The Ekka is the time of the year when the country comes to the city, when our primary producers get to showcase what they do at Queensland’s biggest annual event.
This year, the start of the Ekka will also be an opportunity for farmers to protest against the Palaszczuk government’s proposed changes to vegetation management laws.
Over the past few months, the anger against these proposed laws has really snowballed. It’s been astonishing to see so many farmers right across Queensland willing to get involved and make their voices heard.
Protest rallies in the regions have generated some great media coverage, billboards have now gone up in key centres as well as Brisbane, and videos of farmers telling their stories in their own words have been shared widely on social media.
We are now preparing to take to the streets of Brisbane to protest against these unfair laws and we want as many people as possible to get involved.
On Thursday August 4, farmers will march down George Street to Parliament House to drive home the message that these vegetation management laws are not fair and they will increase food prices, shut down regional development and cost jobs.
Farmers rarely take to the streets to protest against government decisions, and this is the first time in AgForce’s history that we have organised a march to Parliament House in Brisbane.
We want anyone involved in agriculture or who supports our farmers to come along and take part so the State Government gets the message that we are fed up, we are angry and we are not just going to meekly accept these changes.
Agriculture has always been one of the foundations of the state’s economy, and I firmly believe our industry has a very bright future. But we need sensible land management laws if we are to reach our full potential.
This protest rally in Brisbane is all about telling the Queensland Government they can’t keep kicking farmers around and expect us to take it lying down.
We’re not asking for much – we’re just asking for ‘fair laws for farmers’.
