It is a little over 3 months since the five of us walked onto Samuel Hill Military training Base.
My first act of nonviolent direct action or civil disobedience. It has taken me 53yrs to do this and it was my heart felt yes to the invitation of the Gospel of Matthew 5 commonly known as the Beatitudes, and in particular to verse 6 in which in my Bible it is written in this way "Happy are those whose greatest desire is to do what God requires: God will satisfy them fully!"
I had been struggling with this verse for some time. Struggling because ego so easily gets in the way, but then put that together with Matt 25 V 35-40 and it becomes so very clear. War is the most brutal and major cause of starvation, displacement, illness and poverty. It makes both prisoners of the civillians and the military. It destroys the humanity of each and every one of us.
On June 21st 2007 I was given the gift of walking with 4 committed followers of the nonviolent Jesus into an area being used to fine tune the art of mass destruction not only of our brothers and sisters from around the world but also our environment. I have never been so centered before and my prayer the whole time was the first few sentences of the prayer Jesus gave to us Our Father.
We did not know what response we would get from the military . Friends of ours have experienced being shoved to the ground with a rifle placed to their head. No matter what happened to us our response was to be completely nonviolent as shown to us by Jesus at his arrest in Gethsemane, and the lives of Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Oscar Romero and many others. It actually was a very positive experience not only because we had lovingly done something for peace but because for the time we were there we played Frisbee with Austrlian soldiers and had conversations with many of the military personal. For that brief time there was no practicing war at Samuel Hill and we met human to human each hearing the truth of the other.
Our arrest and formally being charged and held in a Police Watch House gave me a little insight into what it is to be powerless.How much worse this must be when you have not had the benefit of an education, you come from a minority group and you have no one to support you. (The drive in the paddy wagon was bad enough with sensory deprivation, and know knowledge of what direction you were travelling in or how long it would take to get there.) We were kept in a holding area which was like a fish bowl. Monitored by a camera and visable to every body coming and going at the Police desk. There was one smelly toilet with a low wall that left you exposed to the CTV camera and the view of everybody at the desk. It took 4 hours for me to be processed, interviewed and released. By that time i had been soaking wet and cold for 11hrs. I had not eaten for almost as long . How much worse then for those held in internment camps around the world, tortured, starved, raped and all with the co operation and support of democratic nations. See how the importance of responding to God's call for justice becomes even more imperative. A friend of mine who has often put his life and freedom on the line for justice put the question to me "Why aren't our prisons overflowing with Christians?"
On August 2nd 2007 i took the easy option and pleaded guilty in the Yeppoon Court. My friends have not. They are continuing to respond to the radical call of Jesus in this matter and use their prophetic voices to bring about change.
I mean while have another problem to deal with. The body responsible for my registration as a nurse do not care that in the eyes of the law this was a trivial offence (as stated by the magistrate) and that despite a good behaviour bond i have no conviction recorded against me. They want me to take the time of two people in giving me lengthy character references in which they must state whether they believe i am fit to practice as a nurse!! Remember this action of mine was completely open and peaceful. No person or property were damaged. We cooperated with the authorities at all times. But it seems they want to have a pound of flesh and they want to make it mine. I will later post my statement that i made in court which will give you an insight in to my experience as a nurse. Experience that has helped formulate my understanding of the absolute uselessness of war.
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
More media
Just for the record, we weren't 'picked up'...we went looking for them, and they took some finding! And contrary to the article, we were arrested and have been charged with trespass under the Commonwealth Crimes Act.
Protesters picked up during war games
21st June 2007, 15:47 WST
Authorities have picked up a group of Christian activists protesting in the midst of a large-scale military exercise involving Australian and US troops in central Queensland, police say.
The protesters had infiltrated the joint military exercise, Talisman Sabre, at Shoalwater Bay, near Rockhampton, which is the main site for the exercise involving 7,500 Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel, 20,000 US troops, 125 aircraft and 30 ships.
They were protesting against the US-led war in Iraq and the exercise's impact on the environmentally sensitive area.
On Tuesday, protesters claimed seven activists had entered the training area - an area larger than Belgium - and planned to camp there as long as possible.
