Webdiary - Founded and Inspired by Margo Kingston

Margo: Bryan Law, a longtime Webdiary contributor, has kept us up to date on his group's protest against Pine Gap for a while now. His last piece for Webdiary was Rise up to end war. Richard Tonkin updated us on the results of the trial at Webdiarist Bryan Law faces jail on on Pine Gap protest. Bryan's archive is here.

My opposition to war is complete.  (illegal, immoral, futile, expensive) .  My opposition to the war in Iraq took organisational form in 2001, and has continued ever since.  My question now is "How might the ordinary citizen, in a dysfunctional democracy, best restrict the state's criminal behaviour - with an external war and a growing internal security state".  How does the citizen restore democracy and peace under such circumstances?

I think it's timely to develop and escalate the practice of interventionary nonviolence locally, nationally and globally - to hinder, dismantle and transform the military machine.  Building resistance.  For some 20 months now I've been working with family and friends, making an experiment to explore that thinking.

In September 2005 I became a foundation member of Christians Against ALL Terrorism, and subsequently undertook a "Citizens' Inspection" of the US-run Pine Gap Spy Base.  We call it the Pine Gap Terror Base.

Webdiary played a key role in recording and developing the experiment. My foundation document  was published in Webdiary on 17 October 2005.

Webdiarists will be pleased to know that I referred then Defence Minister Senator Robert Hill to that foundation article in my subsequent correspondence with him.  That correspondence became exhibit P2 in our recent trial.  The Webdiary article itself became exhibit L50, and a (censored) copy was provided for each member of the jury to read.

We were convicted of all charges and given trivial fines.  Along the way, I've learned many things about interventionary action, about the Court process, and about the formation of political and spiritual will.   It seems fitting to share this knowledge and analysis with Webdiary and crew.  Who knows?  This article may become an exhibit in some future trial.

(We've learned this week that the Crown is appealing the lenience of our sentence. They want us in prison. Court of Criminal Appeal here we come.)

The power of interventionary action

This experiment confirmed for me the power of the small "affinity group" to exercise sanctions against the war machine, and other instruments of injustice.  When we began CAAT - on the road to Alice Springs - we were 7 people with basic resources (a shared vision, some experience, some determination, some freedom and a little bit of money).  We'd chosen Pine Gap as an issue of national significance, and determined to work for its peaceful transformation while demanding an end to the war in Iraq.  These are pretty big goals for 7 ordinary people.  So far we're
doing pretty well.

The key to our success lies in our actual penetration of the "Technical Support Area" of Pine Gap - the bit behind the "man-proof" fences.  The touch-stone of Interventionary NVDA is having a real-world effect on the operation of the military machine.  We sent a shock-wave through the US space war agencies.  Pine Gap went into lock-down.

It was in achieving this intervention that we began attracting national and international attention.  Between our action on 9 December 2005 and our sentencing on 15 June 2007, we enjoyed national media coverage on five seperate occasions, with the trial itself generating the most coverage.  We got our key message out linking Pine Gap with the war in Iraq, and with the growing militarism  (we were never strong in the Murdoch media empire).

More important than main stream media, we developed a national constituency through personal networks and the internet, and we won much more extensive coverage in minority presses.  We filled the front page of the Catholic Leader on June 24 2007 under the headline of Peacemakers, which is a very important constituency for us. There is ongoing debate in the letters page. 

The Uniting Church in Alice Springs were very welcoming.  Campfire in the Heart provided a base of operations. There was a Mosque in Baghdad praying for us every Friday.  Word went out on local, national and global nonviolence networks and we attracted hundreds of messages of support from like-minded activists across the Angloshere.  Plus a lot of donations.

We enjoyed excellent support from Australian Christian and Gandhian nonviolence activists, around 30 of whom came to Alice Springs in June 2007 to support us during the trial (they ran public information stalls, processions, public meetings, and nonviolent direct actions).  Personal networking brought most folk.  We shone as a practical example of peace-making through community, and participants valued the experience very highly, often speaking of it as a peak experience.  You can find a journal of this time here.

Gandhi proclaims that nonviolence reveals truth, and certainly we've discovered a great deal about the way Pine Gap is used in contemporary US, UK and Australian war-fighting.  Professor Richard Tanter from the Nautilus Institute at RMIT gave us all an update on the technical capacitiesa nd operational functions of Pine Gap. I believe all this knowledge will be uploaded onto the site shortly. There's a record of his presentation on the blog.

We have an Affidavit from DOD which says that our trial has been the subject of discussion between defence and security officials in Australia and their counterparts in the US.  We know that ASIO and the AFP maintain an interest in our ongoing activities.  We know the Commonwealth dragged out its "big gun" legislation, and spent a small fortune prosecuting us, and tried hard to imprison us.  At one time there were nine lawyers for the Commonwealth and the Crown inside the Court - against four self-represented peaceniks.

