Wednesday, 24th November 2010

Ark Tribe, Not Guilty

Dear Supporter,

At 9:57 am, in Room 21 of Adelaide Magistrates Court, Ark Tribe was found not guilty.

Ark sat in front of the magistrate accompanied by his lawyer Stephen Dolphin, union representative and his family.

The packed court room was filled with media, Ark’s mates who work on site with him and supporters. People were spilling out into the hallway.

Outside over 5000 supporters filled Victoria Square, from the park to the court steps to show their support for Ark.

You can send a message of thanks to Ark and congratulate him on his freedom.

Without Ark these laws would never have been tested.

Before he went into the court room this morning, we presented Ark with over 2500 messages of support from you.

The Government must now recognise the Australian Building and Construction Commission to be a shambles and move to abolish it once and for all.

The controversial ABCC has the power to coerce construction workers into secret interviews without legal representation of their choice – powers that exceed even those of ASIO.

For allegedly failing to comply with the interview process Ark was dragged through the courts for 18 months.

This is a historic day in our campaign to get rid of the ABCC and the laws that underpin it. Your support for Rights on Site has helped us get here.

We have to make sure no other worker is hauled through the courts for not attending a hearing with the ABCC. And we won’t stop until the laws that underpin the ABCC have been abolished.

Dave Noonan and the Rights on Site team
www.rightsonsite.org.au

P.S. News.com are running and online poll asking if readers think this to be a significant moment for the union movement. Nearly half the people are saying it changes nothing.

Make your views heard – click the link and give your vote. We know democratic freedom has been upheld today.