Spokeswoman Treena Lenthall said two more groups entered the base on Wednesday night.
A Queensland police spokeswoman confirmed that a group of protesters had been found on the ADF land.
One of the groups released a statement earlier saying they intended to disrupt the war games and speak to the soldiers taking part.
"As followers of the non-violent Jesus, we cannot stand by while our country plans the destruction of our brothers and sisters in other countries and the environment here at Shoalwater Bay," a statement by the group said.
"We do not take these actions lightly but with an awareness that the gravity of our actions pales in comparison to the crimes of the Australian and US military this week."
The police spokeswoman said no arrests or charges had been made as yet.
Protesters said another group, and possibly a second, was still in the exercise area and planned to stay there as long as possible.
An ADF spokeswoman has confirmed there will be live firing later in the exercise, which began on Tuesday and ends on July 2.
Peace activists have a responsibility not to expose themselves to risk while protesting, the federal government says.
Human Services Minister Chris Ellison, speaking for Defence Minister Brendan Nelson in the Senate, said the Department of Defence respected people's right to exercise their freedom of speech.
But those who protested unlawfully could not expect the same protection as those who did so lawfully, he said.
"There's no concern about lawful protest, but if people go beyond the law in what is a lawful right to freedom of speech and expose themselves to risk that makes it all the more difficult for authorities in dealing with that issue," he said.
"The safety of people in that circumstance is regarded carefully by defence, but you have to remember than in any of these protests one expects that the protesters act responsibly.
"They do have a responsibility on themselves as to the way they demonstrate."
Senator Ellison had been asked by Australian Democrats senator Andrew Bartlett what steps the Department of Defence was taking to ensure the safety of a group of anti-war protesters who infiltrated the joint US-Australian exercise Talisman Sabre in Queensland's Shoalwater Bay.
In a media statement Senator Bartlett condemned the government. He said the coalition's foreign policy now extended to "ignoring the direct threats" to Australian citizens.
"The government can disagree with these activists' motivations or methods, but they cannot pretend they don't exist," Senator Bartlett said.
And he said the Talisman Sabre exercise was nothing to do with preparing Australia's defence forces for peacekeeping missions.
"They are about subsuming the Australian Defence Forces even further into the US military machine," Senator Bartlett said.
AAP
Protesters picked up during war games
21st June 2007, 15:47 WST
Authorities have picked up a group of Christian activists protesting in the midst of a large-scale military exercise involving Australian and US troops in central Queensland, police say.
The protesters had infiltrated the joint military exercise, Talisman Sabre, at Shoalwater Bay, near Rockhampton, which is the main site for the exercise involving 7,500 Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel, 20,000 US troops, 125 aircraft and 30 ships.
They were protesting against the US-led war in Iraq and the exercise's impact on the environmentally sensitive area.
On Tuesday, protesters claimed seven activists had entered the training area - an area larger than Belgium - and planned to camp there as long as possible.
Spokeswoman Treena Lenthall said two more groups entered the base on Wednesday night.
A Queensland police spokeswoman confirmed that a group of protesters had been found on the ADF land.
One of the groups released a statement earlier saying they intended to disrupt the war games and speak to the soldiers taking part.
"As followers of the non-violent Jesus, we cannot stand by while our country plans the destruction of our brothers and sisters in other countries and the environment here at Shoalwater Bay," a statement by the group said.
"We do not take these actions lightly but with an awareness that the gravity of our actions pales in comparison to the crimes of the Australian and US military this week."
The police spokeswoman said no arrests or charges had been made as yet.
Protesters said another group, and possibly a second, was still in the exercise area and planned to stay there as long as possible.
An ADF spokeswoman has confirmed there will be live firing later in the exercise, which began on Tuesday and ends on July 2.
Peace activists have a responsibility not to expose themselves to risk while protesting, the federal government says.
Human Services Minister Chris Ellison, speaking for Defence Minister Brendan Nelson in the Senate, said the Department of Defence respected people's right to exercise their freedom of speech.
