US plans Bombing Range in Northern Territory, Australia

indonesia / philippines / australia | environment | non-anarchist press Thursday November 24, 2005 09:46 by Brisbane Peace Convergence

Is not acceptable anywhere!

There are is a proposed use of Delamere Long Range training facility in Northern Territory (NT), Australia, by the USA forces for live bombing

There are is a proposed use of Delamere Long Range training facility in Northern Territory (NT), Australia, by the USA forces for live bombing.

This is a clear show of force to our neighbours in the Pacific with whom the Howard government has been reluctant to sign a non-aggression treaty. This is particularly directed at China, the biggest threat to the USA dominance in the region.

The Howard government is walking on a knife’s edge talking development of the Australian uranium sales with China while at the some time facilitating the USA’s military posturing.

This is just another insult to the communities of the Northern Territory who are already having a nuclear waste dump thrust upon them at nearby Katherine. This development poses an increased threat to the RAMSAR listed wetlands of Kakadu and Katherine Gorge. The US forces have a track record of inaccuracy in their bombing, including a near miss of a control tower at Delamere by a 500 pound laser guided bomb in August this year, and a fighter crashed on a nearby cattle station in September 2004.

Environmental, anti-nuclear and other grass roots organisations are concerned about the presence of nuclear war ships and nuclear weapons in Australian waters and land and the possible use of deplete uranium munitions such as those that have polluted and rendered toxic, dangerous to human health and unliveable numerous USA bases including Vieques, Okinawa, Germany, South Korea and Italy.

If the bombing is ‘so safe’ then the Government should have no problems with independent soil tests being taken from the NT and Shoalwater Bay to be assessed at the Uranium Medical Research Center in Toronto Canada. What steps are being taken by the Australian Government to ‘prove’ to the Australian people that DU weapons, ‘have not’ and ‘will not’ be used on our soil?

We are calling on all Australians to reject the Howard government’s support of the USA military presence in the country and to stand in solidarity with the communities opposing the nuclear industry and the nuclear waste dump being forced on them by the Howard government.

There are demands of an end to USA forces using the Australian country as a bombing test site.

One of these organisations opposing to the bombing testing site is the Queensland Nuclear Free Alliance http://www.geocities.com/peaceconvergence which is a network of environment and anti-nuclear groups dedicated to opposing the industrial and military nuclear cycle and promoting peaceful, environmental and socially just alternatives.