Chamber defends town’s reputation

Trafalgar Chamber of Commerce has distanced itself from a protest in the town on Anzac Day that the business group president said gave the town a bad image.

Chamber of commerce president Scott Draper said businesses and residents had received negative feedback about an anti-lockdown protest held in the town last weekend.

The Gazette last week reported the protest included people from Willow Grove, Warragul and the West Gippsland area.

“There were rumours that we had organised it. We had nothing to do with it.

“We want to distance ourselves from it. It’s not how we (Trafalgar) work and it’s not how we think,” he said.

Mr Draper said some businesses had received feedback from people as far as Bairnsdale that they would not stop when passing through the town anymore.

“It’s having a widespread effect. We are getting feedback that Trafalgar people are a bunch of idiots.

“It is very disappointing for us as a town and business community. A lot of our highway businesses rely on people stopping.

“We don’t want that stigma to be an ongoing problem for us.

“They (the protestors) have left a pretty dirty stain on Trafalgar,” he said.

Mr Draper said he wanted to send a message to the wider community that Trafalgar is open for business.

“The Trafalgar businesses and residents don’t share the same opinions as those clowns on Anzac Day.

“We want to be positive, people are here to do business and we aren’t interested in the negativity that this action has created,” he said.

Mr Draper said the chamber also was made aware of some alleged incidents at a protestor’s home on the weekend.

He said while the chamber recognised everyone in the community was entitled to their views on matters, the chamber did not condone any vigilante style behaviour.