WestConnex protestors to face court

BY Jordan Fermanis

Three No WestConnex protestors were arrested last Friday October 21 including City Hub  journalist and WestConnex opponent Wendy Bacon.

Ms Bacon, along with another woman and a man were arrested on Holmwood St in Newtown where WestConnex contractors AECOM were planning to conduct test drilling underground for the nine kilometre stage 3 tunnel running from Haberfield to St Peters.

Participants in the demonstration have said that there were 20 to 30 protestors.

NSW Police told City Hub  the trio were charged with, “remaining on enclosed land, not proscribed premises without lawful excuse.”

A NSW Police spokesperson added that a 39 year old woman was charged with, “resist officer in execution of duty.”

Videos posted on the  WestConnex Action Group Facebook page show a woman audibly shouting that police were hurting her. Her injury resulted in a severely sprained wrist.

The Police spokesperson told City Hub  that since charges are set to be presented to court, no comment on whether protestors had been handled improperly could be provided.

City Hub  journalist Wendy Bacon has told the media that she spent seven hours at Newtown Police Station.

Anne Picot from the WestCONnex Action Group said that she witnessed the arrests being made after special task force police from ‘Operation Odin’ arrived to the Holmwood St demonstration.

“The police issued a warning to the street, not to the people actually inside the compound and basically said if you do not move now, you’ll be arrested.”

“The riot squad came through the gate and grabbed a woman on the ground and Wendy,” Ms Picot said.

Ms Picot told City Hub  that the police were “not careful” with Ms Bacon and the two other protestors who were arrested.

Wendy Bacon said that she was concerned as to why riot police were called to do what was “really ordinary policing.”

“They had two security guards, ten police on site and ten or twelve riot police,” Ms Bacon said.

Anne Picot said that the arrests were the first made at a test drilling demonstration.

She said that she had not seen a police presence as heavy as the one on Friday October 21.

“The police in our opinion are acting like a private security force for WestConnex and AECOM,” Ms Picot said.

Demonstrations continued on Monday October 24 when the riot squad was again called to the site.

AECOM has now commenced test drilling on Holmwood St for the WestConnex M4-M5 link tunnel. The three protestors arrested were granted conditional bail to appear at Newtown Local Court on November 17.