There have been some side benefits to writing “Peace Power And Politics: How New Zealand Became Nuclear Free” (reviewed in this issue by Jeremy Agar. Ed.). One was learning more about the interesting and inspiring history of campaigning groups such as the Campaign against Foreign Control in Aotearoa (CAFCA). CAFCA’s origins go back to a feisty group called Campaign Against Foreign Military Activities in New Zealand (CAFMANZ) formed in 1972. These days CAFCA shares personnel and an Organiser, Murray Horton, with the Anti Bases Campaign but “peace” issues are the domain of the Anti Bases Campaign.  By 1972, CAFMANZ’s founders, many of whom are still prominent activists, had four years of anti-bases campaigning behind them.

Owen Wilkes, a CAFMANZ founder, described these early campaigns in a great booklet: “Protest: Demonstrations Against The American Military Presence In New Zealand. Omega 1968, Woodbourne 1970, Mt John 1972, Harewood/Weedons 1973”.(1)  “Protest” is packed with facts but it is also a racy read and well worth borrowing from the library for a first hand account of this important chapter of our peace history. The Vanguard Films award-winning documentary “Islands Of The Empire” also covers this period and is recommended viewing.

Omega

To summarise: in June 1968 the Canterbury student newspaper Canta published a Special Emergency Edition – an exposé of the US Navy plans to build an Omega very low frequency (VLF) radio navigation transmitter in the Southern Alps.  The article was headlined “Government Deals New Zealand Into The War Game” and it described how the Omega transmitter would be an invaluable aid to Polaris nuclear submarines. It is hard to believe now, but this Canta edition eventually ran to 72,000 copies – it sparked a nationwide debate and feisty student demonstrations, most notably a 4,000 strong march in Christchurch. Internationally, 1968 is inextricably linked with student-led revolt against the Establishment, and the Vietnam War. While New Zealand had troops serving in Vietnam, according to Owen Wilkes it was the Omega issue that first roused students here to militant anti-war action.

Woodbourne

Nearly three years later the campaign could score a victory when it was announced that the Omega station would be built in Australia rather than in New Zealand. In 1971 the Progressive Youth Movement and students organised a national anti-base demonstration against Project Longbank, a US Air Force station at the RNZAF base Woodbourne (Blenheim Airport).  Diligent research revealed that Longbank’s function was to spy on French nuclear tests and serve as part of an international nuclear explosion detection network.

Mount John

The 1972 national anti-base demonstration was dubbed “The Battle of Mt John”. Some 250 activists travelled to the Mt John observatory near Tekapo to protest at a US Air Force satellite tracking station built on land leased from the University of Canterbury. Policing was very aggressive and two demonstrators were seriously injured – a schoolboy suffered a fractured jaw after he was kicked in the face by a dog handler and two others were bitten by police dogs, one of them on the penis. At the end of the weekend feelings were running high. “Somebody vented their frustration by placing a large boulder on the Mount John access road and triggered off a glorious episode of mass vandalism. At least 90% of the 300 or so people present were soon straining and sweating to move every available boulder”.(2) The road was rendered completely impassable, littered with hundreds of tons of rocks.

Harewood

Subsequently,  the University revoked the Mt John  Air Force lease and Longbank closed down at Woodbourne, but the Christchurch activists who set up CAFMANZ, believed that a long-term anti-bases campaign lay ahead. History proved this to be only too accurate. Owen Wilkes promoted a new campaign target: the US military facilities at Harewood (Christchurch International Airport), the “largest and longest established American military base in New Zealand”. Although most people associated the US presence at the airport with innocent scientific research in the Antarctic, Owen had probed the base’s myriad roles including supporting the US Air Force’s Military Airlift Command (MAC), the aerial pipeline linking all US bases. “The base is in fact a general purpose military base which functions in support of any and all military tasks which need to be carried out in this part of the world”.’(3)

Subsequently Operation Deepfreeze came under the control of the US National Science Foundation – a process of outward civilianisation that did not impact on MAC’s operations. In March 1973 CAFMANZ organised the first national demonstration to promote the need to demilitarise Harewood and to expose the US Navy/AirForce facilities at the Airport and the US communications facilities at nearby RNZAF Weedons. The police were informed about the weekend plans which included a comprehensive educational tour.

Things did not go smoothly. Participants were blocked from proceeding anywhere near the base by a police line set up on the Memorial Avenue access road. Activists who tried to get close to the US buildings by dodging around the police lines were thwarted and some were arrested.  When he tried to proceed with his tour, Owen Wilkes suffered a facial injury after being pushed into a wooden barricade. The perpetrator was Christchurch Police District Commander, Superintendent Gideon Tait, who later claimed his actions to have been caused by the pressure of men behind him.