But those who protested unlawfully could not expect the same protection as those who did so lawfully, he said.
"There's no concern about lawful protest, but if people go beyond the law in what is a lawful right to freedom of speech and expose themselves to risk that makes it all the more difficult for authorities in dealing with that issue," he said.
"The safety of people in that circumstance is regarded carefully by defence, but you have to remember than in any of these protests one expects that the protesters act responsibly.
"They do have a responsibility on themselves as to the way they demonstrate."
Senator Ellison had been asked by Australian Democrats senator Andrew Bartlett what steps the Department of Defence was taking to ensure the safety of a group of anti-war protesters who infiltrated the joint US-Australian exercise Talisman Sabre in Queensland's Shoalwater Bay.
In a media statement Senator Bartlett condemned the government. He said the coalition's foreign policy now extended to "ignoring the direct threats" to Australian citizens.
"The government can disagree with these activists' motivations or methods, but they cannot pretend they don't exist," Senator Bartlett said.
And he said the Talisman Sabre exercise was nothing to do with preparing Australia's defence forces for peacekeeping missions.
"They are about subsuming the Australian Defence Forces even further into the US military machine," Senator Bartlett said.
AAP
The mention - Simon M
The 18 arrestees (two of the original 21 had already been processed, one arranged to plead guilty in her absence) turned up at the Yeppoon foreshore on Thursday morning August 2 to process to the courthouse. The sea was like glass, a sensational morning. We danced the hokey pokey then took the banners and walked together to the courthouse.
After that we stood in a circle and shared a bible passage, quote, or just talked about how we were feeling.
Then after a brief wait, we entered the courthouse only to wait again while they got ready.
Finally all was ready and they asked for all the adjournments first - which it turned out included the not guilty verdicts. Luckily one of the experienced guys went first, so he was able to arrange with the magistrate to be excused from appearing at the review mention which she scheduled for October 4th.
After that the procedure was pretty simple; you just went up when you were ready and said your name, the magistrate read you the charge and asked if you understood it, then asked if you wanted the same conditions. Sometimes she asked one or two more questions. Then you were excused. When it came time for my turn, all was going smoothly until I heard my phone start ringing behind me. Julie had it in the bag and couldn't get it in time to turn it off, so she had to leave. The magistrate was not impressed, but she didn't know it was mine so she just made a general comment to the gallery and I was done.
Jess and Carole pleaded guilty, and both made brilliant statements. The magistrate told Carole she "shared your aspirations for peace" but had to enforce the law.
Since it was only 10:30am when we were all finished, we all decided to go and enjoy the rest of the day in a magnificent part of the world. We went to the beach first.
Then we went for a drive through Byfield to the Byfield (or Blue Route) gate. I hadn't been to any of the demos at the gates over the whole Peace Convergence week because we were preparing. This was therefore the only gate I'd been to - it was the gate where we emerged from the base in the police car and they stopped here to arrested us before transferring us to another vehicle for the trip to Rockhampton. It was totally weird to be there - not least because the overwhelming thing at the time was being cold and wet, with the ground totally muddy, and here we were now with dry dust and about 28 degrees. Mostly it just brought back memories though of sitting in the divvy van and staring at this very sign, for about half an hour, just wondering if they were going to press charges or not, and wondering what would happen next.
No police around this time, but a family did drive past us in their car, open the gate, and drive into the base. A very strange feeling.
Great to have Ella there with us. The shirt is one I made to wear into the base, but as it turned out it was too cold to have it visible! So I wore it to the court proceedings instead.
Afterwards we went back to some local's houses and had a bonfire and BBQ dinner. Such a beautiful place, and you could see every star in the sky. By the end of the day I was totally exhausted but the day had been really relaxing and wonderful.
After that we stood in a circle and shared a bible passage, quote, or just talked about how we were feeling.
Then after a brief wait, we entered the courthouse only to wait again while they got ready.
