Faces of the Florentine

Ordinary people standing up for an extraordinary forest

NEW MYSTERIOUS EXCLUSION ZONE IN FLORENTINE FOREST

CASE AGAINST 20 FLORENTINE FOREST CONSERVATIONISTS ADJOURNED TWO WEEKS, WHILST FOREST STILL THREATENED

The case against 20 Upper Florentine forest conservationists has been adjourned for two weeks, after Forestry Tasmania in a stunning last gasp effort produced information of a new mysterious exclusion zone that the conservationists apparently have broken.

The police prosecutor chose to seek an adjournment of two weeks, needing the extra time to forward this new information from Forestry Tasmania to Crown Law and the Department of Public Prosecution for review and advice.

The trespass charges were expected to have been withdrawn by the Tasmanian Police due to Forestry Tasmania’s more than 200-metre-wide bungle in defining its own exclusion zone, which caused a test case regarding this same matter against Ellendale resident Lynda Blyth to be dropped last Monday, after the police chose not to present any evidence.

“We are very suspicious of Forestry Tasmania and their alleged new exclusion zone, which the police prosecutor stated in today’s Magistrates Court was “unpublished”, and that the Police had not been instructed to enforce,” said one of the defendants, New Norfolk resident Inger Visby.

“We call on Forestry Tasmania to immediately publish a list of all other secret exclusion zones – the public has a right to know.”

The case has been adjourned to Tuesday 20th Oct at 2.15pm.

The conservationists, mostly middle-aged Derwent Valley and Central Highlands residents, are among the 22 people who were arrested in the Upper Florentine forest on Mother’s Day this year. The arrests took place during a rally at which more than 200 people voiced their dissent against the destruction of the World Heritage quality values of the Upper Florentine forests.

The Upper Florentine valley is virtually surrounded by Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area and is largely untouched by industrial logging. The forest contains large areas of old growth forest, as well as caves containing evidence of Aboriginal occupation stretching back around 30,000 years.

Faces of the Florentine will continue to encourage fellow Tasmanians to visit the Upper Florentine forest, and invite all to a Community Information Day in the forest on 11th Oct at 11am.

www.facesoftheflorentine.com
Inger Visby, Faces of the Florentine