding beauty embracing a multiplicity of
natural features including cloud-strewn mountain
ranges, lusl) rainforests, red standstone gorges,
mighty liveis and pure white sand-dunes and
beaches. Within its boundaries from the tip of
Cape York south to latitude 16° is to be found an
extiaordinaiy mosaic of vegetation types ranging
from dry opwn woodland and sparse heathlands to
<H:IARLOTTE
dense ttoin.<^ rainforests and nuuigiove conununities.
{ '
C/^PE MELVILLE
Aboriginal culture, though seriously depleted
since the anivel of Europeans to this continent,
continues to flourish as its people identify so
strongly with this land. A diveisity tuid abundance
of wildlife including many rare and little-known
FLATTERY
forms of plants and animals render Cape York
Peninsula a region of nnmense sdentific interest
and importance. It is also a region rich vnth
CAPq BEDFORD
historical associations from early European expediCOOKTOWN
tions and settlements.
Cape York Peninsula'is the largest'and one of
the most important wnldemess areas remaining
in Australia. A vast expanse of over 150,000
~fCAPE~TR7BULATlON^^^^
kilometres, it is relatively untouched with
less than 5 per cenf.of its landmass coinhiittcd to
development; at this stage. It is, however, being
^
emoached upon at a rapidly increasing rate. If we
are to afford this priceless natural asset the protectkin and proper ininugenicnt it so thoroughly
deserves, we must act now.
The importance of wildemjes?
The intrinsic importance of Cape York
Peninsula lies in its'immense wilderness
value. Wilderness can be considered as a
large tract of primitive country with its
land and waters and its native plant and
animal
communities.
substantially
unmodified by humans and their v/orks.
It must'be large enough to survive as
wilderness' and maintain genetic diversity
despite influences from surrounding areas
and to permit the experieiice of solitude,
and must, be relatively free of facilities
for mechanised access such as roads.
The whole human race evolved over
the vast majority of its existence in a
wilderness .,envirbnmentjC"and only in
recent centuries has this* environnient.
been drastically alteredi^jl CfxlotmQliiy
increasing pace that thMtens tllS^xistence of the few wilderness areas still in
existence. The biological and psychologi;
cal needs that were •tlcvtfloped over this
period cannot be ignored. Although the.
way of life lias changed, basic humaii
biological characteristics have not.
•
Variety is the spice of life, and the
elimination of wilderness would greatly
• reduce- the richness and number of
experiences • available to people. The
preservation' of wilderness docs more
towards niaximising human freedom thanany other land-use, and wilderness conservation is a vital part of the struggle to
maintain and improve human' freedom.
Nor can we ignore the ri^ts and potential values of generations as yet unborn by
pre-empting their choices via lUc ucstruction of wilderness.
As the man-made environment of the
towns and cities becomes increasingly
artificial, unstimulating and repressive,
and the numbers of people living in these
enviroiunents increase, so the need for a
totally different environment of an
' unspoilt and purely natural type increases,
greatly, This is particularly so in view of
the. fact that under existing pressures for .
development, wilderness areas can oiily
be reduced in size,
One of the majo'r values of wilderness
is that'it provides the best possible con, ditions for biological conservation.
Wilderness areas, can be regarded as vast
storehouses of genetic materials, such as
Arnhem Land ht the Northern Territory,
another outstanding wilderness from
which the Australian Government his
; crimiiuily'approved the minmg and
export of uranium.
.
Wilderness is regarded as such a critical resource that even in the densely
populated and heavily industrialised
United Kingdom, attempts arc being
^ niade to recreate wilderness by the
closure of roads in Snowdonia National
Park. The. wilderness values of Cape York
Peninsula are being increasingly recognised. In 1976, for example, it is estimated
that over 2000 vehicles attempted to
traverse the peninsula from south to
• - north. An'eve.r-increasing proportion of
the-population are accepting and appreciatiiig tiie.values associated with wilder''ness coflscrvation. '
Daintree-Cooktown lowlands
.
cpntains more than 100 species of tree
20 centimetres or more in dianietre.
,. It is indeed unfortunate that the
soastal soils favored by these forests are
so-ideal for the production of sugar cane
and other products. Ma^hre destruction
of lowland rainforest has alreadyoccurred right along the eastem Australian coastline. The forests of, the "big
scrub" in north-cast New South Wales,
for example, are now virtually nonexistent. Most of the north Queensland
lowland forest' south of the Daintree has
beeh cleared for sugar-cane.
The whole of the Daintree-Bloomfield
lowlands and hinterland comprise a
natural area of outstanding beauty and
scientific importance. The catchment of
Noah Creek, for example, is one of the
most significant botanical sites in Australia. It is here that thcbnly representative
of an entirely/ new family of flowering
plants (Idiospermum australiense) is
found in addition to a large number of
primitive plant forms.
In the lowlands from Noah Creek
north to Cedar Bay we have the best
sompletely undeveloped coasted scenery
in Queensland. Luxurious rainforest
ixtends. from the white sandy beaches
uid rocky headlands up to the numerous
rocky peaks in the ranges above. One of
:he highest mountains in Queensland in
the form of Thornton Peak and a whole
string oLruffied mountains to the nprtl)
tower magnificently over the Daintree
lowlands. Cape Tribulation and other
headlands protrude ostentatiously into
the placit waters of the Great Barrier
Reef which has Cape York Peninsula as
its terrestial partner for a distance of over
600 kilometres.
Indeed, The conservation of the Reef
itself depends to a large degree on maintaining habitat adjacent to the reef in its
natural condition. Much environmental
disruption to reef ecosystems south of
the peninsula can be attributed to human
modification of the mainland including
pesticide runoff and soil erosion.
ThB^;:Paintre<^«Riverjkks8 than 100
kilometres drive north from Caims, is a
most appropriate introduction to the
Cape York wilderness. The Daintree
extiiary is richly endowed with some of
the most well-developed and tall stands of
mangroves on the Australian coastline,.
These'mangroves forests are regarded as
being of both natiomd and international
importance to conservation. Dr Len Webb
has recommended national park status for
tiie entire Daintree tidal wetlands system
ahd his proposal has been backed by the
Australian Littoral Society and other
groups.
, The Daintree River and its associated
wetlands provide a, mtjor refuge for the
Estuarine, or Saltwater Crocodile. This
species has in the past been dramatically
reduced m numbers by shooters for the
skin-trade and has. been completely
wiped out of many of its former haunts.
Only recently has the Queensland
Government seen fit to protect it..
The coistil lowlands from the
Daintree north to the Bloomfieki River
. and Cooktbmi contain some of the finest
tracts of iowUnd ramforest in Australia.
Tropical rainforests are the most exubwantly-variegated assertions of life on this Daintree land sharks
planet. No other plant commum'ty can
The massive rainforest destruction we
match them fbr diversity and complexity.
have witnessed south of the Daintree is
A hectare of lowland rainforest often
now slowly penetrating to the north of
the river itself. Extensive clearing operations have been conducted between the
Daintree and Cape Tribulation. Serious
deletenous consequences of this practice
can already be seen" aldhg the north bank
of the lower Daintree, where complete
removal of the fote&t right to the river
bank and the subsequent tranpUng of
cattle has caused massive erosion.
Moreover, there is an increasing
demand for residential development in
this, area and a road, is being pushed
through rainforest north from Cape
Tribulation. The lesee of much of these
coastal pastoral leases is a Mr Artie
Pedersen, a faceless Dutch millionaire
who similarly controls large tracts'of
leasehold land at Weymouth (Iron Range)
and elsewhere on Cape York Peninsula.
Mr.Pedersen is now busQy subdividing
•for real estate his land between the river
and Cape Tribulation. The man has had
extraordinary success in obtaining and
maintaining these leases which effectively
exclude large areas of natural land from,
eventually being protected as national
parkland, or for that matter, being used
for any other purpose.
Once cleared, these rainforest soils are
rapidly covered in a dense, tall grass
which is regularly burnt. Thus natural
regeneration of lowland rainforest in this
area has been almost non-existent to date
and the prospects of successful regeneration in the future are dim.
Some rainforest .destruction has also
occurred in the Helenvale-Shiptons Flat
area south of Cooktown. It is high time
indeed that the Queensland Govenunent,
for once, considered interests other than
those of wealthy land-holders and companies in such vital natural areas as these,
Cooktown
The Endeavour River north of Cooktown is the locality at which the original
descriptions of a large number of Australian plants were obtained when Captain
James Cook landed there in August 1770.
According to the historian Steani, there
are very few places left anywhere where
"anyone can at the present time see
vegetation and landscape together as
Cook and his companions saw them,
where they saw them, 200 years ago."
_ rriqn T'
--'
to Mr Pedenen in exchange for Wey- i^umDer dt'sana-oiows ctfninnute to t o a '
McDwiaith Range. With its abundance of
gorges, waterfalls, streams and exuboant , mouth. The transfer did not take place : awe4flspiring scenery, t h e proposed
growth of rahiforeati another outstanding j because of bitense Forestry Department national park helps provide a significant
natural area is represented here.
to losing valuable state forest under their sample of the tange of vegetatk>n on the
The extensive "high" plateau rain- | controL In the words of one of their' extensive sand-dune masses of the Peninforests of the range are in many respects ' officen^ "without any pnor reference to sula's east coast. A peculiar type of
different to those of Iron Range. Thx^ Head Office or District Staff of this rainforest it found within the imiposal
occurrence at 450 metres altitude is at
Departmimt, Lands Department officers which provides prolific habitat for the
great variance with the Iron Range forests conducted joint inspections of State Cooktown Orchid and the Golden
which mostly occur below 300 metres.' Forest areas in company with the appli- Orchid.
Hoop Pine staodi in the Mcllwiaith hvt^ ' cants (WeyiAouth Holding) and, accordExtensive silica sand deposits near
been found to be of extremely high ing to the latter, made commitments Cape GrenviQe are covered by mineral
genetic quality. Together with Iron
which severely prejudiced any subsequent leases. The lessees are currently seeking
Range, it is an area of immense biolo^- recommendations the Conservator of markets for the sand prior to the comcal significance and contains good.popvtla- Forests might make."
inencement of mining operations. This is
tk>ris of rare and unique wikllife.
Recent developments suggest that Mr but another example of a potentially
In the vidnity of the Range meanders Pedersen has been exchanged land with disastrous development which has been
the Nesbit River and its associated vege- subdivisional potential north of Cape approved without any prior advice to the
tation communities including one of the
Tribulation. As indicated elsewhere-in public. The proposed sand-mining of this
krgest areas of Maleleuca viridifiora
this report, a road, presumably at Mr most beautiful section of the peninsnla
vroodland on the peninsula. A sizeable
Pedersen's instigation, is currently being coastline is to be strongly condemned.
area of imdulating natural grassland is pushed through lowland rainforest north
another special feature of the Nesbit
of Tribulation. There is no doubt that Lockerbie-Soverset
valley.
