Police reclaim coat of arms after struggle
By MONIKA BOOGS
Canberra Times
Australian Federal Police officers and members of the Aborigine Tent Embassy clashed yesterday afternoon as police retrieved the coat of arms allegedly stolen from Old Parliament House at the weekend.
A 44-year-old Melbourne man was arrested for hindering police and a 55-year-old man was issued with a summons to appear in the ACT Magistrates Court over the alleged theft of the coat of arms.
The melee occurred hours after the tent embassy members issued a writ seeking the end of the use of the kangaroo and emu as national symbols.
Detective Superintendent Ray Sweeny said police, armed with a warrant, went to the tent embassy to ask for the coat of arms but were refused.
Tent embassy members resisted and tried to stop police seizing the coat of arms. Police were allegedly hit and grabbed as they took the coat of arms.
Superintendent Sweeny said police would have preferred that the coat of arms was returned without any violence.
''We were hoping they would understand what we were trying to do,'' he said. Police would maintain a security presence at Old Parliament House.
After police had retreated members of the tent embassy refused to speak to The Canberra Times, swearing at a reporter and a photographer to go away.
They continued to yell abuse at police through a loud speaker.
Chief Police Officer John Murray said he was disappointed at the actions taken on the weekend.
Police patience had been ''tested'' and they had attempted to negotiate with the tent embassy members over the past two days.
However, a criminal act had allegedly occurred and police were bound to respond to it, he said.
Ngunawal elder Ruth Bell said yesterday that the tent embassy members were not representative of her people.
The tribal elder was concerned that the actions of the tent embassy members would reflect badly on the Ngunawal people.
She was ''very, very surprised'' when the coat of arms was taken from Old Parliament House and said it was better to talk about issues.
Earlier in the day, tent embassy lawyer Len Lindon said the writ was served on the Federal Government's solicitor at 11.30am.
''We're seeking an order from the court that the Commonwealth of Australia stop using the kangaroo and the emu,'' he said.
The writ also calls for all Australian High Court justices to disqualify themselves because of a conflict of interest, and for international judges to sit in on the hearing.
The writ's grounds include that the animals are of significance to the Aboriginal people, and that the Commonwealth could not produce written proof that any Aboriginal person ever transferred copyright of the kangaroo and the emu and their graphical representation.
Yesterday morning embassy elder Kevin Buzzacott said they had not had any contact from police.
''What right do the police have to take the emu and kangaroo,'' he said. ''We did not steal anything it came back to where it belongs.''
Mr Buzzacott called on Prime Minister John Howard and Indigenous Affairs Minister Philip Ruddock to come to the tent embassy to talk about the issue.
''Let's get the rightful people to sit down and talk about it,'' he said.