Police raid hippie festival

[postman]

Police raid hippie festival

From: The Sunday Mail (Qld) By Paul Weston

May 07, 2006

POLICE swarmed into the northern NSW hippie town of Nimbin yesterday in the biggest crackdown yet on illegal drug use at its annual Mardi Grass.

 

Police set up road blocks to stop and search vehicles driving into the township, about 60km south of Murwillumbah, as more than 10,000 people flocked to the festival.

Police on horseback patrolled the main streets and officers dressed in paramilitary gear and armed with guns inspected venues including the Nimbin museum, which vibrantly promotes marijuana use with its colourful Kombis inside.

 

Some residents were furious when police threatened to remove a sign reading "Hemp crops are the go, let it grow" from outside the museum because it covered a council security camera.

 

Working in teams of five, the officers made few arrests early yesterday but were expecting trouble as partying spilled on to the streets last night.

 

Police warn an influx of harder drugs such as speed and "ice" is fuelling outbreaks of violence in the town.

 

Superintendent Bruce Lyons warned the increased police presence would continue after today's rally which includes a street parade at 3pm.

"In the past 12 months there's been a continual rise in violence," Supt Lyons said. "There's been an emergence of amphetamine use.

 

"Ice is now on the streets of Nimbin. The usage of that is part of the reason for the increased violence.

 

"And the community at Nimbin is fed up with the amount of open drug-dealing. They want something done about."

 

Supt Lyons said many first-time visitors wrongly believed Nimbin was a place where hippies who stayed after the Aquarius festival in 1972 continued to smoke pot.

 

"I think Nimbin lost that badge of being a marijuana town many years ago," Supt Lyons said.

 

"While I understand that some people want to make a statement on drug reform, the town has more complicated problems in terms of mental health, use of different drugs and more violence."

 

Mardi Grass organiser Michael Balderstone said the increased police presence would only drive more dangerous drug use underground.

 

"Heaps of kids last night were taking ice, pills and powder. Police can stop the joints but it just makes them use more dangerous drugs," Mr Balderstone said.

Edited May 6, 2006 by postman

[WantDaChronic]

the police should be there to supervise the festival and at the most, remove people who are disturbing the peace...while i can understand them carrying on about the violence induced by drugs like speed and meth, they should be targeting those drugs and not mj

[Tom]

the police should be there to supervise the festival and at the most, remove people who are disturbing the peace...while i can understand them carrying on about the violence induced by drugs like speed and meth, they should be targeting those drugs and not mj

Yeah.

 

[F420]

And the community at Nimbin is fed up with the amount of open drug-dealing. They want something done about."

 

Umm, They knew what Nimbin was when they moved there.

 

Fucking retards.

 

All those pigs there are not needed, or wanted by the public.

Assholes.

[mull]

officers dressed in paramilitary gear and armed with guns inspected venues including the Nimbin museum, which vibrantly promotes marijuana use with its colourful Kombis inside.

 

A fear tactic! Remember our anti terror training from a couple years ago everybody - be aware, not alarmed(!)

[dsyfer]

I don't remember paramilitary coppers at the last Food & Wine festival I attended??

 

Honestly can someone explain to me the difference?

 

 

I wonder what the rate of car accidents:

 

People leaving Nimbin after the festival

 

vs

 

People leaving a wine tour or festival

 

??

[joerad]

ahhh, how dissapointing to see that the crackdown fears came true. end of an era...

[Guest SOMEONE]

its pretty full on

i made a run down there at 9am sat morning

clear run down no dramas

ended up leaving at about 1230

and on the way back towards brisbane

about 35k out of nimbin

there they are

5 car loads of the police stopping cars searching etc

they are even rumoured to have been tellin peeps to go back nimbin is full

 

it must of cost big johnny or mr morris alot of$$$ for the 3 day event

didi say johnny and morry sorry meant the taxpayers of aust

 

take care

n

[naturalmystic]

It pisses me off no end , one minute there pulling down a hemp sign the next there blaming ice and speed for there crack down , do they think where that stupid?? , they only have one purpose thats to beat up on and eradicate freethinking stoners .

[smokie7902]

all i have to say is when i was there on saturday me n a mate were standing around over watching the music we both had a joint each smoking it up they stopped and looked at us then one of the coppers had a big camera and iam pretty sure he turned it on and filmed me n my mate...why did he do that ?? then one of em gave us a wave then wlkaed off

so it didnt seem to me like they were really after mj they were basicley there to stop fights and hit the people with the other harder drugs like ice n all that

 

one thing i have to say is the hemp bar ROCKS!! if i ever go back to nimbin thats one place i will b spening most of my time at

 

peace