Finally all was ready and they asked for all the adjournments first - which it turned out included the not guilty verdicts. Luckily one of the experienced guys went first, so he was able to arrange with the magistrate to be excused from appearing at the review mention which she scheduled for October 4th.After that the procedure was pretty simple; you just went up when you were ready and said your name, the magistrate read you the charge and asked if you understood it, then asked if you wanted the same conditions. Sometimes she asked one or two more questions. Then you were excused. When it came time for my turn, all was going smoothly until I heard my phone start ringing behind me. Julie had it in the bag and couldn't get it in time to turn it off, so she had to leave. The magistrate was not impressed, but she didn't know it was mine so she just made a general comment to the gallery and I was done.
Jess and Carole pleaded guilty, and both made brilliant statements. The magistrate told Carole she "shared your aspirations for peace" but had to enforce the law.
Since it was only 10:30am when we were all finished, we all decided to go and enjoy the rest of the day in a magnificent part of the world. We went to the beach first.
Then we went for a drive through Byfield to the Byfield (or Blue Route) gate. I hadn't been to any of the demos at the gates over the whole Peace Convergence week because we were preparing. This was therefore the only gate I'd been to - it was the gate where we emerged from the base in the police car and they stopped here to arrested us before transferring us to another vehicle for the trip to Rockhampton. It was totally weird to be there - not least because the overwhelming thing at the time was being cold and wet, with the ground totally muddy, and here we were now with dry dust and about 28 degrees. Mostly it just brought back memories though of sitting in the divvy van and staring at this very sign, for about half an hour, just wondering if they were going to press charges or not, and wondering what would happen next.No police around this time, but a family did drive past us in their car, open the gate, and drive into the base. A very strange feeling.
Great to have Ella there with us. The shirt is one I made to wear into the base, but as it turned out it was too cold to have it visible! So I wore it to the court proceedings instead.
Afterwards we went back to some local's houses and had a bonfire and BBQ dinner. Such a beautiful place, and you could see every star in the sky. By the end of the day I was totally exhausted but the day had been really relaxing and wonderful.
Birds of pray
Every morning we’d been woken by the kookaburras. If you’ve ever been camping, you’d know that birds are often the first creatures stirring in the morning, but ordinarily you’d expect peaceful twittering, not the raucous laughter of the kookaburra. But there they were, these iconic Australian birds, day after day, faithfully rousing us from our slumber with their mirthful calls.
We were camping at a caravan park in Yeppoon, almost 150 of the 300 people who had converged from around Australia to demonstrate a peaceful alternative to war. Just a few kilometres up the road, the Australian and US militaries were practicing to kill; Operation Talisman Sabre they called it, a series of live fire exercises including bombing and short range missile attacks. Projectiles cutting their destructive way through the sky, ultimately crashing to earth with explosive ferocity. Beautiful, pristine earth, thousands of years old rainforest with untold complexity of ecosystems; destroyed in a split second of human malevolence.
Birds, of course, have a special place as God’s messengers in biblical stories. From the dove that Noah sent out from the ark, which has become the universal symbol of peace, to the ravens feeding Elijah in the wilderness; from the Spirit that descends upon Jesus like a dove at his baptism to his likening himself to a hen brooding over her chicks. In the indigenous lore in the place where I’m from, Melbourne, Australia the creator spirit is known as Bunjil, the eagle. Birds have a special place in spiritual lore; they soar above us, majestic, mysterious, floating near the heavens, seemingly untouched, unreachable by we earth-bound creatures.
Five of us from the peace convergence decided to oppose the war games by walking openly onto the base to request that they be stopped. In fact, we were positing an alternative; bringing a frisbee with us, we wanted to invite the soldiers to stop their war games in favour of peace games. A peaceful projectile floating gently between people, connecting them in the name of fun. We were aware, of course, that by setting foot on the base it would be likely to raise the ire of those who were conducting the exercises; soldiers, probably armed, and in aggressive mode. We wanted to be ready in ourselves for the likely aggression we would encounter. Choosing early morning as the most likely time to go undetected, we jokingly coded our entry time as, “When the kookaburras laugh.”
