DEMONSTRATION ON THE STEPS OF PARLIAMENT APRIL28 1998

On Tuesday April 28, 70 residents from around the Strzeleckis gathered on the steps of parliament to protest the impending privatisation of the Victorian Plantations Corporation and the effect this will have on two-thirds of the Strzelecki State Forest
People from four separate shires made the journey, and as is always the case with country people, the day turned into a great social occasion, attracting dozens of Melbournians, some of whom stayed for the duration and helped hand out the 500 leaflets.
It was inspiring to see such a display of commitment, concern and optimism from such a diverse group of people.

The protest was hurriedly organised only six days beforehand when locals learned that the new VPC Amendment Bill, which will effectively sell off 40000 ha. of the Strzelecki State Forest, was to be rushed through parliament some time in the following week.. The protest was not the actions of a well organised group of conservationists. Rather it was the normal reaction of "ordinary" local people, worried by the secrecy, haste and lack of understanding shown by the State Government.
Several MP's came out to talk to us, among them Ms Davies, Ms Garbutt, and Ms Maddigan.
 

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Locals were disappointed that of our local MP's Mr Ryan and Mr Davis chose to pass by without stopping to talk.. Mr Hall also kept a low profile. Later that day, however, we met with Mr Ryan for 45 minutes in parliament house. He was respectful and attentive.
The very next night, the debate began in parliament. No fewer than five politicians went in to bat for us, opposing the Bill as it presently stands, arguing that it was altogether too important, too  hasty, too sloppy and too secretive to be ready to be debated and voted on, and calling for a deferrment. The Hansard transcripts make fascinating reading. The walls of parliament echoed with the name Strzelecki. The speeches fill 23 pages (of small print) Our Strzeleckis havent been so talked about in Parliament for a long, long time.
Mr Plowman, Mr Clark, Mr Coleman, Mr Ryan and Mr Stockdale made speeches defending the Governments stance, but on the whole did not scoff too much at the concerns raised by Ms Davies, Ms Garbutt, Ms Gillett, Mr Baker and Ms Maddigan.
The final say went to Mr Stockdale, who rejected the call for a deferrment, but added that the issue could be further investigated while the Bill was between houses. 50 voted with the Government and 27 opposed.
Since 1993, all the Bills concerning the VPC have passed through Parliament more or less unanimously by both sides - until wednesday night. We had helped convince 27 politicians to oppose the new Bill and inspired 5 of them to make speeches on our behalf. Through their parliamentary speeches,a great many of our concerns are now on permanent public record, and as such are much more likely to be addresses (one day). They have our sincere thanks , as does Mr Ryan who, although voting with the Government, acknowledged in his speech that our concerns were genuine. Congratulations to everyone who joined the protest and thanks to all those who supported it but could not attend.