The
sandstone
country
in
the
real estate is a much more lucrafive
Coastal sandy country
The most northerly landpoint in Ausvalley of the Nesbit exhibits, ort aerial
venture than oil palm plantations.
tralia
is found in the natiohal park
Another of Stanfon's proposals exists photos, an interesting braided pattern .
It is imperative that Iron Range be
at the headwaters of the Starcke and Jack
formed by denser vegation along afforded natktnal parte status, but a trade- proposal in the Lockerbie-Somerset area.
Rivers north of Cooktown. A spedal
It is extraordinary that even this nstionilnumerous small watercourses.
off of this nature is far &om satisfactory.
feature of this area is the presence of
Peter Stanton has submitted a national It is but another example of tbe govern- Iy tsipoftant locatkin h u been leased to a
plateau and sandstone escarpment
park proposal over the range which con- ment's avetsioA to interfering with pri- private company, Canmi, Charters Pty
scenery. Along its eastem edge, the '
sists essentially of the Nesbit River vate land-holders, regardless of the Ltd, for exploitative purposes.
escarpment drops &om up to 460 metres
This area.is of considerable lustorical
catchment. A number of groups, includ- dccomstances. It is idevent to note
to the coast-; below and the sandstone
ing the normally-conservative Narional here that a successful oil palm industry in into-est. It was the terminal point of the
formations differ in many ways from
Parks Associatwn of Queensland, have northern Queensland would spell disaster Jardine brothers' epic trek in 1856'and a
sandstone country further west.
recognised the importance of this propos- for what little we have remaining of low- coconut plantation established by Vrank
To the east of this proposal lies a
Jardine at Somersd remains to tiiis day.
al and of the area generally. They, have knd rainforest and the establishment of
large area of coastal dune country in the
The termination point of the Cape York
strongly supported the declaration of a
such an industry should be opposed in
vicinity of Cape Bedford and Cape
Tel^raph line and the Lockerbie homelarge national park here..
the strongest possible terms.
Flattery, Sand-dunes of varying heights
stead site established by Jardine lie within
However, because of rumored small
and their associated perched * lakes,
the paik. proposal.
deposits of gold in the ran^, the Queens- Cape Gren\rilie area
swamps and vegetatk>n constitute some
The extensive vine forests of Lockerland Mines Department has frustrated
fine scenery. Lakes vary in size from
An extraordinary representation of bie are separated by a large distance from
conservation progress. The department is
several square kilometres to small pools.
wetlands is to be found in the Olive similar forests to the south. The developinfamous for its conostent oppodtion to
The heaths of the area are lirtle-known
River-Cape Grenville area, over which ment of these tall rainforests on a parent
important national park proposals. There
bkilogically, but contain some interestStanton
has proposed another m^'or material which appears to consist of an
is in urgent need for a complete overing wikllife species including undescribed
national
park.
His proposal includes an indurated sandstone (from which red
haul of the present situation where legal
forms of skiiiks. Cape Bedford itself is an
unusual concentration of bogs, marshes, soils have formed) is a remarkable natural
priority for huid use is currently afforded
outstanding landscape feature and is
heath swamps, mangroves and associated phenomena.
to the mining industry in this state. The
complemented by some colored sands to
saline swamps. Within the proposed
Excellent scenery in the proposed park
ijystem of appeals to Mining Wardens in
the north and the highly scenic Rocky
national parks are examples of all the includes the tranquil Albany Passage and
Queensland (when a lease application is
Mountain area to the south.
being opposed) is a complete farce as major wetland types, both saltwater and a great variety of lakes, dunes, forests
Cape Flartery Silica Mines Pty Ltd hasthese wardens invariably decide in favor freshwater, to be found in the werter and heaths which extend south to
been stnd-miiung for some yeats on
of the applicant no matter how shallow country of eastern Cape York Peninsula. Congora Beach. Immediately south of the
aboriginal, reserve at-Cape Flattery and
A panorama bf pure white sand-dunes park proposal Ues Kennedy Inlet, which
their case might. (which it usually is) be.
damage has alreayd resulted, to the
and perched lakes with the former contains along its northern and westem
surrounding enviroiunent. All minerals
reaching.a.height of over 100.metres;can. ' shoresthelargest single-ares of mangroves
mined are exported and royalties paid, to • IronRangB
be viewed in the horth-eaitem sectfon of in Australia vvhich deserves' full protecThe t o n Ranp-Wymouth Holding the'proposed-national park and a large tion.
the State Govenunent amount tO' the
r^k>a of Cape York Peninaiila is possibly
princely sum of 2S cents per toime. The
the most biotogically significant regjon-tndetails of any agreement between HopeAttstnBa.;^it containS'tbe largest :remaiff«~
vale AboriginaL-.Miasion. and .the sand-!'
miners, are not mvailahki to^-the-.pablic:.' ing. Mo^ oi. lowlandslainfoiestiin:' this-'.
and. the .conqnay concerned strictly-ccm^ . -. .cotinlry>- ss^< • fout.:.m^ior "cbtssificktiontf. ^
troh any access to areaubcdng^minediV.'. ^ •, havif^beea established.. At .least- i 0. per
Tbe Princest Chsriotte Bay-Cape Met- - cent of theflora-collectedr-tadata repwi^
ville area is nothing abort of a tropical- . sent-UiikiB}wn:i]r.tmdesaibed<speciesJBid:paradise with its abundance of sandy
unique forms are typified by the orchid;
'^7.
beaches, quiet inlets and rocky headlands.
Vanda whiteana, found nowhere else.
It is beUeved that the existing Cape
At least 13 spedes of birds and five of
Melville National Park (the only park,of
mammals arie-found-nowhere in-Australia •
any size existing on the peninsula at the
south of the Iron Range-Mcllwndth
time of writing) should be extended to-- Range region-and -thff rainforests of thecover much of this country including
Weymouth area represent a major portion
some of the most extensive salt pans and
of the habitat of these-animals wMch
marine plains in Queensland. A great
mclude the only two species of the
variety of plant associations has been
peculiar Cuscus which occur in Australia
recorded including heath and scrub
and Australia's largest parrot, the Palm
communities and palm and vine forests.
Cockatoo. The tmy Green-backed Honeyeater and a newly-discovered Melomys
Further to the south of Princess
rat are found in Australia nowhere but
Charlotte Bay, Stanton has proposed a
at Iron Range, and the Red-cheeked and
national park over the Jack Lakes. This
Eclectus Parrots are confined in Australia
contains a good representatk>n of the
only to this region. Seven per cent of
large number of lakes and lagoons which
Australia's total species of butterfly do'
have developed in the clay basins of the
M:3?^"->:'--;.>;
not occur south of the region and five
Laura Basin, which vary considerably in
forms are confined to Iron Range. The
their appearance and formation.
area contains the richest ant fauna in
Starcke Holding is a giant grazing lease
Australia (over 106 species).
which has tied up large sections of this
coastal sandy country north of CookThe Iron Range-Weymouth area con.town in private hands. It is relevant to
tains a -wide variety of high quality
\L- ••; s
note the behavior of the Starcke lesees
scenery, from the rugged Janet and Tozer
when part of their land was revoked for
' Ranges to the luxuriant rainforests,' the
tfie'HTWebt) National rarx. it snouio oe
spectacular peaked masses of Cape
noted here that it is a rare occurrence • Griffin, the Claudie and Pascoe Rivers
indeed for the Queensland Government
and numerous wide beaches, coves,
to revoke private leases for national park
headlands and offshore islands.
purposes.
The tiny Mt Webb National Park is
Weymouth land sharks
220 hectares in extent~but a minute
Over half of the rainforests of the
part of the expanses controlled by'
Iron Range National Park proposal,are
Starcke Hokling-no less than 2000
within the boundsries of Weymouth
square kilometres. Yet Starcke opposiPastoral Holding, which at the tinie of
tion to the excision was vociferous and
writing appears to haVe'been, recentiy
downright hostile. This was regardless of
revoked. The controler of Weymouth was
any evidence to suggest that'they intenda Mr Arne Pedereon (refer Daintree
ed to develop it in any event. These
section) who had planned to dievelop it
pastoral interests .have already been
for oil palm plantatiohs and for a long
responsible for layhtg to waste vast
time refused to forego the holding for
tracts of lowlamds north of Cooktown.
national park purposes.
•' "
..!.:
Certahi
persons
in
the
Queensland.
Mcilwraith Range
. .
Government had in 1976 arranged to The swollen baseof this vine is on adaption to the long dry season. It is common hi theTo the north of Coen and further to
transfer an area of state forest, near Mt
Deciduous vine thickets of Cape York Penhisula.
the south of' Iron Range, lies the
Mclloy on the Atherton Tablctarid area
tn "Natfenal'pKks fojr^'Cape Yort"
Peninsula" (Australian Conservation
Foundatk>n, 1976) Peter Stanton outlines
the case for'a national park on the
Endeavour River. The book presents the ,
case for a system of national parks over
the peninsula (excluding the Daintree
regk>n) and hat bee hutrumental in
attracting natk>n-wide interest to the
r^on. It is highly recommended and can
be obtained from the Poundatk>n.
Immediately to the west of Cboktovm
lies the peculiar BUck Trevathan Range.
Characterised by monstrous boulders not
infrequently the size of automobiles, the
range generates an almost prehistoric
atmosphere. Within these rocks there is
confined. a tiny frog species found
nowhere else, and rock-wallabies and
skinks have adapted to this rugged
enviroiunent which is conspicuously
devoid of trees.
, -^ift*
'•."• f'sA-majorrcbncera in the tookQrbie.-area •T •^-HiC''.-Jardine' • catchment- -contains
is the No 1 priority placed on forwtry probably the most extensive wetland
activities by the Department of Aborigin- complex in Australia with its abundance
al -and Jslanden "Advancement" at of rivers, streams and swamptands. The
Bimaga and-this obsession continues to boundaries of the proposed park include
pose seriows threats to the rainforests of possibly the largest development of
; the area. The.- department has already •-medium'to tall'mangrovM .in Australia.
clearfelled 10 per cent df the Lockerbie Large areas of swampy heaths which
scrubs for a cattle project which has yet occur along the lower Jardine add
to eventuate. This is a classic instance of a another dimension to the landscape. One
most lamentable activity which has of the majro concentrations of vine
caused we'rious environmental harm for forest, about 60,000 hectares, is found at
no purpose whatsoever.
the head of the Jardine and indications
afe^that these forests are unique in many
Jardine river
respects with such features as imusual
The mighty Jardine River is Queens- mixtures of Cypress pine.
The Jardine catchment is biologically
land's largest perennial stream and is
unique in that the whole of its 2500 and botanically one of the least known
square-kilometre catchment is in virgin, regions in Australia although research
pristine condition. Peter Stanton has undertaken to date indicates that the area
proposed that the entire catchment of is excitingly different in many ways. TTie
the Jardine be permanently protected and river itself is of immense aesthetic appeal
a natipnal park along the lines of his and its catchment is one of the most
proposal should doubtlessly be one of impressive wildemesses on this continent.
The catchment is also rich in historical
Australia's finest.
