In light of today's announcement that the whole country is immediately moving into traffic light red status, the Anti-Bases Campaign Committee held an urgent e-mail meeting to decide whether to proceed or not with next Saturday's Waihopai spy base protest and Blenheim public meeting.

Gatherings of up to 100 people are permitted and there are no restrictions on domestic travel. It is not a lockdown.

So, we could have gone ahead.

But the more important question is whether we should go ahead.

And our answer to that is no.

On obvious public health grounds, and because of the risk to people concerned - particularly as the South Island's first community Omicron cases are in the province next door to Marlborough.

Rest assured that this is not the end of ABC's campaign to close the Waihopai spy base.

Last November the Government announced that, in 2022, the base's two old satellite interception dishes and the huge white domes covering them will be decommissioned and dismantled.

But the base will carry on spying. And we'll carry on campaigning for its closure.

The whole spy base needs to be decommissioned and dismantled.

We'll be back.

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