The whole week had been spent preparing, but it was essential that we be centred in ourselves at the moment of entry. After waking at 5:30am, we met together to pray; to respond to the Spirit’s leading, to act out of love rather than fear. Sitting in a circle, we descended into a period of silence. Connected in such a powerful way in such a powerful moment, I felt enfolded in the Spirit of Life that surrounded us. Quietly we began to sing, then hear from the Beatitudes, then a Thomas Merton quote. The formalities over, we had only to wait on the Spirit for leading.
Suddenly, inexplicably, the silence was broken by the laugh of a single solitary kookaburra. We opened our eyes, looked at each other, and joined in the laughter. No one needed to say anything; we were ready.
We walked for three hours through the bush to reach the fence; the five of us with our cameraman and documentary filmmaker Dujon. Dujon had journeyed the whole week with us, present for our planning, our meetings, our prayer times. We had grown close to each other, and as the time came for our entry, he was increasingly concerned for us and our safety. While not a Christian himself, Dujon had a keen sense of how important our faith was, and how it connected us to every living thing around us. Nonetheless, when he left us at the fence, he felt keenly aware of the risk we were taking. His return journey would be filled with questions for our welfare.
Until, as he rounded a bend in the road, he was stopped in his tracks by an eagle. Standing in the
middle of the road as he approached, it turned and looked at him. With piercing eyes, it stared into him; then turning its head, it crouched, sprang into the air and flappings its powerful wings, flew into the sky. Dujon later told us that he knew at that moment that we would be ok; that this eagle had been sent to reassure him, and that it would watch over us. He continued on his return journey in that confidence.
We walked onto the main base in total confidence in the God of peace; not for one second did we feel unsafe. As we were arrested and taken outside the gates in the police car, a jet roared overhead. A bird of death disturbing the birds of life.
The following Sunday morning, out on bail, we attended Quaker meeting. Quaker meetings are usually silent affairs, waiting on the Spirit’s leading and prompting. Occasionally someone might speak, to bring a “word of ministry” for the group.
On this occasion several people spoke; but one stood out in particular. A lady who had been participating in the peace convergence all week was walking to the gates of the military base.
With a group of 150 people, she had walked past a police road block and now found herself meandering slowly enough to be left behind by the group. As she walked silently down the dirt road, two emus emerged from the bush to her left. Immediately she stopped in her tracks as they stepped hesitantly out onto the road, watching her. It was, she recounted, a God moment; she spoke to them, telling them of her desire for peace for their home, for their families, for herself, and how she was working towards it. She apologised on behalf of the human race for all we had done to harm them They continued to watch her as she spoke, and as she talked that morning she recounted a sense of acknowledgment; that they heard her, and thanked her for all we were doing.
Kookaburras, eagles, and emus. All native birds, all part of the majestic ecosystem of the Shoalwater Bay wilderness, all significant messengers of God, symbols of the Spirit, present and at work. I thank God for the way we were looked after by God’s Spirit – undoubtedly present in unseen and unnoticed ways – but visible to us in these winged messengers.
We were camping at a caravan park in Yeppoon, almost 150 of the 300 people who had converged from around Australia to demonstrate a peaceful alternative to war. Just a few kilometres up the road, the Australian and US militaries were practicing to kill; Operation Talisman Sabre they called it, a series of live fire exercises including bombing and short range missile attacks. Projectiles cutting their destructive way through the sky, ultimately crashing to earth with explosive ferocity. Beautiful, pristine earth, thousands of years old rainforest with untold complexity of ecosystems; destroyed in a split second of human malevolence.
Birds, of course, have a special place as God’s messengers in biblical stories. From the dove that Noah sent out from the ark, which has become the universal symbol of peace, to the ravens feeding Elijah in the wilderness; from the Spirit that descends upon Jesus like a dove at his baptism to his likening himself to a hen brooding over her chicks. In the indigenous lore in the place where I’m from, Melbourne, Australia the creator spirit is known as Bunjil, the eagle. Birds have a special place in spiritual lore; they soar above us, majestic, mysterious, floating near the heavens, seemingly untouched, unreachable by we earth-bound creatures.
