Media Release: WA Police caught in Disrupt Burrup Hub sting, still seize all phones and issue move-ons from Woodside’s Burrup Hub

Tuesday 28 November 8am AWST

Good morning,

Disrupt Burrup Hub campaigners have had phones seized and been issued with move on notices from the Burrup Peninsula during an attempted WA police sting early this morning, witnessed by an international documentary crew after campaigners became aware of police surveillance and decided to document a suspected police operation on the Burrup.

Disrupt Burrup Hub campaigners, who have been aware of police surveillance of the campaign for a number of months, were en route to Woodside’s Burrup Hub, 10km from Karratha in WA’s Pilbara region, at dawn this morning with an international film crew to film interviews and footage for a documentary about Woodside’s Burrup Hub and campaigns opposing it.

Based on information received in advance, Disrupt Burrup Hub campaigners had anticipated a significant police operation awaiting their arrival, and consequently cameras were rolling as police launched their operation with road stops and vehicle searches on the approach to Woodside’s Burrup Hub.

At approximately 4.30am, as expected, WA police intercepted a convoy of campaigners and searched their vehicles on the Karratha-Dampier Highway. Despite finding nothing during their search, while campaigners filmed them, police seized all phones belonging to Disrupt Burrup Hub campaigners, requested passwords and passcodes which were refused, and issued move on notices prohibiting access to the Burrup Peninsula for 24 hours.

Disrupt Burrup Hub campaigners, who were visiting the Burrup specifically and solely to film interviews and footage, with no intention or equipment to conduct any direct action at Woodside’s Burrup Hub, were nonetheless stopped and searchd by WA Police, had all of their phones seized and issued move-on notices prohibiting them from being on the Burrup (know as Murujuga to traditional custodians).

Anticipating the police operation, campaigners filmed videos the night before predicting the failed sting attempt by WA police, which along with footage of the police operation filmed live on the Burrup this morning are available in the attached Google Drive.

A Disrupt Burrup Hub campaign spokesperson said this morning:

“This morning, entirely as we anticipated, we were stopped and searched en route to film a documentary at Woodside’s Burrup Hub. We have been aware of police surveillance and infiltration within our campaign and anticipated a police operation to intercept us. There was no intention or capacity to conduct direct action at the Burrup Hub this morning. Rather, several DBH campaigners with just the clothes on our back planned to do some interviews and film footage for social media as the sun came up. 

This time we were one step ahead and filmed the whole thing. As expected, we were intercepted as a result of escalating police interference with our campaign. Our phones have been seized with no grounds or justification given and we have been banned from the Burrup. The only reason provided by WA Police was that one campaigner was wearing a Disrupt Burrup Hub t-shirt when their vehicle was searched by WA Police this morning. We look forward to a full investigation into how and why police have tried to disrupt Disrupt Burrup Hub in such a calculated, malicious way, when the real threat to public safety is Woodside’s Burrup Hub and the catastrophic threat it poses to culture and climate.”

Update at 1.10 pm:

Below are statements from Disrupt Burrup Hub barrister Zarah Burgess, Murujuga traditional custodian Raelene Cooper and David Mejia-Canales, Senior Lawyer at Human Rights Law Centre, in response to WA police behaviour in Karratha and on the Burrup this morning.

Disrupt Burrup Hub barrister Zarah Burgess said:

“As a lawyer, it is a sad but not unexpected indictment on the WA Police when your clients preemptively send you videos for you to upload in the event of their arrest, when they are intending to do nothing more than film interviews on location with a documentary crew. As a citizen of this State, it is downright frightening that WA Police have normalised this pattern - of abuse of power, of State overreach and of capitulating to the interests of a private fossil fuel corporation.

“WA Police officers seized five of our clients’ mobile telephones this morning after extensively searching two vehicles and finding nothing. No charges were laid, but all five people were issued with ‘move on’ notices. Those same officers refused to speak to me this morning to explain what powers they were relying on to do any of this. Currently, we have no information about the legal basis on which the mobile telephones were seized, and so the lawfulness of these seizures is very much in question. I have spoken to the Environmental Defenders Office and they will be writing to WA Police to request answers to these questions.

“As for the move on notices, these are the same kind used by WA Police in Northbridge to eject rowdy and intoxicated people who are committing offences or disturbing the peace. It is unclear to me why such powers would be wielded against people with an environmental campaign group who are lawfully on public land to film their stories and the stories of Traditional Custodians.”

Murujuga traditional custodian, Mardudhunera woman Raelene Cooper said: 

“I have been stalked, followed and harassed by WA Police this morning for no other reason than my friendship and work with campaigners stopped by police early this morning for no good reason. I leant a car to a close friend when he visited me yesterday, that car was stopped by police this morning en route to Woodside’s Burrup Hub and searched without any reason being given, and now my family is being harassed by police. This morning, I have been followed in my car with my daughter and granddaughter by police who have also been lurking outside my home in Karratha. This is unacceptable harassment and a waste of police resources to intimidate people standing up to protect our sacred ngurra, when they should be protecting vulnerable people and investigating real crimes - such as what Woodside are doing out on the Burrup.”

David Mejia-Canales, Senior Lawyer at Human Rights Law Centre, said:

“We are deeply concerned by WA Police’s treatment of climate defenders. The Cook Government has a legal duty to guarantee our right to peaceful protest and to prevent WA Police from interfering with or violating the enjoyment of our rights.

“Murujuga Traditional Owners, climate activists and environmental organisations have longstanding, deep concerns about Woodside’s proposed gas drilling in Murujuga which would be the largest new fossil fuel project in Australia. Under international law, their concerns must be heard free from police intimidation and harassment.”