Good on Peter Lynch, Hugh Paveltich & Co protesting about dysfunctional Council, dysfunctional CERA, dysfunctional insurers, dysfunctional EQC, dysfunctional contactors & dysfunctional lawyers gobbling at the quake-trough.
Before the protest, I parked at Chester St West & snapped a queue of poor & homeless being fed at Cranmer Sq by Korean Daniel Chung & family. Some of those people were at the protest.
1 January 2013, New Year awards: Chung would be honoured, services to the community.
06.05.12. Daniel Chung's free food for poor & homeless, Cranmer Sq
Across Armagh St, on Cranmer Centre demolition-site, I snapped Christ Church Cathedral Office: an angel statue attached to the first-floor balcony; pallets of bricks; old slate tiles; new slate tiles; cathedral stones behind fencing.
06.05.12. Post quakes rebuild on Windsor Hotel site, Montreal / Armagh St, by Cranmer Sq
06.05.12. Christ Church Cathedral Office entrance, Cranmer Centre, demolition site carpark, Montreal St / Armagh St, by Cranmer Sq
06.05.12. Christ Church Cathedral Office Angel, by Cranmer Centre, demolition site, Montreal St / Armagh St, by Cranmer Sq
06.05.12. Christ Church Cathedral, salvaged masonry, Cranmer Centre, demolition site, Montreal St / Armagh St, by Cranmer Sq
06.05.12. Quake damaged, boarded, steel mesh fence cordoned bldg, Worcester Blvd / Montreal St
At the protest, I snapped protesters, dogs, reporters. I signed a petition asking for 100% rates-relief for red-zoners. Why pay rates for no water, no sewage, no electricity, no telecom service, no rubbish collection, crap road services for NZ National government decreed red-zone, uninsurable, unlivable houses?
Not all red-zoners & TC3 green-zoners used public libraries, many closed & public pools, many closed. And many were battling to pay mortgages, insurances, rates on red zone-houses, in addition to being displaced & paying exorbitant rents to greedy landlords.
Never mind proposed 7.5% rates-increase, above inflation, by overpaid town clerk Marryatt & home-owners' battles with EQC, Fletcher, insurers & enduring SCIRT botch-ups!
And protest critics felt there was nothing to protest about!
06.05.12. St Elmo Courts demolition site, Cantabrians Unite protest site, Montreal St / Hereford St. Quake damaged, new Council bldg left. Quake trashed Central Police bldg right would be imploded 31.05.15
06.05.12. Cantabrians Unite, protest organizer ready to start, Montreal St / Hereford St
Protest-signs said it all:
NO WATER
NO SEWER
NO ELECTRICITY
06.05.12. Cantabrians Unite protesters, Montreal St / Hereford St
RATES
RELIEF
RESTRAIN REGIME
RESTORE DEMOCRACY
T MARRYATT
NEADS TO GO [sic]
RESIGN
NOW
GET RID OF
ALL
COUNCILERS [sic]
WE'VE GOT
NOTHING LEFT
TO GIVE
BROOKLANDS
PETITION
SIGN HERE
PARKER
MARRYATT
MUST
GO!
NEW COUNCIL
ELECTIONS ASAP
FUNDRAISING
FOR
LOCKED OUT TALLEY'S
AFFCO WORKERS
PUBLIC INTEREST
YEAH RIGHT!
GOVT TRANSPARENCY
YEAH RIGHT!
RED ZONERS - BLACKED OUT - ELDERLY
WHERE IS IT? 96% BLACKED OUT
INSURANCE
- FRAUD -
GOVERNMENT
COMPLICIT
STATE [Insurer]
DENY
DEFEND
DELAY
20 MONTHS
06.05.12. Cantabrians Unite protesters, Montreal St / Hereford St
06.05.12. Yellow, Hi-Vis vested cops, Cantabrians Unite protesters, Hereford St
CANTABRIANS
UNITE [Poster on Council bldg & posters in E suburbs ]
* FRESH MID-TERM ELECTION
* REPLACE THE CEO
TONY MARRYATT
* COMMUNITY RUN COUNCIL
* AFFORDABLE LAND / HOUSING
* AFFORDABLE RATES
PROTEST RALLY
SUNDAY 6th MAY MIDDAY...
06.05.12. Cantabrians Unite poster, Hereford St
06.05.12. Cantabrians Unite organizer, protesters, Montreal St / Hereford St
06.05.12. Christchurch Council bldg entrance, Hereford St
06.05.12. Ngai Tahu wall plaque, Christchurch Council bldg entrance, Hereford St
NO ASSET SALES
AOT - NZ IS NOT
FOR SALE
06.05.12. Cantabrians Unite protesters, Hereford St / Montreal St
THE BUSKERS ARE
GONE BUT THE
CIRCUS
CONTINUES
$91 MILLION = GOLD PLATED
2 WAY STREETS
06.05.12. Cantabrians Unite protesters, Baby Boomers, Montreal St / Hereford St
"NEVER DOUBT THAT A SMALL GROUP OF THOUGHTFUL,
COMMITTED CITIZENS CAN CHANGE THE WORLD.