All other river catchments in Australia associations. This is the country that in
have to some extent been modified by eariy exploration times became known as
human activities, many to the extent of the "Wet Desert." It was these vine
eccelerated soil erosion and gross altera- scrubs, bogs and heaths, full of noxious
tion of physical characteristics. Surely, plants, that presented, amost insurmoujitAustralians owe it to future generations able barrien to the journies of the Jardine
to preserve at least one river as a brothers. Jack and Bradford. It was also
memorial to aO those which have been here that the famous explorer Kennedy
could continue no. further.
irrevocably degraded.
WELL JmOhl
WERE OFF
To 5EE THE CAPE YORK
WILOERNESS RESERVE'
Comancb's heathlands The continued unique state of the
Jardine catchment is threatened by the
activities of Comalco. Comalco hM. a
lease, Special Bauxite Mining Lease Five,
in the vicinity of the Escape Riser which
is Ul the heart of the historical associatkins of the^natfoaal park proposal. It
intrudes' upon the catchment and
Comalco has to date refused to forego
this lease. ' '
Of much greater cause for concem is
Comalcb's pastoral leases in the proposal.
The company is experimenting for
pastoral purposes in heath country in its
Occupation Licence 87. It is deplorable
that Comalco, which will be strip-mining
huge areas of the peninsula for bauxite, is
being permitted to despoil this magnificent wiklemess. Recent indications at
the time of vmting are that Comalco will
be given a Pastoral Development Lease
over the McHenry River area. This would
carry no resumption rights for 30 years;
thus presenting almost insurmountable
problems in obtaining it for inclusion in
the national park.
Comalco's
occupational
licence,
known as "Heathlands," covcis about
2000 square kilometres in the Jardine and
Wenlock catchments. It is rented from
the Queensland Govemment for no l«s
than $250 per annum. About 2000
*ectan»' have sJicady twAuvdeued fOr^
putoral experimentation in these heaths
slthou^ there is'considersble doubt
about the long-term viability of this
industry in the tropics and on such poor
soils, which are seriously deficient in.
nutrients reqturing massive fertiliser
input.
In tiie Courier-Mail of May 17,' 1977,
it was reported that the proposed
development of 800,000 hectares of
wallum country for beef production had
been abandoned due to poor soil conditions and the prohibitive cost of fertilisen. Yet Comalco actively punues this
activity in even poorer soils at "Heathlands." Furthermore, the Federal Govemment has seen fit to appropriate a large
SCIRO team of scientists from Townsville to Heathlands to assess the potential
Df the area for beef production. This
ntuation is particularly peculiar when one
considers the current beef crisis-and that
the Govemment can not even find the
money for Beef Stabilisation Schemes
ind the like.
It appean Ukely that Comalco is
indulging in this economically-fruitless
exercise for monetary reasons. It-does not
have to- pay tax on the-tcsources «nd
money it --expends in operating the
Heathlands project. Thus it is doubtlessly sa'nng considerable sums of money oy
not having to pay taxes gained from its
lucrative bauxite mining. Instead it is
channelling this money into Heathlands
hoping that the venture may one day pay
its own way and at the same time losing
nothing
Possible mn-off of iertiliser, pesticides, silt and soil nutrients represent a
n«jor threat to the pristine Jardine
catchment if sections are developed. The
senselessness of attempting to develop
some of Queensland's most infertile
soils is magnified by the distance from
markets and the absence of any significant local or regional consumption
needs.
Archer Bend
Fine river scenery is the feature of the
national park proposal known as Archer
Bend, not far removed from Aurukun
Aboriginal Reserve. Up to eight kilometres in width, the flood plain of the
Archer River contains a wide variety of
vegetation types ranging from tall gallery
rainforests to eucalypt and maleleuca
woodland and including large areas of
peculiar 'thom scrubs."
The Archer River catchment contains
large samples of plant associations not
represented at all in existing reserves or
national parks. Its scenic features include
granite-boulder fields in its upper reaches
and a wide variety of lagoons, swamps
and billabongs. Th^ region is occasionally
inundated by seasonal floods caused by
monsoonal rains. The sharply-defined
"wet season" on the peninsula isolates
many areas rendering access to them by
vehicle impossible.
South-west Peninsula
Further south from Archer Bend on
the westem side of the peninsula, a landscape characterised by endlessly repeating
patterns of low ridges and swampy depressions is to be found in the Hoboyd
River-Edward River area. These pattems j
consist of broad, low quartzose sand '
ridges and form a most admirable and
unusual kind of scenery.
Marine plains (grassland developed on
coastal alluvium) in the area form a broad
band parallel to the coast behind the
dunes and are sometimes interspersed
with salt-flats. This pattern of ridges and
depressions is quite common on the
Peninsula, but nowhere else is it so compressed and complex, or covering such a
huge area. A national park has been proposed consisting essentially of the flood
overflow of the Holroyd River near its
mouth.
Another national park has been proposed around the junction of the Mitchell
and Alice Rivets, in the far south-west of
the peninsula. It includes a representation of the woodland and grassland
vegetation of the extensive alluvial plains
of the lower rainfall regions of the Peninsula, A number of tree species typical of
the drier country further to the south
and around the Gulf of Carpentaria
intrude into this area.
Aboriginal land and Aurukun
In November 1975, the Queensland
Parliament passed legislation granting a
bauxite-mining lease, covering 1905
--rPaigt 22
square kilometres of land in the vicinity
of Aurukun Mission to the Aurukun
Associates Consortium. Over 1800 square
kilometres of the Isnd was on aboriginal
reserva and the sxddon was conducted
without the consent of the Aurakun
aboriginal peo|4e.
There is complete lack of Australian
equity in the project which involves three
companies, all of which are completely
foreign-owned. No environmental study
of any nature was undertaken. In October 1975, the Queensland Lands Minister
(Mr. Tomkins) rejected calLs for an
inquiry into the conservation needs of
Cape York Peninsula, partly on the
grounds that there were "no foreseeable
large-scale threats to its future," The
unexpected passing the le^lation only
one month later, and its implications in
terms of the considerable volume of land
involved, give little cause for comfort for
those concemed with proper environmental management of the peninsula.
The aboriginal land rights movement
generally in Cape York Peninsula is gathering momentum. A North Queensland
Land Rights Council was formed at a
conference in January 1977. It will be
strongly urging State and Federal Govemments to grant title to aboriginal communities living on reserves. Aboriginal
reserves cover about one-third of the
peninsula and at this stage most communities oppose large-scale development
proposals on their land as a matter of
principle. Under existing legislation, however, they are powerless to act in situations like Weipa and Aurukun where
reserves were excised for mining.
The deep feeling for their land is
typified by the compelling desire of the
Mapoon people to retum to their original
tribal land after their forced eviction in
1963; a move which is indicative of the
survival of centuries-old instincts and the
necessity for urgent action to prevent the
complete loss of aboriginal culture.
Unlike the rest of eastern Australia, the
Peninsula is still a suitable location for
them to re-establish and restore their
communities to a viable and stable state.
ing habits, for example, have resulted hi
extensive areas of freshwater swampland b^ng subjected to saltwater, hitrusion from nearby tidal streams. Odd
individuals have been sighted in the
peninsula and it is imperative that populations be prevented from being established.
The wealth of native wildlife found on
the peninsula is exemplified by the avivauna. Over half of Australia's total bird
species have been recorded and these
include several found nowhere else on
the continent. Several subspecies and at
least one species of bird are completely
endemic to the peninsula. The peninsula
provides large areas of habitat for more
specialised spedes associated with wetlands, mangroves, heaths and rainforest.
The rainforests of Cape York Peninsula are the least disturbed of this rapidlyduninisl^ing habiUt In Australia. Less
than 0.5 per cent of Queensland's landmass remains covered by rainforest and
over half of Australia's total rainforest
area has aheady been destroyed. Specific
areas of rainforest are discussed elsewhere
in this report.
WihJIife-Hiatlve and exotic
The incidence of trapping and smuggling native animals out of Cape York
Peninsula is of great concem. The
Golden-shouldered Parrot, for example, is
considered to be one of Australia's rarest
animals. Pairs of these birds fetch up to
$10,000 on the overseas black market
and the consequences for this spedes
have been extremely deleterious. Stringent protection measures are required to
mitigate against this practice.
Large numbers of plants are illegally
taken from the forests of the peninsula.
It is not uncommon, for example, to see
truckloads of ephiphytes, ferns, orchids
and other plants being taken from the
rainforests of the Daintree River area.
These operations may prove to be disastrous for localised species of plants and
once again, urgent controls are needed.
Foreign fishing vessels are abundant in
the Gulf of Carpenteria and take vast
quantities of commercial fish and prawns.
The frequency with which Taiwanese
fishing bouys are beach-washed (several
may be encountered within a very short
distance) elucidate the extent of their
operations. Clearly there is a strong case International obligations
for greatly increased surveillance on the
. Australia is already committed to fulauthorities' part.
filling intematk>nal obligations which
These instances highUght the totaDy
apply very much to the conservation of
inadequate attention afforded to wildlife
Cape York Peninsula. Australia, with
protection m Queensland. Only one
the approval of all its States, has ratified
fauna officer, for example, is employed
the UNESCO treaty which came into
to poUce the whole of North .Queens: effect in December 1975. It binds its
land. PoUce officers in the region and
signatories to "take the appropriate
elsewhere in Queensland frequently
legal, scientific, technical, administrative
display a singular lack of interest in
and financial measures necessary for the
matters relating to wildlife conservation.
Time for action
The Aurukun experience conclusively
indicates that action is needed now if
the future of the peninsula is to be assured in any way. Aurukun may be only the
tip, of the iceberg. 1 have referred to the
road being pushed through rainforest
north of Cape Tribulation, Comalco's
activities, and sand-mining leases in the
Cape Grenville area.
In addition, Utah is cunentiy explor- '
mg tor coal in the Olive River region and
ConsoUdated Goldfields Ltd in the
Starcke area. Starcke Holding is clearing
additional land in the lowlands north of
Cooktown. BHP still maintams control
over iron-ore' leases at Iron Range and
experunents arc continuing for the
development of oil-palm plantations.
Exploration has been undertaken for
uranium, limestone and other minerals.
Bauxite-mining
There are a number of serious environmental problems associated with bauxitemining which has been in operation for
some time at Weipa and at Andoom.
Comalco may strip-mine more than 1500
square kilometres of natural land under
hs present agreement with the Queensland Government, and has about 3000
square kilometres in leases. Revegetation after mining consists largely of
exotig species (such as Carribean Pine)
and lags far behind mining operations.
At Yirrikala on Gove Peninsula,
Arnhem
Land, bauxite-mining has.
converted swampland into pondage areas
for the disposal of red mud water from
the alumina plant. Pollution from ponds
(frequently with a pH of 12 and a significant content of free caustic soda) has
killed large numbers of fish. Releases of
caustic soda into waterways has resulted
in a white deposit bf this toxic substance
over mangroves and beaches.
