Students chain themselves to couch in encampment removal attempt

By Alanna Tomazin

Updated July 16 2024 - 12:26pm, first published 12:25pm

📷 Students chain themselves in couch in pro Palestine protest, pictures by Jonathan Carroll

STUDENTS protesting for Palestine have chained themselves to a couch on campus as security attempts to remove the group's encampment at the University of Newcastle.

Four UON Students for Palestine locked themselves onto the seat shortly after 6am on Tuesday morning, July 16 following a security presence packing up tents that were set up in protest of the institution's ties with Israel and weapons manufacturers.

"We've been on the lounge for two hours, security came in and started taking everything down," student and staff member Parker Best said.

"We've chained ourselves up to the couch and we've chained the couch to the tree because we thought they might lift us out."

Student and spokesperson Leon Flint said there was no verbal communication from security, they just "started rummaging through".

"We were woken up to security and at one stage did attempt to move us on about 7.30 in the morning but were unable to," he said.

An eviction notice was alerted late last week by university management for protesters to move on, just days after they staged a 'die-in' to protest the university's partnerships.

Protesters remaining at the encampment were advised to remove all tents, signage and equipment by 5pm on Monday, July 15.

Failure to comply with the request resulted in the university issuing a disciplinary action warning letter to students on Tuesday.

"As this time has now passed, if you refuse to pack up or leave the encampment you will be subject to disciplinary proceedings in accordance with the Student Conduct Rule," the letter stated.

"To be clear, any disciplinary action taken will not relate to your right to protest on campus, but rather your refusal to obey a reasonable direction provided by the University," it read.

Students remained on site with just two tents and a large communal tent shortly before midday on Tuesday and have lawyers on retainer checking in with them for protection and advice, Mr Flint said.

"We have probably 20 students and staff members planning to continue to stay in the space until we are forcibly removed," he said.

"We have a number of students who are willing to face academic repercussions, and all willing to face arrest for this cause should it come to that."

University of Newcastle, Acting Vice Chancellor Professor Kent Anderson said in a statement that the university has assisted with the removal of unoccupied tents and will continue to work with students remaining about how they may continue to protest without an encampment.

Mr Flint said the Students for Palestine group will continue to exercise their rights and rebuild.

"The university has continuously promoted the fact that they are - quote on quote - respecting our right to peacefully protest.

"They are commending the fact that everything we have done is peaceful yet they are stopping our protests. Free Palestine," he said.

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Activist jailed for securing herself to equipment at Newcastle port

📷 Laura Davy, 21, has been sentenced to three months in jail for securing herself to a coal reclaimer as part of a protest backed by Blockade Australia. Picture supplied

An environmental activist who secured herself to a coal reclaimer in Newcastle at the weekend has been jailed.

Laura Davy, 21, was on Monday sentenced to three months in prison and fined $1100 for the illegal protest at Port Waratah Coal Services early on Sunday morning.

Her co-accused, 22-year-old Dominic Burgess, was also due to face Newcastle Local Court on Monday.

In a statement, Blockade Australia - the organisation for which Davy was acting - described the sentence as a "shocking escalation" and said an appeal was expected to be lodged on Monday afternoon.

📷 The response to some of the previous protesters who have taken part in action that started in June. Pictures by Peter Lorimer

The activists' group has been backing ongoing illegal disruptions to the coal freight line and port for the past fortnight, with people charged from Singleton to Newcastle.

"After more than 30 arrests as part of a sustained Blockade Australia mobilisation, Laura is the first to be sentenced under the harsh anti-protest laws introduced in 2022. Introduced to stifle protests in NSW, these laws faced huge backlash from activists and civil society for being anti-democratic in nature," a statement from Blockade Australia said.

"Davy, a young person with very limited priors (only a low level good behavior bond in Tasmania) is having an appeal lodged on their behalf this afternoon.

"Laura, like many young people, took part in the Blockade Australia mobilisation to confront the system that is putting her future in jeopardy."

Magistrate Michael Barko handed down the sentence after Davy pleaded guilty to trespassing with a serious safety risk, and seriously disrupting a major facility. She is due to be released in October.

A few hours before Davy and Burgess were arrested, police were called to the rail corridor connecting Sandgate and Kooragang Island where they found 29-year-old Clancey Jay Maher obstructing trains.

Maher was charged and was also due to face court on Monday.

Sunday's disruptions came after a 21-year-old Queensland woman was charged for obstructing trains at Farley, near Maitland.

Activist jailed for securing herself to equipment at Newcastle port

📷 Laura Davy, 21, has been sentenced to three months in jail for securing herself to a coal reclaimer as part of a protest backed by Blockade Australia. Picture supplied

An environmental activist who secured herself to a coal reclaimer in Newcastle at the weekend has been jailed.

Laura Davy, 21, was on Monday sentenced to three months in prison and fined $1100 for the illegal protest at Port Waratah Coal Services early on Sunday morning.

Her co-accused, 22-year-old Dominic Burgess, was also due to face Newcastle Local Court on Monday.

In a statement, Blockade Australia - the organisation for which Davy was acting - described the sentence as a "shocking escalation" and said an appeal was expected to be lodged on Monday afternoon.