The heavy policing lent on the cooperation of the RNZAF who deployed helicopters to intimidate the demonstrators and drown out the speeches. The demonstration was dispersed by police using a technique later used against 1981 anti-Springbok tour protestors*: serried ranks of police pushing forward against the demonstrators chanting ‘Move, move, move’. It was a terrifying experience for the demonstrators who could not move out of harm’s way before they were pushed over or trampled on.(4)  *There was a Springbok rugby tour of NZ scheduled for winter 1973 and the Police used the March 1973 Harewood protest as a dummy run for their tactics. But the tour was cancelled by the Labour government. Ed. At the Sunday forum held on the protest weekend Murray Horton reflected on the success so far against the US military presence in New Zealand: “it has won support based largely on an anti-war, anti-American nationalism platform. The time has come for this nationalism to be politicised, for New Zealanders to understand the implications of these small and rather unimportant outposts of American empire”.(5)

CAFMANZ activists were at the forefront of a national campaign to expose US military funding of university research, because “that country has specific legislation stating that all research funds from the military must have military significance”.(6) Owen Wilkes and other CAFMANZ activists also lent support to the Australian Stop Omega campaign and, in 1974, 11 members of CAFMANZ took part in a three week-long Long March against the US North West Cape naval communications station at the westernmost point of mainland Australia. At the beginning of 1975 CAFMANZ embarked on an alternative to the Long March - a Resistance Ride around the South Island calling at the US military bases and also stopping at other places of political and environmental significance such as the site of the proposed Clyde Dam.  The Ride was shadowed by two policemen – dubbed Tom and Jerry – and a police mobile command post.

CAFMANZ became CAFCINZ - Campaign against Foreign Control In New Zealand - around the time of the Resistance Ride.(7) From now on the activists would also be concerned about threats to New Zealand sovereignty from foreign economic control as well as military intrusion. A major focus for CAFCINZ in its early years was the aluminium smelter at Tiwai Point, and its owner Comalco’s “corporate welfare” power deal with the Government (and it still is a major focus. Ed.). Only the corporate names and ownerships structures have changed in succeeding years.

Black Birch

In 1981 Owen Wilkes was working in Norway as a peace researcher for PRIO (the Peace Research Institute Oslo), but he continued watching over US military activities in New Zealand. He wrote articles for New Zealand journals describing the US Navy’s plans to build a “transit circle” facility on the Black Birch mountain range near Blenheim. The proposed observatory would be able to gather data about the exact positions of thousands of southern hemisphere stars. The US claimed it needed this level of precision in order to improve the stellar guidance systems of long-range missiles. However, missiles need to be able to reach their targets with pinpoint accuracy only if a “first strike” on hardened enemy missile silos is being considered. Owen Wilkes pointed out that Black Birch data would support the stellar inertial guidance system of the new US Trident submarine.

CAFCINZ organised the first protest at Black Birch in March 1982. A 20-strong group travelled up from Christchurch for a weekend of activities that included a leafleting blitz and a public meeting in Blenheim. The observatory was still to be built at the summit of the mountain so the demonstration took place at the locked access gates while the police stood guard.(8) When Owen returned home in September 1982 he set out on a national speaking tour urging peace groups to take up the issue as a contribution to the regional anti-Trident campaign. But the campaign was conducted largely by way of media debate and protest letters until February 1986 when CAFCINZ organised a second demonstration at the mountain. It wasn’t all plain sailing.(9)  Activists hung a sign on the locked access gate: “Black Birch Observatory: Demilitarised Zone: Access to Black Birch Data Expressly Prohibited For Foreign Military Purposes: By Order People of Aotearoa”. Then they jumped the fence, and according to the Peacelink write-up they managed a “brilliant tactical manoeuvre (i.e. getting lost)’ and thereby successfully avoided the farm buildings. Once on the access road, clouds hid them from a searching police helicopter but a police car arrived at the summit not long after the activists. Fortunately the police allowed the protestors to tie two massive banners around the structure, with the slogan ‘Star Gazing Yes – Star Wars No’”.

CAFCINZ Becomes CAFCA

CAFCINZ became CAFCA – Campaign against Foreign Control in Aotearoa-  at its 1986 Annual General Meeting. The change to the use of Aotearoa for the country name was uncontroversial –most peace and justice groups made this decision around this time – as a way to acknowledge Maori rights and tino rangatiratanga. CAFCINZ members were asked three months ahead of time to choose between three alternatives all including “Aotearoa”– the other two contenders were: Campaign for an Independent Aotearoa (CIA) and the Aotearoa Independence Movement (AIM). 

The next Black Birch protest in January 1987 was organised by a Wellington group from Peace Movement Aotearoa. About 30 activists mounted an all-night vigil outside the base. Overnight the wind was so strong that protest plans could not be carried out. The group had intended to use strong lights and illuminating kites to interfere with the base’s optical instruments but the observatory was out of action due to the wind. Owen Wilkes wrote some time later that campaigning against Black Birch was “damned hard work”, both from the perspective of explaining that the data it collected could be later used to make nuclear missiles more accurate and just the sheer difficulty of reaching the site. “Black Birch could hardly have been better hidden away from public and media attention. To hold a demo outside the installation took half a day to climb up and half a day to get down again, with serious risk of hypothermia along the way.”(10)

ABC Takes Over Campaign

The Anti Bases Campaign (ABC) was formed in 1987, and in the tradition of its predecessor groups it did not flinch from going the hard yards to draw attention to distant or hidden bases. In 1990 ABC organised an ambitious Touching The Bases tour which included a memorable and freezing cold climb to the Black Birch summit in the company of visiting peace activists from the Philippines, Bougainville and Fiji. No one got hypothermia but the photos of the balaclava-clad visitors are a reminder that the risk was genuine.