SP Newsletter No.288
The October Yarra Council meeting was the best attended and most dramatic for years. The vast bulk of the residents who turned up were there to discuss the proposed local law to ban public drinking in Yarra.

Some Collingwood traders, and a few wealthy residents, pretend that the local law is aimed at dealing with anti-social behaviour, but this is a lie.

The Socialist Party does not condone anti-social behaviour from any section of the community and there are already many laws on the statute books to deal with it. The real motive behind the local law is to ‘cleanse’ Smith Street of Aboriginal people in the belief that this will help the traders’ business.

Those opposed to the local law explained that most of the drunkenness and resulting violence in the City of Yarra was centred around the night club strips like Brunswick Street, where irresponsible licensees sold copious amounts of alcohol without any concern of how their customers would carry on when they left the venue.

In other words anti-social behaviour was mainly emanating from people who weren’t drinking on the street. In regards to these problems a local law will change absolutely nothing.

Thanks to 200 years of dispossession, Aboriginal people face many social problems. This community, which the Socialist Party believes enriches the City of Yarra, needs greater support to deal with these issues – not another local law which inevitably leads to fines and arrests.

The often passionate contributions from the floor continued until almost midnight, when the debate returned to the Councillors for the vote. The Greens moved a compromise resolution calling for a local law from 7pm until 10am.

As the Socialist Party has only member on Council, we had no support for opposition to the local law. Therefore we supported the Greens’ motion as a lesser evil to a 24 hour ban. Although we disagreed with the proposal, if we had of abstained or voted against there was a chance the even worse proposal of a 24 hour ban would have got up.

In the end the Greens motion was defeated four votes (3 Greens and 1 Socialist) to five (3 ALP and 2 Independents). Immediately afterwards, the ALP moved their alternative motion, calling for a local law banning drinking 24/7 throughout Yarra.

SP Councillor Stephen Jolly spoke against this motion. The Green Mayor Amanda Stone then asked for further speakers in support of the ALP’s draconian motion. When fellow Green Sam Gaylard put up his hand to speak everyone was shocked. ALP Cllr Jane Garret who was sitting next to him whispered, “The Mayor is calling for support of the motion, not opposition.” But Cllr Gaylard kept his hand up and got the call.

When he explained to the audience that it was with “deepest reluctance” that he and his fellow Greens were going to support the ALP’s 24/7 local law motion, the room erupted. “Shame on the Greens!” … “How can the ALP and Greens unite against Aboriginal people?” … “Racist scum!”.

What followed was a stunned silence in the room as the ALP motion was passed eight to one (The Socialist Party being the sole opposition).

Federally, the Greens criticise the Northern Territory Intervention, introduced by the previous Howard government and now continued by the Rudd Government. Yet locally they have begun their own mini-intervention with the ALP and Independents on Smith Street.

The Socialist Party agreed with one of the Aboriginal speakers who said that her people considered Fitzroy and Collingwood their home for many, many decades, and that people were dreaming if they thought that this local law would push them out of the area. She told Council to expect a political response including demonstrations from the Indigenous community and their supporters.

For more information about our work in Yarra visit:
http://www.socialistpartyaustralia.org/council/

Upcoming SP meetings

The Melbourne Branch of the Socialist Party meets every Wednesday 7pm at Trades Hall on the corner of Lygon & Victoria Streets Carlton South. Upcoming meetings include:

18/11/09 – Marxism and Religion
25/11/09 – What socialists say about immigration?
2/12/09 – 155th anniversary of the Eureka Stockade
9/12/09 – TBC
16/12/09 – Endo of year debrief / drinks – All welcome!

For more information or for details of meetings in other parts of Australia contact our National Office on 03 9639 9111.

News links:

EU: Joe Higgins speaks on trade and human rights in Columbia & Peru
http://socialistworld.net/eng/2009/11/1102.html

Pakistan: Baluchistan at tipping point
http://socialistworld.net/eng/2009/11/1101.html

Denmark hosting global climate summit
http://socialistworld.net/eng/2009/11/1001.html

Join the Socialist Party

If you agree with what you have read in our newsletter or on our website you should consider joining SP. The Socialist Party has branches in Melbourne, Sydney, Newcastle and Perth as well as members and supporters in all other states.

We are involved in trade union work and student work. We also run community, anti-war and environmental campaigns. But most of all we want to build a party that will fight to get rid of the capitalist system, the system that is at the root of all of these problems. We fight for socialism - a system that will bring an end to wars, poverty and environmental destruction. To join SP contact our National Office on 03 9639 9111 and we will send you a membership application form.

Subscribe to ‘The Socialist’ newspaper!

Support the Socialist Party by subscribing to our monthly newspaper ‘The Socialist’. Subscription rates are only $10 per year or $20 solidarity price. You will receive 11 copies per year delivered to your door every month. You will also receive our email newsletter every week and you will know that you are supporting an organisation that is at the fore of fighting against the capitalist system. To subscribe to ‘The Socialist’ contact our National Office on 03 9639 9111 and we will send you a subscription form.

Socialist Party contact details

Melbourne: Phone Anthony on 0396399111.
Sydney: Phone Gary on 0297287727.
Newcastle: Phone Samantha on 0249681545.
Perth: Phone John on 0894020728.
Rest of Australia: Phone our National Office on 0396399111.
Rest of the world: Phone our International Office on ++ 44 20 8988 8760.

The Socialist Party is the Australian section of the Committee for a Workers’ International (CWI). The CWI is organised in over 40 countries across the world.

http://www.sp.org.au
http://www.socialistworld.net
http://www.myspace.com/socialistpartyaustralia
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=20461960776