THE AUSTRALIAN MOVEMENT AGAINST URANIUM MINING: ITS RATIONALE AND EVOLUTION

This paper begins with a brief historical overview of the Australian movement against uranium mining, before focussing on two major campaigns: Roxby and Jabiluka. It describes the reasons the activists gave at the time for their blockades of the Roxby Downs uranium mine in South Australia in 1983 and 1984. These reasons – such as perceptions that the industry is unsafe have changed little over time and were the basis for the campaign against the proposed Jabiluka mine in the Northern Territory in 1998. They continue to be cited by environmental groups and Aboriginal Traditional Owners to this day as new situations arise, such as the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident.

Mass rallies involving up to 50 000 people occurred in 1976 and 1977, direct-actions tried to stop yellowcake from the Lucas Heights Reactor from being loaded onto ships, and the Waterside Workers Union went on 24hour strike and refused to work with the Columbus Australia, a ship carrying yellowcake. 7 Since 1977, 115 local councils, including Brisbane's and Adelaide's, have declared themselves Nuclear Free Zones, although these are more 'an important public statement' with 'limited legal significance'. 8 The peace movement, which had marched for nuclear disarmament in the 1950s and 1960s, and worked to end the Vietnam War in the 1970s, became a prominent part of the anti-nuclear movement from about 1977. Other players in the movement were political groups, including members of the Australian Labor Party (ALP), socialists and anarchists, human rights activists and church groups. Civil libertarians, too, were concerned with the centralisation of political and economic power in the hands of financial and bureaucratic elites, and with the clandestine nature of this power. 9 The ALP initially supported uranium mining 10 but, between 1975 and 1982, they actively campaigned against it, and the movement concentrated resources into electoral strategies to elect the ALP. When these failed, the movement faltered. From 1982, the ALP watered down and then abandoned its anti-uranium stance, and the movement returned to mass mobilisation tactics, with Palm Sunday rallies peaking in 1984 and 1985, with some 250,000 people attending in cities. 11 In May 1982, the first nationally coordinated occupation of an Australian uranium mine occurred at the Honeymoon mine to the northwest of Broken Hill, briefly closing its pilot plant. 12 Although it only achieved limited publicity, it was a precedent for the major action at Roxby Downs a year later.
______________________________________________________________________________________ Special edition 1, 2014 International Journal of Rural Law and Policy Mining in a sustainable world 3 dreds of thousands of dollars per job. Many more jobs could be created for the same money; jobs that were both ethical and environmentally friendly. 18 Activists also argued that, as a society, it would be better to take energy efficiency measures, reduce consumption and develop alternative energy sources, such as solar, wind, biomass, geothermal, tidal and -where appropriate -hydro, rather than utilise dangerous 'high-tech' methods such as nuclear power. 19 Another consequence of mining would be 400 hectares of tailings dumps left in mounds up to 30 metres high; these would be dangerously radioactive for hundreds of thousands of years, contaminating the soil, water, plants, animals and people in the surrounding area. 20 Strontium, a radioactive by-product of the extraction of yellowcake from uranium ore, was already being stored in large, open tailings ponds from which birds were drinking and bathing; there was nothing to prevent dispersal of radioactive materials by willy-willies and other desert winds. 21 Carcinogenic radon gas would be emitted from these tailings for at least a million years. The gas is also released during extraction, is heavier than air and, thus, does not disperse easily, yet it was not measured by WMC, whose ventilation systems were considered inadequate to protect workers and their families. 22 Another concern was that 33 million litres of water per day would be taken from the Great Artesian Basin, an ancient and largely irreplaceable resource that had supplied oases around mound springs, used by Aboriginal people for millennia and, more recently, aided farmers from four states. 23 Roxby's extraction is one fifth of the total consumption of bore water in Australia 24 and 'the most extensive right to underground water ever seen in this country'. 25 The Basin would also be threatened by groundwater seepage of radioactive effluent sprayed onto the road to settle dust, and leaks of radioactive water from the tailings dams, which had only plastic liners to prevent seepage. edgement to counter the automatic dismissal by elites of anti-uranium activism as irrational or emotionallydriven, as has so often occurred in the past.