Five of us from the peace convergence decided to oppose the war games by walking openly onto the base to request that they be stopped. In fact, we were positing an alternative; bringing a frisbee with us, we wanted to invite the soldiers to stop their war games in favour of peace games. A peaceful projectile floating gently between people, connecting them in the name of fun. We were aware, of course, that by setting foot on the base it would be likely to raise the ire of those who were conducting the exercises; soldiers, probably armed, and in aggressive mode. We wanted to be ready in ourselves for the likely aggression we would encounter. Choosing early morning as the most likely time to go undetected, we jokingly coded our entry time as, “When the kookaburras laugh.”
The whole week had been spent preparing, but it was essential that we be centred in ourselves at the moment of entry. After waking at 5:30am, we met together to pray; to respond to the Spirit’s leading, to act out of love rather than fear. Sitting in a circle, we descended into a period of silence. Connected in such a powerful way in such a powerful moment, I felt enfolded in the Spirit of Life that surrounded us. Quietly we began to sing, then hear from the Beatitudes, then a Thomas Merton quote. The formalities over, we had only to wait on the Spirit for leading.
Suddenly, inexplicably, the silence was broken by the laugh of a single solitary kookaburra. We opened our eyes, looked at each other, and joined in the laughter. No one needed to say anything; we were ready.
We walked for three hours through the bush to reach the fence; the five of us with our cameraman and documentary filmmaker Dujon. Dujon had journeyed the whole week with us, present for our planning, our meetings, our prayer times. We had grown close to each other, and as the time came for our entry, he was increasingly concerned for us and our safety. While not a Christian himself, Dujon had a keen sense of how important our faith was, and how it connected us to every living thing around us. Nonetheless, when he left us at the fence, he felt keenly aware of the risk we were taking. His return journey would be filled with questions for our welfare.
Until, as he rounded a bend in the road, he was stopped in his tracks by an eagle. Standing in the
middle of the road as he approached, it turned and looked at him. With piercing eyes, it stared into him; then turning its head, it crouched, sprang into the air and flappings its powerful wings, flew into the sky. Dujon later told us that he knew at that moment that we would be ok; that this eagle had been sent to reassure him, and that it would watch over us. He continued on his return journey in that confidence.We walked onto the main base in total confidence in the God of peace; not for one second did we feel unsafe. As we were arrested and taken outside the gates in the police car, a jet roared overhead. A bird of death disturbing the birds of life.
The following Sunday morning, out on bail, we attended Quaker meeting. Quaker meetings are usually silent affairs, waiting on the Spirit’s leading and prompting. Occasionally someone might speak, to bring a “word of ministry” for the group.
On this occasion several people spoke; but one stood out in particular. A lady who had been participating in the peace convergence all week was walking to the gates of the military base.
With a group of 150 people, she had walked past a police road block and now found herself meandering slowly enough to be left behind by the group. As she walked silently down the dirt road, two emus emerged from the bush to her left. Immediately she stopped in her tracks as they stepped hesitantly out onto the road, watching her. It was, she recounted, a God moment; she spoke to them, telling them of her desire for peace for their home, for their families, for herself, and how she was working towards it. She apologised on behalf of the human race for all we had done to harm them They continued to watch her as she spoke, and as she talked that morning she recounted a sense of acknowledgment; that they heard her, and thanked her for all we were doing.Kookaburras, eagles, and emus. All native birds, all part of the majestic ecosystem of the Shoalwater Bay wilderness, all significant messengers of God, symbols of the Spirit, present and at work. I thank God for the way we were looked after by God’s Spirit – undoubtedly present in unseen and unnoticed ways – but visible to us in these winged messengers.
Media
If you're interested in listening to a couple of interviews Simon M has done, the links are below. Right click and then "Save Target As" to download them.
RTR fm (Perth Community Radio) (3.5 mb)
Sonshine fm (Perth Christian Radio station (6 mb)
Rodney Olsen who interviewed him on Sonshine fm also has a post about it on his blog here.
Thanks to Jarrod for getting these interviews.
RTR fm (Perth Community Radio) (3.5 mb)
Sonshine fm (Perth Christian Radio station (6 mb)
Rodney Olsen who interviewed him on Sonshine fm also has a post about it on his blog here.
