A forest logging contractor who cut a rope that was attached to a protester, suspended in a tree-sit high above a logging machine, has been found guilty of assault.
The Bob Brown Foundation say Helena Griffiths was “peacefully protesting” in area they claim to be swift parrot breeding habitat with 10 others in May last year when the confrontation occurred.
The Hobart Magistrates Court heard Griffith felt terror when her platform 20 metres above the ground became unstable.
In a video played to the court in September, Griffiths could be heard screaming at the worker after her rope was cut.
“F–k you, you f—–g prick,” she yelled, as he watched on and another protester demanded to know what had happened.
The man was then filmed saying: “She’s not stupid enough to have herself tied off to that, surely.”
Former Greens leader Bob Brown said the logging of Tasmania’s native forests should stop.
“This is a rare case of loggers who behave dangerously towards protestors being charged and convicted,” he said.
“The ultimate violence we want stopped is the destruction of life-filled forests but Prime Minister Albanese is right behind the vandals.”
The case will return to the Hobart Magistrates Court next year.
