Dear Supporters,

We continue making progress in our campaign for demanding State Government follows proper democratic process, abides by the rule of law, and shows respect for the people of Victoria.

The questions we posed to Casey Council have enabled us to piece together a concerning timeline that reinforces our case:

📅  2018: Premier Daniel Andrews commits to CREATE a new landmark

📅  2021: Harpreet Kandra (also the author of the "multiculturalism” petition), lobbies State Government for the name change

📅  Late 2022: State Government decides to rename Berwick Springs Lake

📅  Dec 2023: Casey Council was contacted regarding the renaming. It defers to Melbourne Water (as the naming authority) and advocates for community consultation. 
State Government ignores advice and hold no consultation

📅  Nov 2024: The unthinkable happens

This timeline clearly shows the State Government deliberately bypassed community consultation, in disregard of mandatory statutory regulations.

We know State Government discussed the renaming of Berwick Springs Lake with some Sikh community representatives and that they EXCLUDED the local community, a divise decision that split the community between those who were denied their democratic and legal right to be consulted and those who were hand-picked for the  secretive discussion.

Our multifaceted approach to this issue continues, with several milestones completed. These include lodging an appeal with the competent authority, proactively engaging with Casey Council, and submitting Freedom of Information (FOI) requests. Also, in response to Premier Jacinta Allan's baseless accusations and offensive remarks in Parliament against our diverse, multicultural community, we supported a separate petition that calls for a formal apology.

Our primary focus remains Brad Battin MP's community consultation. Every submission strengthens our case for proper process. Your continued support and engagement are crucial. Please keep sharing both our petition and the consultation paper link: https://www.bradbattin.com.au/survey/consultation-paper-berwick-springs-rename

We will come to you with the next update when we have something significant to report. This may well be in the New Year.

Thank you for standing with us.

The Berwick Springs Lake Petition Team

 #BerwickSpringsLake #CommunityVoice #DemocraticProcess