The evaluation of the environmental
impact of mining bauxite should not be
confined to. the effects of mining alone.
Massive quantities of energy are used in
.- the refining of bauxite and the pollution
created is severe. The estimated exhaustion of known bauxite deposits within 30
yesis at the continuing growth rate in its
consumption, and the energy crisis, are
critical factors to consider before committing vKSt areas of land (eg Aurukun)
to bauxite.
It is not the intention of this report to
suggest that Comalco's operations at
Weipa be curtailed. Rather it would be
appropriate to severely limit the company's activities in the future. We have
previously referred to the company's
unwillingness to act in the national
interest in its refusal to give up pastoral
leases in the Jardine region.
What Comalco and the decisionmakers must realise is that the values of
the community generally are rapidly
changhig. No longer does a large majority of the population automatically and
without question accept that any development id necessarily worthwhile and
that (industrial) progress and the mighty
dollar over-ride all other considerations.
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Caims hi July 1976. It is a national
activist orgaidsation concerned with the
protection of the biological, recreational,
aesthetic, historical and cultural values of
Cape York Peninsula (CYP). The committee was formed because there is an
urgent need for an organisation of this
nature to safeguard against uncontrolled
and destructhw . development on the
peninsula and to campaign for proper
environmental planning there.
The aims of the CYAC include the
establishment of an independent Commission of Inquiry to examine the environmental needs of CYP and to achieve
proper long-term land-use procedures for
the region. The committee feels that an
inquiry would be invaluable in terms of
attracting public interest to the peninsula and in definUig and proposing a
plan for its conservation and outlines for
planning in the future. The need for some
kind of inquiry is highlighted by events in
the past and those proposed in the future.
I have previously referred to sandmimng at Cape Flatteryj rainforest
destruction at Bamaga, bauxite-mining at
Weipa and Andoom, pasture development
in the Jardine catchment, Starcke Holding and the Dauitree River and wildlife ,
destruction. A classic mstance was the
dearing of over 50,000 hectares of
woodland at , Lakeland Downs near
Laura; a venture which has proved to be
economically disastrous for the owners.
The duplex soils covering much of the
peninsula are highly susceptible to erosion, and large-scale agricultural development of this nature is regarded as being
potentially catastrophic.
It is only too obvious that there is an
abundance of sources throughout Aus- tralia which amply supply our needs of
beef and other primary products. It is
mconceivable, therefore, that the wilderness and other outstanding values of the
peninsula should be compromised by the
quite-unnecessary expansion of these
. developments.
^y^'-r\ •••/ V- r,-. -v-vife,,r^s^dis|^^
strip-mining for bauxite at Weipa.'
identification, protection, conservation,
Indeed, those stationed at Mitchell
presentation and rehabilitation of this
River and elsewhere on the peninsula
have as a favorite pastime the shooting of .heritage." The Australian Heritage Commission will allnost certainly include a
protected wildlife. Existing penalties for
number of locations pn the Peninsula in
offences against the Fauna Conservation
its list of critical areas of Australia's
Act of 1974 are totally insufficient in
heritage, which at the time of writing is
any event. Moreover, there has been no
There are a number of urgent conto be published shortly.
research On the part of State Government
siderations which the authorities must
departmental officers into the'manageAustralia is a signatory to the Con- take into account. A dependence bement needs of rare vvildlife populations.^ vention on Wetlands of International
tween the tenestial and marine environThe wilderness value of Cape York
Importance, which requires each signa- ; men^,exists on the peninsula's west coast
Peninsula is vindicated by the virtual
tory "to promote the conservation of where the highly productive fisheries of
absence of introduced animals. The feral
wetlands and waterfowlby establishing the Gulf of Carpentiria could, for
pig, however, is causing immense damage
nature reserves on wetlands." The out- example, be placed at risk by adverse
to stream banks and wetlands resulting in standing wetlands of Cape York Peninsula
development in the westem river catchsoil erosion and' increased turbidity in
would provide, ideal reserves and thiis . ments of Cape York Peninsula.
watercourses. They have uprooted large
help fulfd our obligations to the conIt is believed that the upgrading of the
areas of soil in rainforests and have been
vention. Australia is also a signatory to
road
which runs through the peninsula to
responsible for facilitating the spread of
the Australia-Japan, Migratory Birds
its
tip
would gnsatly reduce its wilderness '
disease.
Treaty which bounds Australia to protect
; value. Such a developed road would
the.:environment
of
migratory
birds
by
.feral deer exist on some Torres Strait
detTiict from the experience of enjoying
islands where they have been responsible
"establishing sanctuaries and other facili- the isolated atmosphere of the region and ^
for massive destruction of some forms of
ties." Most of the spedes listed in the that is exactly what wilderness is all
vegetation. It can be expected that they
convention occur on the peninsula.
about. Moreover, it would be a disastrous
would respopd very favorably to condiAttention is drawn to the proposal by incentive to further developments there.
tions on Cape York Peninsula and any the United Nations Educational, Scienr
• The governmciit must consider as a
populations detected should be eliminat- tific
and
Cultural
Organisation' matter of urgency the declaration of large
ed. In Papiia-New Guinea, deer are the (UNESCO) tb establish a' system of.
kreas of the; peninsula as national
main vectors of the screw-worm which biosphere reserves throughout the world
parkland, and the careful long-term •
has had. devastating consequences for to guarantee, on a global basis, the
planning of. the remamder. The wildercattie there and elsewhere. It is indeed appropriate management of;both repre-.
',riessvaliie of Cape York Peninsula should
pecuUar that in south-east Queensland, sentative and outstanding natural areas:
• be comprbrnlsed no further.
the State National Parks and Wildlife
It is believed that the Jardine River
Now'is the titne for environmentalists
•Service has expended • considerable re- catchment, the Iron Range-Weymouth
throughout
Australia to take an active
sources in protecting populations of in- area and a substantial proportion of the
troduced deer, a potential hazard to the Cooktown-Daintree lowlands (including' interest hi the future of this spectacular
environment thefe. This Is particularly so the Noah Creed catchment) should be witd^rnessi Support and donations would
when one considers the urgent need in declared and managed as biosphere be warmly welcomed by the Cape York
Actkin Committee (PO Box 238, North
Queensland for management of native reserves.
Quay 4000). We must act now while vi^e
wildlife, and the much-vaunted lack of
are stSI in the unusual p6dtk>n of being
resources available to the Service.
Cape York Action Cpmniittee
actually able, to do something about
Introduced Water Buffalo have created
nvtaig
thJs.wlldemess, That opportunity
The
cap*
York
'Action
Committee
major ecological. problems in Arnhem
.
•willnot
li«t.forever..: , , .
Land, Northern Territory. Their wallow- (CYAC). was formed at a meeting in
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Published by Cape York Action Committee, Brisbane. Prijged by 'Gamut' .Vritten by Greg Roberts, Chair/na;i,.Cape York Action Committee. (PO Box 238, North Quay 4000)
Photographs byRoss Siott and Geoff Traccy, Map by Carol Jeffels, Cartoons by Tim Low. October 1911. T!ie Australian Conservation Foundation has generously assisted in
i«efingthc costs of this publication.
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Polities
That Great Divider of '60s and early'70s American Society, the Vietnam
War, produced a resurgence of political
activism in Hollywood that it had not
seen for over 20 years. It was a much
wider activism than the much publicised
street militancy of Jane Fonda and
Vanessa Redgrave. Figures as widely
removed as Dick Van. Dyke, Robert
Vaughan, Carl Riner, Warren Beatty,
Shirley MacLaine, and Gregory Peck
' actively campaigned around the nation
damning the President and the War.
From the Watergate affair came evidence that Nixon compiled a list of
500 "enemies of the Administration"
including Paul Newman, Barbara Streisand, Steve McQueen, Bill Cosby, and
Dick Gregory.
But the events in Hollywood during
the ^'40s had their origins during the
previous decade.
The Depression days image of huge
picture theatre queues waiting for an
hour and a half of glamorous fantasy
from the giant studios, is only partly
true. Some of the studios, and particularly Warner Brothers, produced many
excellent movies with strong social
themes, and a radical stance. Cagney,
Muni. Bogart, Bette Davis, in films
like "I am a Fugitive from a Chain
Gang," "Each Dawn I Die," the
"Oklahoma Kid" and "Petrified Forest."
portrayed strong women, cynical detectives and cocky, working-class heroes.
In many cases it was a radicalism thdt
appealed to cinema goers, and flowed
easily from the pens of many writers
who had made no secret that Hollywood's affluence had not reduced their
commhment to radicalism.
By the middle of the War. with Hollywood churning out films eulogising
America's Russian allies solitary European bridgehead against Hitler, the Screen
Actors'. Directors', and especially Screen
Writers' Guilds, were strongly Left
influenced. Despite the fury with which
these people's work was later attacked
their films were essentially reformist in
tone, and failed to communicate any
socialist alternative.
With the war ended. Fascism crushed,
and the creation of the Soviet Block,
the American flirtation with Russia was
over, it was time for the Cold War. A
number of conservative Republicans
recognised that their own careers could
be promoted by a witch-hunt against
Communists and accusing the governing
Demoaats of being "soft on Reds."
Senator Joseph McCarthy and the House
Un-American
Activities
Committee
(HUAC) became a major political force in
American politics. The task of the HUAC
was simple. As a Comminee of the US
Senate, composed of politicians and
violently anti-communist government
bureaucrats, it set out to discover for the
benefit of the Senate and the American
people, the size and nature of the "fifth
column cancer of domestic Communism"
bent on destruction of truth, justice and
the American way. HUAC investigators
prepared lists of people believed to be
Communist Party members' who were
called to testify before the Committee.
These witnesses would then be called
upon to disdosia any information on left
wing organisations and, above all, the
names of people they had come into
contact with while involved in these
activities. Those who "spilled their guts"
'on their former friends and associates
were termed "friendly witnesses" and
•congratulated from the Committee floor.
Those who failed to answer questions,
usually pleading the Fifth Amendment of
the US Constitution, thich gives individuals the right not to testify against
themselves, were given a rough time.
Termed "Fifth Amendment Comnnunists" they Vi/o\j\d mariably be
fired from their jobs, thrown out of
rehted accommodation, and so socially
ostracised that life depended on the help
of the friends who would stand by them.
No figure in Hollywood represented
everything conservative businessmen and
the ultra-patriots hated than Charlie..
Although the last of Hollywood's silent
greats to adapt to sound. Charlie made
a studio strike in the early '40s. Ginger
Rogers' mother reported that she had
saved finger from apjjearing in "Sister
Carrie" because it conveyed a depressing
idea of life under capitalism. Gary Cooper
stated that while he didn't know much
about politics, he was against Communism because "From what I hear, it isn't
on the level." Robert Montgomery.
George (later Republican Senator)
Murphy, and Ronald (later Governor)
Reagan, told of Communist activity in
the Screen Actors' Guild. Those accused
were, however mainly writers and
directors, but did include some actorsJohn Garfield, Larry Parkes, Orsen
Welles and others.