While we never felt equal in the Court battle, we knew for sure that we had got the attention of the government and the military through our humble efforts.  In attempting to come down hard upon us, they gave us instead a wonderful forum from which to develop an effective, continuing program of nonviolent peacemaking.  So far this experiment has cost us around $30,000 - most of which has been donated.  The government has spent millions.  They're going to make one more try to send us to prison.  Bless them.

Interventionary NVDA is a wonderfully efficient and effective tool for the asymetric exercise of power.

The contemporary Peace movement is sparse, and pushing uphill in social and political formation.  The kind of highly leveraged, and dramatic small group action exemplified by Christians Against ALL Terrorism at Pine Gap can provide powerful returns for those with the commitment and time available to plan and carry them out.  We can build that capacity, in ourselves and in our communities.

On Saturday 2 June 2007 we met with some traditional owner family members at the gates to Pine Gap, and conducted a transformation ceremony and minor civil disobedience.  This felt like an important step forward.

God, not Christianity again!

Since joining with Christians Against ALL Terrorism I've gotten a picture of how deeply Christians are discriminated against and put down by people I'll describe here as secular lefties.

In the past twelve years I've found, in purely practical terms, that communities of faith are much more likely to provide people who'll act against injustice than are communities of secular lefties.

As our Pine Gap action has unfolded we've seen many Christians rise to ask what our churches are doing to end the Iraq war and militarism.  We have found many branch churches willing to consider that question. Certainly our support from some Christian communities has been such as to nurture, sustain and develop our project, while secular political groups including the Labor, Green and Democrats parties have been at best hesitant and partial.  There were Christians and Christian affinity groups behind the recent incursions on the Shoalwater Bay Military Training Area during the Talisman-Sabre US/Aus wargames in June 2007 (Invading an un-named third country) . Some of these folk were part of our Pine Gap network.

For the duration of this action, I've focused Biblicly on the beatitudes and the Sermon on the Mount.  The most powerful lesson here is "Love your enemies", and we've all been grappling with it.  An extremely difficult teaching, and yet so powerful in effect.  Father John Dear mentions us in his recent reflection on the teaching.

We applied this teaching to our conduct in the Court - refusing to engage in adversarial behaviour, looking for the good in all, including the Commonwealth lawyers, and trying to bring that out in them, freely admitting our actions and just explaining why we took them, without being at all preachy (well, trying not to anyhow).  In contrast, the carping of the prosecutor put just about everyone off, and when he attacked Adele, and attempted various penalties and restrictions against us, Hilton Dembo made himself broadly unpopular.

I also learned how to avoid disagreements with my co-accused (just agree with everything plus get what I really need).  So while this may challenge some folk, Jesus stays in.

Alice in Wonderland

This was my first Supreme Court trial, and contained many amazing
revelations.

I got to see the amazing power of the Crown prerogative in matters of national security and foreign relations.  These thugs are allowed to get away with murder, and the Court is forbidden to enquire about it.  We lost a couple of pre-trial applications about the operation and validity of Section 8 of the Defence (Special Undertakings) Act, and of a Notice issued under s8 in 1967 by then Defence Minister Alan Fairhall.  These matters will probably go to appeal, but they are only the first in a series of manouvers between us where the Crown's aim is to narrow the scope of evidence required by or admissable to the jury in our trial. Judge Thomas ruled against us here, and declared the publication of a notice in the Gazette was sufficient proof of everything s8 required.

During the trial itself the Commonwealth invoked Public Interest Immunity to exclude any evidence about the operation of Pine Gap by any Crown witness.  Michael Maurice QC did this when I asked the very first prosecution witness (Mike Burgess, Deputy Chief of Facility, Pine Gap) if intelligence collected by Pine Gap was used in the war in Iraq.  We then enjoyed two days of legal argument during which Maurice invoked national security and then attacked our proposed defences under section 10 of the Commonwealth Criminal Code.  The judge ruled in favour of Public Interest Immunity, but allowed us to give evidence about our own understanding of the role of Pine Gap.  She didn't rule on our defences.

When we got to presenting the defence case we were challenged before we testified by Mr Tim Begbie - in relation to the Parliamentary Privileges Act.  The Commonwealth's contention was that the Parliamentary Privileges Act was an essential component of the seperation of powers, and prevented any Court from admitting into evidence any proceeding, report of a proceeding, story about a proceeding, questions or answers of the executive, or anything else that was conducted in a Parliament.The judge ruled against us, and there went a whole bunch of evidence such as Report 26 of the Joint Parliamentary Committee on Treaties. Not only couldn't we use the Report.  We couldn't even refer to the Report.  So exhibit L50 - the Webdiary article - was censored by having thick black lines ruled through the bits where I mentioned Report 26 in it, and about John Howard lying to Parliament about Weapons of Mass Destruction.

