Pine Gap Trial - June 13

Today started with our last procession to court and our last session of singing and inspirational readings in the park across the road.

We were all in good spirits when we entered court and when we arrived in the courtroom I put an application for a permanent stay of the trial (meaning the trial would be over forever) on the basis that we have not been able to have a fair trial. The judge answered no, (you can only ask!) but it was important to do it and state why because then all the points will be open to appeal, if necessary.

Then we had the closing address of Crown Prosecutor Dembo.  I was a bit disappointed at how dry and dull it was. I was waiting for him to deliver a damning indictment of us, but instead he trotted out the usual lines : "you cannot take the law into your own hands"... that we should utilise the parliamentary process as a means for change,and added that our planning was "cold and calculating' and then we even had the "hide to boast about it".

Then Bryan, Jim and Adele and I gave our closing addresses. I hope to get transcripts of these soon, but in the meantime I'll summarise what I told the jury.

Firstly I thanked them for listening to us and concentrating so hard.

I told them about the interest in the case from around the world and noted that we had received messages of support that morning from six countries as well as all over Australia.

I told them I hoped and prayed I had succeeded in helping them to understand my sincerity, my motives, my convictions and my actions.

"that when peaceful protest doesn't work, further action is required. History has proven this, my faith requires this and my status as a human being demands it.

"You see, I wrote letters to MPs and the Pine Gap satellites still gathered data like a giant vacuum cleaner.

"I attended demonstrations and the information was relayed in real time to the US military.

"Millions of people around the world exercised their democratic right to protest and poured onto the streets ,

"but still, the missile co-ordinates were prepared with the help of Pine Gap and the missiles fell. And more fell, and then more.   

"Everything that I did that was lawful didn't work.

"But I went to Pine Gap for a few hours and the base was shutdown and information was not relayed to Iraq and that day no missiles fell.

"Our action succeeded.

"I am asking you to find me not guilty - as other jury's around the world have done in similar cases.

"This is your right. You have the final word.

'I am asking you to decide using your conscience, as mothers, brothers, daughters husbands, fathers.

"There is one more thing I am asking you to do: consider for a moment the boots I am wearing.

"They are the hiking boots I wore at Al Shuala marketplace after it was hit by a missile. There was human flesh on the ground and puddles of blood everywhere.

"There is blood on my boots, blood from a human being that is there because of a targetting decision from Pine Gap.

"I am asking you to honour the humanity of the person whose blood is on my boots.

"I am asking that their death not be in vain.

"For the sake of their life, for the sake of Baby Noura, my boys, Ahmed, Faris, Mustafa, Seif, for the families in Baghdad in my care.

"For the sake of the truth, I ask you to exercise your right as a human being to make the decision you believe is right.

"I ask you to find me not-guilty."

That's an abridged version, but gives the gist of it....

For the rest of the afternoon the judge gave a summary of the whole case to the jury, which was very long and tedious.

Then she instructed them, that if they agreed with us or had sympathy towards us or strong feelings about the war in Iraq, and that if they agreed we should know more about Pine Gap, that was a natural human response.

Then she asked them to ignore that.

She asked them to rule on the elements of the charges, not according to their conscience, and emphasised this several times as did Mr Dembo.

So the jury were released this afternoon and required to come back at 9am tomorrow where they will get another 10mins of instruction from the judge.

Then they will go into deliberation and deliver their verdict when they have reached one unanimously.

Keep those prayers going and fingers and toes crossed that at least one member of the jury listens to their conscience.

We are all feeling good, and tonight we are holding a "mock trial", to get evidence from the expert witness on Pine Gap we were not allowed to question in the trial, Professor Richard Tanter from Royal Melbourne Institue of Technology, who came all the way to Alice Springs for the trial.

We shall send news tomorrow when we have it,

love and thanks to all,
Donna