Protestors March to USAF facility at Mt John Observatory 1972

300 demonstrators, mostly young and students gathered from all over New Zealand at the Post Office in Timaru, on the East Coast of the South Island, They marched from there along the waterfront to Caroline Bay, a distance of about one mile.

From Caroline Bay the demonstrators moved out of town to Washdyke, about 3 miles to the north the site of the logistic end supply base for the Mt. John installation. — Mt John Protest 1972

March 1972: About 300 demonstrators, mostly young and students gathered from all over New Zealand to protest at the Mt John Observatory near Tekapo. The observatory was host to a United States Air Force Satellite Tracking camera. The photos show protestors gathering in Timaru and later confronting Police guarding the installation. The Ghana Railways bus belonged the Progressive Youth Movement (PYM) and bought to the protest by Murray Horton.

The protestors walked so far up the hill from the camp, found temporary fencing where police patrolled who would not even allow a letter of condemnation to be passed to the administration.

After an hour or so of speeches, shouting and talking the frustrated crowd walked down the hill again. Somebody realised there were many loose, easily moved rocks and boulders on the surrounding paddocks so started a group effort where all were soon engaged in a mass effort of innocent civic disobedience.

The Police had driven up the winding one lane road and were effectively trapped up there for hours until a snow plough was bought in from somewhere to clear the road, much to the amusement of protestors. Hence the photo of the four police walking down the hill above.

There is a comprehensive report in Victoria University student newspaper SALIENT on the demonstration. It is accessible at https://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/scholarly/tei-Salient35031972-t1-body-d1.html

Photographer: Ron Hazlehurst