INDEED, IT IS THE ONLY THING THAT EVER HAS."
- MARGARET MEAD
06.05.12. Cantabrians Unite protesters, Montreal St / Hereford St
POWER 4 THE PEOPLE
- NOT KEY'S CRONIES!
WAIRUA
NOT $ $ $
OCCUPY
EQUALITY
STREET
MARRYATT / PARKER
MUST GO
SALARY $470 000
OBSCENE
NOTHING BEING DONE EASTERN SUB[URBS]
CAPITALISM
NOT OUR FUTURE!
KA WHAWHAI TONU MATOU
AKE! AKE! AKE!
INTRODUCING
IAG
INJUSTICE
AND
GREED
06.05.12. Cantabrians Unite organizer, protesters, Montreal St / Hereford St
06.05.12. Brand new, Christchurch Council wall, post quake, epoxy glued! Cantabrians Unite protest, Montreal St / Hereford St
REBUILD! [Pic of Heritage Church, demolition site rubble, Colombo St / Brougham St.]
NAH THAT IS A REPAIR
YEAH RIGHT
NEW
COUNCIL
ELECTION
NOW!
06.05.12. Cop cars, Central Police, Hereford St, by Cantabrians Unite protest
06.05.12. Photographer, protesters signing a petition, Cantabrians Unite protest, Montreal St / Hereford St
06.05.12. Protester, dog, Cantabrians Unite Protest, Hereford St / Montreal St
06.05.12. Protester, Cantabrians Unite protest, Montreal St / Hereford St
06.05.12. Protesters jeering deputy mayor, Ngaire Button, peeping from upper floor of Christchurch Council bldg, Cantabrians Unite protest, Montreal St / Hereford St
06.05.12. Cantabrians Unite protesters, Hereford St / Montreal St
LET THE
PEOPLE
LEAD!
06.05.12. Cantabrians Unite protesters, Montreal St / Hereford St
THERE IS NO CRISIS [Flag]
YEAH RIGHT!
PACE
OCCUPY!
06.05.12. UN flag worn on a Cantabrians Unite protester's back, Montreal St / Hereford St
06.05.12. Petition signing, Cantabrians Unite protest, Montreal St / Hereford St
06.05.12. Media interview with Cantabrians Unite protest organizer, Hereford St / Montreal St
LOVE YOUR STUFF [State insurer, T shirt logo]
YEAH RIGHT!
STUFF
YOUR
LOVE!
06.05.12. Cantabrians Unite protesters, Montreal St / Hereford St
* LET COMMUNITIES LEAD
* HOUSING FOR ALL
* PEOPLE, LIFE, LOVE BEFORE PROFIT
* SHARE THE LAND
* NO TO GOVERNMENT COMMISSIONERS
* SUSTAINABLE POLICY
06.05.12. Formal protest complete, Cantabrians Unite protest, Montreal St / Hereford St
06.05.12. Retired TV star, signing Brooklands Petition, Cantabrians Unite protest, Hereford St / Montreal St
06.05.12. Crowd dispersal, end of Cantabrians Unite protest, Hereford St / Montreal St
A woman gave me a HOUSING PROTEST leaflet. The protest would be at CERA minister Brownlee's, Ilam electorate office, Greers Rd, 2pm, Sat 26 May.
06.05.12. Housing protest ad, Cantabrians Unite protest, Montreal St / Hereford St
After the protest, I trekked back to my car & saw two signs stuck on a Montreal St wall near the closed Art Gallery:
RIGHT TO WORK?
NO THANKS.
ABOLISH WORK!
06.05.12. Protest sign, Montreal St
SYSTEM ERROR
CAPITALISM HAS CRASHED.
INSTALL NEW SYSTEM?
OK
Outside the Art Gallery, Montreal St: The Wizard wearing black medieval gown & pointy hat stood on his aluminium ladder with a microphone ranting at Baby Boomers who waved SAVE THE CATHEDRAL signs at passing, tooting traffic.
06.05.12. Save the Cathedral protest, Montreal St
06.05.12. The Wizard, Save the Cathedral protest, Montreal St
06.05.12. The Wizard, Save the Cathedral protestors, quake damaged, Christchurch Art Gallery, Montreal St / Worcester Blvd
Montreal St / Armagh St, by Cranmer Sq, an advert-board:
RANGI RURU GIRLS' SCHOOL & CHRIST'S COLLEGE
JESUS CHRIST
SUPER STAR
MAY 14-19, 2012... [Pic of a schoolboy head wearing a crown of thorns].