Jabiluka
The rationale for opposition to the proposed Jabiluka mine was very similar, including the opposition of the Traditional Owners, the Mirrar people, on religious, environmental and land rights grounds. 34 Not only were the Mirrar's land rights contravened, but also many sites of spiritual, artistic and archaeological significance were threatened by the proposal. Jabiluka is an outstanding cultural landscape, including over 100 recorded art galleries, numerous Dreaming places including the unique Mosquito Dreaming, and several creation trackways [the most important of which] is the Dreaming path of a gecko. 35 There were similar concerns about radon gas, with the Roxby Action Collective noting that there is no safe level of radiation, and that low doses of radiation, spread over a number of years, are just as dangerous as acute exposure. 36 The mine's contribution of the mine to the threat of nuclear war was a further concern. 37 One significant topographical difference is that while Roxby is in desert country, Jabiluka is closer to the equator and encounters monsoonal rains and flooding. The mine would create 20 million tonnes of radioactive waste, located within 500 metres of Kakadu's most spectacular wetlands. 38 The mine was seen as impacting on the World Heritage values of the region, 39 and impacting on local Aboriginal people who still undertake traditional food-gathering activities in the region 40 especially since there have been a number of reported spillages of radioactive material into river systems by the nearby Ranger uranium mine. 41 In one incident, Ranger mineworkers were not told of a leak into their water supply, and drank and showered in the contaminated water. 42 Radioactive waste could create problems (and social and economic costs) for up to 200,000 years, almost certainly long after the company has ceased to exist. 43 With some exceptions, 44 few people seem to be working on how to communicate to distant future generations the whereabouts of these sites, their processes and toxicity levels.
Again, some of these fears have since eventuated. One example is an accident at Ranger in 2013, which traditional owners say released up to a million litres of acidic radioactive slurry, in one of the biggest nuclear accidents in Australian history. 45 Another example is the nuclear disaster at Fukushima in Japan in 2011, which involved uranium from Ranger, much to the distress of the traditional owners. In the highly ______________________________________________________________________________________ Special edition 1, 2014 International Journal of Rural Law and Policy Mining in a sustainable world 5 developed, technological society of Japan, the Fukushima designers had expected that the venting or radioactive release of pressure of the reactors would occur electrically, but this proved impossible after the tsunami. Valuable time was wasted as staff tried to find and read blueprints showing how to do this manually (and fortunately they still had both blueprints and staff). Further time was wasted by a visit from the Prime Minister, as well as pressure from senior management in Tokyo not to use seawater to cool the reactors, as this may damage the equipment and reduce the firm's profitability. Fortunately the on-site personnel ignored these directives in the interests of human safety. 46 Nuclear power is currently being touted as a solution to global warming, 47 but opponents say that the time, cost and carbon-intensive resources necessary to build nuclear stations make it a poor option, which would merely substitute one problem for another. 48 This push for nuclear power comes in waves, and has receded since Fukushima, although some argue that a similar accident is unlikely to reoccur if there is effective legislation and more advanced technologies. 49 This, however, was said after Chernobyl, 50 but it did reoccur, with the Fukushima radioactivity impacting on human and environmental health locally, and travelling globally in atmospheric pollution and as far as the United States in ocean currents. 51 Accidents and leaks of radioactive water continue to occur there; in February 2014, '100 tonnes, with a concentration of radiation eight million times the safety level, spilled after workers carelessly pumped it into a full tank'. 52 The fact is that anything human-made is prone to human error. As Einstein allegedly once said: 'Two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I am not yet completely sure about the universe'. 53 Let us turn now to various aspects of the evolution of the resistance to uranium mining.

