Activists Occupy Raytheon Lifts
27th Nov 2008
For the fifth time this year, a group of activists returned to the Brisbane offices of the giant Raytheon Corporation to resist the corporation’s war profiteering. Raytheon is the world’s largest manufacturer of guided missiles, including the infamous Cruise Missile, as well as a manufacturer of at least four types of cluster bombs.
The group had previously performed deliverance rites, or exorcisms, at the offices, and posted the walls with pictures of child victims of Raytheon weapons, as well as human blood. On two of these occasions there were arrests.
After the third exorcism, Raytheon used their vast resources of technological genius to work out how to prevent people accessing the second floor of the building without Raytheon approval. They installed a camera in the lifts and made the second floor button inactive without being switched on by Raytheon security. Today, while seven people held placards and banners in the foyer or on the footpath, four people entered the two lifts armed with posters and prayers, and pressed the floor two button and waited….. and waited…
Police were a little quicker in coming this time and arrived after about half an hour. Two people, Bernie Moloney and Jim Dowling, refused to leave the lifts and were arrested and charged with trespass. They were taken to the Wynnum watchouse and released on bail to return to court on January 19th 2009.
The group vowed to continue their resistance.
16th May 2009
Two people who occupied the lifts Of Raytheon office last November yesterday received $500 fines in Wynnum (Brisbane) magistrates court.
Another trial before theirs enabled a small group to picket the courthouse for two hours with signs such as “Put Raytheon on Trial”. They also placed bright Yellow canisters around the front of the court. Each canister contained information about the Raytheon cluster bombs which they resembled.
Bernie Moloney and Jim Dowling are part of a group engaged in ongoing resistance to the presence of Raytheon in Brisbane. Raytheon are the world’s largest manufacturer of Guided missiles, as well as manufacturing four types of cluster bombs, and various other weapons of mass destruction.
During the trial Bernie and Jim were able to describe and show pictures of Raytheon slaughter, as well as cross examine a Raytheon security worker Kevin Smyth.
Kevin had been with Raytheon for ten years, but claimed only to be made aware of Raytheon’s manufacture of cluster bombs etc, by the trial. When asked if it concerned him that Raytheon was responsible for the carnage depicted in the photos in front of him, he replied, “No not at all”. His disturbed appearance belied his answer, however.
All the police witnesses were also obviously disturbed by their role in defending such a corporation. However appeals to higher consciences as well as the Nuremburg Principles of International Law, met with the usual numb response. The magistrate himself remained stoic throughout the proceedings, while giving Bernie and Jim considerable leeway to ask questions many magistrates would have not allowed.
Bernie and Jim both informed the magistrate that they would not be paying any fine.