this story, really really makes my heart bleed... really..


from cannabisculture.com:
Famous Nimbin, Australia Hemp Bar Forced to Close After Eight Years of Activism

Famous Nimbin, Australia Hemp Bar Forced to Close After Eight Years of Activism
by Australian Broadcasting Coorporation (02 Sept, 2008) This local landmark has battled police many times, but finally closed under threat of eviction
Nimbin Hemp Bar and EmbassyUnder allegations of a drug being unlawfully sold from the premises, the Nimbin Hemp Bar closed its doors recently, ending an eight year campaign on cannabis law reform. Unlike previous raids and protest in the Northern New South Wales town, the closure was unattended by police as approximately 100 people farewelled the Hemp Bar.

Nimbin Hemp Embassy spokesman and Museum curator Michael Balderstone said, "Both landlords of the hemp bar and the museum have got a letter from the NSW Crown solicitor's office saying they've got to kick out their tenants," he said.

The letter addressed to the owners of the Hemp Bar building states, "The application is based on detective Sergeants Smith's reasonable grounds to suspect that a drug is unlawfully sold or supplied on or from the premises, or has been so sold, or supplied and is likely to be so sold again on or from the premises."

A six year resident of Nimbin, Lurinda Simpson says, "A lot of people here in Nimbin actually appreciate the lifestyle we have living here. They actually enjoy the fact we can live our lives as we like. We like doing what we do and we're not hurting anyone, if anything we're letting people know what else is out there and available to them."

According to the Hemp Bar website, "The Hemp Bar is a place where you can sit in a relaxed atmosphere sip coffee and have a smoke while you browse the latest information about medicinal cannabis, industrial hemp and the state of global cannabis law reform."

However, Vivian of Nimbin believes, "The marijuana has sucked all the energy out of the place. There are a lot of people who like to do positive things around the place but it all gets lost in a haze of dope smoke. I don't think blackening your lungs with smoke is culture... I think if you could make Cullen Street (Nimbin's main street) free of dope a lot of good things would start happening here," Vivian explained.

A resident of the Hemp Bar, David Cannabis Carrol says, "We've been running the Hemp Bar for over eight years and it's a little sad, it's terrible but life goes on. We could probably go and do high court stuff and all that rubbish but in then end I'm not sure if it would be worth it... we haven't got that sort of money anyway."

Dave remains hopeful that the Hemp Bar is not completely finished, "Maybe one day the hemp bar will rise from the ashes and spring up somewhere else... I don't know. But for me, I'm going to take a break for a while...it's been eight long years."

While the the residents of the Hemp Bar left the premises without any fuss, the Nimbin Museum remains open but undecided about the future.

After meetings with local Police and the buildings landlord, Museum curator Michael Balderstone said, "It's looking like a new tenant will be required for the Museum. Whoever that is, they will have to install surveillance cameras in and around the entire building for police to monitor."

- Article from ABC News, September 2nd, 2008

www.NimbinHempBar.com

ina state (NSW) where cannabis laws are so tight, this was one tiny/huge last stance of freedom
and now its gone
they say all good things must come to an end, when will the bad things come to and also?
how come bad things are so hard to get rid of?

peace,
ileso

That make me sad being Aussie you know one step forword 3 steps back

the latest news is:
The Hemp bar is still closed and the hemp Museum has a couple of weeks to justify its existence. Hasn't changed a thing of course. It's still just as easy for the average tourist to score and the locals never bought at those places anyway.
This is all the result of the local MP. He's a conservative in opposition and I guess was looking for some column inches so he gets up in parliament demanding the govt do something about Nimbin - triple the number of cops etc. So the valiant boys in blue came in teamm handed and started throwing their weight around. The really funny thing was that a couple of weeks after his PR stunt the MP's son was busted for running a crystal lab in Lismore (the lacal big town) - front page headlines and all. Two months later all charges were very quietly dropped. Hmm

mmmh, wasn't it the 80's reefer madness on Hawaii that drowned the islands in ICE!!!

I guess daddy is protecting his sons market more then anyone else which explains why his little boy was free to walk without being charged. Hey, maybe the two are business partners! No wonder that both hate pot

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Keep the gun oiled and the thumb green!

Nice to know that they have all their facts straight..

o
Yeah, she is soo well informed she doesn't even has a clue that smoking is just one way with pot besides the fact that tobacco blackens the lung and pot not. Is this the new international press standard now to print only the opinion of the biggest moron they could find for a interview?! And that not on pot alone, also on economics and etc. they concentrate on BS and spin but never take a close look at the issue and the cause of it and simply report the ongoing without pressing a moronic opinion up on us.

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Keep the gun oiled and the thumb green!

not surprising when you have morons running nations...

First I've heard. This just sux a**. Was hoping to visit the bar one day.

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The urge to save humanity is almost always a false front for the urge to rule it. -- H.L. Mencken