Thanks to Jarrod for getting these interviews.
Our letter to the Generals
We also wrote this letter to give to the generals of the Australian and US forces should we have the good fortune to find them. We passed them on to an officer who assured us he would pass them to the generals.
Dear Australian and US forces participating in Operation Talisman Sabre,
We are five unarmed, nonviolent Christians who are extremely concerned about the military exercises in which you are taking part. We are here only to invite you to dialogue and exchange ideas. We would like to see these preparations for war cease, and preparations for peace begin. Thus we come here to invite you to play peace games with us, and stop the war games. We do so, as Martin Luther King Jr. said, “openly, lovingly, and with a willingness to pay the penalty”.
We have been inspired in our actions by people like Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr. and Dorothy Day, who committed their lives to nonviolence and who bore the costs of it. On the night before he was killed, Martin Luther King Jr. said, “The choice is no longer between violence and nonviolence. It’s nonviolence or nonexistence.” I’m sure the fragile ecosystems of Shoalwater Bay would agree; as would the estimated 655,000 Iraqis who have died in the Iraq war, and the 3,500 Coalition soldiers. And so we work towards a world with no war.
In this cause we have written letters, had street marches, and held public meetings, yet still we have had no response. And so, as the saying goes, “If the mountain won’t come to Mohammed, Mohammed must go to the mountain.”
Now we place the choice before you: the way of life or the way of death; construction or destruction; nonviolence or nonexistence. We urge you to train for peace, by discovering the power of nonviolence. This is by no means an easy road as we, even today, are finding out. But this is the most important task of our lives; we dare not fail, and we invite you to join us in it.
With love,
Simon, Simon, Krystal, Carole, and Sarah.
Imagining Peace – A Statement
The following is the statement we released prior to entering the base:
We are 5 nonviolent Christian people who like the prophet Isaiah are working towards the day when people will “beat swords into plowshares and study war no more”. As followers of the nonviolent Jesus we cannot stand by while our country plans the destruction of our brothers and sisters in other countries and the environment at Shoalwater Bay.
We plan to enter the base to disrupt these military exercises with our presence. We do so openly and honestly without deception and while actively seeking out military personnel with whom to dialogue. We do not take these actions lightly but with an awareness that the gravity of our actions pales in comparison to the crimes of Australian and US militaries this week. The destruction of pristine wilderness with unique and endangered wildlife is unacceptable as is the increased reliance on violent methods of conflict resolution. We take these actions because all other legal attempts to stop the exercise have failed.
People are likely to say that we have no respect for the law: not so. Rather we say with Martin Luther King Jr. and in accordance with the principles of nonviolence. “I submit that an individual who breaks a law that conscience tells him is unjust and who willingly accepts the penalty of imprisonment in order to arouse the conscience of the community over its injustice is in reality expressing the highest respect for the law.”
We believe that practicing for war only means more war. That is why we must imagine peace, embody peace, practice peace.
Another world is possible – that is why we act.
Shoalwater Bay peace convergence report - Simon M
I thought it might be useful to provide a fuller explanation of some of our actions up in Queensland recently. If anyone has any more questions after reading this, please feel free to ask.
For a while now, we as members of the Christian Activist Network have been writing letters, participating in street marches, holding vigils, information nights and public meetings to raise awareness and demonstrate our opposition to these military exercises and other related issues. Of particular concern in this case are the environmental impact (on marine and land life), and the increasing reliance on militarism and war (Australia spends $55m per day on its military). We felt we had exhausted every legal avenue of dissent, and that therefore the actions we took were the next logical step.
Despite our openness, it took quite some time for anyone to notice us. When they finally did we approached them, assured them that we were unarmed and peaceful, and asked them to play frisbee with us. To our surprise and delight, they did. I asked to see their generals as we had two letters to give them. They then called their commanding officer who shut down the base, and they invited us inside for coffee and lunch. We spent about an hour and a half talking with both Australian and US soldiers about Iraq, violence and nonviolence, and the exercises themselves before being arrested by Queensland police and taken to Rockhampton, where we were charged with trespassing under the Commonwealth Crimes Act. Our first court date was August 2 in the Yeppoon Magistrates Court.