Prominent amongst the writers were
Dalton Trunbo.then Hollywood's highest
paid writer. Ring Lardner Jnr, Edward
Dmytryk (directed The Caine Mutiny),
John Howard Lawson, Alvah Bessiei
Bertold Breeht.
Some actors, like Sterling Hayden,
unashamedly ratted on their former
"
""
• ' ' ' ^ " " ' V P a g e 23
prbdiicere from the Motion PicturBsj
Producers Association condemned the
Committee's unexpressed intention, its
unconcealed techniques, as well as warnings against the dangers of censorship.
Yet in November, in a secret rneeting of
50 leading motion picture executives at
the Waldorf Astoria emerged the ennouncement that they had unanimously decided to discharge or suspend without
compensation the unfriendly 10. "whose
actions had been of dissereice to their
employers, and who had impaired their
usefulness to the industry."
On the eve of the Hollywood hearings
in private meetings of the attorneys for
the producers and writers, Eric Johnston,
president of the Motion Pictures Producers Assodation, had stated that there
would be no blacklist: .'Tell the boys not
to worry, we're not going totalitarian
to please a committee." Yet within weeks
the blacklist was a fact of life. Its
presence was denied, but people found
they were just never selected for jobs for
which they applied. Some dropped out of
Hollywood, others went overseas where
they could continue their film careers.
Film Directors Joseph Losey, Jules
Dassin, Robert Rossen, Martin Ritt,
producer Carl Foreman, were some who
left. Writers produced scripts under
aliases, which were usually known to
Hollyvrood producers. The producers
took advantage of their inability to use
their real names and obtained scripts at
bargain prices, Dalton Trumbo lived in
Mexico for many years writing scripts,
including "Spartacus" under a false name
for Stanley Kubrick. Ironically, Trumbo
actually won the Academy Award for the
Best Motion Picture Story in 1956 also
under a false name.
With the election of Kennedy in 1960
a new atmosphere emerged in Hollywood.
Signalling the return to the fold of
Trumbo and others. Otto Preminger used
Trumbo by name to write the script for
. "Exodus"-the outstanding box-office hit
of that year. The wheel had completed its
360 degree circle a few years ago when. In
an emotional and tear-laden ceremony at
The Bogarts were In the forefront of some twenty-five people who Drotustiid the Hollywood Academy, Charlie Chaplin
Congressional Investigation of Communists in the motion picture Industry.
was given a special Academy Award for
his contribution to the Motion Picture
Industry.
the transition from cheeky anti- friends, and named names freely-an
Woody Allen's latest film 'The Front"
authoritarian tramp to the more socially action he later condemned and regretted.
directed
by Martin Ritt, written by
critical roles of his talkie features, whilst Ultimately 10 writers and directors were
Walter
Bernstein,
and starring Allen and
still maintaining his vest following, His sentenced to a year in gaol for their
Zero
Mostel,
concerns
the blacklist and
1940 feature, 'The Great Dictator" refusal to co-operate with the CommitIts
impact
on
Hollywood's
other industry,
enraged the right not only for its anti- tee. While the October hearings were
television.
Bernstein,
Ritt
and Mostel
Hitler stance (at a time when many US taking place, 25 prominent Hollywood
were
all
themselves
victims
of
the Hollypoliticians could only compliment Hitle) folk flew to Washington to protest against
wood
blacklist.
That
they
produced
such
but also for Charlie's final speech in the the HUAC hearing. These included
a
powerful
and
honest
film
is
remarkable.
film when he appealed for all to unite Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Danny
against Fascism "Now let us fight to free Kaye, Paul Henreid, Richard Conte, and It is apity that the documentary "Hollythe world, do away with national barriers, the Director of the Maltese Falcon, wood on Trial" which screened recently
to do away with greed, with hate and Key Largo, Treasure of Sierra Madre, at the Schonell for a one-night private
intolerance. Let us fight for a world of The African Queen-John Huston. Bogart showing by an ALP Branch, has not
reason-a world where science and pro- later regretted his action, not because of enjoyed a wider audience.
gress will lead to the happiness of all." the stand he too, but because he ended
Jack Etam
That, and Chaplin's support for a second up on the front pages of the Daily
European front against Germany, was to Worker and fre^ently eulogised by the '
Below: Howard Prince (Woody
be his downfall. With the release off^ American Communist Party.
Allen) the (illiterate) front man for a
Chaplin's next film "Monsieur Verdoux"
The Industry fought on two fronts blacklisted TV writer learns that
picture theatres in New York were
Hecky Brown (Zero Mostel) can no
picketed, while placards calling him a simultaneously. To the House Committee longer be used for a series because of
political affiliations. Howard's script
Communist were carried.
assistant (Andrea Marcovicci) and
At a press conference in New York to
his producer look oh.
discuss the film, Chaplin was called a
coward, a tax-dodger, and a Communist.
The American Legion (our RSL) frightened off potential exhibitors by threatening
a total boycott of any theatre screening
the film.Chaplin sailed for Europe, not
to return to America for over 20 years.
In October 1947 HUAC held its first
hearing into Hollywood. The first
witness, Jack L. Warner, producer of
"Mission to Moscow", and head of
Hollywood's
most
liberal studio,
extolled his own patriotism, boasted of
firing a host of writers whom he deemed
Communists, induding some tike Clifford
Odets and Irwin Shaw who, it turned out,
he had not fired at all. He gave the
names of suspects without any evidence,
pausing to withdraw some names later,
and offered, on behalf o himself and.his
brothers, to set up a fund to ship people
to Russia. Walt Disney angrily told of the
Indignities he had been made to suffer in
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pntm i( the B(ial»K EjJuliltian'i SldtSbow AOcy - viwil lythnu i n Unkti witb
Uw mnkal rytlimi on du wuadlnck.
fimei cnlirtly ia colour.
BJELKE BtTTER - Pit utiiini
atreriiitmenti productd by Bwn DIcbon
for lilt If 7? Revue "Uft wasn 'I meant
fo t t . "
BLUEGRASS JAM '77 - A ilion mm
tccoidcd tin it the Timwocth Country Muik
Fotinl.
Sure there's a drought on, but
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PART 2:
UtyMBNJS-Abrittkinturleto/disSohritg Met utillxtntruo lent rente pmlectDn
and inltfted with music - rinu/ momenn
a perteired. phoioptphed ani reproduced
by Sandy folbrd.
LIVE M U S I C - A»iden«reor«ri|ittil
ooRfodtkmt |CttateiJUnoatti(eiiid
fliyti by Stady. Kiic, A Dinay- faturti
• pett dhtnily at matial bnluimatt;
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A^276
no less than seven complete manuscripts
for 'The Siimarillion" and his son Christopher has spent much df the intervening
years editing the work down to the
THES(LMARILLION
present 365 page volume.
J.R.R. Tolkien
'The Siimarillion" is Tolkien's masterGeorge Allen and Unwin,' London 1977
work, and is the key to all his previous
$12.95
books.
'The Lord of the Rings" is a pure
I believe that this book will become as reported, first person history. This is
celebrated and as loved the world over as what was there, this is what happened,
Tolkien's works 'The Hobbit" and 'The this is what we saw and so on. Frodo
Lord of the Rings" are celebrated and locked himself up in New Row after the
lovednow.
reconstruction was done and wrote his
For people who have not read Tolkien, memoires, assisted by Merry, Pippin and
all I can say is that I urge you to do so Sam.
soon. His creation of an entire worid,
"The Siimarillion" on the other hand,
peopled with heroic and evil beings is the history of the First Age of Middle
locked in deadly stmggte is one of the Earth and carries into the Second Age.
great works of English, and certainly the The events cf the Third Age and the War
greatest work of fantasy in the English of the Ring scarcely fill two pages at the
language. What follows is for Tolkien very end. The events in the Siimarillion
readers, however, for his work is too occur to the West of the Middle Earth of
complex to explain in one short review. 'The Lord of the Rings," for all that
The very first thing to bear in mind remains of Bleriand is part of Ered Luin,
about 'The Siimarillion" is that it is the mountain range which the Gulf of
nothing like "The Lord of the Rings." Lune, the Forlindon and Harlindon,
The best way to start looking at 'The which became the home of many of the
Siimarillion" is to bone up on your
Noldor and the Grey Elven after Bleriand
history of Middle Earth by reading was submerged at the end of the First
'The Lord of the Rings" or by leafing Age.
through that remarkable 'Tolkien ComIt is all too difficult not to approach
panion" compiled by J.E.A. Tayler.
the Siimarillion with a mental image of
Tolkien is believed to have begun work
'The Lord of the Rings." I did it, and it
on the "Siimarillion" as early as 1917, for was only until I was well into it that I
hts.son Christopher notes in the Forward
put it into proper perspective, and left
to 'The Siimarillion" that "in battered
'The Lord of the Rings" where it should
notebooks extending back to 1917 can
be, many thousands of years into the
stiti be read the earliest versions, often
future.
hastily pencilled, of the central stories of
The work begins with a short book
the mythology." He never gave it up, called "Ainulindale" which is comcerned
even as "The Hobbit" became popular
with the creation of the world and the
during the '30s, and 'The Lord of the
creation of the Valar-a sort of Elvish
Rings" neared completion late in the
Genisis, Even at the very morning of the
'40s. When Tolkien died in 1973, he left
earth, the seeds of untold evil were being
sown. For among the Valar there was one
deviant one called Melkor. He began to
make different music from the rest of the
Valar, and in combatting him and the
discord thiis caused, llvatar had to create
not only a new song, but also had to
create the Elves. The Valar were set up as
guardians of Middle Earth as it was then,
and the Elves were placed in stewardship over the Earth. The Elves grew into
a number df tribes, the Quendi, or the
Eldar, who eventually returned to the
Undying lands of the west, and the
Sindar, who remained in Middle Earth
until the end of the Third Age. The
Elves grew in power and in craft-skill
until the mightiest of them, Feanor,
crafted the Silmarili, These three jewels
captured in themselves the purest light
left from the creation.
All the while, Melkor was plottwg and
scheming and occasionally, launched
sorties against the elves to test their
strength. He had skill with words, and the
elves learned much from him about craft
and lore.
But Melkor stole the Silmarili and fled
to Middle Earth. The Valar forbade
Feanor and his kin from following
Melkor, but he disobeyed them and went
to Middle Earth, there to wage war
against Melkor for hundreds of years.
Melkor became known by the Elves as
Morgoth.
It is at about this stage that the connections start being made between 'The
Lord of the Rings" and the "Silmarilion"
and where I began to really get interested. Recall the fleeting references in "The
Lord of the Rings" to Morgoth? Recall
that Sauron was one of the surviving
servants of Morgoth the Enemy, left over
after the war of the Silmarilli?
'The Siimarillion" fills in all the gaps
and all the holes in the already complex
mythology and history of Middle Earth.
