Kathy Newnam, Darwin
Local Murdoch rag the NT News is once again rallying the troops in support of the further militarisation of the Northern Territory.
On January 20, the paper carried a report of last year's missile defence program trials just outside of Darwin. The trials were held as part of the development of the US "Son of Star Wars" missile defence program. This program, which has met with determined opposition right across the world since former US President Ronald Reagan attempted to introduce its predecessor ("Star Wars"), plans to take the US military domination of the world into another realm — space.
Rather than criticise the Australian government's complicity in developing this dangerous program (the government signed on after last year's trials), the NT News report wrote proudly of the local fisherman who got to show the US officials around the harbour.
In its editorial on January 24, titled "We're at the sharp end", the NT News proudly rattled off the military installations already in Darwin — the thousands of troops, the F/A 18 fighter-bombers, the Delamere bombing range and the Abrams tanks and helicopter gunships soon to arrive. It went on excitedly to talk of the US training facilities planned for Delamere Range and Bradshaw station (an old cattle station that takes in an area larger than Austria).
"Combined with Pine Gap and Jindalee in Central Australia, this would make the Territory one of the most important listening stations in the world", the editorial crowed. "We should be proud that we are playing our part in keeping the peace around the world", it concluded.
Despite the NT News-led cheer-squad, there is significant opposition to the growing militarisation of the NT and many people are unwilling to accept Australia's complicity in the US drive for military dominance of the region and the globe.
The Darwin No War committee is planning ongoing campaigns against the militarisation of the NT and the Australia-US alliance. [See the Activist Calendar on page 23 for details of the next meeting or email <no_war_nt@yahoo.com.au>.]
From Green Left Weekly, February 2, 2005.
Visit the Green Left Weekly home page.