THE BYRON SHIRE Volume 30 #36 Wednesday, February 17, 2016
www.echo.net.au Phone 02 6684 1777 editor@echo.net.au adcopy@echo.net.au p everyy week 23,200 copies CAB AUDIT
R E J U V E N AT E PA M P E R I N D U LG E
p14–15 >
FA S C I N AT I N G R H Y T H M G O T U S O N T H E G O
Chiggers mite keep us all itching – p10
Malcolm boogies Seven is music down to the cabinet heaven reshuffle – p8 – p25–29
Eve Jeffery
Sunday dawned on more than 200 women and girls – daughters, sisters, aunties, friends, nieces, mothers, lovers and others, along with a small contingent of men, as part of the One Billion Rising for Revolution and the fourth annual flashmob dance to celebrate V-Day on Byron’s Main Beach. Emceed by Zenith Virago, those gathered were taught the steps to the official V-Day dance to the song Break The Chain and were also given a demonstration of self-defence by Byron Extreme. Byron songstress Ilona Harker sang for 100 women who had died at the hands of ones they loved, while their names, written on sheets of paper, were shown so the crowd could bare witness to the tragedy and sadness of domestic violence. Those gathered then danced and many raced to the ocean for a carefree splash.
One Billion Rising is the biggest mass action in human history calling for an end to violence, and campaigning for justice and gender equality. The first event, on Valentines Day 2012, began as a call to action based on the staggering statistic that one in three women on the planet will be beaten or raped during their lifetime. With the world population at seven billion, this adds up to more than one billion women and girls. One Billion Rising: Rise for Revolution 2016 is an escalation of the first three stages of the campaign
www.echo.net.au/lismore-labelleddrug-driving-capital-of-australia
Cops hijack Mullum showgrounds
Local women rise up for V-Day
One Billion Rising
netdaily Lismore ‘drug driving capital’ of Australia
Online in
Hans Lovejoy
As part of the NSW government’s seemingly endless war on a plant with proven medicinal benefits, NSW police took control of the Mullumbimby Showgrounds on Thursday and Friday. The police based a helicopter on the grounds, along with personnel for the Byron Shire annual ‘cannabis eradication’ festivity. Harry, the Mullum showgrounds manager, told The Echo that police did not previously advise of their intention, or ask if they could use the grounds.
$1.5m plants seized
Seven-year-old Luka from Mullumbimby joined her mum for a sunrise dance, sing and swim. Photo Eve Jeffery
– One Billion Rising, One Billion Rising for Justice, and One Billion Rising: Revolution. The Byron event made sure that all women were catered for on Sunday, making beach wheelchairs and volunteers available for those who wished to go on the sand, and an AUSLAN interpreter for the deaf. Local disabled woman Kelly Cox thanked event organisers for making the Byron’s V-Day more inclusive. ‘It is important that women with disability are able to access and participate in events that are about women,’ she said.
‘Women with disability are at significantly higher risk of experiencing all types of violence, and 90 per cent of women with intellectual disability report being sexually assaulted in their lifetime.’
Greater awareness Kelly says that there also needs to be greater awareness of the intersecting issues faced by women with disability, and that those issues need to be included in all conversations about the responses to domestic and family violence in Australia. ‘As an example, when disabled
women make the decision to leave, they are often faced with physical and attitudinal barriers. ‘If your local refuge is not wheelchair accessible, if your daily care needs are provided by your abuser or if they are also your interpreter, if you are not believed or if you are denied the supports you need to make a report – it can be impossible to find a clear pathway to safety. ‘V-Day is a great event. We need all women to take a stance against violence, and it can only get better as more women are included in events that say no to violence.’
While costings on the operation are unavailable, police claim that more than $1.5 million worth of cannabis plants were seized. They say a total of 759 plants were found, with a potential street value of $1,518,000. That values each plant at $2,000, regardless of its size. Additionally, no-one was charged. Police say the helicopter searched Main Arm, Skyline Road, Palmwoods, Mullumbimby and Koonyum Ranges. And while police say the plants were destroyed on Friday February 12, there is no confirmation of that claim from an independent body. The Echo asked NSW police media why they did not ask permission for use of the showgrounds and what legislation they are operating under to use Crown land without permission. There was no reply by deadline. continued on page 2
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