Adani stunt ties up police resources Protest ‘ just propaganda’

AN ATTEMPT to stop works along Adani’s rail corridor has been labelled nothing more than a propaganda stunt by police, with protesters fleeing before authorities arrived.

Police were called to Disney Cattle Station, south of Belyando Crossing, yesterday after workers reported seeing protesters on site about 5.45am.

Frontline Action on Coal reported that 20 protesters from “around Australia” descended on the station, where human faeces was discovered in a fuel tank two weeks ago.

But the protesters packed up and left before police arrived later in the morning.

Inspector Steve O’Connell of Mackay police district said on- site security had informed him that the protesters had been running around frantically before police arrived.

“About 10 minutes before police got here, they were packing up their stuff, frantically running around, packing up their banners and chairs and jumped in their cars and headed towards Charters Towers,” he said. “We think there was a van that was a lookout. There was no one there when police arrived.”

Insp O’Connell said that, while the FLAC Facebook page boasted about 20 protesters, security said there were 12.

“They had blocked access but they removed a car that was blocking access when security told them to,” he said.

“It’s propaganda, it’s part of their propaganda machine.

“They do these things very quickly, they take their photos but when police arrive they’re either going or they’re gone.”

Insp O’Connell said a similar incident happened at Airlie Beach at the weekend.

“Police responded within 10 minutes but they had packed up. That’s their current tactics.

“Their propaganda is they’re shutting down activities but they’re not having any impact at all, except tying up police resources.

“Workers were able to work. There was no disruption.”

Footage released by FLAC showed Kaiya Ferguson, a medical student from Brisbane, locked to a gate.

“Adani poses a very significant problem to the future health of Australians, our groundwater, our air quality, our climate, and our relationship with the global community,” she says in the footage.

In a statement last night, Adani said the “southern paid protesters” were denying regional Queenslanders jobs.

“The mercenary activists need to ‘# stop stopping progress’ and denying others the right to a job and a future for generations to come,” the statement read.

“Adani asks that the paid protesters respect the right of others to work … and that they behave in an acceptable manner.”