Reading 'The Lord of the Rings" carefully, I think that you get the impression
that you have come very late on the
scene of a much deeper and older drama
than that which you have been privileged
to attend. You have been given standing
room for the last scene of the last act of
When i was presented with this book I
thought at last someone with great
academic ability has written a treatise
that examined what effect hompsexuality
had on greatness. But, HoHum, the book
is just an old queen's intellectual wank.
It is just a list of historical personages
who either were definitely homosexual
or "ambivalent."
Buy having touched on this alternative
work in the title it must be commented
on that herein lies a conundrum. What
the hell does Ambivalence mean and what
connection has it with homosexuality.
"Ambivalence, the doubled response
to life" Rowse says in the preface. Yes
maybe. I liked to associate the quality
ambivalence with the ancient Celts,
considering it to be a term that described
their wonderful ability to hold two
opposing conceptions as correct at any
one time. Rowse as a native of Cornwall
might claim some Celtic heritage.
A dictionary of Psycho-Analysis of
•1968 says that the term was "introduced
by. Eugen Bleuer to describe the coexistence of contradictory impulses and
emotions towards the same object.
Usually the teim refers to the co-existence of love and hate." Are we to assume
from that that greatness in homosexuals
is because they have this "schizoid"
strength? Very interesting!
In an interview with Auberon Waugh
published in The National Times July
25-30, 1977, Rowse says, "I have a
sympathy vvith homos because I like to
think of myself as ambi(sexual)."
in the Barnhardt Dictionary of New
English since 1963, there is a defition of
ambivalent which comes from a letter
from Rowland Brown published in the
NewScientist4970.
"ambivalent: n. a bisexual person, in
any case, as a broad generalisation provided that there is no "early" conditioning
which makes homosexuality or heterosexuality the accepted nonn, either or,
indeed, both states can well be regarded
as normal. End product transvestites or
ambivalents would continue to be the
exception. In a word such people may be
and often are homosexuals but homosexuals are rarely the transvestites or
ambivalents."
So, by extension, perhaps if you can
give evidence for a tension or duality in
a person's work you could sugest him as
being ambivalent, and then suspect him
of being homosexual. Well, that's not
good enough and so what.
I'm extrapolating of course for unfortunately Rowse does not give us his
own definition for ambivalence or link it
with homosexuality and to take this
work seriously as a comment on either
homosexuality or ambivalence it is important to know just what he means.
The work is academically deficient in
another way. tt does not have a bibliography and there is absolutely no
foot-noting. This could not have been an
oversight and it adds to the speculation
HOMOSEXUALS IN HISTORY:
A Study of Ambivalence in Society
Literature and Arts.
By A.L. Rowse
Weidenfeld and Nicholson, St John's Hill
London, 1977
This book is a mistake. It is the wrong
period to bring out on parade the world's
great queens (small q), or gay men of
great renovm. Lesbians don't get a
mention, " i must plead my limitations,"
says RaVBe in the preface, "and leave
the field to others."
• Some eight years ago, when Phillip
Adams was writing his weekly colurnn in
The Saturday Australian, he examined at
some length the predelictton amongst
camp people to prop up their homosexuality and self" esteem by using
examples of great men in the arts who
were, by the by, homosexuals. There
seemed no need for people to do this
except for the intimidation of their
oppression; to hide 'themselves behind
"fillial" greatness. Maybe this would
have been a fun book 10 years ago.
Paga 25
a complex p<ay titat begins with the
"sUmariUlon."
So it is a book of ancient lore. The
chapters of 'The Siimarillion" begin with
the form "Of, . . . , " in the shape of
"Of Feanor and the Unchaining of
Melkor." or "Of the Return of the
Noldor." The book finishes with two
further short books, "Akalbeth," or the
DovmfaH of Numenor, and "Of the Rings
of Power and the Third Age." By this
stage, so much has made sense that once
'The Siimarillion" has been read a couple
of times the next step is to reread 'The
Hobbit." "The Hobbit" wfH seem iike a
child's book after 'The Siimarillion" but
here it should be understood that it is by
a simple hobbit whose life has been
turned inside out and he doesn't quite
understand what is happening. Then, a
return to the well worn "Lord of the
Rings" enriched with the knowledge of
'The Siimarillion" is even more moving.
I still feel terrible as Frodo says goodbye
to Sam, Merry and Pipin at the Grey
Havens.
Tolkien has to be taken quite seriously, and his world really understood.
With the publication of "The Siimarillion," Tolkien's world is about as complete
as it is likely to be. I trust that 'The
Siimarillion" will enrich your world as
much as his earlier works have done.
Mark D. Hayes
1^^^
•
f'-i: ,
A'
• '
-J
that this work is an indulgence.
Further, the text is quite aggravating
in its succession of political and moral
judgements interpolated as adjectives in
sentences through the book. The man
can have opinions but socialism cannot be
dismissed in a word or two because he
thinks it failed in the Russian experiment.
Finally, I am at a bit of a loss to see
what use this book will serve. I found it
difficult to read except in bits. Parts of it
were mildly interesting for their titilation
value. Other parts were more interesting,
some insight is given into the court of the
Stuart Kings of England and the selection
of their bedfellovw whose decendants are
still around as Earls and Dukes. There is a
reasonable contribution to literature
studies in the section on the poet A.E.
Housman as it related the homosexual
love poetry to the poet.
Homosexual newspapers throughout
the world have considered that this book
has put back the process of gay liberation
some 10 years. But it is not an aggressive
preaching.book. Rowse limits himself to
showing by inference that homosexuality
or "ambivalence" is part of-nay, the base
of strength in creativeness. However there
are too many other variables in greatness
to even suggest conclusively that homosexuality is a significant ingredient.
He does say In the Preface: "I hope
that these studies may throw some light
on the predisposing conditions to
creativeness, in the psychological rewards
of ambivalence, the doubled response to
Ufe, the sharpening of perception, the
tensions that lead to achievement." That
suggests to me that Rowse encourages the
individual's suppression of his sexuality
so that there will be tensions and maybe
sharpened perception and creative greatness.
. . . Edwin Relf
• ••
"1 THINK THE SEX PISTOLS ARE
ABSOLUTELY BLOODY REVOLTING.! FELT UNCLEAN FOR
48 HOURS AFTER I SAW IHEIVT'
Bernard Brook-Partridge, Conservative Party
Yes they are and bloody great too.
Something had to happen. Rock had all
but died.
Evidence: The demise into wealth and
complacency of the '60s megaband
dioasours, eg The Who, The Rolling
Stones.
Evidence: The Rise of Disco (Donna
Summer), Art Rock (Queen), Country
Muzak (Eagles and LRB), LA Schmaltz
(Boz Scaggsl, Classical Rock (ELO),
and the Abba machine.
All very nice stuff, but pretty vacant,
NO FUN.
Uri Geller's Greatest Hits would be
more exciting than these fine musicians
strutting their stuff. Zzzzzzzzz.....
1977-The New Wave is here. And so
what?
At last youth is back into rock, and at
least the establishment is reacting again.
"If pop music is going to be used
to destroy our established instutions, then it ought to be destroyed first."
L.imbuth M.P. iVl<in:iis Lipton
The New Wave phenomenon just
could be the most superbly executed
media and PR coup in thie history of
rock music. The music press and record
company hype in Britain currently is
ovenwhelming. What's it all about? Punk
is high energy manic musical aggression
which shamelessly ignores even the most
basic conventions of music. The Sex
Pistols epitomise this stance and have
dominated the hostile publicity the
movement has received. Has this all been
a matter of chance?
The Sex Pistols should objectively be
regarded with the utmost suspicion of
being a skilfully thought out and executed ploy to promote a band, and in its
vanguard, a movement.
They are new, frightenlngly contemporary, stunningly different and original
In concept, have an undeniably strong
image centred on Johnny Rotten with his
enraged vocals and have so many features
to set them apart (if not ahead) of any
precedents. It is these characteristics
which make them so promotable, marketable and Ideal "cult" figures. All of which
means beauooups de loot. They also have
as their manager one Malcolm McLaren
whom the British rock press regard as
the most astute and manipulative
gentleman to control the interests of a
band. Melody Maker says he is "probably
the most famous rock manager since
Brian Epstein." McLaren vetts all
information released concerning the
Pistols and rarely allows them to be
interviewed. Here we have the situation
where an ultra-shrewd and experienced
stager (he ntanaged the New York Dolls)
has in his hands a potential phenomenon.
And a phenomenon they have become.
Their first single "Anarchy in the UK"
now fetches seven times Its purchase
price as a collectors' piece. This arose
Local authorities around Britain have
successfully prevented many punk bands
from performing in areas under their
control. The Greater London Council in
particular has made extraordinary efforts
to achieve this end: withdrawal of
licenses, refusal to issue permits for outdoor performances, threatening to close
sympathetic venues, anything to stop
these vicious teenagers with their spiky
hair, and torn safety pinned clothes.
The huge burgeoning force of the Establishment has been thrown at the New
Wave in a massive attempt to crush a
phenomenon which scares the hell out
of them and they don't want to attempt
to understand. Police harassment has
been used. One American musician in a
New Wave band has been served with a
deportation order.
Of course 1977 is Silver Jubillee year.
We have corgi toast racks and Jubillee ice
cream-it's silver grey with red and blue
streaks. You'd better believe it. Are these
any more obscene than the reaction this
type of thing inspires? The Droans do a
little number called "Corgi Crap." The
Unwanted sing "Fuck the Jubillee."
And of course there's "God Save the
Queen." So much of the punk phenomenon is theatrics designed deliberately to
outrage: dress, action, language, attitude
and all the trappings beg and receive
shock on the part of the public. Traditional (sic) rock stars have patronised it as~
befits the benevolence one acquires with
age. Townshend, Anderson, Jagger, and
Plant, all whom the movement'attacks for
their sellout and lack of Integrity have
placated the youngsters with kind words.
Not so golden boy Peter Frampton who
wails "If Britain is into this punk rock,
then I don't want to be part of It."
The media has overplayed the violence
angle in the hope of perpetrating further
headlines of the same type. They publicise the Saturday afternoon clash on the
King's Road between the rival Teddy
Boys and the Punks. This vyeekly event
will aoon rate a weekly listing in the banal
tourist diary "What's on in London."
"It is disgraceful and makes me
ashamed of the pop world, but it
is a fad that won't last, we DJ's have
ignored them and if everyone else
did perhaps they would go away."
Banned. "It is quite unsuitable
for an entertainment show like
Top of The Pofw"
Banned. No local stations will
play the single.
pre packaged dolly boy popster will be
wheeled out to replace him both on the
glossy covers and in the hearts of a
nation's female circa-pubescents. Will the
New Wave suffer such an idolatory/
rejection process after its current flirtation with the rock consuming public? Has
the whole phenomenon been a shrewdly
executed marketing and- media exercise
for boosting record sales and rejuvenating
flagging interest in a tiring rock scene?
The answer is an unequivocal NO.