Media
Roxby I (1983) was a media disaster, with violence which was widely reported and blamed entirely on the activists. 54 Nonviolence was more prominent at Roxby II (1984), with training and creation of affinity groups prior to the blockade, 55 which reduced the amount of violence. The media, however, remained highly selective, focusing on 'less respectable people (eg, lesbians)', 56 because: Stereotypes of hippies and … other 'oddities' are far more readable than peaceful good relations with the police, or a troop of nurses and doctors distributing health pamphlets to miners … When it was realized in the first week that the blockade's actions weren't going to comply by providing the media with the sensational headlines they demand, most [media] left, leaving only one camera to represent the commercial stations throughout Australia. 57 Two participants wrote that there were frequent misquotations of the number of arrestees, minimal and biased coverage, false allegations of weapons, and sensationalism owing to the essentially conservative ____________________________________________________________________________________ International Journal of Rural Law and Policy Special edition 1, 2014 Mining in a sustainable world 6 nature of the mainstream media, because of its economic interests, the politics of the owners and editors, and its need to sustain a wide audience. 58 Encountering such poor media, however, radicalised the activists, by removing their naïve beliefs about its impartiality. It showed them the importance of exploring measures (such as training and discipline) to minimise violence, and tactics (such as artistic ones) to obtain attention and favourable coverage. Moreover, it was a catalyst for many of the blockaders to seek alternative media outlets, such as student newspapers and radio, and to present their own accounts of the protest in order to sway public opinion.
By Jabiluka, technological changes and the birth of 'indymedia' 59 meant that activists could make their own media more easily, and use email or create websites to distribute them. Numerous documentaries were made about Jabiluka 60 , while footage of a bike ride to Jabiluka, made by the riders themselves, was screened weekly on SBS. This move towards activist control of media coverage is an important development in the nonviolence area of 'conversion'. The growth of radical newspapers, such as Green Left Weekly (GLW), was also important in publicising the campaign. GLW, for example, covered the courtcases for people arrested at the blockade, some of which successfully exonerated arrestees.

Aboriginal leadership and solidarity
At Jabiluka, Aboriginal leadership of a major environmental campaign occurred for the first time in Australia. The authority and sovereignty of the traditional owners of Jabiluka, the Mirrar people, 61 exercised via the Gundjhemi Aboriginal Corporation (GAC), was accepted by most activists, although there were some examples of ignorance and racism, grumbles about a 'doof' being prohibited, and problems caused by a Christian group which disregarded Mirrar directives. Additionally, some protesters continued to use drugs, such as marijuana and alcohol, at the blockade after being asked to refrain. 62 Nevertheless, this Aboriginal control of a national campaign involving high profile environmental and student organisations was unprecedented, revealing increased understanding by activist communities of Aboriginal issues.
There was also growing solidarity amongst diverse Aboriginal groups opposed to uranium mining. One man was driving a vehicle from Alice Springs to a remote Western Desert community to take people to Jabiluka when, unfortunately, his vehicle overturned and he was killed. The great distress of the community prevented them from engaging in what may have been an historic alliance.

Larger, more professional campaign
Jabiluka was a larger, better-resourced and more widespread campaign than Roxby. There was backing from established national organisations such as The Wilderness Society (TWS), and the ACF (and its high profile head, rock singer Peter Garrett). Mobilisation of tertiary students by the National Union of Students, and high school students by youth socialist group 'Resistance', were noteworthy. Mass high school walkouts in support of the Mirrar occurred in 1998, mobilising 14 000 young people, 63 a number and action possibly without precedent for youth activism in Australia. A whole new generation was exposed to activism.
Jabiluka Action Groups (JAGs) were established throughout the country. Blockade numbers grew, with between 3000 and 5000 people attending before the end of the blockade at the onset of the wet season, and almost 600 arrests by the campaign's end. 64  Jabiluka campaigners also liaised better with groups overseas, who held their own awareness-raising actions in solidarity, or lobbied the World Heritage Commission. 67 Representatives of overseas anti-nuclear organisations, such as the Tokyo-based Citizen's Nuclear Information Centre, visited the blockade. 68 International actions of solidarity had been part of the campaign since 18 November 1997 69 and occurred again in April 1998. 70 On 19 May 1998, protests were held in Canada, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, Britain, South Korea and the US, organised by John Hallam at FoE Sydney. 71 Easier and cheaper international communications via the Internet no doubt helped this organising and awareness-raising.