It was about this time we bagan to think of Alice and the rabbit hole. We found ourselves confronted by the powers of the Bill of Rights (1688) which apparently preserves the rights of Parliamentarians over any accused.  I think of it as the divine rights of Parliament.  (Typical of English Law).  For good measure, Mr Begbie also attacked our s10 defences. We forgave him.  The Judge ruled that the only government information we could rely on were public statements made outside Parliament by the DOD, or its Minister, or the Prime Minister.  A very thin volume indeed. She didn't rule on our defences.

Giving evidence was a funny experience of explaining what I'd done and why - and tendering exhibits to the jury that supported my defence of "necessity".  The Prosecutor's job appeared to be to interrupt me, challenge the relevance of what I was saying, and undermine my argument.  At one stage Mr Dembo accused me of giving the Court a history lesson, and pretended to find that offensive.  I was most put out.  I give a very good history lesson.  We were talking about Gandhi's salt march and  I felt the jury was interested.  The Judge was not.  Oh well.

Overall I was happy with what I got in.

When I finished my evidence in chief, Mr Dembo attacked our defences and asked for a ruling to exclude them, and related evidence, from the jury.  This was the third attack on our defences and it was only eight days into the trial.

Because we were unrepresented, and had been looking forward to the Queen's Birthday weekend to study the authorities and take advice, the Judge delayed ruling on the defences until Tuesday 12 June.  In the meantime each accused would give their defence opening, and their evidence in chief.  Cross examination of any accused would take place after all accused had testified, subject to the Judges ruling after legal argument on Tuesday.

So we got two days of putting forward material about the war in Iraq, Pine Gap's role in the war in Iraq, our intentions of disrupting the military operation of Pine Gap to preserve lives in Iraq, and the citizen's obligation to take up nonviolent means of preventing the commission of war crimes. The Court was always full, and there were many affecting moments.  It was here that the nature of our action became clear, and the issues made plain.  This was the best part of the trial.  AAP did some excellent reporting.

Then on Tuesday we lost the legal argument, and our s10 defences were finally excluded.  We couldn't get our expert witnesses on the stand. The jury would be instructed to disregard our evidence about the politics of war in Iraq.  Only a miracle would see us acquitted now.  We closed on Wednesday, the jury retired on Thursday and took five hours to convict us on all charges.  We did sentencing on Friday.  Here's the judge's sentencing comments.

I'm particularly pleased that Judge Thomas noticed we were genuinely motivated.

The penalties are trivial, although they do provide an opportunity for political theatre.  The issue for consideration now is how best to further develop the dynamic created so far.  Where next for Christians Against ALL Terrorism?

Future?  What Future?

Until this week, we were all having some time-out from CAAT issues. Adele and I went to the Peace Convergence around Talisman-Sabre for a week or so in later June.  Adele was in the centre of action/organising and I played a small support role while observing and talking and thinking about everything going on, and what might be done better next time.

My personal priority is to further encourage the formation and training of small interventionary affinity groups.  Such groups are axiomatically able to take autonomous nonviolent action in a variety of operations and contexts. Likewise they enjoy high security.

At Pine Gap we need bush walking  and map reading skills, along with persistance and planning.  In 2005 we made a single walk in two groups of two to penetrate (but not damage) a prohibited area.  At Shoalwater Bay in 2007 there were two groups (4 & 3) who entered the training area and camped for three nights in cold, wet weather.  And a subsequent group of five who did a one day penetration of an airfield inside the Training Area. Male and female, young and old.  It's the same orienteering skill-set.  The same personal qualities.

At Pine Gap, at Shoalwater Bay, at Geraldton - and at other vital US war-fighting infrastructure - it's readily tactically available for organised affinity groups to disrupt and interfere with base operations, using transparent and accountable NVDA techniques.  I'm growing more interested in Plowshares actions.

I'm interested in workshops, training sessions and networking for Christian and Gandhian nonviolence activists to assist in the formation and deployment of such affinity groups around Australia.  To develop capacity for Interventionary NVDA.  Over a two-year time frame.  In two years we can test our capacity against Operation Talisman Sabre '09. What could be more fun?

As far as Pine Gap goes, we're once again in a position to be pro-active with dates and events.  We can pick a date for a future inspection/action, and program into it some national/community nonviolence and affinity group formation.  Sometime the Court of Criminal Appeal will sit.

If you're interested in developing nonviolence capacity in Australia, respond to this article, or contact me bryan@cairnspeacebypeace.org