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| BEVERLEY MINE GRID POINT 44 | |
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BEVERLEY MINE INCIDENT FLINDERS RANGES last year under invitation from an aboriginal man belonging to the Adnyamathanha mob in the flinders ranges i made the trek out to a place near Arkaroola National park in South Australia near a pastoral lease that is currently occupied by U.S nuclear industry heavy weight General Atomics who are mining Uranium .This is a very sacred site to the old Adnyamathanha people and to all humankind infact , it's just we're ignorant of it's importance and relevance in the greater scheme of things. There were a few hundred people at Wilpena pound National park on May 5th 2000 not far from Arkaroola when this aboriginal man came down and invited us to be witnesses to something that was happening at his initiation site not far from where we were . Approximately 100 or so individuals , alot travellers to South Australia , thirty seperate countries were represented in the group that i'd found myself travelling with , left in a convoy of buses, trucks , vans etc out to this remote desert location . The group was out there camping in the middle of the Australian desert for two days rapping , singing , drumming and dancing all basically peacefully aimed at and questioning the company the government , security guards and police , what was it they beleived in and how could they act like they were and how could they continue to allow these sorts of things to happen ? The situation was very tense and escalated to something way out of control very quickly . Within 24 hours a plane load of South Australias elite S.T.A.R (special tactical armed response) force arrived at the site . It wasn't long before people were rammed by police in four wheeled drives and herded up , while others were sprayed with capsicum spray and savagely beaten to the ground with two different styles of batons . They were then cuffed , and in some cases beaten and sprayed more . Everyone in custody was then held in a shipping container , next to barrels of radioactive waste , i guess, in the mine enclosure. The police then proceeded to weld the outside of this container whilst everyone was inside , the sparks were showered onto people inside who were drenched in capsicum spray head to toe .People were screaming in pain with burning sensations all over their bodies from the spray.The part of the group that managed to run away was closely persued by S.T.A.R force officers in some sort of Roman centurion style formation ! Everyone regrouped very shaken and extremely emotional . It was then that a senior officer of the South Australian police force then came up to the group flanked by his robot troops and issued a warning to everyone that we had one hour to leave the area under some state law regarding failing to cease and loiter . A rather short dialogue then occurred on the topics such as are the people in custody being released , and could possesions be returned , then we would leave , as it stood some could not leave because the drivers of vehicles were in custody as were keys etc . Four minutes was all it took from the time the warning was issued to the time it took S.T.A.R force to point out individuals , chase them , cover them in capsicum spray and then proceeded to bash them severely .The way in which that experience has effected me and so many others i imagine , is extremely powerfully . Considering the fact that i've been a regular sodier in the Australian Army and as a requirement have been trained to deal with extreme physical and psychological situations i was completly taken aback by how vicious , out of control and intense it was, it was as intense as it gets with out people getting killed .The enormity of the situation became obvious when i looked at the date when this occurred in relation to Sydney Olympics , S11 protest , Woomera riots and the passing of certain legislation giving some outrageous powers to military and police . To many it clearly shows the paranoia and intent that the power elite have . A matter of interest is that we have the entire incident on video (films from 4 different cameras were saved ) , including that of the Channel 7 Adelaide news crew . Peter Cauldicott is a local anchorman and was one of those assaulted , held in the container and who had their camera attacked. We also have signed statements from 70 or so individuals , photos of injuries , police badge numbers (when they were displayed) . There is an ongoing investigation in South Australia that seems to be focusing on the word ongoing rather than investigation . There has been little media coverage from channel seven but not to the extent it should have received , this is a major international incident that the state and federal governments would like to keep very quiet indeed . Everyone concerned eagerly awaits the report which is due out soon from the Police Complaints Authority . Whether or not the investigative body can be unbiased and release a report that is the truth is another matter .The South Australian police , General Atomics , Chubb Security ,and certain members of state and federal government agencies are all guilty of breaching some fundamental human rights , the thugs involved should be made to apologise to the victims of this appauling act of violence .They are all guilty of an act of terrorism on on innocent civilians and subsequently should be brought to justice and tried in a court of law . It will never be forgotten in the minds of everyone there , it will always remain a horrifying traumatic experience . |
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The South Australian police , General Atomics , Chubb Security ,and certain members of state and federal government agencies are all guilty of breaching some fundamental human rights |
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