Active resistance
As well as its size and Aboriginal leadership, another unusual aspect of Jabiluka was that there was little use of 'active resistance' techniques. These are techniques to make blockading more physically effective, using tripods, 'lock-ons', burials and other devices and processes. 72 Active resistance development occurred by radical activists in Australia, at Terania Creek, 73 Roxby, the Daintree and, particularly, in 1990s forest blockades. Although these techniques were, at the time, frowned on by mainstream organisations such as TWS, who preferred orthodox or Gandhian nonviolence, they have now been adopted nationally and globally. 74 Active resistance initially occurred at Jabiluka, but GAC decided that tensions between the police and protesters were becoming too great because of secretive and militant actions, especially after some protesters had recklessly driven a van through locked gates near the mine, endangering police. 75 In another dangerous incident, one man was dragged along while locked onto the underside of a vehicle. 76 GAC was concerned at the possibility of injury stemming from such actions on their land, and felt personally responsible. They were also concerned because police were stationed on a sacred escarpment to catch secretive activists 77 and they decided not to allow secret actions anymore. A protocol was subsequently established with police. 78 Even without militant methods, the blockade was effective, with the sheer numbers of arrestees creating a drain on the Northern Territory's infrastructure. This was a strong affirmation that orthodox actions continued to be worthwhile: The police were much more on side now covert actions were over, having sought out [police liaison activist] Anthony [Kelly] from our jail cell and begged him to stop actions for a while because they just couldn't cope with the number of arrestees.

Better support for arrestees
At Roxby there had been little support for arrestees -in fact there were so few people that no one noticed the air being let out of support vehicles' tyres. There had been no lawyers to advise or defend arrestees who, in an intimidating process, were found guilty of charges such as 'Failure to Cease to Loiter', which later resulted in further incarceration if fines were unpaid. Jabiluka arrestees, by contrast, enjoyed groups of cheering people on release and being taken care of. Excellent pro bono lawyers managed to get some activists acquitted, despite the prosecution utilising the resources of police, mining corporation Energy Resources Australia (ERA), and the Surveyor-General's Department. 80 Jabiluka Arrestees Legal Information Service (JAILS) volunteers assisted with information and even found accommodation for people travelling to Darwin for trials.
Other changes in internal movement dynamics included consensus decision-making occurring more efficiently and smoothly at Jabiluka, though exposure to passive smoking was still an issue. Feminist action was very strong at Roxby I in particular; by Jabiluka, this was not so overt or involving separate actions, but was, nevertheless, clearly present, although there were still tensions over sexism.

Improved relationships with police
Police liaison and relations were superior at Jabiluka compared to Roxby, where pitched battles had been fought, and many protesters and police had been injured. With the Jabiluka blockade more open to communication with police after the end of secretive actions, relations with them improved dramatically. Police were frequently befriended, and some wore supportive stickers inside their caps, or bought protest t-shirts from the activists, and even donated barramundi they had caught.
When a band traveled to the lease gates, one man drove an old Holden whilst playing a saxophone, while an electric guitar boomed through a speaker mounted precariously on the front, with more woodwind and the rhythm section in the back. The police, however, did not stop the band for traffic infringements, such as not having safety belts on, unsafe driving or being overloaded. In fact, they halted all car traffic for the band, the head policeman booming in his Scottish brogue, 'Ladies and Gentlemen, the road is yours'.
Nevertheless, as at other blockades, protesters were subjected to extreme physical and psychological abuse. Miners used explosives without sirens or warnings while protesters were only 200 metres away, while police allegedly assaulted activists locked onto machinery, denied activists prompt medical attention, and removed water supplies despite the sub-tropical heat. 82 They also subjected people to atrocious jail conditions, and began to lay serious charges, with further threats of mandatory sentencing. On 9 September 1998, a semi-trailer smashed through the blockade camp's gates, demolished a bicycle, drove close to sleeping blockaders and swerved towards fleeing activists, 83 yet no charges were laid.
Jabiluka Activist Support Network (JASN) was formed as a result of this maltreatment, and lobbied to rectify the situation. This was, in itself, a radical political action in the Northern Territory, where a long-term conservative government and political climate had created a 'frontier mentality' where police actions were rarely questioned.

