SOUTH AUSTRALIA’S South East will stage its second Adelaide protest against forestry privatisation on 8 February when hundreds of concerned country residents will again rally on the steps of Parliament House in Adelaide as part of a continued fight to block the ‘forward sale’ of Forestry SA plantation harvest rights, with organisers confident of unprecedented support.
“Well over 1,000 people attended the last rally in November and delivered a very clear message that we are not going to accept a decision to forward sell our forests,” said Mount Gambier Mayor Steven Perryman. “Participants also vowed then that they would be back if the State Government‘s response was unsatisfactory – the buses are booked and the log trucks and their supporters are returning to the big smoke!”
Details about a second Don’t Privatise SA Forests rally were unveiled during a free community barbecue in Mount Gambier’s Cave Garden. The public event brought supporters up-to-date with the on-going campaign against the forward sale of forests, with a range of local persons highlighting the direct impacts of the proposed sale.
“Not only are thousands of forestry jobs and entire townships now at risk, but there are major negative flow-on detriments for small businesses, schools and services,” said the Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce Lynette Martin.
The popular Don’t Privatise SA Forests t-shirts and stickers were also available for purchase at the event, which was jointly hosted by the City of Mount Gambier, the District Council of Grant and Wattle Range Council.
“The community has clearly indicated that the momentum remains strong and we have been buoyed by the level of support that has come from Adelaide since our last protest,” said Wattle Range Mayor Peter Gandolfi. “Many city people are not surprised that we’re yet to receive an adequate response from Premier Rann and Treasurer Foley; there’s obviously a widespread level of discontent up there as well, and they’ve vowed to join us at the next protest. We welcome them aboard with sincere country hospitality.”
Free buses have again been booked to ferry South East supporters to Adelaide from Mount Gambier, Penola and Millicent, and registrations can be lodged at www. dontprivatisesaforests.com.au The list of log trucks signing up for the convoy is also steadily growing.
“The convoy that brought North Terrace to a standstill last time certainly put us in the public spotlight, but we can assure the public that it will be a lot longer this time – Adelaide ain’t seen nothing yet!” said Grant District Council Mayor Richard Sage.
For further details contact any of the undersigned Mayors:
Steve PERRYMAN Richard SAGE Peter GANDOLFI
MAYOR MAYOR MAYOR
City of Mount Gambier District Council of Grant Wattle Range Council
M: 0428 212 507 M: 0428 388 084 M: 0419 155 447