📷 The response to some of the previous protesters who have taken part in action that started in June. Pictures by Peter Lorimer

The activists' group has been backing ongoing illegal disruptions to the coal freight line and port for the past fortnight, with people charged from Singleton to Newcastle.

"After more than 30 arrests as part of a sustained Blockade Australia mobilisation, Laura is the first to be sentenced under the harsh anti-protest laws introduced in 2022. Introduced to stifle protests in NSW, these laws faced huge backlash from activists and civil society for being anti-democratic in nature," a statement from Blockade Australia said.

"Davy, a young person with very limited priors (only a low level good behavior bond in Tasmania) is having an appeal lodged on their behalf this afternoon.

"Laura, like many young people, took part in the Blockade Australia mobilisation to confront the system that is putting her future in jeopardy."

Magistrate Michael Barko handed down the sentence after Davy pleaded guilty to trespassing with a serious safety risk, and seriously disrupting a major facility. She is due to be released in October.

A few hours before Davy and Burgess were arrested, police were called to the rail corridor connecting Sandgate and Kooragang Island where they found 29-year-old Clancey Jay Maher obstructing trains.

Maher was charged and was also due to face court on Monday.

Sunday's disruptions came after a 21-year-old Queensland woman was charged for obstructing trains at Farley, near Maitland.

Train controller sacked over safety incident on Newcastle-Sydney line

A rail signaller who incorrectly allowed a Newcastle-bound train onto a closed track while "possibly" distracted playing online games was sacked over the incident.

The Newcastle Herald reported on Monday that an Office of Transport Safety Investigations (OTSI) report tabled in NSW Parliament had shed light on a disturbing culture of signallers at Sydney Trains' Homebush control centre using work computers to shop and play games when they were on shift.

The OTSI investigation followed an incident in January when the signaller allowed a train to enter a section of track at Cowan which should have been closed for maintenance, creating a "high risk of collision".

The signaller failed to properly "protect" the track from train traffic despite giving verbal assurances to a manager that they had done so.

A Sydney Trains spokesperson said on Wednesday that the signaller had been sacked and the organisation had "increased enforcement" for employees not complying with its internet policies.

The Homebush manager told OTSI during the latest investigation that "after they had been made aware of the incident they observed a type of game open on the [signaller's] work computer at their workstation".

"The screen quickly went into screensaver mode as the [manager] approached and the [manager] was not able to identify what the game was," the report said.

A Transport for NSW IT investigation found "evidence of activity on various news, games, social media, shopping and other non-related work sites and applications" on the workstation computer but, "due to the nature of the set-up of the computer, it was not possible to assign the usage to a particular person".

The signaller later told the manager and investigators that they had not been playing the game at the time of the incident, but the manager described to investigators a "widespread culture among signallers of using the work computer to access non-work-related applications and sites during their shift".

The OTSI report said the signaller had failed to read documents outlining the scheduled track closures in the hours before they were implemented "possibly due to inattention or distraction caused by the use of the signaller's workstation computer for non-work-related purposes".

The report said the signaller had been in the job for 18 years but had been involved in 16 recorded incidents between 2019 and 2023 that required coaching or other interventions.

The most serious of these incidents had involved the routing of two freight locomotives onto a closed track in western Sydney in 2020, when the signaller failed to set protecting signals to stop.

Asked if she had implemented new procedures to make sure signallers were focused on the job, Minister for Transport Jo Haylen said she was "pleased" Sydney Trains had investigated the incident.

"I know Sydney Trains takes any safety incident extremely seriously, and I'm pleased they immediately launched a safety investigation into the incident," she said.

"Safety is our top priority, and we are constantly looking at ways we can make our railway, and the people who run it, safer."

The Sydney Trains spokesperson said the organisation had proactively reported the incident to OTSI.

"Transport for NSW IT blocks countless non-work-related websites and are constantly looking for ways to proactively strengthen firewalls and manage internet access during work hours," the spokesperson said.

"Sydney Trains has a policy that does not permit the use of mobile phones and devices for non-work purposes when on shift at signaller worksites and have increased enforcement for non-compliance."

The OTSI report said 30 per cent of signallers at the Homebush control centre had received formal warnings for using personal devices, and the manager said many more had received informal warnings.

"The [manager] advised it was common for signallers to sit sideways facing their computers rather than facing their signalling operating panel," the investigation report said.

"The [manager] called it 'the sideways club' and explained that [managers] saw it as an indication that non-compliance was possibly occurring."

The OTSI report noted a fatal accident at Kogarah in 2010 when a train struck a worker at a time when the signaller "may have been using a personal laptop computer ... while operating the signal panel".

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• It has impacted coal trains and more than 200 passenger trains, leaving many commuters frustrated.
• What's next? Transport for NSW says it will continue to assess the situation and schedule replacement buses when necessary.

• In short: Environmental activist group Blockade Australia has staged more than a dozen protests on the Hunter rail line since Tuesday.
• It has impacted coal trains and more than 200 passenger trains, leaving many commuters frustrated.
• What's next? Transport for NSW says it will continue to assess the situation and schedule replacement buses when necessary.

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