Anti-uranium bike rides
The two anti-uranium bike rides during this period were vastly different. Both had some successes and failures, but the 1998 Cycle Against the Nuclear Cycle (CANC) gained more prominent and better media coverage -supplied by themselves -and enjoyed a less confrontational atmosphere. Being a smaller group, the internal dynamics were smoother, and meetings were quicker and less painful.
While the 1986 ride ended unceremoniously, CANC's ended at the Jabiluka blockade, where they were greeted with a heroes' welcome, with the large crowd holding up their own bikes in homage to them. There was the aforementioned band, while ritual, symbolism and visual art added to the occasion: Up rode CANC, the leaders five abreast holding a banner. The idea was for them to ride through a long sheet of butchers' paper, held taut by a few layers of papier mache. Unfortunately the people who'd done the papier mache had been a little over-zealous. Michael, holding the banner with one hand and having ridden 4,400 kilometres without mishap, hit the paper and went down, an ignominious end to a great achievement! There were welcomes, speeches, a meeting with some Mirrar who were presented with a t-shirt signed by aboriginal people from Adelaide upwards, and there were stickers placed on a giant map of Oz to indicated all the uranium-linked places they'd been. There was more song and dance, then they walked across a line of Benny Zable's radioactive waste barrels and received medals like Olympic champions. 84

Improved artistic activism
This move towards more artistic activism had begun at Roxby II. 85 With the emergence of a strong, feminised peace movement there had been a concomitant shift away from direct action: '[t]he emphasis is now on educating the community'. 86 The arts are particularly effective as a tool of education, and women's actions at Roxby II were consistently artistic, involving banners, theatre, painted faces and chanting, with a common song being 'Don't be too polite girls'. 87 One symbolic action included a large women's symbol [made] out of strips of cloth [which was] half in and half out of the fence … This was designed to show how we women refused to recognize the artificial barrier made by the fence. 88 There were veterans of Greenham Common, Honeymoon, Roxby I and Pine Gap protests, whose songs and experiences helped to keep us aware of the many thousands of women who had already been involved in protest action and gave us the strength and energy to ensure that there will be many thousands more. 89 Through music, these veterans empowered newcomers to be confident and act, and ensured continuity of the movement. In this artistic way, radical history was passed on, largely orally and at a grassroots level, a history far different to that generated by mainstream media.
Artistic activism further flowered at Jabiluka, and, as argued elsewhere, this was because active resistance was curtailed, and energy was directed elsewhere. 90 There was also more equipment and resources available, such as for making music, puppets and sculptures. This may partly be due to the less remote location, but could also be attributed to movement evolution, a growing recognition of the usefulness of the arts in education, promotion and group bonding. 91 Street theatre was more professional, with one performance having a larger cast (including doctors and scientists) than anything at Roxby, a public address system, an enormous puppet, and a script that was both humorous and contained scientific information. It drew in many passing tourists.
Live music was also more professional. The band referred to above had been created the night before, when band members had 'jammed' together. Such jamming occurred at most blockades, but rarely was it so well resourced. Blockaders had built a music stage, with a wooden floor and tent cover. High quality musical instruments and amplification equipment were left there unattended for anyone to use, in an atmosphere of remarkable trust rarely found in wider society. This availability of equipment and a music space led to many good sessions, which quickly became rehearsals and then performances. It was an ideal atmosphere for creating protest music in a short space of time with diverse individuals.

