Around 170 protesters have been arrested at the Port of Newcastle after blocking access to the site in a demonstration against new coal and gas projects. Dozens of people in kayaks managed to avoid police vessels and paddled out into the busy shipping lanes. As a result, the movement of ships in and out of the world’s largest coal port was stopped for several hours due to safety concerns.
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:00Hundreds of protesters took to the water in Newcastle Harbour in what they called a people's
00:11blockade. Among them was former soccer crew Craig Foster.
00:15Like me, they're just ordinary Australians, you know, grandparents and little kids and
00:20families of all types, all professions.
00:23They had a clear message.
00:25If politicians won't stand up and do the right thing, we the people will.
00:29A ship is proceeding along the channel and it is dangerous to get close to that ship.
00:33Ignoring police warnings, protesters headed out towards the shipping lane.
00:38Police boats tried to stop them, but a number of kayaks managed to break through.
00:46They came within metres of a bulk carrier that was being escorted into port.
00:51I'm directing you to not proceed past the navigation poise.
00:54Another ship heading into Newcastle, the Korean registered Oriental Star, had to be
00:59turned around just outside the harbour.
01:01A short time later, the port authority announced that all shipping movements in and out of
01:06the port were being suspended.
01:08In a statement, it said the decision had been made due to an unacceptable risk to public safety.
01:14Police in boats began plucking protesters from their kayaks.
01:19We had 10 people that were required to be assisted back to shore by water police because
01:25they couldn't get back to shore themselves.
01:27And we had one infant, probably around 12 months of age, who was sighted in a kayak.
01:33Organisers said it was a mass act of civil disobedience to protest against government
01:39inaction on climate change.
01:41The Labor government has approved 28 new coal and gas projects and emissions
01:47are now higher under Anthony Albanese than they were under Scott Morrison.
01:53After several hours of disruption, the Oriental Star entered the port as shipping resumed.
02:00Protesters will now head to Canberra where they hope to deliver their message
02:04directly to the country's leaders.