Tuesday 19 February 2019
Adani’s ruthless aggression exposed in
leaked “attack dog” plan
Wangan and Jagalingou Traditional Owners say an explosive ABC report this morning has revealed the corruption of process and the intimidation being engaged in by Adani’s new legal team. They say Adani are trying to silence its opponents and build political pressure to push its Carmichael project through. (ABC News story here).
The Traditional Owners say they are clearly targeted in Adani’s “attack dog plan” and that Adani’s new law firm, AJ&Co, is running a malicious strategy to take down Adani’s critics, including the W&J Council’s senior spokesperson Adrian Burragubba.
W&J Traditional Owner and spokesperson Murrawah Johnson said: “W&J leader Adrian Burragubba, and the Traditional Owners Council, has been at the receiving end of this outrageous ‘lawfare’ strategy from Adani and their “trained attack dog” lawyers.
“This is the face of Adani that we know. We’ve seen Adani’s ruthless behaviour and their abuse of the legal process first hand. They are unrelenting in trying to stamp out our resistance to the coal mine going ahead on our country,” Ms Johnson said.
W&J Traditional Owner and senior spokesperson Adrian Burragubba said: “Adani are engaged in malicious action against me, and they are trying to vilify me for standing up for my rights.
“Adani’s attempt to bankrupt me is clearly guided by this litigation strategy and is an abuse of the legal process. We can reveal we have previously received threats of massive economic torts and damages from AJ&Co unless we stop speaking out. We will not be silenced.
“We’ve known all along Adani can’t be trusted. Their dealings with us have always carried the threat: ‘agree to the mine or we’ll get it anyway’. Adani do not have our genuine free, prior and informed consent. They manipulate outcomes to suit themselves, and when our people have stood strong on our rights and said no, they piled on the pressure.
“And now, as their plan says, they are ‘playing the man’ and using so-called ‘allies in Indigenous communities’ to diminish the standing of us rightful Traditional Owners who oppose their mine.
“The Queensland Government must not give ground to these corporate bullies. It should begin an investigation into the corruption of the Adani ILUA dealings and the abuse of process revealed in Adani’s attack plan”, concluded Mr Burragubba.
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MEDIA CONTACT:
Anthony Esposito, W&J Council Adviser, 0418 152 743
