By Peter Murphy
There is a new energy and momentum in Australia’s anti-war movement and it was out and loud at the Close Pine Gap – Sacred Land Back Convergence at Alice Springs (Mparntwe) on July 17-20. Organisers planned for 150 to come, but 600 turned up! The Heritage Caravan Park had seen nothing like it. Most people set up their tents and camped through the very cold nights.
The organisers came from Mparntwe for Falastin and the Melbourne-based Anti Militarism Action Network (AMAN) which also grew out of a Melbourne campaign for Palestine. About 75 per cent of the participants were women, and the organising team was almost entirely women. Young people dominated, but all generations were present. The leadership came from the traditional owners of the land on which the US war-fighting base is located, the Hayes family of the Central Arrente people.
The weekend of July 18-19 was full of plenary sessions and workshops educating the participants about the many issues connected to Pine Gap, including the severe legal environment for protests in the Northern Territory. The core was about colonialism and imperialism. It was properly opened by the Hayes family who told the assembly that the base was on land with important sacred sites which they wanted to protect. They performed a smoking ceremony for the entire 600 participants.
Aunty Felicity Hayes made it clear that her people were deeply affected by the deadly harm being done by Pine Gap to First Nations people in Palestine, Sudan and other countries.
Each day NT Police harassed the participants by stopping vehicles for defect checks, driver ID, and alcohol and drug tests. Around midnight on July 18 large firecrackers were exploded at the park fence, causing alarm to nearby campers, and after sunset on July 19, someone slashed tyres on several vehicles parked near the entrance of the caravan park.
The goal of the Convergence was to support the demands of the Hayes family at the gate of the Pine Gap base on the morning of Monday July 20. A convoy of about 100 vehicles departed around 7.30am for the short journey, but the NT Police decided to check every driver with drug and alcohol tests. This took about an hour, and then the convoy moved on to the fence and gate, which was blocked by Federal Police.
Aunty Felicity Hayes, some of her family, close supporters and Greens Senator David Shoebridge negotiated to pass through this line and to go further to present a large format letter to the base commander, calling for the base to close and for the land to be returned to the traditional owners. This was the furthest that the Hayes family had been able to walk on their land since the US took over the area in 1966. They are asking all Australians to sign on to this letter – https://tr.ee/YME_fJYjCd Here is a seven-minute video report on the event https://youtu.be/13_eJW8tUMc?si=UbvsKihNYisfynqW
It was a very moving moment as speakers spoke about the significance of this action for the Arrente people, for the Palestinian people, and for the future of Australia. All those thousands of people who have made significant protests at Pine Gap since the first one in 1976 would be very proud that this fight continues and is being led by new generations fired with democratic principle and great determination.
At the briefing on the evening of July 19, the organisers made clear the Hayes family’s request that no one be arrested at the action, that there be no violence, and that there be no banners or signs which distract from the main message – Close Pine Gap, Sacred Land Back. The large and diverse range of participants respected this call.
The Pine Gap commander had advised his 800 staff to stay away for the four days from July 17-20, according to information from the parents of school children in Alice Springs.
The Convergence disrupted this major US war fighting base for a few days, and it injected a new wave of disruption into Australia’s military alliance with the US.
IPAN National Conference strengthens movement
The Labor Party National Conference took place in Adelaide on July 23-25, and the Independent and Peaceful Australia Network (IPAN) organised a spirited protest against AUKUS and the US Alliance on the morning of July 24. A key speaker was US filmmaker Abbie Martin, whose 2025 film, Earth’s Greatest Enemy, is having an impact now at screenings around Australia.
Echoing the energy from the Convergence, the IPAN organisers had expected about 120 to take part in their conference, but 250 turned up, requiring a larger venue at short notice.
The plenaries and workshops examined the situation with AUKUS and the Force Posture Agreement and the danger of Australia being part of a US war against China. There was a broader assessment of US economic and cultural domination of Australia. Nathalie Farah, an organiser from the Convergence, spoke about its significance and called for a more effective national structure for the anti-war movement.
The Conference Declaration is being finalised because it will include the many inputs by all participants which were recorded online or on paper. A major focus is how to strengthen IPAN’s communications and organising capacity.
One highlight of the program was a boat trip down the Port River to see the Australian Submarine Corporation facility at Osborne, which has been designated as the site for construction of the new AUKUS submarines in the late 2030s, and as a nuclear waste facility. This is the focus of a major campaign by the Port Adelaide Community Opposing AUKUS (PACOA).
