Anti-tunnel protesters in Melbourne accuse police of heavy-handed tactics

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/17/anti-tunnel-protesters-accuse-police

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Protesters have accused police of heavy-handed tactics following clashes at a test drilling site for the controversial East West Link road project in Melbourne.

About 100 protesters stopped workers from gaining access to the drill site near Brunswick Street in Fitzroy.

In the early hours of Wednesday morning, four drilling sites were established as part of the Victorian government’s plan to build an 18km cross-city road linking the Eastern Freeway to the Western Ring Road.

Police broke through a picket line on Tuesday, forcibly dragging protesters away. The anti-tunnel activists regrouped and forced a further line, around the police, while one protester scaled the drilling equipment to prevent work starting.

One protester, Catherine Frank, told Guardian Australia: “We were standing against the fence and the police grabbed me. This [police] guy came up to me and said ‘fuck you’. Someone was pulling me to the ground. I’ve got cuts to my leg. We weren’t pushing them or anything, we were just standing there.”

Another protester, Ben Convey, said the drilling sites were set up in secret in a bid to quell community opposition.

“Yesterday was a bit like waking up to a police state in Fitzroy,” he said. “There were hundreds of cops on the street, a helicopter overhead. There was no notice given to anyone. The only way they could do this was this massive police operation that’s completely over the top.”

Keith Fitzgerald faces having his house demolished by the new road, having lived in Bendigo Street, Fitzroy for 69 years.

“The pressure has been absolutely terrible on us,” he said. “They’ve got no human decency. It looks like we’ll be out by November and they haven’t given us any idea where we are to move to. They’ve got no human decency. It’s absolute crap.”

Protesters were offered free coffee by the Brunswick Street café Mario’s as the standoff reached its third hour. Victoria police said more officers would be required to clear the protesters, making work unlikely on Tuesday.

The acting assistant commissioner, Rick Nugent, said he was unaware of any accusations of heavy-handed tactics. Protesters could use the official complaints procedure, he said.

The East West Link tunnel has proved highly contentious for a number of reasons, not least its cost, which is estimated at $6bn to $8bn for its first stage.

Opponents are also unhappy that the road will tear up parkland, create a tangle of on-off ramps in the inner suburbs and soak up money that could be used to improve public transport. The Victorian government has been criticised for not releasing a business case for the road, with critics claiming it will do little to ease congestion.

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