Outcry may snag Bracks' barbecue By EWIN HANNAN and ADRIAN ROLLINS 2000-09-21 00:04:16 Premier Steve Bracks is under pressure to postpone or cancel a celebratory barbecue for police, with two more ALP branches condemning his support for police action during the World Economic Forum in Melbourne. The Uniting Church In Victoria has also backed calls by unions and civil libertarians for an independent inquiry into police conduct during the forum protests. Mr Bracks announced last week that he would host a barbecue at Parliament House for police and their families to thank police for their efforts during the forum. But ALP branch members yesterday called on Mr Bracks to either cancel or postpone the barbecue until the police ombudsman, Barry Perry, finalised his investigation into complaints by forum protesters against police. The Premier's Williamstown branch passed a motion this week condemning Mr Bracks and calling for the barbecue to be delayed until Dr Perry's findings were made public. The Flemington and Elsternwick branches of the ALP have also passed motions condemning the statements by Mr Bracks in support of the police. Flemington branch president Peter Robertson said yesterday he would resign from the ALP if the barbecue went ahead. "I'll be down there burning my membership card," he said. Flemington branch members also want the party's state conference to consider repudiating Mr Bracks over his support for the police. Mr Bracks returns to work today after two days' leave. A spokesman for the Premier said yesterday that the barbecue was "proceeding as planned". At its annual synod in Melbourne yesterday, the Uniting Church backed the right to protest peacefully and called on police to use a minimum of force. Several members of the synod, including the mover of the resolution, were involved in the protests. Reverend Dr Peter Matheson, the principal of the church's Theological Hall, said during the debate: "I don't think I have ever witnessed such police brutality as we saw here in Melbourne." He also condemned the use of terms such as "fascist behavior" and "un-Australian" - both used by Mr Bracks to describe the protesters - as evoking "terrible memories" of the McCarthy era in the United States. Deputy Premier John Thwaites yesterday moved to downplay the seriousness of ructions within the ALP, saying Mr Bracks was "quite right" to support the police and the government was "absolutely" behind their actions. "The police had a very difficult situation that they confronted," he said. "The advice I have is that they did a very good job." This story was found at: http://www.theage.com.au/news/20000921/A9616-2 -- Leftlink - Australia's Broad Left Mailing List mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Archived at http://www.cat.org.au/lists/leftlink/ Sponsored by Melbourne's New International Bookshop Subscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=subscribe%20leftlink Unsubscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=unsubscribe%20leftlink
