Canberra kangaroos, the proposed Belconnen kangaroo kill in Canberra!

Canberra kangaroos, the proposed Belconnen kangaroo kill in Canberra recieved worldwide media attention.

After 18 days of sleeping on the ground outside the main gates, the proposed kangaroo kill was put on hold by Defence. The Protest closed down, but the Belconnen site is still under close scrutiny, and if Defence changes its mind, or uses inexperienced contracters, the Protest, which lasted for 18 days, can go back on within minutes. However we are confident that Defence will try to take our concerns on board. One of the problems we do have, and we have had it for decades, is that Defence will not consult. They have a whole building full of environmental "experts" who know everything, or think that they do. Why would they want to weaken their power base by talking (or listening) to community groups?

However even if Defence eventually does the right thing, it's still fairly obvious that the ACT government will attempt to sabotage a relocation. Clearly there are now issues to be addressed in relation to ACT's kangaroo policies, and the disappointing reaction from both Peter Garrett's and Juliet Gillard's offices. When I phoned Gillard's office they didnt even want to talk about the kangaroos, insisting it was not their department, even tho at the time she was acting Prime Minister. When I phoned Garrett's office I was told to send any scientific information I had to them, even though they had recieved hundreds of emails already. I hung up in disgust. We wont even mention the ACT RSPCA, who supported the kill to the bitter end.

Even more disturbing for Canberra voters would be the blatant lies that blurted (and are still blurting) from the mouths of the local politicians who supported the kill, including the Greens, the Liberals, the Tourism Minister whose name is perfectly forgetable, the so-called "environment commissioner" Maxine Cooper, the Chief Minister of the ACT, and a bunch of purchased academic "experts". The Greens person was particularly disappointing, but she wasnt even elected, she was given the seat when the previous Greens Member resigned.

The only politicians we are aware of who publicly opposed the kill, were Bob Brown and an Independent standing for the Canberra seat of Ginninderra. (Hope he gets elected!) But the ACT has a shonky political system that ensures shonky politicians get elected, as we have seen. In fact we understand that the ACT is the only Australian State or Territory Government that cannot be prosecuted for breaching it's own Legislation! How about that?

Chief Minister Jon Stanhope and the "Commissioner for the Environment" Maxine Cooper claimed that the kangaroos were eating out the habitat of the endangered earless dragon and the sunmoth. In fact, although these animals are listed as endangered, they occur widely across the ACT, and even used to inhabit areas in the ACT which have now been (and are still being) covered by housing and supermarkets. Didn't seem to worry the ACT Government then. There are also significant populations in the many Reserves and National Parks in the ACT and surrounds. Two thirds of the ACT is protected, and known habitat for these animals. A huge "Techological Park" and new 6-lane road proposed near the Canberra Airport is also habitat for these animals.

Last year they had a kangaroo shoot in the Airport area to try to remove the kangaroos to make way for this development. Yes, the whole disgraceful Belconnen episode is all about money, not earless dragons or sunmoths. If fact, we've been told the earless dragon doesn't even exist on the Belconnen site, although we are not allowed in to confirm that. And perched along the Belconnen fenceline are dozens of magpies and many introduced Indian mynas, busy feeding on the dragons and moths. They haven't yet mentioned shooting the magpies. The reason the ACT Government wants the kangaroos gone is that they want to build luxury housing there....not affordable housing......if there is such a thing...but luxury housing overlooking Lake Ginnindera, and only a 10-minute drive from Canberra City. (Canberra has huge peakhour traffic problems.)

Belconnen used to be a Naval Radio Station, but was decommissioned ten years ago. The kangaroos have been there for around 30 years, according to longterm locals. They appear to come and go, possibly swimming around the lake edge to graze in adjacent grasslands, or going under the fence. The land is (as is all land in Canberra) owned by the ACT government and has to be handed back to them now Defence have finished with it. For the last ten years arguments have raged between the Stanhope government and the Howard Federal government about who should pay the decontamination costs. The site is heavily contaminated with mercury and PCB's. Once the site is decontaminated, it will be built on. Although we have called for the area to be turned into a kangaroo Park as our best option, the reality is that housing is a much higher priority for Governments.

Translocation is perfectly feasible with nil or minimum fatalities....... if its done properly....and we know people who have done it. Local groups have found thousands of hectares of private land in NSW where the owners are happy to have the kangaroos, including some owned by their own members. In many areas of NSW kangaroo numbers have crashed through drought and shooting. As well, an effective translocation would have implications right around Australia where kangaroos are trapped by suburbia, and the current easy "solution" is to shoot them. And lets face it, if the kangaroos were asked if they wanted to be shot, or would they rather be moved with their family to another home, what would they say?

There is also the issue of addressing some academics who have no ethical understanding. For some of these people the only options when someone thinks there is a percieved wildlife problem, the only option is to kill them. It is important to show the World that there is always a better option than killing wildlife.

However, many otherwise "normal" people have become activists after the Belconnen protest. The Protest was peaceful and wellrun by the local groups, including ACT Animal Lib, local wildlife carer groups, and the local aborigonals. In spite of miles of barb wire and high fences, it would have been easy to enter the site but nobody did, prefering to let common sense prevail which it eventually did.

There are some interesting incidents to report on during the Protest. A vehicle with Ray White Real Estate signs on it went past regularly with the inhabitants screaming obsenities out of the window at the Protestors, but then there was the local Real Estate agent who turned up regularly with water and support for the Protestors.

One day early in the Protest a couple of suits turned up. We thought they were Federal police, (we had a meeteing with the Federal police early in the protest, and we were on good terms with them ) but it turned out they were officers from the Department of Security and Public Safety, who closely questioned the Security guards. These guards were almost all of Eastern European appearance. Apparently some were not licenced, and one was taken away in their car, and returned some hours later. Some dissappeared from the Site altogether, and unfortunately one of them had been telling us where the holes in the fence were, and some other inside info. Overall though, we had a good relationship with Security.

Around 100 people turned up for the first day of the Protest, and we usually had 6 to 12 people camping at the Site overnight. They came from Queensland, NSW and Victoria. Many people would call in on their way to or from work, and the police would call in regularly for a chat. A few vehicles yelled obsenities at the Protest site as they drove past, but most were supportive, many honking their horns in support. We didnt have any trouble at night, except one night a couple of drunks turned up and got nasty. We rang the police...the first car arrived in three minutes....and it wasnt long before seven police cars turned up. The drunks were taken away.

There was some more excitement when two tourist balloons flew over. One landed in the paddock just before the Belconnen site, the other flew low over Belconnen and landed in a Park on the other side of the road. I drove around and asked the passengers if they got any photos of the killing pens, but none did. However the balloons created great excitment amongst security, who may have thought we were invading by balloon, something that we hadn't thought of until then.

All in all it was good Protest, we have had a victory (we hope) and we have forged many links with sympathetic Canberreans, many of whom now want to get involved in helping to stop the commercial kangaroo kill. We also made great friends with the indigenous people from the Canberra Tent Embassy, some of whom want to get involved in other wildlife issues.

Welcome aboard everyone!

or http://www.kangaroolives.com and sign a Petition. You can also click on http://gopetition.com/petitions/save-all-the-kangaroos.html to sign another Petition.

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