Nothing can explain the fact that in
Britain at the moment there are literally
hundreds of punk bands; the vast majority have no "advantages"-management or
recording contracts. The kids in these
because it was released on EMI, who
bands are almost invariably under 20, and
sacked the band soon after the single was
play solely for what they get out of it: a
made available to the public, following
feeling of power, the expression of sheer
public hysteria over the band's unsavory
anger, the adrenalin surge, a rele^e of
behavior and language. EMI literally
raw youth energy, the sheer sense of
BURNT all remaining stocks.
being ALIVE. They are claiming the
une must view with both amazement
forgotten basic rock ethic: Youth versus
and suspicion the fact that The Pistols,
Institution. They are and they plqy the
on the strength of only three singles have way they do because they know the
become the most significant and publiEstablishment fears something angry and
cised band to arise this decade. Statistical- uncontrolled, and they want to destroy
ly, they have now been the subject of
convention before it buries them first.
more front page headlines in the past
They are screaming out because that
year in the British popular press than the is the only way they will be noticed.
Beatles were in their lengthy history. The
Their dress is deliberately shocking. They
most ironical accolade paid them came
cry out about their enforced way of life,
unemployment, a greasepaint monarchy,
two weeks ago when Johnny Rotten was
their country's economic and social
nominated for "Rock Personality of the
decline, the sheer boredom of their
Year" in the prestigious self-indulgent
American Rock Awards. Has it been pure urban existence, their own pathetic
insignificance, and the people of power
hype and manipulatbn v^ich has
and wealth who control them.
elevated them to this questionably
exalted pre-eminence?
They refuse to sell out their emotionlan Anderson, the aged lead singer of
al, revolutionary and moral Integrity in
Jethro Tull (and a jolly Boring Old Fart
their assault on a society based on deceit,
is he) expressed his opinion of one New
repression, money, hypocrisy and an
unchangeable and unassailable power and
Wave band thus: "Like it or not, lads, the
class structure. The quality of their
future of British rock is in your hands."
music is thus of minor consequence to
The kiss of death perhaps, when one
considers that two years ago, more " them. In many cases it seems-almost an
afterthought: It probably Is. This lack of
sources than Rolling Stone were premusical merit has been the principal point
pared to herald Bruce Springsteen as "the
of criticism of the movement by those
future of rock and roll."
who know better than to question the
Much of the music press coverage of
stance and conduct of those in it. But
New Wave bands has beeh uncharacterhow competent can one expect these
istically trivial (Johnny Rotten buys his
juvenile
proto-bands to be? Just as
mum a new fridge, interviews with Sue
Importantly,
this is rock music, and the
Catwoman, a female acquaintance of
•
musical
virtuosity
must always be secondRotten). In many ways, this smacks of
ary
to
the
EFFECT
on the listening. I
the teeny bopper fanzine syndrome, with
mean, Emmerson, Lake and Palmer is
its fickle Idolatory of the new pop
great stuff, but can you really get off on
"figure" who receives front page/Wiri his
It?
autographed photo/lift out poster status,
Of course great rock does not preclude
until such time as he slips into obesity,
great playing, no one would question this.
acne or marriage at which point another
Page 26
This little piece of English culture is
viewed weekly by Nikon toting Americans, Japanese and Europeans, The real
violence Is out of sight. Both Johnny
Rotten and Paul Cook of the Sex
Pistols have been the victims of attacks.
In both cases by men In their thirties.
Rotten was attacked by men with razors,
Cook was bashed with an iron club In a
tube station and received 15 stitches to a
head wound. These attacks both occurred
within a fortnight of the release of "God
Save the Oueen."
The less overt reaction was literally
unprecedented. The record begins:
"God save the Queen
A fascist regime.
Made you a moron,
A potential H-bomb"
Never before has seven inches of vinyl
achieved so much.
Banned from advertising. Not
even 'God Save The Queen', but
simply the new signing with
Virgin. And all the ad said was:
"You thought you had got rid
of us; but you haven't"
Banned. The nations'
Brewers have refused
to allow Sex Pistols
on any of the Juke'
Boxes.
p8l
Banned at all branches.
jgmStm
Banned. " U is in gross bad taste'
Charles McLeiland.
The ban covers the whole of the
BBC.
JOHN
Et IRo8( records
"One of the greatest
ever made" (Sounds June 13th
But the BBC won't let him play it.
And punk music is not at odds with competence in playing. The Jam and the
Stranglers ' 'especially are recognised
universally as being excellent musicians.
The questionable musicianship of some of
the other punk bands has been played
upon cleverly. T^ie advertising blurb for
a tour involving two bands little heard of
at the time, namely Tlie Damned and
The Adverts read:
'The Damned can now play two chords,
the Adverts can only play one.
Hear all three at the following venues."
Punk Rock began as a movement
against complacency, a movement of
anger, a movement of liberation, but
above all a movement of real humanity.
Cloaked for effect in its cloud of
violence, revulsion, negativism and
despair; it was a gasping for life by
people who society simply does'npt want
to be.
. •
The gasp Is now more a shout which
cannot be ignored. Rolling Stone said it
all: ,'To me at least, the success of the
Sex Pistols means that smug, somnolent
disc jockeys, reluctant record execs,
outraged politicos and civilization in
general can never prevail against the
lunatic fringe, or stomp it out altogether."
LIFE AFTER
DISCO:
THE RISE OF
THE NEW
WAVE
By PETER J. STEINHEUER
77le revolting JOHNNY ROTTENA star is born.
The gorgeous PETER FRAMPTON.
Page 27
''M962,noho^Y really wanted
a band looking like us and
playing what we wanted to
play, because the people running theiifiusicbusinesscouldn't understand anyone
wanting to hear i
MICK JAGGER
AND NOTHING'S CHANGED
1955-59 The First Wave, the birth of rock and roll. Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley, Bill
1963
1969-71
1976
Haley, Jerry Lee Lewis et al.
The Second Wave-The Beatlps, Rolling Stones, Kinks
The Forgotten wave-lggy and the Stooges, the MC5, the New York Dotlsthe original definitive punk bands. Mostly underground macho-decadence
outfits in the States. Never broke in a big way, but the music was there;
raw punk and the trimmings were there: Iggy Pop practised self mutilation
on stage, chucked on the front rows and performed fellatio with members
of the audience.
The New (Third) Wave: The early months of 1976 saw the getting together
of a brace of young unprofessional bands, playing in basements and garages
to themselves. They got"no chances to play in public, their small followings
usually were the kids in their neighborhood.
July 1976 The first Punk Rock Festival. A very underground affair in the 100 Club in
Soho. Audiences poor, extreme, hard core. Minimal publicity. Maximal
violence with fights between the supporters of the few bands. The resulting
blowup of the violence resulted in a lack of gigs. The rock hierarchy
ignored their existence. The Roxy Club opened in Covent Garden and was
the only outlet. Everything was very much out of the public eye.
"Fuck off Frampton or I'll chuck all
""^^'^^^^^^^^^^^^B*—*-»-*
Oct 1976 EMI signs the Sex Pistols quietiy and they are booked to appear in Novemover you."
"Heavens Jonathan, not on my goldilocks."
ber at the plush Talk of the Town, the usual haunt of the likes of Matt
Monro, Tony Bennet or Harry Seecombe. No one wants to know the rest:
Meanwhile in Australia, nothing is happening. As usual. Boz Scagg's Silk Degrees
The Clash are booed of the stage doing a support to Graham Parker and the
slumbers on into its third month as number one in the Australian album charts. Has
Rumour. No conipany wants to sign The Damned, so an independent label
beens and never will bes make "triumphant" concert tours on the strength of their
for punk bands is formed, called Stiff records. They claim "If it ain't Stiff,
one "hit" single. The Top 40 is catchy, easily digestible, sugar coated schmaltzy junk.
it ain't no use to anyone." Generally the movement is still viewed as yet
On 146 stations around Australia the
another disposable fad perpetrated by an unfortunate noxious and vocal
congenitally bored and chronically underminority. It will burn itself out. Its audience still very sectional.
stimulated teenage mass is fed its weekly
Dec
1976
The
turning point. On his current affairs-family chat show on Thames TV,
pop fodder. A colorful, flashy celebration
Bill
Grundy
interviewing the Sex Pistols asked them to shock him. The
of teenage gullibility. A great trip for its
reply-a
barrage
of four letter words, sexual references and obscene language
middle aged prophet who has an army of
-was
Fleet
Street
front page stuff. The issue was raised in Parliament and
wet knickered honeys hanging on every
the
public
just
couldn't
handle it. The Big Outrage meant publicity, record
word of his fallacies for the mere mention
sales,
management
contracts,
recording deals, curious audiences, exposure in
of Daryl, at which point they lurch into
larger
venues.
An
"Anarchy
in
the UK" tour of over 20 British towns was
an orgiastic scream. Yes, Doldrum is great
mutilated
by
bans
on
the
part
of
local councils. Less than one fifth of the
stuff, but alas not correct. A Rollers ripscheduled
dates
went
ahead.
off group group The Dead End Kids is
Jan 1977 EMI sacked the Sex Pistols after unremitting public and behind the scenes
described as England's version of punk.
pressure. The last straw was alleged vomiting and spitting by the group at
The new wave band The Stranglers have
Heathrow before they flew to perform in Holland. The name "punk rock"
their single "Get a Grip on Yourself"
now associated with hysterical public reaction, so both the media and
was
misnomered "If the money's no good."
the
music
business switched over to calling it 'The New Wave," a term
But the big question of the nite is "Are
nov/
encompassed many more respectable artists, Tom Petty, Telewhich
the Angels TURNING punk?"
vision, Patti Smith, Boom Town Rats, Blondie.
It's more ersatz night time relative
March 1977 The Sex Pistols sign with A & M Records at a ceremony outside Buckingon a commercial station features some
ham Palace. They arrive in a black limousine with a fold up card table on
great cornering, towing and manoeuvring
which to initial the contract. Their new single would be "God Save the
by some mean looking rg^C^ip^ars;^the
Queen." Within three days, A & M had sacked them, once more on the
headlight and horn work esp^pially is
strength of their chucking ability, this time over office staff in the company.
excellent on tonite's show. ft"'fills th^
spaces between this with''prorno film;
clips and rhetorical interyievi/s,^'^arid''
since the whole thing is an unknown
comments like "Graham Parker'lTdhe of
commodity. The old vicious circle, and
the New Wave artists," and an associated
why risk it when you've got sure bets
totally misconstrued tirade on how he
like Fleetwood Mac. The same process is
got his first recortJing contract. In case
working against the development of
you miss the point, Parker is a rhythm
home grown new wave bands. Lack of
and blues artist. To be fair, though, this
exposure, lack of development, lack of
show has been known to sometimes
gigs, lack of acceptance back to lack of
venture the other side of mediocrity.
exposure and so on. Sydney had its own
The printed media tends to treat punk
New Wave venue until two weeks ago:
as more a fashion issue, but give them
The Oxford Funhouse. It is now closed.
time. Women's magazines and current
So it's back into the entertainment
affairs publications have noted its existwilderness of licensed clubs.
ence with amusement. One senile AustraOddly Queensland with its uniquely
lian rocker equated punk rock with
May 1977 The Sex Pistols sign with Virgin Records, with whom they now remain."bum rock"-a reference to AC-DC who oppressive circumstances which worsen
Marc Bolan and T Rex take the Damned as their support act on tour. The
daily should be ideal nursery for this type
have gone New Wave-never miss a trick
Clash,
the Jam and the Stranglers all headline their own national tours.
boys. Once and for all, AC-DC are not a of band. Overground, the Saints have
The
Sex
Pistols still cannot find anywhere where they are permitted to play.
gone to England, where they now are in
punk rock group.
the Queen" reaches No 1 on the Queen's birthday. The overJune
-1977
"God
Save
The fact is that punk rock is essential- the top clutch of new wave bands.
reaction
to
it
is stunning. The Sex Pistols hold a boat cruise on the Thames
ly a live medium, due to its strong visuals Underground, we have the Leftovers, the
on
Jubillee
night,
moor outside the Houses of Parliament and play
and the energy generated live. Australia Survivors and the Grudge. Michael
"Anarchy
in
the
UK". Police, step on board, the boat is escorted back to
will never see any top New Wave per- Finucan (5-9am) on 4ZZZ is giving airshore
and
13
arrests
are made.
acts performing here unless the whole play to the New Wave. The Grudge play
July-Oct
1977
Attendance
at
concerts by traditional rock artists is declining. Many
thing breaks in this country. This lies both originals and an assortment of
pub
bands
are
adopting
a punk stance so they can stay in the business. The
British
groups'
material.
