A firefighter who attended the recent large Palmerston meeting where members of the public voiced their deep concerns about the breakdown of law and order in the area has been asked to explain why he wore his uniform to the gathering.
This pettifogging request, which seems symptomatic of a bureaucratic malaise in emergency services that delights in such mind -boggling trivia , should be stomped on from on high .
Freedom of speech in the Territory has come to a sorry state if a person can, in effect, be reprimanded for wearing a uniform at a public forum. In a recent Quarterly Essay,writer David Marr described how public debate under PM John Howard had been corrupted by a decade of suppression and the strange willingness of Australians to watch their liberties drift away without much fuss. What is it that they say about liberty /freedom/ democracy depending upon eternal vigilance?
The utterly nonsensical Palmerston uniform episode is a clear indication of petty minded government individuals seemingly attempting to stifle legitimate debate and the flow of information, contrary to the official line, to the public.
Little Darwin understands the firefighter, who lives in Palmerston, had approval from his watch commander to attend the meeting , called by Mayor Macleod and attended by Chief Minister Paul Henderson and senior police officers.
Having had two cars torched near his own home, the officer said he was speaking as a local resident . He pointed out that 27 vehicles had been set on fire in Palmerston since January . A police officer made the nebulous point that some of those vehicles may have been stolen from Casuarina and other places, and were not therefore all from Palmerston. The mayor retorted that it did not matter where the cars came from, they did not a want them torched in Palmerston.
The fire officer also apparently mentioned a raid on a building site where the name Palmerston Gang had been painted. The use of the word gang goes against the official government spin that the troubles in various parts of the city are due to minors who engage in random , opportunistic acts.
So what was so wrong with a fireman exercising his right in a democracy to get up and speak about matters involving his own turf? There is no beef , and rightly so, when uniformed firemen participate in various charitable organisations, including the lively annual Christmas bash for pensioners . If members of the Australia Defence Force , of which there are many in the Palmerston area, turned up in uniforms and spoke up , would they be issued with inane please explains? Taken to a ridiculous extreme, why were the police in uniform at the large public rally? A number of questions need to be asked of the Chief Minister , the Commissioner of Police and the head of the Northern Territory Fire and Rescue Service. First off, who was the person who initiated the irksome action against the firefighter? Why?.. and so on.
The Police Commissioner, Mr Paul White, who is CEO of the tri-service , surely must realise that this pin- pricking , petty action serves no good. Any half -smart human resources officer would advise against a please explain. It is yet another indication of the adverse reflection on the Commisioner and the government resulting from the Palmerston meeting. Commissioner White was asked by the ABC’s Stateline TV show why he had not attended the Palmerston gathering and he replied that senior officers were there. Naturally, he became annoyed when the ABC persisted and suggested he had not shown up because unnamed persons said he was “ gutless .” A terrible, uncalled for slur by Aunty .
It is not the first time that firefighters have been warned about wearing their uniforms . On one occasion, when a hot issue related to the firefighters was about to be raised in the Legislative Assembly they went along to hear the debate and were warned by management not to wear their uniforms. This instruction was , rightfully, ignored. Federal parliament has been invaded by sections of the community in various uniforms- truckies, tradesmen , builders, pastoralists in cowboy hats, pensioners on walking frames. What is responsible for this colonial schoolmaster hangover in Darwin departments ?
NEWSFLASH : According to the ABC radio this morning , little has changed at Palmerston as a result of that public meeting attended by the Chief Minister and senior police officers. It was reported that a Palmerston resident had telephoned the emergency number twice re rampaging , armed youths numbering 30. The first call went through to Katherine and the second one ,40 minutes later , did not result in the arrival of police. However, the radio item claimed "unmarked " police cars could have attended and had difficulty finding any sign of trouble.