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International Journal of Rural Law and Policy Special edition 1, 2014 Mining in a sustainable world 10 by groups such as TWS, along with noisier occupations and protests of businesses by JAG members, led to significant withdrawal of money from the mine's backers. TWS's status as a widely-respected organisation enabled it to wield considerable influence over institutions which were supporting the mine indirectly through their shares in ERA, the parent company of the mine's developer -North Limited. Under pressure from TWS and the Mineral Policy Institute, seven institutions, including Sydney University and the South Australian Art Gallery, sold shares worth nearly seven million dollars. 93 The professionalism and intensity of this corporate campaigning was new, and very effective in putting financial pressure on the mining company, along with the social and moral pressure applied by other activists. Not only was this an effective new tactic, but also as argued elsewhere, 94 it shows how different types of groups can complement each other well, covering different ground but achieving an overall objective together. The tactics interlock, wherein youthful time-rich citizens can engage in (sometimes heroic) direct action which puts the issue into the public spotlight, while others can lobby their universities and banks to divest. While the latter may have more of a financial impact, the former provides the publicity, images, stories and physical centre for the campaign.
______________________________________________________________________________________ Special edition 1, 2014 International Journal of Rural Law and Policy Mining in a sustainable world this, the movement will require widespread mobilisation as well as sophisticated, media-savvy campaigns, including shareholder-focussed actions and effective nonviolent actions.

Conclusion
This paper has provided a brief historical background to Australian resistance to uranium mining, and discussed the activists' rationale for blockading at Roxby Downs and Jabiluka. Reasons includes concerns that uranium fuels the global nuclear weapons cycle, and concerns over how mining occurs, including frequent disturbance or destruction of sacred sites, release of carcinogenic radon gas, and depletion or contamination of groundwater. Nuclear power was viewed as unsafe, centralised, secretive, and creating security risks. Disposal of long-term radioactive waste was another major concern. These concerns remain, and were most recently manifested in the outcry over the nuclear accidents at Fukushima power station and Ranger uranium mine.
What has changed over this period is the sophistication of the industry's PR campaigns, and the philosophy, strategies and tactics of the protest movement. Although it is problematic to generalise about the protest movement because of its diversity of individuals and groups, ranging from Roxby's anarchic Nomadic Action Group, and the loose, temporary network of JAGs and student groups, to established national environmental organisations such as ACF and TWS, it seems clear that there were some significant changes to the modus operandi of the movement over the period examined in this paper.
• Firstly, Aboriginal leadership of a major environmental campaign occurred for the first time at Jabiluka. The authority of the traditional owners was accepted by most activists. There was growing solidarity between Aboriginal people opposed to uranium mining. • Jabiluka was a larger, better-resourced and more widespread campaign. There was backing from established national organisations. It liaised better with groups overseas.

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Technological changes and indymedia developments meant that activists could make their own media, such as documentaries, more easily, and use email or create websites to distribute them. New communication technologies also enabled faster communication within the movement.

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There was a stronger commitment to nonviolence after Roxby I. Training was offered, indeed strongly recommended, at Roxby II and Jabiluka, and consensus decision-making improved.

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There was better support for arrestees at Jabiluka.

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Relations with police were superior at Jabiluka.

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The bike ride to Jabiluka was more successful in local and national awareness raising, and in its internal dynamics.

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Artistic activism at Jabiluka was better resourced and more professional. • Jabiluka's corporate campaigning was more sophisticated and successful.
Perhaps the most significant difference between the Roxby and Jabiluka campaigns is that the Roxby mine continues whereas the Jabiluka mine has closed. While many cite the campaign as the reason for this, 100 ERA claimed that it was only due to the downturn in the uranium market (although this may be partly attributable to international anti-nuclear pressure). 101 This is a common claim, however, from corporations that face concerted and vocal public opposition. For example, the Whitehaven Company publicly asserted that a large-scale protest in 2014 had not impacted on their coal operations, 102 while privately arrestees (including this author) were threatened with large compensation claims by the company for disruption to operations in letters sent by NSW Police. Similarly, in March 2013, coal seam gas company Metgasco announced suspension of its Northern Rivers (NSW) operations, citing regulatory uncertainty. It made no mention of highly visible and effective direct action campaigns, along with a strong divestment campaign (such as by staff and students at the Australian National University) which created downward pressure on the company's share price. In discussing this, Aidan Ricketts maps the Metgasco share price against social movement events, arguing that, while difficult to prove a causal relationship, there are clear 'temporal