Their
own
entirely in the-hands of the big record
moguls
of
the
business
have
moved in and now every label has at least two
stuff
is
excellent:
"Advance
Australia
companies: If they launch a big push it
New
Wave
bands.
An
open
air
punk rock festival is staged. Sherbet find they
Fair"
and
"Your
Kind
make
me
puke"
will be purely on an economic basis-that
can't
get
work
in
London:
"Unless
you're a new wave band there's no work
were
the
two
that
stood
out
at
Roxys
Is, if they think it will sell well.
for
you
in
the
clubs
here."
SPOTS
(Sex Pistols on Tour Secretly) makes its
two
weeks
ago.
If
you
get
the
chance,
! This is unlikely since record sates of
way
unannounced
to
various
venues
around the country.
book
them
or
see
them.
Enquiries
thru
these new groups rely upon the exciteThe
end
will
come
when
money,
age,
pretence,
overexposure and hypocricy take their
Michael
Finucan
at
Triple
Z.
ment of seeing them live and no Austratoll. The signs are there already.
Where there is life there is hope.
lian promoter is prepared to risk a tour
^Hlr^Sjj^^^i
1
Page.38
Joh on Aboriginal Affairs:
let mc say that when tliey are
employed on agricultural farms they are
paid the full wage, half of which goes to
themselves and the other half to the
settlement, to be used in their interests,
so that there is no question of exploitation.
(Vol 205, 1952 PI 302)
Joh on finance:
Australia is hankrupt-it is even worse
than that.
In our State there
against anyone.
"
•
,
"
.
isnodiscriminjif.ii
.i;
(The Age, 8.5.73)
'
*
On foot and mouth disease:
Just hi-'causc a few migrants want their Joh on the gerrymander:.spicy tucker I fail to see why the AustraA comparison of the value to the
lian community as a whole should suffer State, in production, of 100 people in tbe
the possibiUty of disease.
city and 100 people in the country justifies a continuation of dur present system.
On lemori squash:
TVje spiritual background is of very
(Vol i248 1967-68 P2410)
great importance. The natives must have
Goodness me, that's nicct
that training before they are brought out
We don't subscribe to this theory of
into civilisation.
one vote-one value.
(Vol 222,1958-59 PI 312) Joh on the luxuries, women and glamor
(Financial Review 12.10,72)
ofthe Wrest Point casino:
Most of the native people are not able
Isn't that terrible.
Personally, I do not believe in this one
to look after themselves at this stage of
man-one vote. •
,
'
their development, and they cannot be
Joh on Flo:
(Sunday Truth, 5-1.69)
left to their own resources.
Florence was a city girl before we
(Vol 210 1954-55 P1405) married. It took her a while to learn to
'be a good farmer's wife.
Joh on Law and Order:
One tiling that should be clear already
When
I
get
accused
of
this
one
(prefrom the quotes which have been given is
The Government will not be dictated
the man's ilo-^juutisni. Even a Country judice against Aborigines] I like to say to On courting Flo:
to by self-seeking groups, nor will it allow
One time I said to Florence
tiow
Party coUcaeue is on record describing the accuser, and usuaUy he has long hair,
them to take over the streets.
"You're just the sort of man I'm looking
my wife,
would you like to
Joh as a pig-headed, uiiyiclclin^, narrow
(Referring to aborisnal land rights
person who won't bend or stiift his for, dedicated, keen, devoted to tbe come to Parliament House andlisten to a
demonstrations on ABC Radio
weivj. (Herald 10.12.70)
cause. I wonder if you'd mind if / moved
debate one of these nights-wesii at night
• News, 5.6.74)
a family of aboriginals to a house in your time.
(Courier-Mail 7.7.72)
All policy questions have a religious street."
Anyone who works against law and
significance for him. He has said on
order, under which alone industry can
Joh on Abba
numerous occasions that God helps him
thrive and production can take place is a
Joh on the environment:
to make the right political decisions.
/ don't have any of their records, but traitor to this country and to the.Empire
Gee, we've all been wrong about it is a wholesome group and not associat- as a whole'.
77jere is no question in my own thinkthings.
Yes, I misjudged popular feeling ed with drugs.
ing. One seeks God's guidance and
(Vol CXCII1947-48 P2267)
about
the
environment.
blessing. (The Age 1.4,72)
(Sydney Morning Herald 24.11.73) On successful courting of Flo:
We have a position where children and
As a journalist on the Age put it,
grand-children of men who fought and
It lead to the point where two years
• / am passionately concerned that it later we were married.
lie believes that the truth Queensland
died to preserve our democratic way of
/Fraser Island/ should nor be spoiled.
has discovered through him will soon be
life in Australia, and the things that we
apparent to tfie rest of the world. (The But there are factors such as progress. Joh on (lying and fatherhood:
hold dear, are being denied these rights
by a small group of anarchists.
Age 17.9.73)
(Australian 7.4.75)
Right before they (his kidsj went to
(Vol 354 1970-71 P517)
school they'd fly around the State and
even down lo Brisbane with me, strapped
Of course, Mr Burns has accused the
alongside my littlf single engine aeropolice
pf beating down innocent and
plane.
peaceful young ladies and gentlemen. I
ask: where is the ALP going? It can
scarcely go further left. A thong Mr Burns
Joh and workers:
"Young ladies and gentlemen" outside
The boys in blue will be out for blood coiqe end of semester
The 40 hour week has given the
the Tower Mill Motel were these Comopportunity to many to while away their munists, . . .
when students rid themselves of examination blues, start
time in hotels.
hitting the tracks for parts unknown. If your tyres are bald
(Vol 257 1971 P603)
you could be relieved of a few of the ready - not to mention
Joh on the dangers of nuclear energy;
license points. You don^t want to give Bjelke's Boys the
What's the man in the street got to do
excuse to check you out for other unmentionable stuff either.
Joh on Federal-State relations:
with it.
We're so far North geographically that
Keep clean and support an ailing capitalistic enterprise by
there's
a different set of circumstances
Joh on mining uranium:
getting your new tyres from BOB JANE VALLEY.
altogether.
We won't be able to sit on uranium.
(The Sun'l 7.3.73)
Here are three examples of discounts you can expect:
Firstly because it would not be right, and
secondly because il would be wrong as
CONVENTIONALS
NATIONAL BRAND
FIRESTONE
Joh on the ALP:
far as we are concerned.
Textile
5,50xl2T/L $18-45
ER70 xl4
$44-90
Labor policy is Socialism, and the
5,60xl3T/L $20-30
165xl3T/L $29-90
ALP is on the threshold of Communism.
KLEBER STEEL AT A
Joh on the death of Mao Tse-tung:
6.50xl3T/L $22-59Steel
(Vol 254 1970-71 P24)
SPECIAL PRICE
Once a red, always a red, I don't trust
6.95xl4T/L $24-00
165xl3T/L $33-90
any of them.
Joh on gambling:
175xl4T/L $38-90
A''o Government. can be great or in185xl4T/L $39-90
Joh on women in high places:
spire leadenhip who legislate for and
When comparing pur price check.for these tricks:
My pilot is a woman and some of my
encourage gambling, which helps to
ministers' secretaries are women-we're destroy the finer traits of human nature.
•^-Is it atubeless price, (ours is)? Tube tyres are cheaper
right across the board in (his regard.
I refer of course to that monster in our
but unquoted tubes are extra.
midst. The Gold Casket...
Joh on the liquor laws:
AfDoes the price include fitting? Our does,
(Voll 98 1950-51 P254)
Drinking can be likened to the twin
^Dpes your quote include electronic balancing? Too late
evil of gambling, and to a certain extent
when the tyres are on. It's free at BOB JANE VALLEY.
there should be control rather than Joh:
JfWhat's the guarantee? BOB JANE VALLEY gives you a written
Look, he said, // this happens to profurther facilities.
mote
the party then,, by gee, Queensguarantee valid at 21 outlets around Australia.
(The Words and Thoughts of
land's
jolly lucky they've, got something
Premjer Joh, P2-3)
Stars printed by permission from Bill Collins.
to promote-a sould solid Government
like the Country-Liberal Government.
Come down and check us out. No more than two abreast keeping
Tliere's no question about it in.my mind
Joh
on
the
Red
Terror:
to the left of the sidewalk and crossing with the lights.
when I say, gee, they 're lucky.
/
ask
Opposition
Members
if
they
can
The valley cop shop is just up the road.
(Financial
Review 12.10.72) •
name one Communist in the Country or
Liberal Parties.
It must be admitted the Government
(Vol 249 1968 P276)
have a responsibility to protect the
people against themselves.
Joh on education:
(Vol 210, 1954-55 P1724)
Tfie way school is carried on today
boys and giris fmd it a real pleasure.
You need 100, per cent of the vote to
(Vol 225 1959-60 Pll25) claim a mandate. •.
. (Australian 10.8.74)
Joh on his achievements:
/ pioneered scrub pulling and aerial
They [the government} frame la^^s to
seeding. .••. Ask Mr.Houston what he has curb the incllnatioHsdf people who do
done? He has done nothing...
not realise their true interests:
(Courier Mail 3.3.69)
'(VolCXCIV1948,49P1224)
' 1
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CNR WICKHAM & BRIDGE STREETS
VALLEY
PHONE
52.7450
ASK FORHSMILER MARK
HLOVABLE DON
9 OO0 0 OOO OO OO OOOO O 0
Edited by karit Wolff, published by the UnivenitjL^
Queenslaod Union and printed by Warwick D a i ^
News '
.
-.
"'•: i- .:'^
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