Melbourne's public housing residents fighting back

Vanguard May 2013 p. 11
Jim H.

The Victorian state government’s recent attempts to push  residents in Melbourne’s public housing estates to cave into plans to step up the road to privatisation have hit a brick wall (at least for the time being), in the face of stiff opposition.  Residents have not been hoodwinked by false claims about participation and community development

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Without the smokescreen all that was left was a cynical plan for private development of office and retail properties on public housing land.  After being completely exposed the government found itself backtracking and holding off its plans.

But the battle is not over yet. Both sides are working to shore up their position. Residents and their supporters are organising to lift their capacity to fight.

For its part, the government is looking for ways to get off the back foot.  To do this it has engineered a side track by carrying on about and moving to ban political groups and what is deemed as any form of political activity from the estates. Political organisations are now being effectively banned. The real purpose is to prevent residents from getting organised to defend their collective interests.

Meetings and other activities involving groups cannot take place without prior permission. Material is not to be distributed. Ministry of Housing heavies and a few security goons on the estates have been charged with policing the administrative order.

Targeted tenants are being followed and harassed.

This is of serious concern to all Australians, as it sets a precedent to be employed at other places. A legal challenge is being put up involving the Human Rights Commission and others from legal circles.

To counter the attack it is very important to know why it is occurring.

The answer is that Victorian government, in its eagerness to serve big business, is attempting to intimidate, to create a straw man in order to isolate the tenants and cut down existing public support, by claiming that the issue is being manipulated by outsiders with a different agenda, and it is working to divert action away from fighting for public housing as the main focus.

Understandably, there is a strong wish to fight against this injustice. And it is right to do so. With this though, it must always be remembered that the only guarantee of success is through reliance on the efforts of many. The force of many must be wielded to keep the aim on the fight for public housing.

By their actions the Victorian government and those it works for are picking up a rock to drop it on their own feet. They provide an opportunity to expand the battle, to begin the process of linking the defence of current public housing to raising the demand for a major boost in expenditure for maintenance and new housing stock.

Public housing tenants are showing the lead in this by doing the leg work required to build up their capacity to assert themselves collectively.