06.05.12. Jesus Christ Superstar, ad board, Montreal St / Armagh St, Cranmer Centre demolition site, by Cranmer Sq
WE LIVE IN
SUPER LUNATIC
TIMES
*Trekked Cranmer Sq, Montreal St, Hereford St. 146 images.
Tueday 08.05.12. The Press reported that mayor Parker & inept councillors would get a 1.5% pay rise. That was insulting for ratepayers who were expected to pay 7.5% rates-rise. Would Parker & councillors refuse?
Tuesday 08.05.12. TV news interviewed some Brooklands residents who were at the protest. Brooklands suburb was entirely red-zoned by CERA which reckoned it was so damaged it must be wiped off the map. Some protesters differed from that NZ National government / CERA decree (geotech reports unavailable for the public) & opted to stay in Brooklands, as they would lose equity if they left.
23.02.11. A day post 22 February 2011 Quake, PM Key's speech had promised:
Progress is certain, things will get better, Christchurch will rise again. On behalf of the Government let me be clear that no one will be left to walk this journey alone. New Zealand will walk this journey with you. We will be there every step of the way. Christchurch, this is not your test, this is New Zealand's test. I promise you we will meet this test.
Although there were youngsters at the two Cantabrians Unite protests I attended, most protestors were Baby Boomers, the Kiwi generation doled largesse by NZ welfare state: free tertiary education; benefits like unemployment benefit, Domestic Purposes Benefit, cheap medicals, state pension, state housing, rent allowance... Those Kiwis became entitled by annual hordes of immigrants (like ourselves) paying for NZ government investments, welfare state, Waitangi settlements & importing overseas sourced expertise & productivity.
Although NZ's inflated housing market for Kiwi youngsters & immigrants, like myself, was almost impossible to enter, Kiwi Baby Boomers whined about quake-destruction, home investment equity & Council ineptness, yet never experienced moral challenges like apartheid, terrorism, civil war, conscription.
15.03.19. NZ would experience its first terrorist attack, when 51 Muslims were murdered at two Christchurch mosques.
Local government manipulation in post-quake Christchurch: A NZ National government appointed Crown managers in ECAN. Elected managers were booted out by National government, enabling National government supporting farmers to pollute Canterbury Plains & nitrate-pollute underground water & surface water with cow shit from intensive dairy farming.
As an immigrant, Baby Boomer I sympathised with protesters, but pitied them. Given their whinging, the biggest challenges they had were paying off mortgages; insurance negotiations; enduring incompetent local government.
11.05.12. The Press reported deputy mayor Button saying that councillors needed to trust the CBD rebuild consortium. The newly formed consortium: local Boffa Miskell consultants bossing overseas consultant firms Populous & Woods Bagot; local brutalist architect firm Warren & Mahoney, designers of ugly buildings like Crowne Plaza Hotel & the Convention Centre (both were demolished); Shepphard & Rout architects & RCP construction firm. But the consortium would accept $1m+ for a Blueprint to rebuild on red-zone-CBD swampland: liquefactioned, riverbanks subsiding, over 1 000 CBD ruins demolished. Why didn't the consortium Blueprint a new CBD on stable land?
In the west on safer land past the airport, Russley Rd four-laning was being constructed & safe Hornby was booming with imminent extensions to Hornby mall.
Like EQC, CERA became another government department wallowing in delays behind steel-mesh-fence-cordons & protected by NZDF-soldier checkpoints with an us versus them mentality. For a swifter CBD rebuild, why didn't CERA form the $1m+ consortium months ago?
Inept Council continued trumpeting new prestige buildings, like a new Convention Centre & a new 35 000 seater, roofed stadium, while red-zoners dossed in ruined-houses & white-zoners still awaited CERA land-zoning. The April 2013 deadline loomed for leaving red-zone housing & insurers still delayed payouts.
Weekend Press 12-13.05.12. While mayor Parker swanned overseas again, deputy mayor Button presided over an inept Council, crown observer & silenced councillors, who CERA minister Brownlee had threatened in January with "Shape up or ship out," before the February protest by 4 000 ratepayers.
Tuesday 15.05.12, 1.27pm, M4.5 quake, 11km depth, 10km NE of Christchurch (GeoNet). Long rumbling shook our Burnside house. Rattled my computer while I read Facebook.
Closer to the epicentre, Leah said her London St school shook while two seven year olds cried. Not having XL quakes for a while, we wondered if quakes had ceased, then wondered when the next XL quake would strike?
Luke, at work further west at Hornby didn't feel the quake at all, as he was on his feet operating a spindle moulding machine at Southern Pine Products. How we felt, or responded to a smallish quake depended on our proximity to the epicentre, depth of quake & whether we were active, or not.
Content & pics Copyright Mark JS Esslemont.
See Fewer show to protest at council (The Press / Stuff Co).
See Shape up or ship out council told (The Press / Stuff Co).
Was emailed by a Cantabrians Unite organizer.
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