Unions plan to blockade Bastion Pt

Press, 26 April 1978, Page 1

Unions plan to blockade Bastion Pt

PA Auckland There may be violence at Bastion Point if the police move to evict or arrest protesters. The Auckland Trades Council plans a mass picket at the point and physical resistance is possible. Although the acting president of the council (Mr M. C. Jackson) said last evening: “We are not in the game of violence,” he also said that much depended on the police. He said the picket would probably not allow the police to move on to the land. If there were sufficient picketers they would stand shoulder-to-shoulder, “and the police will have to use violence to get there.”

It would depend on how events unfolded as to now unionists would react. It was put to Mr Jackson that a picket might not reach Bastion Point in time. He said: “I understand there are sufficient people there (on Bastion Point) to forestall any action by the police.” If the police took the four protest leaders that was just the start. There

would still be other protesters left.

He said the council had made a decision on Monday to recommend to affiliated unions thU a mass "ticket be organised if an eviction attempt was made. Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Crown Lands (Mr G. McMillan) personally served injunctions on Mr Joe Hawke and Mr Roger Rameka at 3 p.m. on Monday.

The injunctions were served as a result of Mr Justice Speight's decision last Thursday which in effect ordered them to stop trespassing. They required the four defendants to vacate Bastion Point immediately. An informed view is that some sort of action may be taken against the four today. It is believed that a further verbal order to vacate the land will be given before the police are asked to move against the bulk of the protesters. The protesters decided yesterday to ask the Trades Council to take a strong lead in defence of their Bastion Point occupation.