The background:
Shoalwater Bay is about 80km north of Rockhampton in central Queensland. As well as being home to endangered dugongs, whales and dolphins, and within the Great Barrier Reef marine park, it is a pristine wilderness area. In the middle of all of this sits the Shoalwater Bay Training Area (SWBTA), a military base the size of Belgium.
For the past two weeks, over 30,000 Australian and US troops have combined in SWBTA for Operation Talisman Sabre, a series of live fire exercises, including bombings of land and sea and use of active sonar.
For a while now, we as members of the Christian Activist Network have been writing letters, participating in street marches, holding vigils, information nights and public meetings to raise awareness and demonstrate our opposition to these military exercises and other related issues. Of particular concern in this case are the environmental impact (on marine and land life), and the increasing reliance on militarism and war (Australia spends $55m per day on its military). We felt we had exhausted every legal avenue of dissent, and that therefore the actions we took were the next logical step.
As Christians, we follow the tradition of Isaiah who calls us to "beat swords into ploughshares, and train for war no more" (how's that for appropriate?), and most particularly of Jesus who calls us to "love our enemies", "put down our sword" and be "blessed peacemakers". Inspired by people like Jesus, Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr. and Dorothy Day, we take up the weapon of active nonviolence to work towards those aims. Nonviolence means being neither passive nor violent; it is an active, creative, third way that confronts and transforms oppression and violence.
What happened:
As part of the wider peace convergence, Simon Moyle (Urban Seed, Melbourne), Simon Reeves (Jahwork, Melbourne), Krystal Spencer (Jahwork, Melbourne) and Sarah Williams (Jahwork, Melbourne) travelled to Shoalwater Bay on Jun 17th. Two days later Carole Powell (Pace e Bene Australia, Brisbane) joined us there. After four days of intense planning (preceded by several weeks of planning), and a long walk through the bush in the rain, five of us (all Christians) arrived at the fence which marks the boundary of the restricted military base. Soon after, we entered the military training area, found the main control centre base (Samuel Hill) and walked openly down the middle of the airstrip in an attempt to be as obvious as possible.
The focus for us was threefold:
1. To establish a reasoned and respectful dialogue with the soldiers. As protests are often restricted to yelling from behind a fence, we wanted to change the dynamic, to engage face to face with the people behind the uniform, and for them to do the same with us.
2. At the same time, we knew that any presence of civilians on the base would immediately halt the war games. Therefore another aim was to disrupt the exercises with our presence.
3. We wanted to see the base transformed from somewhere war games were conducted to a place where peace games are played. Hence not only did our presence cause the shutting down of the military activities, but we invited the soldiers to play frisbee with us on the tarmac.
Despite our openness, it took quite some time for anyone to notice us. When they finally did we approached them, assured them that we were unarmed and peaceful, and asked them to play frisbee with us. To our surprise and delight, they did. I asked to see their generals as we had two letters to give them. They then called their commanding officer who shut down the base, and they invited us inside for coffee and lunch. We spent about an hour and a half talking with both Australian and US soldiers about Iraq, violence and nonviolence, and the exercises themselves before being arrested by Queensland police and taken to Rockhampton, where we were charged with trespassing under the Commonwealth Crimes Act. Our first court date was August 2 in the Yeppoon Magistrates Court.
For me this was a deeply empowering experience, and one I have come out of with a clearer sense of the good news of Jesus Christ, as well as solidarity with the oppressed, and a deep experience of the peace, comfort and joy of the Spirit. At no stage did we feel at all nervous or like we were doing something wrong; on the contrary, there was a real freedom and joy to our actions at all times.
If you're interested in hearing more, you can download the 3 1/2mb file of an interview I did with RTRfm, a Perth community radio station, or the 4mb interview with Sonshine FM.
Let me leave you with the question that has shaped and guided Christian Peacemaker Teams the world over: "What would happen if Christians devoted the same discipline and self-sacrifice to nonviolent peacemaking that armies devote to war?"
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