Saturday 28 February 2009

Civil disobedience congratulated

Diane Forsyth's actions have not gone un-noticed.

Her protest actions of civil disobedience was based on her conscience, while a Councillor on the Cairns Regional Council.

"Often when people get into public office they start to limit their behaviour and decision-making to conform to general public expectations rather than follow their convictions and conscience," said Geoff Holland on the Cairns Coev network this week, an online forum about environmental, community and sustainable development issues.

"We all need to compromise and horse-trade to some degree. But public leaders also need to LEAD and this sometimes requires personal social risk," Geoff said.

"Di had the courage and sense of leadership to take that risk. What we need right now is a range of community leaders to come out in public support of Di's actions - not necessarily agreeing with her views, but supporting her right to civil disobediance in accordance with her conscience and moral convictions."

He says that the media may try to pigeon-hole Di as a marginal extreme public figure, who is not really fit for public office, when the opposite is true.

"If it can be widely recognised that Di's actions were heroic, particularly because she held public office, then we might see a small shift in the cultural-political consciousness of the Cairns community. Civil disobedience is appropriate for anyone on occasion. We each should stand up for what we believe in. Then we would have real participatory democracy."

"Thankyou Di Forsyth!" Geoff says.

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