Indy Media Watch

**Scroll for updates**

Mere hours ago I was commenting how impressed I was at the maturity and sensibility of protesters at the Melbourne G20 meeting.

Anyway...

Like clockwork, it turned ugly. As always, for all its flaws, Indymedia is great for action photos of protest activities. It started off nice. Then a Police truck's windows spontaneously shattered in a mysterious fashion... The headline describes it as "Police Truck Deconstruction".

And then it was on.

Via email:

The contingent in white jumpsuits and covered faces (photos 3 and 4 in the link above) were very aggressive and I saw them steal a camera from a press photographer. He took after them, but I’m not sure if he recovered it or not. On the ABC tonight, the Government described them as probably being from Europe and having flown out just to provoke trouble.

I wonder if they support open media? Speaking of which,

A television journalist was reportedly set upon by 20 people and kicked and punched.

Err... Don't hate the media, be the media! Then get belted.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation reports:

A protest against the G20 Summit in Melbourne has turned violent with some members of the crowd kicking police horses and throwing eggs at officers.

About 2,000 chanting protesters have marched through Melbourne towards the venue of the G20.

A police van has been destroyed and barricade lines broken as the protest turns ugly.

Protesters have thrown glass bottles, flares and steel rods at police, and upturned barricades were also hurled at police in riot gear.

Police officers on horses were forced to move away from protesters after some kicked the legs of the animals.

That will be the animal rights activists...

The Australian mainstream media seem to have most of the news, I assume reports will trickle through to Melbourne Indymedia over the next few days when the pepper-spray stops stinging. As always, we will be able to hear exactly how the police started it...

Update: It was the cops all along!

I saw Police State agent provocateurs dressed as activists and smashing the van and starting all sorts of trouble but everyone including the media and even some protestors bought it.

Who are these people? Cops or shadowy far right elements?

Idiot.

A comment on this post asks:

No reports of peacful protests though. What happend to all those promises???

. A subsequent comment is posted twice:

By that rationale, anyone not deemed 'violent' would be welcomed with open arms in to the conference. I didn't see too many church groups, civil society groups, peak bodies or Non-governmental international aid agencies being invited in for a cup of tea and a chat.

Someone responds:

Anybody realise that the last two posts were identical but from different authors

Stay tuned for more...

Update: Youtube Video of the Police truck here. Notice how the truck 'deconstructed itself'. What a clever truck. According to the comments on Youtube:

Before I switched on the video, they were smashing the windows using dismantled street signs.

. Street Signs are fascist manifestations of authoritarian fascist fascism... Could Youtube replace Indymedia? Numerous comments to Indymedia and this blog claim (with no evidence whatsoever) that Google has bought Indymedia. Google owns Youtube. Dum Dum Daaaaaaaaaaaa...........

There is also an extensive photo-essay of the protest here.

Via Melbourne Indymedia comes reports that Police attacked a "Festive Gathering". Check the article and feel the festivity.

A further post on Melbourne Indymedia is rather damning of the whole scene.

The protests yesterday revealed the impotence of Melbourne's organised activist scene in the face of the visit by some of the leading neo-liberal criminals on the planet. The contrast with S11 could not have been more stark. One the one hand we had yet another march (yo hum) and the other a group of testerone wankers indulging in "fight the power" fantasies - neither of which disrupted the running of summitt.

The Herald Sun reports:

A police spokeswoman later said a number of police officers were bitten during the incident and had to be taken to hospital for a check-up.

Can we call them animals yet?

Update: Amazing video of above incidents.

Update: Perhaps less amazing, this footage of police playing cricket before the protest starts.



The actual caption given to it by the Indymedia photographer:

3:00 PM 18TH NOVEMBER 2006 Police were out at the Treasury Building today practicing their baton technique ahead of further expected confrontations at the G20 Summit, Melbourne.

I think they were serious.

Update: The Front Page of Melbourne Indymedia carries this article which makes the usual claim that Police beat innocent, defenceless protesters.

Sunday afternoon a group of 50 demonstrators were beaten and trampled by police during a peaceful anti-G20 protest inside the foyer of the Melbourne museum.

Hang on, read that again: Inside the Melbourne Museum -where Indybay reports some protesters heard of a G20 dinner. Do you get the feeling we aren't being told the whole story? One very brief shot in the video gives us some insight into the 'other side' of the story, though predictably not enough. Fear the ominous voiceover. Can someone put it on Youtube for easier download?

One commenter is unimpressed:

Listen, you pitiful little pussycats. If you attack police, don't expect the rest of us to get upset if they hit you back.
I despair at the level of victimhood you 2006-style radicals display. Back in the 60s and 70s, we gave no quarter and expected none. We certainly didn't bleat and moan when the cops did what they're paid to do.
And learn to spell, for Christ's sake. Most of you appear to be semiliterate, at best.

Another article on Melbourne Indymedia also addresses a lack of balance

It's telling that in all of the reports from the G20 meeting posted here at MIM, not one piece actually focusses on what was discussed inside the G20 meeting. It's all about the protests in the streets.

The protests were ostensibly undertaken because of the perceived inability/preparedness of the G20 participants to achieve anything meaningful in terms of providing economic justice. Yet did any contributor bother to support this claim by reporting on what was said inside the meeting? Was there any evidence provided to support the contention that the meeting failed to achieve anything?

No. It was all focussed on the street battles with the cops. Vehicles being damaged. Walls being defaced. People being spat at.

How typical of the 'it's all about me' mentality which permeates collectives of imbeciles like this one.

You lot aren't really interested in the big issues surrounding world poverty. You just want to fight the police and have your picture taken damaging SOMEONE ELSE'S property (never your own), throwing things at other people and generally acting like the moronic tools which you are.

What a bunch of vacuous wankers.

Speaking of which, another article on Melbourne Indymedia claims protesters were set up!

All cars and items were taken out of the exclusion zone the night before the G20 started. One thing however remained mysteriously placed in a convenient place approximately 50 metres from the police front line. How this dumpster appeared in this place was at first questionable. Why you may ask was a dumpster full of iron bars, wooden pallets and broken bricks left in such close proximity to the front line?
The simple answer was explained to me by a certain official media representative who will remain nameless.
This was bait. Bait to provide ammunition for protesters to possibly use against police, and hence in the short-term making all protesters at the summit seem like wild renegades.

It's clear! The violence would never had happened had the Police not left weapons casually lying around right? Those protesters must feel soooooo stupid for falling for such an obvious prank. They never would have smashed up that police truck and assaulted police if they'd known who really wanted them to... Right.

Comments on that post then turn to Israel - Now there's a surprise - and (get this) Indymedia's "Pro-Israel bias". Good grief.