Updates:
- 2pm: the 120 protectors of land, water and rights have left Parliament house, having shared their message with Federal parliament, blockading the front entrance for 3 hours.
- Greens Senators Christine Milne and Larissa Waters address the group.
- 1pm: Hon. Tony Windsor MP and Hon Bob Katter MP address the media and protestors sitting-in at parliament house to give their messages of support for community campaigns and Lock the Gate working for the protection of water from coal and CSG mining.
- Live photo feed at http://www.flickr.com/photos/lockthegatealliance/
- Follow @lockthegate and #calltocountry on twitter.com for latest updates
Original release:
- 120 landowners and supporters are staging a sit-in at Parliament House, Canberra, calling for Federal action to give landowners a 'fair go' against mining giants
- This follows both major parties yesterday voting down legal changes to give farmers the right to say 'no' to mining.
- A poll released earlier this week showed 86% of people support giving landowners the right to refuse access to miners.
"The current expansion of coal and gas mining across the country is one of the gravest threats Australia has ever faced as a nation" said Drew Hutton, President of Lock The Gate Alliance.
"While new laws passed yesterday to assess water resources are welcome, we are disappointed that both major parties voted against giving farmers the right to say 'no' to mining, leaving them to fend for themselves when the mining giants come knocking.
"We've come here today to ask the Federal Coalition to give landowners a 'fair go' - by supporting a legal right to say 'no' to coal and gas mining and acting to strengthen Federal laws around mining rather than weakening them as they have foreshadowed" he said.
"I'm a tourism operator from the beautiful Scenic Rim region of Queensland, but I don't have the legal right to protect my property or my business from coal and gas mining" said Innes Larkin.
"This is fundamentally unjust and it's time for our Federal politicians to protect their citizens and to make new laws that will put our most significant land and water resources off limits" he said.
" As a farmer from north-western NSW I've seen that the balance of power to negotiate is disproportionate between farmers and multi-national mining companies. The only way to restore that balance is to give farmers the right to say no", said Phil Laird
"Surveys of communities across north-west NSW have found that 96% of landholders reject coal seam gas mining.
"We're calling for all political parties to strengthen Federal laws to control mining and to put in place strong measures to protect farmland and communities. We're seeking the support of the Liberal National Party to defend our country" he said.
Images at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lockthegatealliance/
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