Mass Arrests at Newcastle Climate Protest Weekend
New South Wales police have confirmed that 141 people were arrested during a weekend of dramatic climate protests at Newcastle Harbour, where activists attempted to block ships from entering the world's largest coal export port. The protests, organised by climate group Rising Tide as part of their annual "protestival," saw activists take to the water in kayaks on both Saturday and Sunday in a coordinated effort to disrupt coal shipments.
Dramatic Scenes as Activists Scale Ships
The weekend witnessed several dramatic confrontations, including three protesters scaling a ship's anchor on Sunday while unveiling a banner reading "Phase Out Coal and Gas." According to Rising Tide, their efforts successfully forced at least two coal ships to turn around, including the vessel RAGNAR on Sunday afternoon after approximately 95 people in 50 kayaks blocked its path.
Greenpeace activists also joined the protest action, with three activists boarding a coal ship and writing "Timeline Now" on its side using non-toxic paint. One activist was seen latching onto the ship's anchor chain in a bold display of civil disobedience.
Violent Incident Mars Peaceful Protest
While much of the protest maintained a peaceful atmosphere, authorities reported a violent assault at nearby Foreshore Park. A 46-year-old man was hospitalised with lacerations to his back, arms, legs and head following the alleged incident. A 17-year-old boy also received treatment for minor injuries after reportedly intervening.
Police have arrested an 18-year-old man in relation to the assault, charging him with two counts each of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and wounding a person with intent to cause grievous bodily harm. The accused was refused bail and is expected to appear before Bail Division Court on Monday.
Among those arrested over the weekend were 18 juveniles and 121 adults facing various offences under the Crimes and Marine Safety Acts. Two women were also arrested aboard a ship off the Newcastle coastline.
Police Response and Safety Concerns
NSW Police expressed concerns about safety during the protests, alleging that a boat entering their exclusion zone failed to stop and collided with a police jetski around 10am on Sunday. Fortunately, no injuries were reported from this incident.
"Police witnessed several unsafe practices on the water over the course of the event despite requests that attendees refrain from entering the harbour with the intention to obstruct users of the port," a police statement read.
While acknowledging the right to peaceful protest, authorities emphasised that "there will be zero tolerance for illegal and dangerous behaviour."
Activists Speak Out
Mina Bui Jones, arrested on Saturday for swimming into the shipping lane, described the experience as "empowering." She stated, "It was thrilling to see the boats go back into their berth, and to know that we had prevented a coal ship from making a delivery... was thrilling and I would do it again."
Dr Elen O'Donnell, a Greenpeace activist who scaled one of the ships, emphasised the peaceful nature of their protest. "We're trying to send a message that we do not want any new coal and gas projects, and we need a timeline to phase out fossil fuels," she explained.
Newcastle City Council defended its decision to approve the festive events that ran alongside the protests, which included speeches, workshops and live music headlined by Australian indie pop act Lime Cordiale.
As the world's largest coal export port, Newcastle sends approximately 150 million tonnes of coal offshore annually, primarily to east Asian markets. The weekend's protests highlight growing community concern about Australia's continued reliance on fossil fuel exports amid the climate crisis.
